Ensuring Seamless Browser Compatibility

Testing Node.js Packages in browser environment

For individuals engaged in TypeScript/JavaScript development, there's a common scenario where packages function seamlessly within a Node.js environment but encounter issues when utilized in a browser setting. Consequently, it becomes imperative to conduct thorough testing of Node.js packages in a browser environment before releasing them. To facilitate this testing process, a straightforward method involves creating and executing a script directly in the browser, thereby ensuring that the functionality aligns with expectations.

In this article, we present a concise script utilizing the Azure JavaScript SDK to interact with Azure Cosmos DB. It's noteworthy that this approach can be applied to any use case when testing a npm package in a browser environment before making it public.

By leveraging the @azure/cosmos package, we'll employ a combination of HTML, JavaScript, and potentially utilize a bundler like Webpack. We will guide you through a step-by-step approach, illustrating how to seamlessly integrate and test your npm package in a browser environment.

Here are the steps:

  1. Create a new directory for your project:

     mkdir cosmos-script
     cd cosmos-script
    
  2. Initialize your project:

     npm init -y
    
  3. Install required packages:

     npm install @azure/cosmos
    
  4. Create your HTML file (index.html):

     <!DOCTYPE html>
     <html lang="en">
     <head>
         <meta charset="UTF-8">
         <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0">
         <title>Cosmos DB Query</title>
     </head>
     <body>
         <script src="dist/bundle.js"></script>
     </body>
     </html>
    
  5. Create your JavaScript file (index.js):

     const { CosmosClient } = require('@azure/cosmos');
    
     const endpoint = 'YOUR_COSMOS_DB_ENDPOINT';
     const key = 'YOUR_COSMOS_DB_KEY';
     const databaseId = 'YOUR_DATABASE_ID';
     const containerId = 'YOUR_CONTAINER_ID';
    
     const client = new CosmosClient({ endpoint, key });
    
     async function queryContainer() {
         const database = client.database(databaseId);
         const container = database.container(containerId);
    
         const querySpec = {
             query: 'SELECT * FROM c'
         };
    
         const { resources: results } = await container.items.query(querySpec).fetchAll();
    
         console.log('Query results:', results);
     }
    
     queryContainer();
    

    Replace 'YOUR_COSMOS_DB_ENDPOINT', 'YOUR_COSMOS_DB_KEY', 'YOUR_DATABASE_ID', and 'YOUR_CONTAINER_ID' with your actual Cosmos DB information.

  6. Create a Webpack configuration file (webpack.config.js):

     const path = require('path');
    
     module.exports = {
         entry: './index.js',
         output: {
             filename: 'bundle.js',
             path: path.resolve(__dirname, 'dist'),
         },
     };
    
  7. Install Webpack:

     npm install webpack webpack-cli --save-dev
    
  8. Run Webpack:

     npx webpack
    
  9. Open your HTML file in a browser: Open the index.html file in a web browser. The browser will load the bundle.js file, which contains your Cosmos DB query script.

  10. Check for script output inside console tab of browser:

    In this way you would be able to check your node package compatibility with browser.