Solving uplot Freezing Issues When Zooming with Svelte, Node-Red, and Uibuilder

Discover how to fix freezing issues with uplot when zooming on your graphs while using Svelte, Node-Red, and Uibuilder.
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Solving uplot Freezing Issues When Zooming with Svelte, Node-Red, and Uibuilder

If you are working with interactive data visualizations, you may have encountered issues when trying to zoom in on graphs, particularly with libraries like uplot. In this guide, we will address a common problem where the uplot graph freezes in browsers such as Chrome, Firefox, and Edge when zooming into the displayed time series data. We will explore the cause of this issue and how to effectively resolve it.

Understanding the Problem

The problem arises when you use uplot, a powerful JavaScript library for rendering time series data, in conjunction with Svelte and Node-Red. While this combination generally allows for fast and efficient data visualization, certain coding practices can lead to performance issues, such as browser freezing due to high memory usage.

In this instance, the freezing occurs during the zoom operation, with the browser seemingly running out of memory.

Key Components Involved

uplot: A JavaScript library for fast time series visualization.

Svelte: A modern JavaScript framework for building user interfaces.

Node-Red: A flow-based development tool for visual programming.

VictoriaMetrics: An open-source time series database used to store the data being visualized.

The Solution: Correcting Data Transformation

After investigating and debugging the code, the source of the freezing was identified. It was related to how the data from VictoriaMetrics was being transformed before being passed to uplot.
Below, we will detail the solution and describe the changes that were made to resolve the freezing issue.

Identifying the Code Causing Freezing

In the original transformation logic, the code used toFixed(0) on timestamps which caused performance issues as it converted numbers to strings, leading to unnecessary data manipulation.

Here's the problematic line of code:

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

This line needed adjustment. Removing the toFixed(0) method was the key to fixing the freezing issue.

Revised Data Transformation Function

Here’s the updated and optimized function that transforms raw metrics data into the format required by uplot:

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

Steps to Implement the Solution

Locate the Data Transformation Function: Find the transformToUplot function in your code.

Update the Timestamp Handling: Comment out or delete the line with toFixed(0).

Test the Changes: Refresh your browser and test the zoom functionality on your uplot graph to ensure there are no freezes.

Conclusion

By correcting the transformation of timestamps in your data handling for uplot, you can substantially improve performance and eliminate the freezing issues. This fix not only enhances user experience but also ensures that your application can handle large datasets efficiently.

If you’ve encountered similar issues or have additional insights, please feel free to share your experiences in the comments! Thanks for reading!