Call a Vue.js component method from outside the component

Question

Let's say I have a main Vue instance that has child components. Is there a way of calling a method belonging to one of these components from outside the Vue instance entirely?

Here is an example:

So when I click the internal button, the increaseCount() method is bound to its click event so it gets called. There is no way to bind the event to the external button, whose click event I am listening for with jQuery, so I'll need some other way to call increaseCount.

EDIT

It seems this works:

vm.$children[0].increaseCount();

However, this is not a good solution because I am referencing the component by its index in the children array, and with many components this is unlikely to stay constant and the code is less readable.

Answer 1

In the end I opted for using Vue's ref directive. This allows a component to be referenced from the parent for direct access.

E.g.

Have a compenent registered on my parent instance:

var vm = new Vue({
    el: '#app',
    components: { 'my-component': myComponent }
});

Render the component in template/html with a reference:

<my-component ref="foo"></my-component>

Now, elsewhere I can access the component externally

<script>
vm.$refs.foo.doSomething(); //assuming my component has a doSomething() method
</script>

See this fiddle for an example: https://jsfiddle.net/xmqgnbu3/1/

(old example using Vue 1: https://jsfiddle.net/6v7y6msr/)