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Node.jsasync_hooksAsyncDebugging

Node.js Async Hooks Module Guide

Master Node.js async_hooks module for tracking asynchronous operations and building context propagation.

B
Bootspring Team
Engineering
December 9, 2019
7 min read

The async_hooks module tracks the lifecycle of asynchronous resources. Here's how to use it.

Basic Usage#

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Execution Context Tracking#

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AsyncLocalStorage#

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Request Tracing#

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Logger with Context#

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Database Connection Tracking#

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Performance Monitoring#

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Error Tracking#

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Best Practices#

Usage: ✓ Prefer AsyncLocalStorage over raw hooks ✓ Use for request context propagation ✓ Use for transaction management ✓ Use for distributed tracing Performance: ✓ Minimize work in hook callbacks ✓ Use writeSync for debugging ✓ Clean up resources in destroy ✓ Disable hooks when not needed Patterns: ✓ Logger with request context ✓ Transaction scoping ✓ Error tracking with breadcrumbs ✓ Performance monitoring Avoid: ✗ Storing large objects ✗ Synchronous operations in hooks ✗ Memory leaks from missing cleanup ✗ Using for simple use cases

Conclusion#

The async_hooks module enables tracking asynchronous operations in Node.js. Use AsyncLocalStorage for request context propagation, logging correlation, and transaction management. Raw async hooks are useful for debugging, profiling, and building custom instrumentation. Always clean up resources properly to prevent memory leaks.

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