In this article, I'm going to introduce you to a NodeJS module that allows you to create and deploy server-side processes by using a visual, drag n drop style interface in your Web Browser. The module I'm referring to is called : A flow-based programming tool that allows you to design processes (aka flows) by wiring together microservices. Node-RED Watch The Video on YouTube Created in 2013, Node-RED was initially intended for visually wiring together the Internet of Things, but as it matured, it evolved into something way more powerful, enough to be deployed as middleware within enterprise production environments. The power behind Node-RED is how it hides boilerplate code from the design interface, allowing you to quickly build and deploy processes and integrations. To demonstrate this, I’m going to compare a simple Node App with a Node-RED Flow, which will show you the time saving to be had and why you should be excited to learn this tech: Simple NodeJS Express App The code below is for a simple Express application that outputs . Hello World server.js Express = ( ) App = Express() HTTP = ( ) Cron = ( ) Functions = ( ) App.get( , (req, res) => { result = Functions.greet()
   res.send(result)
}) port = HTTP.createServer(App).listen(port, () => { .log( , port) Cron.schedule( , () => {
      Functions.greet()
   })
}) const require 'express' const const require 'http' const require 'node-cron' const require './functions' // Create Route '/api/greet' const // Start Server const 6025 console 'NodeJS App Listening on: ' // Schedule CRON Job '*/5 * * * * *' functions.js greet = { result = .log(result) result
}

exports.greet = greet const => () const 'Hello World' console return In , we’ve got some logic for our Express server, a scheduled process, as well as an endpoint called . We then have a file that exports a function, which returns the text . The CRON job in runs every 5 seconds, triggering the function on every run. This function is also triggered by the endpoint. server.js /api/greet functions.js greet() Hello World server.js greet() /api/greet So the point of this exercise is that we’re going to trigger the function using 3 events: greet() Manually via Terminal Via a Web API Via a schedule package.json { : , : , : , : , : { : , : }, : { : }, : , : , : { : , : }
} "name" "node-red-intro-nodejs-app" "version" "0.0.1" "description" "Node-RED Intro - NodeJS App" "main" "server.js" "scripts" "manual" "node -e \"require('./functions').greet()\"" "endpoint" "curl http://localhost:6025/api/greet" "engines" "node" "12.18.4" "author" "Agilit-e" "license" "MIT" "dependencies" "express" "4.17.1" "node-cron" "3.0.0" We trigger the function manually by requiring the in terminal or command prompt, and executing the function. You can see I’ve added this as a script in , which I will trigger by running . This will write as a response to the console. functions.js greet() manual package.json npm run manual Hello World For our next test we start the NodeJS server and trigger the function via an HTTP request. Our endpoint will be . Because it’s a simple request, we can just use command in Terminal or alternatively open the URL in a browser window. For ease of execution, I have this also as a script in , which I will trigger using . You can see is returned as a response. greet() http://127.0.01:6025/api/greet GET curl package.json npm run endpoint Hello World Finally, we can also see that in the background, the scheduled job is printing the response to the console every 5 seconds. CRON For the Node-RED demo, to watch my video on YouTube or alternatively watch the embedded video above (Fast Forward to minute ). Because we’re still at the beginning stages of my and this is more an introduction article, it will be tough to explain what I’m doing in Node-RED in writing. Apologies for any inconvenience caused. NOTE: click here 2:42 Node-RED Series Assuming you’ve watched the video demo, I trust you enjoyed the fun comparison of native NodeJS and Node-RED. What can take minutes in NodeJS can be achieved in a fraction of the time using Node-RED. Scale that up to a much bigger project and you’re going to see a massive time-saving. Now, this is the first article of my series, with many more to come that will focus on all areas of Node-RED, from basic to advanced functionality, to real-world scenarios. If you’re not yet or me, now would be a great time to do so, so that you’re notified when new content is released. Up and Running with Node-RED subscribed following I want to close off by providing you with a reference to resources that will help you learn more about Node-RED: Your first stop will be Node-RED’s website — . This site will give you a lot of insight into what Node-RED is, how it works and provides proper end-to-end documentation on how to achieve almost anything you want with it. You can find almost anything you need regarding Node-RED, including links to online communities and forums which can be found at the bottom of the home page. nodered.org Finally, I highly recommend you subscribe to the on YouTube, managed by the creators of Node-RED. It includes a number of tutorials as well as live webinars and streams. Node-RED channel That’s it for now. Thanks so much for reading/watching and stay tuned for much more to come. Cheers :) Also published behind a paywall here.

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