Return API callback value synchronously - android

I want to make a simple interface that make all the asynchronous requests(callbacks) and return the results synchronously.
I could use Future callable,but the requests I use are API requests So Future won't help.
For example:
public boolean login(String user,String pass) {
boolean result = false;
API_Login(user,pass,new APICallback() {
#Override
public void done(APIException e) {
//logic here
result = true;
}
});
return result;
}
I thought about using promise library but then again,I would have to implement a callback outside the API for "then" or "done" events of the promise.

You can use message broker.
1. Start a request processor thread.
2. Receive API request in this thread.
3. To send request towards downsteam, use a message broker. Publish you downstream request to message broker. Start a listener on correlationId.
4a. A dispatcher component can listen to message broker & pick up your downstream request. It will actually communicate with downstream.
4b. Get the response (Async) from downstream. Publish this response to message broker
5. Your main listener would receive a response.
6. Send back the response or timeout to consumer.

Related

Ensuring a valid auth token is always available

I've been trying to figure out how to authenticate users for my android app. It is based on a website which already has a developed api, using JWT to authenticate.
I have come against the problem of refreshing tokens. Let's say I want to fetch something from the API and I need the auth token for that. I check my current auth token. If it is expired, I need to get a new one using some sort of refresh token.
However, it seems like almost no matter how I think of trying to implement it, I run into a few problems:
I don't want the UI thread to wait while I get a new token
I would prefer that I don't have to explicitly check whether the token
is there (and then refresh it) before making any API call
I've come up with one solution that solves #1 and at least minimizes the pain of #2. I can have some sort of getToken method. As an example, using JS style promises because they're easier for me to understand:
function getToken() {
return new Promise((resolve) => {
// Check for token, and return if valid.
// Otherwise, go to the server and get a new one
...
resolve(token)
}
}
// When making an API call
getToken().then((token) => {
// Call API
})
I think I can work this out so that the request will never be running on the UI thread, which solves #1, and as far as #2, it's at least bearable.
My question is this: is there a better way to do this? It kind of seems like AccountManager might be able to handle this sort of thing for me, but the documentation for it is subpar at best, so I'm not sure how I would even implement it. If AccountManager can do it and you know of a good tutorial for it, please comment with that.
A way to accomplish this is intercept a 401 status code and refresh token.
If you are using Volley, you can extend Request class and override parseNetworkEror(VolleyError error) method. If need be, schedule a Job which will refresh the token (JobDispatcher) and trigger an event to communicate UI about the change (EventBus).
The following example is using OAuth authentication, but can be easily changed to implement JWT.
#Override
protected VolleyError parseNetworkError(VolleyError volleyError) {
if (getDataAccess().shouldRefreshToken(volleyError)) {
if (!EventBus.getDefault().hasSubscriberForEvent(TokenRefreshedEvent.class)) {
EventBus.getDefault().register(this);
}
CSApplication app = CSApplication.getInstance();
FirebaseJobDispatcher dispatcher = app.getJobDispatcher(app.getApplicationContext());
Job myJob = dispatcher.newJobBuilder()
.setService(JobRefreshToken.class)
.setTag("REFRESH_TOKEN")
.setTrigger(Trigger.NOW)
.setRetryStrategy(RetryStrategy.DEFAULT_EXPONENTIAL)
.setConstraints(Constraint.ON_ANY_NETWORK)
.build();
int result = dispatcher.schedule(myJob);
if (result == FirebaseJobDispatcher.SCHEDULE_RESULT_SUCCESS) {
LogUtils.log(LogUtils.Type.JOB, GsonRequest.class, "Scheduling job refresh token");
} else {
LogUtils.log(LogUtils.Type.JOB, GsonRequest.class, "Error on schedule refresh token");
}
}
return super.parseNetworkError(volleyError);
}
public boolean shouldRefreshToken(VolleyError error) {
boolean shouldRefreshToken = error.networkResponse != null && error.networkResponse.statusCode == 401;
if (shouldRefreshToken) {
Map<String, String> headers = error.networkResponse.headers;
if (headers.containsKey("WWW-Authenticate")) {
String value = headers.get("WWW-Authenticate");
boolean issuerInvalid = value.contains("The issuer is invalid");
shouldRefreshToken = !issuerInvalid;
if (issuerInvalid) {
log(LogUtils.Type.VOLLEY, DataAccess.class, "Issuer do token é inválido");
}
}
}
return shouldRefreshToken;
}
Job Code
getDataAccess().refreshToken(getApplicationContext(), new VolleyCallback<Void>() {
#Override
public void onSuccess(Void aVoid) {
EventBus.getDefault().post(new TokenRefreshedEvent(true));
job.jobFinished(params, false);
log(LogUtils.Type.JOB, JobRefreshToken.class, "Refresh Token job finished");
}
#Override
public void onError(VolleyError error) {
super.onError(error);
EventBus.getDefault().post(new TokenRefreshedEvent(false));
job.jobFinished(params, false);
}
});
return true;
}
What I ended up doing was creating a method getToken which either returns the current token or gets a new one (blocking). With this strategy, I need to make sure that it never gets called from the UI thread. I created a Retrofit2 interceptor which calls getToken. The benefit of this method is that I can just call my Retrofit methods without worrying about the token at all, and it checks for expiration and gets a new one as necessary.

Handle Background Refresh token call in Retrofit parallel network calls

I am new to android programming and Retrofit , I am making a sample app where i have to make two parallel network calls using access token.
The problem comes when access token is expired and return 401 status code , if I see 401 HTTP status code I have to make a call to refresh token with this access token , but problem with parallel calls is that it leads to race condition for refreshing the refresh token , is there any best practice of way to avoid such situation and how to intelligently refresh the token without any conflict.
OkHttp will automatically ask the Authenticator for credentials when a response is 401 Not Authorised retrying last failed request with them.
public class TokenAuthenticator implements Authenticator {
#Override
public Request authenticate(Proxy proxy, Response response) throws IOException {
// Refresh your access_token using a synchronous api request
newAccessToken = service.refreshToken();
// Add new header to rejected request and retry it
return response.request().newBuilder()
.header(AUTHORIZATION, newAccessToken)
.build();
}
#Override
public Request authenticateProxy(Proxy proxy, Response response) throws IOException {
// Null indicates no attempt to authenticate.
return null;
}
Attach an Authenticator to an OkHttpClient the same way you do with Interceptors
OkHttpClient okHttpClient = new OkHttpClient();
okHttpClient.setAuthenticator(authAuthenticator);
Use this client when creating your Retrofit RestAdapter
RestAdapter restAdapter = new RestAdapter.Builder()
.setEndpoint(ENDPOINT)
.setClient(new OkClient(okHttpClient))
.build();
return restAdapter.create(API.class);
Check this: Fore more details visit this link
Try to make a queue for the refresh token operations like:
class TokenProcessor {
private List<Listener> queue = new List<Listener>();
private final Object synch = new Object();
private State state = State.None;
private String token;
private long tokenExpirationDate;
public void getNewToken(Listener listener){
synchronized(synch) {
// check token expiration date
if (isTokenValid()){
listener.onSuccess(token);
return;
}
queue.add(listener);
if (state != State.Working) {
sendRefreshTokenRequest();
}
}
}
private void sendRefreshTokenRequest(){
// get token from your API using Retrofit
// on the response call onRefreshTokenLoaded() method with the token and expiration date
}
private void onRefreshTokenLoaded(String token, long expirationDate){
synchronized(synch){
this.token = token;
this.tokenExpirationDate = expirationDate;
for(Listener listener : queue){
try {
listener.onTokenRefreshed(token);
} catch (Throwable){}
}
queue.clear();
}
}
}
This is an example code, how it can be implemented.
To avoid race conditions, you could synchronize refresh token code using ReentrantLock. For instance, if request A and request B try to refresh token at the same time, since code is synchronized, refresh A gets to actually refresh the token. Once it completes, request B will run refreshToken() and there's should be some logic that tells request B that token has already been refreshed. An example could be storing timestamp of when the token refresh happens then check if token has been refreshed last 10 seconds.
val lock = ReentrantLock(true)
fun refreshToken(): Boolean {
lock.lock()
if (token has been refreshed in last 10 seconds): return true
api.refresh()
lock.unlock()
}
If you don't want to use last 10 seconds logic, here's a different approach. Whenever you refresh token, backend returns {accessToken, expiration-timestamp}. Now, request A saves this token and expiration in disk. Request B will just need to check to make sure token is not expired using the timestamp. If request B gets 401 and token has not expired, it means request A has refreshed the token. Sample code:
val lock = ReentrantLock(true)
fun refreshToken(): Boolean {
lock.lock()
if (token has not expired): return true
api.refresh()
lock.unlock()
}
Otherwise, you probably have to create a queue for refresh token operations as mentioned above.

Merge and handle two RxJava Observable of different types

My goal
I want to check if the server's token is still valid, let's say I know that information just by calling this getter : preferenceHelper.isTokenValid(). Then, if the token is invalid, calling a request to get a new token and updating the token locally, THEN, proceed with the next request to post the point to the server. That's because I need a valid token in order to make any further server request.
Let say I have those two server request that returns Observable:
This request is meant to get the server token, then upon reception, updating it.
Observable<Response<EntityToken>> updateServerToken = retrofitApi.authenticate(username,password);
This request is meant to post the current location to the server, then if it succeed, return the saved point
Observable<Response<EntityPoint>> updateServerToken = retrofitApi.postPoint(point);
Issues i'm facing currently:
Both observable that needs to be merged are from different type
Executing the token update request only if it needs to
Waiting for the token update request to complete before executing the request to post points
How should I write my RxJava Observable to satisfy all those condition?
First, I would create a method that checks if the entityToken is valid or not. If valid, use Observable.just() but you have to create an instance of Response somehow. If invalid, then call the server using the API in your requirement retrofitApi.authenticate(). Either path is taken, the method getTokenObservable() emits Observable<Response<EntityToken>>.
public Observable<Response<EntityToken>> getTokenObservable(EntityToken entityToken, String username, String password) {
boolean isTokenValid = preferenceHelper.isTokenValid(entityToken);
if (isTokenValid) {
//my assumption that you have something like this
Response<EntityToken> responseToken = new Response<EntityToken>();
responseToken.setEntityToken(entityToken);
return Observable.just(new Response<EntityToken>(entityToken.class));
} else {
Observable<Response<EntityToken>> updateServerToken = retrofitApi.authenticate(username, password);
return updateServerToken;
}
}
and then when calling it, use flatMap() which take emisssions of Observable<Response<EntityToken>> and returns emissions of Observable<Response<EntityPoint>>. Subscribe and proceed as normal.
Observable<Response<EntityToken>> updatePointObservable = getTokenObservable(entityToken, username, password);
updatePointObservable
.flatMap(new Func1<Response<EntityToken>, Observable<Response<EntityPoint>>>() {
#Override
public Observable<Response<EntityPoint>> call(Response<EntityToken> responseToken) {
EntityToken entityToken = responseToken.getEntityToken(); //my assumption
saveTokenLocally(entityToken); //this is where you save your token locally, change to the right method that you have
Observable<Response<EntityPoint>> updateServerTokenObservable = retrofitApi.postPoint(point, entityToken); //pass your entityToken to the call?
return updateServerTokenObservable;
}
})
.subscribeOn(Schedulers.newThread())
.observeOn(AndroidSchedulers.mainThread())
.subscribe(new Observer<Response<EntityPoint>>() {
#Override
public void onCompleted() {
//your own logic
}
#Override
public void onError(Throwable e) {
//your own logic
}
#Override
public void onNext(Response<EntityPoint> entityPoint) {
//your own logic
}
});
As there is a dependency between the three calls, merge does not make any sense. instead, use flatMap:
Observable<Response<EntityPoint>> response =
retrofitApi.isTokenValid()
.flatMap(isValid ->
isValid
? Observable.just("")
: retrofitApi.authenticate(username,password)
.doOnNext(token -> doSomethingWithTheToken(token)
)
.flatMap(dummy -> retrofitApi.postPoint(point));

Android GCM Sending token to server

The GCM Sample Project gives a stubbed out example of sending a GCM token to your server:
public class RegistrationIntentService extends IntentService {
...
#Override
protected void onHandleIntent(Intent intent) {
try {
...
String token = instanceID.getToken(getString(R.string.gcm_defaultSenderId),
GoogleCloudMessaging.INSTANCE_ID_SCOPE, null);
Log.i(TAG, "GCM Registration Token: " + token);
// TODO: Implement this method to send any registration to your app's servers.
sendRegistrationToServer(token);
...
} catch (Exception e) {
...
}
}
/**
* Persist registration to third-party servers.
*
* Modify this method to associate the user's GCM registration token with any server-side account
* maintained by your application.
*
* #param token The new token.
*/
private void sendRegistrationToServer(String token) {
// Add custom implementation, as needed.
}
}
but this is done in an IntentService which finishes as soon as onHandleIntent returns right? So if starting an http call to send the token with the popular android-async-http library, I'm not even seeing my onStart hit:
private void sendRegistrationToServer(String token) {
post("/devices", params, new AsyncHttpResponseHandler() {
// TODO: MAKE SURE ONSTART ACTUALLY CALLED TO MAKE SURE REQUEST AT LEAST GOES UPSTREAM EVEN IF I DON'T RECEIVE A CALLBACK SINCE IN INTENTSERVICE
// IF NOT THEN MIGHT HAVE TO CHANGE THE INTENTSERVICE TO A SERVICE FOR DEVICE REGISTRATION
#Override
public void onStart() {
// not actually using callback because request sent from intentservice
Log.d("tagzzz", "sending upstream");
}
#Override
public void onSuccess(int statusCode, Header[] headers, byte[] responseBody) {
// not actually using callback because request sent from intentservice
}
#Override
public void onFailure(int statusCode, Header[] headers, byte[] responseBody, Throwable error) {
// not actually using callback because request sent from intentservice
}
});
}
Will my http request even be sent upstream before onHandleIntent returns and finishes the IntentService? If not, why does Google give this as their example for sending your token to your server?
Will my http request even be sent upstream before onHandleIntent returns and finishes the IntentService?
Given that you are using a library named "android-async-http", I would assume that the default behavior is for it to execute the HTTP asynchronously. It is indeterminate whether or not the post() call will complete its work before onHandleIntent() returns, but it seems unlikely.
why does Google give this as their example for sending your token to your server?
Google doesn't. Google has a stub sendRegistrationToServer(), as you can see in your first code listing. I am not aware of any Google examples that use the "android-async-http" library.
You decided to use an asynchronous mechanism for sending that HTTP request. That is an inappropriate choice for inside an IntentService. Now, perhaps that library has a synchronous option, in which case you could switch to that. Otherwise, use something else synchronous for the HTTP request (HttpURLConnection, OkHttp3, etc.) from the IntentService.
Note that Volley is not a great choice here, insofar as Volley is also strongly tilted towards asynchronous work.

Handling specific errors by sending another request transparently in retrofit

Here's the case I'm trying to handle,
If a request is executed, and the response indicates the auth token is expired,
send a refresh token request
if the refresh token request succeeds, retry the original request
This should be transparent to the calling Activity, Fragment... etc. From the caller's point of view, it's one request, and one response.
I've achieved this flow before when using OkHttpClient directly, but I don't know how to achieve this in Retrofit.
Maybe something related to this open issue about a ResponseInterceptor?
If there's no straight-forward way to achieve this in retrofit, what would be the best way to implement it? A base listener class?
I'm using RoboSpice with Retrofit as well, if it can be helpful in such case.
Since I'm using RoboSpice, I ended up doing this by creating an abstract BaseRequestListener.
public abstract class BaseRequestListener<T> implements RequestListener<T> {
#Override
public void onRequestFailure(SpiceException spiceException) {
if (spiceException.getCause() instanceof RetrofitError) {
RetrofitError error = (RetrofitError) spiceException.getCause();
if (!error.isNetworkError()
&& (error.getResponse().getStatus() == INVALID_ACCESS_TOKEN_STATUS_CODE)) {
//I'm using EventBus to broadcast this event,
//this eliminates need for a Context
EventBus.getDefault().post(new Events.OnTokenExpiredEvent());
//You may wish to forward this error to your listeners as well,
//but I don't need that, so I'm returning here.
return;
}
}
onRequestError(spiceException);
}
public abstract void onRequestError(SpiceException spiceException);
}

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