The React framework uses components to create a single application. Each component contains controls and logic. They are reused throughout the application. The data flow between components is unidirectional. Because the components are nested within parent components, it’s easy to debug and find the root cause of errors.

React works with a virtual DOM that tracks the state of each component. This allows the engine to update only those sections of the DOM that change. This reduces re-rendering time and improves performance. Because React is designed to work on mobile devices, it doesn’t need to reload the entire page in order to change the layout of individual elements.

Components are divided into two types – functional and class-based. Each component declares a render method and receives props. These properties are passed by the parent component and specify the values of the component. In addition, the components can also use the React.Component class method to store state information.

Another feature of React is the ability to create custom components. This allows for the development of high-volume applications. Additionally, developers can convert HTML mockups into ReactElement trees. This allows developers to avoid frequent component updates that can be a headache.