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User Notifications

Peak provides a user-friendly notification interface built on top of Laravel’s default notification system. This allows you to send and display dynamic notifications to your users within the application.

When to Use Notifications​

Notifications help improve user engagement by keeping users informed of important events. You can customize when and why users receive notifications based on your app's needs. Here are a few example use cases:

  • Alert users when a new reply is added to a forum post they follow.
  • Notify users when someone follows them.
  • Inform users when they receive a new message.

Ultimately, you decide how to use notifications to enhance the user experience.

Creating Notifications​

Peak leverages Laravel’s built-in notification functionality, which is both flexible and simple to use.

For a deeper understanding, check out the Laravel Notifications Documentation.

To generate a new notification class, use the artisan command:

php artisan make:notification SubscribedNotification

This will create a file located at:

app/Notifications/SubscribedNotification.php

For example, a default TestNotification may already be present in your application. Here’s how it’s structured:

Update the Delivery Channels​

By default, Laravel sends notifications via mail. To use database notifications, update the via() method:

Before:

public function via($notifiable)
{
return ['mail'];
}

After:

public function via($notifiable)
{
return ['database'];
}

Customize the Notification Payload​

Modify the toArray() method to define how your notification data will be stored and displayed:

public function toArray($notifiable)
{
return [
    'icon' => '/storage/users/default.png',
    'body' => 'This is an example notification. Clicking it will take the user to a specific page.',
    'link' => '/dashboard',
    'user' => [
        'name' => 'John Doe'
    ]
];
}

You can change any values in this array, just make sure they align with what your notification view expects—typically located in resources/js/Themes/Breeze/Pages/Dashboard/Account/Notifications.vue.

Triggering Notifications​

To send a notification manually, use Laravel Tinker:

php artisan tinker

Then run:

App\Models\User::find(1)->notify(new App\Notifications\TestNotification);

Replace 1 with the ID of the user you want to notify. You can run this command multiple times to test different notifications.

Viewing Notifications​

Logged-in users can access their notifications by visiting the /notifications route. This page displays all notifications sent to the user.

Notification Count​

To get the number of unread notifications for the current user, use:

auth()->user()->unreadNotifications->count()

This is useful for displaying a badge or indicator in your app's navigation or header.

By integrating Laravel’s notification system with Peak’s UI, you can provide actionable feedback and keep your users engaged with important updates.