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Build React DApps Using @waku/react

caution

Currently, the JavaScript Waku SDK (@waku/sdk) is NOT compatible with React Native. We plan to add support for React Native in the future.

The @waku/react package provides components and UI adapters to integrate @waku/sdk into React applications effortlessly. This guide provides detailed steps for using @waku/react in your project.

Install the dependencies​

First, set up a project using any production-grade React framework or an existing React application. For this guide, we will create a boilerplate using ViteJS:

npm create vite@latest [PROJECT DIRECTORY] -- --template react

Next, install the required packages for integrating @waku/sdk using your preferred package manager:

npm install @waku/react @waku/sdk protobufjs

Initialise the Waku provider​

In the main.jsx file, which serves as the entry point for a React app, we will set up the LightNodeProvider context provider to wrap the entire application within the Waku provider. Import the following on top of your file:

src/main.jsx
import { LightNodeProvider } from "@waku/react";

// Set the Light Node options
const NODE_OPTIONS = { defaultBootstrap: true };

ReactDOM.createRoot(document.getElementById('root')).render(
  // Use the Light Node context provider
  <React.StrictMode>
    <LightNodeProvider options={NODE_OPTIONS}>
      <App />
    </LightNodeProvider>
  </React.StrictMode>,
)

Next, create and start a Light Node using the useWaku() function within the App.jsx file:

src/App.jsx
import { useWaku } from "@waku/react";

function App() {
    // Create and start a Light Node
    const { node, error, isLoading } = useWaku();

    // "node" is the created Light Node
    // "error" captures any error that occurs during node creation
    // "isLoading" indicates whether the node is still being created
}

Build the application interface​

Let's build a user interface for sending messages and viewing past messages, modify the App.jsx file with the following code block:

src/App.jsx
import { useState, useEffect } from 'react';
import { useWaku } from "@waku/react";
import { createEncoder, createDecoder } from "@waku/sdk";
import protobuf from 'protobufjs';
import './App.css'

function App() {
    const [inputMessage, setInputMessage] = useState("");
    const [messages, setMessages] = useState([]);

    // Update the inputMessage state as the user input changes
    const handleInputChange = (e) => {
        setInputMessage(e.target.value);
    };

    // Create and start a Light Node
    const { node, error, isLoading } = useWaku();

    // Create a message encoder and decoder
    const contentTopic = "/waku-react-guide/1/chat/proto";
    const encoder = createEncoder({ contentTopic });
    const decoder = createDecoder(contentTopic);

    // Create a message structure using Protobuf
    const DataPacket = new protobuf.Type("DataPacket")
        .add(new protobuf.Field("timestamp", 1, "uint64"))
        .add(new protobuf.Field("message", 2, "string"));

    // Send the message using Light Push
    const sendMessage = async () => {}

    return (
        <>
            <div className="chat-interface">
                <h1>Waku React Demo</h1>
                <div className="chat-body">
                    {messages.map((message, index) => (
                        <div key={index} className="chat-message">
                            <span>{new Date(message.timestamp).toUTCString()}</span>
                            <div className="message-text">{message.message}</div>
                        </div>
                    ))}
                </div>
                <div className="chat-footer">
                    <input
                        type="text"
                        id="message-input"
                        value={inputMessage}
                        onChange={handleInputChange}
                        placeholder="Type your message..."
                    />
                    <button className="send-button" onClick={sendMessage}>Send</button>
                </div>
            </div>
        </>
    )
}

export default App
info

In the code above, we also created a message encoder and decoder using the createEncoder() and createDecoder() functions, along with the application message structure with Protobuf.

Next, modify the App.css file with the following code block:

src/App.css
#root {
    margin: 0 auto;
}

.chat-interface {
    display: flex;
    flex-direction: column;
    height: 100vh;
    border: 1px solid #ccc;
}

.chat-body {
    flex-grow: 1;
    overflow-y: auto;
    padding: 10px;
}

.message-text {
    background-color: #f1f1f1;
    color: #000;
    padding: 10px;
    margin-bottom: 10px;
}

.chat-footer {
    display: flex;
    padding: 10px;
    background-color: #f1f1f1;
    align-items: center;
}

#message-input {
    flex-grow: 1;
    border-radius: 4px;
    padding: 10px;
    margin-right: 10px;
}

.send-button {
    background-color: #007bff;
    border-radius: 4px;
}

Send messages using light push​

To send messages in our application, we need to modify the sendMessage() function to serialize user input into our Protobuf structure and push it to the network using the useLightPush() function:

src/App.jsx
import { useLightPush } from "@waku/react";

function App() {
    // Bind push method to a node and encoder
    const { push } = useLightPush({ node, encoder });

    // Send the message using Light Push
    const sendMessage = async () => {
        if (!push || inputMessage.length === 0) return;

        // Create a new message object
        const timestamp = Date.now();
        const protoMessage = DataPacket.create({
            timestamp: timestamp,
            message: inputMessage
        });

        // Serialise the message and push to the network
        const payload = DataPacket.encode(protoMessage).finish();
        const { recipients, errors } = await push({ payload, timestamp });

        // Check for errors
        if (errors.length === 0) {
            setInputMessage("");
            console.log("MESSAGE PUSHED");
        } else {
            console.log(errors);
        }
    };
}

Receive messages using filter​

To display messages in our application, we need to use the useFilterMessages() function to create a Filter subscription, receive incoming messages, and render them in our interface:

src/App.jsx
import { useFilterMessages } from "@waku/react";

function App() {
    // Receive messages from Filter subscription
    const { messages: filterMessages } = useFilterMessages({ node, decoder });

    // Render the list of messages
    useEffect(() => {
        setMessages(filterMessages.map((wakuMessage) => {
            if (!wakuMessage.payload) return;
            return DataPacket.decode(wakuMessage.payload);
        }));
    }, [filterMessages]);
}

Retrieve messages using store​

To display messages from the past, we need to retrieve them from the Store protocol using the useStoreMessages() function when our application initialises and then render them alongside newly received messages:

src/App.jsx
import { useFilterMessages, useStoreMessages } from "@waku/react";

function App() {
    // Query Store peers for past messages
    const { messages: storeMessages } = useStoreMessages({ node, decoder });

    // Receive messages from Filter subscription
    const { messages: filterMessages } = useFilterMessages({ node, decoder });

    // Render both past and new messages
    useEffect(() => {
        const allMessages = storeMessages.concat(filterMessages);
        setMessages(allMessages.map((wakuMessage) => {
            if (!wakuMessage.payload) return;
            return DataPacket.decode(wakuMessage.payload);
        }));
    }, [filterMessages, storeMessages]);
}
info

To explore the available Store query options, have a look at the Retrieve Messages Using Store Protocol guide.

tip

You have successfully integrated @waku/sdk into a React application using the @waku/react package. Have a look at the web-chat example for a working demo and the Building a Tic-Tac-Toe Game with Waku tutorial to learn more.