react-zlib-js

Pure JavaScript implementation of Node.js zlib module for React Native, browsers, and JavaScript environments where native modules are not available.

Matches the Node.js 22.x LTS zlib surface, including Zstd decompression, maxOutputLength, info, bytesWritten, and Node's ERR_* error codes. The test suite verifies this by diffing against the host's real zlib and round-tripping every codec against Node's native implementation.

Table of Contents

• Features
• Installation
• Quick Start
• Promise-Based API
• API Reference
  • Convenience Methods (Async)
  • Convenience Methods (Sync)
  • Stream Factory Methods
  • Stream Classes
  • Instance Properties and Methods
  • Utility Functions
• Options
• Error Handling
• Constants
• Examples
• Limitations
• Compression Comparison
• React Native Usage
• Browser Usage
• Building from Source
• Migration to v3.x
• Migration from v1.x
• Troubleshooting
• License

Features

| Feature | Description | Node.js Version | |---------|-------------|-----------------| | Gzip/Gunzip | Standard gzip compression | All | | Deflate/Inflate | Raw deflate with zlib header | All | | DeflateRaw/InflateRaw | Raw deflate without header | All | | Unzip | Auto-detect and decompress | All | | Brotli | Modern compression, better ratios | 11.7.0+ | | Zstd | Decompression only - see Limitations | 22.15.0+ | | CRC32 | Checksum calculation | 22.2.0+ | | Stream Support | Node.js Transform streams | All | | Sync, callback & promise APIs | Promises are this package's own addition | All | | maxOutputLength | Caps output, throws ERR_BUFFER_TOO_LARGE | 12.19.0+ | | info: true | Returns { buffer, engine } | 12.19.0+ | | bytesWritten | Bytes fed to the engine | All | | Node ERR_* error codes | Same code, prototype and message text | All |

Installation

npm install react-zlib-js

Or with yarn:

yarn add react-zlib-js

Quick Start

const zlib = require('react-zlib-js');

// ============================================
// Gzip Compression
// ============================================

// Async
zlib.gzip('Hello, World!', (err, compressed) => {
  if (err) throw err;

  zlib.gunzip(compressed, (err, decompressed) => {
    console.log(decompressed.toString()); // 'Hello, World!'
  });
});

// Sync
const compressed = zlib.gzipSync('Hello, World!');
const decompressed = zlib.gunzipSync(compressed);
console.log(decompressed.toString()); // 'Hello, World!'

// ============================================
// Brotli Compression (Better compression ratio)
// ============================================

const brotliCompressed = zlib.brotliCompressSync('Hello, World!');
const brotliDecompressed = zlib.brotliDecompressSync(brotliCompressed);
console.log(brotliDecompressed.toString()); // 'Hello, World!'

// ============================================
// CRC32 Checksum
// ============================================

const checksum = zlib.crc32('Hello, World!');
console.log(checksum); // 3964322768

// ============================================
// Zstd Decompression
// ============================================

// Decoding is supported; encoding is not - see Limitations
const zstdDecompressed = zlib.zstdDecompressSync(zstdPayload);
console.log(zstdDecompressed.toString());

// ============================================
// Promises
// ============================================

// Omit the callback and you get a promise back
async function roundTrip() {
  const gzipped = await zlib.gzip('Hello, World!');
  console.log((await zlib.gunzip(gzipped)).toString()); // 'Hello, World!'
}

Promise-Based API

All async methods now support both promises and callbacks, allowing you to use modern async/await syntax without manual promise wrapping.

Using async/await

const zlib = require('react-zlib-js');

async function compress() {
  try {
    const data = 'Hello, World!';

    // Gzip compression with async/await
    const compressed = await zlib.gzip(data);
    const decompressed = await zlib.gunzip(compressed);
    console.log(decompressed.toString()); // 'Hello, World!'

    // With compression level
    const fast = await zlib.gzip(data, { level: 1 });
    const best = await zlib.gzip(data, { level: 9 });

    // Brotli compression
    const brotli = await zlib.brotliCompress(data);
    const unbrotli = await zlib.brotliDecompress(brotli);

  } catch (err) {
    console.error('Compression failed:', err);
  }
}

compress();

Both patterns work together

You can mix promises and callbacks in the same codebase:

const zlib = require('react-zlib-js');

async function mixedPatterns() {
  // Promise pattern with async/await
  const compressed = await zlib.gzip('data');

  // Callback pattern still works
  zlib.gzip('data', (err, result) => {
    if (err) console.error(err);
    else console.log(result);
  });

  // Mix both patterns in the same code
  try {
    const compressed = await zlib.gzip('data');
    zlib.deflate('data', (err, result) => {
      // both work together seamlessly
    });
  } catch (err) {
    console.error(err);
  }
}

mixedPatterns();

API Reference

Convenience Methods (Async)

All async methods follow the pattern: method(buffer[, options], callback)

// Callback signature: (error, result) => void

| Method | Description | |--------|-------------| | zlib.gzip(buffer[, options], callback) | Compress using Gzip | | zlib.gunzip(buffer[, options], callback) | Decompress Gzip | | zlib.deflate(buffer[, options], callback) | Compress using Deflate | | zlib.inflate(buffer[, options], callback) | Decompress Deflate | | zlib.deflateRaw(buffer[, options], callback) | Compress using raw Deflate (no header) | | zlib.inflateRaw(buffer[, options], callback) | Decompress raw Deflate | | zlib.unzip(buffer[, options], callback) | Auto-detect and decompress (gzip or deflate) | | zlib.brotliCompress(buffer[, options], callback) | Compress using Brotli | | zlib.brotliDecompress(buffer[, options], callback) | Decompress Brotli | | zlib.zstdDecompress(buffer[, options], callback) | Decompress Zstd | | zlib.zstdCompress(buffer[, options], callback) | Throws - see Limitations |

Omit the callback and the same methods return a promise. Input may be a string, Buffer, TypedArray, DataView or ArrayBuffer.

Example:

zlib.gzip('Hello', { level: 9 }, (err, result) => {
  if (err) {
    console.error('Compression failed:', err);
    return;
  }
  console.log('Compressed size:', result.length);
});

Convenience Methods (Sync)

All sync methods follow the pattern: methodSync(buffer[, options])

| Method | Description | |--------|-------------| | zlib.gzipSync(buffer[, options]) | Compress using Gzip | | zlib.gunzipSync(buffer[, options]) | Decompress Gzip | | zlib.deflateSync(buffer[, options]) | Compress using Deflate | | zlib.inflateSync(buffer[, options]) | Decompress Deflate | | zlib.deflateRawSync(buffer[, options]) | Compress using raw Deflate | | zlib.inflateRawSync(buffer[, options]) | Decompress raw Deflate | | zlib.unzipSync(buffer[, options]) | Auto-detect and decompress | | zlib.brotliCompressSync(buffer[, options]) | Compress using Brotli | | zlib.brotliDecompressSync(buffer[, options]) | Decompress Brotli | | zlib.zstdDecompressSync(buffer[, options]) | Decompress Zstd | | zlib.zstdCompressSync(buffer[, options]) | Throws - see Limitations |

Example:

try {
  const compressed = zlib.gzipSync('Hello', { level: 9 });
  const decompressed = zlib.gunzipSync(compressed);
  console.log(decompressed.toString());
} catch (err) {
  console.error('Error:', err);
}

Stream Factory Methods

Create Transform streams for piping data.

| Method | Description | |--------|-------------| | zlib.createGzip([options]) | Create Gzip compression stream | | zlib.createGunzip([options]) | Create Gzip decompression stream | | zlib.createDeflate([options]) | Create Deflate compression stream | | zlib.createInflate([options]) | Create Deflate decompression stream | | zlib.createDeflateRaw([options]) | Create raw Deflate compression stream | | zlib.createInflateRaw([options]) | Create raw Deflate decompression stream | | zlib.createUnzip([options]) | Create auto-detect decompression stream | | zlib.createBrotliCompress([options]) | Create Brotli compression stream | | zlib.createBrotliDecompress([options]) | Create Brotli decompression stream | | zlib.createZstdDecompress([options]) | Create Zstd decompression stream | | zlib.createZstdCompress([options]) | Throws - see Limitations |

Example:

const gzip = zlib.createGzip();
const gunzip = zlib.createGunzip();

// Pipe data through compression and decompression
inputStream.pipe(gzip).pipe(gunzip).pipe(outputStream);

Stream Classes

Direct class constructors (also available via factory methods).

| Class | Description | |-------|-------------| | zlib.Gzip | Gzip compression class | | zlib.Gunzip | Gzip decompression class | | zlib.Deflate | Deflate compression class | | zlib.Inflate | Deflate decompression class | | zlib.DeflateRaw | Raw Deflate compression class | | zlib.InflateRaw | Raw Deflate decompression class | | zlib.Unzip | Auto-detect decompression class | | zlib.BrotliCompress | Brotli compression class | | zlib.BrotliDecompress | Brotli decompression class | | zlib.ZstdDecompress | Zstd decompression class | | zlib.ZstdCompress | Present for API parity; constructing it throws |

Every class also carries Node's instance API: bytesWritten, bytesRead, close(), flush(), reset(), params() and destroy().

Example:

const gzip = new zlib.Gzip({ level: 9 });

Instance Properties and Methods

Every stream instance carries Node's instance API.

| Member | Description | |--------|-------------| | stream.bytesWritten | Bytes handed to the engine, before compression or decompression | | stream.bytesRead | Deprecated alias for bytesWritten, kept for parity | | stream.close([callback]) | Release the underlying handle and emit close | | stream.flush([kind][, callback]) | Flush buffered data with the given flush constant | | stream.reset() | Reset the stream to its initial state | | stream.params(level, strategy[, callback]) | Retune compression level and strategy mid-stream | | stream.destroy([error]) | Standard stream teardown |

bytesWritten

Counts input, not output, matching Node:

const gzip = zlib.createGzip();
gzip.on('end', () => {
  console.log(gzip.bytesWritten); // 1000 - the uncompressed size
});
gzip.end('x'.repeat(1000));

params(level, strategy[, callback])

Changes the compression level and strategy partway through a deflate stream. Data already emitted keeps the old settings; everything after uses the new ones. The result is a single valid stream.

const deflate = zlib.createDeflate({ level: 1 });

deflate.write(headerChunk);              // compressed fast
deflate.params(9, zlib.Z_DEFAULT_STRATEGY, () => {
  deflate.end(bodyChunk);                // compressed hard
});

Only meaningful on the deflate family. On Brotli it is a no-op that invokes the callback, as Node's is.

Utility Functions

zlib.crc32(data[, value])

Computes a 32-bit CRC checksum (IEEE CRC-32 polynomial).

Parameters:

• data <string> | <Buffer> | <TypedArray> | <DataView> - Input data
• value <number> - Optional starting CRC value for chaining (default: 0)

Returns: <number> - 32-bit unsigned integer

Example:

// Basic usage
const crc = zlib.crc32('hello');
console.log(crc);  // 907060870

// With Buffer
const crc2 = zlib.crc32(Buffer.from('hello'));
console.log(crc2); // 907060870

// Chained CRC32 for streaming
let runningCrc = zlib.crc32('hello');
runningCrc = zlib.crc32(' world', runningCrc);
console.log(runningCrc); // Combined checksum

Options

Zlib Options (Gzip, Deflate, etc.)

{
  // Flush behavior during compression
  flush: zlib.Z_NO_FLUSH,

  // Flush behavior at end of stream
  finishFlush: zlib.Z_FINISH,

  // Internal buffer size (default: 16KB)
  chunkSize: 16 * 1024,

  // Window size bits: 9-15 (default: 15)
  // Higher = better compression, more memory
  windowBits: 15,

  // Compression level: -1 to 9
  // -1 = default, 0 = none, 1 = fastest, 9 = best
  level: zlib.Z_DEFAULT_COMPRESSION,

  // Memory usage level: 1-9 (default: 8)
  // Higher = faster, more memory
  memLevel: 8,

  // Compression strategy
  strategy: zlib.Z_DEFAULT_STRATEGY,

  // Preset dictionary for compression
  dictionary: Buffer,

  // Cap the output; exceeding it throws ERR_BUFFER_TOO_LARGE
  // (default: buffer.kMaxLength)
  maxOutputLength: 1024 * 1024,

  // Return { buffer, engine } instead of just the buffer
  info: false
}

Note that windowBits accepts 9 to 15, matching Node. Only inflateRaw also accepts 8.

maxOutputLength guards against decompression bombs. It applies to the sync, callback and promise forms alike:

try {
  zlib.gunzipSync(untrusted, { maxOutputLength: 10 * 1024 * 1024 });
} catch (err) {
  if (err.code === 'ERR_BUFFER_TOO_LARGE') {
    console.error('Refusing to decompress: output too large');
  }
}

// Asynchronously, the same condition arrives as an error
zlib.gunzip(untrusted, { maxOutputLength: 10 * 1024 * 1024 })
  .catch(err => console.error(err.code)); // 'ERR_BUFFER_TOO_LARGE'

info: true returns the engine alongside the output, which is how you reach bytesWritten from a one-shot call:

const { buffer, engine } = zlib.gzipSync(data, { info: true });
console.log(buffer.length, 'bytes out of', engine.bytesWritten, 'in');

Compression Level Examples:

// No compression (fastest, largest output)
zlib.deflateSync(data, { level: zlib.Z_NO_COMPRESSION });

// Best speed (level 1)
zlib.deflateSync(data, { level: zlib.Z_BEST_SPEED });

// Best compression (level 9, slowest)
zlib.deflateSync(data, { level: zlib.Z_BEST_COMPRESSION });

// Default (level 6, balanced)
zlib.deflateSync(data, { level: zlib.Z_DEFAULT_COMPRESSION });

Brotli Options

{
  // Flush behavior during compression
  flush: zlib.BROTLI_OPERATION_PROCESS,

  // Flush behavior at end of stream
  finishFlush: zlib.BROTLI_OPERATION_FINISH,

  // Internal buffer size
  chunkSize: 16 * 1024,

  // Brotli-specific parameters
  params: {
    // Compression mode
    [zlib.BROTLI_PARAM_MODE]: zlib.BROTLI_MODE_GENERIC,

    // Quality: 0-11 (default: 11)
    [zlib.BROTLI_PARAM_QUALITY]: 11,

    // Window size bits: 10-24 (default: 22)
    [zlib.BROTLI_PARAM_LGWIN]: 22,

    // Block size bits: 16-24
    [zlib.BROTLI_PARAM_LGBLOCK]: 0,

    // Input size hint (optional)
    [zlib.BROTLI_PARAM_SIZE_HINT]: 0
  }
}

Brotli Mode Examples:

// Generic mode (default)
zlib.brotliCompressSync(data, {
  params: { [zlib.BROTLI_PARAM_MODE]: zlib.BROTLI_MODE_GENERIC }
});

// Text mode (optimized for UTF-8 text)
zlib.brotliCompressSync(data, {
  params: { [zlib.BROTLI_PARAM_MODE]: zlib.BROTLI_MODE_TEXT }
});

// Font mode (optimized for WOFF 2.0)
zlib.brotliCompressSync(fontData, {
  params: { [zlib.BROTLI_PARAM_MODE]: zlib.BROTLI_MODE_FONT }
});

Zstd Options

Decompression only. See Limitations.

{
  flush: zlib.constants.ZSTD_e_continue,
  finishFlush: zlib.constants.ZSTD_e_end,
  chunkSize: 16 * 1024,
  maxOutputLength: 1024 * 1024,

  params: {
    // Maximum window size the decoder will accept
    [zlib.constants.ZSTD_d_windowLogMax]: 27
  }
}

// Decode a zstd payload from a server
async function decode(payload) {
  return zlib.zstdDecompress(payload);
}

// Or as a stream - this one decodes incrementally
response.pipe(zlib.createZstdDecompress()).pipe(destination);

Error Handling

Errors carry the same code, prototype and message text as Node's, so code that branches on err.code works unchanged.

Validation errors

Thrown synchronously, from the sync, callback and promise forms alike.

| Code | Type | Raised when | |------|------|-------------| | ERR_INVALID_ARG_TYPE | TypeError | Input is not a string, Buffer, TypedArray, DataView or ArrayBuffer; or an option has the wrong type | | ERR_OUT_OF_RANGE | RangeError | level, windowBits, memLevel, strategy, chunkSize or flush is outside its range | | ERR_BUFFER_TOO_LARGE | RangeError | Output exceeded maxOutputLength | | ERR_BROTLI_INVALID_PARAM | RangeError | Unknown key in a Brotli params object | | ERR_ZSTD_INVALID_PARAM | RangeError | Unknown key in a Zstd params object | | ERR_METHOD_NOT_IMPLEMENTED | Error | Zstd compression was attempted | | ERR_ZLIB_INITIALIZATION_FAILED | Error | The engine could not be initialised |

try {
  zlib.gzipSync(data, { level: 12 });
} catch (err) {
  console.log(err.code);    // 'ERR_OUT_OF_RANGE'
  console.log(err.message); // 'The value of "options.level" is out of range. ...'
}

Stream errors

Corrupt input reports the underlying zlib return code, reaching you through the callback, the rejected promise, or the stream's error event.

| Code | Meaning | |------|---------| | Z_DATA_ERROR | Input is corrupt or not in the expected format | | Z_BUF_ERROR | No progress was possible | | Z_NEED_DICT | A preset dictionary is required | | Z_STREAM_ERROR | Inconsistent stream state |

err.errno carries the numeric code, and zlib.codes maps between the two.

// Promise form
zlib.gunzip(corrupt).catch(err => {
  console.log(err.code, err.errno); // 'Z_DATA_ERROR' -3
});

// Callback form
zlib.brotliDecompress(corrupt, (err, result) => {
  if (err) console.error('Could not decode:', err.message);
});

// Stream form
zlib.createGunzip()
  .on('error', err => console.error(err.code))
  .end(corrupt);

Note that corrupt Brotli and Zstd input reaches your callback or rejects your promise. In 2.x it crashed the process.

Constants

All 176 constants are available both directly on zlib and via zlib.constants, which includes every one of Node's 170 with identical values. Direct properties are non-enumerable, as Node's are.

Compression Levels

| Constant | Value | Description | |----------|-------|-------------| | Z_NO_COMPRESSION | 0 | No compression, store only | | Z_BEST_SPEED | 1 | Fastest compression | | Z_BEST_COMPRESSION | 9 | Best compression ratio | | Z_DEFAULT_COMPRESSION | -1 | Default level (6) |

Flush Values

| Constant | Value | Description | |----------|-------|-------------| | Z_NO_FLUSH | 0 | Normal operation | | Z_PARTIAL_FLUSH | 1 | Partial flush | | Z_SYNC_FLUSH | 2 | Sync to byte boundary | | Z_FULL_FLUSH | 3 | Full flush, reset state | | Z_FINISH | 4 | Finish compression | | Z_BLOCK | 5 | Block flush |

Return Codes

| Constant | Value | Description | |----------|-------|-------------| | Z_OK | 0 | Success | | Z_STREAM_END | 1 | Stream complete | | Z_NEED_DICT | 2 | Dictionary needed | | Z_ERRNO | -1 | System error | | Z_STREAM_ERROR | -2 | Stream state error | | Z_DATA_ERROR | -3 | Data corruption | | Z_MEM_ERROR | -4 | Out of memory | | Z_BUF_ERROR | -5 | Buffer error | | Z_VERSION_ERROR | -6 | Version mismatch |

Strategies

| Constant | Value | Description | |----------|-------|-------------| | Z_FILTERED | 1 | For filtered data (e.g., images) | | Z_HUFFMAN_ONLY | 2 | Huffman encoding only | | Z_RLE | 3 | Run-length encoding | | Z_FIXED | 4 | Fixed Huffman codes | | Z_DEFAULT_STRATEGY | 0 | Default strategy |

Brotli Operations

| Constant | Value | Description | |----------|-------|-------------| | BROTLI_OPERATION_PROCESS | 0 | Normal processing | | BROTLI_OPERATION_FLUSH | 1 | Flush output | | BROTLI_OPERATION_FINISH | 2 | Finish stream | | BROTLI_OPERATION_EMIT_METADATA | 3 | Emit metadata block |

Brotli Modes

| Constant | Value | Description | |----------|-------|-------------| | BROTLI_MODE_GENERIC | 0 | Generic compression | | BROTLI_MODE_TEXT | 1 | UTF-8 text optimization | | BROTLI_MODE_FONT | 2 | WOFF 2.0 font optimization |

Brotli Quality

| Constant | Value | Description | |----------|-------|-------------| | BROTLI_MIN_QUALITY | 0 | Minimum (fastest) | | BROTLI_MAX_QUALITY | 11 | Maximum (best compression) | | BROTLI_DEFAULT_QUALITY | 11 | Default quality |

Brotli Window Size

| Constant | Value | Description | |----------|-------|-------------| | BROTLI_MIN_WINDOW_BITS | 10 | Minimum window (1KB) | | BROTLI_MAX_WINDOW_BITS | 24 | Maximum window (16MB) | | BROTLI_LARGE_MAX_WINDOW_BITS | 30 | Large window (1GB) | | BROTLI_DEFAULT_WINDOW | 22 | Default window (4MB) |

Brotli Parameters

| Constant | Value | Description | |----------|-------|-------------| | BROTLI_PARAM_MODE | 0 | Compression mode | | BROTLI_PARAM_QUALITY | 1 | Quality level (0-11) | | BROTLI_PARAM_LGWIN | 2 | Window size bits | | BROTLI_PARAM_LGBLOCK | 3 | Block size bits | | BROTLI_PARAM_DISABLE_LITERAL_CONTEXT_MODELING | 4 | Disable context modeling | | BROTLI_PARAM_SIZE_HINT | 5 | Input size hint | | BROTLI_PARAM_LARGE_WINDOW | 6 | Enable large window | | BROTLI_PARAM_NPOSTFIX | 7 | Postfix bits | | BROTLI_PARAM_NDIRECT | 8 | Direct distance codes |

Brotli Decoder Parameters

| Constant | Value | Description | |----------|-------|-------------| | BROTLI_DECODER_PARAM_DISABLE_RING_BUFFER_REALLOCATION | 0 | Disable buffer realloc | | BROTLI_DECODER_PARAM_LARGE_WINDOW | 1 | Enable large window |

Brotli Decoder Results

| Constant | Value | Description | |----------|-------|-------------| | BROTLI_DECODER_RESULT_ERROR | 0 | Decoding error | | BROTLI_DECODER_RESULT_SUCCESS | 1 | Success | | BROTLI_DECODER_RESULT_NEEDS_MORE_INPUT | 2 | Need more input | | BROTLI_DECODER_RESULT_NEEDS_MORE_OUTPUT | 3 | Need more output |

Zstd Constants

All 72 of Node's ZSTD_* constants are present. The ones you are likely to use:

| Constant | Value | Description | |----------|-------|-------------| | ZSTD_e_continue | 0 | Keep accepting input | | ZSTD_e_flush | 1 | Flush what has been buffered | | ZSTD_e_end | 2 | Finish the frame | | ZSTD_d_windowLogMax | 100 | Largest window the decoder will accept | | ZSTD_c_compressionLevel | 100 | Compression level (encoding is unavailable) | | ZSTD_CLEVEL_DEFAULT | 3 | Default compression level |

The full set also covers every ZSTD_c_* compression parameter, the ZSTD_error_* codes and the ZSTD_fast through ZSTD_btultra2 strategies.

Accessing Constants

// Direct access
console.log(zlib.Z_BEST_COMPRESSION);      // 9
console.log(zlib.BROTLI_MAX_QUALITY);      // 11

// Via constants object
console.log(zlib.constants.Z_BEST_COMPRESSION);  // 9
console.log(zlib.constants.BROTLI_MAX_QUALITY);  // 11

// Error codes with reverse lookup
console.log(zlib.codes.Z_OK);     // 0
console.log(zlib.codes[0]);       // 'Z_OK'
console.log(zlib.codes[-3]);      // 'Z_DATA_ERROR'

Examples

Basic Compression/Decompression

const zlib = require('react-zlib-js');

const original = 'Hello, World! This is a test string for compression.';

// Gzip
const gzipped = zlib.gzipSync(original);
const ungzipped = zlib.gunzipSync(gzipped);
console.log('Gzip:', original.length, '->', gzipped.length, 'bytes');
console.log('Match:', ungzipped.toString() === original);

// Deflate
const deflated = zlib.deflateSync(original);
const inflated = zlib.inflateSync(deflated);
console.log('Deflate:', original.length, '->', deflated.length, 'bytes');

// Brotli (best compression)
const brotlied = zlib.brotliCompressSync(original);
const unbrotlied = zlib.brotliDecompressSync(brotlied);
console.log('Brotli:', original.length, '->', brotlied.length, 'bytes');

Compression Levels Comparison

const zlib = require('react-zlib-js');

const data = 'Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. '.repeat(100);

console.log('Original size:', data.length, 'bytes\n');

// Different compression levels
const levels = [
  { name: 'No compression', level: zlib.Z_NO_COMPRESSION },
  { name: 'Best speed', level: zlib.Z_BEST_SPEED },
  { name: 'Level 5', level: 5 },
  { name: 'Default', level: zlib.Z_DEFAULT_COMPRESSION },
  { name: 'Best compression', level: zlib.Z_BEST_COMPRESSION }
];

levels.forEach(({ name, level }) => {
  const compressed = zlib.deflateSync(data, { level });
  const ratio = ((1 - compressed.length / data.length) * 100).toFixed(1);
  console.log(`${name} (${level}): ${compressed.length} bytes (${ratio}% reduction)`);
});

Async Compression with Error Handling

const zlib = require('react-zlib-js');

function compressData(data) {
  return new Promise((resolve, reject) => {
    zlib.gzip(data, (err, compressed) => {
      if (err) reject(err);
      else resolve(compressed);
    });
  });
}

function decompressData(data) {
  return new Promise((resolve, reject) => {
    zlib.gunzip(data, (err, decompressed) => {
      if (err) reject(err);
      else resolve(decompressed);
    });
  });
}

// Usage with async/await
async function example() {
  try {
    const original = 'Hello, World!';
    const compressed = await compressData(original);
    console.log('Compressed size:', compressed.length);

    const decompressed = await decompressData(compressed);
    console.log('Decompressed:', decompressed.toString());
  } catch (err) {
    console.error('Error:', err.message);
  }
}

example();

Stream-based Compression

const zlib = require('react-zlib-js');

// Compress using streams
function compressWithStream(input) {
  return new Promise((resolve, reject) => {
    const gzip = zlib.createGzip();
    const chunks = [];

    gzip.on('data', chunk => chunks.push(chunk));
    gzip.on('end', () => resolve(Buffer.concat(chunks)));
    gzip.on('error', reject);

    gzip.write(input);
    gzip.end();
  });
}

// Decompress using streams
function decompressWithStream(input) {
  return new Promise((resolve, reject) => {
    const gunzip = zlib.createGunzip();
    const chunks = [];

    gunzip.on('data', chunk => chunks.push(chunk));
    gunzip.on('end', () => resolve(Buffer.concat(chunks)));
    gunzip.on('error', reject);

    gunzip.write(input);
    gunzip.end();
  });
}

// Usage
async function streamExample() {
  const original = 'Stream compression example data';

  const compressed = await compressWithStream(original);
  console.log('Compressed:', compressed.length, 'bytes');

  const decompressed = await decompressWithStream(compressed);
  console.log('Decompressed:', decompressed.toString());
}

streamExample();

Brotli with Custom Options

const zlib = require('react-zlib-js');

const text = 'This is UTF-8 text content for Brotli compression.'.repeat(50);

// Fast compression (lower quality)
const fast = zlib.brotliCompressSync(text, {
  params: {
    [zlib.BROTLI_PARAM_QUALITY]: 1
  }
});

// Best compression (highest quality)
const best = zlib.brotliCompressSync(text, {
  params: {
    [zlib.BROTLI_PARAM_MODE]: zlib.BROTLI_MODE_TEXT,
    [zlib.BROTLI_PARAM_QUALITY]: zlib.BROTLI_MAX_QUALITY
  }
});

console.log('Original:', text.length, 'bytes');
console.log('Fast (Q1):', fast.length, 'bytes');
console.log('Best (Q11):', best.length, 'bytes');

Binary Data Compression

const zlib = require('react-zlib-js');

// Create binary data
const binaryData = Buffer.alloc(1000);
for (let i = 0; i < binaryData.length; i++) {
  binaryData[i] = Math.floor(Math.random() * 256);
}

// Compress
const compressed = zlib.gzipSync(binaryData);

// Decompress
const decompressed = zlib.gunzipSync(compressed);

// Verify
const match = Buffer.compare(binaryData, decompressed) === 0;
console.log('Binary data preserved:', match);
console.log('Original:', binaryData.length, 'bytes');
console.log('Compressed:', compressed.length, 'bytes');

Compression with Promises

Using async/await with promise-based API for cleaner, more readable code:

const zlib = require('react-zlib-js');

async function demonstratePromises() {
  const original = 'Hello, World! This is a test string for compression.';

  try {
    // Gzip with promise
    const gzipped = await zlib.gzip(original);
    const ungzipped = await zlib.gunzip(gzipped);
    console.log('Gzip match:', ungzipped.toString() === original);

    // Deflate with promise
    const deflated = await zlib.deflate(original);
    const inflated = await zlib.inflate(deflated);
    console.log('Deflate match:', inflated.toString() === original);

    // DeflateRaw with promise
    const deflateRaw = await zlib.deflateRaw(original);
    const inflateRaw = await zlib.inflateRaw(deflateRaw);
    console.log('DeflateRaw match:', inflateRaw.toString() === original);

    // Brotli with promise
    const brotlied = await zlib.brotliCompress(original);
    const unbrotlied = await zlib.brotliDecompress(brotlied);
    console.log('Brotli match:', unbrotlied.toString() === original);

    // Unzip with auto-detection
    const unzipped = await zlib.unzip(gzipped);
    console.log('Auto-detect match:', unzipped.toString() === original);

    // With compression level options
    const compressed1 = await zlib.gzip(original, { level: 1 }); // Fast
    const compressed9 = await zlib.gzip(original, { level: 9 }); // Best
    console.log('Fast compression:', compressed1.length, 'bytes');
    console.log('Best compression:', compressed9.length, 'bytes');

  } catch (err) {
    console.error('Compression error:', err.message);
  }
}

demonstratePromises();

Auto-detect Decompression with Unzip

const zlib = require('react-zlib-js');

const original = 'Test data for auto-detection';

// Compress with different algorithms
const gzipped = zlib.gzipSync(original);
const deflated = zlib.deflateSync(original);

// unzip auto-detects the format
const fromGzip = zlib.unzipSync(gzipped);
const fromDeflate = zlib.unzipSync(deflated);

console.log('From Gzip:', fromGzip.toString());
console.log('From Deflate:', fromDeflate.toString());

CRC32 Checksum Calculation

const zlib = require('react-zlib-js');

// Simple CRC32
const crc = zlib.crc32('hello');
console.log('CRC32 of "hello":', crc);

// CRC32 with Buffer
const bufferCrc = zlib.crc32(Buffer.from([0x68, 0x65, 0x6c, 0x6c, 0x6f]));
console.log('CRC32 from buffer:', bufferCrc);

// Streaming/chunked CRC32
function calculateStreamingCRC(chunks) {
  let crc = 0;
  for (const chunk of chunks) {
    crc = zlib.crc32(chunk, crc);
  }
  return crc;
}

const chunks = ['Hello', ', ', 'World', '!'];
const streamCrc = calculateStreamingCRC(chunks);
const directCrc = zlib.crc32('Hello, World!');

console.log('Streaming CRC:', streamCrc);
console.log('Direct CRC:', directCrc);
console.log('Match:', streamCrc === directCrc);

JSON Compression for API

const zlib = require('react-zlib-js');

// Compress JSON data
function compressJSON(obj) {
  const json = JSON.stringify(obj);
  return zlib.gzipSync(json);
}

// Decompress JSON data
function decompressJSON(compressed) {
  const json = zlib.gunzipSync(compressed);
  return JSON.parse(json.toString());
}

// Example
const data = {
  users: [
    { id: 1, name: 'Alice', email: '[email protected]' },
    { id: 2, name: 'Bob', email: '[email protected]' }
  ],
  metadata: {
    total: 2,
    page: 1
  }
};

const compressed = compressJSON(data);
const decompressed = decompressJSON(compressed);

console.log('Original JSON size:', JSON.stringify(data).length);
console.log('Compressed size:', compressed.length);
console.log('Data preserved:', JSON.stringify(data) === JSON.stringify(decompressed));

Limitations

Three places where this package cannot match Node, stated plainly so you can decide whether they matter for your use.

Zstd compression is unavailable

zstdCompress, zstdCompressSync and createZstdCompress exist so that code type-checks and feature-detects the same way, but calling them throws ERR_METHOD_NOT_IMPLEMENTED.

There is no pure-JavaScript zstd encoder. Every option is a WebAssembly build, which needs asynchronous initialization - so it cannot back a *Sync method - and does not run under Hermes, the React Native engine this package targets.

Decompression is fully supported, and createZstdDecompress() is genuinely incremental.

zlib.zstdDecompressSync(payload);   // works
zlib.zstdCompressSync(data);        // throws ERR_METHOD_NOT_IMPLEMENTED

Brotli compression buffers the whole stream

The brotli package exposes only one-shot entry points, so createBrotliCompress() accumulates all input and emits its output when the stream finishes.

The output is correct at any size, and interoperates with Node's native Brotli in both directions. But memory use is proportional to the input, and a mid-stream flush() cannot emit partial data. If you are compressing something very large and streaming matters more than the compression ratio, gzip is the better choice here.

Brotli decompression, and all gzip and deflate operations, stream normally.

zlib.constants is a small superset

It carries six names Node does not export: NONE, Z_BINARY, Z_TEXT, Z_UNKNOWN, Z_DEFLATED and Z_TREES. All of Node's 170 constants are present with identical values.

Compression Comparison

Typical compression ratios for text data (2KB Lorem Ipsum):

| Algorithm | Compressed Size | Reduction | Speed | |-----------|-----------------|-----------|-------| | Gzip | 1052 bytes | 47.9% | Fast | | Deflate | 1040 bytes | 48.5% | Fast | | DeflateRaw | 1034 bytes | 48.8% | Fast | | Brotli | 751 bytes | 62.8% | Slower |

Zstd is absent from this table because this package only decodes it; see Limitations.

When to Use Each Algorithm

| Algorithm | Best For | |-----------|----------| | Gzip | HTTP compression, general purpose, wide compatibility | | Deflate | ZIP files, PNG images, HTTP (older) | | DeflateRaw | Custom protocols, embedded systems | | Brotli | Static content, web assets, when size matters most | | Zstd | Decoding payloads from a server that already speaks zstd |

React Native Usage

import zlib from 'react-zlib-js';

// Compress API request body
async function sendCompressedData(data) {
  const jsonString = JSON.stringify(data);
  const compressed = zlib.gzipSync(jsonString);

  const response = await fetch('https://api.example.com/data', {
    method: 'POST',
    headers: {
      'Content-Type': 'application/json',
      'Content-Encoding': 'gzip'
    },
    body: compressed
  });

  return response.json();
}

// Decompress API response
async function receiveCompressedData(url) {
  const response = await fetch(url);
  const compressed = await response.arrayBuffer();
  const decompressed = zlib.gunzipSync(Buffer.from(compressed));
  return JSON.parse(decompressed.toString());
}

// Compress for local storage
function saveCompressed(key, data) {
  const compressed = zlib.gzipSync(JSON.stringify(data));
  const base64 = compressed.toString('base64');
  AsyncStorage.setItem(key, base64);
}

// Decompress from local storage
async function loadCompressed(key) {
  const base64 = await AsyncStorage.getItem(key);
  if (!base64) return null;
  const compressed = Buffer.from(base64, 'base64');
  const decompressed = zlib.gunzipSync(compressed);
  return JSON.parse(decompressed.toString());
}

Browser Usage

With Webpack/Browserify

const zlib = require('react-zlib-js');

// Works in browser environment
const compressed = zlib.deflateSync('Browser data');
const decompressed = zlib.inflateSync(compressed);
console.log(decompressed.toString());

Direct Script Include

<script src="path/to/index.js"></script>
<script src="path/to/buffer.js"></script>
<script>
  // zlib is available globally
  const compressed = zlib.gzipSync('Hello from browser');
  console.log('Compressed size:', compressed.length);
</script>

Building from Source

# Clone repository
git clone https://github.com/anuraghkp1/zlib.git
cd zlib

# Install dependencies
npm install

# Build the browser/React Native bundle
npm run build           # index.js
npm run build:buffer    # buffer.js

# Regenerate the constant table and the type definitions
npm run build:constants # src/constants.js, from the running Node's zlib
npm run build:types     # index.d.ts, from src/constants.js

# Run tests against both entry points
npm test
npm run test:src        # source only
npm run test:bundle     # bundle only

Project Structure

zlib/
├── src/
│   ├── index.js          # Package main; re-exports zlib.js
│   ├── zlib.js           # Public API: classes, factories, convenience methods
│   ├── zlib-base.js      # Shared Transform: write loop, lifecycle, options
│   ├── binding.js        # Deflate/inflate binding over pako
│   ├── brotli-binding.js # Brotli binding over the brotli package
│   ├── zstd-binding.js   # Zstd decode binding over fzstd
│   ├── constants.js      # All 176 constants (generated)
│   ├── errors.js         # Node's ERR_* classes
│   └── crc32.js          # CRC-32
├── test/                 # node:test suites, run against both entries
├── scripts/              # Constant/type generators, test runner
├── index.js              # Browserified bundle (~1.3MB)
├── buffer.js             # Buffer implementation (~55KB)
├── index.d.ts            # TypeScript definitions (generated)
└── README.md             # This documentation

The test suite is differential: it diffs the export list, all of Node's constants and every class prototype against the host's real zlib, compares error outcomes case by case, and round-trips every codec against Node's native implementation in both directions.

Dependencies

| Package | Purpose | |---------|---------| | pako | Pure JS deflate/inflate implementation | | brotli | Pure JS Brotli implementation | | fzstd | Pure JS Zstd decompressor | | browserify | Bundle for browser (dev dependency) |

Migration to v3.x

Most code needs no changes. v3.0.0 is a major version because error handling and the package entry point changed.

Errors now match Node's

Validation errors carry Node's code, prototype and message text. If you were matching on the old message strings, match on err.code instead:

// Before (v2.x): plain Error, message "Invalid compression level: 12"
// Now: RangeError, code ERR_OUT_OF_RANGE, Node's exact message
try {
  zlib.gzipSync(data, { level: 12 });
} catch (err) {
  if (err.code === 'ERR_OUT_OF_RANGE') { /* ... */ }
}

Runtime stream errors are unchanged: they still carry err.code of Z_DATA_ERROR and friends.

Node consumers now get real Buffers

main resolves to the source rather than the browserify bundle, so Buffer.isBuffer(result) is now true under Node. Browsers and React Native still load the prebuilt bundle through the browser and react-native fields, unchanged.

Corrected constant values

BROTLI_ENCODE and BROTLI_DECODE were transposed and are now 9 and 8, as Node has them. zlib.codes no longer has a stray "undefined" key, and now includes Z_MEM_ERROR and Z_VERSION_ERROR.

Bugs fixed

• Brotli decompression corrupted or threw on payloads over 16 KB.
• Brotli compression silently returned zero bytes for short or incompressible input.
• Brotli errors crashed the process instead of reaching your callback or rejecting your promise.
• params() crashed the process; it now retunes the stream as Node's does.
• windowBits: 8 is now rejected for compression, matching Node. Use 9.

New in v3.0.0

• Zstd decompression, and all 72 ZSTD_* constants
• maxOutputLength, info: true, bytesWritten and bytesRead
• ArrayBuffer accepted as input
• 98 previously missing constants

Migration from v1.x

New in v2.0.0

1. Brotli Compression Support

// New methods available
zlib.brotliCompress(data, callback);
zlib.brotliCompressSync(data);
zlib.brotliDecompress(data, callback);
zlib.brotliDecompressSync(data);
zlib.createBrotliCompress();
zlib.createBrotliDecompress();

// New classes
new zlib.BrotliCompress(options);
new zlib.BrotliDecompress(options);

2. CRC32 Function

// Calculate checksums
const crc = zlib.crc32('data');
const chainedCrc = zlib.crc32('more data', crc);

3. Brotli Constants

// All Brotli constants now available
zlib.BROTLI_OPERATION_PROCESS
zlib.BROTLI_OPERATION_FLUSH
zlib.BROTLI_OPERATION_FINISH
zlib.BROTLI_PARAM_MODE
zlib.BROTLI_PARAM_QUALITY
zlib.BROTLI_MODE_TEXT
zlib.BROTLI_MODE_GENERIC
zlib.BROTLI_MODE_FONT
// ... and more

4. Constants Object

// Access all constants via zlib.constants
zlib.constants.Z_BEST_COMPRESSION
zlib.constants.BROTLI_MAX_QUALITY

Breaking Changes in v2.0.0

None. Version 2.0.0 was fully backward compatible with v1.x.

Version 3.0.0 does introduce breaking changes - see Migration to v3.x.

Troubleshooting

ERR_INVALID_ARG_TYPE

Problem: Input is not a type the compression methods accept.

Solution: Pass a string, Buffer, TypedArray, DataView or ArrayBuffer:

// Wrong - throws ERR_INVALID_ARG_TYPE
zlib.gzipSync(123);
zlib.gzipSync({ data: 'test' });

// Correct
zlib.gzipSync('123');
zlib.gzipSync(Buffer.from('123'));
zlib.gzipSync(new Uint8Array([1, 2, 3]));
zlib.gzipSync(JSON.stringify({ data: 'test' }));

In 2.x this was a plain Error reading "Not a string or buffer". It is now a TypeError with Node's code and message; see Error Handling.

ERR_BUFFER_TOO_LARGE

Problem: Output grew past the maxOutputLength you set.

Solution: Raise the cap, or treat it as the guard it is. When decompressing untrusted input, catching this is the point:

try {
  zlib.gunzipSync(untrusted, { maxOutputLength: 10 * 1024 * 1024 });
} catch (err) {
  if (err.code === 'ERR_BUFFER_TOO_LARGE') {
    // Refuse the payload rather than exhausting memory
  }
}

Memory Issues with Large Data

Problem: Out of memory when compressing large data.

Solution: Use streaming for large data:

// Instead of sync methods for large data
// const compressed = zlib.gzipSync(hugeData); // May run out of memory

// Use streaming
const gzip = zlib.createGzip();
const chunks = [];

gzip.on('data', chunk => chunks.push(chunk));
gzip.on('end', () => {
  const compressed = Buffer.concat(chunks);
  // Process compressed data
});

// Process in chunks
const chunkSize = 64 * 1024; // 64KB chunks
for (let i = 0; i < hugeData.length; i += chunkSize) {
  gzip.write(hugeData.slice(i, i + chunkSize));
}
gzip.end();

Decompression Errors

Problem: "invalid header" or "data error" when decompressing.

Solution: Ensure you're using the correct decompression method:

// Wrong: Using gunzip for deflate data
const deflated = zlib.deflateSync('test');
// zlib.gunzipSync(deflated); // Error!

// Correct: Match compression and decompression methods
const deflated = zlib.deflateSync('test');
const result = zlib.inflateSync(deflated); // Works!

// Or use unzip for auto-detection
const result = zlib.unzipSync(deflated); // Also works!

Performance Tips

1. Use Brotli for static content - Better compression, slower
2. Use Gzip for dynamic content - Good compression, fast
3. Use sync methods sparingly - They block the event loop
4. Set appropriate compression level - Balance size vs speed
5. Create a new stream per operation - a stream cannot be written to again once it has ended

License

MIT License

Copyright (c) 2020-2025 Anuragh K.P

Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person obtaining a copy of this software and associated documentation files (the "Software"), to deal in the Software without restriction, including without limitation the rights to use, copy, modify, merge, publish, distribute, sublicense, and/or sell copies of the Software, and to permit persons to whom the Software is furnished to do so, subject to the following conditions:

The above copyright notice and this permission notice shall be included in all copies or substantial portions of the Software.

THE SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED "AS IS", WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND NONINFRINGEMENT. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE AUTHORS OR COPYRIGHT HOLDERS BE LIABLE FOR ANY CLAIM, DAMAGES OR OTHER LIABILITY, WHETHER IN AN ACTION OF CONTRACT, TORT OR OTHERWISE, ARISING FROM, OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE SOFTWARE OR THE USE OR OTHER DEALINGS IN THE SOFTWARE.

Author

Anuragh K.P

Contributing

1. Fork the repository
2. Create your feature branch (git checkout -b feature/amazing-feature)
3. Commit your changes (git commit -m 'Add amazing feature')
4. Push to the branch (git push origin feature/amazing-feature)
5. Open a Pull Request

Links

• npm Package
• GitHub Repository
• Issue Tracker
• Node.js zlib Documentation

Made with JavaScript for JavaScript