I would like to create the exact same behaviour in function component ref as there is in class component ref.
Heres an example:
const AnotherComponent = () => {
const DoSomething () => console.log(something);
return <div> There is a content </div>;
}
const MyComponent () => {
let newRef = useRef();
useEffect(() => {
newRef.current.DoSomething();
}, []);
return <AnotherComponent ref={newRef} />;
}
I know about forwardRef, but from what I understand it allows you to bind the ref to a specific input to get its events, but not to the WHOLE component with all its functions.
Is it even possible to achieve this with function components ?
Yes, it's completely possible. React refs are for more than just getting access to DOMNodes. Use a combination of React.forwardRef and the useImperativeHandle React hook to forward a React ref to a function component and expose out functions/values.
const AnotherComponent = React.forwardRef((props, ref) => {
useImperativeHandle(ref, () => ({
doSomething
}));
const doSomething () => console.log(something);
return <div> There is a content </div>;
});
...
const MyComponent () => {
const newRef = useRef();
useEffect(() => {
newRef.current.doSomething();
}, []);
return <AnotherComponent ref={newRef} />;
}