README.md

#vuefire-auth-demo

Barebones authentication demo with Vue and VueFire

note: Vue 2.x

Demonstrates basic anonymous authentication and a pattern that can be used when a Firebase path is dependent on async operations that must complete prior to Firebase binding. (e.g. /messages/${user.uid} requires user.uid to be known)

npm install
npm run dev

Or see the live demo: http://vuefire-auth-example.firebaseapp.com

Details

The path that the demonstration requires to access data for a session is /messages/${uid} - where ${uid} is the (anonymous) Firebase user.uid. Note: This database design pattern is illustrated in the Firebase docs at the time of this writing. Since we don't have a user prior to authentication, we cannot evaluate the path to give to VueFire.

The approach taken is:

• Initiate authentication as early as possible. In this demo, we're using anonymous authentication so there is no need to consider user input (i.e. credentials):

new Vue({
  el: '#app',
  beforeCreate: function() {
    // Our earliest lifecycle hook and first access
    // to $bindAsArray() / $bindAsObject() from VueFire
    // Start Firebase authentication here:
    firebase.auth().onAuthStateChanged(function(user) {
        // Once authed, we'll have a user.uid and
        // can bind references that require it
        ...  

• Add placeholder (reactive) properties on data that will house the eventual Firebase references. This allows the UI to render immediately (sans missing data) and the reactivity handles UI updates once the data is available:

	data: {
	    user: {},
	    messages: []
	}

• Once authed, bind the data properties to Firebase references:

	// ... continued from above
	firebase.auth().onAuthStateChanged(function(user) {
	if (user) {
		// Cache user - an anonymously authenticated firebase.User account
		//  - https://firebase.google.com/docs/reference/js/firebase.User
		this.user = user
		// Bind this instance's 'messages' property to the 'messages/${uid}'
		// Firebase reference via vuefire.js' $bindAsArray() method
		this.$bindAsArray('messages', firebasedb.ref('messages/' + user.uid))
		// Note: Child component instances will have access to these
		// references via this.$root.user and this.$root.messages
	  } else {
	    firebase.auth().signInAnonymously().catch(console.error)
	  }
	}.bind(this))

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Created based on this thread.