Resolvers

How Apollo Server processes GraphQL operations

Apollo Server needs to know how to populate data for every field in your schema so that it can respond to requests for that data. To accomplish this, it uses resolvers.

A resolver is a function that's responsible for populating the data for a single field in your schema. It can populate that data in any way you define, such as by fetching data from a back-end database or a third-party API.

If you don't define a resolver for a particular field, Apollo Server automatically defines a default resolver for it.

Defining a resolver

Base syntax

Let's say our server defines the following (very short) schema:

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type Query {
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  numberSix: Int! # Should always return the number 6 when queried
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  numberSeven: Int! # Should always return 7
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}

We want to define resolvers for the numberSix and numberSeven fields of the root Query type so that they always return 6 and 7 when they're queried.

Those resolver definitions look like this:

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const resolvers = {
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  Query: {
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    numberSix() {
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      return 6;
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    },
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    numberSeven() {
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      return 7;
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    },
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  },
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};

As this example shows:

You define all of your server's resolvers in a single JavaScript object (named resolvers above). This object is called the resolver map.
The resolver map has top-level fields that correspond to your schema's types (such as Query above).
Each resolver function belongs to whichever type its corresponding field belongs to.

Handling arguments

Now let's say our server defines this schema:

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type User {
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  id: ID!
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  name: String
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}
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type Query {
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  user(id: ID!): User
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}

We want to be able to query the user field to fetch a user by its id.

To achieve this, our server needs access to user data. For this contrived example, assume our server defines the following hardcoded array:

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const users = [
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  {
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    id: '1',
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    name: 'Elizabeth Bennet',
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  },
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  {
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    id: '2',
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    name: 'Fitzwilliam Darcy',
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  },
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];

Now we can define a resolver for the user field, like so:

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const resolvers = {
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  Query: {
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    user(parent, args, contextValue, info) {
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      return users.find((user) => user.id === args.id);
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    },
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  },
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};

As this example shows:

A resolver can optionally accept four positional arguments: (parent, args, contextValue, info).
- Learn more about these arguments.
The args argument is an object that contains all GraphQL arguments that were provided for the field by the GraphQL operation.

Notice that this example doesn't define resolvers for User fields (id and name). That's because the default resolver that Apollo Server creates for these fields does the right thing: it obtains the value directly from the object returned by the user resolver.

Passing resolvers to Apollo Server

ⓘ NOTE

In the examples below, we use top-level await calls to start our server asynchronously. If you'd like to see how we set this up, check out the Getting Started guide for details.

After you define all of your resolvers, you pass them to the constructor of ApolloServer (as the resolvers property), along with your schema's definition (as the typeDefs property).

The following example defines a hardcoded data set, a schema, and a resolver map. It then initializes an ApolloServer instance, passing the schema and resolvers to it.

Note that you can define your resolvers across as many different files and objects as you want, as long as you merge all of them into a single resolver map that's passed to the ApolloServer constructor.

Resolver chains

Whenever a query asks for a field that returns an object type, the query also asks for at least one field of that object (if it didn't, there would be no reason to include the object in the query). A query always "bottoms out" on fields that return a scalar, an enum, or a list of these.

For example, all fields of this Product type "bottom out":

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type Product {
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  id: ID!
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  name: String
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  variants: [String!]
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  availability: Availability!
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}
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enum Availability {
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  AVAILABLE
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  DISCONTINUED
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}

Because of this rule, whenever Apollo Server resolves a field that returns an object type, it always then resolves one or more fields of that object. Those subfields might in turn also contain object types. Depending on your schema, this object-field pattern can continue to an arbitrary depth, creating what's called a resolver chain.

Example

Let's say our server defines the following schema:

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# A library has a branch and books
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type Library {
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  branch: String!
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  books: [Book!]
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}
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# A book has a title and author
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type Book {
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  title: String!
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  author: Author!
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}
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# An author has a name
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type Author {
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  name: String!
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}
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type Query {
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  libraries: [Library]
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}

Here's a valid query against that schema:

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query GetBooksByLibrary {
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  libraries {
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    books {
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      author {
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        name
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      }
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    }
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  }
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}

The resulting resolver chain for this query matches the hierarchical structure of the query itself:

These resolvers execute in the order shown above, and they each pass their return value to the next resolver in the chain via the parent argument.

Here's a code sample that can resolve the query above with this resolver chain:

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import { ApolloServer } from '@apollo/server';
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import { startStandaloneServer } from '@apollo/server/standalone';
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const libraries = [
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  {
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    branch: 'downtown',
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  },
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  {
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    branch: 'riverside',
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  },
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];
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// The branch field of a book indicates which library has it in stock
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const books = [
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  {
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    title: 'The Awakening',
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    author: 'Kate Chopin',
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    branch: 'riverside',
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  },
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  {
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    title: 'City of Glass',
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    author: 'Paul Auster',
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    branch: 'downtown',
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  },
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];
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// Schema definition
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const typeDefs = `#graphql
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  # A library has a branch and books
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  type Library {
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    branch: String!
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    books: [Book!]
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  }
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  # A book has a title and author
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  type Book {
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    title: String!
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    author: Author!
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  }
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  # An author has a name
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  type Author {
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    name: String!
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  }
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  # Queries can fetch a list of libraries
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  type Query {
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    libraries: [Library]
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  }
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`;
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// Resolver map
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const resolvers = {
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  Query: {
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    libraries() {
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      // Return our hardcoded array of libraries
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      return libraries;
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    },
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  },
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  Library: {
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    books(parent) {
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      // Filter the hardcoded array of books to only include
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      // books that are located at the correct branch
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      return books.filter((book) => book.branch === parent.branch);
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    },
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  },
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  Book: {
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    // The parent resolver (Library.books) returns an object with the
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    // author's name in the "author" field. Return a JSON object containing
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    // the name, because this field expects an object.
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    author(parent) {
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      return {
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        name: parent.author,
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      };
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    },
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  },
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  // Because Book.author returns an object with a "name" field,
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  // Apollo Server's default resolver for Author.name will work.
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  // We don't need to define one.
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};
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// Pass schema definition and resolvers to the
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// ApolloServer constructor
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const server = new ApolloServer({
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  typeDefs,
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  resolvers,
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});
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// Launch the server
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const { url } = await startStandaloneServer(server);
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console.log(`🚀 Server listening at: ${url}`);

If we now update our query to also ask for each book's title:

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query GetBooksByLibrary {
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  libraries {
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    books {
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      title
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      author {
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        name
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      }
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    }
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  }
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}

Then the resolver chain looks like this:

When a chain "diverges" like this, each subchain executes in parallel.

Resolver arguments

Resolver functions are passed four arguments: parent, args, contextValue, and info (in that order).

You can use any name for each argument in your code, but the Apollo docs use these names as a convention. Instead of parent, it's also common to use the parent type's name or source.

Argument	Description
`parent`	The return value of the resolver for this field's parent (i.e., the previous resolver in the resolver chain). For resolvers of top-level fields with no parent (such as fields of `Query`), this value is obtained from the `rootValue` function passed to Apollo Server's constructor.
`args`	An object that contains all GraphQL arguments provided for this field. For example, when executing `query{ user(id: "4") }`, the `args` object passed to the `user` resolver is `{ "id": "4" }`.
`contextValue`	An object shared across all resolvers that are executing for a particular operation. Use this to share per-operation state, including authentication information, dataloader instances, and anything else to track across resolvers. See The `contextValue` argument for more information.
`info`	Contains information about the operation's execution state, including the field name, the path to the field from the root, and more. Its core fields are listed in the GraphQL.js source code. Apollo Server extends it with a `cacheControl` field.

The `contextValue` argument

Resolvers should never destructively modify the contextValue argument. This ensures consistency across all resolvers and prevents unexpected errors.

Your resolvers can access the shared contextValue object via their third positional argument. All resolvers that are executing for a particular operation have access to contextValue:

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import { UserAPI } from './datasources/users';
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const resolvers = {
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  Query: {
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    // Our resolvers can access the fields in contextValue
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    // from their third argument
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    currentUser: (_, __, contextValue) => {
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      return contextValue.dataSources.userApi.findUser(contextValue.token);
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    },
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  },
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};
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interface MyContext {
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  // Context typing
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  token?: String;
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  dataSources: {
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    userApi: UserAPI;
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  };
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}
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const server = new ApolloServer<MyContext>({
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  typeDefs,
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  resolvers,
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});
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const { url } = await startStandaloneServer(server, {
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  context: async ({ req }) => ({
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    token: getToken(req.headers.authentication),
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    dataSources: {
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      userApi: new UserAPI(),
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    },
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  }),
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});

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import { UserAPI } from './datasources/users';
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const resolvers = {
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  Query: {
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    // Our resolvers can access the fields in contextValue
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    // from their third argument
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    currentUser: (_, __, contextValue) => {
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      return contextValue.dataSources.userApi.findUser(contextValue.token);
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    },
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  },
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};
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const server = new ApolloServer({
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  typeDefs,
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  resolvers,
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});
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const { url } = await startStandaloneServer(server, {
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  context: async ({ req }) => ({
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    token: getToken(req.headers.authentication),
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    dataSources: {
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      userApi: new UserAPI(),
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    },
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  }),
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});

To learn more about manage connections to databases and other data sources, see Fetching Data.

For more information and examples, see Sharing context.

Return values

A resolver function's return value is treated differently by Apollo Server depending on its type:

Type	Description
Scalar / object	A resolver can return a single value or an object, as shown in Defining a resolver. This return value is passed down to any nested resolvers via the `parent` argument.
`Array`	Return an array if and only if your schema indicates that the resolver's associated field contains a list. After you return an array, Apollo Server executes nested resolvers for each item in the array.
`null` / `undefined`	Indicates that the value for the field could not be found. If your schema indicates that this resolver's field is nullable, then the operation result has a `null` value at the field's position. If this resolver's field is not nullable, Apollo Server sets the field's parent to `null`. If necessary, this process continues up the resolver chain until it reaches a field that is nullable. This ensures that a response never includes a `null` value for a non-nullable field. When this happens, the response's `errors` property will be populated with relevant errors concerning the nullability of that field.
`Promise`	Resolvers can be asynchronous and perform async actions, such as fetching from a database or back-end API. To support this, a resolver can return a promise that resolves to any other supported return type.

Default resolvers

If you don't define a resolver for a particular schema field, Apollo Server defines a default resolver for it.

The default resolver function uses the following logic:

As an example, consider the following schema excerpt:

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type Book {
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  title: String
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}
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type Author {
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  books: [Book]
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}

If the resolver for the books field returns an array of objects that each contain a title field, then you can use a default resolver for the title field. The default resolver will correctly return parent.title.

Resolving unions and interfaces

There are GraphQL types that enable you to define a field that returns one of multiple possible object types (i.e., unions and interfaces). To resolve a field that can return different object types, you must define a __resolveType function to inform Apollo Server which type of object is being returned.

See examples of the __resolveType function.

Resolving federated entities

See Resolving Entities.

Monitoring resolver performance

As with all code, a resolver's performance depends on its logic. It's important to understand which of your schema's fields are computationally expensive or otherwise slow to resolve, so that you can either improve their performance or make sure you only query them when necessary.

Apollo Studio integrates directly with Apollo Server to provide field-level metrics that help you understand the performance of your graph over time. For more information, see Analyzing performance.

Directives

Sharing context