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Building a Website Analytics System with Python Sockets

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Here's a full tutorial explaining every part of the web analytics server in python.

📊 Web Analytics Server in Python

This tutorial walks through the complete Python code for a web analytics system using sockets. The server logs visitor activity and retrieves analytics data.

📌 Full Code

import json
import socket
import threading
from datetime import datetime

PORT = 5050
SERVER = "localhost"
ADDR = (SERVER, PORT)
FORMAT = "utf-8"
LOG_FILE = "analytics.json"

server = socket.socket(socket.AF_INET, socket.SOCK_STREAM)
server.bind(ADDR)
server.listen()

def handle_client(conn, addr):
    print(f"[NEW CONNECTION] {addr} Connected")
    request = conn.recv(1024).decode(FORMAT)
    
    if not request:
        conn.close()
        return
    
    if request.startswith("POST /send_message"):
        body = request.split("\r\n\r\n")[-1]
        log_visit(addr, body)
        response = ("HTTP/1.1 200 OK\r\n"
                    "Access-Control-Allow-Origin: *\r\n"
                    "Content-Type: text/plain\r\n"
                    "Connection: close\r\n\r\n"
                    "Message received successfully!")
        conn.sendall(response.encode(FORMAT))
    
    elif request.startswith("GET /get_analytics"):
        conn.sendall(get_analytics().encode(FORMAT))
    
    conn.close()

def log_visit(client_addr, page):
    data = {"ip": client_addr[0], "page": page, "timestamp": str(datetime.now())}
    
    try:
        with open(LOG_FILE, "r") as file:
            logs = json.load(file)
    except FileNotFoundError:
        logs = []
    
    logs.append(data)
    
    with open(LOG_FILE, "w") as file:
        json.dump(logs, file, indent=4)

def get_analytics():
    try:
        with open(LOG_FILE, "r") as file:
            data = json.load(file)
        return ("HTTP/1.1 200 OK\r\n"
                "Access-Control-Allow-Origin: *\r\n"
                "Content-Type: application/json\r\n"
                "Connection: close\r\n\r\n"
                + json.dumps(data))
    except FileNotFoundError:
        return ("HTTP/1.1 404 Not Found\r\n"
                "Access-Control-Allow-Origin: *\r\n"
                "Content-Type: text/plain\r\n"
                "Connection: close\r\n\r\n"
                "No analytics data found.")

def start():
    print("[SERVER STARTED] Tracking analytics...")
    while True:
        conn, addr = server.accept()
        thread = threading.Thread(target=handle_client, args=(conn, addr))
        thread.start()

start()

📖 Explanation of the Code

🔹 1. Importing Libraries

import json
import socket
import threading
from datetime import datetime
  • json → Handles visitor data storage.
  • socket → Creates a TCP server to receive analytics data.
  • threading → Runs multiple connections simultaneously.
  • datetime → Logs timestamps for visits.

🔹 2. Setting Up Server Variables

PORT = 5050
SERVER = "localhost"
ADDR = (SERVER, PORT)
FORMAT = "utf-8"
LOG_FILE = "analytics.json"
  • Defines the server port (5050).
  • Uses localhost (127.0.0.1).
  • Specifies the file where analytics logs are saved.

🔹 3. Creating the Server

server = socket.socket(socket.AF_INET, socket.SOCK_STREAM)
server.bind(ADDR)
server.listen()
  • Creates a TCP socket for network communication.
  • Binds the socket to the IP and port.
  • Enables the server to listen for incoming connections.

🔹 4. Handling Client Requests

def handle_client(conn, addr):
    print(f"[NEW CONNECTION] {addr} Connected")
    request = conn.recv(1024).decode(FORMAT)
    
    if not request:
        conn.close()
        return
  • Accepts incoming client connections.
  • Reads the request data from the client.
  • Closes the connection if no data is received.

🔹 5. Processing Incoming HTTP Requests

if request.startswith("POST /send_message"):
    body = request.split("\r\n\r\n")[-1]
    log_visit(addr, body)
    response = ("HTTP/1.1 200 OK\r\n"
                "Access-Control-Allow-Origin: *\r\n"
                "Content-Type: text/plain\r\n"
                "Connection: close\r\n\r\n"
                "Message received successfully!")
    conn.sendall(response.encode(FORMAT))
  • Handles POST requests (send_message).
  • Extracts message body.
  • Calls log_visit() to store user activity.
  • Sends an HTTP response confirming success.

🔹 6. Retrieving Analytics Logs

elif request.startswith("GET /get_analytics"):
    conn.sendall(get_analytics().encode(FORMAT))
  • Responds to GET requests (get_analytics).
  • Calls get_analytics() to fetch logs.

🔹 7. Logging Visitor Activity

def log_visit(client_addr, page):
    data = {"ip": client_addr[0], "page": page, "timestamp": str(datetime.now())}
    
    try:
        with open(LOG_FILE, "r") as file:
            logs = json.load(file)
    except FileNotFoundError:
        logs = []
    
    logs.append(data)
    
    with open(LOG_FILE, "w") as file:
        json.dump(logs, file, indent=4)
  • Creates a JSON object containing:
    • Visitor IP (client_addr[0])
    • Page visited (page)
    • Timestamp (datetime.now())
  • Writes logs into a JSON file.

🔹 8. Fetching Analytics Data

def get_analytics():
    try:
        with open(LOG_FILE, "r") as file:
            data = json.load(file)
        return ("HTTP/1.1 200 OK\r\n"
                "Access-Control-Allow-Origin: *\r\n"
                "Content-Type: application/json\r\n"
                "Connection: close\r\n\r\n"
                + json.dumps(data))
    except FileNotFoundError:
        return ("HTTP/1.1 404 Not Found\r\n"
                "Access-Control-Allow-Origin: *\r\n"
                "Content-Type: text/plain\r\n"
                "Connection: close\r\n\r\n"
                "No analytics data found.")
  • Reads visitor logs from JSON.
  • Returns data in HTTP response format.
  • Handles cases where logs don’t exist.

🔹 9. Running the Server

def start():
    print("[SERVER STARTED] Tracking analytics...")
    while True:
        conn, addr = server.accept()
        thread = threading.Thread(target=handle_client, args=(conn, addr))
        thread.start()
  • Prints server startup message.
  • Continuously accepts connections.
  • Runs each connection in a separate thread.

🔹 10. Starting the Server

start()
  • Launches the server to listen for requests.

🚀 How to Use

✅ Run the Server

python server.py

✅ Send Analytics Data

Use JavaScript:

fetch("http://localhost:5050/send_message", {
    method: "POST",
    body: "User visited homepage!"
});

✅ Retrieve Analytics

Visit:

http://localhost:5050/get_analytics

🔥 Next Steps

✅ Add Real-Time Analytics with WebSockets
✅ Use a Database (SQLite/PostgreSQL) for Storage
✅ Visualize Analytics on a Website

Let me know if you want real-time updates or frontend visualization! 🚀

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