middleware syntax express code example

Example 1: what is middleware in node js

Notice the call above to next(). Calling this function invokes the next middleware function in the app. The next() function is not a part of the Node.js or Express API, but is the third argument that is passed to the middleware function. The next() function could be named anything, but by convention it is always named “next”. To avoid confusion, always use this convention.

Example 2: express router middleware

var express = require('express')
var app = express()
var router = express.Router()

// a middleware function with no mount path. This code is executed for every request to the router
router.use(function (req, res, next) {
  console.log('Time:', Date.now())
  next()
})

// a middleware sub-stack shows request info for any type of HTTP request to the /user/:id path
router.use('/user/:id', function (req, res, next) {
  console.log('Request URL:', req.originalUrl)
  next()
}, function (req, res, next) {
  console.log('Request Type:', req.method)
  next()
})

// a middleware sub-stack that handles GET requests to the /user/:id path
router.get('/user/:id', function (req, res, next) {
  // if the user ID is 0, skip to the next router
  if (req.params.id === '0') next('route')
  // otherwise pass control to the next middleware function in this stack
  else next()
}, function (req, res, next) {
  // render a regular page
  res.render('regular')
})

// handler for the /user/:id path, which renders a special page
router.get('/user/:id', function (req, res, next) {
  console.log(req.params.id)
  res.render('special')
})

// mount the router on the app
app.use('/', router)