Mastering Pagination in Node.js with skip and limit Methods

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The Problem

You have a function that is supposed to return paginated news items from a database. The original implementation attempted to retrieve all records first and then paginate them using the skip and limit methods. While this works technically, it’s not performance-efficient and can lead to problems, especially with larger datasets.

Here is a snippet of your original code where the error resides:

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

This leads to confusion, as you also have a separate implementation that does work, but that one makes multiple database queries, which is not optimal either.

The Solution

To implement effective pagination, we need to rewrite the logic of our function so we can directly count the total number of records in the database and fetch just the necessary items for display. Here’s how to efficiently handle pagination with Mongoose:

Step-by-Step Implementation

Use countDocuments For Total Records: Instead of fetching all records and filtering them later, utilize Mongoose's countDocuments to know how many records you have.

Retrieve Paginated Results with skip and limit: Fetch only the required documents based on the current page and items per page using skip and limit.

Here’s an improved version of your function:

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

Key Improvements

Efficiency: This implementation counts documents efficiently without loading them all into memory.

Simplicity: The logic is cleaner, making it easier to understand and troubleshoot.

Conclusion

Now, you’re well-equipped to handle pagination in your application effectively. Happy coding!