When building a web application with ReactJS, you may need to include a backend server for handling server-side logic and API requests. Express is a popular choice for creating backend servers in Node.js. In this tutorial, we’ll explore how to integrate Express with a React app using Gulp as the build tool. Gulp will allow us to run both the React development server and the Express server concurrently.
Prerequisites:
- Node.js and npm are installed on your system. You can refer to the Installation of Node.js article for installation instructions.
- Basic understanding of React. You can start with this React tutorial.
- Familiarity with Gulp. You can refer to this Gulp tutorial for an introduction.
Gulp
Gulp is a task runner and build system for JavaScript projects. It helps automate repetitive tasks such as file minification, compilation, testing, and more. It uses a simple and intuitive syntax, allowing developers to define tasks and dependencies easily. Gulp simplifies the development process by automating common workflows, making it a popular tool among web developers.
Steps to Configure Express to a React App using Gulp
Step 1: Setting up the React App
Create a new directory for your React app:
// Write in Terminal to create a new folder
// with name of my-react-app
mkdir my-react-app
Initialize a new React project using Create React App by running the following command in your terminal:
// Write in Terminal to create a new React Project
npx create-react-app my-react-app
Change into the project directory:
// Change Directory to my-react-app
cd my-react-app
Step 2: Installing Dependencies
Install Express and Gulp by running the following command in your terminal:
// Write in Terminal to install GULP
npm install express gulp
Step 3: Creating the Express Server
Create a new file called server.js in the root of your project directory. Open server.js and add the following code to set up a basic Express server:
Javascript
const express = require('express'); const app = express(); // Choose a port number const port = 3001; // Define your routes here app.get('/api/data', (req, res) => { // Handle the API request and send a response res.json({ message: 'Hello from the server!' }); }); // Start the server app.listen(port, () => { console.log(`Server is running on port ${port}`); }); |
Step 4: Creating Gulp Tasks
Create a new file called gulpfile.js in the root of your project directory. Open gulpfile.js and add the following code to define the Gulp tasks:
Javascript
const gulp = require('gulp'); const { spawn } = require('child_process'); // Define the task to start the Express server gulp.task('start-server', () => { const serverProcess = spawn('node', ['server.js'], { stdio: 'inherit' }); serverProcess.on('close', (code) => { if (code === 8) { console.error('Error detected, waiting for changes...'); } }); }); // Define the default task to start the React development server gulp.task('default', gulp.series('start-server', () => { const reactProcess = spawn('npm', ['start'], { stdio: 'inherit' }); reactProcess.on('close', (code) => { if (code === 8) { console.error('Error detected, waiting for changes...'); } }); })); |
Step 5: Updating the package.json
Open the package.json file in the root of your project directory. Update the “scripts” section to include a new script for running Gulp:
"scripts": {
"start": "react-scripts start",
"build": "react-scripts build",
"test": "react-scripts test",
"eject": "react-scripts eject",
"gulp": "gulp"
},
Step 6: Starting the Servers
In your terminal, navigate to your project directory. Run the following command to start the React development server with Gulp:
npm run gulp
Output:
Once you run the command npm run gulp, you should see the output indicating that both the React development server and the Express server are running. The React app will be available at http://localhost:3000, and you can access the Express API endpoint at http://localhost:3001/api/data. When you visit the API endpoint in your browser, you should see the JSON response { “message”: “Hello from the server!” }.
Demo
By following these steps, you’ve successfully added Express to your React app using Gulp. The React development server will run on the default port 3000, and the Express server will run on port 3001. You can modify these ports as needed in the server.js and gulpfile.js files.
