Web/API/RTCDataChannel/close

The RTCDataChannel.close() method closes the RTCDataChannel. Either peer is permitted to call this method to initiate closure of the channel.

Closure of the data channel is not instantaneous. Most of the process of closing the connection is handled asynchronously; you can detect when the channel has finished closing by watching for a close event on the data channel.

The sequence of events which occurs in response to this method being called:

RTCDataChannel.readyState is set to "closing".
A background task is established to handle the remainder of the steps below, and close() returns to the caller.
The transport layer deals with any buffered messages; the protocol layer decides whether to send them or discard them.
The underlying data transport is closed.
The RTCDataChannel.readyState property is set to "closed".
If the transport was closed with an error, the RTCDataChannel is sent a NetworkError event.
A close event is sent to the channel.

In Firefox, the RTCDataChannel interface was implemented under the name DataChannel until Firefox 24, so this method was called DataChannel.close().

Syntax

RTCDataChannel.close();

Parameters

None.

Return value

undefined.

Example

var pc = new RTCPeerConnection();
var dc = pc.createDataChannel("my channel");

dc.onmessage = function (event) {
  console.log("received: " + event.data);
  dc.close(); // We decided to close after the first received message
};

dc.onopen = function () {
  console.log("datachannel open");
};

dc.onclose = function (
  console.log("datachannel close");
};

// Now negotiate the connection and so forth...

Specifications

Specification	Status	Comment
WebRTC 1.0: Real-time Communication Between BrowsersThe definition of 'RTCDataChannel.close()' in that specification.	Candidate Recommendation	Initial specification.

Browser compatibility

Update compatibility data on GitHub

	Desktop						Mobile
	Chrome	Edge	Firefox	Internet Explorer	Opera	Safari	Android webview	Chrome for Android	Firefox for Android	Opera for Android	Safari on iOS	Samsung Internet
`close`	Chrome Full support 56	Edge Full support ≤79	Firefox Full support Yes	IE No support No	Opera Full support 43	Safari No support No	WebView Android Full support 56	Chrome Android Full support 56	Firefox Android Full support Yes	Opera Android Full support 43	Safari iOS No support No	Samsung Internet Android Full support 6.0

Legend

Full support: Full support
No support: No support