RTCDataChannel.binaryType

This is an experimental technology
Check the Browser compatibility table carefully before using this in production.

Draft
This page is not complete.

The property binaryType on the RTCDataChannel interface is a DOMString which specifies the type of JavaScript object which should be used to represent binary data received on the RTCDataChannel. Values allowed by the WebSocket.binaryType property are also permitted here: "blob" if Blob objects are being used or "arraybuffer" if ArrayBuffer objects are being used. The default is "blob".

When a binary message is received on the data channel, the resulting message event's MessageEvent.data property is an object of the type specified by the binaryType.

Syntax

var type = aDataChannel.binaryType;

aDataChannel.binaryType = type;

Value

A DOMString that can have one of these values:

"blob"
Received binary messages' contents will be contained in Blob objects.
"arraybuffer"
Received binary messages' contents will be contained in ArrayBuffer objects.

Example

This code configures a data channel to receive binary data in ArrayBuffer objects, and establishes a listener for message events which constructs a string representing the received data as a list of hexadecimal byte values.

var dc = peerConnection.createDataChannel("Binary");
dc.binaryType = "arraybuffer";

dc.onmessage = function(event) {
  let byteArray = new Uint8Array(event.data);
  let hexString = "";

  byteArray.forEach(function(byte) {
    hexString += byte.toString(16) + " ";
  });
};

Specifications

Specification Status Comment
WebRTC 1.0: Real-time Communication Between Browsers
The definition of 'RTCDataChannel.binaryType' in that specification.
Candidate Recommendation Initial specification.

Browser compatibility

DesktopMobile
ChromeEdgeFirefoxInternet ExplorerOperaSafariAndroid webviewChrome for AndroidFirefox for AndroidOpera for AndroidSafari on iOSSamsung Internet
binaryType
Experimental
Chrome Full support YesEdge Full support ≤79Firefox Full support 18IE No support NoOpera Full support YesSafari Full support YesWebView Android Full support 4.4Chrome Android Full support 29Firefox Android Full support 18Opera Android Full support YesSafari iOS No support NoSamsung Internet Android Full support 2.0

Legend

Full support
Full support
No support
No support
Experimental. Expect behavior to change in the future.
Experimental. Expect behavior to change in the future.

See also