2017-02-22 13:09:39 -05:00
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@title
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AppModule: the root module
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@intro
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Tell Angular how to construct and bootstrap the app in the root "AppModule".
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@description
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An Angular module class describes how the application parts fit together.
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Every application has at least one Angular module, the _root_ module
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2017-03-11 10:36:40 -05:00
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that you [bootstrap](guide/appmodule#main) to launch the application.
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2017-02-22 13:09:39 -05:00
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You can call it anything you want. The conventional name is `AppModule`.
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The [setup](guide/setup) instructions produce a new project with the following minimal `AppModule`.
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You'll evolve this module as your application grows.
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{@example 'setup/ts/src/app/app.module.ts'}
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After the `import` statements, you come to a class adorned with the
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**`@NgModule`** [_decorator_](guide/glossary).
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The `@NgModule` decorator identifies `AppModule` as an Angular module class (also called an `NgModule` class).
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`@NgModule` takes a _metadata_ object that tells Angular how to compile and launch the application.
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* **_imports_** — the `BrowserModule` that this and every application needs to run in a browser.
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* **_declarations_** — the application's lone component, which is also ...
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* **_bootstrap_** — the _root_ component that Angular creates and inserts into the `index.html` host web page.
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2017-03-11 10:36:40 -05:00
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The [Angular Modules (NgModule)](guide/ngmodule) guide dives deeply into the details of Angular modules.
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All you need to know at the moment is a few basics about these three properties.
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{@a imports}
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### The _imports_ array
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Angular modules are a way to consolidate features that belong together into discrete units.
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Many features of Angular itself are organized as Angular modules.
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HTTP services are in the `HttpModule`. The router is in the `RouterModule`.
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Eventually you may create a feature module.
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Add a module to the `imports` array when the application requires its features.
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_This_ application, like most applications, executes in a browser.
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Every application that executes in a browser needs the `BrowserModule` from `@angular/platform-browser`.
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So every such application includes the `BrowserModule` in its _root_ `AppModule`'s `imports` array.
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Other guide and cookbook pages will tell you when you need to add additional modules to this array.
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~~~ {.alert.is-important}
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**Only `NgModule` classes** go in the `imports` array. Do not put any other kind of class in `imports`.
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~~~
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The `import` statements at the top of the file and the Angular module's `imports` array
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are unrelated and have completely different jobs.
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The _JavaScript_ `import` statements give you access to symbols _exported_ by other files
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so you can reference them within _this_ file.
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You add `import` statements to almost every application file.
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They have nothing to do with Angular and Angular knows nothing about them.
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The _module's_ `imports` array appears _exclusively_ in the `@NgModule` metadata object.
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It tells Angular about specific _other_ Angular modules — all of them classes decorated with `@NgModule` —
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that the application needs to function properly.
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{@a declarations}
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### The _declarations_ array
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You tell Angular which components belong to the `AppModule` by listing it in the module's `declarations` array.
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As you create more components, you'll add them to `declarations`.
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You must declare _every_ component in an `NgModule` class.
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If you use a component without declaring it, you'll see a clear error message in the browser console.
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You'll learn to create two other kinds of classes —
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[directives](guide/attribute-directives) and [pipes](guide/pipes) —
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that you must also add to the `declarations` array.
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~~~ {.alert.is-important}
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**Only _declarables_** — _components_, _directives_ and _pipes_ — belong in the `declarations` array.
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Do not put any other kind of class in `declarations`; _not_ `NgModule` classes, _not_ service classes, _not_ model classes.
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~~~
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{@a bootstrap-array}
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### The _bootstrap_ array
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You launch the application by [_bootstrapping_](guide/appmodule#main) the root `AppModule`.
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Among other things, the _bootstrapping_ process creates the component(s) listed in the `bootstrap` array
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and inserts each one into the browser DOM.
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Each bootstrapped component is the base of its own tree of components.
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Inserting a bootstrapped component usually triggers a cascade of component creations that fill out that tree.
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While you can put more than one component tree on a host web page, that's not typical.
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Most applications have only one component tree and they bootstrap a single _root_ component.
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You can call the one _root_ component anything you want but most developers call it `AppComponent`.
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Which brings us to the _bootstrapping_ process itself.
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{@a main}
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<l-main-section>
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</l-main-section>
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## Bootstrap in _main.ts_
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There are many ways to bootstrap an application.
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The variations depend upon how you want to compile the application and where you want to run it.
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In the beginning, you will compile the application dynamically with the _Just-in-Time (JIT)_ compiler
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and you'll run it in a browser. You can learn about other options later.
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The recommended place to bootstrap a JIT-compiled browser application is in a separate file
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in the `src` folder named `src/main.ts`
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{@example 'setup/ts/src/main.ts'}
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This code creates a browser platform for dynamic (JIT) compilation and
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bootstraps the `AppModule` described above.
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The _bootstrapping_ process sets up the execution environment,
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digs the _root_ `AppComponent` out of the module's `bootstrap` array,
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creates an instance of the component and inserts it within the element tag identified by the component's `selector`.
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The `AppComponent` selector — here and in most documentation samples — is `my-app`
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so Angular looks for a `<my-app>` tag in the `index.html` like this one ...
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{@example 'setup/ts/src/index.html' region='my-app'}
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... and displays the `AppComponent` there.
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This file is very stable. Once you've set it up, you may never change it again.
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<l-main-section>
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</l-main-section>
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## More about Angular Modules
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Your initial app has only a single module, the _root_ module.
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As your app grows, you'll consider subdividing it into multiple "feature" modules,
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2017-03-06 05:43:33 -05:00
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some of which can be loaded later ("lazy loaded") if and when the user chooses
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to visit those features.
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2017-03-11 10:36:40 -05:00
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When you're ready to explore these possibilities, visit the [Angular Modules (NgModule)](guide/ngmodule) guide.
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