How To Use Webpack To Load Cdn Or External Vendor Javascript Lib In Js File Not In Html File

When building a website or web application, you often come across the need to load external JavaScript libraries from Content Delivery Networks (CDNs) or other vendor sources directly into your JavaScript files, rather than adding them in the HTML file. In this article, we'll explore how you can achieve this using Webpack, a popular module bundler widely used in the development community.

Webpack is a powerful tool that can help manage your project dependencies efficiently. Let's dive into the process of loading CDN or external vendor JavaScript libraries in your JavaScript files with Webpack.

1. Installing Webpack:
Before you start using Webpack, ensure it is installed in your project. You can install Webpack using npm by running the following command:

npm install webpack webpack-cli --save-dev

2. Configuring Webpack:
Create a `webpack.config.js` file in the root directory of your project to define the Webpack configuration. Within this file, you can specify how Webpack should handle different assets, including JavaScript files.
Here's an example configuration snippet to get you started:

const path = require('path');

module.exports = {
  mode: 'development',
  entry: './src/index.js',
  output: {
    path: path.resolve(__dirname, 'dist'),
    filename: 'bundle.js',
  },
};

In this configuration, `entry` points to your main JavaScript file, and `output` specifies the location and name of the bundled JavaScript file that Webpack generates.

3. Loading External Libraries:
To load an external JavaScript library from a CDN or another vendor source within your JavaScript file, you can use the `import` or `require` statements supported by Webpack.
Here's an example of how you can import an external library, such as jQuery, in your `index.js` file:

import $ from 'jquery';

Webpack will handle resolving and bundling the imported library along with your application code during the build process.

4. Dealing with CDNs:
If the library you want to import is hosted on a CDN, you can still use Webpack to load it by specifying the CDN link directly in your JavaScript file. Webpack will take care of fetching and bundling the library for you.
For instance, to import a library from a CDN like Bootstrap, you can do the following in your JavaScript file:

import 'https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/bootstrap@5.1.3/dist/js/bootstrap.min.js';

5. Building Your Project:
Once you have configured Webpack and included the necessary imports in your JavaScript file, you can build your project by running the following command:

npx webpack

Webpack will bundle your JavaScript files along with the external libraries and generate the final output in the specified `dist` directory.

By following these simple steps, you can easily leverage Webpack to load CDN or external vendor JavaScript libraries directly in your JavaScript files without cluttering your HTML file. This approach helps in organizing your project dependencies efficiently and streamlining the development process. So, go ahead, give it a try, and enhance your web development workflow with Webpack!