aloey
Implementing backend authentication for google login
Hello, I have decided to learn Elixir and currently working on a simple web application using React and Phoenix. In my React app, I have a Google sign-in button that is rendered by Google’s api (https://developers.google.com/identity/sign-in/web/build-button), and I am able to get the authentication response back from a successful sign in.
However, I am having a big difficulty which I have spent a few days trying to get through. I am trying to implement a backend authentication since Google suggests this (https://developers.google.com/identity/sign-in/web/backend-auth).
As far as I can tell, Google doesn’t seem to have an SDK for elixir and doesn’t quite go through the details on an alternative route.
I have scanned through the documentations on both ueberauth and the unofficial googleapi sdk for elixir, I was not able to find a similar function that achieves what the google documentation was describing.
I hope I have only failed to identify the functions from those libraries due to my inexperience, but I don’t mind writing from scratch if only I knew how.
Any suggestions or answers would be much appreciated and I thank you for your time and consideration in advance.
Marked As Solved
wmnnd
Hey there,
welcome to the Elixir Forum!
Do you absolutely want to use the JavaScript-based login button?
I haven’t tried that myself because the alternative with Ueberauth and Google Oauth2 is so simple 
All you need to do is add Ueberauth to your application, configure it with your Google credentials, add the required routes and implement your authentication logic.
You should be able to get things running following the Ueberauth Google guide:
https://hexdocs.pm/ueberauth_google/readme.html
The Ueberauth devs have also created a fully configured Phoenix application using Ueberauth for further reference:
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aloey
@wmnnd I have read and attempted to follow the ueberauth_google documentation until i saw that this library is only explaining the steps to use for a pipe_through: browser while my goal is to develop the phoenix backend that is uniformly available to support both web and mobile, and does nothing to affect the client-side.
I have a feeling this forces me to go back to using the javascript button, since if my backend is to be responsible for only validating the token returned from the google api, and not serve the html form.
I want to know what you think, and if my lack of experience made me miss something.
MrDoops
Try also checking out Open ID Connect and Pow Assent’s Google strategy. Depends what kind of deferred authentication you’re trying to do.
wmnnd
I’ve been able to do it with localhost in the past.
Alternatively, you could always set up a domain (like local.example.com with an A Record to 127.0.0.1).
benonymus
I am in a similar situation, that I need a backend that can handle web and mobile too, so it will probably will have to be the token route, do you have any update how you did it?
sergio
I believe I figured it out! Of course the second I ask about it I answer myself as usual haha!
Guide incoming for would-be googlers.
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