Sheets in ReactJS Sites with NextJS

NextJS is a server-side framework for building static and dynamic sites using the ReactJS framework.

SheetJS is a JavaScript library for reading and writing data from spreadsheets.

This discussion covers three key SheetJS + NextJS operations:

1. Loading Data: NextJS can read files in lifecycle methods OR custom Webpack loaders can create asset modules.

2. Lifecycle Methods: NextJS includes strategies for static pages (getStaticProps) as well as dynamic pages (getServerSideProps).

3. Data Presentation: Pages use React and JSX.

The "Demo" uses NextJS and SheetJS to pull data from a spreadsheet. We'll explore how to create asset modules that process spreadsheet data at build time and how to read files on the server in NextJS lifecycle methods.

Telemetry

NextJS collects telemetry by default. The telemetry subcommand can disable it:

npx next@13.5.6 telemetry disable

The setting can be verified by running

npx next@13.5.6 telemetry status

This demo focuses on static sites where data files are processed at build time.

The ReactJS demo shows NextJS "Client Components".

Next 13+ and SWC

Next 13 switched to the SWC minifier. There are known issues with the minifier. Until those issues are resolved, SWC should be disabled in next.config.js:

next.config.js

module.exports = {
  swcMinify: false
};

Tested Deployments

This demo was tested in the following environments:

NextJS	NodeJS	Date
9.5.5	16.20.2	2023-12-04
10.2.3	16.20.2	2023-12-04
11.1.4	16.20.2	2023-12-04
12.3.4	20.10.0	2023-12-04
13.5.6	20.10.0	2023-12-04
14.0.3	20.10.0	2023-12-04

Loading Data

At a high level, there are two ways to pull spreadsheet data into NextJS apps: loading an asset module or performing the file read operations from the NextJS lifecycle methods.

Asset modules are appropriate for static sites when the file names are known in advance. Performing file read operations in lifecycle methods is more flexible but does not support live reloading.

Asset Module

When the demo was last tested, Turbopack did not support true raw loaders. For development use, the normal npx next dev should be used.

The SheetJS NodeJS module can be imported in Webpack asset modules¹.

The following diagram depicts the workbook waltz:

In this flow, it is strongly recommended to make a loader return a Base64 string:

base64-loader.js

function loader(content) {
  /* since `loader.raw` is true, `content` is a Buffer */
  return `export default '${content.toString("base64")}'`;
}
/* ensure the function receives a Buffer */
loader.raw = true;
module.exports = loader;

The webpack configuration is controlled in next.config.js:

next.config.js

module.exports = {
  webpack: (config) => {
    /* add to the webpack config module.rules array */
    config.module.rules.push({
      /* `test` matches file extensions */
      test: /\.(numbers|xls|xlsx|xlsb)/,
      /* use the loader script */
      use: [ { loader: './base64-loader' } ]
    });
    return config;
  }
};

Module alias directories can be defined in jsconfig.json or tsconfig.json:

jsconfig.json

{
  "compilerOptions": {
    "baseUrl": ".",
    "paths": {
      "@/*": ["*"]
    }
  }
}

Pages can import the files directly. It is strongly recommended to store files in a data folder.

In this example, the import statement pulls the sheetjs.xlsx file as a Base64 string. The SheetJS read method² parses the string and returns a workbook object³. The sheet_to_json⁴ utility function generates an array of objects based on the data. As long as the base64 variable is only used in getStaticProps, the library and file will be processed at build time.

index.js

import { read, utils } from 'xlsx';
import base64 from '@/data/sheetjs.xlsx';

export async function getStaticProps() {
  /* parse base64 data */
  const wb = read(base64, { type: "base64" });
  return { props: {
      /* generate array of objects from the first sheet */
      data: utils.sheet_to_json(wb.Sheets[wb.SheetNames[0]])
  } };
}

Raw Operations

The SheetJS NodeJS module can be imported from page scripts.

The SheetJS ESM build does not load NodeJS native modules directly. The Installation section includes a note on dynamic import of fs within lifecycle methods.

Files can be read using the SheetJS readFile⁵ method in lifecycle methods. The cwd method in the process module will point to the root of the project.

The following diagram depicts the workbook waltz:

This example reads the file sheetjs.xlsx in the data folder in the project and uses sheet_to_json⁶ to generate data rows.

import { readFile, utils, set_fs } from 'xlsx';
import { join } from 'path';
import { cwd } from 'process';

export async function getServerSideProps() {
  set_fs(await import("fs")); // dynamically import 'fs' when needed
  const filename = join(cwd(), "data", "sheetjs.xlsx"); // /data/sheetjs.xlsx
  const wb = readFile(filename);

  /* generate and return the html from the first worksheet */
  const data = utils.sheet_to_json(wb.Sheets[wb.SheetNames[0]]);
  return { props: { data } };
}

Reading and writing files during the build process

As the NextJS workaround is non-traditional, it bears repeating:

fs cannot be statically imported from the top level in NextJS pages. The dynamic import must happen within a lifecycle function.

NextJS Strategies

NextJS currently provides 3 strategies:

• "Static Site Generation" using getStaticProps⁷
• "SSG with Dynamic Routes" using getStaticPaths⁸
• "Server-Side Rendering" using getServerSideProps⁹

Static Site Generation

When using getStaticProps, the file will be read once during build time. This example reads sheetjs.xlsx from the data folder:

Asset Module

import { read, utils } from 'xlsx';
import base64 from '@/data/sheetjs.xlsx';

export async function getStaticProps() {
  const wb = read(base64, { type: "base64" });

  /* generate and return the html from the first worksheet */
  const html = utils.sheet_to_html(wb.Sheets[wb.SheetNames[0]]);
  return { props: { html } };
};

Raw Operations

import { readFile, set_fs, utils } from 'xlsx';
import { join } from 'path';
import { cwd } from 'process';

export async function getStaticProps() {
  set_fs(await import("fs"));
  const filename = join(cwd(), "data", "sheetjs.xlsx"); // /data/sheetjs.xlsx
  const wb = readFile(filename);

  /* generate and return the html from the first worksheet */
  const html = utils.sheet_to_html(wb.Sheets[wb.SheetNames[0]]);
  return { props: { html } };
};

Dynamic Routes

Typically a static site with dynamic routes has an endpoint /sheets/[id] that implements both getStaticPaths and getStaticProps.

• getStaticPaths should return an array of worksheet indices:

Asset Module

import { read } from 'xlsx';
import base64 from '@/data/sheetjs.xlsx';

export async function getStaticPaths() {
  /* read file */
  const wb = read(base64, { type: "base64" });

  /* generate an array of objects that will be used for generating pages */
  const paths = wb.SheetNames.map((name, idx) => ({ params: { id: idx.toString() } }));
  return { paths, fallback: false };
};

Raw Operations

import { readFile, set_fs } from 'xlsx';
import { join } from 'path';
import { cwd } from 'process';

export async function getStaticPaths() {
  /* read file */
  set_fs(await import("fs"));
  const filename = join(cwd(), "data", "sheetjs.xlsx"); // /data/sheetjs.xlsx
  const wb = readFile(path);

  /* generate an array of objects that will be used for generating pages */
  const paths = wb.SheetNames.map((name, idx) => ({ params: { id: idx.toString() } }));
  return { paths, fallback: false };
};

For a pure static site, fallback must be set to false!¹⁰

• getStaticProps will generate the actual HTML for each page:

Asset Module

import { read, utils } from 'xlsx';
import base64 from '@/data/sheetjs.xlsx';

export async function getStaticProps(ctx) {
  /* read file */
  const wb = read(base64, { type: "base64" });

  /* get the corresponding worksheet and generate HTML */
  const ws = wb.Sheets[wb.SheetNames[ctx.params.id]]; // id from getStaticPaths
  const html = utils.sheet_to_html(ws);
  return { props: { html } };
};

Raw Operations

import { readFile, set_fs, utils } from 'xlsx';
import { join } from 'path';
import { cwd } from 'process';

export async function getStaticProps(ctx) {
  /* read file */
  set_fs(await import("fs"));
  const filename = join(cwd(), "data", "sheetjs.xlsx"); // /data/sheetjs.xlsx
  const wb = readFile(path);

  /* get the corresponding worksheet and generate HTML */
  const ws = wb.Sheets[wb.SheetNames[ctx.params.id]]; // id from getStaticPaths
  const html = utils.sheet_to_html(ws);
  return { props: { html } };
};

Server-Side Rendering

Do not use on a static site

These routes require a NodeJS dynamic server. Static page generation will fail!

getStaticProps and getStaticPaths support static site generation (SSG).

getServerSideProps is suited for NodeJS hosted deployments where the workbook changes frequently and a static site is undesirable.

When using getServerSideProps, the file will be read on each request.

Asset Module

Consider using a static strategy

When using asset modules, the file names and file paths are processed during the build step. The content is fixed. In this situation, a static approach such as getStaticProps is strongly recommended.

import { read } from 'xlsx';
import base64 from '@/data/sheetjs.xlsx';

export async function getServerSideProps() {
  /* read file */
  const wb = read(base64, { type: "base64" });

  /* generate and return the html from the first worksheet */
  const html = utils.sheet_to_html(wb.Sheets[wb.SheetNames[0]]);
  return { props: { html } };
};

Raw Operations

import { readFile, set_fs, utils } from 'xlsx';
import { join } from 'path';
import { cwd } from 'process';

export async function getServerSideProps() {
  /* read file */
  set_fs(await import("fs"));
  const filename = join(cwd(), "data", "sheetjs.xlsx"); // /data/sheetjs.xlsx
  const wb = readFile(path);

  /* generate and return the html from the first worksheet */
  const html = utils.sheet_to_html(wb.Sheets[wb.SheetNames[0]]);
  return { props: { html } };
};

Data Presentation

The ReactJS demo compares common approaches.

HTML

HTML output can be generated using the SheetJS sheet_to_html¹¹ method and inserted into the document using the dangerouslySetInnerHTML¹² attribute:

export default function Index({html, type}) { return (
  <div dangerouslySetInnerHTML={{ __html: html }} />
); }

Arrays of Objects

Arrays of objects can be generated using the SheetJS sheet_to_json¹³ method and inserted into the document using standard JSX¹⁴:

export default function Index({aoo, type}) { return (
  <table><thead><tr key={0}><th>Name</th><th>Index</th></tr></thead><tbody>
    {aoo.map(row => ( <tr>
      <td>{row.Name}</td>
      <td>{row.Index}</td>
    </tr>))}
  </tbody></table>
); }

Demo

This demo showcases the following SheetJS + NextJS flows:

Page	Loading Data	Lifecycle Method	SheetJS API
/getStaticProps	asset module	getStaticProps	sheet_to_json
/sheets/[id]	asset module	getStaticPaths	sheet_to_html
/getServerSideProps	lifecycle	getServerSideProps	sheet_to_html

The commands in this demo use [email protected]. Other versions were tested by replacing the version number in the relevant commands.

Older versions of NextJS will refuse to run in newer versions of NodeJS. The error message points to an issue with OpenSSL:

Error: error:0308010C:digital envelope routines::unsupported

When upgrading NextJS is not an option, NodeJS should be downgraded to v16.

Initial Setup

0. Disable NextJS telemetry:

npx next@13.5.6 telemetry disable

Confirm it is disabled by running

npx next@13.5.6 telemetry status

1. Set up folder structure. At the end, a pages folder with a sheets subfolder must be created. On Linux or MacOS or WSL:

mkdir sheetjs-next
cd sheetjs-next
mkdir -p pages/sheets/

2. Download the test file and place in the project root. On Linux or MacOS or WSL:

curl -LO https://docs.sheetjs.com/next/sheetjs.xlsx

3. Install dependencies:

The [email protected] dependency can be adjusted to pick a different version. For example, NextJS 12.3.4 is installed with

npm i --save https://cdn.sheetjs.com/xlsx-0.20.2/xlsx-0.20.2.tgz [email protected]

npm i --save https://cdn.sheetjs.com/xlsx-0.20.2/xlsx-0.20.2.tgz [email protected]

4. Download NextJS config scripts and place in the root folder:

• base64-loader.js
• jsconfig.json
• next.config.js
• styles.css

On Linux or MacOS or WSL:

curl -LO https://docs.sheetjs.com/next/base64-loader.js
curl -LO https://docs.sheetjs.com/next/jsconfig.json
curl -LO https://docs.sheetjs.com/next/next.config.js
curl -LO https://docs.sheetjs.com/next/styles.css

5. Download test scripts:

Download and place the following scripts in the pages subfolder:

• _app.js
• index.js
• getServerSideProps.js
• getStaticPaths.js
• getStaticProps.js

Download [id].js and place in the pages/sheets subfolder.

Percent-Encoding in the script name

The [id].js script must have the literal square brackets in the name. If your browser saved the file to %5Bid%5D.js. rename the file.

On Linux or MacOS or WSL:

cd pages
curl -LO https://docs.sheetjs.com/next/_app.js
curl -LO https://docs.sheetjs.com/next/index.js
curl -LO https://docs.sheetjs.com/next/getServerSideProps.js
curl -LO https://docs.sheetjs.com/next/getStaticPaths.js
curl -LO https://docs.sheetjs.com/next/getStaticProps.js
cd sheets
curl -LOg 'https://docs.sheetjs.com/next/[id].js'
cd ../..

Testing

6. Test the deployment:

npx next

Open a web browser and access:

• http://localhost:3000 landing page
• http://localhost:3000/getStaticProps shows data from the first sheet
• http://localhost:3000/getServerSideProps shows data from the first sheet
• http://localhost:3000/getStaticPaths shows a list (2 sheets)

The individual worksheets are available at

• http://localhost:3000/sheets/0
• http://localhost:3000/sheets/1

7. While the development server is running, open the /getStaticProps page and open sheetjs.xlsx with a spreadsheet editor. In the editor, add a row to the bottom of the "Indices" worksheet (set A7 to "SheetJS Dev" and B7 to 47)

After saving the file, the website should refresh with the new row.

Production Build

8. Stop the server and run a production build:

npx next build

The final output will show a list of the routes and types:

Route (pages)                              Size     First Load JS
┌ ○ /                                      563 B          75.3 kB
├   /_app                                  0 B            74.8 kB
├ ○ /404                                   182 B            75 kB
├ λ /getServerSideProps                    522 B          75.3 kB
├ ● /getStaticPaths                        2.91 kB        77.7 kB
├ ● /getStaticProps                        586 B          75.4 kB
└ ● /sheets/[id] (303 ms)                  522 B          75.3 kB
    ├ /sheets/0
    └ /sheets/1

As explained in the summary, the /getStaticPaths and /getStaticProps routes are completely static. 2 /sheets/# pages were generated, corresponding to 2 worksheets in the file. /getServerSideProps is server-rendered.

9. Try to build a static site:

NextJS 9 - 13

npx next export

NextJS 14

NextJS breaking changes

NextJS 14 removed the export subcommand!

Edit next.config.js and add the highlighted line:

next.config.js (add highlighted line)

module.exports = {
  output: "export",
  webpack: (config) => {

After adding the line, run the build command:

npx next build

This build will fail. A static page cannot be generated at this point because /getServerSideProps is server-rendered.

Static Site

10. Delete pages/getServerSideProps.js and rebuild:

NextJS 9 - 13

NextJS 14

Edit next.config.js and comment the highlighted line:

next.config.js (comment highlighted line)

module.exports = {
  // output: "export",
  webpack: (config) => {

After editing next.config.js:

rm -f pages/getServerSideProps.js
npx next build

Inspecting the output, there should be no lines with the λ symbol:

Route (pages)                              Size     First Load JS
┌ ○ /                                      563 B          75.3 kB
├   /_app                                  0 B            74.8 kB
├ ○ /404                                   182 B            75 kB
├ ● /getStaticPaths                        2.91 kB        77.7 kB
├ ● /getStaticProps                        586 B          75.4 kB
└ ● /sheets/[id]                           522 B          75.3 kB
    ├ /sheets/0
    └ /sheets/1

11. Generate the static site:

NextJS 9 - 13

npx next export

NextJS 14

Edit next.config.js and restore the highlighted line:

next.config.js (restore highlighted line)

module.exports = {
  output: "export",
  webpack: (config) => {

After adding the line, run the build command:

npx next build

The static site will be written to the out subfolder

12. Serve the static site:

npx http-server out

The command will start a local HTTP server at http://localhost:8080/ for testing the generated site. Note that /getServerSideProps will 404 since the page was removed.

Footnotes

1. See the "Webpack" asset module demo for more details. ↩

2. See read in "Reading Files" ↩

3. See "SheetJS Data Model" for more details. ↩

4. See sheet_to_json in "Utilities" ↩

5. See readFile in "Reading Files" ↩

6. See sheet_to_json in "Utilities" ↩

7. See getStaticProps in the NextJS documentation. ↩

8. See getStaticPaths in the NextJS documentation. ↩

9. See getServerSideProps in the NextJS documentation. ↩

10. See fallback in getStaticPaths in the NextJS documentation. ↩

11. See sheet_to_html in "Utilities" ↩

12. dangerouslySetInnerHTML is a ReactJS prop supported for all built-in components. ↩

13. See sheet_to_json in "Utilities" ↩

14. See "Array of Objects" in the ReactJS demo ↩