Connection management

The Unreal Chat SDK provides connection management methods to handle subscription errors and restore connections when network issues occur. These methods give you full control over your chat app's connectivity and subscription state.

You can use PubNub's functionality via Blueprints or directly in C++ code.

• In Blueprints, the whole SDK is managed by a subsystem, so start by initalizing the PubnubChatSubsystem node. Afterwards, you can use the Pubnub Chat object reference.

Blueprint functions

The Blueprints provided in the documentation show how you can structure your application and may contain utility methods and elements like buttons that are not part of the Unreal Chat SDK and are meant to serve as guidance.

• In C++, you can use the PubNub SDK as any other Game Instance Subsystem.

  #include "Kismet/GameplayStatics.h"
  #include "PubnubChatSubsystem.h"
  
  UGameInstance* GameInstance = UGameplayStatics::GetGameInstance(this);
  UPubnubChatSubsystem* PubnubChatSubsystem = GameInstance->GetSubsystem<UPubnubChatSubsystem>();
  
  UPubnubChat* Chat = PubnubChatSubsystem ->InitChat("demo", "demo", "my_user") // config optional

  Chat now allows you to call all Chat SDK functions, for example:

  Chat->DeleteUser("SomeUserID");

Usage in Blueprints and C++

Connection status listener

The OnConnectionStatusChanged listener provides real-time updates about your connection status.

Use this listener to track subscription status and react to any subscription errors, such as network connectivity issues or authentication problems.

Method signature

Blueprint

C++ / Input parameters

GameMode.h

// ...other code...
void RegisterConnectionStatusListener();
UFUNCTION()
void OnConnectionStatusChanged(EPubnubConnectionStatus Status, FPubnubConnectionStatusData ErrorMessage);
// ...other code...

GameMode.cpp

#include "PubnubChatSubsystem.h"

// ...other code
void AMyGameMode::RegisterConnectionStatusListener()
{
	UGameInstance* GameInstance = UGameplayStatics::GetGameInstance(this);
	UPubnubSubsystem* PubnubSubsystem = GameInstance->GetSubsystem<UPubnubSubsystem>();
	
	PubnubSubsystem->OnConnectionStatusChanged.AddDynamic(this, &AMyGameMode::OnConnectionStatusChanged);
  // there is also a native delegate for lambda functions: FOnConnectionStatusChangedNative OnConnectionStatusChangedNative;
}

void AMyGameMode::OnConnectionStatusChanged(EPubnubConnectionStatus Status, FPubnubConnectionStatusData ErrorMessage)
{
	//Do something with status changed

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Parameter	Description
Status Type: EPubnubConnectionStatus	Enum describing the current connection status indicating whether the connection is online, offline, or has encountered an error.
ErrorMessage Type: FPubnubConnectionStatusData	Object containing the error message and error code when the status is PNConnectionError. Empty for other status types.

Connection status types

The connection status listener reports the following status types:

Status	Description
PNConnectionOnline	The connection has been established and is ready to receive real-time updates.
PNConnectionOffline	The connection has been intentionally terminated.
PNConnectionError	The connection was unexpectedly lost or failed to establish. Contains error details.

Sample code

Set up a connection status listener to monitor your chat connection and automatically reconnect on errors.

MyGameMode.h

#include "PubnubChat.h"

// ...other code...

	UPROPERTY()
	UPubnubChat* PubnubChat = nullptr;
	
	UFUNCTION(BlueprintCallable)
	void AddConnectionStatusListener();
	
	UFUNCTION()
	void OnConnectionStatusChanged(EPubnubConnectionStatus Status, const FPubnubConnectionStatusData& StatusData);
	
// ...other code...

MyGameMode.cpp

#include "Kismet/GameplayStatics.h"

void AMyGameMode::AddConnectionStatusListener()
{
	UGameInstance* GI =  UGameplayStatics::GetGameInstance(this);
	PubnubChatSubsystem = GI->GetSubsystem<UPubnubChatSubsystem>();

	FPubnubChatConfig Config;
	PubnubChat = PubnubChatSubsystem->InitChat("demo", "demo", "MyChatUser", Config);
	
	PubnubChat->OnConnectionStatusChanged.AddDynamic(this, &AMyGameMode::OnConnectionStatusChanged);
	
	
}

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Reconnect subscriptions

The ReconnectSubscriptions() method restores the previous subscriptions with all subscribed channels and all added listeners. Call this method if DisconnectSubscriptions() was called previously or if you received a PNConnectionError from OnConnectionStatusChanged to restore all existing subscriptions and listeners.

Method signature

Blueprint

C++ / Input parameters

Chat->ReconnectSubscriptions();

Output

Type	Description
bool	Returns true if the operation succeeded, false otherwise.

Sample code

Reconnect all subscriptions after a connection error.

#include "Kismet/GameplayStatics.h"
#include "PubnubChatSubsystem.h"

UGameInstance* GameInstance = UGameplayStatics::GetGameInstance(this);
UPubnubChatSubsystem* PubnubChatSubsystem = GameInstance->GetSubsystem<UPubnubChatSubsystem>();

UPubnubChat* Chat = PubnubChatSubsystem->InitChat("demo", "demo", "my_user");

// Attempt to reconnect all subscriptions
bool bReconnectSuccess = Chat->ReconnectSubscriptions();

if (bReconnectSuccess)
{
    UE_LOG(LogTemp, Warning, TEXT("Successfully reconnected subscriptions"));
}

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Disconnect subscriptions

The DisconnectSubscriptions() method disconnects (pauses) all active subscriptions and listeners. Call this method when you want to pause real-time updates.

Method signature

Blueprint

C++ / Input parameters

Chat->DisconnectSubscriptions();

Output

Type	Description
bool	Returns true if the operation succeeded, false otherwise.

Sample code

Disconnect all subscriptions when you want to pause real-time updates.

#include "Kismet/GameplayStatics.h"
#include "PubnubChatSubsystem.h"

UGameInstance* GameInstance = UGameplayStatics::GetGameInstance(this);
UPubnubChatSubsystem* PubnubChatSubsystem = GameInstance->GetSubsystem<UPubnubChatSubsystem>();

UPubnubChat* Chat = PubnubChatSubsystem->InitChat("demo", "demo", "my_user");

// Disconnect all subscriptions
bool bDisconnectSuccess = Chat->DisconnectSubscriptions();

if (bDisconnectSuccess)
{
    UE_LOG(LogTemp, Warning, TEXT("Successfully disconnected subscriptions"));
}

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Troubleshooting

The recommended workflow for handling subscription errors is:

1. Initialize connection monitoring: Add OnConnectionStatusChanged listener immediately after creating the Chat object instance.
2. Handle connection errors: When receiving PNConnectionError status, use ReconnectSubscriptions() to restore the connection.
3. Manual control: Use DisconnectSubscriptions() when you want to manually pause real-time updates (for example, when the app goes to background).
4. Restore connection: Use ReconnectSubscriptions() to restore subscriptions when needed.

This pattern ensures your chat app maintains stable connectivity and can automatically recover from network issues without requiring users to restart the application or lose their chat state.