IDBRequest

The IDBRequest interface of the IndexedDB API provides access to results of asynchronous requests to databases and database objects using event handler attributes. Each reading and writing operation on a database is done using a request.

The request object does not initially contain any information about the result of the operation, but once information becomes available, an event is fired on the request, and the information becomes available through the properties of the IDBRequest instance.

All asynchronous operations immediately return an IDBRequest instance. Each request has a readyState that is set to the pending state; this changes to done when the request is completed or fails. When the state is set to done, every request returns a result and an error, and an event is fired on the request. When the state is still pending, any attempt to access the result or error raises an InvalidStateError exception.

Note: This feature is available in Web Workers.

Note: In plain words, all asynchronous methods return a request object. If the request has been completed successfully, the result is made available through the result property and an event indicating success is fired at the request (IDBRequest.onsuccess). If an error occurs while performing the operation, the exception is made available through the result property and an error event is fired (IDBRequest.onerror).

Note: IDBRequest inherits from EventTargetIDBOpenDBRequest is derived from it.

Methods

No methods.

Properties

IDBRequest.result Read only

Returns the result of the request. If the the request failed and the result is not available, an InvalidStateError exception is thrown.

IDBRequest.error Read only
Returns an error in the event of an unsuccessful request, indicating what went wrong.
IDBRequest.source Read only
The source of the request, such as an IDBIndex or an IDBObjectStore. If no source exists (such as when calling IDBFactory.open), it returns null.
IDBRequest.transaction Read only
The transaction for the request. This property can be null for certain requests, for example those returned from IDBFactory.open unless an upgrade is needed. (You're just connecting to a database, so there is no transaction to return).
IDBRequest.readyState Read only
The state of the request. Every request starts in the pending state. The state changes to done when the request completes successfully or when an error occurs.

Event handlers

IDBRequest.onerror
The event handler for the error event.
IDBRequest.onsuccess
The event handler for the success event.

Constants

readyState constants

Deprecated since Gecko 13 (Firefox 13 / Thunderbird 13 / SeaMonkey 2.10)
This feature has been removed from the Web standards. Though some browsers may still support it, it is in the process of being dropped. Do not use it in old or new projects. Pages or Web apps using it may break at any time.

These constants are no longer available — they were removed in Gecko 25. You should use the string constants directly instead. (bug 891944)

Constant Value Description
DONE "done" The request has completed or an error has occurred. Initially false
LOADING "pending" The request has been started, but its result is not yet available.

Example

In the following code snippet, we open a database asynchronously and make a request; onerror and onsuccess functions are included to handle the success and error cases. For a full working example, see our To-do Notifications app (view example live.) 

var db;

// Let us open our database
var DBOpenRequest = window.indexedDB.open("toDoList", 4);

// these two event handlers act on the database being opened successfully, or not
DBOpenRequest.onerror = function(event) {
  note.innerHTML += '<li>Error loading database.</li>';
};

DBOpenRequest.onsuccess = function(event) {
  note.innerHTML += '<li>Database initialised.</li>';
 
  // store the result of opening the database in the db variable.
  db = DBOpenRequest.result;
};

Specifications

Specification Status Comment
Indexed Database API
The definition of 'IDBRequest' in that specification.
Recommendation  

Browser compatibility

Feature Chrome Firefox (Gecko) Internet Explorer Opera Safari (WebKit)
Basic support 23webkit
24
10 moz
16.0 (16.0)
10, partial 15 7.1
Available in workers (Yes) 37.0 (37.0) ? (Yes) ?
Feature Android Firefox Mobile (Gecko) Firefox OS IE Phone Opera Mobile Safari Mobile
Basic support 4.4 22.0 (22.0) 1.0.1 10 22 8
Available in workers (Yes) 37.0 (37.0) (Yes) ? (Yes) ?

See also

Document Tags and Contributors

 Last updated by: inexorabletash,