Jarvis AI review of src/utilities/instance_utility.py (ref: main)

Open aronweiler opened this issue 2 years ago • 1 comments

The file src/utilities/instance_utility.py was reviewed by Jarvis AI with the following findings:

The constructor_kwargs parameter is not type-annotated. It's recommended to use type hints for all function parameters for better code clarity and type checking.

Existing code snippet:
```
constructor_kwargs=None
```
Suggested code snippet:
```
constructor_kwargs: Optional[Dict[str, Any]] = None
```
- Link
Consider providing a default value for constructor_kwargs to ensure it's always a dictionary. This simplifies the logic in lines 11-14.

Existing code snippet:
```
constructor_kwargs=None
```
Suggested code snippet:
```
constructor_kwargs={}
```
- Link
Using getattr to dynamically instantiate a class can lead to Insecure Direct Object References if the class_name is controlled by user input. Ensure that class_name is validated or derived from a safe source.

Existing code snippet:
```
instance = getattr(module, class_name)(**constructor_kwargs)
```
Suggested code snippet:
```
if class_name in safe_class_list: instance = getattr(module, class_name)(**constructor_kwargs)
```
- Link

The conditional check for constructor_kwargs is unnecessary if it's always a dictionary. This can be simplified by using the default value as an empty dictionary.

Existing code snippet:

if constructor_kwargs is not None:
    instance = getattr(module, class_name)(**constructor_kwargs)
else:
    instance = getattr(module, class_name)()

Suggested code snippet:

instance = getattr(module, class_name)(**constructor_kwargs)

Link

Catching a general exception can hide bugs and make debugging difficult. It's better to catch specific exceptions or at least log the traceback for more context.

Existing code snippet:
```
except Exception as e:
```
Suggested code snippet:
```
except (ImportError, AttributeError) as e:  # Add specific exceptions as needed
```
- Link
Using a broad except Exception clause can catch exceptions that you might not want to handle here. It's better to catch specific exceptions that you expect could occur during the dynamic import and instantiation process.

Existing code snippet:
```
except Exception as e:
```
Suggested code snippet:
```
except (ImportError, AttributeError) as e:
```
- Link
Logging the error without re-raising it can lead to silent failures where the calling code is unaware an error occurred. Consider re-raising the exception after logging or returning a more informative result.

Existing code snippet:
```
logging.error(f"Error creating an instance of {class_name} class: {str(e)}")
```
Suggested code snippet:
```
logging.error(f"Error creating an instance of {class_name} class: {str(e)}"); raise
```
- Link
Logging the error is good, but returning None can make it difficult for the caller to distinguish between a successful return of None and an error case. Consider raising a custom exception or using a result object to provide more context.

Existing code snippet:
```
return None
```
Suggested code snippet:
```
raise CustomException(f"Error creating an instance of {class_name} class: {str(e)}")
```
- Link

Nov 16 '23 06:11 aronweiler

This one's the clear winner of the 3 reviews of instance_utility.

The prompts still need refinement, and we need to figure out how to collapse the similar / same comments.

Nov 16 '23 06:11 aronweiler