(FRONT) FRONT (2016)

Return Main 82 points of Browser and Node difference.

  Node.js Browser
1. Access to System Resources Can interact with system resources like environment variables, operating system info, and hardware. Limited access to system resources due to security restrictions (e.g., no access to environment variables or hardware info).
2. Asynchronous Programming Asynchronous I/O is inherent - file access, network requests are always asynchronous. Asynchronous I/O for preventing blocking of the main thread - timers and user interaction are asynchronous operations.
3. Buffer API Provides the Buffer API for handling binary data. No Buffer API. Uses ArrayBuffer and TypedArray for binary data handling.
4. Child Processes Can spawn and manage child processes using child_process module. No support for child processes. Limited to Web Workers for parallel tasks.
5. Cluster Module Supports clustering for load balancing across multiple CPU cores. No support for clustering. Limited to Web Workers for parallel tasks.
6. Command-Line Tools Can create command-line tools using libraries like commander or yargs. No support for command-line tools.
7. Console Methods Supports advanced console methods like console.table() and console.dir(). Supports similar console methods but with browser-specific enhancements (e.g., console.group()).
8. Cookies No built-in cookie handling. Requires external libraries like cookie-parser. Provides built-in cookie handling via document.cookie.
9. Core Modules and APIs Provides built-in modules for server-side tasks (e.g., fs for file system, http for HTTP, os for operating system). Uses require() for module imports. Provides APIs for manipulating the DOM (e.g., document.getElementById(), addEventListener()), making network requests (fetch, XMLHttpRequest), and interacting with browser features (e.g., localStorage, navigator). Uses <script> tags or ES modules (import) for including JavaScript code.
10. Cryptography No built-in cryptography APIs. Requires external libraries like crypto (Node.js built-in module) or third-party libraries. Provides built-in cryptography APIs via the Web Crypto API (e.g., window.crypto.subtle).
11. Custom Error Types Supports custom error types and stack trace manipulation. Supports custom error types but with limited stack trace manipulation.
12. Custom Inspectors Supports custom inspectors for debugging and profiling. No support for custom inspectors. Limited to browser developer tools.
13. Custom Protocols Can create custom protocols (e.g., TCP, UDP, HTTP/2) using built-in modules. Limited to standard protocols (e.g., HTTP, WebSocket).
14. Database Access Can directly connect to databases (e.g., MySQL, PostgreSQL, MongoDB) using libraries like mysql, pg, or mongoose. Limited to client-side storage (e.g., localStorage, IndexedDB) or making API requests to a server.
15. Debugging and Profiling Provides built-in debugging and profiling tools (e.g., node --inspect, node --prof). Provides developer tools (e.g., Chrome DevTools), but they are focused on client-side debugging.
16. Development Tools Debugging and profiling tools are often command-line based or integrated into IDEs. Browser developer tools (like Chrome DevTools or Firefox Developer Tools) provide rich debugging, profiling, and inspection capabilities specifically for the browser environment and DOM interaction.
17. DNS Lookup Provides built-in DNS lookup capabilities via the dns module. No direct DNS lookup capabilities. Limited to fetch or XMLHttpRequest for network requests.
18. Environment Server-side environment. Has access to the file system, network, operating system resources, etc. No DOM or browser-specific APIs. Client-side (browser) environment. Interacts with the web page's structure, content, and styling through the DOM. No direct access to server-side resources like the file system.
19. Environment Variables Can access environment variables via process.env. No direct access to environment variables. Must be passed via the server or embedded in the code.
20. Environment-Specific APIs Provides environment-specific APIs like process.cwd() and process.chdir(). No equivalent APIs. Limited to browser-specific APIs like window.location.
21. Error Handling Supports uncaught exception handling via process.on('uncaughtException'). Supports uncaught exception handling via window.onerror and window.addEventListener('error').
22. Event Loop Phases Exposes detailed event loop phases (e.g., timers, poll, check). No direct access to event loop phases. Managed internally by the browser.
23. Events Event-driven architecture based on the event loop. Events are related to server-side actions (e.g., file system operations, network events). Emits events using EventEmitter. Also event-driven. Events are triggered by user interactions (e.g., clicks, mouseovers), network activity, or browser events (e.g., load, DOMContentLoaded). Handles events using addEventListener().
24. File System Access Provides built-in file system access via the fs module (e.g., fs.readFile, fs.writeFile). No direct file system access. Limited access via file input elements (<input type="file">) or the File API.
25. Global Objects global is the global object. Modules have their own scope, and variables are not automatically added to the global scope (unless explicitly assigned). window is the global object. Variables declared outside of any function are automatically added to the global scope (unless declared with let, const, or class in strict mode).
26. IndexedDB No support for IndexedDB. IndexedDB is browser-specific. Supports IndexedDB for client-side storage of large amounts of structured data.
27. Inspector API Supports the Inspector API for debugging and profiling. Provides browser developer tools (e.g., Chrome DevTools) for debugging and profiling.
28. LocalStorage No localStorage. Requires external libraries or custom implementations. Provides localStorage for persistent client-side storage.
29. Memory Management Can manually trigger garbage collection using global.gc() (requires --expose-gc flag). No direct control over garbage collection. Managed automatically by the browser.
30. Module System Primarily uses CommonJS modules (require() and module.exports). ES modules are also supported in newer Node.js versions. Traditionally used <script> tags. Modern browsers support ES modules natively, enabling modular JavaScript development on the client-side.
31. Multithreading Model Supports Worker Threads via the worker_threads module for true multithreading. Supports Web Workers for multithreading, but they are more limited (e.g., no DOM access).
32. Native Addons Supports native addons written in C/C++ via the Node-API or NAN. No support for native addons. Limited to JavaScript or WebAssembly.
33. Networking and Servers Built-in support for creating TCP/UDP servers, HTTP/HTTPS servers, and WebSocket servers. Limited to client-side networking (e.g., fetch, XMLHttpRequest, WebSocket as a client).
34. OS Module Provides built-in os module for accessing operating system information. No direct access to operating system information. Limited to navigator.userAgent for browser info.
35. Path Manipulation Provides built-in path module for file path manipulation. No built-in path manipulation. Limited to URL and URLSearchParams for URL handling.
36. Performance Hooks Provides performance hooks (perf_hooks) for measuring performance metrics. Provides Performance API for measuring performance metrics (e.g., Performance.now()).
37. Performance Optimization Can optimize performance using native modules, Worker Threads, and clustering. Limited to Web Workers and WebAssembly for performance optimization.
38. Process Arguments Can access command-line arguments via process.argv. No direct access to command-line arguments. Limited to URL query parameters.
39. Process Exit Can explicitly exit the process using process.exit(). No direct process exit mechanism. The browser tab/window must be closed manually.
40. Process Management Provides process management capabilities via the process module. Can spawn child processes using child_process or cluster. No direct process management capabilities. Limited to Web Workers for parallel tasks.
41. Process Signals Supports handling process signals (e.g., SIGINT, SIGTERM). No support for process signals. Limited to browser events (e.g., beforeunload).
42. Rendering and UI No built-in UI rendering capabilities. Can use external libraries or frameworks to create web servers or command-line interfaces. Directly responsible for rendering and updating the web page. JavaScript can modify the DOM to change the page's content, structure, and style.
43. REPL (Read-Eval-Print Loop) Provides a built-in REPL for interactive JavaScript execution. No built-in REPL. Developers use browser console for interactive execution.
44. Security Model Server-side code has more privileges and access to system resources. Security is managed by the operating system and server configurations. Runs in a sandboxed environment with limited access to system resources. Security is enforced by the browser (same-origin policy, CSP).
45. Service Workers No support for Service Workers. Service Workers are browser-specific. Supports Service Workers for offline functionality, background sync, and push notifications.
46. SessionStorage No sessionStorage. Requires external libraries or custom implementations. Provides sessionStorage for session-based client-side storage.
47. SharedArrayBuffer Supports SharedArrayBuffer for shared memory between threads. Supports SharedArrayBuffer but with restrictions due to security concerns (e.g., Spectre mitigation).
48. Stream Types Supports four types of streams: Readable, Writable, Duplex, and Transform. Supports ReadableStream and WritableStream for streaming data.
49. Streaming APIs Provides powerful streaming APIs (e.g., fs.createReadStream, http.IncomingMessage). Supports streaming via Fetch API, ReadableStream, and MediaStream.
50. System Information Provides built-in os module for accessing operating system information (e.g., CPU, memory). No direct access to operating system information. Limited to navigator.userAgent for browser info.
51. Task Scheduling Supports setImmediate() for scheduling tasks in the next event loop iteration. No direct equivalent. Uses setTimeout(fn, 0) or queueMicrotask() for deferring execution.
52. Threading Model Supports Worker Threads for true multithreading. Supports Web Workers for multithreading, but they are more limited (e.g., no DOM access).
53. This
  • Global Context: Refers to the global object.
  • Module Scope: this is undefined in modules.
  • Event Handlers: Not applicable (Node.js doesn’t have DOM events).
  • Global Context: Refers to the window object.
  • Module Scope: this refers to window in non-module scripts; undefined in ES modules.
  • Event Handlers: this refers to the element that triggered the event.
54. Timers Supports setImmediate() in addition to setTimeout() and setInterval(). Supports setTimeout() and setInterval(), but timers are affected by browser behavior (e.g., tab throttling).
55. Top-Level await Supported in ES modules (Node.js 14.8+). Can be used at the top level of a module without wrapping in an async function. Supported in modern browsers (Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Safari) for ES modules. Can be used at the top level of a module without wrapping in an async function.
56. URL Handling Provides built-in url module for parsing and formatting URLs. Supports URL and URLSearchParams for URL handling.
57. Utilities Provides built-in utilities like util.promisify() for converting callback-based functions to promises. No direct equivalent. Developers use custom utility functions or libraries.
58. VM Module Provides the vm module for running code in isolated contexts. No equivalent to the vm module. Limited to iframes or Web Workers for isolation.
59. Web Animations API No support for Web Animations API. Web Animations API is browser-specific. Supports Web Animations API for creating and controlling animations in the browser.
60. Web APIs No access to browser-specific Web APIs (e.g., Geolocation, Web Workers, WebSockets require external libraries). Provides access to browser-specific Web APIs (e.g., navigator.geolocation, Web Workers, WebSockets).
61. Web Assembly System Interface (WASI) Supports WASI for running WebAssembly outside the browser (e.g., in Node.js). No support for WASI. WASI is designed for server-side environments.
62. Web Audio API No support for Web Audio API. Web Audio API is browser-specific. Supports Web Audio API for audio processing and synthesis in the browser.
63. Web Authentication API No support for Web Authentication API. Web Authentication API is browser-specific. Supports Web Authentication API for strong authentication using public-key cryptography.
64. Web Bluetooth No support for Web Bluetooth. Web Bluetooth is browser-specific. Supports Web Bluetooth for interacting with Bluetooth devices in the browser.
65. Web Codecs API No support for Web Codecs API. Web Codecs API is browser-specific. Supports Web Codecs API for encoding and decoding audio/video in the browser.
66. Web Components No built-in support for Web Components. Requires external libraries. Supports Web Components natively (e.g., Custom Elements, Shadow DOM, HTML Templates).
67. Web HID No support for Web HID. Web HID is browser-specific. Supports Web HID for interacting with Human Interface Devices (HID) in the browser.
68. Web Locks API No support for Web Locks API. Web Locks API is browser-specific. Supports Web Locks API for managing locks on shared resources in the browser.
69. Web MIDI No support for Web MIDI. Web MIDI is browser-specific. Supports Web MIDI for interacting with MIDI devices in the browser.
70. Web NFC No support for Web NFC. Web NFC is browser-specific. Supports Web NFC for interacting with Near Field Communication (NFC) devices in the browser.
71. Web Notifications No support for Web Notifications. Web Notifications are browser-specific. Supports Web Notifications for displaying notifications to the user.
72. Web Serial API No support for Web Serial API. Web Serial API is browser-specific. Supports Web Serial API for interacting with serial ports in the browser.
73. Web Share API No support for Web Share API. Web Share API is browser-specific. Supports Web Share API for sharing content (e.g., text, links, files) from the browser.
74. Web Transport No support for Web Transport. Web Transport is browser-specific. Supports Web Transport for low-latency, bidirectional communication in the browser.
75. Web USB No support for Web USB. Web USB is browser-specific. Supports Web USB for interacting with USB devices in the browser.
76. WebGL No support for WebGL. WebGL is browser-specific. Supports WebGL for 3D graphics rendering in the browser.
77. WebGPU No support for WebGPU. WebGPU is browser-specific. Supports WebGPU for high-performance graphics and compute in the browser.
78. WebRTC No support for WebRTC. WebRTC is browser-specific. Supports WebRTC for real-time communication (e.g., video/audio streaming, peer-to-peer data transfer).
79. WebSocket Supports WebSocket via the ws library or built-in http module. Supports WebSocket natively via the WebSocket API.
80. WebXR No support for WebXR. WebXR is browser-specific. Supports WebXR for virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) experiences in the browser.
81. Worker Threads Supports Worker Threads for multi-threading (e.g., worker_threads module). Supports Web Workers for multi-threading (e.g., DedicatedWorker, SharedWorker).
82. Zlib Compression Provides built-in zlib module for compression and decompression. No built-in zlib support. Uses Compression Streams API for compression.


ES6 context:



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