Using an asynchronous function as a handler for a socketio listener

Question

Using an asynchronous function as a handler for a socketio listener

Trying to integrate authentication into socketio websockets has presented a challenge involving the management of auth tokens. The issue revolves around the fact that the function used to retrieve an updated auth token is asynchronous. It appears that providing an async function to the socketio listener for the "reconnect_attempt" event does not wait for the function to complete before initiating the reconnect process.

Essentially, this piece of code:

socket.on("reconnect_attempt", async () => {
    const token = await getIdToken();
    socket.io.opts.query = { token };
});

fails to set the socket's query.token prior to sending the reconnect request to the server. Consequently, when a reconnection is attempted after a token expiration, the expired token gets sent while the new one is still being fetched.

Is there a way to configure socketio to ensure that it waits for the completion of the listener's handler function before triggering the reconnect request? If not, I might need to take a proactive approach by refreshing the token beforehand and storing it within the app. However, I'm curious if there is another workaround for this scenario.

javascript socket.io

Answer 1

Answer №1

One interesting thing to note is that the "reconnect_attempt" callback does not actually interrupt the request being made; rather, it allows you to listen when a reconnection attempt is being made. A better approach might be to configure your socketio connection to not automatically reconnect and instead subscribe to the disconnect event. This way, you can properly handle token generation and initiate a new request accordingly.

const socket = io({
  autoConnect: false
});

// The 'socket.disconnected' property indicates whether the connection is up or down
socket.on('connect', () => {
  console.log(socket.disconnected); // false
});

Learn more about the 'reconnect_attempt' event here

Answer 2

One interesting thing to note is that the "reconnect_attempt" callback does not actually interrupt the request being made; rather, it allows you to listen when a reconnection attempt is being made. A better approach might be to configure your socketio connection to not automatically reconnect and instead subscribe to the disconnect event. This way, you can properly handle token generation and initiate a new request accordingly.

const socket = io({
  autoConnect: false
});

// The 'socket.disconnected' property indicates whether the connection is up or down
socket.on('connect', () => {
  console.log(socket.disconnected); // false
});

Learn more about the 'reconnect_attempt' event here

Answer 3

Answer №2

I can share two different approaches to accomplish the task at hand. Firstly, you can convert your asynchronous function into a synchronous one.

function waitFor(promise) {
  let returnValue, isDone;
  promise.then(result => {returnValue = result, isDone = true});
  while (!isDone) {}
  return returnValue
}

socket.on("reconnect_attempt", waitFor(
    (async () => {
      const token = await getIdToken();
      socket.io.opts.query = { token };
    })()
  )
);

Alternatively, you can opt to turn off reconnection and handle the reconnection process manually.

socket.reconnection(false);
socket.on("disconnect", async () => {
    const token = await getIdToken();
    socket.io.opts.query = { token };
    socket.open()
    // Add logic for reconnect attempt limit, delay, etc.
});

Answer 4

I can share two different approaches to accomplish the task at hand. Firstly, you can convert your asynchronous function into a synchronous one.

function waitFor(promise) {
  let returnValue, isDone;
  promise.then(result => {returnValue = result, isDone = true});
  while (!isDone) {}
  return returnValue
}

socket.on("reconnect_attempt", waitFor(
    (async () => {
      const token = await getIdToken();
      socket.io.opts.query = { token };
    })()
  )
);

Alternatively, you can opt to turn off reconnection and handle the reconnection process manually.

socket.reconnection(false);
socket.on("disconnect", async () => {
    const token = await getIdToken();
    socket.io.opts.query = { token };
    socket.open()
    // Add logic for reconnect attempt limit, delay, etc.
});

Using an asynchronous function as a handler for a socketio listener

Answer №1

Answer №2

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