Updating messages

Since PubNub stores all messages in a time-series database, it doesn’t expose an API to directly update a message. However, clients can update messages by passing another version of the message using the Message Actions feature.

User ID / UUID

User ID is also referred to as UUID/uuid in some APIs and server responses but holds the value of the userId parameter you set during initialization.

Update a message

Use the addMessageAction method to update a published message after it has been published by adding an action to it.

JavaScript

pubnub.addMessageAction(
  {
    channel: 'main'
    messageTimetoken: '15610547826970040',
    action: {
      type: 'updated',
      value: 'Hello World! (fixed typo)',
    },
  },
  function(status, response) {
  }
);

Swift

extension MyAppMessageAction: MessageAction {}

let action = MyAppMessageAction(type: "updated", value: "Hello World! (fixed typo)")

pubnub.addMessageAction(
  channel: "main",
  message: action,
  messageTimetoken: 15610547826970040
) { result in
  switch result {
  case let .success(response):
    print("Successfully Message Action Add Response: \(response)")
  case let .failure(error):
    print("Error from failed response: \(error.localizedDescription)")
  }

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Java

pubnub.addMessageAction()
    .channel("main")
    .messageAction(new PNMessageAction()
            .setType("updated")
            .setValue("Hello World! (fixed typo)")
            .setMessageTimetoken(15610547826970040L)
    )
    .async(new PNCallback<PNAddMessageActionResult>() {
        @Override
        public void onResponse(PNAddMessageActionResult result, PNStatus status) {
            if (!status.isError()) {
                System.out.println(result.getType());
                System.out.println(result.getValue());
                System.out.println(result.getUserId());
                System.out.println(result.getActionTimetoken());

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Unity

MessageActionAdd messageAct = new MessageActionAdd();
messageAct.ActionType = "updated";
messageAct.ActionValue = "Hello World! (fixed typo)";

pubnub.AddMessageActions().Channel("main").MessageAction(messageAct).MessageTimetoken(15610547826970040).Async((result, status) => {
        if (!status.Error) {
            Debug.Log("result.ActionTimetoken: " + result.ActionTimetoken);
            Debug.Log("result.ActionType: " + result.ActionType);
            Debug.Log("result.ActionValue: " + result.ActionValue);
            Debug.Log("result.MessageTimetoken: " + result.MessageTimetoken);
            Debug.Log("result.UserID: " + result.UserId);
        } else {
            Debug.Log(status.Error);
            Debug.Log(status.ErrorData.Info);
        }

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Message update event

PubNub triggers events when messages are updated using message actions. Clients subscribed to the channel will receive these events.

{
   "channel":"main",
   "subscription":null,
   "timetoken":"15610547826970040",
   "publisher":"user-1",
   "message":{
      "source":"actions",
      "version":"1.0",
      "action":"added",
      "data":{
         "type":"updated",
         "value":"Hello World! (fixed typo)",
         "messageTimetoken":"15610547826970040",
         "actionTimetoken":"15610547826999081"
      }

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