`react-doctor/no-ref-callback-cleanup-before-react-19`

Ref cleanup requires React 19

Category: Bugs
Severity: warn
Source: oxlint-plugin-react-doctor
Framework: global
Enabled when: react:18
Disabled when: react:19
Default: Enabled

Validate the diagnostic

Confirm the reported code matches this rule before you edit it.

Confirm the reported code matches react-doctor/no-ref-callback-cleanup-before-react-19. Compare it with the Before example and verify the same API, framework, and execution context. Treat it as a false positive only when one of those conditions differs.

Compare the code

The corrected pattern shows a focused way to address the diagnostic.

Reported pattern

<Widget ref={(node) => { connect(node); return () => disconnect(node); }} />

Corrected pattern

const Panel = () => {
  const widgetRef = useRef(null);
  useEffect(() => {
    const node = widgetRef.current;
    connect(node);
    return () => disconnect(node);
  }, []);
  return <Widget ref={widgetRef} />;
};

How to fix

Use the corrected pattern as a reference. Preserve behavior that the rule does not require you to change.

Copyable fix prompt

Copy this self-contained prompt into your coding agent after you confirm the diagnostic.

Fix every confirmed react-doctor/no-ref-callback-cleanup-before-react-19 diagnostic in the current repository. Required change: - React 18 ignores functions returned from ref callbacks. Handle cleanup when React calls the ref with null, or require React 19 before returning a cleanup function.

Reference transformation:Before:

<Widget ref={(node) => { connect(node); return () => disconnect(node); }} />

After:

const Panel = () => {
  const widgetRef = useRef(null);
  useEffect(() => {
    const node = widgetRef.current;
    connect(node);
    return () => disconnect(node);
  }, []);
  return <Widget ref={widgetRef} />;
};

Constraints: - Confirm the reported code matches the Before pattern. - Make the smallest change that fixes the root cause. - Preserve behavior and interfaces unrelated to this diagnostic. - Reuse existing project components, utilities, and conventions. - Do not introduce render-phase side effects, render-phase state updates, or Hooks rule violations. - Adapt identifiers and framework details instead of copying blindly. - Do not disable the rule or suppress matching code. - Confirm this rule is enabled for the project: react:18. - Do not edit code when this condition applies: react:19. Verification: - Run focused tests for the changed behavior. - Run React Doctor and confirm this diagnostic no longer appears. - Report the files changed and any checks you could not run.

More Bugs rules from the rules reference:

react-doctor/no-ref-current-in-render: Ref mutated during render
react-doctor/no-render-return-value: Disallow using the return value of ReactDOM.render — a legacy escape hatch removed in React 19.
react-doctor/no-reset-all-state-on-prop-change: Disallow resetting all state in an effect when a prop changes.
react-doctor/no-self-updating-effect: Break the self-updating-effect feedback loop: derive the value during render, move the write into an event handler, or guard the update so it provably converges.
react-doctor/no-set-state-after-await-in-effect: State update after await in an effect

react-doctor/no-ref-callback-cleanup-before-react-19