Is it possible for recursive type definitions to handle generics effectively?

I have identified what I believe to be a bug in Typescript and have submitted it as an issue here. Considering that this might not get resolved quickly, I am reaching out for suggestions. Does anyone know of a better solution or workaround than the one provided in create_1?

Code

type RecursivePartial<T> = {
    [P in keyof T]?: RecursivePartial<T[P]>;
};

type State<T> = { value: T };

function create_1<T>(){

    let _x: RecursivePartial<State<T>>;
    let _y: State<RecursivePartial<T>>;

    _x = _y;
}

function create_2<T>(){
 /*

 */

    let x: RecursivePartial<State<T>>;
    let y: State<T>;

    /*
        Type 'State<T>' is not assignable to type RecursivePartial<State<T>>'.
            Types of property 'value' are incompatible.
                Type 'T' is not assignable to type RecursivePartial<T>[P]>'.
                    Type 'T[string]' is not assignable to type 'RecursivePartial<T[P]>'.
    */

    x = y; 
}

Expected behavior: The expected outcome was that the second example would be valid TypeScript, with State being assignable to RecursivePartial>. This should hold true as any State would essentially be a partial of itself when T remains consistent.

Actual behavior: However, upon testing, I encountered a type error (as shown above). It appears that defining recursive types breaks down when a generic comes into play.

TS Playground link To see the code and type error in action, visit the TS Playground example.

Answer №1

Seems like a potential bug to me. Here are some possible solutions:

After reviewing the Github issue, it appears that the most effective workaround is enabling the strictNullChecks compiler option. This is highly recommended as it can be very beneficial.


If you prefer not to do that, you can utilize a type assertion to inform the compiler of your understanding about the type. In case the compiler resists, using an assertion of any may help, like this:

function create_2<T>(){
    let x: RecursivePartial<State<T>>;
    let y: State<T>;
    x = y as any as RecursivePartial<State<T>>; // I know it!
}

If that approach doesn't work for you, consider modifying the definition of RecursivePartial<> as follows:

type RecursivePartial<T> = {
    [P in keyof T]?: T[P] | RecursivePartial<T[P]>;
};

This essentially achieves the same outcome, but makes it clearer for the compiler to understand that assigning a value of type T to a variable of type RecursivePartial<T> is always feasible.


Hopefully, these suggestions prove helpful. Best of luck!

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