Mastering GraphQL: How to Ignore All Fields by Default and Only Add Specific Ones in Hot Chocolate

Discover how to manage GraphQL types in Hot Chocolate by ignoring all fields by default while adding only specific desired fields. Learn effective strategies to customize type definitions.
---
This video is based on the question https://stackoverflow.com/q/65773349/ asked by the user 'Michael Ingmar Staib' ( https://stackoverflow.com/u/11023824/ ) and on the answer https://stackoverflow.com/a/65773508/ provided by the user 'Michael Ingmar Staib' ( https://stackoverflow.com/u/11023824/ ) at 'Stack Overflow' website. Thanks to these great users and Stackexchange community for their contributions.

Visit these links for original content and any more details, such as alternate solutions, latest updates/developments on topic, comments, revision history etc. For example, the original title of the Question was: Is there a way to ignore all fields by default on a GraphQL type and only add the wanted field?

Also, Content (except music) licensed under CC BY-SA https://meta.stackexchange.com/help/l...
The original Question post is licensed under the 'CC BY-SA 4.0' ( https://creativecommons.org/licenses/... ) license, and the original Answer post is licensed under the 'CC BY-SA 4.0' ( https://creativecommons.org/licenses/... ) license.

If anything seems off to you, please feel free to write me at vlogize [AT] gmail [DOT] com.
---
Mastering GraphQL: How to Ignore All Fields by Default and Only Add Specific Ones in Hot Chocolate

In the world of GraphQL, especially when using libraries like Hot Chocolate, developers often face the challenge of managing the type definitions effectively. One common concern is whether it's possible to ignore all fields by default on a GraphQL type and only include specific fields that are actually needed. This approach can be incredibly useful to minimize unnecessary data exposure and streamline your API. In this guide, we'll explore how to achieve this with Hot Chocolate.

Understanding the Automatic Type Inference in Hot Chocolate

Hot Chocolate simplifies the process of defining GraphQL schemas in C# . By default, it infers GraphQL type members from C# types automatically. For example:

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

When we declare a corresponding GraphQL type like this:

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

It automatically generates the following GraphQL type:

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

While this automatic inference saves time, there are situations where you may want more control. Specifically, you might want to explicitly define which type members are included in your GraphQL schema.

How to Ignore All Fields by Default

Hot Chocolate provides options to reverse the automatic behavior for a specific type or for your entire schema. Here's how you can do it.

Declaring Fields Explicitly for a Specific Type

If you wish to declare that only certain fields should be visible for a specific type, you can override the Configure method in your type class. Here's how it looks:

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

With this configuration, your generated GraphQL type will now look like this:

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

This means that only the field Bar will be included in the GraphQL schema, while the Baz field is ignored.

Applying Explicit Binding Globally

If you want to enforce explicit field definition across your entire schema, you can do this at a global level by modifying your GraphQL server options:

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

This setting will ensure that every type defined in your API will require explicit field declarations unless you override this behavior individually for specific types.

Conclusion

By leveraging the capability of Hot Chocolate to ignore all fields by default and only include those you specify, you can create a more secure and manageable GraphQL API. Whether you want to customize individual types or enforce strict policies across your entire schema, Hot Chocolate provides you with the flexibility you need. This way, your API will only serve the necessary data, reducing the risk of over-exposing internal data structures.

Always remember that clear and explicit control over your API's schema is not just a feature; it's a necessity for modern web development!