User Response — Interaction Pipeline

The respond() Callback

Every interaction component receives a respond(outcome, data?) function as a prop. This is the single point of contact between the UI and the EdgeInteract pipeline:

// respond signature
type RespondFn = (outcome: string, data?: unknown) => Promise<void>;

// Example: user clicks "Approve" in an ApprovalComponent
function ApprovalComponent({ interaction, respond }: InteractionComponentProps) {
  const handleApprove = async () => {
    await respond('approved', { comment: 'Looks good to me.' });
    // UI dismissal happens automatically after respond() resolves
  };

  const handleReject = async () => {
    await respond('rejected', { comment: 'Budget exceeded.' });
  };

  return (
    <div>
      <h3>{interaction.title}</h3>
      <button onClick={handleApprove}>Approve</button>
      <button onClick={handleReject}>Reject</button>
    </div>
  );
}

InteractionResponse Schema

Field	Type	Description
`interactionId`	string	Matches the original request's `interactionId`
`respondedBy`	string	User ID of the responding user — injected by `InteractionResponsePublisher` from the authenticated session
`outcome`	string	Type-specific outcome string. See interaction type reference for valid values.
`data`	object (optional)	Type-specific response data. May be null for simple outcomes (e.g., `"acknowledged"`).
`timestamp`	ISO 8601	Set by the client when `respond()` is called
`sessionId`	string	The EdgeStream session ID of the responding session — for audit and security
`correlationId`	string (optional)	Passed through from the original request

What respond() Does Internally

Build InteractionResponse

InteractionResponsePublisher creates the response object, populating respondedBy from the authenticated session and timestamp from Date.now().

Publish to Callback Topic

The response is serialized to JSON and published via EdgeStream to interactions.callback.{interactionId}. The server is subscribed to this topic and receives it immediately.

Remove from Queue

The interaction is removed from the local InteractionQueue. The InteractionContainer advances to the next interaction in the queue (if any).

Await Acknowledgement

respond() returns a promise that resolves when the InteractionAck arrives back from the server. This confirms the server processed the response. Components can show a loading state while awaiting the ack.

Outcome Values by Type

Type	Valid Outcomes	Data Shape
`approval`	`approved`, `rejected`, `abstained`	`{ comment?: string }`
`confirmation`	`confirmed`, `cancelled`	none
`form`	`submitted`	submitted form field values object
`picker`	`selected`	`{ selectedIds: string[] }`
`notification`	`acknowledged`	none

Invalid Outcomes Are Rejected The response validation hook on the server checks that the outcome is valid for the declared interaction type. An invalid outcome triggers a validation error response back to the client.

← Display Stage Next: Response Routing →