Limitations of Using Error Boundary

Let’s discuss the limitations of using error boundaries in React in simple terms:

• Error boundaries in React can only catch errors that occur during the rendering phase, lifecycle methods, or constructors of the components below them. They cannot catch errors in event handlers, asynchronous code, or during server-side rendering.
• Each error boundary can only catch errors within its own subtree. If an error occurs in a component outside the boundary’s subtree, it won’t be caught by that boundary. You need to place multiple error boundaries strategically throughout your app to cover all potential error sources.
• If an error occurs in a component that causes it to unmount, the error boundary higher in the hierarchy won’t catch that error. This means error boundaries can’t recover from unmounting errors.
• Error boundaries are implemented using class components and the componentDidCatch lifecycle method. If you’re using functional components with hooks extensively, implementing error boundaries might require refactoring your components to class components.
• Error boundaries are not meant to replace regular validation and error handling within your components. They are more about gracefully handling unexpected errors that slip through your validation logic rather than replacing it altogether.
• Placing error boundaries too high in the component tree can potentially impact performance, as errors are caught for every render cycle within that subtree. It’s essential to strike a balance between error coverage and performance overhead.

Encountering Errors with Error Boundaries Example:

Let’s say you have a component that renders a list of items. If there is an error while rendering one of the items, the error boundary will catch it and display a friendly message like “Oops! Something went wrong. Please try again later.”

Error boundaries are React components that detect JavaScript errors anywhere in their child component tree, log them, and display a fallback UI rather than the crashed component tree. Error boundaries catch errors in rendering, lifecycle functions, and constructors for the entire tree below them.

Prerequisites:

• NodeJS or NPM
• ReactJS
• JSX