Creating an Onboarding Filter in Spring Boot and Spring Security

Learn how to implement an onboarding filter in Spring Boot and Spring Security to redirect users seamlessly during the onboarding process.
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Creating an Onboarding Filter in Spring Boot and Spring Security: A Complete Guide

Implementing user-specific workflows in web applications can often pose challenges, especially in ensuring that users complete crucial steps like onboarding. In this guide, we will discuss how to create an onboarding filter in Spring Boot and Spring Security that redirects logged-in users to the onboarding page if they haven't completed the onboarding process. Let's dive in!

The Problem

Imagine a scenario where a user logs into your application. If they haven't completed the onboarding process, you would want to redirect them to the onboarding page. However, implementing this idea can lead to complications, such as the HTTP response generating a downloadable content type instead of properly redirecting users.

The issue arises when you try to send a redirect response while the HTTP response has already been committed. This can lead to exceptions and errors that can frustrate users. Let's take a look at how we can implement this functionality correctly.

Solution Overview

The initial attempt might look something like this:

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

Implementing a Spring Context-Aware Filter

The solution is to use Spring's GenericFilterBean, which is more appropriate for the Spring security context and is designed to handle the lifecycle complexities involved.

Here's how your filter implementation should look:

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

Key Changes Made:

Extending GenericFilterBean: This allows better integration with the Spring security context.

Using SecurityContextHolder: To check the authentication status and avoid direct session manipulation.

Return After Redirect: It is crucial to include a return; statement after sending the redirect to ensure that the filter chain does not continue executing.

Adding the Filter to Your Security Configuration

Don’t forget to wire your new filter into the Spring Security filter chain. You would typically do this in your security configuration class:

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

Summary of Steps:

Create the Onboarding Filter using GenericFilterBean.

Check Authentication Status and whether the user has completed onboarding.

Redirect Unbounded Users to the onboarding page.

Add the Filter to the Security Configuration so that it's utilized in your application's filter chain.

Conclusion

By correctly implementing an onboarding filter using Spring's GenericFilterBean, you can create a smooth user experience that ensures users complete necessary steps in your application. With this setup, you can efficiently redirect users while avoiding common pitfalls associated with response commitments.

Feel free to experiment and adjust this implementation as per your application requirements. Happy coding!