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Markdown
537 lines
15 KiB
Markdown
# ws: a Node.js WebSocket library
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[![Version npm](https://img.shields.io/npm/v/ws.svg?logo=npm)](https://www.npmjs.com/package/ws)
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[![CI](https://img.shields.io/github/actions/workflow/status/websockets/ws/ci.yml?branch=master&label=CI&logo=github)](https://github.com/websockets/ws/actions?query=workflow%3ACI+branch%3Amaster)
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[![Coverage Status](https://img.shields.io/coveralls/websockets/ws/master.svg?logo=coveralls)](https://coveralls.io/github/websockets/ws)
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ws is a simple to use, blazing fast, and thoroughly tested WebSocket client and
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server implementation.
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Passes the quite extensive Autobahn test suite: [server][server-report],
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[client][client-report].
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**Note**: This module does not work in the browser. The client in the docs is a
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reference to a back end with the role of a client in the WebSocket
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communication. Browser clients must use the native
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[`WebSocket`](https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/API/WebSocket)
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object. To make the same code work seamlessly on Node.js and the browser, you
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can use one of the many wrappers available on npm, like
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[isomorphic-ws](https://github.com/heineiuo/isomorphic-ws).
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## Table of Contents
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- [Protocol support](#protocol-support)
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- [Installing](#installing)
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- [Opt-in for performance](#opt-in-for-performance)
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- [API docs](#api-docs)
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- [WebSocket compression](#websocket-compression)
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- [Usage examples](#usage-examples)
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- [Sending and receiving text data](#sending-and-receiving-text-data)
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- [Sending binary data](#sending-binary-data)
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- [Simple server](#simple-server)
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- [External HTTP/S server](#external-https-server)
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- [Multiple servers sharing a single HTTP/S server](#multiple-servers-sharing-a-single-https-server)
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- [Client authentication](#client-authentication)
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- [Server broadcast](#server-broadcast)
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- [Round-trip time](#round-trip-time)
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- [Use the Node.js streams API](#use-the-nodejs-streams-api)
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- [Other examples](#other-examples)
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- [FAQ](#faq)
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- [How to get the IP address of the client?](#how-to-get-the-ip-address-of-the-client)
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- [How to detect and close broken connections?](#how-to-detect-and-close-broken-connections)
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- [How to connect via a proxy?](#how-to-connect-via-a-proxy)
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- [Changelog](#changelog)
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- [License](#license)
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## Protocol support
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- **HyBi drafts 07-12** (Use the option `protocolVersion: 8`)
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- **HyBi drafts 13-17** (Current default, alternatively option
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`protocolVersion: 13`)
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## Installing
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```
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npm install ws
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```
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### Opt-in for performance
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There are 2 optional modules that can be installed along side with the ws
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module. These modules are binary addons that improve the performance of certain
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operations. Prebuilt binaries are available for the most popular platforms so
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you don't necessarily need to have a C++ compiler installed on your machine.
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- `npm install --save-optional bufferutil`: Allows to efficiently perform
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operations such as masking and unmasking the data payload of the WebSocket
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frames.
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- `npm install --save-optional utf-8-validate`: Allows to efficiently check if a
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message contains valid UTF-8.
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To not even try to require and use these modules, use the
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[`WS_NO_BUFFER_UTIL`](./doc/ws.md#ws_no_buffer_util) and
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[`WS_NO_UTF_8_VALIDATE`](./doc/ws.md#ws_no_utf_8_validate) environment
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variables. These might be useful to enhance security in systems where a user can
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put a package in the package search path of an application of another user, due
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to how the Node.js resolver algorithm works.
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The `utf-8-validate` module is not needed and is not required, even if it is
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already installed, regardless of the value of the `WS_NO_UTF_8_VALIDATE`
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environment variable, if [`buffer.isUtf8()`][] is available.
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## API docs
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See [`/doc/ws.md`](./doc/ws.md) for Node.js-like documentation of ws classes and
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utility functions.
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## WebSocket compression
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ws supports the [permessage-deflate extension][permessage-deflate] which enables
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the client and server to negotiate a compression algorithm and its parameters,
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and then selectively apply it to the data payloads of each WebSocket message.
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The extension is disabled by default on the server and enabled by default on the
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client. It adds a significant overhead in terms of performance and memory
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consumption so we suggest to enable it only if it is really needed.
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Note that Node.js has a variety of issues with high-performance compression,
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where increased concurrency, especially on Linux, can lead to [catastrophic
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memory fragmentation][node-zlib-bug] and slow performance. If you intend to use
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permessage-deflate in production, it is worthwhile to set up a test
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representative of your workload and ensure Node.js/zlib will handle it with
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acceptable performance and memory usage.
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Tuning of permessage-deflate can be done via the options defined below. You can
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also use `zlibDeflateOptions` and `zlibInflateOptions`, which is passed directly
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into the creation of [raw deflate/inflate streams][node-zlib-deflaterawdocs].
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See [the docs][ws-server-options] for more options.
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```js
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import WebSocket, { WebSocketServer } from 'ws';
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const wss = new WebSocketServer({
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port: 8080,
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perMessageDeflate: {
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zlibDeflateOptions: {
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// See zlib defaults.
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chunkSize: 1024,
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memLevel: 7,
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level: 3
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},
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zlibInflateOptions: {
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chunkSize: 10 * 1024
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},
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// Other options settable:
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clientNoContextTakeover: true, // Defaults to negotiated value.
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serverNoContextTakeover: true, // Defaults to negotiated value.
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serverMaxWindowBits: 10, // Defaults to negotiated value.
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// Below options specified as default values.
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concurrencyLimit: 10, // Limits zlib concurrency for perf.
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threshold: 1024 // Size (in bytes) below which messages
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// should not be compressed if context takeover is disabled.
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}
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});
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```
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The client will only use the extension if it is supported and enabled on the
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server. To always disable the extension on the client set the
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`perMessageDeflate` option to `false`.
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```js
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import WebSocket from 'ws';
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const ws = new WebSocket('ws://www.host.com/path', {
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perMessageDeflate: false
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});
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```
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## Usage examples
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### Sending and receiving text data
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```js
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import WebSocket from 'ws';
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const ws = new WebSocket('ws://www.host.com/path');
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ws.on('error', console.error);
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ws.on('open', function open() {
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ws.send('something');
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});
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ws.on('message', function message(data) {
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console.log('received: %s', data);
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});
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```
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### Sending binary data
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```js
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import WebSocket from 'ws';
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const ws = new WebSocket('ws://www.host.com/path');
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ws.on('error', console.error);
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ws.on('open', function open() {
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const array = new Float32Array(5);
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for (var i = 0; i < array.length; ++i) {
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array[i] = i / 2;
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}
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ws.send(array);
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});
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```
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### Simple server
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```js
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import { WebSocketServer } from 'ws';
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const wss = new WebSocketServer({ port: 8080 });
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wss.on('connection', function connection(ws) {
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ws.on('error', console.error);
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ws.on('message', function message(data) {
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console.log('received: %s', data);
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});
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ws.send('something');
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});
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```
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### External HTTP/S server
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```js
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import { createServer } from 'https';
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import { readFileSync } from 'fs';
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import { WebSocketServer } from 'ws';
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const server = createServer({
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cert: readFileSync('/path/to/cert.pem'),
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key: readFileSync('/path/to/key.pem')
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});
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const wss = new WebSocketServer({ server });
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wss.on('connection', function connection(ws) {
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ws.on('error', console.error);
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ws.on('message', function message(data) {
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console.log('received: %s', data);
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});
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ws.send('something');
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});
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server.listen(8080);
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```
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### Multiple servers sharing a single HTTP/S server
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```js
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import { createServer } from 'http';
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import { parse } from 'url';
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import { WebSocketServer } from 'ws';
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const server = createServer();
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const wss1 = new WebSocketServer({ noServer: true });
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const wss2 = new WebSocketServer({ noServer: true });
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wss1.on('connection', function connection(ws) {
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ws.on('error', console.error);
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// ...
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});
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wss2.on('connection', function connection(ws) {
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ws.on('error', console.error);
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// ...
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});
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server.on('upgrade', function upgrade(request, socket, head) {
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const { pathname } = parse(request.url);
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if (pathname === '/foo') {
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wss1.handleUpgrade(request, socket, head, function done(ws) {
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wss1.emit('connection', ws, request);
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});
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} else if (pathname === '/bar') {
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wss2.handleUpgrade(request, socket, head, function done(ws) {
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wss2.emit('connection', ws, request);
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});
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} else {
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socket.destroy();
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}
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});
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server.listen(8080);
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```
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### Client authentication
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```js
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import { createServer } from 'http';
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import { WebSocketServer } from 'ws';
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function onSocketError(err) {
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console.error(err);
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}
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const server = createServer();
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const wss = new WebSocketServer({ noServer: true });
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wss.on('connection', function connection(ws, request, client) {
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ws.on('error', console.error);
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ws.on('message', function message(data) {
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console.log(`Received message ${data} from user ${client}`);
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});
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});
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server.on('upgrade', function upgrade(request, socket, head) {
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socket.on('error', onSocketError);
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// This function is not defined on purpose. Implement it with your own logic.
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authenticate(request, function next(err, client) {
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if (err || !client) {
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socket.write('HTTP/1.1 401 Unauthorized\r\n\r\n');
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socket.destroy();
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return;
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}
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socket.removeListener('error', onSocketError);
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wss.handleUpgrade(request, socket, head, function done(ws) {
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wss.emit('connection', ws, request, client);
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});
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});
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});
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server.listen(8080);
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```
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Also see the provided [example][session-parse-example] using `express-session`.
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### Server broadcast
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A client WebSocket broadcasting to all connected WebSocket clients, including
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itself.
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```js
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import WebSocket, { WebSocketServer } from 'ws';
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const wss = new WebSocketServer({ port: 8080 });
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wss.on('connection', function connection(ws) {
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ws.on('error', console.error);
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ws.on('message', function message(data, isBinary) {
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wss.clients.forEach(function each(client) {
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if (client.readyState === WebSocket.OPEN) {
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client.send(data, { binary: isBinary });
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}
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});
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});
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});
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```
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A client WebSocket broadcasting to every other connected WebSocket clients,
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excluding itself.
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```js
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import WebSocket, { WebSocketServer } from 'ws';
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const wss = new WebSocketServer({ port: 8080 });
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wss.on('connection', function connection(ws) {
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ws.on('error', console.error);
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ws.on('message', function message(data, isBinary) {
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wss.clients.forEach(function each(client) {
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if (client !== ws && client.readyState === WebSocket.OPEN) {
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client.send(data, { binary: isBinary });
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}
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});
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});
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});
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```
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### Round-trip time
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```js
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import WebSocket from 'ws';
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const ws = new WebSocket('wss://websocket-echo.com/');
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ws.on('error', console.error);
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ws.on('open', function open() {
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console.log('connected');
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ws.send(Date.now());
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});
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ws.on('close', function close() {
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console.log('disconnected');
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});
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ws.on('message', function message(data) {
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console.log(`Round-trip time: ${Date.now() - data} ms`);
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setTimeout(function timeout() {
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ws.send(Date.now());
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}, 500);
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});
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```
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### Use the Node.js streams API
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```js
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import WebSocket, { createWebSocketStream } from 'ws';
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const ws = new WebSocket('wss://websocket-echo.com/');
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const duplex = createWebSocketStream(ws, { encoding: 'utf8' });
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duplex.on('error', console.error);
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duplex.pipe(process.stdout);
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process.stdin.pipe(duplex);
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```
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### Other examples
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For a full example with a browser client communicating with a ws server, see the
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examples folder.
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Otherwise, see the test cases.
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## FAQ
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### How to get the IP address of the client?
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The remote IP address can be obtained from the raw socket.
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```js
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import { WebSocketServer } from 'ws';
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const wss = new WebSocketServer({ port: 8080 });
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wss.on('connection', function connection(ws, req) {
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const ip = req.socket.remoteAddress;
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ws.on('error', console.error);
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});
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```
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When the server runs behind a proxy like NGINX, the de-facto standard is to use
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the `X-Forwarded-For` header.
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```js
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wss.on('connection', function connection(ws, req) {
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const ip = req.headers['x-forwarded-for'].split(',')[0].trim();
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ws.on('error', console.error);
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});
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```
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### How to detect and close broken connections?
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Sometimes the link between the server and the client can be interrupted in a way
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that keeps both the server and the client unaware of the broken state of the
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connection (e.g. when pulling the cord).
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In these cases ping messages can be used as a means to verify that the remote
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endpoint is still responsive.
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```js
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import { WebSocketServer } from 'ws';
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function heartbeat() {
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this.isAlive = true;
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}
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const wss = new WebSocketServer({ port: 8080 });
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wss.on('connection', function connection(ws) {
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ws.isAlive = true;
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ws.on('error', console.error);
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ws.on('pong', heartbeat);
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});
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const interval = setInterval(function ping() {
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wss.clients.forEach(function each(ws) {
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if (ws.isAlive === false) return ws.terminate();
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ws.isAlive = false;
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ws.ping();
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});
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}, 30000);
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wss.on('close', function close() {
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clearInterval(interval);
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});
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```
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Pong messages are automatically sent in response to ping messages as required by
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the spec.
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Just like the server example above your clients might as well lose connection
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without knowing it. You might want to add a ping listener on your clients to
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prevent that. A simple implementation would be:
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```js
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import WebSocket from 'ws';
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function heartbeat() {
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clearTimeout(this.pingTimeout);
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// Use `WebSocket#terminate()`, which immediately destroys the connection,
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// instead of `WebSocket#close()`, which waits for the close timer.
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// Delay should be equal to the interval at which your server
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// sends out pings plus a conservative assumption of the latency.
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this.pingTimeout = setTimeout(() => {
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this.terminate();
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}, 30000 + 1000);
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}
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const client = new WebSocket('wss://websocket-echo.com/');
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client.on('error', console.error);
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client.on('open', heartbeat);
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client.on('ping', heartbeat);
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client.on('close', function clear() {
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clearTimeout(this.pingTimeout);
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});
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```
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### How to connect via a proxy?
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Use a custom `http.Agent` implementation like [https-proxy-agent][] or
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[socks-proxy-agent][].
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## Changelog
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We're using the GitHub [releases][changelog] for changelog entries.
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## License
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[MIT](LICENSE)
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[`buffer.isutf8()`]: https://nodejs.org/api/buffer.html#bufferisutf8input
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[changelog]: https://github.com/websockets/ws/releases
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[client-report]: http://websockets.github.io/ws/autobahn/clients/
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[https-proxy-agent]: https://github.com/TooTallNate/node-https-proxy-agent
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[node-zlib-bug]: https://github.com/nodejs/node/issues/8871
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[node-zlib-deflaterawdocs]:
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https://nodejs.org/api/zlib.html#zlib_zlib_createdeflateraw_options
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[permessage-deflate]: https://tools.ietf.org/html/rfc7692
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[server-report]: http://websockets.github.io/ws/autobahn/servers/
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[session-parse-example]: ./examples/express-session-parse
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[socks-proxy-agent]: https://github.com/TooTallNate/node-socks-proxy-agent
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[ws-server-options]: ./doc/ws.md#new-websocketserveroptions-callback
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