👀 Views: 87 💬 Answers: 1 📅 Created: 2025-10-05

javascript websockets react-native cross-browser node.js JavaScript

I'm trying to figure out I tried several approaches but none seem to work. Trying to implement WebSockets for real-time updates in my React Native mobile application, I ran into several cross-browser compatibility issues. The app utilizes a Node.js backend with Express to manage WebSocket connections. While testing, I noticed that Safari on iOS fails to establish a WebSocket connection, while Chrome and Firefox work seamlessly. To troubleshoot, I initially checked the following: 1. Ensured that the WebSocket server is accessible over HTTPS, as Safari has strict security policies. 2. Verified the connection URL with `wss://` and double-checked the server's SSL certificate. 3. Added console logs to see if the connection was failing during the handshake process. This was my initial implementation: ```javascript const WebSocket = require('ws'); const server = new WebSocket.Server({ port: 8080 }); server.on('connection', (ws) => { ws.on('message', (message) => { console.log(`Received: ${message}`); }); ws.send('Welcome to the WebSocket server!'); }); ``` When I test it on Safari, the console shows `WebSocket is closed before the connection is established`, but the same code works on other browsers. After reading through some documentation, I realized I needed to use an appropriate polyfill to add support for older browsers. Additionally, I explored using a library like `socket.io`, which abstracts WebSocket handling and provides fallback mechanisms. Switching to Socket.io made cross-browser support easier. Here's how I modified my server: ```javascript const http = require('http'); const socketIo = require('socket.io'); const server = http.createServer(); const io = socketIo(server); io.on('connection', (socket) => { console.log('A user connected'); socket.on('disconnect', () => { console.log('User disconnected'); }); }); server.listen(3000, () => { console.log('listening on *:3000'); }); ``` The issues still persist, particularly with Safari. I’ve ensured that CORS settings are properly configured, but would love some insight into anything else I might be overlooking. Are there known quirks with Safari’s WebSocket implementation that I should accommodate? Also, any advice on how I could better handle reconnections or fallback strategies would be greatly appreciated. My team is using Javascript for this CLI tool. Could this be a known issue?