Developer Guide: Sending MMS with Node.js, Express, and Sinch - code-examples -

Frequently Asked Questions

Use the Sinch MMS JSON API with Express.js and Node.js to create an API endpoint that accepts requests for sending multimedia messages. This involves setting up a Node.js project, installing required dependencies like Axios and Express, and implementing a service to interact with the Sinch API.
The Sinch MMS JSON API, specifically the XMS API endpoint, allows developers to send multimedia messages programmatically. It handles requests containing recipient details, message content, and media URLs for sending MMS messages via the Sinch platform.
Sinch requires a publicly accessible media URL so its servers can directly fetch the media content (images, audio, video) to include in the MMS message. Ensure your media hosting server includes the Content-Length header for Sinch to process correctly.
Use the Sinch MMS API when you need to send rich media content like images, audio, or video along with your messages. SMS is limited to plain text, making MMS essential for marketing campaigns, notifications with visuals, or other communication needing more than text.
The article doesn't explicitly address international MMS. However, it does mention E.164 number formatting for the "SINCH_MMS_NUMBER" environment variable, implying international number support might be available. Consult the official Sinch documentation for details on supported countries and regions for sending international MMS messages.
Initialize a Node.js project using npm init, then install necessary packages such as express, axios, dotenv, and winston. Configure environment variables like SINCH_SERVICE_PLAN_ID and SINCH_API_TOKEN in a .env file to securely store your Sinch credentials.
Axios, a promise-based HTTP client, is used to make POST requests to the Sinch XMS API. It simplifies sending the MMS payload to Sinch and handles the API responses.
The example code provides error handling at multiple levels. Input validation using express-validator catches bad requests, authentication middleware handles unauthorized access, and a try-catch block in the Sinch service manages errors during API calls. Winston logs error details for debugging.
Winston provides structured logging with different levels (debug, info, warn, error), facilitating efficient debugging and monitoring. It's configured to log timestamps, stack traces, and specific error data for better insight into API interactions and potential issues.
You need a Sinch account with an active MMS API subscription, a provisioned phone number (Short Code, Toll-Free, or 10DLC) enabled for MMS, Sinch Service Plan ID and API Token, and a publicly accessible URL for your media file. Node.js and npm must also be installed.
Secure your integration by storing Sinch credentials as environment variables, never committing your .env file, and using a strong, random API key for authentication (INTERNAL_API_KEY) to protect your Express API endpoint. Use HTTPS and consider rate limiting with express-rate-limit and security headers with Helmet.
The article recommends creating separate directories for routes, controllers, services, middleware, and configuration files. Place your main server logic in server.js. This structure promotes code organization and makes future updates or extensions easier.
The article doesn't specify Sinch's rate limits. Refer to the official Sinch documentation for details on rate limits, as exceeding them can lead to throttled or rejected requests. Consider implementing your own rate limiting using express-rate-limit.
The code uses axios-retry to automatically retry failed Axios requests to the Sinch API. It retries on network errors or 5xx server errors with exponential backoff (1s, 2s, 3s delays between retries), increasing resilience to temporary issues.