Upgrade Validator

upgrade-validator

Policy: why upgrades are manual

This project does not float on arbitrary new minor lines of validatorjs/validator.js. As described in express-validator#1253, the validator dependency is pinned to patch (e.g. ~x.y.z) so a new minor from upstream cannot be pulled in implicitly and surface mistaken or unexpected breaking changes. Bumping validator is a deliberate maintainers’ task: run this workflow, sync types and chain APIs, test, and ship.

After npm install, keep package.json consistent with that policy (typically ~<resolved-version>, not a loose ^ on the major/minor line unless the project explicitly changes policy).

Before you start

• Record the previous validator version from package.json (and confirm after upgrade from package.json / lockfile).
• The source of truth for what changed is validatorjs/validator.js. Use a tag range compare (e.g. v<old>...v<new>) to see commits and the diff between versions.

1. Upgrade the package

From the repo root, install the latest validator in-range and persist it to package.json / the lockfile:

npm install validator@latest

If npm rewrites the range to ^ and the project uses patch-only pinning per #1253, change the dependency to ~<version> to match the previous convention.

2. Map upstream changes to this codebase

For each new validator, sanitizer, or option type introduced between the old and new version (use the GitHub compare / changelog, not only commit titles):

New validator (check API)

• src/chain/validators.ts: under // validator's validators, add the new method signature in alphabetical order with the rest. Follow existing JSDoc style for adjacent methods.
• src/chain/validators-impl.ts: under // Standard validators, add the implementation in alphabetical order, delegating with addStandardValidation(validator.<name>, ...) the same way sibling methods do. If upstream uses custom logic (see e.g. isAlpha, toArray-style), match the existing pattern in that file.

New sanitizer

• src/chain/sanitizers.ts: under // validator's sanitizers, add the method in alphabetical order.
• src/chain/sanitizers-impl.ts: under // Standard sanitizers, add the implementation in alphabetical order (addStandardSanitization vs customSanitizer as appropriate).

New options / types

• src/options.ts: add or extend types only when the new value is:
  • enum-like (e.g. a new locale, a new UUID version constant), or
  • an object (e.g. { min, max }, or other structured options).
• Skip options.ts for parameters that are only a plain string or number with no new shared option shape—use inline types on the chain method if needed, consistent with nearby code.

Everything else

• Upstream internal or non–type-surface changes that do not add or change validator/sanitizer signatures need no express-validator edits beyond the version bump and declaration sync (if any).

3. Declarations

• Update declarations/validator.d.ts: new export function entries must stay in alphabetical order and match the installed validator call signatures. Reuse import('../src/options').<Type> for option types the same way existing declarations do.

4. Verify

From the repo root:

npm test
npm run lint
npm run docs:regenerate-api

Fix any failures before finishing.

Quick reference — section markers

Source: express-validator/express-validator — distributed by TomeVault.