Configuration API for PubNub Python SDK

Python complete API reference for building real-time applications on PubNub, including basic usage and sample code.

Configuration

PNConfiguration instance is storage for user-provided information which describe further PubNub client behavior. Configuration instance contain additional set of properties which allow to perform precise PubNub client configuration.

Method(s)

To create configuration instance you can use the following function in the Python SDK:

pnconfig = PNConfiguration()

Properties	Type	Required	Default	Description
subscribe_key	String	Yes		subscribe_key from Admin Portal.
publish_key	String	Optional	None	publish_key from Admin Portal (only required if publishing).
secret_key	String	Optional	None	secret_key (only required for modifying/revealing access permissions)
user_id	String	Yes		user_id to use. You should set a unique user_id to identify the user or the device that connects to PubNub. It's a UTF-8 encoded string of up to 92 alphanumeric characters. If you don't set the user_id, you won't be able to connect to PubNub.
auth_key	String	Optional	None	If Access Manager is utilized, client will use this authKey in all restricted requests.
ssl	Boolean	Optional	True	Use SSL.
connect_timeout	Int	Optional	5	How long to wait before giving up connection to client.The value is in seconds.
subscribe_request_timeout	Int	Optional	310	How long to keep the subscribe loop running before disconnect. The value is in seconds.
non_subscribe_request_timeout	Int	Optional	10	On non subscribe operations, how long to wait for server response. The value is in seconds.
filter_expression	String	Optional	None	Feature to subscribe with a custom filter expression.
heartbeat_notification_options	PNHeartbeatNotificationOptions	Optional	PNHeartbeatNotificationOptions.FAILURES	Heartbeat notifications, by default, the SDK will alert on failed heartbeats (equivalent to: PNHeartbeatNotificationOptions.FAILURES). Other options such as all heartbeats (PNHeartbeatNotificationOptions.ALL) or no heartbeats (PNHeartbeatNotificationOptions.NONE) are supported.
reconnect_policy	PNReconnectionPolicy	Optional	PNReconnectionPolicy.EXPONENTIAL (subscribe only)	Custom reconnection configuration parameters. PNReconnectionPolicy is the type of policy to be used. Available values: PNReconnectionPolicy.NONE PNReconnectionPolicy.LINEAR (see maximum_reconnection_retries and reconnection_interval below) PNReconnectionPolicy.EXPONENTIAL For more information, refer to Reconnection Policy.
maximum_reconnection_retries	int	Optional	10	Number of times a request can be retried. Only applicable to PNReconnectionPolicy.LINEAR.
reconnection_interval	float	Optional	2.0	The delay in seconds between failed retry attempts. Only applicable to PNReconnectionPolicy.LINEAR.
suppress_leave_events	Boolean	Optional	False	If True, the client doesn't send presence leave events during the unsubscribe process.
enable_subscribe	Boolean	Optional	True	You can disable the subscribe loop if you don't need to perform subscribe operations. By default, subscribe loop is enabled and extra threads/loops are started. They should be explicitly stopped by pubnub.stop() method invocation.
daemon	Boolean	Optional	False	When set to True, spawned thread won't keep the application running after SIGTERM. (ctrl-c from command line, for example)
disable_token_manager	Boolean	Optional	False	When set to True, the Token Manager System (TMS) will be disabled. Even if there are applicable tokens, no requests will be authorized.
cipher_mode	AES.MODE_CBC or AES.MODE_GCM	Optional	AES.MODE_CBC	The cipher method to be used for message encryption for the legacy crypto module. By default, all PubNub SDKs use CBC. ⚠️Warning! If you set the Python SDK's cipher_mode to GCM, ensure that all other clients can decode the message.
fallback_cipher_mode	AES.MODE_CBC or AES.MODE_GCM	Optional	None	The secondary cipher method used for message decryption for the legacy crypto module. It is used if the method set in the cipher_mode parameter fails to decrypt the messages.
cipher_key	String	Optional	None	If cipher_key is passed, all communications to/from PubNub will be encrypted.
use_random_initialization_vector	Boolean	Optional	True	When True the initialization vector (IV) is random for all requests (not just for file upload). When False the IV is hard-coded for all requests except for file upload.
crypto_module	PubNubCryptoModule	Optional	None	The cryptography module used for encryption and decryption of messages and files. Takes the config (PNConfiguration instance with cipher_key and use_random_initialization_vector) parameter as argument. For more information, refer to the crypto_module section.
uuid	String	Yes		This parameter is deprecated, use user_id instead. UUID to use. You should set a unique UUID to identify the user or the device that connects to PubNub. If you don't set the UUID, you won't be able to connect to PubNub.

Disabling random initialization vector

Disable random initialization vector (IV) only for backward compatibility (<5.1.0) with existing applications. Never disable random IV on new applications.

Working with cipher mode

example

crypto_module

crypto_module provides encrypt/decrypt functionality for messages and files. From the 7.2.0 release on, you can configure how the actual encryption/decryption algorithms work.

Each PubNub SDK is bundled with two ways of encryption: the legacy encryption with 128-bit cipher key entropy and the recommended 256-bit AES-CBC encryption. For more general information on how encryption works, refer to the Message Encryption and File Encryption sections.

If you do not explicitly set the crypto_module in your app and have the cipher_key and use_random_initialization_vector params set in PubNub config, the client defaults to using the legacy encryption.

Legacy encryption with 128-bit cipher key entropy

You don't have to change your encryption configuration if you want to keep using the legacy encryption. If you want to use the recommended 256-bit AES-CBC encryption, you must explicitly set that in PubNub config.

crypto_module configuration

To configure the crypto_module to encrypt all messages/files, you can use the following methods in the Python SDK:

#  encrypts using 256-bit AES-CBC cipher (recommended)
#  decrypts data encrypted with the legacy (AES and GCM) and the 256-bit AES-CBC ciphers
config = PNConfiguration()
...
# all necessary config options
config.cipher_key = "my_cipher_key"
config.cipher_mode = AES.MODE_GCM # optional, used for the legacy module only
config.fallback_cipher_mode = AES.MODE_CBC # optional, used for the legacy module only
config.crypto_module = AesCbcCryptoModule(config)
pubnub = PubNub(config)

#  encrypts with 128-bit cipher key entropy (legacy) with GCM
#  decrypts data encrypted with the legacy (AES and GCM) and the 256-bit AES-CBC ciphers
config = PNConfiguration()
...

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Your client can decrypt content encrypted using either of the modules. This way, you can interact with historical messages or messages sent from older clients while encoding new messages using the more secure 256-bit AES-CBC cipher.

Older SDK versions

Apps built using the SDK versions lower than 7.2.0 will not be able to decrypt data encrypted using the 256-bit AES-CBC cipher. Make sure to update your clients or encrypt data using the legacy algorithm.

Basic Usage

Required user_id

Always set the user_id to uniquely identify the user or device that connects to PubNub. This user_id should be persisted, and should remain unchanged for the lifetime of the user or the device. If you don't set the user_id, you won't be able to connect to PubNub.

from pubnub.pnconfiguration import PNConfiguration
from pubnub.enums import PNHeartbeatNotificationOptions

pn_configuration = PNConfiguration()
# subscribe_key from Admin Portal
pn_configuration.subscribe_key = "my_subscribe_key"
# publish_key from Admin Portal (only required if publishing)
pn_configuration.publish_key = "my_publish_key"
# secret_key (only required for modifying/revealing access permissions)
pn_configuration.secret_key = "my_secret_key"
# if cipher_key is passed, all communicatons to/from pubnub will be encrypted
pn_configuration.cipher_key = "my_cipher_key"
# the cryptography module used for encryption and decryption
pn_configuration.crypto_module = AesCbcCryptoModule(pn_configuration)
# user ID to be used as a device identifier, won't connect if not set

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Initialization

Add PubNub to your project using one of the procedures defined in the Getting Started guide.

Description

This function is used for initializing the PubNub Client API context. This function must be called before attempting to utilize any API functionality in order to establish account level credentials such as publish_key and subscribe_key.

Method(s)

To Initialize PubNub you can use the following method(s) in the Python SDK:

pubnub = PubNub(my_pnconfig)

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
pn_configuration	PNConfiguration	Yes	Goto Configuration for more details.

Basic Usage

Initialize the PubNub client API

Required user_id

Always set the user_id to uniquely identify the user or device that connects to PubNub. This user_id should be persisted, and should remain unchanged for the lifetime of the user or the device. If you don't set the user_id, you won't be able to connect to PubNub.

from pubnub.pnconfiguration import PNConfiguration
from pubnub.pubnub import PubNub

pnconfig = PNConfiguration()
pnconfig.subscribe_key = "my_subkey"
pnconfig.publish_key = "my_pubkey"
pnconfig.ssl = True
pnconfig.user_id = "my_custom_user_id"
pubnub = PubNub(pnconfig)

Returns

It returns the PubNub instance for invoking PubNub APIs like publish(), subscribe(), history(), here_now(), etc.

Other Examples

Initialize a non-secure client

Required user_id

Always set the user_id to uniquely identify the user or device that connects to PubNub. This user_id should be persisted, and should remain unchanged for the lifetime of the user or the device. If you don't set the user_id, you won't be able to connect to PubNub.

from pubnub.pnconfiguration import PNConfiguration
from pubnub.pubnub import PubNub

pnconfig = PNConfiguration()
pnconfig.subscribe_key = "my_subkey"
pnconfig.publish_key = "my_pubkey"
pnconfig.ssl = False
pnconfig.user_id = "my_custom_user_id"
pubnub = PubNub(pnconfig)

Initialization for a Read-Only client

In the case where a client will only read messages and never publish to a channel, you can simply omit the publish_key when initializing the client:

Required user_id

Always set the user_id to uniquely identify the user or device that connects to PubNub. This user_id should be persisted, and should remain unchanged for the lifetime of the user or the device. If you don't set the user_id, you won't be able to connect to PubNub.

from pubnub.pnconfiguration import PNConfiguration
from pubnub.pubnub import PubNub

pnconfig = PNConfiguration()
pnconfig.subscribe_key = "my_subkey"

pubnub = PubNub(pnconfig)

Use a custom User ID

Set a custom user_id to identify your users.

Required user_id

Always set the user_id to uniquely identify the user or device that connects to PubNub. This user_id should be persisted, and should remain unchanged for the lifetime of the user or the device. If you don't set the user_id, you won't be able to connect to PubNub.

from pubnub.pnconfiguration import PNConfiguration
from pubnub.pubnub import PubNub

pnconfig = PNConfiguration()

pnconfig.subscribe_key = 'mySubscribeKey'
pnconfig.publish_key = 'myPublishKey'
pnconfig.user_id = "my_custom_user_id"

pubnub = PubNub(pnconfig)

Initializing with SSL Enabled

This examples demonstrates how to enable PubNub Transport Layer Encryption with SSL. Just initialize the client with ssl set to True. The hard work is done, now the PubNub API takes care of the rest. Just subscribe and publish as usual and you are good to go.

Required user_id

Always set the user_id to uniquely identify the user or device that connects to PubNub. This user_id should be persisted, and should remain unchanged for the lifetime of the user or the device. If you don't set the user_id, you won't be able to connect to PubNub.

from pubnub.pnconfiguration import PNConfiguration
from pubnub.pubnub import PubNub

pnconfig = PNConfiguration()
pnconfig.subscribe_key = "my_subkey"
pnconfig.publish_key = "my_pubkey"
pnconfig.ssl = True
pnconfig.user_id = "my_custom_user_id"
pubnub = PubNub(pnconfig)

Initializing with Access Manager

Requires Access Manager add-on

This method requires that the Access Manager add-on is enabled for your key in the Admin Portal. Read the support page on enabling add-on features on your keys.

Secure your secret_key

Anyone with the secret_key can grant and revoke permissions to your app. Never let your secret_key be discovered, and to only exchange it / deliver it securely. Only use the secret_key on secure server-side platforms.

When you init with secret_key, you get root permissions for the Access Manager. With this feature you don't have to grant access to your servers to access channel data. The servers get all access on all channels.

For applications that will administer Access Manager permissions, the API is initialized with the secret_key as in the following example:

Required user_id

Always set the user_id to uniquely identify the user or device that connects to PubNub. This user_id should be persisted, and should remain unchanged for the lifetime of the user or the device. If you don't set the user_id, you won't be able to connect to PubNub.

from pubnub.pnconfiguration import PNConfiguration
from pubnub.pubnub import PubNub

pnconfig = PNConfiguration()
pnconfig.subscribe_key = "my_subkey"
pnconfig.publish_key = "my_pubkey"
pnconfig.secret_key = "my_secretkey"
pnconfig.user_id = "my_custom_user_id"
pnconfig.ssl = True

pubnub = PubNub(pnconfig)

Now that the pubnub object is instantiated the client will be able to access the Access Manager functions. The pubnub object will use the secret_key to sign all Access Manager messages to the PubNub Network.

Event Listeners

PubNub SDKs provide several sources for real-time updates:

• The PubNub client can receive updates from all subscriptions: all channels, channel groups, channel metadata, and users.
• The Subscription object can receive updates only for the particular object for which it was created: channel, channel group, channel metadata, or user.
• The SubscriptionsSet object can receive updates for all objects for which a list of subscription objects was created.

To facilitate working with those real-time update sources, PubNub SDKs use local representations of server entities that allow you to subscribe and add handlers on a per-entity basis. For more information, refer to Publish & Subscribe.

Filter Expression

Requires Stream Controller add-on

This method requires that the Stream Controller add-on is enabled for your key in the Admin Portal. Read the support page on enabling add-on features on your keys.

Stream filtering allows a subscriber to apply a filter to only receive messages that satisfy the conditions of the filter. The message filter is set by the subscribing client(s) but it is applied on the server side thus preventing unwanted messages (those that do not meet the conditions of the filter) from reaching the subscriber.

To set or get message filters, you can use the following methods. To learn more about filtering, refer to the Publish Messages documentation.

Method(s)

Set Filter Expression

The property accepts a string.

Get Filter Expression

The property returns a string.

Basic Usage

Set Filter Expression

Required user_id

Always set the user_id to uniquely identify the user or device that connects to PubNub. This user_id should be persisted, and should remain unchanged for the lifetime of the user or the device. If you don't set the user_id, you won't be able to connect to PubNub.

from pubnub.pnconfiguration import PNConfiguration

pnconfig = PNConfiguration()
pnconfig.filter_expression = "such=wow"

Get Filter Expression

filter = pnconfig.filter_expression