How to integrate C libraries into Node.js using SWIG?

Integrating C Libraries into Node.js

The integration of C libraries into Node.js has been a topic of interest for developers. Node.js's event-driven architecture and asynchronous nature make it an attractive platform for interfacing with native C code.

One of the solutions mentioned in the answer is SWIG, which stands for Simplified Wrapper and Interface Generator. In version 3.0, SWIG gained the ability to generate JavaScript interfaces for Node.js, making it a viable option for linking C libraries.

To demonstrate the integration process, consider a simple header file called myclass.h:

#include <iostream>

class MyClass {
        int myNumber;
public:
        MyClass(int number): myNumber(number){}
        void sayHello() {
                std::cout << "Hello, my number is:" 
                << myNumber <<std::endl;
        }
};

To use MyClass in Node.js, prepare an interface file called mylib.i:

%module "mylib"
%{
#include "myclass.h"
%}
%include "myclass.h"

Create a binding file called binding.gyp:

{
  "targets": [
    {
      "target_name": "mylib",
      "sources": [ "mylib_wrap.cxx" ]
    }
  ]
}

Generate and compile the necessary files:

swig -c++ -javascript -node mylib.i
node-gyp build

With Node.js running in the same directory, you can access the C class as follows:

> var mylib = require("./build/Release/mylib")
> var c = new mylib.MyClass(5)
> c.sayHello()
Hello, my number is:5

SWIG's ability to automatically detect class members simplifies the interfacing process, making it less error-prone and more convenient for developers to integrate C libraries into their Node.js applications.

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