Xano - External Sort

In the world of web and mobile app development, being able to sort and filter data in different ways is crucial for providing a great user experience. Xano's external sort feature allows you to do just that, enabling dynamic sorting of your data directly from the frontend, without the need to create separate endpoints for each sorting method.

Why Use External Sort?

Let's say you have an API endpoint that returns data in the order it was created. While this might be fine for some use cases, sometimes you'll want to sort the data differently. For example, one user might want to see the data sorted alphabetically by name, while another might prefer descending order based on a different parameter. Without external sorting, you'd have to create separate endpoints for each sorting method, which can quickly become cumbersome and difficult to manage.

Enter Xano's external sort feature. With this handy tool, you can enable dynamic sorting of your data from the frontend, all through a single API endpoint. This means you can provide your users with a flexible sorting experience without the hassle of creating and maintaining multiple endpoints.

Step-by-Step Guide to Setting Up External Sort

Now, let's dive into how to set up external sorting in your Xano project. We'll use the example of a restaurant app to illustrate the process.

1. Add a JSON Input: In your API endpoint, add a JSON input. For this example, let's call it "external".
2. Connect the JSON Input to Your Function: In the function where you query your data (e.g., `query all records`), go to the "External" tab and select the JSON input you just created from the "By external query" dropdown.
3. Set Permissions: Depending on your use case, you can set different permissions for the external sort feature. For this example, we'll enable the "Allow sorting override" option, which will override any hard-coded sorting you might have set up previously.
4. Prepare the Sort JSON Object: In the Xano documentation, you'll find the JSON object structure required for external sorting. It typically includes fields like `sortBy` (the parameter to sort by) and `order` (ascending or descending).
5. Run and Debug: When you run your API endpoint, you can now pass the sort JSON object as input. For example, to sort your restaurant data by description in ascending order, your JSON object might look like this:

When you run the endpoint with this input, your data will be sorted by the description in alphabetical order.

1. Experiment with Different Sorting Options: The beauty of external sorting is that you can change the sort parameters on the fly from the frontend. Try sorting by different parameters, or switch between ascending and descending order, all without modifying your backend code.

With Xano's external sort feature, you can provide your users with a dynamic and flexible sorting experience, without the hassle of creating and maintaining multiple API endpoints. Whether you're a no-code enthusiast, a citizen developer, or a traditional developer looking to streamline your workflow, this powerful feature is sure to come in handy.