[HOLD for payment 2023-07-24] [$1000] Correct chat is not opened by tapping chat link

[kavimuru]

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This issue was found when retesting #19914

Action Performed:

1. Using Android m/Web, login to NewDot with account A and open any DM. Copy the report url from the address bar (like https://staging.new.expensify.com/r/1242891003534332
   )
2. Paste it in any external app (Slack or Telegram)
3. Log in with same account (account A) in android app
4. In the android app, open any other chat (not the one you opened in step 1)
5. Go back to the external app and tap link you pasted in external app

Expected Result:

Chat from step 1 should be opened without any visual issues.

Actual Result:

Chat from step 4 stays on the screen

Workaround:

Can the user still use Expensify without this being fixed? Have you informed them of the workaround?

Platforms:

Which of our officially supported platforms is this issue occurring on?

• Android / native
• Android / Chrome
• iOS / native
• iOS / Safari
• MacOS / Chrome / Safari
• MacOS / Desktop

Version Number: 1.3.26-3
Reproducible in staging?: y
Reproducible in production?: y
If this was caught during regression testing, add the test name, ID and link from TestRail:
Email or phone of affected tester (no customers):
Logs: https://stackoverflow.com/c/expensify/questions/4856
Notes/Photos/Videos: Any additional supporting documentation

Bug6090395_video_22__5_.mp4

Expensify/Expensify Issue URL:
Issue reported by: applause internal team
Slack conversation:

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Upwork Automation - Do Not Edit

• Upwork Job URL: https://www.upwork.com/jobs/~01b971875418ce264c
• Upwork Job ID: 1668776814229225472
• Last Price Increase: 2023-07-05

[melvin-bot]

Triggered auto assignment to @maddylewis (Bug), see https://stackoverflow.com/c/expensify/questions/14418 for more details.

[melvin-bot]

Bug0 Triage Checklist (Main S/O)

• This "bug" occurs on a supported platform (ensure Platforms in OP are ✅)
• This bug is not a duplicate report (check E/App issues and #expensify-bugs)
  • If it is, comment with a link to the original report, close the issue and add any novel details to the original issue instead
• This bug is reproducible using the reproduction steps in the OP. S/O
  • If the reproduction steps are clear and you're unable to reproduce the bug, check with the reporter and QA first, then close the issue.
  • If the reproduction steps aren't clear and you determine the correct steps, please update the OP.
• This issue is filled out as thoroughly and clearly as possible
  • Pay special attention to the title, results, platforms where the bug occurs, and if the bug happens on staging/production.
• I have reviewed and subscribed to the linked Slack conversation to ensure Slack/Github stay in sync

[DanutGavrus]

Proposal

Please re-state the problem that we are trying to solve in this issue.

Correct chat is not opened by tapping chat link.

What is the root cause of that problem?

This is what happens now if the app is opened in background and we try to open a chat from a deep link:

1. In Expensify.js we call Linking.addEventListener('url', (state) => Report.openReportFromDeepLink(state.url, isAuthenticated));;
2. In Report.js we call Navigation.navigate(ROUTES.getReportRoute(reportID));;
3. In Navigation.js we call linkTo(navigationRef.current, route, type);;
4. In linkTo.js we call:

if (action.payload.name === NAVIGATORS.CENTRAL_PANE_NAVIGATOR && getTopmostReportId(root.getState()) !== getTopmostReportId(state)) {
            action.type = 'PUSH';

Now, here is the problem

Both getTopmostReportId(root.getState()) and getTopmostReportId(state) return the same report id, so we never set action.type = 'PUSH', so we never navigate to the new report.

Why does this happen?

getTopmostReportId(state) returns the reportId from the URL, which is the new report ID where we need to navigate to. But, when coming from a deep link, the NavigationContainer has the new state inserted automatically as this is it's default behavior(one may check this as onStateChange callback is automatically triggered when the app gets reopened from the deep link), so getTopmostReportId(root.getState()) returns the new report id, even if we did not navigate there yet.

What changes do you think we should make in order to solve the problem?

1. As everything starts from openReportFromDeepLink, we may pass an optional parameter set to false by default, in order to let linkTo know when we come from a deep link.
2. We know getTopmostReportId(root.getState()) will return the same reportId when coming from a deep link, so we need another way to get the last visible reportId. I have some options in mind such as:
   2.1. Either, when onStateChange gets called for the NavigationContainer, in updateSavedNavigationStateAndLogRoute we may also save the previousState;
   2.2. Or, add an event listener for when app goes to background on native, same as we already have the one from when it comes back active. Inside it, save lastReportId which is going to be the current opened report id if any, or null/undefined otherwise.
   2.3 Or, I may think of other ways to get the topmost report id inside linkTo if previous 2 are not the best, let me know.
3. Now, inside linkTo, we may update the if, such that when coming from a deep link, will use the other way to get the topmost report id instead of getTopmostReportId(root.getState()).

What alternative solutions did you explore?

I. If we don't want to add and pass a new parameter when coming from a deep link, we may completely move from using getTopmostReportId(root.getState()) to always saving a report id in a context when opening a report, and resetting it when closing one, which will be used here. linkTo.js would look like:

const topmostReportId = the one from where we saved it;
if (action.payload.name === NAVIGATORS.CENTRAL_PANE_NAVIGATOR && topmostReportId !== getTopmostReportId(state)) {
            action.type = 'PUSH';

II. If we don't want to save the topmost report id, we may also just pass when coming from a deep link, and set action.type = 'REPLACE', thus we'll replace the current report with the one from the deep link every time, but this will mess the back navigation as the previous screen was replaced with this one.

[melvin-bot]

Looks like something related to react-navigation may have been mentioned in this issue discussion.

As a reminder, please make sure that all proposals are not workarounds and that any and all attempt to fix the issue holistically have been made before proceeding with a solution. Proposals to change our DeprecatedCustomActions.js files should not be accepted.

Feel free to drop a note in #expensify-open-source with any questions.

[melvin-bot]

Job added to Upwork: https://www.upwork.com/jobs/~01b971875418ce264c

[melvin-bot]

Triggered auto assignment to @flaviadefaria (External), see https://stackoverflow.com/c/expensify/questions/8582 for more details.

[melvin-bot]

Triggered auto assignment to Contributor-plus team member for initial proposal review - @thesahindia (External)