RSC as a serializer, not a model
📰 Dev.to · Viktor Lázár
The most interesting thing about how TanStack Start integrates React Server Components is not what it...
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Title: RSC as a serializer, not a model
URL Source: https://dev.to/lazarv/rsc-as-a-serializer-not-a-model-56nj
Published Time: 2026-04-27T17:32:02Z
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# RSC as a serializer, not a model - DEV Community
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[Viktor Lázár](https://dev.to/lazarv)
Posted on Apr 27
# RSC as a serializer, not a model
[#rsc](https://dev.to/t/rsc)[#tanstack](https://dev.to/t/tanstack)[#react](https://dev.to/t/react)[#architecture](https://dev.to/t/architecture)
The most interesting thing about how TanStack Start integrates React Server Components is not what it does with them. It is the shape of the API.
You do not write a Server Component. You do not opt into a model. You opt into a _function_ — a programmatic primitive that takes a component, runs it through the RSC renderer, and hands you back a payload you can store, transport, and rehydrate later. RSC is not the substrate of the application. It is a tool you reach for at specific call sites, when you want a specific thing.
That framing is worth pausing on, because it tells you something about the design intent that the marketing copy does not.
## [](https://dev.to/lazarv/rsc-as-a-serializer-not-a-model-56nj#what-the-api-is-really-for) What the API is really for
The use case being served is narrow and clear: caching values that the rest of the JavaScript ecosystem cannot cache. A normal cache stores JSON. JSON cannot r
URL Source: https://dev.to/lazarv/rsc-as-a-serializer-not-a-model-56nj
Published Time: 2026-04-27T17:32:02Z
Markdown Content:
# RSC as a serializer, not a model - DEV Community
[Skip to content](https://dev.to/lazarv/rsc-as-a-serializer-not-a-model-56nj#main-content)
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[Viktor Lázár](https://dev.to/lazarv)
Posted on Apr 27
# RSC as a serializer, not a model
[#rsc](https://dev.to/t/rsc)[#tanstack](https://dev.to/t/tanstack)[#react](https://dev.to/t/react)[#architecture](https://dev.to/t/architecture)
The most interesting thing about how TanStack Start integrates React Server Components is not what it does with them. It is the shape of the API.
You do not write a Server Component. You do not opt into a model. You opt into a _function_ — a programmatic primitive that takes a component, runs it through the RSC renderer, and hands you back a payload you can store, transport, and rehydrate later. RSC is not the substrate of the application. It is a tool you reach for at specific call sites, when you want a specific thing.
That framing is worth pausing on, because it tells you something about the design intent that the marketing copy does not.
## [](https://dev.to/lazarv/rsc-as-a-serializer-not-a-model-56nj#what-the-api-is-really-for) What the API is really for
The use case being served is narrow and clear: caching values that the rest of the JavaScript ecosystem cannot cache. A normal cache stores JSON. JSON cannot r
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