Linked In Notifier Laravel Package

Getting Started

Minimal Setup for Laravel

1. Install the Package

   composer require symfony/linked-in-notifier
   

2. Configure DSN in .env

   LINKEDIN_DSN=linkedin://ACCESS_TOKEN:USER_ID@default
   

   • Obtain ACCESS_TOKEN via LinkedIn API OAuth.
   • USER_ID is your LinkedIn profile ID (extract from https://www.linkedin.com/in/your-profile).

3. First Notification Use Case Send a simple message via Laravel’s Notification facade:

   use Illuminate\Support\Facades\Notification;
   use App\Notifications\LinkedInNotification;
   
   Notification::route('linkedin', 'USER_ID')
               ->notify(new LinkedInNotification('Your profile was viewed!'));
   

   (Note: Requires creating a custom LinkedInChannel—see Implementation Patterns.)

4. Verify with Symfony Notifier Check Symfony’s Notifier docs for transport setup.

Implementation Patterns

1. Laravel-Symfony Bridge

• Adapter Pattern: Wrap Symfony’s LinkedInTransport in a Laravel NotificationChannel.

  // app/Providers/LinkedInServiceProvider.php
  use Symfony\Component\Notifier\Notifier;
  use Symfony\Component\Notifier\Transport\LinkedInTransport;
  
  public function register()
  {
      $notifier = new Notifier();
      $transport = new LinkedInTransport(config('services.linkedin.dsn'));
      $notifier->addTransport('linkedin', $transport);
  
      // Expose to Laravel
      app()->singleton('linkedin.notifier', fn() => $notifier);
  }
  

2. Notification Workflow

• Step 1: Create a custom notification class:

  // app/Notifications/LinkedInNotification.php
  use Illuminate\Notifications\Notification;
  use Symfony\Component\Notifier\Message\Message;
  
  class LinkedInNotification extends Notification
  {
      public function __construct(private string $message) {}
  
      public function via($notifiable)
      {
          return ['linkedin'];
      }
  
      public function toLinkedIn($notifiable)
      {
          return new Message($this->message);
      }
  }
  

• Step 2: Route notifications in your controller:

  Notification::route('linkedin', 'USER_ID')
              ->notify(new LinkedInNotification('Hello from Laravel!'));
  

3. Integration with Laravel Queues

• Use Symfony’s Messenger via Laravel Queues by dispatching a job:

  // app/Jobs/SendLinkedInNotification.php
  use Symfony\Component\Notifier\Notifier;
  
  class SendLinkedInNotification implements ShouldQueue
  {
      public function handle(Notifier $notifier)
      {
          $notifier->send(new Message('Queued notification'));
      }
  }
  

• Dispatch it:

  SendLinkedInNotification::dispatch($notifier);
  

4. Handling API Limits

• Rate Limiting: Symfony’s HttpClient supports retries. Configure in Laravel:

  $client = Symfony\Component\HttpClient\HttpClient::create([
      'timeout' => 30,
      'max_retries' => 3,
  ]);
  

• Error Handling: Catch LinkedInApiException (if extended) or generic GuzzleException:

  try {
      $notifier->send($message);
  } catch (\Exception $e) {
      Log::error("LinkedIn notification failed: " . $e->getMessage());
  }
  

Gotchas and Tips

Pitfalls

1. Symfony Dependency Conflicts

   • The package assumes Symfony’s HttpClient and Messenger. If your Laravel app uses Guzzle or Laravel Queues, mock or replace these dependencies:

     composer require symfony/http-client symfony/messenger
     

   • Tip: Use Laravel’s Http facade as a drop-in replacement by creating a custom HttpClient adapter.

2. Missing Webhook Support

   • The package does not handle LinkedIn webhooks (e.g., for receiving events). For webhooks:
     • Use Laravel’s VerifyCsrfToken middleware for challenge validation.
     • Example middleware:

       // app/Http/Middleware/VerifyLinkedInWebhook.php
       public function handle($request, Closure $next)
       {
           $signature = $request->header('X-LinkedIn-Signature');
           $expected = hash_hmac('sha256', $request->getContent(), config('services.linkedin.secret'));
           if (!hash_equals($expected, $signature)) {
               abort(403);
           }
           return $next($request);
       }
       

3. Token Expiry

   • LinkedIn access tokens expire (~60 days). Tip: Implement a token refresh mechanism:

     // app/Services/LinkedInAuthService.php
     public function refreshToken()
     {
         $response = Http::asForm()->post('https://www.linkedin.com/oauth/v2/accessToken', [
             'grant_type' => 'refresh_token',
             'refresh_token' => config('services.linkedin.refresh_token'),
             'client_id' => config('services.linkedin.client_id'),
             'client_secret' => config('services.linkedin.client_secret'),
         ]);
         return $response->json()['access_token'];
     }
     

4. No Built-in Message Templates

   • LinkedIn requires specific message formats (e.g., plain text, rich cards). Tip: Extend the Message class:

     use Symfony\Component\Notifier\Message\Message as BaseMessage;
     
     class LinkedInMessage extends BaseMessage
     {
         public function __construct(string $subject, string $body, array $options = [])
         {
             parent::__construct($body, $options);
             $this->subject = $subject;
         }
     
         public function getSubject(): string
         {
             return $this->subject;
         }
     }
     

Debugging Tips

• Enable Symfony Debug Mode:

  $notifier = new Notifier([], [
      'debug' => true,
  ]);
  

• Log API Responses:

  $client = HttpClient::create([
      'events' => [
          function (StreamEvent $event) {
              if ($event->getType() === StreamEvent::RESPONSE) {
                  Log::debug('LinkedIn API Response', [
                      'status' => $event->getResponse()->getStatusCode(),
                      'body' => $event->getResponse()->getContent(false),
                  ]);
              }
          },
      ],
  ]);
  

Extension Points

1. Custom Transport Options

   • Extend LinkedInTransport to add features like:

     class CustomLinkedInTransport extends LinkedInTransport
     {
         public function __construct(string $dsn, private array $customOptions = [])
         {
             parent::__construct($dsn);
         }
     
         protected function getOptions(): array
         {
             return array_merge(parent::getOptions(), $this->customOptions);
         }
     }
     

2. Multi-User Notifications

   • Use Laravel’s Notifiable interface to send to multiple users:

     $users = User::whereHas('linkedinProfile')->get();
     foreach ($users as $user) {
         Notification::route('linkedin', $user->linkedin_id)
                     ->notify(new LinkedInNotification('Group message'));
     }
     

3. Rich Media Support

   • Attach images/videos to messages by extending the Message class:

     class RichLinkedInMessage extends LinkedInMessage
     {
         public function __construct(string $subject, string $body, string $mediaUrl)
         {
             parent::__construct($subject, $body);
             $this->mediaUrl = $mediaUrl;
         }
     
         public function getMediaUrl(): string
         {
             return $this->mediaUrl;
         }
     }
     

Config Quirks

• DSN Format: Ensure the DSN follows linkedin://ACCESS_TOKEN:USER_ID@default. Tip: Validate in config/services.php:

  'linkedin' => [
      'dsn' => env('LINKEDIN_DSN'),
      'valid' => filter_var(env('LINKEDIN_DSN'), FILTER_VALIDATE_URL),
  ],
  

• Environment Variables: Use Laravel’s env() helper to parse the DSN:

  $dsn = env('LINKEDIN_DSN');
  $parts = explode('://', $dsn);
  $credentials = explode(':', $parts[1]);
  $accessToken = $credentials[0];
  $userId = $credentials[1];