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React Tutorial

This tutorial shows how to use PlusAuth with React Single Page Application. If you do not have a PlusAuth account, register from here.

This tutorial follows plusauth-react-starter sample project on Github. You can download and follow the tutorial via the sample project.

Create PlusAuth Client

After you sign up or log in to PlusAuth, you need to create a client to get the necessary configuration keys in the dashboard. Go to Clients and create a client with the type of Single Page Application

Configure Client

Get Client Properties

You will need your Client Id for interacting with PlusAuth. You can retrieve it from the created client's details.

Configure Redirect and Logout URIs

When PlusAuth authenticates a user, it needs a URI to redirect back with access and id token. That URI must be in your client's Redirect URI list. If your application uses a redirect URI which is not white-listed in your PlusAuth Client, you will receive an error.

The same thing applies to the logout URIs. After the user logs out, you need a URI to be redirected.

If you are following the sample project, the Redirect URL you need to add to the Redirect URIs fields are http://localhost:3000/callback and http://localhost:3000/silent-renew.html. The Logout URL you need to add to the Post Logout Redirect URIs field is http://localhost:3000/.

Create a React Application

Create new React project using npx and create-react-app. Add a router to the project to render different views.

# Create the application using the create-react-app.
npx create-react-app plusauth-react-starter


# Move into the project directory
cd plusauth-react-starter


# Add the router, as we will be using it later
npm install react-router-dom@6


# Add bootstrap for styling
npm install bootstrap

Install OIDC Client

For interacting with PlusAuth it is advised to use an OpenID Connect library. In this tutorial we will be using oidc-client-js but you could use any OpenID Connect library.

Install oidc-client-js with the following command

npm install @plusauth/oidc-client-js

oidc-client-js is an OpenID Connect (OIDC) and OAuth2 library for browser based JavaScript applications. You can find source code on Github and the API documentation here.

Configure React Application to use PlusAuth

We will be using dotenv files for maintaining providing some constant values.

Create the .env file

Create the .env file at the root of your project with the following and modify values accordingly.

# .env
REACT_APP_OIDC_ISSUER=https://<YOUR_PLUSAUTH_TENANT_NAME>.plusauth.com/
REACT_APP_CLIENT_ID=<YOUR_PLUSAUTH_CLIENT_ID>

If you are following the sample project, rename .env.example to .env and replace the values accordingly.

Configure React Application

Let's start by editing our application's entry point file. Edit index.js in src folder. Import auth file that we will create later.

// index.js


import React from 'react'
import ReactDOM from 'react-dom'
import './index.css'
import App from './App'
import Auth from './auth'
import 'bootstrap/dist/css/bootstrap.min.css'


// Make auth object global to access from anywhere
window.$auth = Auth


Auth.initialize()
  .then(() => {})
  .catch(console.error)
  .finally(() => {
    ReactDOM.render(
      <React.StrictMode>
        <App />
      </React.StrictMode>,
      document.getElementById('root')
    )
  })

Configure OIDC Client

We need to initialize our OIDC Client library to handle authentication-related operations. Create auth.js in src folder. Configure oidc-client-js as following:

// auth.js


import { OIDCClient } from '@plusauth/oidc-client-js'


const Auth = new OIDCClient({
  issuer: process.env.REACT_APP_OIDC_ISSUER,
  client_id: process.env.REACT_APP_CLIENT_ID,
  redirect_uri: 'http://localhost:3000/callback',
  response_mode: 'form_post',
  response_type: 'id_token token',
  post_logout_redirect_uri: 'http://localhost:3000/',
  autoSilentRenew: true,
  checkSession: true,
  requestUserInfo: true,
  scope: 'openid profile',
  silent_redirect_uri: 'http://localhost:3000/silent-renew.html'
})


export { Auth }

You may have noticed that the values defined in the Configure Client section are used here. If you have used different values make sure to update this file accordingly.

Configure Router

Now let's define our application's router. We are going to define the routes of our views.

Create route.js in src/router folder as following:

// route.js


import React from 'react'
import { Route, Routes } from 'react-router-dom'
import PrivateRoute from './privateRoute'
import SilentRenew from '../components/silentRenew'
import AuthCallback from '../components/authCallback'
import Home from '../views/home'
import Profile from '../views/profile'
import Unauthorized from '../views/unauthorized'


export const RouteList = (
  <Routes>
    <Route path="/" element={<Home />} />
    <Route path="/callback" element={<AuthCallback />} />
    <Route path="/silent-renew.html" element={<SilentRenew />} />
    <Route path="/unauthorized" element={<Unauthorized />} />
    <Route
      path="/profile"
      element={
        <PrivateRoute>
          <Profile />{' '}
        </PrivateRoute>
      }
    />
  </Routes>
)

PrivateRoute component will ensure the child components are accessible only by authenticated users. Now create privateRoute.js in src/router as following:

// privateRoute.js


import React from 'react'
import { Navigate } from 'react-router-dom'


export default class PrivateRoute extends React.Component {
  state = {
    isLoggedIn: false,
    isLoading: true,
  }


  // auth.isLoggedIn returns promise
  // Get isLoggedIn value using await and use in render
  async componentDidMount() {
    const isLoggedIn = await window.$auth.isLoggedIn(true)
    this.setState({ isLoggedIn: isLoggedIn, isLoading: false })
  }


  render() {
    if (this.state.isLoading) return <div>Loading...</div>
    else if (this.state.isLoggedIn) return this.props.children
    // If logged in then go to protected route
    else return <Navigate to="/unauthorized" /> // else navigate to unauthorized page
  }
}

Implement login, user profile, and logout

Until now, we have defined our authentication helper and routes. It is time to create the pages and interact with auth helper.

Edit Main Layout Component

Let's create a simple layout for our application. Add Header component and BrowserRouter to App.js

// App.js


import Header from './components/header'
import 'bootstrap/dist/css/bootstrap.min.css'
import { BrowserRouter } from 'react-router-dom'
import { RouteList } from './router/route'


function App() {
  return (
    <div className="App">
      <BrowserRouter basename={'/'}>
        <Header />
        {RouteList}
      </BrowserRouter>
    </div>
  )
}


export default App

Create Header Component

Create header.jsx under src/components folder. It will be a basic header. If a user is authenticated, it will show the user's identifier and a Logout button. If not, a Login button will be there to initiate login.

// header.jsx


import React, { Component } from 'react'
import { Link } from 'react-router-dom'


export default class Header extends Component {
  constructor(props) {
    super(props)
    this.state = { user: null }
  }


  async componentDidMount() {
    window.$auth.on('user_login', ({ user }) => this.setState({ user: user }))
    window.$auth.on('user_logout', () => this.setState({ user: null }))
    const user = await window.$auth.getUser()
    this.setState({ user: user })
  }


  userDisplayName() {
    if (!this.state.user) {
      return null
    } else {
      if (!this.state.user.given_name || !this.state.user.family_name) {
        return this.state.user.username || this.state.user.email
      }
      return `${this.state.user.given_name} ${this.state.user.family_name}`
    }
  }


  render() {
    return (
      <header>
        <nav className="navbar navbar-expand-md navbar-dark bg-dark fixed-top">
          <a className="navbar-brand container-fluid" href="/">
            Plusauth Starter
          </a>
          <div className="collapse navbar-collapse" id="navbarsExampleDefault">
            <ul className="navbar-nav"></ul>
            {this.state.user && (
              <li className="nav-item navbar-nav text-light">
                <Link className="nav-link" to="/profile">
                  Logged in as: {this.userDisplayName()}
                </Link>
                <button
                  className="btn btn-link"
                  onClick={() => window.$auth.logout()}
                >
                  Logout
                </button>
              </li>
            )}
            {!this.state.user && (
              <li className="nav-item navbar-nav">
                <button
                  className="btn btn-link"
                  onClick={() => window.$auth.login()}
                >
                  Login
                </button>
              </li>
            )}
          </div>
        </nav>
      </header>
    )
  }
}

Create AuthCallback

To handle authorization results after a successful login, we need a simple page and let the library handle the authentication result. Create authCallback.jsx under src/components folder.

// authCallback.jsx


import React from 'react'
import { useNavigate } from 'react-router-dom'


class AuthCallback extends React.Component {
  async componentDidMount() {
    try {
      await window.$auth.loginCallback()
      this.props.navigate('/')
    } catch (e) {
      console.error(e)
    }
  }


  render() {
    return <div></div>
  }
}


// useNavigate cannot be used in Class Components
// function component created and exported to use useNavigate()
function WithNavigate(props) {
  let navigate = useNavigate()
  return <AuthCallback {...props} navigate={navigate} />
}


export default WithNavigate

Create SilentRenew

Access tokens retrieved from PlusAuth have a life span. oidc-client-js automatically provides access_token renewal without too much hassle. Before your access token expires, it will receive a new one in the background so that your users will have a flawless app experience without signing in again.

Create silentRenew.jsx under src/components folder as following:

// silentRenew.jsx


import React from 'react'
import { OIDCClient } from '@plusauth/oidc-client-js'


export default class SilentRenew extends React.Component {
  async componentDidMount() {
    await new OIDCClient({
      issuer: process.env.REACT_APP_OIDC_ISSUER,
    }).loginCallback()
  }
  render() {
    return <div></div>
  }
}

Create Views

HomePage

Create home.jsx under src/views.

// home.jsx


import React, { Component } from 'react'
import { Link } from 'react-router-dom'


export default class Home extends Component {
  constructor(props) {
    super(props)
    this.state = { user: null }
  }


  async componentDidMount() {
    window.$auth.on('user_login', ({ user }) => this.setState({ user: user }))
    window.$auth.on('user_logout', () => this.setState({ user: null }))
    const user = await window.$auth.getUser()
    this.setState({ user: user })
  }


  render() {
    return (
      <div className="jumbotron">
        <div className="container">
          <h1 className="display-3">
            Hello, {this.state.user ? this.state.user.username : 'World'}!
          </h1>
          <p>
            This is a template for a simple login/register system. It includes
            the OpenID Connect Implicit Flow. To view Profile page please login.
          </p>
          <p>
            {this.state.user && (
              <Link className="btn btn-primary btn-lg" to="/profile">
                View Profile &raquo;
              </Link>
            )}


            {!this.state.user && (
              <button
                className="btn btn-primary btn-lg"
                onClick={() => window.$auth.login()}
              >
                Login/Register &raquo;
              </button>
            )}
          </p>
        </div>
      </div>
    )
  }
}

Profile Page

Create profile.jsx under src/views.

// profile.jsx


import React, { Component } from 'react'


export default class Profile extends Component {
  constructor(props) {
    super(props)
    this.state = { user: null }
  }


  async componentDidMount() {
    window.$auth.on('user_login', ({ user }) =>
      this.setState({user: user})
    )
    window.$auth.on('user_logout', () => (this.setState({user: null})))
    const user = await window.$auth.getUser()
    this.setState({user: user})
  }


  render() {
    return (
      <div className="container" >
        {this.state.user && (
          <><h3>Welcome {this.state.user.username} !</h3><pre>User object: {JSON.stringify(this.state.user, null, 2)} </pre></>
        )}
      </div>
    )
  }
}

Add Unauthorized Page

We will display a page whenever a user tries to access a protected route without signing in.

Create unauthorized.jsx under src/views.

// unauthorized.jsx


export default function Unauthorized() {
  return (
    <div className="container">
      <p>You must log in to view the page</p>
      <button className="btn btn-primary" onClick={() => window.$auth.login()}>Log in</button>
    </div>
  )
}

See it in action

That's it. Start your app and point your browser to http://localhost:3000. Follow the Log In link to log in or sign up to your PlusAuth tenant. Upon successful login or signup, you should be redirected back to the application.