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Best Practices Overview

This document provides best practices for using the Context system in the Contexify framework, referencing design concepts and practical experience from the LoopBack framework.

Context Usage Patterns​

When using Context, there are several common patterns. Below is an analysis of these patterns and recommended best practices.

// Not recommended pattern
const globalContext = new Context();
globalContext.bind('service').toClass(MyService);

// Anywhere in the application
const service = globalContext.getSync('service');
service.doSomething();

Problems:

  • Creates global state, making it difficult to test and manage
  • Hides dependencies, making code harder to understand and maintain
  • Cannot easily replace or mock dependencies for testing
// Not recommended pattern
function doSomething(context: Context) {
  const service = context.getSync('service');
  service.doSomething();
}

Problems:

  • Still hides the actual dependencies
  • Makes the function dependent on the Context API rather than the services it actually needs
  • Difficult to test because you need to create and configure a Context
// Recommended pattern
export class MyApplication extends Context {
  constructor() {
    super('application');
    this.bind('service').toClass(MyService);
  }
}

// Using the application class
const app = new MyApplication();
app.start();

Benefits:

  • The application itself is a Context, providing clear architectural boundaries
  • Components can get their dependencies through dependency injection
  • Easy to test because dependencies can be mocked or replaced
  • Supports modular design and extensibility

For more detailed best practices, see the following sections: