Enforce require() on the top-level module scope (global-require)

In Node.js, module dependencies are included using the require() function, such as:

var fs = require("fs");

While require() may be called anywhere in code, some style guides prescribe that it should be called only in the top level of a module to make it easier to identify dependencies. For instance, it's arguably harder to identify dependencies when they are deeply nested inside of functions and other statements:

function foo() {

    if (condition) {
        var fs = require("fs");
    }
}

Since require() does a synchronous load, it can cause performance problems when used in other locations.

Further, ES6 modules mandate that import and export statements can only occur in the top level of the module's body.

Rule Details

This rule requires all calls to require() to be at the top level of the module, similar to ES6 import and export statements, which also can occur only at the top level.

Examples of incorrect code for this rule:

/*eslint global-require: "error"*/
/*eslint-env es6*/

// calling require() inside of a function is not allowed
function readFile(filename, callback) {
    var fs = require('fs');
    fs.readFile(filename, callback)
}

// conditional requires like this are also not allowed
if (DEBUG) { require('debug'); }

// a require() in a switch statement is also flagged
switch(x) { case '1': require('1'); break; }

// you may not require() inside an arrow function body
var getModule = (name) => require(name);

// you may not require() inside of a function body as well
function getModule(name) { return require(name); }

// you may not require() inside of a try/catch block
try {
    require(unsafeModule);
} catch(e) {
    console.log(e);
}

Examples of correct code for this rule:

/*eslint global-require: "error"*/

// all these variations of require() are ok
require('x');
var y = require('y');
var z;
z = require('z').initialize();

// requiring a module and using it in a function is ok
var fs = require('fs');
function readFile(filename, callback) {
    fs.readFile(filename, callback)
}

// you can use a ternary to determine which module to require
var logger = DEBUG ? require('dev-logger') : require('logger');

// if you want you can require() at the end of your module
function doSomethingA() {}
function doSomethingB() {}
var x = require("x"),
    z = require("z");

When Not To Use It

If you have a module that must be initialized with information that comes from the file-system or if a module is only used in very rare situations and will cause significant overhead to load it may make sense to disable the rule. If you need to require() an optional dependency inside of a try/catch, you can disable this rule for just that dependency using the // eslint-disable-line global-require comment. Source: http://eslint.org/docs/rules/

Disallow string concatenation when using __dirname and __filename (no-path-concat)

In Node.js, the __dirname and __filename global variables contain the directory path and the file path of the currently executing script file, respectively. Sometimes, developers try to use these variables to create paths to other files, such as:

var fullPath = __dirname + "/foo.js";

However, there are a few problems with this. First, you can't be sure what type of system the script is running on. Node.js can be run on any computer, including Windows, which uses a different path separator. It's very easy, therefore, to create an invalid path using string concatenation and assuming Unix-style separators. There's also the possibility of having double separators, or otherwise ending up with an invalid path.

In order to avoid any confusion as to how to create the correct path, Node.js provides the path module. This module uses system-specific information to always return the correct value. So you can rewrite the previous example as:

var fullPath = path.join(__dirname, "foo.js");

This example doesn't need to include separators as path.join() will do it in the most appropriate manner. Alternately, you can use path.resolve() to retrieve the fully-qualified path:

var fullPath = path.resolve(__dirname, "foo.js");

Both path.join() and path.resolve() are suitable replacements for string concatenation wherever file or directory paths are being created.

Rule Details

This rule aims to prevent string concatenation of directory paths in Node.js

Examples of incorrect code for this rule:

/*eslint no-path-concat: "error"*/

var fullPath = __dirname + "/foo.js";

var fullPath = __filename + "/foo.js";

Examples of correct code for this rule:

/*eslint no-path-concat: "error"*/

var fullPath = dirname + "/foo.js";

When Not To Use It

If you want to allow string concatenation of path names. Source: http://eslint.org/docs/rules/

Duplicated Code

Duplicated code can lead to software that is hard to understand and difficult to change. The Don't Repeat Yourself (DRY) principle states:

Every piece of knowledge must have a single, unambiguous, authoritative representation within a system.

When you violate DRY, bugs and maintenance problems are sure to follow. Duplicated code has a tendency to both continue to replicate and also to diverge (leaving bugs as two similar implementations differ in subtle ways).

Tuning

This issue has a mass of 76.

We set useful threshold defaults for the languages we support but you may want to adjust these settings based on your project guidelines.

The threshold configuration represents the minimum mass a code block must have to be analyzed for duplication. The lower the threshold, the more fine-grained the comparison.

If the engine is too easily reporting duplication, try raising the threshold. If you suspect that the engine isn't catching enough duplication, try lowering the threshold. The best setting tends to differ from language to language.

See codeclimate-duplication's documentation for more information about tuning the mass threshold in your .codeclimate.yml.

Refactorings

• Extract Method
• Extract Class
• Form Template Method
• Introduce Null Object
• Pull Up Method
• Pull Up Field
• Substitute Algorithm

Further Reading

• Don't Repeat Yourself on the C2 Wiki
• Duplicated Code on SourceMaking
• Refactoring: Improving the Design of Existing Code by Martin Fowler. Duplicated Code, p76