dynamodb-model
A simple and lightweight object mapper for Amazon DynamoDB, influenced by MongoDB and the Mongoose API. This library allows mapping of DynamoDB tables to Javascript objects using schemas while providing a comfortable high-level API for maximum productivity. It also enables a smooth transition to DynamoDB if you already know MongoDB or Mongoose.
Objectives
- Support for the full DynamoDB feature set
- Models use the official AWS SDK module
- Independent schemas, free of dependencies
- Automatic table creation
- Transparent support for MongoDB operators, such as "$gt", "$set" or "$inc"
- API conventions based on Mongoose
- Good documentation
- Good unit test coverage
- Fast and lightweight
Installation
npm install dynamodb-model
To run the tests:
npm test
Documentation
Defining a schema to describe a DynamoDB table
A schema describes attributes, keys, and indexes for a DynamoDB table. A schema instance allows mapping of Javascript objects to DynamoDB items and vice-versa.
var DynamoDBModel = ; var productSchema = productId: type: Number key: 'hash' // indicates a Hash key sku: String inStock: Boolean // will be stored as a "Y" or "N" string properties: {} // will be converted to a JSON string created: Date // will be converted to a number with Date.getTime;
Schema Types
Schemas support the following data types native to DynamoDB:
- String
- Number
- Blob (via Node.js Buffer)
- Array of strings
- Array of numbers
- Array of blobs (buffers)
In addition, schemas also support the following data types with some transformations:
- Boolean (as a "Y" or "N" string)
- Date (via
Date.getTime
as a number) - JSON or objects (via
JSON.stringify
andJSON.parse
), defined using an empty object{}
It is also possible to implement you own mapping if necessary:
var DynamoDBModel = ; var schema = ... customField: dynamoDbType: 'S' // the native DynamoDB type, either S, N, B, SS, NS or BS { /* your implementation */ } { /* your implementation, must return a string */ } ;
Keys
To specify a Hash or Range key, define a key
attribute on the field.
- Set to
"hash"
to specify a Hash key - Set to
"range"
to specify a Range key
Local Secondary Indexes
Local secondary indexes are not yet supported.
Default values
The specify a default value, use default
to specify a static value or a function returning a value.
var DynamoDBModel = ; var schema = ... active: type: Boolean default: true ;
Default values replace missing attributes when reading items from DynamoDB.
Mapping objects manually
Schemas are independent from the AWS SDK and can be used with any other DynamoDB client. To map an object to a DynamoDB structure manually, use schema.mapToDb
. Likewise, to map a DynamoDB structure to an object, use schema.mapFromDb
.
var DynamoDBModel = ; var schema = id: type: Number key: 'hash' message: String; schema;// returns { id: { N: '1' }, message: { 'S': 'some text' } }; schema;// returns { id: 1, message: 'some text' };
Using a model to interact with a DynamoDB table
The Model
class provides the high-level API you use to interact with the table, such as reading and writing data. The model class uses the official AWS SDK which already implement most of the best practices, such as automatic retries on a "HTTP 400: Capacity Exceeded" error.
Models also create the table automatically if required. There is no need to validate table existence or the "active" status. Operations performed while the table is not ready are queued until the table becomes active.
var DynamoDBModel = ; var productSchema = productId: type: Number key: 'hash' sku: String inStock: Boolean properties: {} created: Date; // create a model using the name of the DynamoDB table and a schemavar productTable = 'dynamo-products' productSchema; // the model provides methods for all DynamoDB operations// no need to check for table status, we can start using it right awayproductTable;productTable;productTable;productTable; // but some of them return intermediate objects in order to provide a better APIvar query = productTable;query;
About AWS connectivity and credentials
The dynamodb-model
module uses the official AWS SDK module for low-level operations. To properly connect to your DynamoDB table, make sure you configure the AWS SDK first. More details on the official AWS website here.
var AWS = ; // setup region and credentialsAWSconfig; // specify the API version (optional)AWSconfigapiVersions = dynamodb: '2012-08-10';
Additionally, if you need to specify options for the AWS.DynamoDB
constructor, pass them to the Model
constructor like this:
var myTable = tableName schema maxRetries: 1000 sslEnabled: true;
About table status
When creating a model instance, a describeTable
call is immediately performed to check for table existence. If the table does not exist, a createTable
call follows immediately.
If the table is not yet active (table status is not "ACTIVE"
), all operations are queued and will not be executed until the table is ready. When the table becomes active, operations from the queue are executed in sequential order. This means that you can create a model instance and start writing data immediately, even if the table does not exist.
If you wish to wait for the table to become available before performing an action, use the waitForActiveTable
method, which invokes describeTable
repeatedly until the status switches to "ACTIVE"
.
WARNING: the queue is not durable and should not be used in a production environment, since changes will be lost if the application terminates before the table becomes active. Instead, create your table beforehand, or use the waitForActiveTable
method to make sure the table is ready.
Model.batchGetItem
This method is not yet implemented.
AWS Documentation for BatchGetItem
Model.batchWriteItem
This method is not yet implemented.
AWS Documentation for BatchWriteItem
Model.createTable(options, callback)
Creates the DynamoDB table represented by the schema and returns the AWS service response.
- options: attributes to add to the AWS.Request instance (optional)
- callback: the callback function to invoke with the AWS response (optional)
var myTable = tableName schema;myTable
Note: table creation in DynamoDB is asynchronous. The table is not ready until its status property is set to "ACTIVE". If you need to wait for the table to become active, use the waitForActiveTable
method.
AWS Documentation for CreateTable
Model.deleteItem(key, options, callback)
Deletes a single item in a table by primary key and returns the AWS service response.
- key: an object representing the primary key of the item to remove
- options: attributes to add to the AWS.Request instance (optional)
- callback: the callback function to invoke with the AWS response (optional)
var myTable = tableName schema;myTable
AWS Documentation for DeleteItem
Note: conditional deletes are not yet implemented.
Model.deleteTable(options, callback)
Removes the table represented by the schema, as well as all items in the table, then returns the AWS service response.
- options: attributes to add to the AWS.Request instance (optional)
- callback: the callback function to invoke with the AWS response
var myTable = tableName schema;myTable
AWS Documentation for DeleteTable
Model.describeTable(options, callback)
Returns information about the table represented by the schema, including the current status of the table, when it was created, the primary key schema, and any indexes on the table. The table description is the AWS service response.
- options: attributes to add to the AWS.Request instance (optional)
- callback: the callback function to invoke with the AWS response
var myTable = tableName schema;myTable
Model.waitForActiveTable(pollingInterval, callback)
Invokes describeTable
repeatedly until the table status is "ACTIVE"
.
- pollingInterval: the delay in milliseconds between each invocation of
describeTable
(optional, default value is 3000) - callback: the callback function to invoke with the AWS response from
describeTable
(optional)
var myTable = tableName schema;var pollingInterval = 5000; // 5 secondsmyTable
Model.getItem(key, options, callback)
Retrieves a specific item based on its primary key, returning the mapped item as well as the AWS service response.
- key: an object representing the primary key of the item to retrieve
- options: attributes to add to the AWS.Request instance (optional)
- callback: the callback function to invoke with the AWS response
var myTable = tableName schema;myTable
Model.listTables(options, callback)
This method is not yet implemented.
- options: attributes to add to the AWS.Request instance (optional)
- callback: the callback function to invoke with the AWS response
AWS Documentation for ListTables
Model.putItem(item, options, callback)
TBD
Model.query
TBD
Model.scan
TBD
Model.updateItem
TBD
AWS Documentation for UpdateItem
Model.updateTable
TBD
AWS Documentation for UpdateTable
Reading results with DynamoDBModel.Query
TBD
Stability
This is the initial release of dynamodb-model
and should not be considered production-ready yet. Some features are also missing (see TODO section).
TODO
- Complete documentation
- Implement local secondary indexes
- Implement
BatchGetItem
operation - Implement
BatchWriteItem
operation - Add conditional support for
DeleteItem
operation - Add parallel support for
Scan
operation - Improve API to be closer to Mongoose, using aliases for common methods
- Check for table key changes, which are unsupported by DynamoDB
Compatibility
- Tested with Node 0.10.x
- Tested on Mac OS X 10.8
Dependencies
License
The MIT License (MIT)
Copyright (c) 2013, Nicolas Mercier
Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person obtaining a copy of this software and associated documentation files (the "Software"), to deal in the Software without restriction, including without limitation the rights to use, copy, modify, merge, publish, distribute, sublicense, and/or sell copies of the Software, and to permit persons to whom the Software is furnished to do so, subject to the following conditions:
The above copyright notice and this permission notice shall be included in all copies or substantial portions of the Software.
THE SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED "AS IS", WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND NONINFRINGEMENT. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE AUTHORS OR COPYRIGHT HOLDERS BE LIABLE FOR ANY CLAIM, DAMAGES OR OTHER LIABILITY, WHETHER IN AN ACTION OF CONTRACT, TORT OR OTHERWISE, ARISING FROM, OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE SOFTWARE OR THE USE OR OTHER DEALINGS IN THE SOFTWARE.