Refactoring Guide

Improve code structure safely without changing behavior.

When to Use

• User asks to "clean up" or "refactor" code
• Code smells detected during review
• Before adding new features to messy code
• Reducing duplication
• Improving readability

Golden Rules

1. Never refactor without tests - Ensure behavior is preserved
2. Small steps - One change at a time, run tests after each
3. No behavior changes - Refactoring ≠ fixing bugs or adding features
4. Commit often - Easy to revert if something breaks

Refactoring Process

1. Ensure tests exist and pass
   ↓
2. Identify the code smell
   ↓
3. Choose appropriate refactoring technique
   ↓
4. Make small change
   ↓
5. Run tests
   ↓
6. Commit if green, revert if red
   ↓
7. Repeat until done

Common Code Smells

Long Function

Symptom: Function > 20-30 lines, multiple responsibilities

Refactoring: Extract Method

// Before
function processOrder(order: Order) {
  // Validate order (10 lines)
  // Calculate totals (15 lines)
  // Apply discounts (12 lines)
  // Update inventory (8 lines)
  // Send confirmation (10 lines)
}

// After
function processOrder(order: Order) {
  validateOrder(order);
  const totals = calculateTotals(order);
  const finalTotal = applyDiscounts(totals, order.discounts);
  updateInventory(order.items);
  sendConfirmation(order, finalTotal);
}

Duplicate Code

Symptom: Similar code in multiple places

Refactoring: Extract to shared function

// Before
function getUserName(user: User) {
  return `${user.firstName} ${user.lastName}`.trim();
}

function getCustomerName(customer: Customer) {
  return `${customer.firstName} ${customer.lastName}`.trim();
}

// After
function formatFullName(entity: { firstName: string; lastName: string }) {
  return `${entity.firstName} ${entity.lastName}`.trim();
}

Long Parameter List

Symptom: Function with > 3-4 parameters

Refactoring: Introduce Parameter Object

// Before
function createUser(
  name: string,
  email: string,
  age: number,
  address: string,
  phone: string,
  role: string
) { ... }

// After
interface CreateUserInput {
  name: string;
  email: string;
  age: number;
  address: string;
  phone: string;
  role: string;
}

function createUser(input: CreateUserInput) { ... }

Nested Conditionals

Symptom: Deep if/else nesting

Refactoring: Guard Clauses / Early Returns

// Before
function getDiscount(user: User) {
  if (user) {
    if (user.isActive) {
      if (user.isPremium) {
        return 0.2;
      } else {
        return 0.1;
      }
    }
  }
  return 0;
}

// After
function getDiscount(user: User) {
  if (!user) return 0;
  if (!user.isActive) return 0;
  if (user.isPremium) return 0.2;
  return 0.1;
}

Magic Numbers/Strings

Symptom: Unexplained literal values in code

Refactoring: Extract Constant

// Before
if (user.age >= 21) { ... }
if (status === 'PNDG') { ... }

// After
const MINIMUM_AGE = 21;
const ORDER_STATUS = {
  PENDING: 'PNDG',
  COMPLETE: 'CMPL',
} as const;

if (user.age >= MINIMUM_AGE) { ... }
if (status === ORDER_STATUS.PENDING) { ... }

Feature Envy

Symptom: Method uses data from another class more than its own

Refactoring: Move Method

// Before
class Order {
  getCustomerDiscount() {
    if (this.customer.loyaltyYears > 5) {
      return this.customer.baseDiscount * 1.5;
    }
    return this.customer.baseDiscount;
  }
}

// After
class Customer {
  getDiscount() {
    if (this.loyaltyYears > 5) {
      return this.baseDiscount * 1.5;
    }
    return this.baseDiscount;
  }
}

Refactoring Techniques

Smell	Technique
Long function	Extract Method
Duplicate code	Extract Function/Class
Long parameter list	Parameter Object
Nested conditionals	Guard Clauses
Magic values	Extract Constant
Feature envy	Move Method
Large class	Extract Class
Primitive obsession	Value Object
Switch statements	Replace with Polymorphism

Safety Checklist

Before refactoring:

• Tests exist and pass
• Understand current behavior
• Identify specific smell to address

During refactoring:

• One change at a time
• Run tests after each change
• Commit when green

After refactoring:

• All tests still pass
• Code is more readable
• No behavior changed
• Review the diff

When NOT to Refactor

• No test coverage exists (write tests first)
• Under tight deadline (technical debt is okay temporarily)
• Code is being deleted soon
• You don't understand the code fully