grunt-json-bake/README.md

Baking multiple json files into one

# grunt-json-bake [![Build Status](https://travis-ci.org/MathiasPaumgarten/grunt-json-bake.svg?branch=master)](https://travis-ci.org/MathiasPaumgarten/grunt-json-bake)

> Baking multiple json files into one

## Getting Started
This plugin requires Grunt `~0.4.5`

If you haven't used [Grunt](http://gruntjs.com/) before, be sure to check out the [Getting Started](http://gruntjs.com/getting-started) guide, as it explains how to create a [Gruntfile](http://gruntjs.com/sample-gruntfile) as well as install and use Grunt plugins. Once you're familiar with that process, you may install this plugin with this command:

```shell
npm install grunt-json-bake --save-dev
```

Once the plugin has been installed, it may be enabled inside your Gruntfile with this line of JavaScript:

```js
grunt.loadNpmTasks('grunt-json-bake');
```

## The "json_bake" task

### Overview
This module allows you to merge multiple JSON files into one. It looks for a certain hooks like so `"key": "{{path/to/folder}}"`.
All values are parsed and replaced. If the hook is a path to a JSON file, the hook will be replaced with the JSON file content.
If the hook is a path to a another file allowed to be inclued, the hook will be replaced with the file content. If the hook is the path to a folder it will take all the JSON files in this folder and put them into an array.

Includes can be nested. That means any JSON that you include will be recursively parsed a swell. Also folders of JSON files can be nested. When
a folder is turned into an array it parses the content of a folder for json files. If it comes upon an folder, this will be turned into an array
and recursivly all the content will be travirsed for JSON files/folders.

```js
grunt.initConfig( {
    json_bake: {

        your_target: {
            options: {},

            // multiple files in a key value pair
            // the key is the destination and
            // the value is the root of the parsable
            files: {
                "dist/final.json": "app/base.json"
            }
        }
    }
} );
```

### Options

#### options.parsePattern
Type: `Regex`
Default value: `/\{\{\s*([\/\.\-\w]*)\s*\}\}/`

This Regex is used to parse every value of all key-value-pairs. If the value has a formet like `{{path/to/something}}` it is resolved and parsed as well.
The path is relative to that file and can point to a folder or a file.

#### options.stripComments
Type: `Boolean`
Default value: `false`

If this is set to `true` it will remove every key-value pair that has the key `"{{comment}}"`.

#### options.indentation
Type: `String`
Default value: `"/t"`

This defines the amount of indentation of the JSON being generated. Setting this to `null` will produce a minfied version.
To get what NPM uses as a default use two spaces: `"  "`.


#### options.includeFiles
Type: `Object` with keys and values. See the default values below.

```javascript
includeFiles: {
    json: { resultType: "json"},
    html: { resultType: "string", separator: ""  },
    csv: { resultType: "string", separator: ";"  }
}
```

The keys of `includeFiles` define the extensions of the files that can be included with `{{filename.ext}}`.
The `resultType` can have the values `json` or `string`.
If the `resultType` is `json`, then the file is included as a parsed JSON object.
If the `resultType` is `string`, then the file content is included as a string.
If the file content consists of multiple lines you can define the `separator` to connect the lines.

#### options.variables
Type: `Object` with keys and values.
Default value: `"{}"` (empty object).

This is used to define variables that will be replaced by their corresponding values.
The variables can be used anywhere in the json file(s), by wrapping the variable name with `"@"`.
The variable definition style can be changed with the next setting.

#### options.variableRegex
Type: `Object` with keys and values.
Default value: `/@(\w+)@/g`

This Regex is used to parse all string values in the JSON files to swap them for their counterpart
in the `options.variable` object. By default is would look like `"some/@foo@/path"`.

### Usage Examples

#### Recursive Bake including files and folders

Given the following folder structure:

```
base.json
includes
  | - author.json
  \ - books
        | - 1.json
        | - 2.json
        \ - 3.json
```

This is the `base.json`:

```json
{
    "author": "{{includes/author.json}}",
    "books": "{{includes/books}}"
}
```

With an `includes/author.json`:

```json
{
    "name": "Mathias Paumgarten",
    "url": "http://www.mathias-paumgarten.com"
}
```

and three files in `includes/books/*` like so:

```json
{
    "name": "awesome book",
    "released": "2014"
}
```

This would generate a new json from `base.json`:

```json
{
    "author": {
        "name": "Mathias Paumgarten",
        "url": "http://www.mathias-paumgarten.com"
    },
    "books": [
        {
            "name": "awesome book",
            "released": "2014"
        },
        { ... },
        { ... }
    ]
}
```

`"books"` will be an array of the content of each of the JSON files in the book folder.

#### Removing comment lines

Make sure to turn it on in the `Gruntfile.js`:

```js
grunt.initConfig( {
    json_bake: {
        options: {
            stripComments: true
        },

        your_target: {
            "generated.json": "base.json"
        }
    }
} );
```

In your _base.json_ you can now add comments like so:

```json
{
    "{{comment}}": "This is a list of people",
    "authors": [ "John", "Mike", "Susan" ]
}
```

This will generate _generated.json_:
```json
{
    "authors": [ "John", "Mike", "Susan" ]
}
```


#### Using variables

Define the targets and variables in `Gruntfile.js`:

```js
grunt.initConfig( {
    json_bake: {

        production: {
            options: {
                variables: {
                    "env" : "production"
                }
            },
            files: {
                "production.json": "base.json"
            }
        },
        dev: {
            options: {
                variables: {
                    "env" : "dev"
                }
            },
            files: {
               "dev.json": "base.json"
            }
        }
    }
} );
```

In your _base.json_ you can now use the defined variable like so:

```json
{
    "credentials": "{{includes/@env@/credentials.json}}",
}
```

With an `includes/production/credentials.json`:

```json
{
    "username": "admin",
    "database": "production_db"
}
```

and `includes/dev/credentials.json`:

```json
{
    "username": "admin",
    "database": "dev_db"
}
```


Running json_bake:dev will generate _dev.json_:
```json
{
    "credentials": {
        "username": "admin",
        "database": "dev_db"
    }
}
```


And running json_bake:production will generate _production.json_:
```json
{
    "credentials": {
        "username": "admin",
        "database": "production_db"
    }
}
```

## Contributing
In lieu of a formal style guide, take care to maintain the existing coding style. Add unit tests for any new or changed functionality. Lint and test your code using [Grunt](http://gruntjs.com/).