|  |  |  |  | [](http://travis-ci.org/kriskowal/q) | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | <a href="http://promises-aplus.github.com/promises-spec"> | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     <img src="http://promises-aplus.github.com/promises-spec/assets/logo-small.png" | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |          align="right" alt="Promises/A+ logo" /> | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | </a> | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | If a function cannot return a value or throw an exception without | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | blocking, it can return a promise instead.  A promise is an object | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | that represents the return value or the thrown exception that the | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | function may eventually provide.  A promise can also be used as a | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | proxy for a [remote object][Q-Connection] to overcome latency. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | [Q-Connection]: https://github.com/kriskowal/q-connection | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | On the first pass, promises can mitigate the “[Pyramid of | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | Doom][POD]”: the situation where code marches to the right faster | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | than it marches forward. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | [POD]: http://calculist.org/blog/2011/12/14/why-coroutines-wont-work-on-the-web/ | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ```javascript | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | step1(function (value1) { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     step2(value1, function(value2) { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |         step3(value2, function(value3) { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |             step4(value3, function(value4) { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |                 // Do something with value4 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |             }); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |         }); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     }); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | }); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | With a promise library, you can flatten the pyramid. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ```javascript | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | Q.fcall(promisedStep1) | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | .then(promisedStep2) | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | .then(promisedStep3) | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | .then(promisedStep4) | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | .then(function (value4) { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     // Do something with value4 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | }) | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | .catch(function (error) { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     // Handle any error from all above steps | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | }) | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | .done(); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | With this approach, you also get implicit error propagation, just like `try`, | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | `catch`, and `finally`.  An error in `promisedStep1` will flow all the way to | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | the `catch` function, where it’s caught and handled.  (Here `promisedStepN` is | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | a version of `stepN` that returns a promise.) | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | The callback approach is called an “inversion of control”. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | A function that accepts a callback instead of a return value | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | is saying, “Don’t call me, I’ll call you.”.  Promises | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | [un-invert][IOC] the inversion, cleanly separating the input | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | arguments from control flow arguments.  This simplifies the | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | use and creation of API’s, particularly variadic, | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | rest and spread arguments. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | [IOC]: http://www.slideshare.net/domenicdenicola/callbacks-promises-and-coroutines-oh-my-the-evolution-of-asynchronicity-in-javascript | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ## Getting Started
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | The Q module can be loaded as: | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | -   A ``<script>`` tag (creating a ``Q`` global variable): ~2.5 KB minified and | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     gzipped. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | -   A Node.js and CommonJS module, available in [npm](https://npmjs.org/) as | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     the [q](https://npmjs.org/package/q) package | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | -   An AMD module | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | -   A [component](https://github.com/component/component) as ``microjs/q`` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | -   Using [bower](http://bower.io/) as ``q`` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | -   Using [NuGet](http://nuget.org/) as [Q](https://nuget.org/packages/q) | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | Q can exchange promises with jQuery, Dojo, When.js, WinJS, and more. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ## Resources
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | Our [wiki][] contains a number of useful resources, including: | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | - A method-by-method [Q API reference][reference]. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | - A growing [examples gallery][examples], showing how Q can be used to make | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |   everything better. From XHR to database access to accessing the Flickr API, | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |   Q is there for you. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | - There are many libraries that produce and consume Q promises for everything | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |   from file system/database access or RPC to templating. For a list of some of | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |   the more popular ones, see [Libraries][]. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | - If you want materials that introduce the promise concept generally, and the | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |   below tutorial isn't doing it for you, check out our collection of | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |   [presentations, blog posts, and podcasts][resources]. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | - A guide for those [coming from jQuery's `$.Deferred`][jquery]. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | We'd also love to have you join the Q-Continuum [mailing list][]. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | [wiki]: https://github.com/kriskowal/q/wiki | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | [reference]: https://github.com/kriskowal/q/wiki/API-Reference | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | [examples]: https://github.com/kriskowal/q/wiki/Examples-Gallery | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | [Libraries]: https://github.com/kriskowal/q/wiki/Libraries | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | [resources]: https://github.com/kriskowal/q/wiki/General-Promise-Resources | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | [jquery]: https://github.com/kriskowal/q/wiki/Coming-from-jQuery | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | [mailing list]: https://groups.google.com/forum/#!forum/q-continuum | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ## Tutorial
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | Promises have a ``then`` method, which you can use to get the eventual | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | return value (fulfillment) or thrown exception (rejection). | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ```javascript | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | promiseMeSomething() | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | .then(function (value) { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | }, function (reason) { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | }); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | If ``promiseMeSomething`` returns a promise that gets fulfilled later | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | with a return value, the first function (the fulfillment handler) will be | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | called with the value.  However, if the ``promiseMeSomething`` function | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | gets rejected later by a thrown exception, the second function (the | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | rejection handler) will be called with the exception. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | Note that resolution of a promise is always asynchronous: that is, the | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | fulfillment or rejection handler will always be called in the next turn of the | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | event loop (i.e. `process.nextTick` in Node). This gives you a nice | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | guarantee when mentally tracing the flow of your code, namely that | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``then`` will always return before either handler is executed. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | In this tutorial, we begin with how to consume and work with promises. We'll | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | talk about how to create them, and thus create functions like | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | `promiseMeSomething` that return promises, [below](#the-beginning). | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ### Propagation
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | The ``then`` method returns a promise, which in this example, I’m | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | assigning to ``outputPromise``. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ```javascript | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | var outputPromise = getInputPromise() | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | .then(function (input) { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | }, function (reason) { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | }); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | The ``outputPromise`` variable becomes a new promise for the return | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | value of either handler.  Since a function can only either return a | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | value or throw an exception, only one handler will ever be called and it | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | will be responsible for resolving ``outputPromise``. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | -   If you return a value in a handler, ``outputPromise`` will get | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     fulfilled. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | -   If you throw an exception in a handler, ``outputPromise`` will get | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     rejected. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | -   If you return a **promise** in a handler, ``outputPromise`` will | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     “become” that promise.  Being able to become a new promise is useful | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     for managing delays, combining results, or recovering from errors. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | If the ``getInputPromise()`` promise gets rejected and you omit the | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | rejection handler, the **error** will go to ``outputPromise``: | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ```javascript | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | var outputPromise = getInputPromise() | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | .then(function (value) { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | }); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | If the input promise gets fulfilled and you omit the fulfillment handler, the | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | **value** will go to ``outputPromise``: | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ```javascript | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | var outputPromise = getInputPromise() | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | .then(null, function (error) { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | }); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | Q promises provide a ``fail`` shorthand for ``then`` when you are only | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | interested in handling the error: | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ```javascript | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | var outputPromise = getInputPromise() | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | .fail(function (error) { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | }); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | If you are writing JavaScript for modern engines only or using | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | CoffeeScript, you may use `catch` instead of `fail`. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | Promises also have a ``fin`` function that is like a ``finally`` clause. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | The final handler gets called, with no arguments, when the promise | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | returned by ``getInputPromise()`` either returns a value or throws an | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | error.  The value returned or error thrown by ``getInputPromise()`` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | passes directly to ``outputPromise`` unless the final handler fails, and | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | may be delayed if the final handler returns a promise. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ```javascript | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | var outputPromise = getInputPromise() | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | .fin(function () { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     // close files, database connections, stop servers, conclude tests | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | }); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | -   If the handler returns a value, the value is ignored | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | -   If the handler throws an error, the error passes to ``outputPromise`` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | -   If the handler returns a promise, ``outputPromise`` gets postponed.  The | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     eventual value or error has the same effect as an immediate return | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     value or thrown error: a value would be ignored, an error would be | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     forwarded. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | If you are writing JavaScript for modern engines only or using | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | CoffeeScript, you may use `finally` instead of `fin`. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ### Chaining
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | There are two ways to chain promises.  You can chain promises either | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | inside or outside handlers.  The next two examples are equivalent. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ```javascript | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | return getUsername() | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | .then(function (username) { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     return getUser(username) | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     .then(function (user) { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |         // if we get here without an error, | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |         // the value returned here | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |         // or the exception thrown here | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |         // resolves the promise returned | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |         // by the first line | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     }) | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | }); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ```javascript | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | return getUsername() | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | .then(function (username) { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     return getUser(username); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | }) | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | .then(function (user) { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     // if we get here without an error, | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     // the value returned here | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     // or the exception thrown here | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     // resolves the promise returned | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     // by the first line | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | }); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | The only difference is nesting.  It’s useful to nest handlers if you | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | need to capture multiple input values in your closure. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ```javascript | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | function authenticate() { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     return getUsername() | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     .then(function (username) { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |         return getUser(username); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     }) | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     // chained because we will not need the user name in the next event | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     .then(function (user) { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |         return getPassword() | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |         // nested because we need both user and password next | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |         .then(function (password) { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |             if (user.passwordHash !== hash(password)) { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |                 throw new Error("Can't authenticate"); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |             } | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |         }); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     }); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | } | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ### Combination
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | You can turn an array of promises into a promise for the whole, | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | fulfilled array using ``all``. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ```javascript | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | return Q.all([ | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     eventualAdd(2, 2), | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     eventualAdd(10, 20) | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ]); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | If you have a promise for an array, you can use ``spread`` as a | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | replacement for ``then``.  The ``spread`` function “spreads” the | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | values over the arguments of the fulfillment handler.  The rejection handler | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | will get called at the first sign of failure.  That is, whichever of | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | the recived promises fails first gets handled by the rejection handler. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ```javascript | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | function eventualAdd(a, b) { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     return Q.spread([a, b], function (a, b) { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |         return a + b; | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     }) | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | } | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | But ``spread`` calls ``all`` initially, so you can skip it in chains. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ```javascript | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | return getUsername() | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | .then(function (username) { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     return [username, getUser(username)]; | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | }) | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | .spread(function (username, user) { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | }); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | The ``all`` function returns a promise for an array of values.  When this | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | promise is fulfilled, the array contains the fulfillment values of the original | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | promises, in the same order as those promises.  If one of the given promises | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | is rejected, the returned promise is immediately rejected, not waiting for the | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | rest of the batch.  If you want to wait for all of the promises to either be | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | fulfilled or rejected, you can use ``allSettled``. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ```javascript | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | Q.allSettled(promises) | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | .then(function (results) { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     results.forEach(function (result) { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |         if (result.state === "fulfilled") { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |             var value = result.value; | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |         } else { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |             var reason = result.reason; | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |         } | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     }); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | }); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ### Sequences
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | If you have a number of promise-producing functions that need | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | to be run sequentially, you can of course do so manually: | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ```javascript | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | return foo(initialVal).then(bar).then(baz).then(qux); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | However, if you want to run a dynamically constructed sequence of | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | functions, you'll want something like this: | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ```javascript | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | var funcs = [foo, bar, baz, qux]; | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | var result = Q(initialVal); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | funcs.forEach(function (f) { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     result = result.then(f); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | }); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | return result; | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | You can make this slightly more compact using `reduce`: | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ```javascript | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | return funcs.reduce(function (soFar, f) { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     return soFar.then(f); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | }, Q(initialVal)); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | Or, you could use th ultra-compact version: | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ```javascript | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | return funcs.reduce(Q.when, Q()); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ### Handling Errors
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | One sometimes-unintuive aspect of promises is that if you throw an | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | exception in the fulfillment handler, it will not be be caught by the error | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | handler. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ```javascript | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | return foo() | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | .then(function (value) { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     throw new Error("Can't bar."); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | }, function (error) { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     // We only get here if "foo" fails | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | }); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | To see why this is, consider the parallel between promises and | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``try``/``catch``. We are ``try``-ing to execute ``foo()``: the error | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | handler represents a ``catch`` for ``foo()``, while the fulfillment handler | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | represents code that happens *after* the ``try``/``catch`` block. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | That code then needs its own ``try``/``catch`` block. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | In terms of promises, this means chaining your rejection handler: | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ```javascript | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | return foo() | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | .then(function (value) { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     throw new Error("Can't bar."); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | }) | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | .fail(function (error) { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     // We get here with either foo's error or bar's error | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | }); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ### Progress Notification
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | It's possible for promises to report their progress, e.g. for tasks that take a | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | long time like a file upload. Not all promises will implement progress | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | notifications, but for those that do, you can consume the progress values using | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | a third parameter to ``then``: | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ```javascript | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | return uploadFile() | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | .then(function () { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     // Success uploading the file | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | }, function (err) { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     // There was an error, and we get the reason for error | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | }, function (progress) { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     // We get notified of the upload's progress as it is executed | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | }); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | Like `fail`, Q also provides a shorthand for progress callbacks | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | called `progress`: | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ```javascript | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | return uploadFile().progress(function (progress) { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     // We get notified of the upload's progress | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | }); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ### The End
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | When you get to the end of a chain of promises, you should either | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | return the last promise or end the chain.  Since handlers catch | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | errors, it’s an unfortunate pattern that the exceptions can go | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | unobserved. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | So, either return it, | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ```javascript | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | return foo() | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | .then(function () { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     return "bar"; | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | }); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | Or, end it. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ```javascript | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | foo() | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | .then(function () { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     return "bar"; | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | }) | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | .done(); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | Ending a promise chain makes sure that, if an error doesn’t get | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | handled before the end, it will get rethrown and reported. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | This is a stopgap. We are exploring ways to make unhandled errors | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | visible without any explicit handling. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ### The Beginning
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | Everything above assumes you get a promise from somewhere else.  This | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | is the common case.  Every once in a while, you will need to create a | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | promise from scratch. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | #### Using ``Q.fcall``
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | You can create a promise from a value using ``Q.fcall``.  This returns a | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | promise for 10. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ```javascript | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | return Q.fcall(function () { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     return 10; | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | }); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | You can also use ``fcall`` to get a promise for an exception. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ```javascript | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | return Q.fcall(function () { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     throw new Error("Can't do it"); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | }); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | As the name implies, ``fcall`` can call functions, or even promised | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | functions.  This uses the ``eventualAdd`` function above to add two | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | numbers. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ```javascript | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | return Q.fcall(eventualAdd, 2, 2); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | #### Using Deferreds
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | If you have to interface with asynchronous functions that are callback-based | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | instead of promise-based, Q provides a few shortcuts (like ``Q.nfcall`` and | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | friends). But much of the time, the solution will be to use *deferreds*. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ```javascript | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | var deferred = Q.defer(); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | FS.readFile("foo.txt", "utf-8", function (error, text) { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     if (error) { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |         deferred.reject(new Error(error)); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     } else { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |         deferred.resolve(text); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     } | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | }); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | return deferred.promise; | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | Note that a deferred can be resolved with a value or a promise.  The | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``reject`` function is a shorthand for resolving with a rejected | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | promise. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ```javascript | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | // this: | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | deferred.reject(new Error("Can't do it")); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | // is shorthand for: | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | var rejection = Q.fcall(function () { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     throw new Error("Can't do it"); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | }); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | deferred.resolve(rejection); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | This is a simplified implementation of ``Q.delay``. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ```javascript | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | function delay(ms) { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     var deferred = Q.defer(); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     setTimeout(deferred.resolve, ms); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     return deferred.promise; | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | } | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | This is a simplified implementation of ``Q.timeout`` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ```javascript | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | function timeout(promise, ms) { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     var deferred = Q.defer(); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     Q.when(promise, deferred.resolve); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     delay(ms).then(function () { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |         deferred.reject(new Error("Timed out")); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     }); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     return deferred.promise; | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | } | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | Finally, you can send a progress notification to the promise with | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``deferred.notify``. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | For illustration, this is a wrapper for XML HTTP requests in the browser. Note | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | that a more [thorough][XHR] implementation would be in order in practice. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | [XHR]: https://github.com/montagejs/mr/blob/71e8df99bb4f0584985accd6f2801ef3015b9763/browser.js#L29-L73 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ```javascript | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | function requestOkText(url) { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     var request = new XMLHttpRequest(); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     var deferred = Q.defer(); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     request.open("GET", url, true); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     request.onload = onload; | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     request.onerror = onerror; | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     request.onprogress = onprogress; | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     request.send(); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     function onload() { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |         if (request.status === 200) { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |             deferred.resolve(request.responseText); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |         } else { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |             deferred.reject(new Error("Status code was " + request.status)); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |         } | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     } | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     function onerror() { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |         deferred.reject(new Error("Can't XHR " + JSON.stringify(url))); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     } | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     function onprogress(event) { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |         deferred.notify(event.loaded / event.total); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     } | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     return deferred.promise; | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | } | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | Below is an example of how to use this ``requestOkText`` function: | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ```javascript | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | requestOkText("http://localhost:3000") | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | .then(function (responseText) { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     // If the HTTP response returns 200 OK, log the response text. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     console.log(responseText); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | }, function (error) { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     // If there's an error or a non-200 status code, log the error. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     console.error(error); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | }, function (progress) { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     // Log the progress as it comes in. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     console.log("Request progress: " + Math.round(progress * 100) + "%"); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | }); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ### The Middle
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | If you are using a function that may return a promise, but just might | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | return a value if it doesn’t need to defer, you can use the “static” | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | methods of the Q library. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | The ``when`` function is the static equivalent for ``then``. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ```javascript | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | return Q.when(valueOrPromise, function (value) { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | }, function (error) { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | }); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | All of the other methods on a promise have static analogs with the | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | same name. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | The following are equivalent: | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ```javascript | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | return Q.all([a, b]); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ```javascript | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | return Q.fcall(function () { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     return [a, b]; | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | }) | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | .all(); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | When working with promises provided by other libraries, you should | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | convert it to a Q promise.  Not all promise libraries make the same | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | guarantees as Q and certainly don’t provide all of the same methods. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | Most libraries only provide a partially functional ``then`` method. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | This thankfully is all we need to turn them into vibrant Q promises. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ```javascript | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | return Q($.ajax(...)) | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | .then(function () { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | }); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | If there is any chance that the promise you receive is not a Q promise | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | as provided by your library, you should wrap it using a Q function. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | You can even use ``Q.invoke`` as a shorthand. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ```javascript | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | return Q.invoke($, 'ajax', ...) | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | .then(function () { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | }); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ### Over the Wire
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | A promise can serve as a proxy for another object, even a remote | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | object.  There are methods that allow you to optimistically manipulate | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | properties or call functions.  All of these interactions return | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | promises, so they can be chained. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | direct manipulation         using a promise as a proxy | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | --------------------------  ------------------------------- | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | value.foo                   promise.get("foo") | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | value.foo = value           promise.put("foo", value) | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | delete value.foo            promise.del("foo") | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | value.foo(...args)          promise.post("foo", [args]) | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | value.foo(...args)          promise.invoke("foo", ...args) | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | value(...args)              promise.fapply([args]) | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | value(...args)              promise.fcall(...args) | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | If the promise is a proxy for a remote object, you can shave | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | round-trips by using these functions instead of ``then``.  To take | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | advantage of promises for remote objects, check out [Q-Connection][]. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | [Q-Connection]: https://github.com/kriskowal/q-connection | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | Even in the case of non-remote objects, these methods can be used as | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | shorthand for particularly-simple fulfillment handlers. For example, you | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | can replace | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ```javascript | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | return Q.fcall(function () { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     return [{ foo: "bar" }, { foo: "baz" }]; | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | }) | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | .then(function (value) { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     return value[0].foo; | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | }); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | with | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ```javascript | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | return Q.fcall(function () { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     return [{ foo: "bar" }, { foo: "baz" }]; | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | }) | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | .get(0) | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | .get("foo"); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ### Adapting Node
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | If you're working with functions that make use of the Node.js callback pattern, | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | where callbacks are in the form of `function(err, result)`, Q provides a few | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | useful utility functions for converting between them. The most straightforward | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | are probably `Q.nfcall` and `Q.nfapply` ("Node function call/apply") for calling | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | Node.js-style functions and getting back a promise: | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ```javascript | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | return Q.nfcall(FS.readFile, "foo.txt", "utf-8"); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | return Q.nfapply(FS.readFile, ["foo.txt", "utf-8"]); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | If you are working with methods, instead of simple functions, you can easily | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | run in to the usual problems where passing a method to another function—like | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | `Q.nfcall`—"un-binds" the method from its owner. To avoid this, you can either | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | use `Function.prototype.bind` or some nice shortcut methods we provide: | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ```javascript | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | return Q.ninvoke(redisClient, "get", "user:1:id"); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | return Q.npost(redisClient, "get", ["user:1:id"]); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | You can also create reusable wrappers with `Q.denodeify` or `Q.nbind`: | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ```javascript | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | var readFile = Q.denodeify(FS.readFile); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | return readFile("foo.txt", "utf-8"); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | var redisClientGet = Q.nbind(redisClient.get, redisClient); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | return redisClientGet("user:1:id"); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | Finally, if you're working with raw deferred objects, there is a | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | `makeNodeResolver` method on deferreds that can be handy: | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ```javascript | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | var deferred = Q.defer(); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | FS.readFile("foo.txt", "utf-8", deferred.makeNodeResolver()); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | return deferred.promise; | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ### Long Stack Traces
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | Q comes with optional support for “long stack traces,” wherein the `stack` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | property of `Error` rejection reasons is rewritten to be traced along | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | asynchronous jumps instead of stopping at the most recent one. As an example: | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ```js | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | function theDepthsOfMyProgram() { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |   Q.delay(100).done(function explode() { | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     throw new Error("boo!"); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |   }); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | } | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | theDepthsOfMyProgram(); | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | usually would give a rather unhelpful stack trace looking something like | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | Error: boo! | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     at explode (/path/to/test.js:3:11) | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     at _fulfilled (/path/to/test.js:q:54) | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     at resolvedValue.promiseDispatch.done (/path/to/q.js:823:30) | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     at makePromise.promise.promiseDispatch (/path/to/q.js:496:13) | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     at pending (/path/to/q.js:397:39) | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     at process.startup.processNextTick.process._tickCallback (node.js:244:9) | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | But, if you turn this feature on by setting | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ```js | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | Q.longStackSupport = true; | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | then the above code gives a nice stack trace to the tune of | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | Error: boo! | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     at explode (/path/to/test.js:3:11) | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | From previous event: | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     at theDepthsOfMyProgram (/path/to/test.js:2:16) | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  |     at Object.<anonymous> (/path/to/test.js:7:1) | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ``` | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | Note how you can see the the function that triggered the async operation in the | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | stack trace! This is very helpful for debugging, as otherwise you end up getting | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | only the first line, plus a bunch of Q internals, with no sign of where the | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | operation started. | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | This feature does come with somewhat-serious performance and memory overhead, | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | however. If you're working with lots of promises, or trying to scale a server | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | to many users, you should probably keep it off. But in development, go for it! | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ## Tests
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | You can view the results of the Q test suite [in your browser][tests]! | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | [tests]: https://rawgithub.com/kriskowal/q/master/spec/q-spec.html | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | ## License
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | Copyright 2009–2013 Kristopher Michael Kowal | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | MIT License (enclosed) | 
					
						
							|  |  |  |  | 
 |