sketchdb

About

This is a small file/directory based app for Node JS that provides some basic database functionality for storing key-value pairs in table/row/entry format as .json files.

The purpose of this library is to provide a simple database-like storage system for things like small personal projects or prototyping. It is written to be easy to setup and use.

This library requires no dependencies.

Installation

Note: sketchdb requires Node.js v18 or higher.

Download

run

npm install sketchdb

in your project's directory to install a local node module.

Setup

run

npm exec sketchdb-setup

from the top level of your project directory to setup an instance of sketchdb.

Alternatively, call sketchdb.setup() from inside a script (note - sketchdb.setup() is async and returns a promise)

The setup application will create a new directory in that top level directory of the project named "sketchdb_store" where data will be stored, along with a subdirectory named "tables". (That's all sketchdb-setup does)

External edits to directories and files in sketchdb_store will reflect in the database as long as they are proper JSON.

Usage

API

All function calls to sketchdb return a Promise.

Calls to retrieve data will resolve to that data or reject with an error.

Calls to write data or perform a delete operation will resolve with true on success (this will probably change to an object of some sort with more info but haven't decided yet)

Methods

• sketchdb.list_tables
• sketchdb.create_table
• sketchdb.insert
• sketchdb.get_row
• sketchdb.get_all
• sketchdb.update
• sketchdb.delete_row
• sketchdb.delete_table
• sketchdb.filter
• sketchdb.rename_table

CamelCase Aliases

For your convenience, all main API functions in sketchdb are available in both snake_case and camelCase formats. You can use whichever naming style fits your project best—they are fully interchangeable.

Examples:

sketchdb.createTable = sketchdb.create_table;
sketchdb.listTables = sketchdb.list_tables;
sketchdb.getRow = sketchdb.get_row;
sketchdb.getAll = sketchdb.get_all;
sketchdb.deleteRow = sketchdb.delete_row;
sketchdb.deleteTable = sketchdb.delete_table;
sketchdb.renameTable = sketchdb.rename_table;
sketchdb.moveRow = sketchdb.move_row;
sketchdb.insert 
sketchdb.update 

sketchdb.list_tables

List the tables in the database in array format.

Syntax:

sketchdb.list_tables()

Parameters:

none

Return value: Returns a Promise. When resolved, Promise returns an array of the table names as strings.

Example usage:

sketchdb.list_tables()
  .then(function(results) {
    do_something_with_results(results);
    // Results will be an array like ["users","posts","authors"]
  });

sketchdb.create_table

Creates a new table in the database.

Syntax:

sketchdb.create_table('table_name')

Parameters:

table_name: The name of the table to create (as a string)

Return value: Returns a Promise. Resolves with true. Rejects with an error if the table exists.

Example usage:

sketchdb.create_table('users')
  .then(success_function)
  .catch(error_handler);

Note: You can also create a table by making a subdirectory in "./sketchdb_store/tables/" with the table name.

sketchdb.insert

Insert a new row into a given table in the database.

Syntax:

sketchdb.insert(table_name, id, data)

Or let sketchdb generate a unique id:

sketchdb.insert(table_name, data)

Parameters:

• table_name (string): Table to insert into.
• id (string, optional): Unique row id. (Optional, will auto-generate if omitted)
• data (object or JSON string): Data to store as JSON.

Return value: Returns a Promise. Resolves with the id.

Example usage:

const user = { name: 'John', group: '1' };
sketchdb.insert('users', user)
  .then(function(id) {
    // use the returned unique id
  });

or

const id = '1234'
const user = { name: 'John', group: '1' };
sketchdb.insert('users', id, user)
  .then(function(id) {
    // do something next, id is the given id
  });

sketchdb.get_row

Retrieve a row from a given table.

Syntax:

sketchdb.get_row(table_name, id)

Parameters:

• table_name (string): Table name
• id (string): Row id

Return value: Resolves to the data object for the row, or rejects if not found.

Example usage:

sketchdb.get_row('users', '178')
  .then(user => {
  // Do something with the user data
  console.log('User name:', user.name);
  console.log('User group:', user.group);
  })
  .catch(error => {
  // Handle the error
  console.error('Error fetching row:', error.message);
  });

sketchdb.get_all

Retrieve all rows from a given table as an array.

Syntax:

sketchdb.get_all(table_name)

Return value: Resolves to an array of row objects. Rejects if table not found.

Example usage:

sketchdb.get_all('users')
  .then(users => {
  //do something with the users array
  handle_users(users);
   })
  .catch(handle_error);

sketchdb.update

Update a row with new or replacement data.

Syntax:

sketchdb.update(table_name, id, data)

Parameters:

• table_name (string): Table name
• id (string): Row id
• data (object): Data to merge/update

Return value: Resolves with true on success, rejects on error.

Example usage:

sketchdb.update('users', 'uq13g564d', { group: '2' })
  .then(success_function)
  .catch(handle_error);

sketchdb.delete_row

Delete a row from a table.

Syntax:

sketchdb.delete_row(table_name, id)

Return value: Resolves with true on success.

Example usage:

sketchdb.delete_row('users', '178')
  .then(success_function)
  .catch(handle_error);

sketchdb.delete_table

Delete an entire table and its rows.

Syntax:

sketchdb.delete_table(table_name)

Return value: Resolves with true on success.

Example usage:

sketchdb.delete_table('students')
  .then(success_function)
  .catch(handle_error);

sketchdb.filter

Return an array of all rows in a table with a given key/value pair.

Syntax:

sketchdb.filter(table_name, key, value)

Return value: Resolves to array of row objects with matching key/value.

Example usage:

sketchdb.filter('users', 'group', 'superuser')
  .then(users => {
  // Do something with the array of objects
  handle_users_array(users);
  })
  .catch(error => {
  // Handle the error
  console.error('Error fetching array:', error.message);
  });

sketchdb.rename_table

Rename a table.

Syntax:

sketchdb.rename_table(table, new_name)

Return value: Resolves with true on success.

Example usage:

sketchdb.rename_table('authors', 'contributors')
  .then(success_function)
  .catch(handle_error);

sketchdb.move_row

Move a row from one table to another (retaining the same row id).

Syntax:

sketchdb.move_row(from_table, to_table, id)

Parameters:

• from_table (string): The table to move the row from
• to_table (string): The table to move the row to
• id (string): The id of the row to move

Return value: Resolves with true on success. Rejects with an error if the source row does not exist, or the destination already has the id.

Example usage:

sketchdb.move_row('drafts', 'posts', '12345')
  .then(() => console.log('Row moved!'))
  .catch(handle_error);