Cross-Runtime JavaScript: Streamlining Your Project Setup

by Hexagon, 3 minutes read javascript typescript cross-runtime nodejs deno bun

Embrace the 'less-is-more' philosophy for cross-runtime JavaScript development. Discover how Deno's and Bun's built-in features reduces complexity and enhances your workflow.



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In the previous article, we laid the foundation for cross-runtime JavaScript. Now, let's dive into setting up a streamlined project structure that leverages the power of tools built directly into Deno and Bun.

The Beauty of Built-In

Modern runtimes like Deno and Bun are starting to change the JavaScript development landscape. Deno come equipped with essential features like formatting, linting, and type-checking, and Bun has built in support for TypeScript. This means saying goodbye to the complexities of setting up external build tools and transpilers just to get started. A positive side-effect of this is that cross runtime development is getting simpler. While the Node community is starting to adapt with tools such as npx for seamless typescript execution, it's still far behind Deno which has built in linting, formatting and type checking. So let's use Deno for this excersize, and leverage what's already there instead of cluttering the project with third party dependencies and configuration.

Project Layout

Let's keep things simple:

  1. Project Root: Continue with your /my-project folder.
  2. Source Code: Place your .js or .ts files directly within this directory. For more complex projects, you can introduce subfolders to organize your code.
  3. Project metadata and configuration: If you favor deno, try to keep as much as possible in deno.json, if using Node or Bun, tro to make the most of package.json. You probably won't need both, especially if using jsr.io to distribute your code later on, which handle npm transparently.

Building a simple webserver

Let's rename our main.js to main.ts, to introduce the build in TypeScript support, and modify it to be a simple cross-runtime webserver:

import { express } from "express";

const app = express();
const port = 3000;

app.get("/", (req, res) => {
  res.send("Hello from your cross-runtime Express server!");
});

app.listen(port, () => {
  console.log(`Server listening on port ${port}`);
});

Express works in all runtimes, we can ignore whether it's because it's written to be cross-runtime, or if it's a result of the compatibility layers. It works. Which brings us to

Dependency management

Whether installing from npmjs, jsr or esm.sh, the key to good cross-runtime software is to only use packages which do state they support all runtimes, and use a modern code base. Do not settle for a automagically converted CommonJS-package from esm.sh if there is a better alternative. Jsr.io more or less forces package maintainers to specify compatibility, making it a great choice.

In this example I'll use express as an example, not because it is a great example of a cross-runtime package, but because it's a very known one, and easy to work with.

When adding dependencies, focus on one runtime to start with - the development runtime. In this example I'll add Express to deno.json by running deno add npm:express. This will leave deno.json looking like:

{
  "imports": {
    "express": "npm:express@^4.19.2"
  }
}

If you prefer Node, you'll want to use npm i express which would leave you a package.json looking like below. (As we're using ESM-style imports, I've manually added "type": "module" at the top.)

{
  "type": "module",
  "dependencies": {
    "express": "^4.19.2"
  }
}

Less is More

Using Deno, you already have everything you need to keep your code nice and tidy:

  • deno fmt - Format the code
  • deno lint - Lint the code
  • deno check <entrypoint> - Type check the code

Both Bun and Deno offer the advantage of build in TypeScript support, and with Node you can achieve a similar experience using tsx: npx tsx <scriptname>.ts.

Introduction Handling Built-ins