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React to Changes - Kotlin SDK

On this page

  • Register a Query Change Listener
  • Register a RealmObject Change Listener
  • Register a Collection Change Listener
  • Register a Key Path Change Listener
  • Observe Nested Key Paths
  • Observe Key Paths with Wildcards
  • Unsubscribe a Change Listener
  • Change Notification Limits

Any modern app should be able to react when data changes, regardless of where that change originated. When a user adds a new item to a list, you may want to update the UI, show a notification, or log a message. When someone updates that item, you may want to change its visual state or fire off a network request. Finally, when someone deletes the item, you probably want to remove it from the UI. Realm's notification system allows you to watch for and react to changes in your data, independent of the writes that caused the changes.

The frozen architecture of the Kotlin SDK makes notifications even more important. Because the Kotlin SDK doesn't have live objects that update automatically, you'll use notifications to keep your UI and data layer in sync.

You can subscribe to changes on the following events:

  • Query on collection

  • Realm object

  • Realm collections (e.g. list)

The SDK only provides notifications for objects nested up to four layers deep. If you need to react to changes in more deeply-nested objects, register a key path change listener. For more information, refer to Register a Key Path Change Listener on this page.

You can also react to changes in user authentication state. For more information, refer to Observe Authentication Changes.

Example

About the Examples on This Page

The examples in this page use two Realm object types, Character and Fellowship:

class Character(): RealmObject {
@PrimaryKey
var name: String = ""
var species: String = ""
var age: Int = 0
constructor(name: String, species: String, age: Int) : this() {
this.name = name
this.species = species
this.age = age
}
}
class Fellowship() : RealmObject {
@PrimaryKey
var name: String = ""
var members: RealmList<Character> = realmListOf()
constructor(name: String, members: RealmList<Character>) : this() {
this.name = name
this.members = members
}
}

The examples have this sample data:

val config = RealmConfiguration.Builder(setOf(Fellowship::class, Character::class))
.name(realmName)
.build()
val realm = Realm.open(config)
val frodo = Character("Frodo", "Hobbit", 51)
val samwise = Character("Samwise", "Hobbit", 39)
val aragorn = Character("Aragorn", "Dúnedain", 87)
val legolas = Character("Legolas", "Elf", 2931)
val gimli = Character("Gimli", "Dwarf", 140)
val gollum = Character("Gollum", "Hobbit", 589)
val fellowshipOfTheRing = Fellowship(
"Fellowship of the Ring",
realmListOf(frodo, samwise, aragorn, legolas, gimli))
realm.writeBlocking{
this.copyToRealm(fellowshipOfTheRing)
this.copyToRealm(gollum) // not in fellowship
}
realm.close()

You can register a notification handler on any query within a Realm. First, create a Kotlin Flow from the query with asFlow(). Next, use the collect() method to handle events on that Flow. Events of type UpdatedResults record all changes to the objects matching the query using the following properties:

Property
Type
Description
insertions
IntArray
Indexes in the new collection which were added in this version.
insertionRanges
Array<ListChangeSet.Range>
Ranges of indexes in the new collection which were added in this version.
changes
IntArray
Indexes of the objects in the new collection which were modified in this version.
changeRanges
Array<ListChangeSet.Range>
Ranges of indexes in the new collection which were modified in this version.
deletions
IntArray
Indexes in the previous version of the collection which have been removed from this one.
deletionRanges
Array<ListChangeSet.Range>
Ranges of indexes in the previous version of the collection which have been removed from this one.
list
RealmResults<T as RealmObject>
Results collection being monitored for changes.
// Listen for changes on whole collection
val characters = realm.query(Character::class)
// flow.collect() is blocking -- run it in a background context
val job = CoroutineScope(Dispatchers.Default).launch {
// create a Flow from that collection, then add a listener to the Flow
val charactersFlow = characters.asFlow()
val subscription = charactersFlow.collect { changes: ResultsChange<Character> ->
when (changes) {
// UpdatedResults means this change represents an update/insert/delete operation
is UpdatedResults -> {
changes.insertions // indexes of inserted objects
changes.insertionRanges // ranges of inserted objects
changes.changes // indexes of modified objects
changes.changeRanges // ranges of modified objects
changes.deletions // indexes of deleted objects
changes.deletionRanges // ranges of deleted objects
changes.list // the full collection of objects
}
else -> {
// types other than UpdatedResults are not changes -- ignore them
}
}
}
}
// Listen for changes on RealmResults
val hobbits = realm.query(Character::class, "species == 'Hobbit'")
val hobbitJob = CoroutineScope(Dispatchers.Default).launch {
val hobbitsFlow = hobbits.asFlow()
val hobbitsSubscription = hobbitsFlow.collect { changes: ResultsChange<Character> ->
// ... all the same data as above
}
}

You can register a notification handler on a specific object within a realm. Realm notifies your handler when any of the object's properties change. To register a change listener on a single object, obtain a RealmSingleQuery with realm.query.first(). Generate a Flow from that query with asFlow(). The handler receives a SingleQueryChange object that communicates object changes using the following subtypes:

Subtype
Properties
Notes
UpdatedObject
changedFields, obj
Pass a field name to isFieldChanged() to check if that field changed.
DeletedObject
obj
Since obj always reflects the latest version of the object, it always returns a null value in this subtype.
// query for the specific object you intend to listen to
val frodo = realm.query(Character::class, "name == 'Frodo'").first()
// flow.collect() is blocking -- run it in a background context
val job = CoroutineScope(Dispatchers.Default).launch {
val frodoFlow = frodo.asFlow()
frodoFlow.collect { changes: SingleQueryChange<Character> ->
when (changes) {
is UpdatedObject -> {
changes.changedFields // the changed properties
changes.obj // the object in its newest state
changes.isFieldChanged("name") // check if a specific field changed in value
}
is DeletedObject -> {
// if the object has been deleted
changes.obj // returns null for deleted objects -- always reflects newest state
}
is InitialObject -> {
// Initial event observed on a RealmObject or EmbeddedRealmObject flow.
// It contains a reference to the starting object state.
changes.obj
}
is PendingObject -> {
// Describes the initial state where a query result does not contain any elements.
changes.obj
}
}
}
}

You can register a notification handler on a RealmList, RealmSet, or RealmMap. Realm notifies your handler when any of the collection items change. First, create a Kotlin Flow from the collection with asFlow(). Next, use the collect() method to handle events on that Flow. Events of type ListChange, SetChange, or MapChange record all changes to the collection.

RealmList notifications implement the ListChange interface, which describes the possible changes that can occur in a RealmList collection. These states are represented by subclasses:

  • InitialList

  • UpdatedList

  • DeletedList

A ListChangeSet is an interface that models the changes that can occur in a list, and the properties include:

Property
Type
Description
insertions
IntArray
Indexes in the new collection which were added in this version.
insertionRanges
Array<ListChangeSet.Range>
Ranges of indexes in the new collection which were added in this version.
changes
IntArray
Indexes of the objects in the new collection which were modified in this version.
changeRanges
Array<ListChangeSet.Range>
Ranges of indexes in the new collection which were modified in this version.
deletions
IntArray
Indexes in the previous version of the collection which have been removed from this one.
deletionRanges
Array<ListChangeSet.Range>
Ranges of indexes in the previous version of the collection which have been removed from this one.
list
RealmResults<T as RealmObject>
Results collection being monitored for changes. This is provided when the event type is an UpdatedList.

RealmSet notifications implement the SetChange interface, which describes the possible changes that can occur in a RealmSet collection. These states are represented by subclasses:

  • InitialSet

  • UpdatedSet

  • DeletedSet

A SetChangeSet is an interface that models the changes that can occur in a set, and the properties include:

Property
Type
Description
deletions
Int
The number of entries that have been deleted in this version of the collection.
insertions
Int
The number of entries that have been inserted in this version of the collection.
set
RealmSet<T>
The set being monitored for changes. This is provided when the event type is an UpdatedSet.

RealmMap notifications implement the MapChange interface, which describes the possible changes that can occur in a RealmMap collection. These states are represented by subclasses:

  • InitialMap

  • UpdatedMap

  • DeletedMap

A MapChangeSet is an interface that models the changes that can occur in a map, and the properties include:

Property
Type
Description
deletions
Array<K>
The keys that have been deleted in this version of the map.
insertions
Array<K>
The keys that have been inserted in this version of the map.
changes
Array<K>
The keys whose values have changed in this version of the collection.
set
RealmMap<K, V>
The map being monitored for changes. This is provided when the event type is an UpdatedMap.
// query for the specific object you intend to listen to
val fellowshipOfTheRing = realm.query(Fellowship::class, "name == 'Fellowship of the Ring'").first().find()!!
val members = fellowshipOfTheRing.members
// flow.collect() is blocking -- run it in a background context
val job = CoroutineScope(Dispatchers.Default).launch {
val membersFlow = members.asFlow()
membersFlow.collect { changes: ListChange<Character> ->
when (changes) {
is UpdatedList -> {
changes.insertions // indexes of inserted objects
changes.insertionRanges // ranges of inserted objects
changes.changes // indexes of modified objects
changes.changeRanges // ranges of modified objects
changes.deletions // indexes of deleted objects
changes.deletionRanges // ranges of deleted objects
changes.list // the full collection of objects
}
is DeletedList -> {
// if the list was deleted
}
is InitialList -> {
// Initial event observed on a RealmList flow. It contains a reference
// to the starting list state.
changes.list
}
}
}
}

New in version 1.13.0.

When you register a notification handler, you can pass an optional list of string property names to specify the key path or key paths to watch.

When you specify key paths, only changes to those key paths trigger notification blocks. Any other changes do not trigger notification blocks.

In the following example, we register a key path change listener for the age property:

runBlocking {
// Query for the specific object you intend to listen to.
val frodoQuery = realm.query(Character::class, "name == 'Frodo'").first()
val observer = async {
val frodoFlow = frodoQuery.asFlow(listOf("age"))
frodoFlow.collect { changes: SingleQueryChange<Character> ->
// Change listener stuff in here.
}
}
// Changing a property whose key path you're not observing does not trigger a notification.
realm.writeBlocking {
findLatest(frodoObject)!!.species = "Ring Bearer"
}
// Changing a property whose key path you are observing triggers a notification.
realm.writeBlocking {
findLatest(frodoObject)!!.age = 52
}
// For this example, we send the object change to a Channel where we can verify the
// changes we expect. In your application code, you might use the notification to
// update the UI or take some other action based on your business logic.
channel.receiveOrFail().let { objChange ->
assertIs<UpdatedObject<*>>(objChange)
assertEquals(1, objChange.changedFields.size)
// Because we are observing only the `age` property, the change to
// the `species` property does not trigger a notification.
// The first notification we receive is a change to the `age` property.
assertEquals("age", objChange.changedFields.first())
}
observer.cancel()
channel.close()
}

Note

Multiple notification tokens on the same object which filter for separate key paths do not filter exclusively. If one key path change is satisfied for one notification token, then all notification token blocks for that object will execute.

You can use dot notation to observe nested key paths. By default, the SDK only reports notifications for objects nested up to four layers deep. Observe a specific key path if you need to observe changes on more deeply nested objects.

In the following example, we watch for updates to the nested property members.age. Note that the SDK reports the change to the top-level members property, even though we're watching for changes to a nested property:

runBlocking {
// Query for the specific object you intend to listen to.
val fellowshipQuery = realm.query(Fellowship::class).first()
val observer = async {
val fellowshipFlow = fellowshipQuery.asFlow(listOf("members.age"))
fellowshipFlow.collect { changes: SingleQueryChange<Fellowship> ->
// Change listener stuff in here.
}
}
// Changing a property whose nested key path you are observing triggers a notification.
val fellowship = fellowshipQuery.find()!!
realm.writeBlocking {
findLatest(fellowship)!!.members[0].age = 52
}
// For this example, we send the object change to a Channel where we can verify the
// changes we expect. In your application code, you might use the notification to
// update the UI or take some other action based on your business logic.
channel.receiveOrFail().let { objChange ->
assertIs<UpdatedObject<*>>(objChange)
assertEquals(1, objChange.changedFields.size)
// While you can watch for updates to a nested property, the notification
// only reports the change on the top-level property. In this case, there
// was a change to one of the elements in the `members` property, so `members`
// is what the notification reports - not `age`.
assertEquals("members", objChange.changedFields.first())
}
observer.cancel()
channel.close()
}

You can use wildcards (*) to observe changes to all key paths at the level of the wildcard.

In the following example, we use the wildcard watch for changes to any nested properties one level deep within the members property. Based on the model used in this example, this change listener would report changes to any member's age, species, or name properties. Note that the SDK reports the change to the top-level members property, even though we're watching for changes to a nested property:

runBlocking {
// Query for the specific object you intend to listen to.
val fellowshipQuery = realm.query(Fellowship::class).first()
val observer = async {
// Use a wildcard to observe changes to any key path at the level of the wildcard.
val fellowshipFlow = fellowshipQuery.asFlow(listOf("members.*"))
fellowshipFlow.collect { changes: SingleQueryChange<Fellowship> ->
// Change listener stuff in here.
}
}
// Changing any property at the level of the key path wild card triggers a notification.
val fellowship = fellowshipQuery.find()!!
realm.writeBlocking {
findLatest(fellowship)!!.members[0].age = 52
}
// For this example, we send the object change to a Channel where we can verify the
// changes we expect. In your application code, you might use the notification to
// update the UI or take some other action based on your business logic.
channel.receiveOrFail().let { objChange ->
assertIs<UpdatedObject<*>>(objChange)
assertEquals(1, objChange.changedFields.size)
// While you can watch for updates to a nested property, the notification
// only reports the change on the top-level property. In this case, there
// was a change to one of the elements in the `members` property, so `members`
// is what the notification reports - not `age`.
assertEquals("members", objChange.changedFields.first())
}
observer.cancel()
channel.close()
}

Unsubscribe from your change listener when you no longer want to receive notifications on updates to the data it's watching. To unsubscribe a change listener, cancel the enclosing coroutine.

// query for the specific object you intend to listen to
val fellowshipOfTheRing = realm.query(Fellowship::class, "name == 'Fellowship of the Ring'").first().find()!!
val members = fellowshipOfTheRing.members
// flow.collect() is blocking -- run it in a background context
val job = CoroutineScope(Dispatchers.Default).launch {
val membersFlow = members.asFlow()
membersFlow.collect { changes: ListChange<Character> ->
// change listener stuff in here
}
}
job.cancel() // cancel the coroutine containing the listener

Changes in nested documents deeper than four levels down do not trigger change notifications.

If you have a data structure where you need to listen for changes five levels down or deeper, workarounds include:

  • Refactor the schema to reduce nesting.

  • Add something like "push-to-refresh" to enable users to manually refresh data.

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