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The Memento Pattern (Behavioral)

Purpose

The Memento pattern allows an object to save and restore its state without exposing its internal details. It's commonly used for undo and rollback features.

Problem It Solves

Sometimes you need an object to revert to a previous state. One way is to expose its internal data, but that breaks encapsulation. The Memento pattern solves this by using a separate object (a memento) to store the state. The object can later restore itself from this memento without revealing internal details to other parts of the system.

When to Use It

Use this pattern when:

  • You need to implement undo, redo, or rollback.
  • You want to hide an object's internal structure.
  • You want precise control over saved states.

When Not to Use It

Avoid this pattern if:

  • The object’s state changes too often, making frequent saves inefficient.
  • You need to store states between sessions—use a database or file instead.
  • Your application needs many undo/redo levels and can’t manage memory or consistency well.

How It Works

The pattern includes three main components:

  1. Memento – Stores an object's state privately.
  2. Originator – The object whose state is saved and restored. It creates and applies mementos.
  3. Caretaker – Manages mementos. It stores and retrieves them but doesn’t examine their contents.

Real-World Analogy

Think of a chef taking photos of their kitchen while cooking. If a mistake happens, they can use a photo to reset the kitchen to how it was. They don’t need to remember every detail—just refer to the snapshot.

Simplified Example

Here's a basic Python example:

# Originator
class TextEditor:
    def __init__(self):
        self._content = ""

    def write(self, text):
        self._content += text

    def get_content(self):
        return self._content

    def save(self):
        return self._content

    def restore(self, state):
        self._content = state

# Caretaker
class History:
    def __init__(self):
        self._states = []

    def backup(self, state):
        self._states.append(state)

    def undo(self):
        return self._states.pop() if self._states else None

# Demo
editor = TextEditor()
history = History()

editor.write("Hello, ")
history.backup(editor.save())  # Save the current state

editor.write("world")
print(editor.get_content())  # Outputs: Hello, world

editor.restore(history.undo())  # Revert to previous state
print(editor.get_content())  # Outputs: Hello,

In this example:

  • TextEditor is the originator.
  • History is the caretaker.
  • The editor can save and restore its text.

Learn More

See the full implementation on GitHub: Memento Pattern on GitHub