Скачать или смотреть How to Properly Display PDF Files in a New Window Using Node.js and React.js

Learn how to correctly fetch and display PDF files in a new window from your server using Node.js and React.js with this comprehensive guide.
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This video is based on the question https://stackoverflow.com/q/70187338/ asked by the user 'Serg Ivanov' ( https://stackoverflow.com/u/14836034/ ) and on the answer https://stackoverflow.com/a/70211537/ provided by the user 'Serg Ivanov' ( https://stackoverflow.com/u/14836034/ ) at 'Stack Overflow' website. Thanks to these great users and Stackexchange community for their contributions.

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How to Properly Display PDF Files in a New Window Using Node.js and React.js

Working with PDF files in web applications can be tricky, especially when trying to display them seamlessly in a new browser window. If you're using Node.js for your server-side implementation and React.js for your front-end, you might encounter issues that can disrupt the user experience. In this guide, we'll walk you through a common problem that developers face when displaying PDF files and how to solve it effectively.

The Problem: PDF Not Displaying Correctly

Imagine you have a PDF file stored on your server, and you're trying to send it to your client. Upon fetching the PDF as a blob and attempting to display it in a new window, you encounter raw PDF data appearing instead of the expected PDF file view. This could lead to confusion for users and indicate that something is not working as intended.

The common symptom of this issue looks like this:

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

This usually suggests that you may be using the wrong HTTP request method to fetch the PDF file. In most cases, using the POST method instead of GET will prevent your application from retrieving the correct file format. Now, let's take a deeper look at how to resolve this issue.

The Solution: Correcting the Request Method

Update the Axios Call

The first step towards solving the issue is to modify your file fetching method from POST to GET in your Axios call. Below is the corrected code for how you should request the PDF file:

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

Explanation of the Code Changes

GET Request: Switch from axios.post to axios.get, which is appropriate for fetching resources like PDF files.

ResponseType: Set the response type to blob to ensure you're handling binary data correctly.

Blob Creation: After receiving the response, create a Blob object from the binary data with the MIME type application/pdf.

Opening New Window: Instead of directly using the URL to open the PDF, first, create a new window and set its location to the object URL created from the Blob.

Server-Side Configuration

Ensure your server-side code is also correctly configured to handle GET requests. Below is an updated example:

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

Key Points to Remember

HTTP Method: Always use the correct HTTP method for the type of operation you want to perform. Use GET for fetching data.

Cross-Origin Resource Sharing (CORS): Ensure that your server is configured properly to allow cross-origin requests if necessary.

Debugging: Log errors in the console to help you debug any issues that arise during development.

Conclusion

Displaying PDF files in a new window from a Node.js server using React.js can be straightforward once you use the correct request methods and handle responses adequately. By modifying your application as shown above, you should now be able to fetch and display PDFs correctly without any raw data appearing to your users.

Happy coding, and may your applications display PDFs with ease!