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Report to Cloud URL
Your application may or may not use a Report to Cloud URL. It the applications
main configuration data file is located on a remote
server a Report to Cloud URL is required. This means the JSON data in the configuration
file will include a dataURL and a reportToCloudURL.
Functions of the Report to Cloud URL
The primary function of the file found at the Report to Cloud URL is to
provide the mobile app with a time-stamp indicating the last time the app's content changed.
If the mobile apps finds a different time-stamp than the last time it checked,
the user is prompted to "refresh."
The file at the Report to Cloud URL is usually created dynamically with .PHP or another server-side
scripting language. It may also be a simple plain-text file.
The contents of this file is a time-stamp value that must be updated each time the app's
main configuration file changes.
Output Format
Regardless of whether or not the file is created dynamically using a server-side script
or saved as a plain text file, the output is the same.
{"lastModifiedUTC":"Sat, 04 Jun 2011 06:40:32 -0700"}
The "lastModifiedUTC" text never changes. The "Sat, 04 Jun 2011 06:40:32 -0700" date value
changes when the app's main configuration file changes. The date
format is not significant, any format can be used.
Because the text stored is a simple JSON structure it can be viewed in a regular web-browser.
This means you should be able to enter the app's Report To Cloud URL in a standard browser
and see the JSON data. If you cannot do this with a regular browser your script or
file is not working properly.
Report to Cloud and Merge Fields
Appending merge fields to the Report To Cloud URL allows you to
capture device specific information, such as it's unique id, at run-time, everytime the app
launches. In this case, your backend script parses the values appended to the end
of the URL, inserts the values
into a database or other backend storage mechanism, then outputs the time-stamp for the mobile
app to consume and save.
Sample URL with Merge Fields
"reportToCloudURL":"http://www.mysite.com/stats.php?deviceId=[deviceId]&deviceLatitude=[deviceLatitude]&deviceLongitude=[deviceLongitude]
Device Requests: http://www.mysite.com/stats.php?deviceId=88478472938382&deviceLatitude=38.498929&deviceLongitude=-121.2334
(note the merged data in the URL)
A Sample .PHP Script to Save the Values
<?php
//get the device information from the URL
$deviceId = $_GET['deviceId'];
$deviceLatitude = $_GET['deviceLatitude'];
$deviceLongitude = $_GET['deviceLongitude'];
//query to save device information in database
$sql = "INSERT INTO Stats_Table (deviceId, deviceLatitude, deviceLongitude) ";
$sql .= "VALUES ('" . $deviceId . "', '" . $deviceLatitude . "', '" . $deviceLongitude . "') ";
//execute query here....
//output the app's last modified date in JSON format for the app to consume and save.
echo "{\"lastModifiedUTC\":\"Sat, 04 Jun 2011 06:40:32 -0700\"}";
?>
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