Skip to content

Commit

Permalink
docs: Add front-end API setup to the quickstart guide (#2984)
Browse files Browse the repository at this point in the history 
## What

This change adds instructions on how to use the front-end API for
client-side SDKs to the quickstart guide. It also organizes the content
so that this info is presented before the proxy info.

## Why

The front-end API is easier to use, so it should be preferred over the
proxy for people who are just getting started.
  • Loading branch information
@thomasheartman
thomasheartman committed Jan 25, 2023
1 parent 1e76362 commit 99f45b4
Showing 1 changed file with 94 additions and 70 deletions.
164 changes: 94 additions & 70 deletions website/docs/tutorials/quickstart.md
View file
Expand Up @@ -12,31 +12,29 @@ NOTE: This is a demo instance set up with the Enterprise version. Some of the fu

### I want to test toggles in a client side environment

In order to use feature toggles on the client side you need to connect through [the Unleash proxy](../reference/unleash-proxy.md). The Unleash proxy will provide a security and performance layer between your client application and the Unleash instance. For now, you can use the proxy we have set up on the demo instance.
To test toggles in a client-side environment, we recommend that you use the [front-end client API](../reference/front-end-api.md). Client-side SDKs act a little differently from server-side SDKs, so the regular client API won't work for this. For more advanced setups, you can also use the [Unleash proxy](../reference/unleash-proxy.md), which offers greater flexibility than the front-end API, but at the cost of increased complexity.

#### Create your first toggle

In order to create a toggle through the UI, [you can follow this guide](../how-to/how-to-create-feature-toggles.md). Once you have created your feature toggle, you are ready to connect your application using an SDK.

#### Connecting to the Unleash proxy from your app

Connection details:
#### Connecting a client-side SDK to Unleash
<!-- old link for backwards compatibility -->

```
Api URL: https://app.unleash-hosted.com/demo/api/proxy
Secret key: proxy-123
```
<div id="connecting-to-the-unleash-proxy-from-your-app"></div>

<!-- /end old links -->

Now you can open your application code and connect through one of the proxy SDKs:
If you have set up your own Unleash instance and are using the front-end API, then create a [front-end token](../reference/api-tokens-and-client-keys.mdx#front-end-tokens) and use `<your-unleash-instance>/api/frontend` as the API URL.

- [Android Proxy SDK](../reference/sdks/android-proxy.md)
- [iOS Proxy SDK](../reference/sdks/ios-proxy.md)
- [Javascript Proxy SDK](../reference/sdks/javascript-browser.md)
- [React Proxy SDK](../reference/sdks/react.md)
- [Svelte Proxy SDK](../reference/sdks/svelte.md)
- [Vue Proxy SDK](../reference/sdks/vue.md)
If you don't have your own Unleash instance set up, you can use the Unleash demo instance's proxy. In that case, the details are:
- API URL: `https://app.unleash-hosted.com/demo/api/proxy`
- Client key: `proxy-123`

Here is a connection example using the JavaScript Proxy SDK:
Now you can open your application code and connect through one of the [client-side SDKs](../reference/sdks#client-side-sdks).

The following example shows you how you could use the [JavaScript SDK](../generated/sdks/client-side/javascript-browser.mdx) to connect to the Unleash demo proxy:

```javascript
import { UnleashClient } from 'unleash-proxy-client';
Expand All @@ -49,7 +47,7 @@ const unleash = new UnleashClient({

unleash.on('synchronized', () => {
if (unleash.isEnabled('proxy.demo')) {
// do something
// do something once we have connected and synchronized
}
});

Expand All @@ -60,9 +58,7 @@ unleash.updateContext({ userId: '1233' });
unleash.start();
```

Now you are ready to use the feature toggle you created in your client side application, using the appropriate proxy SDK.

### I want to test toggles in a backend environment
### I want to test toggles in a back-end environment

#### Create your first toggle

Expand Down Expand Up @@ -256,55 +252,6 @@ username: admin
password: unleash4all
```

### Run Unleash and the Unleash proxy with Docker

Follow steps outlined in the [Run Unleash with Docker](#run-unleash-with-docker) section to get the Unleash instance up and running. Once you have done that you need to first get an API key from your Unleash instance and then use that API key when starting the Unleash proxy.

1. Get an API key.

To get an API key, access your Unleash instance in a web browser. First, navigate to the API access screen.

![The Unleash UI showing a dropdown menu under the Configure menu entry. The dropdown menu's API Access option is highlighted and you're told to navigate there.](/img/api_access_navigation.png 'Navigate to the API access page.')

Next, create an API key with these details

- **name:** proxy-key (this can be whatever you want)
- **token type:** client
- **project:** all
- **environment:** select your preferred environment (this option is only available in Unleash 4.3 and later)

Copy the API key to your clipboard. You'll need it in the next step.

:::note

Depending on whether you have the environments feature enabled or not, the API key will look a little different. If you don't have environments enabled, it'll just be a 64 character long hexadecimal string (for instance `be44368985f7fb3237c584ef86f3d6bdada42ddbd63a019d26955178`). If you do have environments enabled, the key will be prefixed with the project and the environment that the key is valid for. It'll use the format `<project>:<environment>.<key>`, e.g. `demo-app:production.be44368985f7fb3237c584ef86f3d6bdada42ddbd63a019d26955178`.

Regardless of which format your string uses, do not modify it.

:::

2. Start the Unleash proxy

Start a container with the Unleash proxy by running the following command. Replace `${API_KEY}` with the key you created in the following step.

```sh
docker run \
-e UNLEASH_PROXY_CLIENT_KEYS=some-secret \
-e UNLEASH_URL='http://unleash:4242/api/' \
-e UNLEASH_API_TOKEN='${API_KEY}' \
-p 3000:3000 \
--network unleash \
--name unleash-proxy \
--pull=always unleashorg/unleash-proxy
```

3. Test the proxy

To make sure the proxy is running successfully, you can test it by running the following command:

```curl
curl http://localhost:3000/proxy -H "Authorization: some-secret"
```

### Create your first toggle

Expand Down Expand Up @@ -336,9 +283,9 @@ curl -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
http://CHANGEME/api/admin/features
```

### Connect your SDK
### Connect your server-side SDK

Find the navigation, open up the Admin panel and find the API Access tab. Click the "Add new api key" button and create a client key. This key can be used to connect to the instance with our [SDKs](../reference/sdks/index.md).
Find the navigation, open up the Admin panel and find the API Access tab. Click the "Add new API key" button and create a client key. This key can be used to connect to the instance with our [SDKs](../reference/sdks/index.md).

You can find more [information about API keys here](../how-to/how-to-create-api-tokens.mdx).

Expand All @@ -365,3 +312,80 @@ unleash.on('synchronized', () => {
const variant = unleash.getVariant('app.ToggleY');
});
```

### Connecting a client-side SDK to your instance

The easiest way to connect a client-side SDK to your Unleash instance is to use the [front-end API](../reference/front-end-api.md). You'll need to:
1. Create a front-end API token ([How do I create API tokens?](../how-to/how-to-create-api-tokens.mdx))
2. Configure CORS to allow your SDK to connect. For testing, we recommend allowing all origins (`*`).
3. Point your app at `<your-unleash-instance>/api/front-end`.

The section on [using the Unleash front-end API](../reference/front-end-api.md#using-the-unleash-front-end-api) has more details for how you configure these settings.

As an example, here's how you would connect the [JavaScript SDK](../generated/sdks/client-side/javascript-browser.mdx) to a local Unleash instance available at `localhost:4242`

```javascript
import { UnleashClient } from 'unleash-proxy-client';

const unleash = new UnleashClient({
url: 'http://localhost:4242/api/proxy',
clientKey: '<your-front-end-api-token>',
appName: 'my-webapp',
});

// Start the background polling
unleash.start();
```


#### Run Unleash and the Unleash proxy with Docker

We designed the [front-end API](../reference/front-end-api.md) to make it as easy as possible to get started and to cover basic use cases for front-end clients. However, if you need more flexibility, then you can also use the [Unleash proxy](../reference/unleash-proxy.md).

Follow the steps outlined in the [run Unleash with Docker](#run-unleash-with-docker) section to get the Unleash instance up and running. Once you have done that, you need to first get an API key from your Unleash instance and then use that API key when starting the Unleash proxy.

1. Get an API key.

To get an API key, access your Unleash instance in a web browser. First, navigate to the API access screen.

![The Unleash UI showing a dropdown menu under the Configure menu entry. The dropdown menu's API Access option is highlighted and you're told to navigate there.](/img/api_access_navigation.png 'Navigate to the API access page.')

Next, create an API key with these details

- **name:** proxy-key (this can be whatever you want)
- **token type:** client
- **project:** all
- **environment:** select your preferred environment (this option is only available in Unleash 4.3 and later)

Copy the API key to your clipboard. You'll need it in the next step.

:::note

Depending on whether you have the environments feature enabled or not, the API key will look a little different. If you don't have environments enabled, it'll just be a 64 character long hexadecimal string (for instance `be44368985f7fb3237c584ef86f3d6bdada42ddbd63a019d26955178`). If you do have environments enabled, the key will be prefixed with the project and the environment that the key is valid for. It'll use the format `<project>:<environment>.<key>`, e.g. `demo-app:production.be44368985f7fb3237c584ef86f3d6bdada42ddbd63a019d26955178`.

Regardless of which format your string uses, do not modify it.

:::

2. Start the Unleash proxy

Start a container with the Unleash proxy by running the following command. Replace `${API_KEY}` with the key you created in the following step.

```sh
docker run \
-e UNLEASH_PROXY_CLIENT_KEYS=some-secret \
-e UNLEASH_URL='http://unleash:4242/api/' \
-e UNLEASH_API_TOKEN='${API_KEY}' \
-p 3000:3000 \
--network unleash \
--name unleash-proxy \
--pull=always unleashorg/unleash-proxy
```

3. Test the proxy

To make sure the proxy is running successfully, you can test it by running the following command:

```curl
curl http://localhost:3000/proxy -H "Authorization: some-secret"
```

0 comments on commit 99f45b4

Please sign in to comment.