Get started with Tablestore Node.js SDK - Tablestore - Alibaba Cloud Documentation Center

Quick start

Set up the environment, install the SDK, and initialize the client.

Prerequisites

Node.js 4.0 or later.

Important
Do not use Node.js 12.0 to 12.14 due to compatibility issues.
A Node.js development tool.

Install the SDK

Run the following command to install the SDK:

npm install tablestore

Sample programs for common wide column model operations:

Download the Node.js SDK and check the sample folder.
View samples on GitHub.

Configure access credentials

Create an AccessKey for your Alibaba Cloud account or RAM user, then configure it as an environment variable to avoid hard-coding credentials.

Restart your IDE, terminal, other desktop applications, and background services after configuration to load the updated environment variables. For more information about other types of access credentials, see Configure access credentials.

Linux

Append the environment variables to ~/.bashrc:

echo "export TABLESTORE_ACCESS_KEY_ID='YOUR_ACCESS_KEY_ID'" >> ~/.bashrc
echo "export TABLESTORE_ACCESS_KEY_SECRET='YOUR_ACCESS_KEY_SECRET'" >> ~/.bashrc

Apply the changes:
```
source ~/.bashrc
```

Verify the environment variables:

echo $TABLESTORE_ACCESS_KEY_ID
echo $TABLESTORE_ACCESS_KEY_SECRET

macOS

Check your default shell:
```
echo $SHELL
```

Configure based on your shell type:

Zsh

Append the environment variables to ~/.zshrc:

echo "export TABLESTORE_ACCESS_KEY_ID='YOUR_ACCESS_KEY_ID'" >> ~/.zshrc
echo "export TABLESTORE_ACCESS_KEY_SECRET='YOUR_ACCESS_KEY_SECRET'" >> ~/.zshrc

Apply the changes:
```
source ~/.zshrc
```

Verify the environment variables:

echo $TABLESTORE_ACCESS_KEY_ID
echo $TABLESTORE_ACCESS_KEY_SECRET

Bash

Append the environment variables to ~/.bash_profile:

echo "export TABLESTORE_ACCESS_KEY_ID='YOUR_ACCESS_KEY_ID'" >> ~/.bash_profile
echo "export TABLESTORE_ACCESS_KEY_SECRET='YOUR_ACCESS_KEY_SECRET'" >> ~/.bash_profile

Apply the changes:
```
source ~/.bash_profile
```

Verify the environment variables:

echo $TABLESTORE_ACCESS_KEY_ID
echo $TABLESTORE_ACCESS_KEY_SECRET

Windows

CMD

Set the environment variables in CMD:

setx TABLESTORE_ACCESS_KEY_ID "YOUR_ACCESS_KEY_ID"
setx TABLESTORE_ACCESS_KEY_SECRET "YOUR_ACCESS_KEY_SECRET"

Restart CMD and verify:

echo %TABLESTORE_ACCESS_KEY_ID%
echo %TABLESTORE_ACCESS_KEY_SECRET%

PowerShell

Run in PowerShell:

[Environment]::SetEnvironmentVariable("TABLESTORE_ACCESS_KEY_ID", "YOUR_ACCESS_KEY_ID", [EnvironmentVariableTarget]::User)
[Environment]::SetEnvironmentVariable("TABLESTORE_ACCESS_KEY_SECRET", "YOUR_ACCESS_KEY_SECRET", [EnvironmentVariableTarget]::User)

Verify the environment variables:

[Environment]::GetEnvironmentVariable("TABLESTORE_ACCESS_KEY_ID", [EnvironmentVariableTarget]::User)
[Environment]::GetEnvironmentVariable("TABLESTORE_ACCESS_KEY_SECRET", [EnvironmentVariableTarget]::User)

Initialize the client

Initialize the client and list tables to verify the connection.

Important

Public network access is disabled by default for new instances. To use public network access, enable it in the Network Management.

var TableStore = require('tablestore');

// Replace yourInstanceName with your instance name
var instancename = 'yourInstanceName';
// Replace yourEndpoint with your instance endpoint
var endpoint = 'yourEndpoint';
// Obtain the AccessKey ID and AccessKey Secret from environment variables
var accessKeyId = process.env.TABLESTORE_ACCESS_KEY_ID;
var secretAccessKey = process.env.TABLESTORE_ACCESS_KEY_SECRET;

// Initialize the Tablestore client
var client = new TableStore.Client({
  accessKeyId: accessKeyId,
  secretAccessKey: secretAccessKey,
  endpoint: endpoint,
  instancename: instancename
});

// List all tables in the instance and print to the console
client.listTable({}, function (err, data) {
    if (err) {
        console.log('error:', err);
        return;
    }
    console.log('success:', data);
});

Data types

Tablestore data types map to Node.js SDK types as follows.

Tablestore data type	Node.js SDK data type	Description
String	string	A JavaScript primitive type.
Integer	int64	JavaScript lacks a native 64-bit integer type. The SDK provides `int64` through `TableStore.Long`.
Double	number	A JavaScript primitive type.
Boolean	boolean	A JavaScript primitive type.
Binary	Buffer	A Node.js `Buffer` object for handling binary data.

TableStore.Long converts between int64 and JavaScript number or string types:

// Construct int64 from number or string
const valueA = TableStore.Long.fromNumber(1000);
const valueB = TableStore.Long.fromString('2000');

// Convert int64 back to native JavaScript types
const numA = valueA.toNumber();   // 1000
const strA = valueA.toString();   // '1000'

const numB = valueB.toNumber();   // 2000
const strB = valueB.toString();   // '2000'

FAQ

References

For information about error handling in Tablestore, see Error handling.