Private _cacheReadonly closedIs true after readable.destroy() has been called.
v8.0.0
Readonly erroredIs true if it is safe to call readable.read(), which means
the stream has not been destroyed or emitted 'error' or 'end'.
v11.4.0
Readonly Experimental readableReturns whether the stream was destroyed or errored before emitting 'end'.
v16.8.0
Readonly Experimental readableReturns whether 'data' has been emitted.
v16.7.0, v14.18.0
Readonly readableGetter for the property encoding of a given Readable stream. The encodingproperty can be set using the readable.setEncoding() method.
v12.7.0
Readonly readableBecomes true when 'end' event is emitted.
v12.9.0
Readonly readableThis property reflects the current state of a Readable stream as described
in the Three states section.
v9.4.0
Readonly readableReturns the value of highWaterMark passed when creating this Readable.
v9.3.0
Readonly readableThis property contains the number of bytes (or objects) in the queue
ready to be read. The value provides introspection data regarding
the status of the highWaterMark.
v9.4.0
Readonly readableGetter for the property objectMode of a given Readable stream.
v12.3.0
Readonly writableReadonly writableReadonly writableReadonly writableReadonly writableReadonly writableReadonly writableReadonly writableStatic Readonly captureStatic captureTODO: These should be described using static getter/setter pairs:
Static defaultStatic Readonly errorThis symbol shall be used to install a listener for only monitoring 'error'
events. Listeners installed using this symbol are called before the regular
'error' listeners are called.
Installing a listener using this symbol does not change the behavior once an
'error' event is emitted, therefore the process will still crash if no
regular 'error' listener is installed.
Optional _constructOptional _writevEvent emitter The defined events on documents including:
Rest ...args: any[]Destroy the stream. Optionally emit an 'error' event, and emit a 'close'event (unless emitClose is set to false). After this call, the readable
stream will release any internal resources and subsequent calls to push()will be ignored.
Once destroy() has been called any further calls will be a no-op and no
further errors except from _destroy() may be emitted as 'error'.
Implementors should not override this method, but instead implement readable._destroy().
v8.0.0
Optional error: ErrorError which will be passed as payload in 'error' event
Rest ...args: any[]Optional cb: (() => void)Optional cb: (() => void)Optional encoding: BufferEncodingOptional cb: (() => void)Returns an array listing the events for which the emitter has registered
listeners. The values in the array are strings or Symbols.
import { EventEmitter } from 'node:events';
const myEE = new EventEmitter();
myEE.on('foo', () => {});
myEE.on('bar', () => {});
const sym = Symbol('symbol');
myEE.on(sym, () => {});
console.log(myEE.eventNames());
// Prints: [ 'foo', 'bar', Symbol(symbol) ]
v6.0.0
Returns the current max listener value for the EventEmitter which is either
set by emitter.setMaxListeners(n) or defaults to defaultMaxListeners.
v1.0.0
The readable.isPaused() method returns the current operating state of theReadable. This is used primarily by the mechanism that underlies thereadable.pipe() method. In most
typical cases, there will be no reason to
use this method directly.
const readable = new stream.Readable();
readable.isPaused(); // === false
readable.pause();
readable.isPaused(); // === true
readable.resume();
readable.isPaused(); // === false
v0.11.14
Returns the number of listeners listening for the event named eventName.
If listener is provided, it will return how many times the listener is found
in the list of the listeners of the event.
v3.2.0
The name of the event being listened for
Optional listener: FunctionThe event handler function
Returns a copy of the array of listeners for the event named eventName.
server.on('connection', (stream) => {
console.log('someone connected!');
});
console.log(util.inspect(server.listeners('connection')));
// Prints: [ [Function] ]
v0.1.26
Rest ...args: any[]Rest ...args: any[]The readable.pause() method will cause a stream in flowing mode to stop
emitting 'data' events, switching out of flowing mode. Any data that
becomes available will remain in the internal buffer.
const readable = getReadableStreamSomehow();
readable.on('data', (chunk) => {
console.log(`Received ${chunk.length} bytes of data.`);
readable.pause();
console.log('There will be no additional data for 1 second.');
setTimeout(() => {
console.log('Now data will start flowing again.');
readable.resume();
}, 1000);
});
The readable.pause() method has no effect if there is a 'readable'event listener.
v0.9.4
Rest ...args: any[]Rest ...args: any[]Returns a copy of the array of listeners for the event named eventName,
including any wrappers (such as those created by .once()).
import { EventEmitter } from 'node:events';
const emitter = new EventEmitter();
emitter.once('log', () => console.log('log once'));
// Returns a new Array with a function `onceWrapper` which has a property
// `listener` which contains the original listener bound above
const listeners = emitter.rawListeners('log');
const logFnWrapper = listeners[0];
// Logs "log once" to the console and does not unbind the `once` event
logFnWrapper.listener();
// Logs "log once" to the console and removes the listener
logFnWrapper();
emitter.on('log', () => console.log('log persistently'));
// Will return a new Array with a single function bound by `.on()` above
const newListeners = emitter.rawListeners('log');
// Logs "log persistently" twice
newListeners[0]();
emitter.emit('log');
v9.4.0
The readable.read() method reads data out of the internal buffer and
returns it. If no data is available to be read, null is returned. By default,
the data is returned as a Buffer object unless an encoding has been
specified using the readable.setEncoding() method or the stream is operating
in object mode.
The optional size argument specifies a specific number of bytes to read. Ifsize bytes are not available to be read, null will be returned _unless_the stream has ended, in which
case all of the data remaining in the internal
buffer will be returned.
If the size argument is not specified, all of the data contained in the
internal buffer will be returned.
The size argument must be less than or equal to 1 GiB.
The readable.read() method should only be called on Readable streams
operating in paused mode. In flowing mode, readable.read() is called
automatically until the internal buffer is fully drained.
const readable = getReadableStreamSomehow();
// 'readable' may be triggered multiple times as data is buffered in
readable.on('readable', () => {
let chunk;
console.log('Stream is readable (new data received in buffer)');
// Use a loop to make sure we read all currently available data
while (null !== (chunk = readable.read())) {
console.log(`Read ${chunk.length} bytes of data...`);
}
});
// 'end' will be triggered once when there is no more data available
readable.on('end', () => {
console.log('Reached end of stream.');
});
Each call to readable.read() returns a chunk of data, or null. The chunks
are not concatenated. A while loop is necessary to consume all data
currently in the buffer. When reading a large file .read() may return null,
having consumed all buffered content so far, but there is still more data to
come not yet buffered. In this case a new 'readable' event will be emitted
when there is more data in the buffer. Finally the 'end' event will be
emitted when there is no more data to come.
Therefore to read a file's whole contents from a readable, it is necessary
to collect chunks across multiple 'readable' events:
const chunks = [];
readable.on('readable', () => {
let chunk;
while (null !== (chunk = readable.read())) {
chunks.push(chunk);
}
});
readable.on('end', () => {
const content = chunks.join('');
});
A Readable stream in object mode will always return a single item from
a call to readable.read(size), regardless of the value of thesize argument.
If the readable.read() method returns a chunk of data, a 'data' event will
also be emitted.
Calling read after the 'end' event has
been emitted will return null. No runtime error will be raised.
v0.9.4
Optional size: numberOptional argument to specify how much data to read.
Removes all listeners, or those of the specified eventName.
It is bad practice to remove listeners added elsewhere in the code,
particularly when the EventEmitter instance was created by some other
component or module (e.g. sockets or file streams).
Returns a reference to the EventEmitter, so that calls can be chained.
v0.1.26
Optional event: string | symbolRest ...args: any[]The readable.resume() method causes an explicitly paused Readable stream to
resume emitting 'data' events, switching the stream into flowing mode.
The readable.resume() method can be used to fully consume the data from a
stream without actually processing any of that data:
getReadableStreamSomehow()
.resume()
.on('end', () => {
console.log('Reached the end, but did not read anything.');
});
The readable.resume() method has no effect if there is a 'readable'event listener.
v0.9.4
The readable.setEncoding() method sets the character encoding for
data read from the Readable stream.
By default, no encoding is assigned and stream data will be returned asBuffer objects. Setting an encoding causes the stream data
to be returned as strings of the specified encoding rather than as Bufferobjects. For instance, calling readable.setEncoding('utf8') will cause the
output data to be interpreted as UTF-8 data, and passed as strings. Callingreadable.setEncoding('hex') will cause the data to be encoded in hexadecimal
string format.
The Readable stream will properly handle multi-byte characters delivered
through the stream that would otherwise become improperly decoded if simply
pulled from the stream as Buffer objects.
const readable = getReadableStreamSomehow();
readable.setEncoding('utf8');
readable.on('data', (chunk) => {
assert.equal(typeof chunk, 'string');
console.log('Got %d characters of string data:', chunk.length);
});
v0.9.4
The encoding to use.
By default EventEmitters will print a warning if more than 10 listeners are
added for a particular event. This is a useful default that helps finding
memory leaks. The emitter.setMaxListeners() method allows the limit to be
modified for this specific EventEmitter instance. The value can be set toInfinity (or 0) to indicate an unlimited number of listeners.
Returns a reference to the EventEmitter, so that calls can be chained.
v0.3.5
The readable.unpipe() method detaches a Writable stream previously attached
using the pipe method.
If the destination is not specified, then all pipes are detached.
If the destination is specified, but no pipe is set up for it, then
the method does nothing.
const fs = require('node:fs');
const readable = getReadableStreamSomehow();
const writable = fs.createWriteStream('file.txt');
// All the data from readable goes into 'file.txt',
// but only for the first second.
readable.pipe(writable);
setTimeout(() => {
console.log('Stop writing to file.txt.');
readable.unpipe(writable);
console.log('Manually close the file stream.');
writable.end();
}, 1000);
v0.9.4
Optional destination: WritableStreamOptional specific stream to unpipe
Passing chunk as null signals the end of the stream (EOF) and behaves the
same as readable.push(null), after which no more data can be written. The EOF
signal is put at the end of the buffer and any buffered data will still be
flushed.
The readable.unshift() method pushes a chunk of data back into the internal
buffer. This is useful in certain situations where a stream is being consumed by
code that needs to "un-consume" some amount of data that it has optimistically
pulled out of the source, so that the data can be passed on to some other party.
The stream.unshift(chunk) method cannot be called after the 'end' event
has been emitted or a runtime error will be thrown.
Developers using stream.unshift() often should consider switching to
use of a Transform stream instead. See the API for stream implementers section for more information.
// Pull off a header delimited by \n\n.
// Use unshift() if we get too much.
// Call the callback with (error, header, stream).
const { StringDecoder } = require('node:string_decoder');
function parseHeader(stream, callback) {
stream.on('error', callback);
stream.on('readable', onReadable);
const decoder = new StringDecoder('utf8');
let header = '';
function onReadable() {
let chunk;
while (null !== (chunk = stream.read())) {
const str = decoder.write(chunk);
if (str.includes('\n\n')) {
// Found the header boundary.
const split = str.split(/\n\n/);
header += split.shift();
const remaining = split.join('\n\n');
const buf = Buffer.from(remaining, 'utf8');
stream.removeListener('error', callback);
// Remove the 'readable' listener before unshifting.
stream.removeListener('readable', onReadable);
if (buf.length)
stream.unshift(buf);
// Now the body of the message can be read from the stream.
callback(null, header, stream);
return;
}
// Still reading the header.
header += str;
}
}
}
Unlike push, stream.unshift(chunk) will not
end the reading process by resetting the internal reading state of the stream.
This can cause unexpected results if readable.unshift() is called during a
read (i.e. from within a _read implementation on a
custom stream). Following the call to readable.unshift() with an immediate push will reset the reading state appropriately,
however it is best to simply avoid calling readable.unshift() while in the
process of performing a read.
v0.9.11
Chunk of data to unshift onto the read queue. For streams not operating in object mode, chunk must be a string, Buffer, Uint8Array, or null. For object mode
streams, chunk may be any JavaScript value.
Optional encoding: BufferEncodingEncoding of string chunks. Must be a valid Buffer encoding, such as 'utf8' or 'ascii'.
Prior to Node.js 0.10, streams did not implement the entire node:streammodule API as it is currently defined. (See Compatibility for more
information.)
When using an older Node.js library that emits 'data' events and has a pause method that is advisory only, thereadable.wrap() method can be used to create a Readable
stream that uses
the old stream as its data source.
It will rarely be necessary to use readable.wrap() but the method has been
provided as a convenience for interacting with older Node.js applications and
libraries.
const { OldReader } = require('./old-api-module.js');
const { Readable } = require('node:stream');
const oreader = new OldReader();
const myReader = new Readable().wrap(oreader);
myReader.on('readable', () => {
myReader.read(); // etc.
});
v0.9.4
An "old style" readable stream
Optional encoding: BufferEncodingOptional cb: ((error) => void)Optional cb: ((error) => void)Static fromA utility method for creating duplex streams.
Stream converts writable stream into writable Duplex and readable stream
to Duplex.Blob converts into readable Duplex.string converts into readable Duplex.ArrayBuffer converts into readable Duplex.AsyncIterable converts into a readable Duplex. Cannot yield null.AsyncGeneratorFunction converts into a readable/writable transform
Duplex. Must take a source AsyncIterable as first parameter. Cannot yield
null.AsyncFunction converts into a writable Duplex. Must return
either null or undefinedObject ({ writable, readable }) converts readable and
writable into Stream and then combines them into Duplex where the
Duplex will write to the writable and read from the readable.Promise converts into readable Duplex. Value null is ignored.v16.8.0
Static fromStatic getReturns a copy of the array of listeners for the event named eventName.
For EventEmitters this behaves exactly the same as calling .listeners on
the emitter.
For EventTargets this is the only way to get the event listeners for the
event target. This is useful for debugging and diagnostic purposes.
import { getEventListeners, EventEmitter } from 'node:events';
{
const ee = new EventEmitter();
const listener = () => console.log('Events are fun');
ee.on('foo', listener);
console.log(getEventListeners(ee, 'foo')); // [ [Function: listener] ]
}
{
const et = new EventTarget();
const listener = () => console.log('Events are fun');
et.addEventListener('foo', listener);
console.log(getEventListeners(et, 'foo')); // [ [Function: listener] ]
}
v15.2.0, v14.17.0
Static isStatic listenerA class method that returns the number of listeners for the given eventNameregistered on the given emitter.
import { EventEmitter, listenerCount } from 'node:events';
const myEmitter = new EventEmitter();
myEmitter.on('event', () => {});
myEmitter.on('event', () => {});
console.log(listenerCount(myEmitter, 'event'));
// Prints: 2
v0.9.12
Since v3.2.0 - Use listenerCount instead.
The emitter to query
The event name
Static onimport { on, EventEmitter } from 'node:events';
import process from 'node:process';
const ee = new EventEmitter();
// Emit later on
process.nextTick(() => {
ee.emit('foo', 'bar');
ee.emit('foo', 42);
});
for await (const event of on(ee, 'foo')) {
// The execution of this inner block is synchronous and it
// processes one event at a time (even with await). Do not use
// if concurrent execution is required.
console.log(event); // prints ['bar'] [42]
}
// Unreachable here
Returns an AsyncIterator that iterates eventName events. It will throw
if the EventEmitter emits 'error'. It removes all listeners when
exiting the loop. The value returned by each iteration is an array
composed of the emitted event arguments.
An AbortSignal can be used to cancel waiting on events:
import { on, EventEmitter } from 'node:events';
import process from 'node:process';
const ac = new AbortController();
(async () => {
const ee = new EventEmitter();
// Emit later on
process.nextTick(() => {
ee.emit('foo', 'bar');
ee.emit('foo', 42);
});
for await (const event of on(ee, 'foo', { signal: ac.signal })) {
// The execution of this inner block is synchronous and it
// processes one event at a time (even with await). Do not use
// if concurrent execution is required.
console.log(event); // prints ['bar'] [42]
}
// Unreachable here
})();
process.nextTick(() => ac.abort());
v13.6.0, v12.16.0
The name of the event being listened for
Optional options: StaticEventEmitterOptionsthat iterates eventName events emitted by the emitter
Static onceCreates a Promise that is fulfilled when the EventEmitter emits the given
event or that is rejected if the EventEmitter emits 'error' while waiting.
The Promise will resolve with an array of all the arguments emitted to the
given event.
This method is intentionally generic and works with the web platform EventTarget interface, which has no special'error' event
semantics and does not listen to the 'error' event.
import { once, EventEmitter } from 'node:events';
import process from 'node:process';
const ee = new EventEmitter();
process.nextTick(() => {
ee.emit('myevent', 42);
});
const [value] = await once(ee, 'myevent');
console.log(value);
const err = new Error('kaboom');
process.nextTick(() => {
ee.emit('error', err);
});
try {
await once(ee, 'myevent');
} catch (err) {
console.error('error happened', err);
}
The special handling of the 'error' event is only used when events.once()is used to wait for another event. If events.once() is used to wait for the
'error' event itself, then it is treated as any other kind of event without
special handling:
import { EventEmitter, once } from 'node:events';
const ee = new EventEmitter();
once(ee, 'error')
.then(([err]) => console.log('ok', err.message))
.catch((err) => console.error('error', err.message));
ee.emit('error', new Error('boom'));
// Prints: ok boom
An AbortSignal can be used to cancel waiting for the event:
import { EventEmitter, once } from 'node:events';
const ee = new EventEmitter();
const ac = new AbortController();
async function foo(emitter, event, signal) {
try {
await once(emitter, event, { signal });
console.log('event emitted!');
} catch (error) {
if (error.name === 'AbortError') {
console.error('Waiting for the event was canceled!');
} else {
console.error('There was an error', error.message);
}
}
}
foo(ee, 'foo', ac.signal);
ac.abort(); // Abort waiting for the event
ee.emit('foo'); // Prints: Waiting for the event was canceled!
v11.13.0, v10.16.0
Optional options: StaticEventEmitterOptionsOptional options: StaticEventEmitterOptionsStatic setimport { setMaxListeners, EventEmitter } from 'node:events';
const target = new EventTarget();
const emitter = new EventEmitter();
setMaxListeners(5, target, emitter);
v15.4.0
Optional n: numberA non-negative number. The maximum number of listeners per EventTarget event.
Rest ...eventTargets: (EventEmitter | _DOMEventTarget)[]Static to
If
falsethen the stream will automatically end the writable side when the readable side ends. Set initially by theallowHalfOpenconstructor option, which defaults totrue.This can be changed manually to change the half-open behavior of an existing
Duplexstream instance, but must be changed before the'end'event is emitted.Since
v0.9.4