# Sinatra
[![Build Status](https://secure.travis-ci.org/sinatra/sinatra.svg)](http://travis-ci.org/sinatra/sinatra)
Sinatra is a [DSL](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Domain-specific_language) for
quickly creating web applications in Ruby with minimal effort:
```ruby
# myapp.rb
require 'sinatra'
get '/' do
'Hello world!'
end
```
Install the gem:
```shell
gem install sinatra
```
And run with:
```shell
ruby myapp.rb
```
View at: [http://localhost:4567](http://localhost:4567)
It is recommended to also run `gem install thin`, which Sinatra will
pick up if available.
## Table of Contents
* [Sinatra](#sinatra)
* [Table of Contents](#table-of-contents)
* [Routes](#routes)
* [Conditions](#conditions)
* [Return Values](#return-values)
* [Custom Route Matchers](#custom-route-matchers)
* [Static Files](#static-files)
* [Views / Templates](#views--templates)
* [Literal Templates](#literal-templates)
* [Available Template Languages](#available-template-languages)
* [Haml Templates](#haml-templates)
* [Erb Templates](#erb-templates)
* [Builder Templates](#builder-templates)
* [Nokogiri Templates](#nokogiri-templates)
* [Sass Templates](#sass-templates)
* [SCSS Templates](#scss-templates)
* [Less Templates](#less-templates)
* [Liquid Templates](#liquid-templates)
* [Markdown Templates](#markdown-templates)
* [Textile Templates](#textile-templates)
* [RDoc Templates](#rdoc-templates)
* [AsciiDoc Templates](#asciidoc-templates)
* [Radius Templates](#radius-templates)
* [Markaby Templates](#markaby-templates)
* [RABL Templates](#rabl-templates)
* [Slim Templates](#slim-templates)
* [Creole Templates](#creole-templates)
* [MediaWiki Templates](#mediawiki-templates)
* [CoffeeScript Templates](#coffeescript-templates)
* [Stylus Templates](#stylus-templates)
* [Yajl Templates](#yajl-templates)
* [WLang Templates](#wlang-templates)
* [Accessing Variables in Templates](#accessing-variables-in-templates)
* [Templates with `yield` and nested layouts](#templates-with-yield-and-nested-layouts)
* [Inline Templates](#inline-templates)
* [Named Templates](#named-templates)
* [Associating File Extensions](#associating-file-extensions)
* [Adding Your Own Template Engine](#adding-your-own-template-engine)
* [Using Custom Logic for Template Lookup](#using-custom-logic-for-template-lookup)
* [Filters](#filters)
* [Helpers](#helpers)
* [Using Sessions](#using-sessions)
* [Session Secret Security](#session-secret-security)
* [Session Config](#session-config)
* [Choosing Your Own Session Middleware](#choosing-your-own-session-middleware)
* [Halting](#halting)
* [Passing](#passing)
* [Triggering Another Route](#triggering-another-route)
* [Setting Body, Status Code and Headers](#setting-body-status-code-and-headers)
* [Streaming Responses](#streaming-responses)
* [Logging](#logging)
* [Mime Types](#mime-types)
* [Generating URLs](#generating-urls)
* [Browser Redirect](#browser-redirect)
* [Cache Control](#cache-control)
* [Sending Files](#sending-files)
* [Accessing the Request Object](#accessing-the-request-object)
* [Attachments](#attachments)
* [Dealing with Date and Time](#dealing-with-date-and-time)
* [Looking Up Template Files](#looking-up-template-files)
* [Configuration](#configuration)
* [Configuring attack protection](#configuring-attack-protection)
* [Available Settings](#available-settings)
* [Environments](#environments)
* [Error Handling](#error-handling)
* [Not Found](#not-found)
* [Error](#error)
* [Rack Middleware](#rack-middleware)
* [Testing](#testing)
* [Sinatra::Base - Middleware, Libraries, and Modular Apps](#sinatrabase---middleware-libraries-and-modular-apps)
* [Modular vs. Classic Style](#modular-vs-classic-style)
* [Serving a Modular Application](#serving-a-modular-application)
* [Using a Classic Style Application with a config.ru](#using-a-classic-style-application-with-a-configru)
* [When to use a config.ru?](#when-to-use-a-configru)
* [Using Sinatra as Middleware](#using-sinatra-as-middleware)
* [Dynamic Application Creation](#dynamic-application-creation)
* [Scopes and Binding](#scopes-and-binding)
* [Application/Class Scope](#applicationclass-scope)
* [Request/Instance Scope](#requestinstance-scope)
* [Delegation Scope](#delegation-scope)
* [Command Line](#command-line)
* [Multi-threading](#multi-threading)
* [Requirement](#requirement)
* [The Bleeding Edge](#the-bleeding-edge)
* [With Bundler](#with-bundler)
* [Versioning](#versioning)
* [Further Reading](#further-reading)
## Routes
In Sinatra, a route is an HTTP method paired with a URL-matching pattern.
Each route is associated with a block:
```ruby
get '/' do
.. show something ..
end
post '/' do
.. create something ..
end
put '/' do
.. replace something ..
end
patch '/' do
.. modify something ..
end
delete '/' do
.. annihilate something ..
end
options '/' do
.. appease something ..
end
link '/' do
.. affiliate something ..
end
unlink '/' do
.. separate something ..
end
```
Routes are matched in the order they are defined. The first route that
matches the request is invoked.
Routes with trailing slashes are different from the ones without:
```ruby
get '/foo' do
# Does not match "GET /foo/"
end
```
Route patterns may include named parameters, accessible via the
`params` hash:
```ruby
get '/hello/:name' do
# matches "GET /hello/foo" and "GET /hello/bar"
# params['name'] is 'foo' or 'bar'
"Hello #{params['name']}!"
end
```
You can also access named parameters via block parameters:
```ruby
get '/hello/:name' do |n|
# matches "GET /hello/foo" and "GET /hello/bar"
# params['name'] is 'foo' or 'bar'
# n stores params['name']
"Hello #{n}!"
end
```
Route patterns may also include splat (or wildcard) parameters, accessible
via the `params['splat']` array:
```ruby
get '/say/*/to/*' do
# matches /say/hello/to/world
params['splat'] # => ["hello", "world"]
end
get '/download/*.*' do
# matches /download/path/to/file.xml
params['splat'] # => ["path/to/file", "xml"]
end
```
Or with block parameters:
```ruby
get '/download/*.*' do |path, ext|
[path, ext] # => ["path/to/file", "xml"]
end
```
Route matching with Regular Expressions:
```ruby
get /\/hello\/([\w]+)/ do
"Hello, #{params['captures'].first}!"
end
```
Or with a block parameter:
```ruby
get %r{/hello/([\w]+)} do |c|
# Matches "GET /meta/hello/world", "GET /hello/world/1234" etc.
"Hello, #{c}!"
end
```
Route patterns may have optional parameters:
```ruby
get '/posts/:format?' do
# matches "GET /posts/" and any extension "GET /posts/json", "GET /posts/xml" etc
end
```
Routes may also utilize query parameters:
```ruby
get '/posts' do
# matches "GET /posts?title=foo&author=bar"
title = params['title']
author = params['author']
# uses title and author variables; query is optional to the /posts route
end
```
By the way, unless you disable the path traversal attack protection (see
below), the request path might be modified before matching against your
routes.
You may customize the Mustermann options used for a given route by passing in a
`:mustermann_opts` hash:
```ruby
get '\A/posts\z', :mustermann_opts => { :type => :regexp, :check_anchors => false } do
# matches /posts exactly, with explicit anchoring
"If you match an anchored pattern clap your hands!"
end
```
It looks like a [condition](#conditions), but it isn't one! These options will
be merged into the global `:mustermann_opts` hash described
[below](#available-settings).
## Conditions
Routes may include a variety of matching conditions, such as the user agent:
```ruby
get '/foo', :agent => /Songbird (\d\.\d)[\d\/]*?/ do
"You're using Songbird version #{params['agent'][0]}"
end
get '/foo' do
# Matches non-songbird browsers
end
```
Other available conditions are `host_name` and `provides`:
```ruby
get '/', :host_name => /^admin\./ do
"Admin Area, Access denied!"
end
get '/', :provides => 'html' do
haml :index
end
get '/', :provides => ['rss', 'atom', 'xml'] do
builder :feed
end
```
`provides` searches the request's Accept header.
You can easily define your own conditions:
```ruby
set(:probability) { |value| condition { rand <= value } }
get '/win_a_car', :probability => 0.1 do
"You won!"
end
get '/win_a_car' do
"Sorry, you lost."
end
```
For a condition that takes multiple values use a splat:
```ruby
set(:auth) do |*roles| # <- notice the splat here
condition do
unless logged_in? && roles.any? {|role| current_user.in_role? role }
redirect "/login/", 303
end
end
end
get "/my/account/", :auth => [:user, :admin] do
"Your Account Details"
end
get "/only/admin/", :auth => :admin do
"Only admins are allowed here!"
end
```
## Return Values
The return value of a route block determines at least the response body
passed on to the HTTP client, or at least the next middleware in the
Rack stack. Most commonly, this is a string, as in the above examples.
But other values are also accepted.
You can return any object that would either be a valid Rack response, Rack
body object or HTTP status code:
* An Array with three elements: `[status (Fixnum), headers (Hash), response
body (responds to #each)]`
* An Array with two elements: `[status (Fixnum), response body (responds to
#each)]`
* An object that responds to `#each` and passes nothing but strings to
the given block
* A Fixnum representing the status code
That way we can, for instance, easily implement a streaming example:
```ruby
class Stream
def each
100.times { |i| yield "#{i}\n" }
end
end
get('/') { Stream.new }
```
You can also use the `stream` helper method (described below) to reduce
boiler plate and embed the streaming logic in the route.
## Custom Route Matchers
As shown above, Sinatra ships with built-in support for using String
patterns and regular expressions as route matches. However, it does not
stop there. You can easily define your own matchers:
```ruby
class AllButPattern
Match = Struct.new(:captures)
def initialize(except)
@except = except
@captures = Match.new([])
end
def match(str)
@captures unless @except === str
end
end
def all_but(pattern)
AllButPattern.new(pattern)
end
get all_but("/index") do
# ...
end
```
Note that the above example might be over-engineered, as it can also be
expressed as:
```ruby
get // do
pass if request.path_info == "/index"
# ...
end
```
Or, using negative look ahead:
```ruby
get %r{(?!/index)} do
# ...
end
```
## Static Files
Static files are served from the `./public` directory. You can specify
a different location by setting the `:public_folder` option:
```ruby
set :public_folder, File.dirname(__FILE__) + '/static'
```
Note that the public directory name is not included in the URL. A file
`./public/css/style.css` is made available as
`http://example.com/css/style.css`.
Use the `:static_cache_control` setting (see below) to add
`Cache-Control` header info.
## Views / Templates
Each template language is exposed via its own rendering method. These
methods simply return a string:
```ruby
get '/' do
erb :index
end
```
This renders `views/index.erb`.
Instead of a template name, you can also just pass in the template content
directly:
```ruby
get '/' do
code = "<%= Time.now %>"
erb code
end
```
Templates take a second argument, the options hash:
```ruby
get '/' do
erb :index, :layout => :post
end
```
This will render `views/index.erb` embedded in the
`views/post.erb` (default is `views/layout.erb`, if it exists).
Any options not understood by Sinatra will be passed on to the template
engine:
```ruby
get '/' do
haml :index, :format => :html5
end
```
You can also set options per template language in general:
```ruby
set :haml, :format => :html5
get '/' do
haml :index
end
```
Options passed to the render method override options set via `set`.
Available Options:
- locals
-
List of locals passed to the document. Handy with partials.
Example: erb "<%= foo %>", :locals => {:foo => "bar"}
- default_encoding
-
String encoding to use if uncertain. Defaults to
settings.default_encoding.
- views
-
Views folder to load templates from. Defaults to settings.views.
- layout
-
Whether to use a layout (true or false). If it's a
Symbol, specifies what template to use. Example:
erb :index, :layout => !request.xhr?
- content_type
-
Content-Type the template produces. Default depends on template language.
- scope
-
Scope to render template under. Defaults to the application
instance. If you change this, instance variables and helper methods
will not be available.
- layout_engine
-
Template engine to use for rendering the layout. Useful for
languages that do not support layouts otherwise. Defaults to the
engine used for the template. Example: set :rdoc, :layout_engine
=> :erb
- layout_options
-
Special options only used for rendering the layout. Example:
set :rdoc, :layout_options => { :views => 'views/layouts' }
Templates are assumed to be located directly under the `./views`
directory. To use a different views directory:
```ruby
set :views, settings.root + '/templates'
```
One important thing to remember is that you always have to reference
templates with symbols, even if they're in a subdirectory (in this case,
use: `:'subdir/template'` or `'subdir/template'.to_sym`). You must use a
symbol because otherwise rendering methods will render any strings
passed to them directly.
### Literal Templates
```ruby
get '/' do
haml '%div.title Hello World'
end
```
Renders the template string. You can optionally specify `:path` and
`:line` for a clearer backtrace if there is a filesystem path or line
associated with that string:
```ruby
get '/' do
haml '%div.title Hello World', :path => 'examples/file.haml', :line => 3
end
```
### Available Template Languages
Some languages have multiple implementations. To specify what implementation
to use (and to be thread-safe), you should simply require it first:
```ruby
require 'rdiscount' # or require 'bluecloth'
get('/') { markdown :index }
```
#### Haml Templates
Dependency |
haml |
File Extension |
.haml |
Example |
haml :index, :format => :html5 |
#### Erb Templates
Dependency |
erubis
or erb (included in Ruby)
|
File Extensions |
.erb, .rhtml or .erubis (Erubis only) |
Example |
erb :index |
#### Builder Templates
Dependency |
builder
|
File Extension |
.builder |
Example |
builder { |xml| xml.em "hi" } |
It also takes a block for inline templates (see example).
#### Nokogiri Templates
Dependency |
nokogiri |
File Extension |
.nokogiri |
Example |
nokogiri { |xml| xml.em "hi" } |
It also takes a block for inline templates (see example).
#### Sass Templates
Dependency |
sass |
File Extension |
.sass |
Example |
sass :stylesheet, :style => :expanded |
#### SCSS Templates
Dependency |
sass |
File Extension |
.scss |
Example |
scss :stylesheet, :style => :expanded |
#### Less Templates
Dependency |
less |
File Extension |
.less |
Example |
less :stylesheet |
#### Liquid Templates
Dependency |
liquid |
File Extension |
.liquid |
Example |
liquid :index, :locals => { :key => 'value' } |
Since you cannot call Ruby methods (except for `yield`) from a Liquid
template, you almost always want to pass locals to it.
#### Markdown Templates
It is not possible to call methods from Markdown, nor to pass locals to it.
You therefore will usually use it in combination with another rendering
engine:
```ruby
erb :overview, :locals => { :text => markdown(:introduction) }
```
Note that you may also call the `markdown` method from within other
templates:
```ruby
%h1 Hello From Haml!
%p= markdown(:greetings)
```
Since you cannot call Ruby from Markdown, you cannot use layouts written in
Markdown. However, it is possible to use another rendering engine for the
template than for the layout by passing the `:layout_engine` option.
#### Textile Templates
Dependency |
RedCloth |
File Extension |
.textile |
Example |
textile :index, :layout_engine => :erb |
It is not possible to call methods from Textile, nor to pass locals to
it. You therefore will usually use it in combination with another
rendering engine:
```ruby
erb :overview, :locals => { :text => textile(:introduction) }
```
Note that you may also call the `textile` method from within other templates:
```ruby
%h1 Hello From Haml!
%p= textile(:greetings)
```
Since you cannot call Ruby from Textile, you cannot use layouts written in
Textile. However, it is possible to use another rendering engine for the
template than for the layout by passing the `:layout_engine` option.
#### RDoc Templates
Dependency |
RDoc |
File Extension |
.rdoc |
Example |
rdoc :README, :layout_engine => :erb |
It is not possible to call methods from RDoc, nor to pass locals to it. You
therefore will usually use it in combination with another rendering engine:
```ruby
erb :overview, :locals => { :text => rdoc(:introduction) }
```
Note that you may also call the `rdoc` method from within other templates:
```ruby
%h1 Hello From Haml!
%p= rdoc(:greetings)
```
Since you cannot call Ruby from RDoc, you cannot use layouts written in
RDoc. However, it is possible to use another rendering engine for the
template than for the layout by passing the `:layout_engine` option.
#### AsciiDoc Templates
Dependency |
Asciidoctor |
File Extension |
.asciidoc, .adoc and .ad |
Example |
asciidoc :README, :layout_engine => :erb |
Since you cannot call Ruby methods directly from an AsciiDoc template, you
almost always want to pass locals to it.
#### Radius Templates
Dependency |
Radius |
File Extension |
.radius |
Example |
radius :index, :locals => { :key => 'value' } |
Since you cannot call Ruby methods directly from a Radius template, you
almost always want to pass locals to it.
#### Markaby Templates
Dependency |
Markaby |
File Extension |
.mab |
Example |
markaby { h1 "Welcome!" } |
It also takes a block for inline templates (see example).
#### RABL Templates
Dependency |
Rabl |
File Extension |
.rabl |
Example |
rabl :index |
#### Slim Templates
Dependency |
Slim Lang |
File Extension |
.slim |
Example |
slim :index |
#### Creole Templates
Dependency |
Creole |
File Extension |
.creole |
Example |
creole :wiki, :layout_engine => :erb |
It is not possible to call methods from Creole, nor to pass locals to it. You
therefore will usually use it in combination with another rendering engine:
```ruby
erb :overview, :locals => { :text => creole(:introduction) }
```
Note that you may also call the `creole` method from within other templates:
```ruby
%h1 Hello From Haml!
%p= creole(:greetings)
```
Since you cannot call Ruby from Creole, you cannot use layouts written in
Creole. However, it is possible to use another rendering engine for the
template than for the layout by passing the `:layout_engine` option.
#### MediaWiki Templates
Dependency |
WikiCloth |
File Extension |
.mediawiki and .mw |
Example |
mediawiki :wiki, :layout_engine => :erb |
It is not possible to call methods from MediaWiki markup, nor to pass
locals to it. You therefore will usually use it in combination with
another rendering engine:
```ruby
erb :overview, :locals => { :text => mediawiki(:introduction) }
```
Note that you may also call the `mediawiki` method from within other
templates:
```ruby
%h1 Hello From Haml!
%p= mediawiki(:greetings)
```
Since you cannot call Ruby from MediaWiki, you cannot use layouts written in
MediaWiki. However, it is possible to use another rendering engine for the
template than for the layout by passing the `:layout_engine` option.
#### CoffeeScript Templates
#### Stylus Templates
Before being able to use Stylus templates, you need to load `stylus` and
`stylus/tilt` first:
```ruby
require 'sinatra'
require 'stylus'
require 'stylus/tilt'
get '/' do
stylus :example
end
```
#### Yajl Templates
Dependency |
yajl-ruby |
File Extension |
.yajl |
Example |
yajl :index,
:locals => { :key => 'qux' },
:callback => 'present',
:variable => 'resource'
|
The template source is evaluated as a Ruby string, and the
resulting json variable is converted using `#to_json`:
```ruby
json = { :foo => 'bar' }
json[:baz] = key
```
The `:callback` and `:variable` options can be used to decorate the rendered
object:
```javascript
var resource = {"foo":"bar","baz":"qux"};
present(resource);
```
#### WLang Templates
Dependency |
WLang |
File Extension |
.wlang |
Example |
wlang :index, :locals => { :key => 'value' } |
Since calling ruby methods is not idiomatic in WLang, you almost always
want to pass locals to it. Layouts written in WLang and `yield` are
supported, though.
### Accessing Variables in Templates
Templates are evaluated within the same context as route handlers. Instance
variables set in route handlers are directly accessible by templates:
```ruby
get '/:id' do
@foo = Foo.find(params['id'])
haml '%h1= @foo.name'
end
```
Or, specify an explicit Hash of local variables:
```ruby
get '/:id' do
foo = Foo.find(params['id'])
haml '%h1= bar.name', :locals => { :bar => foo }
end
```
This is typically used when rendering templates as partials from within
other templates.
### Templates with `yield` and nested layouts
A layout is usually just a template that calls `yield`.
Such a template can be used either through the `:template` option as
described above, or it can be rendered with a block as follows:
```ruby
erb :post, :layout => false do
erb :index
end
```
This code is mostly equivalent to `erb :index, :layout => :post`.
Passing blocks to rendering methods is most useful for creating nested
layouts:
```ruby
erb :main_layout, :layout => false do
erb :admin_layout do
erb :user
end
end
```
This can also be done in fewer lines of code with:
```ruby
erb :admin_layout, :layout => :main_layout do
erb :user
end
```
Currently, the following rendering methods accept a block: `erb`, `haml`,
`liquid`, `slim `, `wlang`. Also the general `render` method accepts a block.
### Inline Templates
Templates may be defined at the end of the source file:
```ruby
require 'sinatra'
get '/' do
haml :index
end
__END__
@@ layout
%html
= yield
@@ index
%div.title Hello world.
```
NOTE: Inline templates defined in the source file that requires sinatra are
automatically loaded. Call `enable :inline_templates` explicitly if you
have inline templates in other source files.
### Named Templates
Templates may also be defined using the top-level `template` method:
```ruby
template :layout do
"%html\n =yield\n"
end
template :index do
'%div.title Hello World!'
end
get '/' do
haml :index
end
```
If a template named "layout" exists, it will be used each time a template
is rendered. You can individually disable layouts by passing
`:layout => false` or disable them by default via
`set :haml, :layout => false`:
```ruby
get '/' do
haml :index, :layout => !request.xhr?
end
```
### Associating File Extensions
To associate a file extension with a template engine, use
`Tilt.register`. For instance, if you like to use the file extension
`tt` for Textile templates, you can do the following:
```ruby
Tilt.register :tt, Tilt[:textile]
```
### Adding Your Own Template Engine
First, register your engine with Tilt, then create a rendering method:
```ruby
Tilt.register :myat, MyAwesomeTemplateEngine
helpers do
def myat(*args) render(:myat, *args) end
end
get '/' do
myat :index
end
```
Renders `./views/index.myat`. See https://github.com/rtomayko/tilt to
learn more about Tilt.
### Using Custom Logic for Template Lookup
To implement your own template lookup mechanism you can write your
own `#find_template` method:
```ruby
configure do
set :views [ './views/a', './views/b' ]
end
def find_template(views, name, engine, &block)
Array(views).each do |v|
super(v, name, engine, &block)
end
end
```
## Filters
Before filters are evaluated before each request within the same context
as the routes will be and can modify the request and response. Instance
variables set in filters are accessible by routes and templates:
```ruby
before do
@note = 'Hi!'
request.path_info = '/foo/bar/baz'
end
get '/foo/*' do
@note #=> 'Hi!'
params['splat'] #=> 'bar/baz'
end
```
After filters are evaluated after each request within the same context
as the routes will be and can also modify the request and response.
Instance variables set in before filters and routes are accessible by
after filters:
```ruby
after do
puts response.status
end
```
Note: Unless you use the `body` method rather than just returning a
String from the routes, the body will not yet be available in the after
filter, since it is generated later on.
Filters optionally take a pattern, causing them to be evaluated only if the
request path matches that pattern:
```ruby
before '/protected/*' do
authenticate!
end
after '/create/:slug' do |slug|
session[:last_slug] = slug
end
```
Like routes, filters also take conditions:
```ruby
before :agent => /Songbird/ do
# ...
end
after '/blog/*', :host_name => 'example.com' do
# ...
end
```
## Helpers
Use the top-level `helpers` method to define helper methods for use in
route handlers and templates:
```ruby
helpers do
def bar(name)
"#{name}bar"
end
end
get '/:name' do
bar(params['name'])
end
```
Alternatively, helper methods can be separately defined in a module:
```ruby
module FooUtils
def foo(name) "#{name}foo" end
end
module BarUtils
def bar(name) "#{name}bar" end
end
helpers FooUtils, BarUtils
```
The effect is the same as including the modules in the application class.
### Using Sessions
A session is used to keep state during requests. If activated, you have one
session hash per user session:
```ruby
enable :sessions
get '/' do
"value = " << session[:value].inspect
end
get '/:value' do
session['value'] = params['value']
end
```
#### Session Secret Security
To improve security, the session data in the cookie is signed with a session
secret using `HMAC-SHA1`. This session secret should optimally be a
cryptographically secure random value of an appropriate length which for
`HMAC-SHA1` is greater than or equal to 64 bytes (512 bits, 128 hex
characters). You would be advised not to use a secret that is less than 32
bytes of randomness (256 bits, 64 hex characters). It is therefore **very
important** that you don't just make the secret up, but instead use a secure
random number generator to create it. Humans are extremely bad at generating
random values.
By default, a 32 byte secure random session secret is generated for you by
Sinatra, but it will change with every restart of your application. If you
have multiple instances of your application, and you let Sinatra generate the
key, each instance would then have a different session key which is probably
not what you want.
For better security and usability it's
[recommended](https://12factor.net/config) that you generate a secure random
secret and store it in an environment variable on each host running your
application so that all of your application instances will share the same
secret. You should periodically rotate this session secret to a new value.
Here are some examples of how you might create a 64 byte secret and set it:
**Session Secret Generation**
```text
$ ruby -e "require 'securerandom'; puts SecureRandom.hex(64)"
99ae8af...snip...ec0f262ac
```
**Session Secret Generation (Bonus Points)**
Use the [sysrandom gem](https://github.com/cryptosphere/sysrandom) to prefer
use of system RNG facilities to generate random values instead of
userspace `OpenSSL` which MRI Ruby currently defaults to:
```text
$ gem install sysrandom
Building native extensions. This could take a while...
Successfully installed sysrandom-1.x
1 gem installed
$ ruby -e "require 'sysrandom/securerandom'; puts SecureRandom.hex(64)"
99ae8af...snip...ec0f262ac
```
**Session Secret Environment Variable**
Set a `SESSION_SECRET` environment variable for Sinatra to the value you
generated. Make this value persistent across reboots of your host. Since the
method for doing this will vary across systems this is for illustrative
purposes only:
```bash
# echo "export SESSION_SECRET=99ae8af...snip...ec0f262ac" >> ~/.bashrc
```
**Session Secret App Config**
Setup your app config to fail-safe to a secure random secret
if the `SESSION_SECRET` environment variable is not available.
For bonus points use the [sysrandom
gem](https://github.com/cryptosphere/sysrandom) here as well:
```ruby
require 'securerandom'
# -or- require 'sysrandom/securerandom'
set :session_secret, ENV.fetch('SESSION_SECRET') { SecureRandom.hex(64) }
```
#### Session Config
If you want to configure it further, you may also store a hash with options
in the `sessions` setting:
```ruby
set :sessions, :domain => 'foo.com'
```
To share your session across other apps on subdomains of foo.com, prefix the
domain with a *.* like this instead:
```ruby
set :sessions, :domain => '.foo.com'
```
#### Choosing Your Own Session Middleware
Note that `enable :sessions` actually stores all data in a cookie. This
might not always be what you want (storing lots of data will increase your
traffic, for instance). You can use any Rack session middleware in order to
do so, one of the following methods can be used:
```ruby
enable :sessions
set :session_store, Rack::Session::Pool
```
Or to set up sessions with a hash of options:
```ruby
set :sessions, :expire_after => 2592000
set :session_store, Rack::Session::Pool
```
Another option is to **not** call `enable :sessions`, but instead pull in
your middleware of choice as you would any other middleware.
It is important to note that when using this method, session based
protection **will not be enabled by default**.
The Rack middleware to do that will also need to be added:
```ruby
use Rack::Session::Pool, :expire_after => 2592000
use Rack::Protection::RemoteToken
use Rack::Protection::SessionHijacking
```
See 'Configuring attack protection' for more information.
### Halting
To immediately stop a request within a filter or route use:
```ruby
halt
```
You can also specify the status when halting:
```ruby
halt 410
```
Or the body:
```ruby
halt 'this will be the body'
```
Or both:
```ruby
halt 401, 'go away!'
```
With headers:
```ruby
halt 402, {'Content-Type' => 'text/plain'}, 'revenge'
```
It is of course possible to combine a template with `halt`:
```ruby
halt erb(:error)
```
### Passing
A route can punt processing to the next matching route using `pass`:
```ruby
get '/guess/:who' do
pass unless params['who'] == 'Frank'
'You got me!'
end
get '/guess/*' do
'You missed!'
end
```
The route block is immediately exited and control continues with the next
matching route. If no matching route is found, a 404 is returned.
### Triggering Another Route
Sometimes `pass` is not what you want, instead you would like to get the
result of calling another route. Simply use `call` to achieve this:
```ruby
get '/foo' do
status, headers, body = call env.merge("PATH_INFO" => '/bar')
[status, headers, body.map(&:upcase)]
end
get '/bar' do
"bar"
end
```
Note that in the example above, you would ease testing and increase
performance by simply moving `"bar"` into a helper used by both `/foo` and
`/bar`.
If you want the request to be sent to the same application instance rather
than a duplicate, use `call!` instead of `call`.
Check out the Rack specification if you want to learn more about `call`.
### Setting Body, Status Code and Headers
It is possible and recommended to set the status code and response body with
the return value of the route block. However, in some scenarios you might
want to set the body at an arbitrary point in the execution flow. You can do
so with the `body` helper method. If you do so, you can use that method from
there on to access the body:
```ruby
get '/foo' do
body "bar"
end
after do
puts body
end
```
It is also possible to pass a block to `body`, which will be executed by the
Rack handler (this can be used to implement streaming, see "Return Values").
Similar to the body, you can also set the status code and headers:
```ruby
get '/foo' do
status 418
headers \
"Allow" => "BREW, POST, GET, PROPFIND, WHEN",
"Refresh" => "Refresh: 20; http://www.ietf.org/rfc/rfc2324.txt"
body "I'm a tea pot!"
end
```
Like `body`, `headers` and `status` with no arguments can be used to access
their current values.
### Streaming Responses
Sometimes you want to start sending out data while still generating parts of
the response body. In extreme examples, you want to keep sending data until
the client closes the connection. You can use the `stream` helper to avoid
creating your own wrapper:
```ruby
get '/' do
stream do |out|
out << "It's gonna be legen -\n"
sleep 0.5
out << " (wait for it) \n"
sleep 1
out << "- dary!\n"
end
end
```
This allows you to implement streaming APIs,
[Server Sent Events](https://w3c.github.io/eventsource/), and can be used as
the basis for [WebSockets](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WebSocket). It can
also be used to increase throughput if some but not all content depends on a
slow resource.
Note that the streaming behavior, especially the number of concurrent
requests, highly depends on the web server used to serve the application.
Some servers might not even support streaming at all. If the server does not
support streaming, the body will be sent all at once after the block passed
to `stream` finishes executing. Streaming does not work at all with Shotgun.
If the optional parameter is set to `keep_open`, it will not call `close` on
the stream object, allowing you to close it at any later point in the
execution flow. This only works on evented servers, like Thin and Rainbows.
Other servers will still close the stream:
```ruby
# long polling
set :server, :thin
connections = []
get '/subscribe' do
# register a client's interest in server events
stream(:keep_open) do |out|
connections << out
# purge dead connections
connections.reject!(&:closed?)
end
end
post '/:message' do
connections.each do |out|
# notify client that a new message has arrived
out << params['message'] << "\n"
# indicate client to connect again
out.close
end
# acknowledge
"message received"
end
```
It's also possible for the client to close the connection when trying to
write to the socket. Because of this, it's recommended to check
`out.closed?` before trying to write.
### Logging
In the request scope, the `logger` helper exposes a `Logger` instance:
```ruby
get '/' do
logger.info "loading data"
# ...
end
```
This logger will automatically take your Rack handler's logging settings into
account. If logging is disabled, this method will return a dummy object, so
you do not have to worry about it in your routes and filters.
Note that logging is only enabled for `Sinatra::Application` by default, so
if you inherit from `Sinatra::Base`, you probably want to enable it yourself:
```ruby
class MyApp < Sinatra::Base
configure :production, :development do
enable :logging
end
end
```
To avoid any logging middleware to be set up, set the `logging` setting to
`nil`. However, keep in mind that `logger` will in that case return `nil`. A
common use case is when you want to set your own logger. Sinatra will use
whatever it will find in `env['rack.logger']`.
### Mime Types
When using `send_file` or static files you may have mime types Sinatra
doesn't understand. Use `mime_type` to register them by file extension:
```ruby
configure do
mime_type :foo, 'text/foo'
end
```
You can also use it with the `content_type` helper:
```ruby
get '/' do
content_type :foo
"foo foo foo"
end
```
### Generating URLs
For generating URLs you should use the `url` helper method, for instance, in
Haml:
```ruby
%a{:href => url('/foo')} foo
```
It takes reverse proxies and Rack routers into account, if present.
This method is also aliased to `to` (see below for an example).
### Browser Redirect
You can trigger a browser redirect with the `redirect` helper method:
```ruby
get '/foo' do
redirect to('/bar')
end
```
Any additional parameters are handled like arguments passed to `halt`:
```ruby
redirect to('/bar'), 303
redirect 'http://www.google.com/', 'wrong place, buddy'
```
You can also easily redirect back to the page the user came from with
`redirect back`:
```ruby
get '/foo' do
"do something"
end
get '/bar' do
do_something
redirect back
end
```
To pass arguments with a redirect, either add them to the query:
```ruby
redirect to('/bar?sum=42')
```
Or use a session:
```ruby
enable :sessions
get '/foo' do
session[:secret] = 'foo'
redirect to('/bar')
end
get '/bar' do
session[:secret]
end
```
### Cache Control
Setting your headers correctly is the foundation for proper HTTP caching.
You can easily set the Cache-Control header like this:
```ruby
get '/' do
cache_control :public
"cache it!"
end
```
Pro tip: Set up caching in a before filter:
```ruby
before do
cache_control :public, :must_revalidate, :max_age => 60
end
```
If you are using the `expires` helper to set the corresponding header,
`Cache-Control` will be set automatically for you:
```ruby
before do
expires 500, :public, :must_revalidate
end
```
To properly use caches, you should consider using `etag` or `last_modified`.
It is recommended to call those helpers *before* doing any heavy lifting, as
they will immediately flush a response if the client already has the current
version in its cache:
```ruby
get "/article/:id" do
@article = Article.find params['id']
last_modified @article.updated_at
etag @article.sha1
erb :article
end
```
It is also possible to use a
[weak ETag](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HTTP_ETag#Strong_and_weak_validation):
```ruby
etag @article.sha1, :weak
```
These helpers will not do any caching for you, but rather feed the necessary
information to your cache. If you are looking for a quick
reverse-proxy caching solution, try
[rack-cache](https://github.com/rtomayko/rack-cache):
```ruby
require "rack/cache"
require "sinatra"
use Rack::Cache
get '/' do
cache_control :public, :max_age => 36000
sleep 5
"hello"
end
```
Use the `:static_cache_control` setting (see below) to add
`Cache-Control` header info to static files.
According to RFC 2616, your application should behave differently if the
If-Match or If-None-Match header is set to `*`, depending on whether the
resource requested is already in existence. Sinatra assumes resources for
safe (like get) and idempotent (like put) requests are already in existence,
whereas other resources (for instance post requests) are treated as new
resources. You can change this behavior by passing in a `:new_resource`
option:
```ruby
get '/create' do
etag '', :new_resource => true
Article.create
erb :new_article
end
```
If you still want to use a weak ETag, pass in a `:kind` option:
```ruby
etag '', :new_resource => true, :kind => :weak
```
### Sending Files
To return the contents of a file as the response, you can use the `send_file`
helper method:
```ruby
get '/' do
send_file 'foo.png'
end
```
It also takes options:
```ruby
send_file 'foo.png', :type => :jpg
```
The options are:
- filename
- File name to be used in the response,
defaults to the real file name.
- last_modified
- Value for Last-Modified header, defaults to the file's mtime.
- type
- Value for Content-Type header, guessed from the file extension if
missing.
- disposition
-
Value for Content-Disposition header, possible values: nil
(default), :attachment and :inline
- length
- Value for Content-Length header, defaults to file size.
- status
-
Status code to be sent. Useful when sending a static file as an error
page. If supported by the Rack handler, other means than streaming
from the Ruby process will be used. If you use this helper method,
Sinatra will automatically handle range requests.
### Accessing the Request Object
The incoming request object can be accessed from request level (filter,
routes, error handlers) through the `request` method:
```ruby
# app running on http://example.com/example
get '/foo' do
t = %w[text/css text/html application/javascript]
request.accept # ['text/html', '*/*']
request.accept? 'text/xml' # true
request.preferred_type(t) # 'text/html'
request.body # request body sent by the client (see below)
request.scheme # "http"
request.script_name # "/example"
request.path_info # "/foo"
request.port # 80
request.request_method # "GET"
request.query_string # ""
request.content_length # length of request.body
request.media_type # media type of request.body
request.host # "example.com"
request.get? # true (similar methods for other verbs)
request.form_data? # false
request["some_param"] # value of some_param parameter. [] is a shortcut to the params hash.
request.referrer # the referrer of the client or '/'
request.user_agent # user agent (used by :agent condition)
request.cookies # hash of browser cookies
request.xhr? # is this an ajax request?
request.url # "http://example.com/example/foo"
request.path # "/example/foo"
request.ip # client IP address
request.secure? # false (would be true over ssl)
request.forwarded? # true (if running behind a reverse proxy)
request.env # raw env hash handed in by Rack
end
```
Some options, like `script_name` or `path_info`, can also be written:
```ruby
before { request.path_info = "/" }
get "/" do
"all requests end up here"
end
```
The `request.body` is an IO or StringIO object:
```ruby
post "/api" do
request.body.rewind # in case someone already read it
data = JSON.parse request.body.read
"Hello #{data['name']}!"
end
```
### Attachments
You can use the `attachment` helper to tell the browser the response should
be stored on disk rather than displayed in the browser:
```ruby
get '/' do
attachment
"store it!"
end
```
You can also pass it a file name:
```ruby
get '/' do
attachment "info.txt"
"store it!"
end
```
### Dealing with Date and Time
Sinatra offers a `time_for` helper method that generates a Time object from
the given value. It is also able to convert `DateTime`, `Date` and similar
classes:
```ruby
get '/' do
pass if Time.now > time_for('Dec 23, 2016')
"still time"
end
```
This method is used internally by `expires`, `last_modified` and akin. You
can therefore easily extend the behavior of those methods by overriding
`time_for` in your application:
```ruby
helpers do
def time_for(value)
case value
when :yesterday then Time.now - 24*60*60
when :tomorrow then Time.now + 24*60*60
else super
end
end
end
get '/' do
last_modified :yesterday
expires :tomorrow
"hello"
end
```
### Looking Up Template Files
The `find_template` helper is used to find template files for rendering:
```ruby
find_template settings.views, 'foo', Tilt[:haml] do |file|
puts "could be #{file}"
end
```
This is not really useful. But it is useful that you can actually override
this method to hook in your own lookup mechanism. For instance, if you want
to be able to use more than one view directory:
```ruby
set :views, ['views', 'templates']
helpers do
def find_template(views, name, engine, &block)
Array(views).each { |v| super(v, name, engine, &block) }
end
end
```
Another example would be using different directories for different engines:
```ruby
set :views, :sass => 'views/sass', :haml => 'templates', :default => 'views'
helpers do
def find_template(views, name, engine, &block)
_, folder = views.detect { |k,v| engine == Tilt[k] }
folder ||= views[:default]
super(folder, name, engine, &block)
end
end
```
You can also easily wrap this up in an extension and share with others!
Note that `find_template` does not check if the file really exists but
rather calls the given block for all possible paths. This is not a
performance issue, since `render` will use `break` as soon as a file is
found. Also, template locations (and content) will be cached if you are not
running in development mode. You should keep that in mind if you write a
really crazy method.
## Configuration
Run once, at startup, in any environment:
```ruby
configure do
# setting one option
set :option, 'value'
# setting multiple options
set :a => 1, :b => 2
# same as `set :option, true`
enable :option
# same as `set :option, false`
disable :option
# you can also have dynamic settings with blocks
set(:css_dir) { File.join(views, 'css') }
end
```
Run only when the environment (`APP_ENV` environment variable) is set to
`:production`:
```ruby
configure :production do
...
end
```
Run when the environment is set to either `:production` or `:test`:
```ruby
configure :production, :test do
...
end
```
You can access those options via `settings`:
```ruby
configure do
set :foo, 'bar'
end
get '/' do
settings.foo? # => true
settings.foo # => 'bar'
...
end
```
### Configuring attack protection
Sinatra is using
[Rack::Protection](https://github.com/sinatra/rack-protection#readme) to
defend your application against common, opportunistic attacks. You can
easily disable this behavior (which will open up your application to tons
of common vulnerabilities):
```ruby
disable :protection
```
To skip a single defense layer, set `protection` to an options hash:
```ruby
set :protection, :except => :path_traversal
```
You can also hand in an array in order to disable a list of protections:
```ruby
set :protection, :except => [:path_traversal, :session_hijacking]
```
By default, Sinatra will only set up session based protection if `:sessions`
have been enabled. See 'Using Sessions'. Sometimes you may want to set up
sessions "outside" of the Sinatra app, such as in the config.ru or with a
separate `Rack::Builder` instance. In that case you can still set up session
based protection by passing the `:session` option:
```ruby
set :protection, :session => true
```
### Available Settings
- absolute_redirects
-
If disabled, Sinatra will allow relative redirects, however, Sinatra
will no longer conform with RFC 2616 (HTTP 1.1), which only allows
absolute redirects.
-
Enable if your app is running behind a reverse proxy that has not been
set up properly. Note that the url helper will still produce
absolute URLs, unless you pass in false as the second
parameter.
- Disabled by default.
- add_charset
-
Mime types the content_type helper will automatically add the
charset info to. You should add to it rather than overriding this
option: settings.add_charset << "application/foobar"
- app_file
-
Path to the main application file, used to detect project root, views
and public folder and inline templates.
- bind
-
IP address to bind to (default: 0.0.0.0 or
localhost if your `environment` is set to development). Only
used for built-in server.
- default_encoding
- Encoding to assume if unknown (defaults to "utf-8").
- dump_errors
- Display errors in the log.
- environment
-
Current environment. Defaults to ENV['APP_ENV'], or
"development" if not available.
- logging
- Use the logger.
- lock
-
Places a lock around every request, only running processing on request
per Ruby process concurrently.
- Enabled if your app is not thread-safe. Disabled by default.
- method_override
-
Use _method magic to allow put/delete forms in browsers that
don't support it.
- mustermann_opts
-
A default hash of options to pass to Mustermann.new when compiling routing
paths.
- port
- Port to listen on. Only used for built-in server.
- prefixed_redirects
-
Whether or not to insert request.script_name into redirects
if no absolute path is given. That way redirect '/foo' would
behave like redirect to('/foo'). Disabled by default.
- protection
-
Whether or not to enable web attack protections. See protection section
above.
- public_dir
- Alias for public_folder. See below.
- public_folder
-
Path to the folder public files are served from. Only used if static
file serving is enabled (see static setting below). Inferred
from app_file setting if not set.
- quiet
-
Disables logs generated by Sinatra's start and stop commands.
false by default.
- reload_templates
-
Whether or not to reload templates between requests. Enabled in
development mode.
- root
-
Path to project root folder. Inferred from app_file setting
if not set.
- raise_errors
-
Raise exceptions (will stop application). Enabled by default when
environment is set to "test", disabled otherwise.
- run
-
If enabled, Sinatra will handle starting the web server. Do not
enable if using rackup or other means.
- running
- Is the built-in server running now? Do not change this setting!
- server
-
Server or list of servers to use for built-in server. Order indicates
priority, default depends on Ruby implementation.
- sessions
-
Enable cookie-based sessions support using
Rack::Session::Cookie. See 'Using Sessions' section for more
information.
- session_store
-
The Rack session middleware used. Defaults to
Rack::Session::Cookie. See 'Using Sessions' section for more
information.
- show_exceptions
-
Show a stack trace in the browser when an exception happens. Enabled by
default when environment is set to "development",
disabled otherwise.
-
Can also be set to :after_handler to trigger app-specified
error handling before showing a stack trace in the browser.
- static
- Whether Sinatra should handle serving static files.
- Disable when using a server able to do this on its own.
- Disabling will boost performance.
-
Enabled by default in classic style, disabled for modular apps.
- static_cache_control
-
When Sinatra is serving static files, set this to add
Cache-Control headers to the responses. Uses the
cache_control helper. Disabled by default.
-
Use an explicit array when setting multiple values:
set :static_cache_control, [:public, :max_age => 300]
- threaded
-
If set to true, will tell Thin to use
EventMachine.defer for processing the request.
- traps
- Whether Sinatra should handle system signals.
- views
-
Path to the views folder. Inferred from app_file setting if
not set.
- x_cascade
-
Whether or not to set the X-Cascade header if no route matches.
Defaults to true.
## Environments
There are three predefined `environments`: `"development"`,
`"production"` and `"test"`. Environments can be set through the
`APP_ENV` environment variable. The default value is `"development"`.
In the `"development"` environment all templates are reloaded between
requests, and special `not_found` and `error` handlers display stack
traces in your browser. In the `"production"` and `"test"` environments,
templates are cached by default.
To run different environments, set the `APP_ENV` environment variable:
```shell
APP_ENV=production ruby my_app.rb
```
You can use predefined methods: `development?`, `test?` and `production?` to
check the current environment setting:
```ruby
get '/' do
if settings.development?
"development!"
else
"not development!"
end
end
```
## Error Handling
Error handlers run within the same context as routes and before filters,
which means you get all the goodies it has to offer, like `haml`, `erb`,
`halt`, etc.
### Not Found
When a `Sinatra::NotFound` exception is raised, or the response's status
code is 404, the `not_found` handler is invoked:
```ruby
not_found do
'This is nowhere to be found.'
end
```
### Error
The `error` handler is invoked any time an exception is raised from a route
block or a filter. But note in development it will only run if you set the
show exceptions option to `:after_handler`:
```ruby
set :show_exceptions, :after_handler
```
The exception object can be obtained from the `sinatra.error` Rack variable:
```ruby
error do
'Sorry there was a nasty error - ' + env['sinatra.error'].message
end
```
Custom errors:
```ruby
error MyCustomError do
'So what happened was...' + env['sinatra.error'].message
end
```
Then, if this happens:
```ruby
get '/' do
raise MyCustomError, 'something bad'
end
```
You get this:
```
So what happened was... something bad
```
Alternatively, you can install an error handler for a status code:
```ruby
error 403 do
'Access forbidden'
end
get '/secret' do
403
end
```
Or a range:
```ruby
error 400..510 do
'Boom'
end
```
Sinatra installs special `not_found` and `error` handlers when
running under the development environment to display nice stack traces
and additional debugging information in your browser.
## Rack Middleware
Sinatra rides on [Rack](http://rack.github.io/), a minimal standard
interface for Ruby web frameworks. One of Rack's most interesting
capabilities for application developers is support for "middleware" --
components that sit between the server and your application monitoring
and/or manipulating the HTTP request/response to provide various types
of common functionality.
Sinatra makes building Rack middleware pipelines a cinch via a top-level
`use` method:
```ruby
require 'sinatra'
require 'my_custom_middleware'
use Rack::Lint
use MyCustomMiddleware
get '/hello' do
'Hello World'
end
```
The semantics of `use` are identical to those defined for the
[Rack::Builder](http://www.rubydoc.info/github/rack/rack/master/Rack/Builder) DSL
(most frequently used from rackup files). For example, the `use` method
accepts multiple/variable args as well as blocks:
```ruby
use Rack::Auth::Basic do |username, password|
username == 'admin' && password == 'secret'
end
```
Rack is distributed with a variety of standard middleware for logging,
debugging, URL routing, authentication, and session handling. Sinatra uses
many of these components automatically based on configuration so you
typically don't have to `use` them explicitly.
You can find useful middleware in
[rack](https://github.com/rack/rack/tree/master/lib/rack),
[rack-contrib](https://github.com/rack/rack-contrib#readm),
or in the [Rack wiki](https://github.com/rack/rack/wiki/List-of-Middleware).
## Testing
Sinatra tests can be written using any Rack-based testing library or
framework.
[Rack::Test](http://www.rubydoc.info/github/brynary/rack-test/master/frames)
is recommended:
```ruby
require 'my_sinatra_app'
require 'minitest/autorun'
require 'rack/test'
class MyAppTest < Minitest::Test
include Rack::Test::Methods
def app
Sinatra::Application
end
def test_my_default
get '/'
assert_equal 'Hello World!', last_response.body
end
def test_with_params
get '/meet', :name => 'Frank'
assert_equal 'Hello Frank!', last_response.body
end
def test_with_user_agent
get '/', {}, 'HTTP_USER_AGENT' => 'Songbird'
assert_equal "You're using Songbird!", last_response.body
end
end
```
Note: If you are using Sinatra in the modular style, replace
`Sinatra::Application` above with the class name of your app.
## Sinatra::Base - Middleware, Libraries, and Modular Apps
Defining your app at the top-level works well for micro-apps but has
considerable drawbacks when building reusable components such as Rack
middleware, Rails metal, simple libraries with a server component, or even
Sinatra extensions. The top-level assumes a micro-app style configuration
(e.g., a single application file, `./public` and `./views`
directories, logging, exception detail page, etc.). That's where
`Sinatra::Base` comes into play:
```ruby
require 'sinatra/base'
class MyApp < Sinatra::Base
set :sessions, true
set :foo, 'bar'
get '/' do
'Hello world!'
end
end
```
The methods available to `Sinatra::Base` subclasses are exactly the same
as those available via the top-level DSL. Most top-level apps can be
converted to `Sinatra::Base` components with two modifications:
* Your file should require `sinatra/base` instead of `sinatra`;
otherwise, all of Sinatra's DSL methods are imported into the main
namespace.
* Put your app's routes, error handlers, filters, and options in a subclass
of `Sinatra::Base`.
`Sinatra::Base` is a blank slate. Most options are disabled by default,
including the built-in server. See [Configuring
Settings](http://www.sinatrarb.com/configuration.html) for details on
available options and their behavior. If you want behavior more similar
to when you define your app at the top level (also known as Classic
style), you can subclass `Sinatra::Application`:
```ruby
require 'sinatra/base'
class MyApp < Sinatra::Application
get '/' do
'Hello world!'
end
end
```
### Modular vs. Classic Style
Contrary to common belief, there is nothing wrong with the classic
style. If it suits your application, you do not have to switch to a
modular application.
The main disadvantage of using the classic style rather than the modular
style is that you will only have one Sinatra application per Ruby
process. If you plan to use more than one, switch to the modular style.
There is no reason you cannot mix the modular and the classic styles.
If switching from one style to the other, you should be aware of
slightly different default settings:
Setting |
Classic |
Modular |
Modular |
app_file |
file loading sinatra |
file subclassing Sinatra::Base |
file subclassing Sinatra::Application |
run |
$0 == app_file |
false |
false |
logging |
true |
false |
true |
method_override |
true |
false |
true |
inline_templates |
true |
false |
true |
static |
true |
File.exist?(public_folder) |
true |
### Serving a Modular Application
There are two common options for starting a modular app, actively
starting with `run!`:
```ruby
# my_app.rb
require 'sinatra/base'
class MyApp < Sinatra::Base
# ... app code here ...
# start the server if ruby file executed directly
run! if app_file == $0
end
```
Start with:
```shell
ruby my_app.rb
```
Or with a `config.ru` file, which allows using any Rack handler:
```ruby
# config.ru (run with rackup)
require './my_app'
run MyApp
```
Run:
```shell
rackup -p 4567
```
### Using a Classic Style Application with a config.ru
Write your app file:
```ruby
# app.rb
require 'sinatra'
get '/' do
'Hello world!'
end
```
And a corresponding `config.ru`:
```ruby
require './app'
run Sinatra::Application
```
### When to use a config.ru?
A `config.ru` file is recommended if:
* You want to deploy with a different Rack handler (Passenger, Unicorn,
Heroku, ...).
* You want to use more than one subclass of `Sinatra::Base`.
* You want to use Sinatra only for middleware, and not as an endpoint.
**There is no need to switch to a `config.ru` simply because you
switched to the modular style, and you don't have to use the modular
style for running with a `config.ru`.**
### Using Sinatra as Middleware
Not only is Sinatra able to use other Rack middleware, any Sinatra
application can in turn be added in front of any Rack endpoint as
middleware itself. This endpoint could be another Sinatra application,
or any other Rack-based application (Rails/Hanami/Roda/...):
```ruby
require 'sinatra/base'
class LoginScreen < Sinatra::Base
enable :sessions
get('/login') { haml :login }
post('/login') do
if params['name'] == 'admin' && params['password'] == 'admin'
session['user_name'] = params['name']
else
redirect '/login'
end
end
end
class MyApp < Sinatra::Base
# middleware will run before filters
use LoginScreen
before do
unless session['user_name']
halt "Access denied, please login."
end
end
get('/') { "Hello #{session['user_name']}." }
end
```
### Dynamic Application Creation
Sometimes you want to create new applications at runtime without having to
assign them to a constant. You can do this with `Sinatra.new`:
```ruby
require 'sinatra/base'
my_app = Sinatra.new { get('/') { "hi" } }
my_app.run!
```
It takes the application to inherit from as an optional argument:
```ruby
# config.ru (run with rackup)
require 'sinatra/base'
controller = Sinatra.new do
enable :logging
helpers MyHelpers
end
map('/a') do
run Sinatra.new(controller) { get('/') { 'a' } }
end
map('/b') do
run Sinatra.new(controller) { get('/') { 'b' } }
end
```
This is especially useful for testing Sinatra extensions or using Sinatra in
your own library.
This also makes using Sinatra as middleware extremely easy:
```ruby
require 'sinatra/base'
use Sinatra do
get('/') { ... }
end
run RailsProject::Application
```
## Scopes and Binding
The scope you are currently in determines what methods and variables are
available.
### Application/Class Scope
Every Sinatra application corresponds to a subclass of `Sinatra::Base`.
If you are using the top-level DSL (`require 'sinatra'`), then this
class is `Sinatra::Application`, otherwise it is the subclass you
created explicitly. At class level you have methods like `get` or
`before`, but you cannot access the `request` or `session` objects, as
there is only a single application class for all requests.
Options created via `set` are methods at class level:
```ruby
class MyApp < Sinatra::Base
# Hey, I'm in the application scope!
set :foo, 42
foo # => 42
get '/foo' do
# Hey, I'm no longer in the application scope!
end
end
```
You have the application scope binding inside:
* Your application class body
* Methods defined by extensions
* The block passed to `helpers`
* Procs/blocks used as value for `set`
* The block passed to `Sinatra.new`
You can reach the scope object (the class) like this:
* Via the object passed to configure blocks (`configure { |c| ... }`)
* `settings` from within the request scope
### Request/Instance Scope
For every incoming request, a new instance of your application class is
created, and all handler blocks run in that scope. From within this scope you
can access the `request` and `session` objects or call rendering methods like
`erb` or `haml`. You can access the application scope from within the request
scope via the `settings` helper:
```ruby
class MyApp < Sinatra::Base
# Hey, I'm in the application scope!
get '/define_route/:name' do
# Request scope for '/define_route/:name'
@value = 42
settings.get("/#{params['name']}") do
# Request scope for "/#{params['name']}"
@value # => nil (not the same request)
end
"Route defined!"
end
end
```
You have the request scope binding inside:
* get, head, post, put, delete, options, patch, link and unlink blocks
* before and after filters
* helper methods
* templates/views
### Delegation Scope
The delegation scope just forwards methods to the class scope. However, it
does not behave exactly like the class scope, as you do not have the class
binding. Only methods explicitly marked for delegation are available, and you
do not share variables/state with the class scope (read: you have a different
`self`). You can explicitly add method delegations by calling
`Sinatra::Delegator.delegate :method_name`.
You have the delegate scope binding inside:
* The top level binding, if you did `require "sinatra"`
* An object extended with the `Sinatra::Delegator` mixin
Have a look at the code for yourself: here's the
[Sinatra::Delegator mixin](https://github.com/sinatra/sinatra/blob/ca06364/lib/sinatra/base.rb#L1609-1633)
being [extending the main object](https://github.com/sinatra/sinatra/blob/ca06364/lib/sinatra/main.rb#L28-30).
## Command Line
Sinatra applications can be run directly:
```shell
ruby myapp.rb [-h] [-x] [-q] [-e ENVIRONMENT] [-p PORT] [-o HOST] [-s HANDLER]
```
Options are:
```
-h # help
-p # set the port (default is 4567)
-o # set the host (default is 0.0.0.0)
-e # set the environment (default is development)
-s # specify rack server/handler (default is thin)
-q # turn on quiet mode for server (default is off)
-x # turn on the mutex lock (default is off)
```
### Multi-threading
_Paraphrasing from [this StackOverflow answer][so-answer] by Konstantin_
Sinatra doesn't impose any concurrency model, but leaves that to the
underlying Rack handler (server) like Thin, Puma or WEBrick. Sinatra
itself is thread-safe, so there won't be any problem if the Rack handler
uses a threaded model of concurrency. This would mean that when starting
the server, you'd have to specify the correct invocation method for the
specific Rack handler. The following example is a demonstration of how
to start a multi-threaded Thin server:
```ruby
# app.rb
require 'sinatra/base'
class App < Sinatra::Base
get '/' do
"Hello, World"
end
end
App.run!
```
To start the server, the command would be:
```shell
thin --threaded start
```
[so-answer]: http://stackoverflow.com/questions/6278817/is-sinatra-multi-threaded/6282999#6282999)
## Requirement
The following Ruby versions are officially supported:
- Ruby 2.2
-
2.2 is fully supported and recommended. There are currently no plans to
drop official support for it.
- Rubinius
-
Rubinius is officially supported (Rubinius >= 2.x). It is recommended to
gem install puma.
- JRuby
-
The latest stable release of JRuby is officially supported. It is not
recommended to use C extensions with JRuby. It is recommended to
gem install trinidad.
Versions of Ruby prior to 2.2.2 are no longer supported as of Sinatra 2.0.
We also keep an eye on upcoming Ruby versions.
The following Ruby implementations are not officially supported but still are
known to run Sinatra:
* Older versions of JRuby and Rubinius
* Ruby Enterprise Edition
* MacRuby, Maglev, IronRuby
* Ruby 1.9.0 and 1.9.1 (but we do recommend against using those)
Not being officially supported means if things only break there and not on a
supported platform, we assume it's not our issue but theirs.
We also run our CI against ruby-head (future releases of MRI), but we
can't guarantee anything, since it is constantly moving. Expect upcoming
2.x releases to be fully supported.
Sinatra should work on any operating system supported by the chosen Ruby
implementation.
If you run MacRuby, you should `gem install control_tower`.
Sinatra currently doesn't run on Cardinal, SmallRuby, BlueRuby or any
Ruby version prior to 2.2.
## The Bleeding Edge
If you would like to use Sinatra's latest bleeding-edge code, feel free
to run your application against the master branch, it should be rather
stable.
We also push out prerelease gems from time to time, so you can do a
```shell
gem install sinatra --pre
```
to get some of the latest features.
### With Bundler
If you want to run your application with the latest Sinatra, using
[Bundler](http://bundler.io) is the recommended way.
First, install bundler, if you haven't:
```shell
gem install bundler
```
Then, in your project directory, create a `Gemfile`:
```ruby
source 'https://rubygems.org'
gem 'sinatra', :github => 'sinatra/sinatra'
# other dependencies
gem 'haml' # for instance, if you use haml
```
Note that you will have to list all your application's dependencies in
the `Gemfile`. Sinatra's direct dependencies (Rack and Tilt) will,
however, be automatically fetched and added by Bundler.
Now you can run your app like this:
```shell
bundle exec ruby myapp.rb
```
## Versioning
Sinatra follows [Semantic Versioning](http://semver.org/), both SemVer and
SemVerTag.
## Further Reading
* [Project Website](http://www.sinatrarb.com/) - Additional documentation,
news, and links to other resources.
* [Contributing](http://www.sinatrarb.com/contributing) - Find a bug? Need
help? Have a patch?
* [Issue tracker](https://github.com/sinatra/sinatra/issues)
* [Twitter](https://twitter.com/sinatra)
* [Mailing List](http://groups.google.com/group/sinatrarb/topics)
* IRC: [#sinatra](irc://chat.freenode.net/#sinatra) on http://freenode.net
* [Sinatra & Friends](https://sinatrarb.slack.com) on Slack and see
[here](https://sinatra-slack.herokuapp.com/) for an invite.
* [Sinatra Book](https://github.com/sinatra/sinatra-book/) Cookbook Tutorial
* [Sinatra Recipes](http://recipes.sinatrarb.com/) Community
contributed recipes
* API documentation for the [latest release](http://www.rubydoc.info/gems/sinatra)
or the [current HEAD](http://www.rubydoc.info/github/sinatra/sinatra) on
http://www.rubydoc.info/
* [CI server](https://travis-ci.org/sinatra/sinatra)