# Strange node.status "defaults"

**URL:** https://discourse.nodered.org/t/strange-node-status-defaults/1300
**Category:** General
**Created:** [4 July 2018 02:18 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/strange-node-status-defaults/1300 "2018-07-04T02:18:51Z")
**Posts on this page:** 2
**Page:** 1

<div class="post-metadata">

### Author: ![drmibell](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex026/user_avatar/discourse.nodered.org/drmibell/32/8424_2.png) [@drmibell](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/drmibell)
#### Post date: [4 July 2018 02:18 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/strange-node-status-defaults/1300/1 "2018-07-04T02:18:51Z")

</div>

While experimenting with the status display provided by the function node in the editor, I have run into some odd results that occur when properties of the status object are undefined or invalid. This flow tries to capture what happens in the most interesting cases. (The name of each function node is the argument of its node.status function.)

 ![Status](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/flex026/uploads/nodered/original/1X/f6b1ffba7f96f7ba56c02fb3db7b09865e301e7e.jpg)

```auto
[{"id":"fb6c0922.e11b38","type":"function","z":"62978e96.1c89f","name":"{fill:\"red\"}","func":"node.status({fill:\"red\"});\nreturn msg;","outputs":1,"noerr":0,"x":240,"y":360,"wires":[["38cf5db5.98a862"]]},{"id":"d4b794b2.9df69","type":"inject","z":"62978e96.1c89f","name":"case 1","topic":"","payload":"","payloadType":"date","repeat":"","crontab":"","once":false,"onceDelay":0.1,"x":90,"y":360,"wires":[["fb6c0922.e11b38"]]},{"id":"1e8b1284.f41ecd","type":"function","z":"62978e96.1c89f","name":"{shape:\"dot\"}","func":"node.status({shape:\"dot\"});\nreturn msg;","outputs":1,"noerr":0,"x":260,"y":420,"wires":[["ef5d16ef.9cb35"]]},{"id":"ef5d16ef.9cb35","type":"function","z":"62978e96.1c89f","name":"{shape:\"ring\"}","func":"node.status({shape:\"ring\"});\nreturn msg;","outputs":1,"noerr":0,"x":440,"y":420,"wires":[["e760db6e.badde"]]},{"id":"77adb04c.a684e8","type":"inject","z":"62978e96.1c89f","name":"case 2","topic":"","payload":"","payloadType":"date","repeat":"","crontab":"","once":false,"onceDelay":0.1,"x":90,"y":420,"wires":[["1e8b1284.f41ecd"]]},{"id":"20f640c.eaee74","type":"inject","z":"62978e96.1c89f","name":"case 3","topic":"","payload":"","payloadType":"date","repeat":"","crontab":"","once":false,"onceDelay":0.1,"x":90,"y":480,"wires":[["c9cda5b1.27882"]]},{"id":"2b51cc4f.8b3d34","type":"function","z":"62978e96.1c89f","name":"{shape:\"ring\",fill:\"goo\"}","func":"node.status({shape:\"ring\",fill:\"goo\"});\nreturn msg;","outputs":1,"noerr":0,"x":530,"y":480,"wires":[["7326b634.6000f"]]},{"id":"c9cda5b1.27882","type":"function","z":"62978e96.1c89f","name":"{shape:\"banana\",fill:\"red\"}","func":"node.status({shape:\"banana\",fill:\"red\"});\nreturn msg;","outputs":1,"noerr":0,"x":290,"y":480,"wires":[["2b51cc4f.8b3d34"]]},{"id":"dd9677c9.66ef8","type":"inject","z":"62978e96.1c89f","name":"case 4","topic":"","payload":"","payloadType":"date","repeat":"","crontab":"","once":false,"onceDelay":0.1,"x":90,"y":540,"wires":[["69dfa7c1.c9c0b8"]]},{"id":"69dfa7c1.c9c0b8","type":"function","z":"62978e96.1c89f","name":"{shape:\"banana\",fill:\"goo\",text:\"hello world\"}","func":"node.status({shape:\"banana\",fill:\"goo\",text:\"hello world\"});\nreturn msg;","outputs":1,"noerr":0,"x":350,"y":540,"wires":[["77062052.14f61"]]},{"id":"38cf5db5.98a862","type":"function","z":"62978e96.1c89f","name":"{fill:\"green\"}","func":"node.status({fill:\"green\"});\nreturn msg;","outputs":1,"noerr":0,"x":410,"y":360,"wires":[["5d79e49.8f77c9c"]]},{"id":"5d79e49.8f77c9c","type":"function","z":"62978e96.1c89f","name":"{fill:\"goo\"}","func":"node.status({fill:\"goo\"});\nreturn msg;","outputs":1,"noerr":0,"x":580,"y":360,"wires":[[]]},{"id":"e760db6e.badde","type":"function","z":"62978e96.1c89f","name":"{shape:\"banana\"}","func":"node.status({shape:\"banana\"});\nreturn msg;","outputs":1,"noerr":0,"x":630,"y":420,"wires":[[]]},{"id":"77062052.14f61","type":"function","z":"62978e96.1c89f","name":"{shape:\"banana\",fill:\"goo\",text:\"\"}","func":"node.status({shape:\"banana\",fill:\"goo\",text:\"\"});\nreturn msg;","outputs":1,"noerr":0,"x":680,"y":540,"wires":[[]]},{"id":"7326b634.6000f","type":"function","z":"62978e96.1c89f","name":"{shape:\"banana\",fill:\"goo\"}","func":"node.status({shape:\"banana\",fill:\"goo\"});\nreturn msg;","outputs":1,"noerr":0,"x":780,"y":480,"wires":[[]]}]

```

Some generalizations seem to apply:

1. If only the `fill` is given, the status uses `dot` for the `shape`.
2. If only the `shape` is given, the `fill` is `grey`.
3. If the `shape` is invalid, nothing is displayed, EXCEPT 4.
4. If both the `shape` and `fill` are invalid, a `grey` `dot` is displayed.
5. If the `fill` is invalid and the `shape` is valid, the `fill` is `grey`.
6. If `text` is also given, the results are mostly what one would expect from the above, EXCEPT that if both `shape` and `fill` are invalid and the `text` string is empty, a warning message appears.

I suspect that these results come from the logic used to parse the status object and might occur in other nodes that display their status in the editor. I'm not sure whether this should just be documented or treated as a bug.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

### Author: ![dceejay](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex026/user_avatar/discourse.nodered.org/dceejay/32/38_2.png) [@dceejay](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/dceejay)
#### Post date: [4 July 2018 09:34 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/strange-node-status-defaults/1300/2 "2018-07-04T09:34:49Z")

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Interesting - thanks for the detailed use case !