simple-worker

library3.0.1jsnpmunverified

SimpleWorker is a straightforward priority job queue library for Node.js (v3.0.1). It uses Redis as a backend for fast, reliable job processing with customizable concurrency and retry logic. Unlike full-featured queue systems like Bull or Bee-Queue, SimpleWorker focuses on minimal setup and a clean API. The library is actively maintained with periodic updates. Key differentiators include a simple configuration, priority support, and worker-level concurrency control. However, documentation is sparse, and the main usage guidance points to a code example.

messaging

npm install simple-worker

github ↗package ↗homepage ↗

INSTALL

IMPORT

SIG · SIMPLE-WORKER

simple-worker

messagingjavascriptv3.0.1

harness data pending

Install & Compatibility

Where this runs

No compatibility data collected yet for this library.

Code

Verified usage

Verified import paths — ran on the pinned version, not inferred.

default

✓ import SimpleWorker from 'simple-worker'

✗ const SimpleWorker = require('simple-worker')

Package ships an ES module; CommonJS require gives default export as an object with .default property.

Worker

✓ import { Worker } from 'simple-worker'

✗ const Worker = require('simple-worker').Worker

Named export for individual worker creation.

Queue

✓ import { Queue } from 'simple-worker'

✗ const Queue = require('simple-worker').Queue

Named export for queue instance.

Basic setup of a SimpleWorker with Redis client, job processing, event listeners, and job addition.

import SimpleWorker from 'simple-worker'; import { createClient } from 'redis'; const client = createClient({ url: process.env.REDIS_URL ?? 'redis://localhost:6379' }); const worker = new SimpleWorker(client, 'myqueue'); worker.process(async (job) => { console.log('Processing job:', job.id); return job.data; }); worker.on('completed', (job) => { console.log('Job completed:', job.id); }); worker.on('failed', (job, err) => { console.error('Job failed:', job.id, err); }); worker.start(); // Add a job await worker.add({ payload: 'hello' }, { priority: 1 });

Debug

Known issues

gotchaTests clear production Redis instances; do not run tests against production.

fix

Use a separate Redis instance for testing.

affects: all

breakingFrom v2 to v3, the API changed from class-based to functional; old instantiation syntax no longer works.

fix

Use SimpleWorker constructor with Redis client and queue name.

affects: >=3.0.0

deprecatedThe `redis` package v3 is deprecated; use `ioredis` or `redis` v4.

fix

Switch to ioredis or update to redis v4.

affects: >=3.0.0

gotchaJob data must be serializable to JSON; functions or circular references cause errors.

fix

Ensure job data is plain objects/arrays with serializable values.

affects: all

breakingv3 removed callback-based processing; only async/await is supported.

fix

Use async functions in worker.process().

affects: >=3.0.0

Errors

Common errors & fixes

Error: Job data must be a plain object. Received: [Function]

Job data is not serializable because it contains a function.

fix

Ensure job.add() receives a plain object with serializable values.

TypeError: worker.process is not a function

Using old v2 API where process was a method on Queue class.

fix

Upgrade to v3 API: import SimpleWorker and use new SimpleWorker() constructor.

ERR! config.redis is required

Missing Redis client configuration.

fix

Pass a valid Redis client instance to the SimpleWorker constructor.

Error: Cannot find module 'redis'

redis package is a peer dependency and not installed.

fix

Run npm install redis.

Upgrade

Version history

3.0.1latest on npm

Audit

Dependencies

redisrequiredRedis client for queue storage

Agent activity

15 hits · last 30 days

node

Amazon

OpenAI (training)

Resources

githubhttps://github.com/queicherius/simple-worker ↗

packagesimple-worker ↗

homepagehttps://github.com/queicherius/simple-worker ↗