Overcoming the Frustration: Unable to Use Ketcher-React with NextJS

If you’re reading this article, chances are you’re one of the many developers who’ve hit a roadblock trying to integrate Ketcher-React with NextJS. You’re not alone! Many of us have been there, wondering why our lovely Ketcher molecules refuse to render in our NextJS project. Fear not, dear developer, for we’ve got you covered! In this article, we’ll dive into the common issues and provide straightforward solutions to get you back on track.

The Problem: What’s Going On?

Before we dive into the solutions, let’s quickly understand what’s happening behind the scenes. Ketcher-React is a fantastic library for rendering chemical structures, but it relies on a specific set of dependencies and configurations to work seamlessly. NextJS, on the other hand, is a popular React-based framework for building server-side rendered (SSR) and statically generated websites. When we try to integrate Ketcher-React with NextJS, we might encounter issues due to the unique requirements of each library.

Common Issues and Errors

Here are some common issues you might encounter when trying to use Ketcher-React with NextJS:

• Module not found: Error: Can't resolve 'react-dom/server'
• TypeError: Cannot read property 'render' of undefined
• Invalid hook call. Hooks can only be called inside of the body of a function component.
• Ketcher molecules not rendering or displaying incorrectly

Solution 1: Install Required Dependencies

In many cases, the issue stems from missing dependencies. Make sure you’ve installed the required packages:

npm install react-dom ketcher-react react

Why Do We Need These Dependencies?

Ketcher-React relies on React and React-DOM to function correctly. React-DOM is required for server-side rendering, which NextJS utilizes. If you’re using a NextJS project, you’ll need to ensure you have the correct versions of these dependencies installed.

Solution 2: Configure NextJS to Support Server-Side Rendering

NextJS has some specific requirements for server-side rendering. You’ll need to configure your project to support SSR:

// next.config.js
module.exports = {
  target: 'serverless',
};

By setting the target to ‘serverless’, NextJS will enable server-side rendering, which is essential for Ketcher-React.

Solution 3: Use a Custom getServerSideProps Function

In some cases, you might need to use a custom getServerSideProps function to pre-render your Ketcher molecules:

// pages/_app.js
import { GetServerSideProps } from 'next';
import { Ketcher } from 'ketcher-react';

const App = () => {
  return (
    

      
    
  );
};

export const getServerSideProps = async () => {
  return {
    props: {},
  };
};

export default App;

This function tells NextJS to pre-render the Ketcher molecule on the server-side, ensuring it’s properly rendered when the page loads.

Solution 4: Update Your babel.config.js File

If you’re using a custom Babel configuration, you might need to update it to support Ketcher-React:

// babel.config.js
module.exports = {
  presets: ['next/babel'],
  plugins: [
    ['transform-runtime', {
      helpers: false,
    }],
  ],
};

This configuration tells Babel to use the Next.js preset and enables the transform-runtime plugin, which is required for Ketcher-React.

Solution 5: Check Your Molecule Data

Double-check that your molecule data is correctly formatted and valid. You can use tools like Cinfony or Cactus to verify your molecule data.

Additional Tips and Tricks

Here are some additional tips to help you troubleshoot and optimize your Ketcher-React integration with NextJS:

1. Use the latest versions of Ketcher-React and NextJS. Ensure you’re running the latest versions of both libraries to avoid compatibility issues.
2. Check your environment variables. Verify that your environment variables, such as NEXT_PUBLIC_*, are correctly set and accessible in your NextJS project.
3. Inspect your component tree. Use React DevTools to inspect your component tree and identify any issues with the Ketcher molecule rendering.
4. Test in isolation. Create a minimal reproduction of your issue in a separate project to isolate the problem and test solutions.

Conclusion

With these solutions and tips, you should be able to overcome the frustration of integrating Ketcher-React with NextJS. Remember to stay calm, take a deep breath, and methodically troubleshoot each issue. If you’re still stuck, feel free to reach out to the Ketcher-React community or seek help from a fellow developer.

Happy coding, and may your molecules render beautifully!

Problem	Solution
Module not found: Error: Can’t resolve ‘react-dom/server’	Install required dependencies (react-dom, ketcher-react, react)
TypeError: Cannot read property ‘render’ of undefined	Configure NextJS to support server-side rendering (target: ‘serverless’)
Invalid hook call. Hooks can only be called inside of the body of a function component.	Use a custom getServerSideProps function
Ketcher molecules not rendering or displaying incorrectly	Check molecule data, update babel.config.js, and test in isolation

Frequently Asked Question

Having trouble getting Ketcher-React to work with Next.js? Don’t worry, we’ve got you covered! Check out these frequently asked questions to get back on track.