Using JSONStore in Native iOS applications
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This tutorial is a continuation of the JSONStore Overview tutorial.
The tutorial covers the following topics:
- Adding the JSONStore component
- Basic API Usage
- Advanced Usage
- Sample application
- Additional information
Adding the JSONStore component
Adding the JSONStore component to native iOS applications is accomplished using CocoaPods.
First, make sure the MobileFirst SDK is present by following the instructions in the tutorial: Configuring a Native iOS Application with the MobileFirst Platform SDK.
Next, perform the following steps:
- Edit the existing
podfile, located at the root of the Xcode project - Add to the file:
source 'https://github.com/CocoaPods/Specs.git' pod 'IBMMobileFirstPlatformFoundationJSONStore' - In Terminal, navigate to the root of the Xcode project and run the command:
pod install- note that this action may take a while.
The JSONStore feature should now be available to you in the Xcode project.
Basic API Usage
Open
Use openCollections to open one or more JSONStore collections
Starting or provisioning a collections means creating the persistent storage that contains the collection and documents, if it does not exists.
If the persistent storage is encrypted and a correct password is passed, the necessary security procedures to make the data accessible are run.
For optional features that you can enable at initialization time, see Security, Multiple User Support, and MobileFirst Adapter Integration in the second part of this module
NSError *error = nil;
JSONStoreCollection* collection = [[JSONStoreCollection alloc] initWithName:@"people"];
[collection setSearchField:@"name" withType:JSONStore_String];
[collection setSearchField:@"age" withType:JSONStore_Integer];
[[JSONStore sharedInstance] openCollections:@[collection] withOptions:nil error:@"error"];
Get
Use getCollectionWithName to create an accessor to the collection. You must call openCollections before you call getCollectionWithName.
NSString *collectionName = @"people";
JSONStoreCollection *collection = [[JSONStore sharedInstance] getCollectionWithName:collectionName];
The variable collection can now be used to perform operations on the people collection such as add, find, and replace
Add
Use addData to store data as documents inside a collection
NSError *error = nil;
NSString *collectionName = @"people";
JSONStoreCollection *collection = [[JSONStore sharedInstance] getCollectionWithName:collectionName];
NSDictionary *data = @{@"name" : @"yoel", @"age" : @23};
[[collection addData:@[data] andMarkDirty:YES withOptions:nil error:@"error"] intValue];
Find
Use findWithQueryParts to locate a document inside a collection by using a query. Use findAllWithOptions to retrieve all the documents inside a collection. Use findWithIds to search by the document unique identifier.
NSError *error = nil;
NSString *collectionName = @"people";
JSONStoreCollection *collection = [[JSONStore sharedInstance] getCollectionWithName:collectionName];
//Build a query part.
JSONStoreQueryPart *query = [[JSONStoreQueryPart alloc] init];
[query searchField:@"name" like:@"yoel"];
JSONStoreQueryOptions *options = [[JSONStoreQueryOptions alloc] init];
// returns a maximum of 10 documents, default: retuns every document
[options setLimit:@10];
// Count using the query part built above.
NSArray *results = [collection findWithQueryParts:@[query] andOptions:options error:@"error"];
Replace
Use replaceDocuments to modify documents inside a collection. The field that you use to perform the replacement is _id, the document unique identifier.
NSError *error = nil;
NSString *collectionName = @"people";
JSONStoreCollection *collection = [[JSONStore sharedInstance] getCollectionWithName:collectionName];
//Replacing name 'carlos' with name 'carlitos'.
NSDictionary *replacement = @{@"_id": @1, @"json" : @{@"name" : @"chevy", @"age" : @23}};
[collection replaceDocuments:@[replacement] andMarkDirty:YES error:@"error"];
This examples assumes that the document {_id: 1, json: {name: 'yoel', age: 23} } is in the collection
Remove
Use removeWithIds to delete a document from a collection.
Documents are not erased from the collection until you call markDocumentClean. For more information, see the MobileFirst Adapter Integration section later in this tutorial
NSError *error = nil;
NSString *collectionName = @"people";
JSONStoreCollection *collection = [[JSONStore sharedInstance] getCollectionWithName:collectionName];</p>
[collection removeWithIds:@[@1] andMarkDirty:YES error:@"error"];
Remove Collection
Use removeCollectionWithError to delete all the documents that are stored inside a collection. This operation is similar to dropping a table in database terms
NSError *error = nil;
NSString *collectionName = @"people";
JSONStoreCollection *collection = [[JSONStore sharedInstance] getCollectionWithName:collectionName];
BOOL removeCollectionWorked = [collection removeCollectionWithError:@"error"];
Destroy
Use destroyDataAndReturnError to remove the following data:
- All documents
- All collections
- All Stores "See Multiple User Support later in this tutorial"
- All JSONStore metadata and security artifacts "See Security later in this tutorial"
NSError *error = nil;
[[JSONStore sharedInstance] destroyDataAndReturnError:@"error"];
Advanced Usage
Security
You can secure all the collections in a store by passing a JSONStoreOpenOptions object with a password to the openCollections function. If no password is passed, the documents of all the collections in the store are not encrypted.
Some security metadata is stored in the keychain (iOS).
The store is encrypted with a 256-bit Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) key. All keys are strengthened with Password-Based Key Derivation Function 2 (PBKDF2).
Use closeAllCollectionsAndReturnError to lock access to all the collections until you call openCollections again. If you think of openCollections as a login function you can think of closeAllCollectionsAndReturnError as the corresponding logout function.
Use changeCurrentPassword to change the password.
NSError *error = nil;
JSONStoreCollection *collection = [[JSONStoreCollection alloc] initWithName:@"people"];
[collection setSearchField:@"name" withType:JSONStore_String];
[collection setSearchField:@"age" withType:JSONStore_Integer];
JSONStoreOpenOptions *options = [JSONStoreOpenOptions new];
[options setPassword:@"123"];
[[JSONStore sharedInstance] openCollections:@[collection] withOptions:options error:@"error"];
Multiple User Support
You can create multiple stores that contain different collections in a single MobileFirst application. The openCollections function can take an options object with a username. If no username is given, the default username is "jsonstore".
NSError *error = nil
JSONStoreCollection *collection = [[JSONStoreCollection alloc] initWithName:@"people"];
[collection setSearchField:@"name" withType:JSONStore_String];
[collection setSearchField:@"age" withType:JSONStore_Integer];
JSONStoreOpenOptions *options = [JSONStoreOpenOptions new];
[options setUsername:@"yoel"];
[[JSONStore sharedInstance] openCollections:@[collection] withOptions:options error:@"error"];
MobileFirst Adapter Integration
This section assumes that you are familiar with MobileFirst adapters. MobileFirst Adapter Integration is optional and provides ways to send data from a collection to an adapter and get data from an adapter into a collection.
You can achieve these goals by using functions such as WLClient invokeProcedure or your own instance of an NSURLConnection if you need more flexibility.
Adapter Implementation
Create a MobileFirst adapter and name it "People". Define it's procedures addPerson, getPeople, pushPeople, removePerson, and replacePerson.
function getPeople() {
var data = { peopleList : [{name: 'chevy', age: 23}, {name: 'yoel', age: 23}] };
WL.Logger.debug('Adapter: people, procedure: getPeople called.');
WL.Logger.debug('Sending data: ' + JSON.stringify(data));
return data;
}
function pushPeople(data) {
WL.Logger.debug('Adapter: people, procedure: pushPeople called.');
WL.Logger.debug('Got data from JSONStore to ADD: ' + data);
return;
}
function addPerson(data) {
WL.Logger.debug('Adapter: people, procedure: addPerson called.');
WL.Logger.debug('Got data from JSONStore to ADD: ' + data);
return;
}
function removePerson(data) {
WL.Logger.debug('Adapter: people, procedure: removePerson called.');
WL.Logger.debug('Got data from JSONStore to REMOVE: ' + data);
return;
}
function replacePerson(data) {
WL.Logger.debug('Adapter: people, procedure: replacePerson called.');
WL.Logger.debug('Got data from JSONStore to REPLACE: ' + data);
return;
}
Load data from MobileFirst Adapter
To load data from a MobileFirst Adapter use WLClient invokeProcedure.
// Start - LoadFromAdapter
@interface LoadFromAdapter : NSObject<WLDelegate>
@end
<@implementation LoadFromAdapter
-(void)onSuccess:(WLResponse *)response {
NSArray *loadedDocuments = [[response getResponseJson] objectForKey:@"peopleList"];
// handle succes
}
-(void)onFailure:(WLFailResponse *)response {
// handle success
}
@end
// End - LoadFromAdapter
NSError *error = nil;
WLProcedureInvocationData *invocationData = [[WLProcedureInvocationData alloc] initWithAdapterName:@"People" procedureName:@"getPeople"];
LoadFromAdapter *loadDelegate = [[LoadFromAdapter alloc] init];
WLClient *client = [[WLClient sharedInstance] init];
[client invokeProcedure:invocationData withDelegate:loadDelegate];
Get Push Required (Dirty Documents)
Calling allDirtyAndReturnError returns and array of so called "dirty documents", which are documents that have local modifications that do not exist on the back-end system.
NSError* error = nil;
<p>NSString *collectionName = @"people";
JSONStoreCollection *collection = [[JSONStore sharedInstance] getCollectionWithName:collectionName];
<p>NSArray *dirtyDocs = [collection allDirtyAndReturnError:@"error"];<
To prevent JSONStore from marking the documents as "dirty", pass the option andMarkDirty:NO to add, replace, and remove
Push changes
To push changes to a MobileFirst adapter, call the findAllDirtyDocuments to get a list of documents with modifications and then use WLClient invokeProcedure. After the data is sent and a successful response is received make sure you call markDocumentsClean.
// Start - PushToAdapter
@interface PushToAdapter :NSObject<WLDelegate>
@end
@implementation PushToAdapter
-(void)onSuccess:(WLResponse *)response {
// handle success
}
-(void)onFailure:(WLFailResponse *)response {
// handle faiure
}
@end
// End - PushToAdapter
NSError* error = nil;
NSString *collectionName = @"people";
JSONStoreCollection *collection = [[JSONStore sharedInstance] getCollectionWithName:collectionName];
NSArray *dirtyDocs = [collection allDirtyAndReturnError:@"error"];
WLProcedureInvocationData *invocationData = [[WLProcedureInvocationData alloc] initWithAdapterName:@"People" procedureName:@"pushPeople"];
[invocationData setParameters:@[dirtyDocs]];
PushToAdapter *pushDelegate = [[PushToAdapter alloc] init];
WLClient *client = [[WLClient sharedInstance] init];
[client invokeProcedure:invocationData withDelegate:pushDelegate];
Sample application
Click to download the MobileFirst project.
Click to download the Native project.
The Native iOS project contains an application that demonstrates the use of JSONStore.
Additional information
For more information about JSONStore, see the product user documentation.▲
Inclusive terminology note: The Mobile First Platform team is making changes to support the IBM® initiative to replace racially biased and other discriminatory language in our code and content with more inclusive language. While IBM values the use of inclusive language, terms that are outside of IBM's direct influence are sometimes required for the sake of maintaining user understanding. As other industry leaders join IBM in embracing the use of inclusive language, IBM will continue to update the documentation to reflect those changes.