This article explores the problem of the default action response message (Toast) being displayed briefly after processing a long task in Laravel Nova. In response to this challenge, we will introduce how to use the NovaNotification function provided by Laravel Nova 4 to implement persistent notifications with interactive operations, thereby significantly improving the user experience and ensuring that important information will not be missed due to the instantaneous disappearance of the message. It is especially suitable for scenarios that require subsequent user operations.

Limitations of Laravel Nova action response messages

In Laravel Nova, we often use methods such as Action::message() or Action::danger() to display feedback information to the user after the action is executed. These messages usually appear on the screen briefly as a "Toast" for a few seconds and then disappear automatically. For quick actions, this immediate feedback is efficient and user-friendly. However, when faced with background tasks that take a long time to execute (for example, 5-8 minutes), this short-lived message mechanism exposes its limitations:

1. Information is easy to lose: users may switch tabs or leave the computer before the message disappears, resulting in the inability to see the task completion notification.
2. Lack of persistence: Can't be displayed again when the user returns, and can't provide interactive options such as "confirm" or "view details".
3. Decreased user experience: Users expect clearer and more persistent feedback on critical or time-consuming tasks.

Introducing NovaNotification: persistent and interactive notifications

In order to solve the above problems, Laravel Nova 4 introduces the powerful NovaNotification function. It allows developers to send persistent notifications with icons and clickable action buttons that appear in the Nova app's user interface until the user manually closes them or performs an action. This enables the completion status of long-running tasks to be clearly and persistently communicated to users.

Implement persistent notifications

The steps to send notifications using NovaNotification are as follows:

1. Build NovaNotification instance

First, you need to create a NovaNotification instance. This is usually done in the handle method of your Nova Action, or wherever you need to send notifications.

 use Laravel\Nova\Notifications\NovaNotification;
use Illuminate\Http\Request;

// ...in the handle method of your Nova Action or other service public function handle(ActionFields $fields, Collection $models)
{
    // Assume you are processing a model or request $request = app(Request::class); // Get the current request instance // Build notification $notification = NovaNotification::make()
        ->message('Your report is ready for download.') // Set the main text content of the notification ->action('Download report', 'https://example.com/report.pdf') // Add a clickable action button ->icon('download') // Set the icon of the notification, such as 'download', 'check', 'exclamation', etc. ->type('info'); // Set the type of notification, optional 'info', 'success', 'warning', 'danger'

    //Send notification $request->user()->notify($notification);

    return Action::message('The report generation task has been completed, please check the notification center.');
}

2. Send notification to user

Notifications are sent through Laravel's Notifiable trait. Typically, your User model should already use this trait. You can obtain the authenticated user through the current request and then call its notify() method.

 $request->user()->notify($notification);

Things to note:

• Make sure your user model (usually App\Models\User) uses the Illuminate\Notifications\Notifiable trait.
• The action() method of the NovaNotification instance accepts two parameters: the button text and the URL to jump to after clicking. This is useful for providing download links, view details links, etc.
• The icon() method allows you to select an icon that conforms to the Font Awesome or Heroicons style to enhance the visual effect.
• The type() method is used to set the color and style of the notification to distinguish notifications of different importance.

Advantages and application scenarios of NovaNotification

• Persistence: Notifications will appear in Nova's notification center (usually in the upper right corner) until the user manually closes them or clicks the action button. Even if you refresh the page or switch tabs, the notification remains.
• Interactivity: The action() method allows you to add a clickable button to the notification to guide the user to the next step, such as downloading a file, jumping to the details page, etc.
• Visual hints: The icon() and type() methods provide rich visual customization options to make notifications more expressive.
• Suitable for long-term tasks: This is an ideal solution to solve the problem of long-term task feedback. Users do not need to wait continuously and can receive clear notifications after the task is completed.
• Conveying key information: For important information that requires the user's special attention, NovaNotification is more reliable than short-lived Toast messages.

Summarize

Although Toast messages such as Action::message() provided by Laravel Nova are very convenient for instant feedback, they are insufficient for handling long-term tasks or scenarios that require subsequent user interaction. By embracing Laravel Nova 4's NovaNotification feature, developers can build a more robust notification system with a better user experience. It not only ensures that important information is not missed, but also guides users through interactive buttons to complete the next step, thus significantly improving the professionalism and ease of use of the Nova application. When designing your Nova Action response, choose wisely between a Toast message or a NovaNotification based on the nature and importance of the task.

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