Introduction to @panter/crud
In the modern web development landscape, CRUD operations form the backbone of many applications. The @panter/crud
library seamlessly integrates with Nest.js and Mikro-Orm to provide developers with a powerful tool to automatically
generate a GraphQL API tailored for CRUD operations.
Overview
The @panter/crud library is a lightweight yet robust solution designed for Nest.js applications. By leveraging the power
of Mikro-Orm entities and GraphQL schemas, it automates the creation of GraphQL endpoints for standard CRUD operations.
This means less boilerplate code, consistent API patterns, and faster development cycles.
Key Features
Auto-Generated Resolvers: Based on your Mikro-Orm entities and GraphQL schema, the library can automatically generate
resolvers for:
- Fetching a single record (
FindOneResolver
) - Fetching multiple records with filtering, ordering, and pagination (
FindManyResolver
) - Creating a new record (
CreateOneResolver
) - Updating an existing record (
UpdateOneResolver
) - Deleting a record (
DeleteOneResolver
) - Flexible Decorators: With the
@CrudField
decorator, developers can easily control the visibility and behavior of
entity fields during CRUD operations. For instance, certain fields can be hidden during creation or update processes. - Dynamic Querying: The generated API supports dynamic querying capabilities, allowing clients to filter, sort, and
paginate results with ease. This is particularly useful for building responsive and efficient front-end interfaces.
- Consistent Schema Patterns: By using the library, your GraphQL schemas for CRUD operations will follow a consistent
pattern, making it easier for developers and clients to understand and work with the API.
Installation
yarn add @panter/crud
Example
Consider a simple User entity:
import { Entity, PrimaryKey, Property } from '@mikro-orm/postgresql';
import { Field, ObjectType } from '@nestjs/graphql';
import { CrudField } from '@panter/crud';
@Entity()
@ObjectType()
export class User {
static readonly string entityName = "User" as const;
@CrudField({ showConnect: true, showDisconnect: true })
@Field()
@PrimaryKey({ autoincrement: true })
id!: number;
@Field()
@Property()
name!: string;
}
With just this entity definition and the power of @panter/crud, a comprehensive GraphQL API is generated, allowing
clients to fetch, create, update, and delete users with ease.
Resolvers
FindOneResolver
Resolver:
import { FindOneResolver } from '@panter/crud';
@Resolver(() => User)
export class FindOneUserResolver extends FindOneResolver(User) {}
Schema:
type User {
id: Float!
name: String!
}
type Query {
user(where: EntityIdInput): User
}
input EntityIdInput {
id: String!
}
FindManyResolver
Resolver:
import { FindManyResolver } from '@panter/crud';
@Resolver(() => User)
export class FindManyUserResolver extends FindManyResolver(User) {}
Schema:
type User {
id: Float!
name: String!
}
type Query {
users(
where: UserWhereInput
orderBy: [UserOrderByInput!]
skip: Int
take: Int
): [User!]!
usersCount(
where: UserWhereInput
orderBy: [UserOrderByInput!]
skip: Int
take: Int
): Int!
}
input UserWhereInput {
AND: [UserWhereInput!]
OR: [UserWhereInput!]
NOT: [UserWhereInput!]
id: IntFilter
name: StringFilter
}
input IntFilter {
equals: Float
gt: Float
gte: Float
lt: Float
lte: Float
}
input StringFilter {
equals: String
in: [String!]
nin: [String!]
contains: String
gt: String
gte: String
lt: String
lte: String
fulltext: String
mode: SringQueryMode
}
enum SringQueryMode {
default
insensitive
}
input UserOrderByInput {
id: SortOrder
name: SortOrder
}
enum SortOrder {
asc
desc
}
CreateOneResolver
Resolver:
import { CreateOneResolver } from '@panter/crud';
@Resolver(() => User)
export class CreateOneUserResolver extends CreateOneResolver(User) {}
Schema:
type User {
id: Float!
name: String!
}
type Mutation {
createOneUser(data: UserCreateInput): User!
}
input UserCreateInput {
name: String
}
UpdateOneResolver
Resolver:
import { UpdateOneResolver } from '@panter/crud';
@Resolver(() => User)
export class UpdateOneUserResolver extends UpdateOneResolver(User) {}
Schema:
type User {
id: Float!
name: String!
}
type Mutation {
updateOneUser(data: UserUpdateInput, where: EntityIdInput!): User!
}
input UserUpdateInput {
name: StringInput
}
input StringInput {
set: String
}
input EntityIdInput {
id: String!
}
DeleteOneResolver
Resolver:
import { DeleteOneResolver } from '@panter/crud';
@Resolver(() => User)
export class DeleteOneUserResolver extends DeleteOneResolver(User) {}
Schema:
type User {
id: Float!
name: String!
}
type Mutation {
deleteOneUser(where: EntityIdInput): User!
}
input EntityIdInput {
id: String!
}
ObjectRelationResolver
The ObjectRelationResolver is tailored to generate GraphQL resolvers for entity relationships where one entity relates
to multiple others. Instead of merely fetching these related entities, the resolver provides enhanced capabilities,
allowing clients to filter and paginate through the related entities seamlessly.
How It Works
- Relationship Detection: The ObjectRelationResolver identifies relationships within the Mikro-Orm entities where one
entity has multiple relations (e.g., one-to-many or many-to-many relationships).
- Resolver Generation: For each detected relationship, the resolver automatically generates GraphQL endpoints. These
endpoints are not just for fetching the related entities but also offer advanced querying capabilities.
- Filtering and Pagination: The generated endpoints come equipped with filtering and pagination functionalities. This
allows clients to retrieve a subset of related entities based on specific criteria or paginate through large sets of
related entities.
Resolver:
@Module({
imports: [MikroOrmModule.forFeature({ entities: [Group] })],
providers: [
MaterialsDepotFindOneResolver,
...ObjectRelationResolvers(MaterialsDepot),
],
})
export class GroupModule {}
Schema:
type Group {
id: Float!
name: String!
description: String!
founders(where: UserWhereInput, orderBy: [UserOrderByInput!], skip: Int, take: Int): [User!]!
coordinator(where: UserWhereInput, orderBy: [UserOrderByInput!], skip: Int, take: Int): [User!]
finance(where: UserWhereInput, orderBy: [UserOrderByInput!], skip: Int, take: Int): [User!]
}
input UserWhereInput {
AND: [UserWhereInput!]
OR: [UserWhereInput!]
NOT: [UserWhereInput!]
id: IntFilter
name: StringFilter
}
input UserOrderByInput {
id: SortOrder
name: SortOrder
}
...
Decorators
@CrudField
The CrudField decorator is used to control the visibility and behavior of entity fields during CRUD operations.
Crud Field is not responsable for visibility on the object return by the mutations and queries. For this you can use
the @Field
decorator
from @nestjs/graphql
. This is subject to change in the future.
Api Options:
showConnect
: If set to true
, the field will be hidden from the create operation, so the field showDisconnectbe set during
creation.hideUpdate
: If set to true
, the field will be hidden from the update operation, so the field cannot be updated.hideWhere
: If set to true
, the field will be hidden from the where input type, so the field cannot be filtered.isEmbedded
: If set to true
, the field will be embedded in the entity.fieldOptions
: An object containing additional options for the field. This object is passed directly to the @Field
decorator from @nestjs/graphql
.relation
:
showConnect
: If set to true
, the relation can be connected by primary key.showCreate
: If set to true
, the relation can be created with all it's fields.showUpdate
: If set to true
, the relation can be updated with all it's fields.showDisconnect
: If set to true
, the relation can be disconnected by primary key.