Saving Uploaded Files in Rust with async-graphql and actix-web
This article will guide you through saving uploaded files to a folder using Rust, specifically with the popular libraries async-graphql
and actix-web
. We'll build upon a Stack Overflow question found here to demonstrate the process.
Understanding the Code
The code snippet provided from Stack Overflow defines a function single_upload
which is designed to receive an uploaded file via GraphQL using async-graphql
. It does the following:
- Retrieves the file: It uses
file.value(ctx).unwrap()
to access the uploaded file data. - Creates file information: It generates a
FileInfo
struct containing the file's ID, filename, and mime type. - Stores file information: It inserts the
FileInfo
into aFileStorage
data structure, effectively registering the uploaded file.
Saving the File to a Folder
The code above only handles the information about the uploaded file, not the actual file contents. To save the file to a folder, we'll need to add the following steps:
- Read the file data: Access the file's contents as a byte stream using the
read
method provided by theUpload
type. - Create a file path: Construct the path to the desired folder and append the filename to create the complete path.
- Write the data to the file: Use a library like
std::fs
ortokio::fs
to write the file data to the specified path.
Example Implementation
use async_graphql::{Context, Upload};
use actix_web::web::Data;
use std::fs::File;
use std::io::{Read, Write};
use tokio::fs::File as AsyncFile;
#[derive(Debug, Clone)]
struct FileStorage {
// ... (Implementation for storing file information)
}
#[derive(Debug, Clone, PartialEq)]
struct FileInfo {
id: String,
filename: String,
mimetype: String,
}
async fn single_upload(&self, ctx: &Context<'_>, file: Upload) -> FileInfo {
let mut storage = ctx.data_unchecked::<FileStorage>().lock().await;
let upload = file.value(ctx).unwrap();
let info = FileInfo {
id: ... // Generate unique ID
filename: upload.filename.clone(),
mimetype: upload.content_type,
};
// Read file contents
let mut file_data = Vec::new();
upload.read(&mut file_data).unwrap();
// Create file path
let path = format!("./uploads/{}", info.filename);
// Save the file to disk
let mut f = AsyncFile::create(path).await.unwrap();
f.write_all(&file_data).await.unwrap();
storage.insert(info.clone());
info
}
Explanation:
- File Data Retrieval: The code first retrieves the file data as a byte stream using
upload.read(&mut file_data)
. - File Path Construction: It then builds the desired file path using the specified folder ("./uploads/") and the file's name.
- File Writing: The code creates a file with the specified path and writes the file data into it.
Important Considerations:
- Error Handling: Always implement robust error handling to catch potential issues during file reading, path creation, or file writing.
- File Security: Implement measures to prevent malicious uploads and ensure proper file permissions.
- File Storage Management: Implement a robust strategy for managing uploaded files, including potentially deleting old files, enforcing size limits, and providing a mechanism to retrieve uploaded files.
Conclusion
This article provided a comprehensive guide on saving uploaded files to a folder using async-graphql
and actix-web
in Rust. Remember to incorporate appropriate error handling, security measures, and file management strategies to ensure a robust and secure solution.