What is the difference between module.exports and exports?
exports is a reference to module.exports initially. You can add properties to exports or reassign module.exports. Mixing both breaks the link, since reassigning module.exports makes exports point to the old object. Pick one approach per file.
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More FAQs in Node.js Modules Interview Questions With Answers
require reads a file, runs it once, caches the result, and returns the file's module.exports. Subsequent requires return the cached object without re-running the file, so a module's code runs once.
Modules run once and are cached after first require. This enables singletons for shared state like database connections, but means requiring the same file twice returns the same object. Export a factory function for fresh state on each use.
CommonJS uses require and module.exports, is synchronous, and loaded at runtime. ES modules use import and export, are async, and statically analyzable. Pick one per project to avoid mixing issues.
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