How to hide / show nav_panel based on user role

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29-08-2024

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Dynamically Controlling Navigation Panels in Shiny Apps Based on User Role

Building interactive web applications with Shiny often involves tailoring the user experience based on their roles and permissions. A common need is to dynamically display or hide specific navigation panels depending on the logged-in user's role. This article will guide you through the process of achieving this using Shiny and Auth0 authentication, addressing a frequently asked question on Stack Overflow.

The Challenge: Hiding and Showing Navigation Panels Based on Role

Imagine a scenario where you have a Shiny app using Auth0 for authentication, and you want to control the visibility of certain navigation panels based on user roles. For example, "Administrators" and "Coaches" might have access to different panels compared to "Athletes".

This scenario presents a unique challenge: how do you dynamically update the UI to reflect these role-based access restrictions?

Solution: Leveraging Reactive Programming and Conditional Rendering

Shiny excels in handling dynamic UI updates using its powerful reactive programming capabilities. Here's a breakdown of how to achieve the desired outcome:

1. Retrieving User Role Information:

   • Use the session$userData$auth0_info$/roles` to access the user's role information from Auth0 authentication.
   • This information can be used to conditionally render the navigation panels.

2. Conditional Panel Rendering:

   • Implement conditional rendering using renderUI() and conditionalPanel().
   • This allows you to control the visibility of UI elements based on specific conditions, such as the user's role.

3. Integrating with the Navigation Framework:

   • Utilize the bslib package's nav_panel() function for easy navigation panel creation.
   • Use the sidebar() function to create a sidebar for additional navigation or information.

Example Implementation:

library(shiny)
library(bslib)

ui <- fluidPage(
  titlePanel("Panel Updates"),
  sidebarLayout(
    sidebarPanel(
      id = "sidebar",
      "Sidebar"
    ),
    mainPanel(
      uiOutput("navPanels")
    )
  )
)

server <- function(input, output, session) {
  
  # Simulating user role information
  session$userData$auth0_info

   


      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
   
   
      

         

            

            

            

               

                  

                     

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How to hide / show nav_panel based on user role
                                                

                                                   

                                                      

                                                         

                                                            

                                                               

                                                                  
                                                                     

                                                                        

                                                                           

                                                                              

                                                                                 
                                                                                 

                                                                              
                                                                           
                                                                        
                                                                     
                                                                  
                                                               
                                                            
                                                            

                                                               

                                                                  

                                                                     
                                                                        

                                                                           

                                                                              

                                                                                 

                                                                                    

                                                                                       
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                                                                              29-08-2024
                                                                              
                                                                              
                                                                           
                                                                        
                                                                     
                                                                  
                                                               
                                                            
                                                         
                                                         

                                                            

                                                               

                                                                  

                                                                     

                                                                        
                                                                           
                                                                              

                                                                                 

                                                                                    

                                                                                       
                                                                                    
                                                                                 
                                                                              
                                                                           
                                                                        
                                                                     
                                                                     

                                                                        

                                                                           
                                                                           
                                                                           

                                                                              

                                                                                 
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/roles` <- "athlete"
  
  userRole <- reactive({
    session$userData$auth0_info

   


      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
   
   
      

         

            

            

            

               

                  

                     

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How to hide / show nav_panel based on user role
                                                

                                                   

                                                      

                                                         

                                                            

                                                               

                                                                  
                                                                     

                                                                        

                                                                           

                                                                              

                                                                                 
                                                                                 

                                                                              
                                                                           
                                                                        
                                                                     
                                                                  
                                                               
                                                            
                                                            

                                                               

                                                                  

                                                                     
                                                                        

                                                                           

                                                                              

                                                                                 

                                                                                    

                                                                                       
ONLINECAST
                                                                                    
                                                                                 
                                                                              
                                                                           
                                                                        
                                                                     
                                                                  
                                                               
                                                               

                                                                  
                                                                     

                                                                        
                                                                           

                                                                              2 min read
                                                                              
·
                                                                              29-08-2024
                                                                              
                                                                              
                                                                           
                                                                        
                                                                     
                                                                  
                                                               
                                                            
                                                         
                                                         

                                                            

                                                               

                                                                  

                                                                     

                                                                        
                                                                           
                                                                              

                                                                                 

                                                                                    

                                                                                       
                                                                                    
                                                                                 
                                                                              
                                                                           
                                                                        
                                                                     
                                                                     

                                                                        

                                                                           
                                                                           
                                                                           

                                                                              

                                                                                 
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/roles` 
  })

  output$navPanels <- renderUI({
    # Conditional rendering of navigation panels based on user role
    if (userRole() %in% c("admin", "coach")) {
      tagList(
        nav_panel("Page 1", "Testing"),
        nav_panel("Page 2", "Availability"),
        nav_panel("Page 3", "Team")
      )
    } else if (userRole() == "athlete") {
      tagList(
        nav_panel("Page 1", "Testing")
      )
    } 
  })

  # Observe user role change for debugging
  observe({
    print(userRole())
  })
}

shinyApp(ui, server)