How to update a value in a json file and save it through node js

Question

How do I update a value in a json file and save it through node.js? I have the file content:

var file_content = fs.readFileSync(filename);
var content = JSON.parse(file_content);
var val1 = content.val1;

Now I want to change the value of val1 and save it to the file.

Answer 1

Hello @kartik,

It's particularly useful if you're concerned for blocking the thread (likely).

const fs = require('fs');
const fileName = './file.json';
const file = require(fileName);

file.key = "new value";

fs.writeFile(fileName, JSON.stringify(file), function writeJSON(err) {
  if (err) return console.log(err);
  console.log(JSON.stringify(file));
  console.log('writing to ' + fileName);
});

The caveat is that json is written to the file on one line and not prettified. ex:

{
  "key": "value"
}

will be...

{"key": "value"}

To avoid this, simply add these two extra arguments to JSON.stringify

JSON.stringify(file, null, 2)

null - represents the replacer function. (in this case we don't want to alter the process)

2 - represents the spaces to indent.

Hope it helps!!

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