Colombo Mobile Developer MeetUp - Building Scalable Cloud Connected Mobile Apps using Windows Azure

Colombo Mobile Developer MeetUp - Building Scalable Cloud Connected Mobile Apps using Windows Azure

• 1.
  Building Scalable CloudConnected Mobile Apps using Windows Azure Jahufar Sadique (99X)
• 2.
  What is WindowsAzure Mobile Services? • A set of services build on Azure that provides backend ‘plumbing’ to your mobile apps. • Focus on building apps and not backend logic – Data (dynamic schema) – Authentication (Federated identities such as Facebook, Google, Twitter, Windows Live) – Server Logic (via Mobile Services Server Scripts) – Push Notifications (GCM, APNS, WNS) • Monitoring/Analytics/Logging infrastructure • Client SDKs supported for Android, iOS, Windows Phone and HTML/Javascript
• 3.
  Getting Started • Theservice is not free • ..but comes with a 3 month free trial (subject to credit card verification) • What you get: http://www.windowsazure.com/en- us/pricing/free-trial/
• 4.
  • DEMO: AzureDashboard • DEMO: Creating a new mobile service • DEMO: Download the SDK and setup project
• 5.
  Mobile Service: Data •Backend is Windows Azure SQL Database • Dynamic schema – create your model in code, and the fields are mapped by magic • Throttling and failures are automatically handled. • NO RELATIONS (i.e. no foreign keys, cascade logic etc)
• 6.
  DEMO Creating a simplelist of users
• 7.
  Authentication • Authenticate against:Facebook, Google, Twitter, Windows Live • Table level permissions for CRUD operations: – Everyone (default) – Only authenticated users – Only scripts and admins
• 8.
  DEMO Securing the listof users
• 9.
  Server Scripts • Similarto a trigger • Allows you to build custom business logic when something happens to your data • Available operations: insert, update, read, delete (del) e.g.: function insert (id, user, request) { request.execute(); }
• 10.
  Server Scripts: Continued Insert:function insert(item, user, request) { } Update: function update(item, user, request) { } Delete: function del(id, user, request) { } Read: function read(query, user, request) { } •Script functions always take 3 arguments: – 2nd arg is always “user” (represents a user) – 3rd arg is always “request” (used to send responses). – 1st arg changes according to operation
• 11.
  Scripts: Continued • Example: functioninsert(item, user, request) { if (item.userId !== user.userId) { request.respond(statusCodes.FORBIDDEN, ‘Access Denied.'); } else { request.execute(); } } * Complete script reference can be found at: http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/windowsazure/jj554226.aspx
• 12.
  Push Notifications • Allowsdirect push to devices • Supported push services: – GCM (API key required) – APNS (Certificate required) – WNS (Client secret & Package SID required) N.B: For Windows Phone/WNS: 500 notifications/per user/per day.
• 13.
  Implementing Push Notifications (in5 easy steps) Code walkthrough
• 14.
  Push Notifications: Step1 Register App for Notifications • GCM is the native push system for Android • Register your app and enable GCM using Google API console (https://code.google.com/apis/console/)
• 15.
  Push Notifications: Step2 Configure Mobile Services • Copy generated API key from Google API Services • Select ‘Push’ from Azure Console and paste key
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  Push Notifications: Step3 Integrate push library to your app • Copy gcm.jar to libs • Add permissions <permission android:name=“com.test.permission.C2D_MESSAGE" android:protectionLevel="signature" /> <uses-permission android:name=“com.test.permission.C2D_MESSAGE" /> <uses-permission android:name="com.google.android.c2dm.permission.RECEIVE" /> <uses-permission android:name="android.permission.GET_ACCOUNTS" /> <uses-permission android:name="android.permission.WAKE_LOCK" /> • Add reciever/services <receiver android:name="com.google.android.gcm.GCMBroadcastReceiver" android:permission="com.google.android.c2dm.permission.SEND"> <intent-filter> <action android:name="com.google.android.c2dm.intent.RECEIVE" /> <action android:name="com.google.android.c2dm.intent.REGISTRATION" /> <category android:name=“com.test" /> </intent-filter> </receiver> <service android:name=".GCMIntentService" />
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  Push Notifications: Step4 Register your device & handle pushes • Assuming you have ‘deviceId’ field on your data model: String deviceId = GCMRegistrar.getRegistrationId(this); Users.deviceId = deviceId; //save here • When a push arrives, onMessage fires: protected void onMessage(Context context, Intent intent) { //notify user etc. } http://developer.android.com/google/gcm/gs.html
• 18.
  Push Notifications: Step5 Getting the server to notify function insert(item, user, request) { request.execute({ success: function() { request.respond(); push.gcm.send(Users.deviceId, item.text); } }
• 19.
  Diagnostics, Logging andScale • Diagnostics: – CPU Time – Memory consumptions – API calls/time taken per request • Logging – With server scripts via console.x (console.info, console.error etc) • Scale – Scale up or down by spinning up new VMs or by scaling up VM size
• 20.
  More Services • Scheduler –Schedule server scripts on demand or on interval – Examples: • Purge old data, • Poll/aggregate data from other sources • Schedule pushes to be sent at a certain time • SendGrid (3rd party service) – Email-As-A-Service • Pusher (3rd party service) – Enhanced push services (among other things)
• 21.
  Thank you