Virtual DOM
A virtual DOM is an in-memory user-interface tree that frameworks compare or process to determine updates to the rendered DOM.
Build a Frontend Web Framework (From Scratch)
An in-memory representation of a user interface tree that a framework associates with rendered HTML and updates dynamically.
- How it is used
- Separates declarative view descriptions from browser DOM manipulation so state changes can drive view updates.
- How deep it goes
- Builds virtual-node helpers and component trees, then works through differences between old and new trees without claiming production completeness.
- Examples
- Uses a login-form object tree, state-driven to-do lists, and an old-versus-new tree comparison.
- What you can do after
- Build it from scratch with JavaScript node helpers and component functions, then evaluate how changed trees guide DOM updates.
Read how Build a Frontend Web Framework (From Scratch) explains virtual DOM →
React Quickly, Second Edition
A virtual DOM is an in-memory representation of a web document’s UI tree that a rendering library compares before applying changes to the browser DOM.
- How it is used
- Keeps a React view aligned with component state without requiring manual DOM updates.
- How deep it goes
- Explains in-memory comparison and selective DOM updates, but defers reconciliation algorithm details.
- Examples
- Uses a paragraph whose state-driven text changes without replacing the element.
- What you can do after
- Apply it via React by updating component state and letting reconciliation handle browser DOM changes.
Read how React Quickly, Second Edition explains virtual DOM →
Related concepts
- Reactused by · React is an open-source JavaScript library for building user interfaces from declarative, reusable components.
- Document Object Modelcontrasts with · The Document Object Model (DOM) is a standard programming interface that represents a document as a structured tree of objects and provides ways to access and modify its content and structure.
- reconciliationused by · Reconciliation is the process of comparing related states, records, or outputs to identify differences and, when needed, resolve them or bring them into agreement.
- componentproduced by · A software component is a modular part of a larger system that provides related functionality and interacts with other parts through defined boundaries or interfaces.
- element destructionused by · Element destruction is the process of removing a DOM element, its descendants, and its associated event listeners.
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