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Request
AJAX = Asynchronous JavaScript and XML.
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AJAX Introduction
« Previous Next Chapter »
AJAX is about updating parts of a web page, without reloading the whole
page.
What You Should Already Know

Before you continue you should have a basic understanding of the following:
 HTML / XHTML
 CSS
 JavaScript / DOM
If you want to study these subjects first, find the tutorials on our Home page.
What is AJAX?
AJAX = Asynchronous JavaScript and XML.
AJAX is a technique for creating fast and dynamic web pages.
AJAX allows web pages to be updated asynchronously by exchanging small amounts of data
with the server behind the scenes. This means that it is possible to update parts of a web
page, without reloading the whole page.
Classic web pages, (which do not use AJAX) must reload the entire page if the content should
change.
Examples of applications using AJAX: Google Maps, Gmail, Youtube, and Facebook tabs.
How AJAX Works
AJAX is Based on Internet Standards

AJAX is based on internet standards, and uses a combination of:
 XMLHttpRequest object (to exchange data asynchronously with a server)

 JavaScript/DOM (to display/interact with the information)
 CSS (to style the data)
 XML (often used as the format for transferring data)
AJAX applications are browser- and platform-independent!
Google Suggest
AJAX was made popular in 2005 by Google, with Google Suggest.
Google Suggest is using AJAX to create a very dynamic web interface: When you start typing
in Google's search box, a JavaScript sends the letters off to a server and the server returns a
list of suggestions.
Start Using AJAX Today
AJAX is based on existing standards. These standards have been used by developers for
several years. Read our next chapters to see how it works!
AJAX Example
To understand how AJAX works, we will create a small

AJAX application:
Example
Let AJAX change this text

Change Content
Try it yourself »
AJAX Example Explained

The AJAX application above contains one div section and one button.
The div section will be used to display information returned from a

server. The button calls a function named loadXMLDoc(), if it is
clicked:
<html>
<body>
<div id="myDiv"><h2>Let AJAX change this text</h2></div>

<button type="button" onclick="loadXMLDoc()">Change Content</button>
</body>
</html>
Next, add a <script> tag to the page's head section. The script section
contains the loadXMLDoc() function:
<head>
<script type="text/javascript">
function loadXMLDoc()
{
.... AJAX script goes here ...
}
</script>
</head>
The next chapters will explain how AJAX works.
AJAX - Create an XMLHttpRequest Object

The keystone of AJAX is the XMLHttpRequest object.
The XMLHttpRequest Object

All modern browsers support the XMLHttpRequest object (IE5 and IE6 uses an ActiveXObject).
The XMLHttpRequest object is used to exchange data with a server behind the scenes. This
means that it is possible to update parts of a web page, without reloading the whole page.
Create an XMLHttpRequest Object

All modern browsers (IE7+, Firefox, Chrome, Safari, and Opera) have a built-in
XMLHttpRequest object.
Syntax for creating an XMLHttpRequest object:
variable=new XMLHttpRequest();
Old versions of Internet Explorer (IE5 and IE6) uses an ActiveX

Object:
variable=new ActiveXObject("Microsoft.XMLHTTP");
To handle all modern browsers, including IE5 and IE6, check if the
browser supports the XMLHttpRequest object. If it does, create an
XMLHttpRequest object, if not, create an ActiveXObject:
Example
var xmlhttp;
if (window.XMLHttpRequest)
{// code for IE7+, Firefox, Chrome, Opera, Safari
xmlhttp=new XMLHttpRequest();
}
else
{// code for IE6, IE5
xmlhttp=new ActiveXObject("Microsoft.XMLHTTP");
}
Try it yourself »
In the next chapter you will learn about sending server requests.
AJAX - Send a Request To a Server

The XMLHttpRequest object is used to exchange data with a server.
Send a Request To a Server
To send a request to a server, we use the open() and send() methods

of the XMLHttpRequest object:
xmlhttp.open("GET","ajax_info.txt",true);
xmlhttp.send();
Method Description
open(method,url,async) Specifies the type of request, the URL, and if the request should
be handled asynchronously or not.
method: the type of request: GET or POST

url: the location of the file on the server
async: true (asynchronous) or false (synchronous)
send(string) Sends the request off to the server.
string: Only used for POST requests
GET or POST?
GET is simpler and faster than POST, and can be used in most cases.
However, always use POST requests when:

 A cached file is not an option (update a file or database on the server)
 Sending a large amount of data to the server (POST has no size limitations)
 Sending user input (which can contain unknown characters), POST is more robust and
secure than GET
GET Requests
A simple GET request:
Example
xmlhttp.open("GET","demo_get.asp",true);
xmlhttp.send();
Try it yourself »
In the example above, you may get a cached result.
To avoid this, add a unique ID to the URL:
Example
xmlhttp.open("GET","demo_get.asp?t=" + Math.random(),true);
xmlhttp.send();
Try it yourself »
If you want to send information with the GET method, add the
information to the URL:
Example
xmlhttp.open("GET","demo_get2.asp?fname=Henry&lname=Ford",true);
xmlhttp.send();
Try it yourself »
POST Requests
A simple POST request:

Example
xmlhttp.open("POST","demo_post.asp",true);
xmlhttp.send();
Try it yourself »
To POST data like an HTML form, add an HTTP header with

setRequestHeader(). Specify the data you want to send in the send()
method:
Example
xmlhttp.open("POST","ajax_test.asp",true);
xmlhttp.setRequestHeader("Content-type","application/x-www-form-urlencoded");
xmlhttp.send("fname=Henry&lname=Ford");
Try it yourself »
Method Description
setRequestHeader(header,value) Adds HTTP headers to the request.
header: specifies the header name

value: specifies the header value
The url - A File On a Server
The url parameter of the open() method, is an address to a file on a

server:
xmlhttp.open("GET","ajax_test.asp",true);
The file can be any kind of file, like .txt and .xml, or server scripting files like .asp and .php
(which can perform actions on the server before sending the response back).
Asynchronous - True or False?
AJAX stands for Asynchronous JavaScript and XML, and for the
XMLHttpRequest object to behave as AJAX, the async parameter of the
open() method has to be set to true:
xmlhttp.open("GET","ajax_test.asp",true);
Sending asynchronous requests is a huge improvement for web developers. Many of the tasks
performed on the server are very time consuming. Before AJAX, this operation could cause the
application to hang or stop.
With AJAX, the JavaScript does not have to wait for the server response, but can instead:
 execute other scripts while waiting for server response

 deal with the response when the response ready
Async=true
When using async=true, specify a function to execute when the

response is ready in the onreadystatechange event:
Example
xmlhttp.onreadystatechange=function()
{
if (xmlhttp.readyState==4 && xmlhttp.status==200)
{
document.getElementById("myDiv").innerHTML=xmlhttp.responseText;
}
}
xmlhttp.open("GET","ajax_info.txt",true);
xmlhttp.send();
Try it yourself »
You will learn more about onreadystatechange in a later chapter.
Async=false
To use async=false, change the third parameter in the open() method

to false:
xmlhttp.open("GET","ajax_info.txt",false);
Using async=false is not recommended, but for a few small requests this can be ok.
Remember that the JavaScript will NOT continue to execute, until the server response is
ready. If the server is busy or slow, the application will hang or stop.
Note:When you use async=false, do NOT write an onreadystatechange

function - just put the code after the send() statement:
Example
xmlhttp.open("GET","ajax_info.txt",false);
xmlhttp.send();
Try it yourself »
AJAX - Server Response

Server Response
To get the response from a server, use the responseText or

responseXML property of the XMLHttpRequest object.
Property Description
responseText get the response data as a string
responseXML get the response data as XML data
The responseText Property

If the response from the server is not XML, use the responseText property.
The responseText property returns the response as a string, and you

can use it accordingly:
Example
Try it yourself »
The responseXML Property
If the response from the server is XML, and you want to parse it as an
XML object, use the responseXML property:
Example
Request the file cd_catalog.xml and parse the response:
xmlDoc=xmlhttp.responseXML;
txt="";
x=xmlDoc.getElementsByTagName("ARTIST");
for (i=0;i<x.length;i++)
{
txt=txt + x[i].childNodes[0].nodeValue + "<br />";
}
document.getElementById("myDiv").innerHTML=txt;
Try it yourself »
AJAX - The onreadystatechange Event

The onreadystatechange event

When a request to a server is sent, we want to perform some actions based on the response.
The onreadystatechange event is triggered every time the readyState changes.
The readyState property holds the status of the XMLHttpRequest.
Three important properties of the XMLHttpRequest object:
Property Description
onreadystatechang Stores a function (or the name of a function) to be called automatically
e each time the readyState property changes
readyState Holds the status of the XMLHttpRequest. Changes from 0 to 4:
0: request not initialized
1: server connection established
2: request received
3: processing request
4: request finished and response is ready
status 200: "OK"
404: Page not found
In the onreadystatechange event, we specify what will happen when the server response is
ready to be processed.
When readyState is 4 and status is 200, the response is ready:

Example
{
{
}
}
Try it yourself »
Note: The onreadystatechange event is triggered four times, one time for each change in
readyState.
Using a Callback Function

A callback function is a function passed as a parameter to another function.
If you have more than one AJAX task on your website, you should create ONE standard
function for creating the XMLHttpRequest object, and call this for each AJAX task.
The function call should contain the URL and what to do on

onreadystatechange (which is probably different for each call):
Example
function myFunction()
{
loadXMLDoc("ajax_info.txt",function()
{
{
}
});
}
Try it yourself »
AJAX ASP/PHP Example

AJAX is used to create more interactive applications.

AJAX ASP/PHP Example
The following example will demonstrate how a web page can

communicate with a web server while a user type characters in an
input field:
Example
Start typing a name in the input field below:
First name:
Suggestions:
Try it yourself »
Example Explained - The showHint() Function
When a user types a character in the input field above, the function
"showHint()" is executed. The function is triggered by the "onkeyup"
event:
function showHint(str)
{
var xmlhttp;
if (str.length==0)
{
document.getElementById("txtHint").innerHTML="";
return;
}
}
else
}
{
{
document.getElementById("txtHint").innerHTML=xmlhttp.responseText;
}
}
xmlhttp.open("GET","gethint.asp?q="+str,true);
xmlhttp.send();
}
Source code explanation:
If the input field is empty (str.length==0), the function clears the content of the txtHint
placeholder and exits the function.
If the input field is not empty, the showHint() function executes the following:
 Create an XMLHttpRequest object

 Create the function to be executed when the server response is ready
 Send the request off to a file on the server
 Notice that a parameter (q) is added to the URL (with the content of the input field)
The AJAX Server Page - ASP and PHP

The page on the server called by the JavaScript above is an ASP file called "gethint.asp".
Below we have created two versions of the server file, one written in ASP and one in PHP.
The ASP File
The source code in "gethint.asp" checks an array of names, and

returns the corresponding name(s) to the browser:
<%
response.expires=-1
dim a(30)
'Fill up array with names
a(1)="Anna"
a(2)="Brittany"
a(3)="Cinderella"
a(4)="Diana"
a(5)="Eva"
a(6)="Fiona"
a(7)="Gunda"
a(8)="Hege"
a(9)="Inga"
a(10)="Johanna"
a(11)="Kitty"
a(12)="Linda"
a(13)="Nina"
a(14)="Ophelia"
a(15)="Petunia"
a(16)="Amanda"
a(17)="Raquel"
a(18)="Cindy"
a(19)="Doris"
a(20)="Eve"
a(21)="Evita"
a(22)="Sunniva"
a(23)="Tove"
a(24)="Unni"
a(25)="Violet"
a(26)="Liza"
a(27)="Elizabeth"
a(28)="Ellen"
a(29)="Wenche"
a(30)="Vicky"
'get the q parameter from URL

q=ucase(request.querystring("q"))
'lookup all hints from array if length of q>0

if len(q)>0 then
hint=""
for i=1 to 30
if q=ucase(mid(a(i),1,len(q))) then
if hint="" then
hint=a(i)
else
hint=hint & " , " & a(i)
end if
end if
next
end if
'Output "no suggestion" if no hint were found

'or output the correct values
if hint="" then
response.write("no suggestion")
else
response.write(hint)
end if
%>
The PHP File

Below is the code above rewritten in PHP.
Note: To run the example in PHP, change the value of the url variable
(in the HTML file) from "gethint.asp" to "gethint.php".
<?php
// Fill up array with names
$a[]="Anna";
$a[]="Brittany";
$a[]="Cinderella";
$a[]="Diana";
$a[]="Eva";
$a[]="Fiona";
$a[]="Gunda";
$a[]="Hege";
$a[]="Inga";
$a[]="Johanna";
$a[]="Kitty";
$a[]="Linda";
$a[]="Nina";
$a[]="Ophelia";
$a[]="Petunia";
$a[]="Amanda";
$a[]="Raquel";
$a[]="Cindy";
$a[]="Doris";
$a[]="Eve";
$a[]="Evita";
$a[]="Sunniva";
$a[]="Tove";
$a[]="Unni";
$a[]="Violet";
$a[]="Liza";
$a[]="Elizabeth";
$a[]="Ellen";
$a[]="Wenche";
$a[]="Vicky";
//get the q parameter from URL

$q=$_GET["q"];
//lookup all hints from array if length of q>0

if (strlen($q) > 0)
{
$hint="";
for($i=0; $i<count($a); $i++)
{
if (strtolower($q)==strtolower(substr($a[$i],0,strlen($q))))
{
if ($hint=="")
{
$hint=$a[$i];
}
else
{
$hint=$hint." , ".$a[$i];
}
}
}
}
// Set output to "no suggestion" if no hint were found

// or to the correct values
if ($hint == "")
{
$response="no suggestion";
}
else
{
$response=$hint;
}
//output the response

echo $response;
?>
AJAX Database Example
AJAX can be used for interactive communication with a database.
AJAX Database Example
The following example will demonstrate how a web page can fetch
information from a database with AJAX:
Example
Customer info will be listed here...
Try it yourself »
Example Explained - The showCustomer() Function
When a user selects a customer in the dropdown list above, a function

called "showCustomer()" is executed. The function is triggered by the
"onchange" event:
function showCustomer(str)
{
var xmlhttp;
if (str=="")
{
document.getElementById("txtHint").innerHTML="";
return;
}
}
else
}
{
{
document.getElementById("txtHint").innerHTML=xmlhttp.responseText;
}
}
xmlhttp.open("GET","getcustomer.asp?q="+str,true);
xmlhttp.send();
}
The showCustomer() function does the following:
 Check if a customer is selected

 Create an XMLHttpRequest object
 Create the function to be executed when the server response is ready
 Send the request off to a file on the server
 Notice that a parameter (q) is added to the URL (with the content of the dropdown
list)
The AJAX Server Page

The page on the server called by the JavaScript above is an ASP file called "getcustomer.asp".
The server file could easily be rewritten in PHP, or some other server languages. Look at a
corresponding example in PHP.
The source code in "getcustomer.asp" runs a query against a

database, and returns the result in an HTML table:
<%
response.expires=-1
sql="SELECT * FROM CUSTOMERS WHERE CUSTOMERID="
sql=sql & "'" & request.querystring("q") & "'"
set conn=Server.CreateObject("ADODB.Connection")
conn.Provider="Microsoft.Jet.OLEDB.4.0"
conn.Open(Server.Mappath("/db/northwind.mdb"))
set rs=Server.CreateObject("ADODB.recordset")
rs.Open sql,conn
response.write("<table>")
do until rs.EOF
for each x in rs.Fields
response.write("<tr><td><b>" & x.name & "</b></td>")
response.write("<td>" & x.value & "</td></tr>")
next
rs.MoveNext
loop
response.write("</table>")
%>
AJAX XML Example

AJAX can be used for interactive communication with an XML file.
AJAX XML Example
The following example will demonstrate how a web page can fetch
information from an XML file with AJAX:
Example
Get CD info
Try it yourself »
Example Explained - The stateChange() Function

When a user clicks on the "Get CD info" button above, the loadXMLDoc() function is executed.
The loadXMLDoc() function creates an XMLHttpRequest object, adds the function to be

executed when the server response is ready, and sends the request off to the server.
When the server response is ready, an HTML table is built, nodes

(elements) are extracted from the XML file, and it finally updates the
txtCDInfo placeholder with the HTML table filled with XML data:
function loadXMLDoc(url)
{
var xmlhttp;
var txt,xx,x,i;
}
else
}
{
{
txt="<table border='1'><tr><th>Title</th><th>Artist</th></tr>";
x=xmlhttp.responseXML.documentElement.getElementsByTagName("CD");
for (i=0;i<x.length;i++)
{
txt=txt + "<tr>";
xx=x[i].getElementsByTagName("TITLE");
{
try
{
txt=txt + "<td>" + xx[0].firstChild.nodeValue + "</td>";
}
catch (er)
{
txt=txt + "<td> </td>";
}
}
xx=x[i].getElementsByTagName("ARTIST");
{
try
{
txt=txt + "<td>" + xx[0].firstChild.nodeValue + "</td>";
}
catch (er)
{
txt=txt + "<td> </td>";
}
}
txt=txt + "</tr>";
}
txt=txt + "</table>";
document.getElementById('txtCDInfo').innerHTML=txt;
}
}
xmlhttp.open("GET",url,true);
xmlhttp.send();
}
The AJAX Server Page

The page on the server used in the example above, is an XML file called "cd_catalog.xml".

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« W3Schools Home Next Chapter »

What You Should Already Know

AJAX is a technique for creating fast and dynamic web pages.

How AJAX Works

AJAX is Based on Internet Standards

 XMLHttpRequest object (to exchange data asynchronously with a server)

AJAX applications are browser- and platform-independent!

To understand how AJAX works, we will create a small

Let AJAX change this text

AJAX Example Explained

The div section will be used to display information returned from a

<div id="myDiv"><h2>Let AJAX change this text</h2></div>

The next chapters will explain how AJAX works.

AJAX - Create an XMLHttpRequest Object

The keystone of AJAX is the XMLHttpRequest object.

The XMLHttpRequest Object

Create an XMLHttpRequest Object

Syntax for creating an XMLHttpRequest object:

Old versions of Internet Explorer (IE5 and IE6) uses an ActiveX

AJAX - Send a Request To a Server

The XMLHttpRequest object is used to exchange data with a server.

Send a Request To a Server

To send a request to a server, we use the open() and send() methods

method: the type of request: GET or POST

string: Only used for POST requests

However, always use POST requests when:

A simple GET request:

In the example above, you may get a cached result.

To avoid this, add a unique ID to the URL:

A simple POST request:

To POST data like an HTML form, add an HTTP header with

header: specifies the header name

The url - A File On a Server

The url parameter of the open() method, is an address to a file on a

Asynchronous - True or False?

 execute other scripts while waiting for server response

When using async=true, specify a function to execute when the

You will learn more about onreadystatechange in a later chapter.

To use async=false, change the third parameter in the open() method

Note:When you use async=false, do NOT write an onreadystatechange

AJAX - Server Response

To get the response from a server, use the responseText or

The responseText Property

The responseText property returns the response as a string, and you

The responseXML Property

Request the file cd_catalog.xml and parse the response:

AJAX - The onreadystatechange Event

The onreadystatechange event

The onreadystatechange event is triggered every time the readyState changes.

The readyState property holds the status of the XMLHttpRequest.

Three important properties of the XMLHttpRequest object:

When readyState is 4 and status is 200, the response is ready:

Using a Callback Function

The function call should contain the URL and what to do on

AJAX ASP/PHP Example

AJAX is used to create more interactive applications.

The following example will demonstrate how a web page can

Example Explained - The showHint() Function