Fix: New Users Recognized As Demo Until Reload

by Alex Johnson 47 views

Have you ever signed up for a new app and felt like you were stuck in a demo mode loop? It's a frustrating experience, especially when you're eager to dive into the real deal. This article dives into a peculiar issue where newly created users are initially recognized as demo users until the page is reloaded, causing a temporary glitch in the user experience. We'll explore the root cause, the steps to reproduce it, and the suggested solutions to ensure a seamless onboarding process.

Summary of the Issue

When a new user signs up or goes through the onboarding flow, the application initially treats their session as if it's in "demo mode." This means that the user interface (UI) and certain areas of the app behave as if the user is a demo or test user. This unusual behavior persists until the user manually reloads the page. Only after a full refresh is the user correctly recognized as a normal, authenticated user. This issue can be quite jarring for new users, as they may encounter restricted features or an incomplete experience until they figure out the need to reload the page.

Steps to Reproduce the Issue

Understanding how to reproduce an issue is crucial for diagnosing and fixing it. Here’s a step-by-step guide to replicating the "demo mode" glitch:

  1. Sign up or create a new user: Begin by signing up or creating a new user account via the app. This usually involves completing the onboarding flow or registration process.
  2. Observe the app immediately after registration: Pay close attention to the app's behavior immediately after you are redirected or navigated, without reloading the page.
  3. Notice demo-mode UI elements and flows: Watch for UI elements and flows that are shown or hidden, or those that behave differently, as if the app is in demo mode. This might include restricted access to certain features or the display of tutorial-like content.
  4. Reload the page: Perform a full refresh of the page. This is the key step to observe the change in behavior.
  5. Verify correct user recognition: After the reload, the user should now be correctly recognized as a non-demo, signed-in user, and the UI should behave accordingly.

By following these steps, developers and testers can consistently reproduce the issue, making it easier to verify potential fixes.

Actual Behavior vs. Expected Behavior

The actual behavior is that immediately after user creation, the app incorrectly identifies the session as a demo session. This leads to some features and UI states reflecting demo-mode restrictions until the user performs a manual page reload. This can be confusing and frustrating for new users who expect a fully functional experience right from the start.

The expected behavior, on the other hand, is that after successful user creation and authentication, the app should immediately recognize the session as a newly signed-in, non-demo user. There should be no need for a manual page reload to achieve the correct state. The user should be able to access all relevant features and experience the app as intended without any additional steps.

Reproduction Notes and Logs

One of the benefits of this particular issue is that it doesn't require complex log analysis or stack traces. It's a deterministic UI-state bug, meaning it can be reliably reproduced simply by following the steps outlined above. This makes it easier to confirm that a fix is effective.

The observed behavior suggests that the authentication or session state is not fully updated in the client runtime after user creation. This could be due to a missing state refresh, a missing event trigger, or stale cached flags related to the demo mode. Identifying where this update fails is crucial for resolving the issue.

Related Files: Investigation Points

To effectively diagnose and fix this bug, it's essential to pinpoint the areas of the codebase that are most likely involved. Here are some files and modules that warrant a closer look:

  • src/modules/auth/application/services/authService.ts: This file likely contains the core authentication logic and services. It's important to check how user sessions are managed and how the demo mode status is determined.
  • src/entry-client.tsx: This is the entry point for the client-side application. It plays a critical role in initializing the app and setting up the initial state, including authentication status.
  • src/entry-server.tsx: Similar to entry-client.tsx, but for server-side rendering. This file needs to be examined to ensure consistency in how user sessions are handled across the client and server.
  • src/app.tsx: This is the main application component and often manages global state and routing. It's crucial to verify how it handles authentication state changes.
  • src/middleware.ts: Middleware can intercept and modify requests and responses. Checking this file can reveal if any logic is interfering with the authentication flow or session management.
  • src/routes/onboarding.tsx: This file handles the onboarding process for new users. It's essential to ensure that user creation and authentication are correctly handled within this flow.
  • src/routes/login.tsx: This file manages the login process. Reviewing it can help identify potential issues in how user sessions are established.
  • src/routes/index.tsx: The main route file often handles initial authentication checks. It's important to see how it directs users based on their authentication status.
  • src/modules/profile/: This module likely manages user profiles and related data. It's important to ensure that profile data is correctly loaded and displayed after user creation.
  • src/modules/auth/: This entire module is dedicated to authentication-related functionalities. A thorough review of this module is essential to identify the root cause of the bug.

By inspecting these files, developers can gain a better understanding of the authentication flow and identify where the demo mode flag is being incorrectly set or cached.

Environment Details

Understanding the environment in which the bug occurs can also be crucial for debugging. In this case, the issue was observed in the following context:

  • Repository: macroflows
  • Branch: marcuscastelo/issue1390

The absence of .scripts/semver.sh in the repository root meant that the app semver (semantic versioning) could not be automatically fetched. If providing the app version is crucial, it's recommended to attach it manually.

Suggested Investigation Checklist

To streamline the debugging process, a checklist can be incredibly helpful. Here’s a suggested investigation checklist to tackle the "demo mode" bug:

  • Verify where the "demo mode" flag is computed and cached: Identify the exact location in the codebase where the flag is determined and stored. This might be within authService, the client entry point, or a global store.
  • Check the code path executed after account creation: Trace the execution flow after a new account is created. Does the code correctly update the authentication context or global store with the new user data and demo flag?
  • Inspect client-side caching or persisted state: Look for any client-side caching mechanisms (such as localStorage or sessionStorage) that might be overwriting the newly fetched user data with stale information.
  • Confirm event execution after signup: Ensure that any event or revalidation hook that normally runs on app start is also executed after signup. If not, consider forcing a refresh of the authentication state after signup.
  • Review optimistic redirects: Examine any optimistic redirects or redirects that occur without awaiting final user data. These could potentially leave the client in a stale state with demo=true.

By systematically working through this checklist, developers can methodically identify the source of the problem and implement an effective solution.

Priority and Impact

This bug is considered a user-visible issue that directly affects newly onboarded users. It has a high UX impact for first-time sign-ups, as it can create a confusing and incomplete experience. It is highly recommended to fix this bug before the next release, if possible, to ensure a smooth onboarding process for all new users.

Conclusion

The "new users recognized as demo until reload" bug highlights the importance of robust session management and state synchronization in web applications. By understanding the steps to reproduce the issue, identifying the potential problem areas in the codebase, and following a systematic investigation checklist, developers can effectively resolve this bug and ensure a seamless experience for new users. Addressing this issue not only improves user satisfaction but also builds trust in the application.

For further reading on user authentication and session management best practices, check out this article on OWASP. This resource provides valuable insights into securing web applications and ensuring a smooth user experience.