What risks come with deep-copying objects using JSON.parse(JSON.stringify(obj))?

Question

What risks come with deep-copying objects using JSON.parse(JSON.stringify(obj))?

I have come across the JSON.parse(JSON.stringify(obj)) hack frequently in order to deep copy objects. However, I am curious - does this method truly create a 'deep-copy' of an object? In terms of performance, is it advisable to use this technique?

javascript json object

Answer 1

Answer №1

An issue that arises when attempting to deep-copy an object using this method is the requirement for the object to be JSON serializable. Take, for instance, the following object:

let obj = {
    func: function() {
        console.log("hello world!");
    }
}

In this case, the object would not be copied correctly due to functions not being JSON serializable. Additionally, there are other complications such as cyclic references. This approach is most effective with simple, plain objects and may not be the best solution overall. It might be more beneficial to explore alternatives like underscore or lodash for efficient deep copying.

Answer 2

An issue that arises when attempting to deep-copy an object using this method is the requirement for the object to be JSON serializable. Take, for instance, the following object:

let obj = {
    func: function() {
        console.log("hello world!");
    }
}

In this case, the object would not be copied correctly due to functions not being JSON serializable. Additionally, there are other complications such as cyclic references. This approach is most effective with simple, plain objects and may not be the best solution overall. It might be more beneficial to explore alternatives like underscore or lodash for efficient deep copying.

Answer 3

Answer №2

There are a number of issues associated with using JSON.parse(JSON.stringify(obj))

One major concern for developers is the loss of any data not supported by the JSON specification

Internal getters and setters will be erased.
Date objects will be converted to strings, losing their original format.
Class prototypes will also be eliminated.

Furthermore, attempting to parse objects with circular references will result in an exception being thrown.

Despite these drawbacks, there are some benefits as well:

In performance tests, the JSON method has been shown to outperform most shallow copy techniques (source)
Since it is natively implemented in browsers, there is no need to include an external library, potentially improving page load times.

While this method does create a deep copy of the object, it is worth noting that certain information may be lost in the process, as mentioned above.

Answer 4

There are a number of issues associated with using JSON.parse(JSON.stringify(obj))

One major concern for developers is the loss of any data not supported by the JSON specification

Internal getters and setters will be erased.
Date objects will be converted to strings, losing their original format.
Class prototypes will also be eliminated.

Furthermore, attempting to parse objects with circular references will result in an exception being thrown.

Despite these drawbacks, there are some benefits as well:

In performance tests, the JSON method has been shown to outperform most shallow copy techniques (source)
Since it is natively implemented in browsers, there is no need to include an external library, potentially improving page load times.

While this method does create a deep copy of the object, it is worth noting that certain information may be lost in the process, as mentioned above.

What risks come with deep-copying objects using JSON.parse(JSON.stringify(obj))?

Answer №1

Answer №2

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