Push Notifications | Intermediate Vuejs

Implementing Push Notifications in VueJS

Push notifications allow your web application to engage users by sending timely and relevant messages. This guide covers how to implement push notifications in a VueJS application using Firebase Cloud Messaging (FCM).

Key Points:

Push notifications require user permission to display messages.
Firebase Cloud Messaging (FCM) simplifies the process of sending push notifications to users.
Service workers are used to handle push notifications in the background.

Setting Up Firebase Cloud Messaging (FCM)

To use FCM, you need to set up a Firebase project and configure FCM:


// Set up Firebase Cloud Messaging
1. Go to the Firebase Console: https://console.firebase.google.com/
2. Create a new project or use an existing one.
3. Navigate to Project Settings > Cloud Messaging.
4. Obtain the server key and sender ID.

Installing Firebase in Your VueJS Project

Install Firebase in your VueJS project using npm:


// Install Firebase
$ npm install firebase

Configuring Firebase

Configure Firebase in your VueJS project by initializing Firebase with your project's configuration details:


// src/firebaseConfig.js
import firebase from 'firebase/app';
import 'firebase/messaging';

const firebaseConfig = {
  apiKey: 'YOUR_API_KEY',
  authDomain: 'YOUR_AUTH_DOMAIN',
  projectId: 'YOUR_PROJECT_ID',
  storageBucket: 'YOUR_STORAGE_BUCKET',
  messagingSenderId: 'YOUR_MESSAGING_SENDER_ID',
  appId: 'YOUR_APP_ID'
};

firebase.initializeApp(firebaseConfig);

const messaging = firebase.messaging();

export { messaging };

Requesting Notification Permission

Request user permission to display notifications and obtain the FCM token:


// src/main.js
import Vue from 'vue';
import App from './App.vue';
import { messaging } from './firebaseConfig';

Vue.config.productionTip = false;

messaging.requestPermission()
  .then(() => messaging.getToken())
  .then(token => {
    console.log('FCM Token:', token);
    // Save the token to your server or use it to send notifications
  })
  .catch(error => {
    console.error('Error getting permission or token:', error);
  });

messaging.onMessage(payload => {
  console.log('Message received:', payload);
  // Display the notification
  const notificationTitle = payload.notification.title;
  const notificationOptions = {
    body: payload.notification.body,
    icon: payload.notification.icon
  };
  new Notification(notificationTitle, notificationOptions);
});

new Vue({
  render: h => h(App),
}).$mount('#app');

Handling Background Notifications

Use a service worker to handle push notifications in the background:


// public/firebase-messaging-sw.js
importScripts('https://www.gstatic.com/firebasejs/8.6.1/firebase-app.js');
importScripts('https://www.gstatic.com/firebasejs/8.6.1/firebase-messaging.js');

firebase.initializeApp({
  apiKey: 'YOUR_API_KEY',
  authDomain: 'YOUR_AUTH_DOMAIN',
  projectId: 'YOUR_PROJECT_ID',
  storageBucket: 'YOUR_STORAGE_BUCKET',
  messagingSenderId: 'YOUR_MESSAGING_SENDER_ID',
  appId: 'YOUR_APP_ID'
});

const messaging = firebase.messaging();

messaging.onBackgroundMessage(payload => {
  console.log('Background message received:', payload);
  const notificationTitle = payload.notification.title;
  const notificationOptions = {
    body: payload.notification.body,
    icon: payload.notification.icon
  };
  self.registration.showNotification(notificationTitle, notificationOptions);
});

Sending Push Notifications

Send push notifications using the FCM API or Firebase Console. Here is an example of sending a notification using the FCM API:


// Example using FCM API with curl
curl -X POST -H "Authorization: key=YOUR_SERVER_KEY" -H "Content-Type: application/json" -d '{
  "notification": {
    "title": "Hello VueJS",
    "body": "This is a push notification.",
    "icon": "/img/icons/android-chrome-192x192.png"
  },
  "to": "FCM_TOKEN"
}' https://fcm.googleapis.com/fcm/send

Best Practices

Follow these best practices when implementing push notifications in your VueJS app:

Request Permission Sparingly: Request notification permission in context and provide a clear explanation of why notifications are useful.
Customize Notifications: Customize the appearance and content of notifications to make them relevant and engaging for users.
Handle Notification Clicks: Implement logic to handle clicks on notifications, such as navigating to a specific page in your app.
Test Notifications Thoroughly: Test your push notification implementation on different devices and browsers to ensure it works correctly.
Monitor and Optimize: Monitor the effectiveness of your notifications and optimize the content and timing to improve user engagement.

Summary

This guide provided an overview of implementing push notifications in a VueJS application, including setting up Firebase Cloud Messaging (FCM), requesting notification permission, handling background notifications, sending push notifications, and best practices. By following these steps, you can enhance user engagement in your VueJS applications with timely and relevant push notifications.

VueJS - Push Notifications