Performing a Code Review

Performing a code review is the most tangible step of the process in making sure your chosen development firm is top quality from a technical standpoint. However, this step takes both care and time (and if you aren't technical yourself, it takes money).

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What is a code review?

A code review is the process of checking someone else's code to make sure it is well written and able to be easily understood by future developers. The reason you want code to be easy to understand is so other developers may maintain the code without wasting a lot of time trying to wrap their heads around the logic. You can use our basic checklist to get started.

• Do the variable declarations make sense? Is the purpose of each variable clear?
• Does the code follow a consistent style?
• Does the code work? Does it run without fatal errors?
• Are there superfluous lines of code?
• Does the code have clear comments that explain complex pieces of logic?
• Are there any unit tests?
• Does the chosen architecture make sense for the project?
• Is the backend secure? Is data handled securely and efficiently?
• Are all API calls well documented?

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For more on code reviews, here's Google's Engineering Practices documentation.

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If you know how to code and have access to someone who can evaluate architecture, then you're off to the races. Ask the firm/freelancer for samples of their code for your review.

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What if I'm not technical enough to perform a code review?

If you aren't technical, then you have two options. Either you can find someone who can do this for you and pay them for their time, or you can hire a third-party firm to do this critical evaluation. It's important that you use a third party rather than the firm that gave you the code in the first place.

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Why are code reviews necessary?

Why do you have to do a code review if you've seen how the product looks in the end? If the product looks and works alright, why does the code behind it matter? The truth is, you can write code to accomplish the same task in an infinite number of ways. But if you want a product that is scalable, can be easily built upon to evolve with you, and won't break when users start interacting with it, then you need to make sure the code is being written properly and follows best practices.

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Reach out to us at resources@aloa.co if you have any questions about how to perform a code review!