Angular: The Importance of a Well-Structured Project

In the dynamic world of software development, an Angular project is more than mere code—it is a complex cityscape of functionalities and features. Imagine the project as a city. A well-structured project, like a planned metropolis, is easy to navigate, efficient, and thrives. A messy one, like a sprawling maze, is confusing, inefficient, and prone to collapse.

The Importance of Structure:

Think of your code as the city's infrastructure. A well-organized structure, with clear districts and avenues, makes it easy for developers to:

• Find what they need: No more spending hours hunting for specific files or functions.
• Understand the code: Components are grouped logically, making their purpose and relationships evident.
• Collaborate effectively: Developers can work on different parts of the project without stepping on each other's toes.
• Debug quickly: Isolating issues becomes easier when code is organized into modules and features.
• Scale gracefully: Adding new features or expanding the project is seamless when the foundation is strong.

In the table below are some challenges and benefits for the Angular project structure:

Challenge	Description	Benefit	Description
Lost productivity	Developers waste time searching for files and deciphering code.	Increased developer productivity	Less time wasted, more time building amazing features.
Duplication of effort	Same logic might be implemented in multiple places, leading to inconsistencies.	Improved code quality	Cleaner, more consistent code leads to fewer bugs and errors.
Bugs and errors	Hidden connections and dependencies create hard-to-find problems.	Enhanced collaboration	Developers work together efficiently, building a stronger team.
Collaboration nightmares	Merging code becomes a chaotic battle of conflicting versions.	Faster debugging	Issues are identified and fixed quickly, keeping your app running smoothly.
Scaling struggles	Adding new features becomes a complex and error-prone task.	Effortless scaling	Adding new features and growing your project becomes a breeze.

Investing in a structured Angular project, much like meticulously planning a metropolis, yields dividends in increased productivity, elevated code quality, efficient collaboration, expedited debugging, and painless scalability. This blueprint ensures the project's resilience and longevity in the ever-evolving landscape of software development. Let's delve into the core principles that guide this structure:

Feature-based Organization:

Imagine your project as a city. Each feature is a distinct district, with its own set of buildings (components), streets (services and pipes), and resources (data and assets). Grouping files by feature enhances:

• Understandability: Developers can quickly grasp the functionality of each area, making navigation and comprehension easier.
• Separation of Concerns: Features are self-contained units, minimizing code dependencies and preventing unintended interactions.
• Independent Development: Teams can work on different features concurrently, boosting collaboration and project progress.

Feature-based Organization:

Imagine your project as a city. Each feature is a distinct district, with its own set of buildings (components), streets (services and pipes), and resources (data and assets). Grouping files by feature enhances:

• Understandability: Developers can quickly grasp the functionality of each area, making navigation and comprehension easier.
• Separation of Concerns: Features are self-contained units, minimizing code dependencies and preventing unintended interactions.
• Independent Development: Teams can work on different features concurrently, boosting collaboration and project progress.

This modular approach fosters:

• Reusability: Code can be easily shared between features, reducing redundancy and effort.
• Decoupling: Features are loosely coupled, preventing changes in one from affecting others unintentionally.
• Scalability: Adding new features becomes a breeze by simply creating new modules.

Component Logic Separation:

Picture components as the individual buildings in each district. They should solely focus on displaying UI elements and handling user interactions. Data retrieval and manipulation belong to dedicated services, acting as the city's hidden utilities. This separation:

• Keeps components clean and focused: UI logic remains concise and easy to understand.
• Promotes testability: Components become easier to test in isolation from data dependencies.
• Improves maintainability: Changes in data handling only affect services, not UI components.

Naming Conventions:

Consistent and descriptive naming acts as the city's signage, guiding developers through the code. Use clear and concise names for:

• ** Files**: Reflect the feature or component they contain (e.g., user-profile.component.ts).
• Classes: Describe their purpose and functionality (e.g., UserProfileService).
• Components: Represent the UI element they display (e.g., UserListComponent).

Following these conventions promotes:

• Readability: Code becomes easier to understand and navigate for everyone.
• Search-friendliness: Finding specific files and components becomes quicker and more efficient.
• Collaboration: Consistent naming fosters a shared understanding among developers.

By applying these core principles, you can transform your Angular project into a well-organized city, where developers thrive and features flourish. Remember, a clean and maintainable structure is the foundation for a successful and scalable application!

Below is an example of the folder structure of the project:

/my-angular-project
|-- src
|   |-- app
|   |   |-- auth
|   |   |   |--auth.module.ts
|   |   |   |--auth-routing.module.ts
|   |   |   |--components
|   |   |   |  |--login
|   |   |   |  |   |-- login.component.ts/scss/spec.ts.html
|   |   |   |  |--error-handling
|   |   |   |  |   |-- error-handling.component.ts/scss/spec.ts.html
|   |   |   |  |--sso
|   |   |   |  |   |-- sso.component.ts/scss/spec.ts.html
|   |   |   |  |--index.ts
|   |   |-- core
|   |   |   |-- core.module.ts
|   |   |   |-- components
|   |   |   |  |--dashboard
|   |   |   |  |   |-- daashboard.component.ts/scss/spec.ts.html
|   |   |   |  |--navigation
|   |   |   |  |   |-- menu.ts
|   |   |   |  |   |-- menu-item
|   |   |   |  |   |   |-- menu-item.component.ts/scss/spec.ts.html
|   |   |   |  |   |-- error-handling.component.ts/scss/spec.ts.html
|   |   |   |  |--toolbar
|   |   |   |  |   |-- sso.component.ts/scss/spec.ts.html
|   |   |   |  |--index.ts
|   |   |   |-- services
|   |   |   |   |-- authentication.service.ts
|   |   |   |   |-- data.service.ts
|   |   |   |   |-- ...
|   |   |   |   |-- index.ts
|   |   |   |-- guards
|   |   |   |   |-- ...
|   |   |   |   |-- index.ts
|   |   |   |-- interceptors
|   |   |   |   |-- ...
|   |   |   |   |-- index.ts
|   |   |
|   |   |-- shared
|   |   |   |-- shared.module.ts
|   |   |   |-- constants.ts
|   |   |   |-- components
|   |   |   |   |-- header
|   |   |   |   |   |-- header.component.ts
|   |   |   |   |   |-- header.component.html
|   |   |   |   |
|   |   |   |   |-- footer
|   |   |   |       |-- footer.component.ts
|   |   |   |       |-- footer.component.html
|   |   |   |   |--index.ts
|   |   |   |
|   |   |   |-- pipes
|   |   |       |-- capitalize.pipe.ts
|   |   |       |-- index.ts
|   |   |
|   |   |-- features
|   |       |-- user
|   |       |   |-- user.module.ts
|   |       |   |-- components
|   |       |   |   |-- user-list
|   |       |   |   |   |-- user-list.component.ts
|   |       |   |   |   |-- user-list.component.html
|   |       |   |
|   |       |   |-- services
|   |       |       |-- user.service.ts
|   |       |
|   |       |-- product
|   |           |-- product.module.ts
|   |           |-- components
|   |               |-- product-list
|   |               |   |-- product-list.component.ts
|   |               |   |-- product-list.component.html
|   |               |
|   |               |-- services
|   |                   |-- product.service.ts
|-- assets
|-- environments
|-- ...

Comments

[Gérôme Grignon]

Avoid to use share.module.ts. There is always some content you want to share, out of the scope of a specific feature. However, use Standalone API to expose them, do not rely on a bloated SharedModule.

[Simi Lika]

Absolutely, if we have a bloated share.module.ts in the project then in the long run it can transform into a catch-all entity. As for using Standalone API-s for exposing the content, we might incorporate them into granular, feature-specific modules so that it can enhance code clarity and maintainability. This is also an approach to sharing functionalities within the Angular project.
Thank you for the advice against the use of a bloated SharedModule and instead recommending the utilization of Standalone APIs.

[João Angelo]

Hi, Simi Lika,
Excellent article !
Thanks for sharing

[Simi Lika]

Hi Joao Angelo,
Thank you!
This article I will make it as a series where I will try to part the whole structure of the project for one module one series