Difference between Express.js and Kraken.js

To create web applications using Node.js, developers use frameworks to roll out development fast and more easily choosing between the frameworks. Two such frameworks are Express.js and Kraken.js. As frameworks intended to ease the development of the server side, they are both similar in their purpose, but serve different needs and offer different features.

What is the Express.js?

Express.js is one of the most used WEBS frameworks in Node.js. It offers a basic and extensible list of capabilities to create web apps and APIs. Express.js is one of the most popular prepackaged graphics libraries because it is easy to install and run at high speeds.

Features of Express.js:

Several features of Express.js are as follows:

  1. Minimal and Flexible:
    Express.js is recognized as a simple and versatile graphic interface. It also offers us a lightweight architecture that can be extended as necessary to meet the needs of our specific application but does not impose a rigid architecture upon us.
  2. Middleware Support:
    It is equipped with a strong middleware framework that enables us to manage incoming requests, manipulate responses, and address errors as well. Middleware functions can be used for purposes of logging or authentication or even in parsing.
  3. Routing:
    Express.js also offers a strong and convenient routing scheme. It allows defining routes for those HTTP methods and URL paths for which the application needs to respond.
  4. Built-in Utilities:
    It provides integrated modules for handling some of the basic things, such as serving static files, parsing of request body, and URL encoding.

Extensive Documentation:

Express.js has extensive documentation and also huge following, so it will be easier to approach individuals and organizations that can assist in the undertaking of the project.

Use Cases of Express.js:

Several use cases of Express.js are as follows:

Small to Medium Applications:

  • It is being fully evolved and fairly dominated in minimalism and versatility, it is outstanding for one-step development and prototyping.

Microservices:

  • Express.js is preferred in the highly decomposed microservice architecture because it does not come with the overhead of a framework.

APIs:

  • It is preferred for creating RESTful APIs because of its straightforward routing and middleware facilities.

What is the Kraken.js?

Kraken.js, which is developed by the team of PayPal, is based on Express.js. It provides new extensions and functionalities to the software application Express.js, which makes it less neutral or objective and a more opinionated framework. Kraken.js targets enterprise-level applications and comes with built-in support for the basic application setup, modularity, and other such features.

Features of Kraken.js:

Several features of Kraken.js are as follows:

  1. Convention Over Configuration:
    Kraken.js is more concerned with structure than with configuration and thus offers a structured way of developing applications. It complies with widely published conventions and design patterns which results in minimized configuration.
  2. Built-in Features:
    Kraken.js already includes such facilities as localization, exception handling, and others for a temporary warning. It also has an improved scaffolding tool that is used to set up a project structure.
  3. Modular Architecture:
    Kraken.js is well designed to have a modularity, which makes it easy for us to manage your application and also in the expansion of the extent. It is designed to support the use of modules and plugins for almost all functionalities.
  4. Configuration Management:
    They offer a good configuration management solution that helps us to manage environment-specific settings.
  5. Dependency Injection:
    Kraken.js supports dependency injection because it makes it very easy to have control over the dependencies that are within an application.

Use Cases:

Several use cases of Kraken.js are as follows:

Enterprise Applications:

  • Kraken.js is suitable for massive applications because it is highly configurable and can be easily divided into disjointed segments.

Complex Projects:

  • This is something that has built-in features and its overlying architecture is a structured one that can handle even large and complicated projects with sub-projects and variant configurations.

Application Scaffolding:

  • It is appropriate for projects that require an initially defined application structure and hard-coded configurations.

Key differences between Express.js and Kraken.js

Difference between Express.js and Kraken.js

There are several key differences between Express.js and Kraken.js. Some main differences are as follows:

FeatureExpress.jsKraken.js
Core FrameworkMinimalist core with basic routing and middleware.Built on Express.js with additional features.
Configuration ManagementBasic configuration managementAdvanced configuration management using a structured approach
ModularityModular but requires manual setupBuilt-in support for modularity and scaffolding
Built-in FeaturesRequires third-party modules for featuresIncludes advanced features such as application scaffolding and configuration
PerformanceHigh performance due to minimal coreSimilar performance but with added overhead from additional features
Enterprise SupportIt is suitable for small to medium applications.It is designed for enterprise-level applications with additional support.