ChatClient Class Reference

Central class of the Photon Chat API to connect, handle channels and messages. More...

Inherits IPhotonPeerListener.

Public Member Functions
bool	CanChatInChannel (string channelName)
	Checks if this client is ready to publish messages inside a public channel. More...
	ChatClient (IChatClientListener listener, ConnectionProtocol protocol=ConnectionProtocol.Udp)
	Chat client constructor. More...
bool	Connect (string appId, string appVersion, AuthenticationValues authValues)
	Connects this client to the Photon Chat Cloud service, which will also authenticate the user (and set a UserId). More...
bool	ConnectAndSetStatus (string appId, string appVersion, AuthenticationValues authValues, int status=ChatUserStatus.Online, object message=null)
	Connects this client to the Photon Chat Cloud service, which will also authenticate the user (and set a UserId). This also sets an online status once connected. By default it will set user status to ChatUserStatus.Online. See SetOnlineStatus(int,object) for more information. More...
void	Service ()
	Must be called regularly to keep connection between client and server alive and to process incoming messages. More...
void	SendAcksOnly ()
	Obsolete: Better use UseBackgroundWorkerForSending and Service(). More...
void	Disconnect ()
	Disconnects from the Chat Server by sending a "disconnect command", which prevents a timeout server-side. More...
void	StopThread ()
	Locally shuts down the connection to the Chat Server. This resets states locally but the server will have to timeout this peer. More...
bool	Subscribe (string[] channels)
	Sends operation to subscribe to a list of channels by name. More...
bool	Subscribe (string[] channels, int[] lastMsgIds)
	Sends operation to subscribe to a list of channels by name and possibly retrieve messages we did not receive while unsubscribed. More...
bool	Subscribe (string[] channels, int messagesFromHistory)
	Sends operation to subscribe client to channels, optionally fetching a number of messages from the cache. More...
bool	Unsubscribe (string[] channels)
	Unsubscribes from a list of channels, which stops getting messages from those. More...
bool	PublishMessage (string channelName, object message, bool forwardAsWebhook=false)
	Sends a message to a public channel which this client subscribed to. More...
bool	SendPrivateMessage (string target, object message, bool forwardAsWebhook=false)
	Sends a private message to a single target user. Calls OnPrivateMessage on the receiving client. More...
bool	SendPrivateMessage (string target, object message, bool encrypt, bool forwardAsWebhook)
	Sends a private message to a single target user. Calls OnPrivateMessage on the receiving client. More...
bool	SetOnlineStatus (int status)
	Sets the user's status without changing your status-message. More...
bool	SetOnlineStatus (int status, object message)
	Sets the user's status without changing your status-message. More...
bool	AddFriends (string[] friends)
	Adds friends to a list on the Chat Server which will send you status updates for those. More...
bool	RemoveFriends (string[] friends)
	Removes the provided entries from the list on the Chat Server and stops their status updates. More...
string	GetPrivateChannelNameByUser (string userName)
	Get you the (locally used) channel name for the chat between this client and another user. More...
bool	TryGetChannel (string channelName, bool isPrivate, out ChatChannel channel)
	Simplified access to either private or public channels by name. More...
bool	TryGetChannel (string channelName, out ChatChannel channel)
	Simplified access to all channels by name. Checks public channels first, then private ones. More...

Public Attributes
int	MessageLimit
	If greater than 0, new channels will limit the number of messages they cache locally. More...
readonly Dictionary< string, ChatChannel >	PublicChannels
	Public channels this client is subscribed to. More...
readonly Dictionary< string, ChatChannel >	PrivateChannels
	Private channels in which this client has exchanged messages. More...
ChatPeer	chatPeer = null
	The Chat Peer used by this client. More...

Properties
string	NameServerAddress [get]
	The address of last connected Name Server. More...
string	FrontendAddress [get]
	The address of the actual chat server assigned from NameServer. Public for read only. More...
string	ChatRegion [get, set]
	Settable only before you connect! Defaults to "EU". More...
ChatState	State [get]
	Current state of the ChatClient. Also use CanChat. More...
ChatDisconnectCause	DisconnectedCause [get]
	Disconnection cause. Check this inside IChatClientListener.OnDisconnected. More...
bool	CanChat [get]
	Checks if this client is ready to send messages. More...
string	AppVersion [get]
	The version of your client. A new version also creates a new "virtual app" to separate players from older client versions. More...
string	AppId [get]
	The AppID as assigned from the Photon Cloud. More...
AuthenticationValues	AuthValues [get, set]
	Settable only before you connect! More...
string	UserId [get]
	The unique ID of a user/person, stored in AuthValues.UserId. Set it before you connect. More...
bool	UseBackgroundWorkerForSending [get, set]
	Defines if a background thread will call SendOutgoingCommands, while your code calls Service to dispatch received messages. More...
ConnectionProtocol	TransportProtocol [get, set]
	Exposes the TransportProtocol of the used PhotonPeer. Settable while not connected. More...
Dictionary< ConnectionProtocol, Type >	SocketImplementationConfig [get]
	Defines which IPhotonSocket class to use per ConnectionProtocol. More...
DebugLevel	DebugOut [get, set]
	Sets the level (and amount) of debug output provided by the library. More...

Detailed Description

Central class of the Photon Chat API to connect, handle channels and messages.

This class must be instantiated with a IChatClientListener instance to get the callbacks. Integrate it into your game loop by calling Service regularly. If the target platform supports Threads/Tasks, set UseBackgroundWorkerForSending = true, to let the ChatClient keep the connection by sending from an independent thread.

Call Connect with an AppId that is setup as Photon Chat application. Note: Connect covers multiple messages between this client and the servers. A short workflow will connect you to a chat server.

Each ChatClient resembles a user in chat (set in Connect). Each user automatically subscribes a channel for incoming private messages and can message any other user privately. Before you publish messages in any non-private channel, that channel must be subscribed.

PublicChannels is a list of subscribed channels, containing messages and senders. PrivateChannels contains all incoming and sent private messages.

Constructor & Destructor Documentation

ChatClient	(	IChatClientListener	listener,
		ConnectionProtocol	protocol = ConnectionProtocol.Udp
	)

Chat client constructor.

Parameters

listener	The chat listener implementation.
protocol	Connection protocol to be used by this client. Default is ConnectionProtocol.Udp.

Member Function Documentation

bool AddFriends

(

string[]

friends

)

Adds friends to a list on the Chat Server which will send you status updates for those.

AddFriends and RemoveFriends enable clients to handle their friend list in the Photon Chat server. Having users on your friends list gives you access to their current online status (and whatever info your client sets in it).

Each user can set an online status consisting of an integer and an arbitratry (serializable) object. The object can be null, Hashtable, object[] or anything else Photon can serialize.

The status is published automatically to friends (anyone who set your user ID with AddFriends).

Photon flushes friends-list when a chat client disconnects, so it has to be set each time. If your community API gives you access to online status already, you could filter and set online friends in AddFriends.

Actual friend relations are not persistent and have to be stored outside of Photon.

Parameters

friends

Array of friend userIds.

Returns

If the operation could be sent.

bool CanChatInChannel

(

string

channelName

)

Checks if this client is ready to publish messages inside a public channel.

Parameters

channelName

The channel to do the check with.

Returns

Whether or not this client is ready to publish messages inside the public channel with the specified channelName.

bool Connect	(	string	appId,
		string	appVersion,
		AuthenticationValues	authValues
	)

Connects this client to the Photon Chat Cloud service, which will also authenticate the user (and set a UserId).

Parameters

appId	Get your Photon Chat AppId from the Dashboard.
appVersion	Any version string you make up. Used to separate users and variants of your clients, which might be incompatible.
authValues	Values for authentication. You can leave this null, if you set a UserId before. If you set authValues, they will override any UserId set before.

Returns

bool ConnectAndSetStatus	(	string	appId,
		string	appVersion,
		AuthenticationValues	authValues,
		int	status = ChatUserStatus.Online,
		object	message = null
	)

Connects this client to the Photon Chat Cloud service, which will also authenticate the user (and set a UserId). This also sets an online status once connected. By default it will set user status to ChatUserStatus.Online. See SetOnlineStatus(int,object) for more information.

Parameters

appId	Get your Photon Chat AppId from the Dashboard.
appVersion	Any version string you make up. Used to separate users and variants of your clients, which might be incompatible.
authValues	Values for authentication. You can leave this null, if you set a UserId before. If you set authValues, they will override any UserId set before.
status	User status to set when connected. Predefined states are in class ChatUserStatus. Other values can be used at will.
message	Optional status Also sets a status-message which your friends can get.

Returns

If the connection attempt could be sent at all.

void Disconnect

(

)

Disconnects from the Chat Server by sending a "disconnect command", which prevents a timeout server-side.

string GetPrivateChannelNameByUser

(

string

userName

)

Get you the (locally used) channel name for the chat between this client and another user.

Parameters

userName

Remote user's name or UserId.

Returns

The (locally used) channel name for a private channel.

bool PublishMessage	(	string	channelName,
		object	message,
		bool	forwardAsWebhook = false
	)

Sends a message to a public channel which this client subscribed to.

Before you publish to a channel, you have to subscribe it. Everyone in that channel will get the message.

Parameters

channelName	Name of the channel to publish to.
message	Your message (string or any serializable data).
forwardAsWebhook	Optionally, public messages can be forwarded as webhooks. Configure webhooks for your Chat app to use this.

Returns

False if the client is not yet ready to send messages.

bool RemoveFriends

(

string[]

friends

)

Removes the provided entries from the list on the Chat Server and stops their status updates.

Photon flushes friends-list when a chat client disconnects. Unless you want to remove individual entries, you don't have to RemoveFriends.

AddFriends and RemoveFriends enable clients to handle their friend list in the Photon Chat server. Having users on your friends list gives you access to their current online status (and whatever info your client sets in it).

Each user can set an online status consisting of an integer and an arbitratry (serializable) object. The object can be null, Hashtable, object[] or anything else Photon can serialize.

The status is published automatically to friends (anyone who set your user ID with AddFriends).

Photon flushes friends-list when a chat client disconnects, so it has to be set each time. If your community API gives you access to online status already, you could filter and set online friends in AddFriends.

Actual friend relations are not persistent and have to be stored outside of Photon.

AddFriends and RemoveFriends enable clients to handle their friend list in the Photon Chat server. Having users on your friends list gives you access to their current online status (and whatever info your client sets in it).

Each user can set an online status consisting of an integer and an arbitratry (serializable) object. The object can be null, Hashtable, object[] or anything else Photon can serialize.

The status is published automatically to friends (anyone who set your user ID with AddFriends).

Actual friend relations are not persistent and have to be stored outside of Photon.

Parameters

friends

Array of friend userIds.

Returns

If the operation could be sent.

void SendAcksOnly

(

)

Obsolete: Better use UseBackgroundWorkerForSending and Service().

bool SendPrivateMessage	(	string	target,
		object	message,
		bool	forwardAsWebhook = false
	)

Sends a private message to a single target user. Calls OnPrivateMessage on the receiving client.

Parameters

target	Username to send this message to.
message	The message you want to send. Can be a simple string or anything serializable.
forwardAsWebhook	Optionally, private messages can be forwarded as webhooks. Configure webhooks for your Chat app to use this.

Returns

True if this clients can send the message to the server.

bool SendPrivateMessage	(	string	target,
		object	message,
		bool	encrypt,
		bool	forwardAsWebhook
	)

Sends a private message to a single target user. Calls OnPrivateMessage on the receiving client.

Parameters

target	Username to send this message to.
message	The message you want to send. Can be a simple string or anything serializable.
encrypt	Optionally, private messages can be encrypted. Encryption is not end-to-end as the server decrypts the message.
forwardAsWebhook	Optionally, private messages can be forwarded as webhooks. Configure webhooks for your Chat app to use this.

Returns

True if this clients can send the message to the server.

void Service

(

)

Must be called regularly to keep connection between client and server alive and to process incoming messages.

This method limits the effort it does automatically using the private variable msDeltaForServiceCalls. That value is lower for connect and multiplied by 4 when chat-server connection is ready.

bool SetOnlineStatus

(

int

status

)

Sets the user's status without changing your status-message.

The predefined status values can be found in class ChatUserStatus. State ChatUserStatus.Invisible will make you offline for everyone and send no message.

You can set custom values in the status integer. Aside from the pre-configured ones, all states will be considered visible and online. Else, no one would see the custom state.

This overload does not change the set message.

Parameters

status

Predefined states are in class ChatUserStatus. Other values can be used at will.

Returns

True if the operation gets called on the server.

bool SetOnlineStatus	(	int	status,
		object	message
	)

Sets the user's status without changing your status-message.

The predefined status values can be found in class ChatUserStatus. State ChatUserStatus.Invisible will make you offline for everyone and send no message.

You can set custom values in the status integer. Aside from the pre-configured ones, all states will be considered visible and online. Else, no one would see the custom state.

The message object can be anything that Photon can serialize, including (but not limited to) Hashtable, object[] and string. This value is defined by your own conventions.

Parameters

status	Predefined states are in class ChatUserStatus. Other values can be used at will.
message	Also sets a status-message which your friends can get.

Returns

True if the operation gets called on the server.

void StopThread

(

)

Locally shuts down the connection to the Chat Server. This resets states locally but the server will have to timeout this peer.

bool Subscribe

(

string[]

channels

)

Sends operation to subscribe to a list of channels by name.

Parameters

channels

List of channels to subscribe to. Avoid null or empty values.

Returns

If the operation could be sent at all (Example: Fails if not connected to Chat Server).

bool Subscribe	(	string[]	channels,
		int[]	lastMsgIds
	)

Sends operation to subscribe to a list of channels by name and possibly retrieve messages we did not receive while unsubscribed.

Parameters

channels	List of channels to subscribe to. Avoid null or empty values.
lastMsgIds	ID of last message received per channel. Useful when re subscribing to receive only messages we missed.

Returns

If the operation could be sent at all (Example: Fails if not connected to Chat Server).

bool Subscribe	(	string[]	channels,
		int	messagesFromHistory
	)

Sends operation to subscribe client to channels, optionally fetching a number of messages from the cache.

Subscribes channels will forward new messages to this user. Use PublishMessage to do so. The messages cache is limited but can be useful to get into ongoing conversations, if that's needed.

Parameters

channels	List of channels to subscribe to. Avoid null or empty values.
messagesFromHistory	0: no history. 1 and higher: number of messages in history. -1: all available history.

Returns

If the operation could be sent at all (Example: Fails if not connected to Chat Server).

bool TryGetChannel	(	string	channelName,
		bool	isPrivate,
		out ChatChannel	channel
	)

Simplified access to either private or public channels by name.

Parameters

channelName	Name of the channel to get. For private channels, the channel-name is composed of both user's names.
isPrivate	Define if you expect a private or public channel.
channel	Out parameter gives you the found channel, if any.

Returns

True if the channel was found.

bool TryGetChannel	(	string	channelName,
		out ChatChannel	channel
	)

Simplified access to all channels by name. Checks public channels first, then private ones.

Parameters

channelName	Name of the channel to get.
channel	Out parameter gives you the found channel, if any.

Returns

True if the channel was found.

bool Unsubscribe

(

string[]

channels

)

Unsubscribes from a list of channels, which stops getting messages from those.

The client will remove these channels from the PublicChannels dictionary once the server sent a response to this request.

The request will be sent to the server and IChatClientListener.OnUnsubscribed gets called when the server actually removed the channel subscriptions.

Unsubscribe will fail if you include null or empty channel names.

Parameters

channels

Names of channels to unsubscribe.

Returns

False, if not connected to a chat server.

Member Data Documentation

ChatPeer chatPeer = null

The Chat Peer used by this client.

int MessageLimit

If greater than 0, new channels will limit the number of messages they cache locally.

This can be useful to limit the amount of memory used by chats. You can set a MessageLimit per channel but this value gets applied to new ones.

Note: Changing this value, does not affect ChatChannels that are already in use!

readonly Dictionary<string, ChatChannel> PrivateChannels

Private channels in which this client has exchanged messages.

readonly Dictionary<string, ChatChannel> PublicChannels

Public channels this client is subscribed to.

Property Documentation

string AppId

get

The AppID as assigned from the Photon Cloud.

string AppVersion

get

The version of your client. A new version also creates a new "virtual app" to separate players from older client versions.

AuthenticationValues AuthValues

getset

Settable only before you connect!

bool CanChat

get

Checks if this client is ready to send messages.

string ChatRegion

getset

Settable only before you connect! Defaults to "EU".

DebugLevel DebugOut

getset

Sets the level (and amount) of debug output provided by the library.

This affects the callbacks to IChatClientListener.DebugReturn. Default Level: Error.

ChatDisconnectCause DisconnectedCause

get

Disconnection cause. Check this inside IChatClientListener.OnDisconnected.

string FrontendAddress

get

The address of the actual chat server assigned from NameServer. Public for read only.

string NameServerAddress

get

The address of last connected Name Server.

Dictionary<ConnectionProtocol, Type> SocketImplementationConfig

get

Defines which IPhotonSocket class to use per ConnectionProtocol.

Several platforms have special Socket implementations and slightly different APIs. To accomodate this, switching the socket implementation for a network protocol was made available. By default, UDP and TCP have socket implementations assigned.

You only need to set the SocketImplementationConfig once, after creating a PhotonPeer and before connecting. If you switch the TransportProtocol, the correct implementation is being used.

ChatState State

get

Current state of the ChatClient. Also use CanChat.

ConnectionProtocol TransportProtocol

getset

Exposes the TransportProtocol of the used PhotonPeer. Settable while not connected.

bool UseBackgroundWorkerForSending

getset

Defines if a background thread will call SendOutgoingCommands, while your code calls Service to dispatch received messages.

The benefit of using a background thread to call SendOutgoingCommands is this:

Even if your game logic is being paused, the background thread will keep the connection to the server up. On a lower level, acknowledgements and pings will prevent a server-side timeout while (e.g.) Unity loads assets.

Your game logic still has to call Service regularly, or else incoming messages are not dispatched. As this typicalls triggers UI updates, it's easier to call Service from the main/UI thread.

string UserId

get

The unique ID of a user/person, stored in AuthValues.UserId. Set it before you connect.

This value wraps AuthValues.UserId. It's not a nickname and we assume users with the same userID are the same person.