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jetsocket.io Jetsocket

Public channels

Public channels

Section titled “Public channels”

Public channels are the simplest type of channel in Jetsocket.io. They don’t require authentication and can be subscribed to by any client.

Basic usage

Section titled “Basic usage”

Client-side subscription

Section titled “Client-side subscription”
const jetsocket = new Jetsocket("APP_KEY", {
  cluster: "APP_CLUSTER",
});


const channel = jetsocket.subscribe("my-channel");


channel.bind("my-event", (data) => {
  console.log("Received:", data);
});

Server-side triggering

Section titled “Server-side triggering”
const Jetsocket = require("jetsocket");


const jetsocket = new Jetsocket({
  appId: "APP_ID",
  key: "APP_KEY",
  secret: "APP_SECRET",
  cluster: "APP_CLUSTER",
});


jetsocket.trigger("my-channel", "my-event", { message: "Hello world!" });

Channel naming

Section titled “Channel naming”

Public channels can have any name that doesn’t start with private- or presence-. Some examples:

// Valid public channel names
jetsocket.subscribe("notifications");
jetsocket.subscribe("live-feed");
jetsocket.subscribe("chat-room");
jetsocket.subscribe("user-123-updates");

Event binding

Section titled “Event binding”

You can bind to multiple events on the same channel:

const channel = jetsocket.subscribe("chat-room");


channel.bind("new-message", (data) => {
  console.log("New message:", data.message);
});


channel.bind("user-joined", (data) => {
  console.log("User joined:", data.username);
});


channel.bind("user-left", (data) => {
  console.log("User left:", data.username);
});

Global event binding

Section titled “Global event binding”

You can bind to events across all channels:

jetsocket.bind_global((eventName, data) => {
  console.log(`Event ${eventName} received:`, data);
});

Channel state

Section titled “Channel state”

You can check the subscription state of a channel:

const channel = jetsocket.subscribe("my-channel");


console.log(channel.subscribed); // true/false
console.log(channel.name); // "my-channel"

Error handling

Section titled “Error handling”

Always handle subscription errors:

const channel = jetsocket.subscribe("my-channel");


channel.bind("jetsocket:subscription_error", (error) => {
  console.error("Subscription error:", error);
});


jetsocket.connection.bind("error", (error) => {
  console.error("Connection error:", error);
});

Unsubscribing

Section titled “Unsubscribing”

To unsubscribe from a channel:

jetsocket.unsubscribe("my-channel");

Complete example

Section titled “Complete example”

Here’s a complete example of a chat application using public channels:

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
  <script src="https://js.jetsocket.io/latest/jetsocket.min.js"></script>
</head>
<body>
  <div id="messages"></div>
  <input type="text" id="messageInput" placeholder="Type a message...">
  <button onclick="sendMessage()">Send</button>


  <script>
    const jetsocket = new Jetsocket("APP_KEY", {
      cluster: "APP_CLUSTER",
    });


    const channel = jetsocket.subscribe("chat-room");
    const messagesDiv = document.getElementById("messages");


    channel.bind("new-message", (data) => {
      const messageElement = document.createElement("div");
      messageElement.textContent = `${data.username}: ${data.message}`;
      messagesDiv.appendChild(messageElement);
    });


    function sendMessage() {
      const input = document.getElementById("messageInput");
      const message = input.value;


      if (message.trim()) {
        // Send to server via AJAX or WebSocket
        fetch("/send-message", {
          method: "POST",
          headers: { "Content-Type": "application/json" },
          body: JSON.stringify({ message, channel: "chat-room" })
        });


        input.value = "";
      }
    }
  </script>
</body>
</html>

Use cases

Section titled “Use cases”

Public channels are perfect for:

  • Live feeds: News updates, social media feeds
  • Public notifications: System announcements, alerts
  • Broadcast messages: Marketing campaigns, announcements
  • Live dashboards: Public metrics, status updates
  • Chat rooms: Public discussions, community chat

Security considerations

Section titled “Security considerations”

Since public channels don’t require authentication:

  • Don’t send sensitive data on public channels
  • Validate all data on the server side
  • Rate limit event triggering to prevent abuse
  • Monitor usage to detect unusual patterns

Next steps

Section titled “Next steps”