Trouble with Dynamic Data Rendering in Builder.io

Technical Questions
2

Hi @nathaniel

Rendering dynamic content from Builder.io in a React.js environment can sometimes be challenging, especially when dealing with updates and real-time content propagation. Let’s go through some steps to troubleshoot and ensure your setup is correct, and address common pitfalls.

Step-by-Step Troubleshooting Guide

Step 1: Verify Builder.io SDK Initialization

Ensure that the Builder.io SDK is initialized correctly with your public API key.

Example:

import { builder } from '@builder.io/react';

builder.init('YOUR_PUBLIC_API_KEY');

Step 2: Fetching and Rendering Content

Make sure you are using the builder.get() method correctly to fetch the content and render it within your React components.

Example:

import React, { useEffect, useState } from 'react';
import { BuilderComponent, builder } from '@builder.io/react';

builder.init('YOUR_PUBLIC_API_KEY');

const DynamicContent = ({ model, entryId }) => {
  const [content, setContent] = useState(null);

  useEffect(() => {
    const fetchContent = async () => {
      const fetchedContent = await builder.get(model, { query: { id: entryId }}).toPromise();
      setContent(fetchedContent);
    };

    fetchContent();
  }, [model, entryId]);

  return content ? <BuilderComponent model={model} content={content} /> : <p>Loading...</p>;
};

export default DynamicContent;

Step 3: Set Up Event Listeners for Real-Time Updates

Builder.io provides a way to listen for real-time content updates. Make sure you set up event listeners to refresh your content when changes are made.

Example:

import { builder } from '@builder.io/react';

builder.init('YOUR_PUBLIC_API_KEY');

const subscribeToUpdates = (model, entryId, callback) => {
  const subscription = builder.subscribe({
    model,
    options: { entry: entryId }
  }, event => {
    if (event.type === 'update') {
      callback(event.data);
    }
  });
  return subscription;
};

// In your component
useEffect(() => {
  const subscription = subscribeToUpdates('page', 'YOUR_ENTRY_ID', (newContent) => {
    setContent(newContent);
  });

  return () => {
    if (subscription) {
      subscription.unsubscribe();
    }
  };
}, []);

Step 4: Ensure Correct Use of React State

When fetching dynamic content, ensure that the state is updated correctly to trigger a re-render of your component.

Step 5: Debug and Log

Add debug statements (console logs) to ensure that the content is being fetched and that the state is being updated correctly.

Example:

useEffect(() => {
  const fetchContent = async () => {
    const fetchedContent = await builder.get('page', { query: { id: entryId }}).toPromise();
    console.log('Fetched Content:', fetchedContent);
    setContent(fetchedContent);
  };

  fetchContent();
}, [entryId]);

useEffect(() => {
  const subscription = subscribeToUpdates('page', entryId, (newContent) => {
    console.log('Content Update:', newContent);
    setContent(newContent);
  });

  return () => {
    if (subscription) {
      subscription.unsubscribe();
    }
  };
}, [entryId]);

Step 6: Confirm Content Updates in Builder.io

Verify in the Builder.io dashboard that the content is indeed being updated and published. Sometimes, changes may appear in the editor but need to be explicitly published.

Step 7: Check Network Requests

Use browser Developer Tools to inspect the network requests to Builder.io and ensure that updates are being fetched correctly.

Sample Full Implementation

Here’s a sample full implementation that includes initialization, fetching, and real-time updates.

App.js:

import React, { useEffect, useState } from 'react';
import { BuilderComponent, builder } from '@builder.io/react';
import './App.css';

builder.init('YOUR_PUBLIC_API_KEY');

const subscribeToUpdates = (model, entryId, callback) => {
  const subscription = builder.subscribe({
    model,
    options: { entry: entryId }
  }, event => {
    if (event.type === 'update') {
      callback(event.data);
    }
  });
  return subscription;
};

const App = () => {
  const [content, setContent] = useState(null);
  const model = 'page'; // Specify your model name
  const entryId = 'YOUR_ENTRY_ID'; // Specify your content entry ID

  useEffect(() => {
    const fetchContent = async () => {
      const fetchedContent = await builder.get(model, { query: { id: entryId }}).toPromise();
      console.log('Fetched Content:', fetchedContent);
      setContent(fetchedContent);
    };

    fetchContent();
  }, [model, entryId]);

  useEffect(() => {
    const subscription = subscribeToUpdates(model, entryId, (newContent) => {
      console.log('Content Update:', newContent);
      setContent(newContent);
    });

    return () => {
      if (subscription) {
        subscription.unsubscribe();
      }
    };
  }, [model, entryId]);

  return (
    <div className="App">
      {content ? <BuilderComponent model={model} content={content} /> : <p>Loading...</p>}
    </div>
  );
};

export default App;

By following these steps and ensuring proper setup and debugging, you should be able to dynamically render and update content from Builder.io in your React.js application. If the issue persists, further inspection using browser dev tools and network logs may help identify the source of the problem.