migrate-to-shoehorn

name	migrate-to-shoehorn
author	mattpocock
upstream	mattpocock/skills
upstreamPath	skills/misc/migrate-to-shoehorn
upstreamSha	e9fcdf95b402d360f90f1db8d776d5dd450f9234
lastUpdated	2026-07-02T01:06:55.000Z
tags	["Coding","Testing","Matt Pocock"]
description	Migrate test files from `as` type assertions to @total-typescript/shoehorn. Use when user mentions shoehorn, wants to replace `as` in tests, or needs partial test data.

Migrate to Shoehorn

Why shoehorn?

shoehorn lets you pass partial data in tests while keeping TypeScript happy. It replaces as assertions with type-safe alternatives.

Test code only. Never use shoehorn in production code.

Problems with as in tests:

• Trained not to use it
• Must manually specify target type
• Double-as (as unknown as Type) for intentionally wrong data

Install

npm i @total-typescript/shoehorn

Migration patterns

Large objects with few needed properties

Before:

type Request = {
  body: { id: string };
  headers: Record<string, string>;
  cookies: Record<string, string>;
  // ...20 more properties
};

it("gets user by id", () => {
  // Only care about body.id but must fake entire Request
  getUser({
    body: { id: "123" },
    headers: {},
    cookies: {},
    // ...fake all 20 properties
  });
});

After:

import { fromPartial } from "@total-typescript/shoehorn";

it("gets user by id", () => {
  getUser(
    fromPartial({
      body: { id: "123" },
    }),
  );
});

as Type → fromPartial()

Before:

getUser({ body: { id: "123" } } as Request);

After:

import { fromPartial } from "@total-typescript/shoehorn";

getUser(fromPartial({ body: { id: "123" } }));

as unknown as Type → fromAny()

Before:

getUser({ body: { id: 123 } } as unknown as Request); // wrong type on purpose

After:

import { fromAny } from "@total-typescript/shoehorn";

getUser(fromAny({ body: { id: 123 } }));

When to use each

Function	Use case
fromPartial()	Pass partial data that still type-checks
fromAny()	Pass intentionally wrong data (keeps autocomplete)
fromExact()	Force full object (swap with fromPartial later)

Workflow

1. Gather requirements - ask user:

   • What test files have as assertions causing problems?
   • Are they dealing with large objects where only some properties matter?
   • Do they need to pass intentionally wrong data for error testing?

2. Install and migrate:

   • Install: npm i @total-typescript/shoehorn
   • Find test files with as assertions: grep -r " as [A-Z]" --include="*.test.ts" --include="*.spec.ts"
   • Replace as Type with fromPartial()
   • Replace as unknown as Type with fromAny()
   • Add imports from @total-typescript/shoehorn
   • Run type check to verify