Server to Server: Bidding Integration Troubleshooting

When you've finished server-to-server bidding integration, you should complete app bidding integration testing on physical devices with production ads. In case you are facing some http-errors or 'no bids', this session will help you troubleshoot your implementation.

Prerequisites

• Ensure you have completed Android tutorials for Native Ad, Native Banner Ad, Interstitial Ad, Banner Ad, Rewarded Video Ad.
• Ensure you have completed iOS tutorials for Native Ad, Native Banner Ad, Interstitial Ad, Banner Ad, Rewarded Video Ad.
• Ensure you have read Audience Network Mobile App Bidding Overview and Mobile App Bidding Integration Best Practices.
• Ensure you have completed Server-to-Server Bidding Integration, Auction Server Setup, Android Client Setup, iOS Client Setup.
• Ensure you have walked through App Bidding Integration Testing.

Sections

Use cURL to Debug Bid Requests

HTTP Error Codes and Resolutions in Bid Request

Troubleshooting No Bids

Use cURL to Debug Bid Requests

In order to debug the bid request, you can take advantage of cURL command, which allows you to send bid request and receive bid response in your terminal.

Step 1. JSON Payload for Interstitial Ad in bid request

• Replace YOUR_PLACEMENT_ID with your placement ID
• Replace YOUR_BUSINESS_ID with your business ID
• Replace YOUR_DEVICE_ID with your device ID
• Replace YOUR_BIDDER_TOKEN with your Bidder Token generated from Audience Network SDK
• Replace YOUR_PLATFORM_ID with the mediation partner Platform ID (FB App ID).
• In case you'd like to test with different ad format, please refer to Supported Ad Formats.
• Save JSON payload below as bid_request.json

{
"id": "vwxfKskkMobzQQ1e7M70",
"imp": [
{
"id": "FB Ad Impression",
"tagid": "YOUR_PLACEMENT_ID",
"instl": 1,
"banner": {
"h": 0,
"w": 0,
"linearity": 0
}
}
],
"app": {
"publisher": {
"id": "YOUR_BUSINESS_ID"
}
},
"device": {
"ua": "Dalvik\/2.1.0 (Linux; U; Android 8.1.0; Android SDK built for x86 Build\/OSM1.180201.000)",
"ifa": "YOUR_DEVICE_ID",
"dnt": 0,
"ip": "125.123.255.123"
},
"user": {
"buyeruid": "YOUR_BIDDER_TOKEN"
},
"regs": {
"coppa": 0
},
"at": 1,
"tmax": 500,
"test": 1,
"ext": {
"platformid": "YOUR_PLATFORM_ID"
}
}

Step 2. Send bid request with cURL command

• Open your Terminal
• Navigate to the directory where you saved your bid_request.json by cd ~/{FILE_PATH}

curl -X POST -H "Content-Type: application/json" -d @bid_request.json https://an.facebook.com/placementbid.ortb

Step 3. Check out bid response in case the bid request is valid

{
"id": "Auction ID",
"seatbid": [
{
"bid": [
{
"id": "Bid Response ID",
"impid": "FB Ad Impression",
"price": 99.99,
"adm": "{\"type\":\"ID\",\"bid_id\":\"BID ID\",\"placement_id\":\"Placement ID\",\"resolved_placement_id\":\"Resolved Placement ID\",\"sdk_version\":\"SDK Version\",\"device_id\":\"Device ID\",\"template\":102,\"payload\":null}",
"nurl": "https://www.facebook.com/audiencenetwork/nurl/?partner=partner_id&app=app_id&placement=placement_id&auction=auction_id&impression=impression_id&request=request_id&bid=bid_id&ortb_loss_code=0&clearing_price=${AUCTION_PRICE}",
"lurl": "https://www.facebook.com/audiencenetwork/nurl/?partner=partner_id&app=app_id&placement=placement_id&auction=auction_id&impression=impression_id&request=request_id&bid=bid_id&ortb_loss_code=${AUCTION_LOSS}&clearing_price=${AUCTION_PRICE}"
}
]
}
],
"bidid": "Bid ID",
"cur": "USD"
}

Step 4. Look into x-fb-an-errors in HTTP response headers when you did not get above bid response.

cURL command to display the HTTP response headers.

url -X POST -H "Content-Type: application/json" -v @bid_request.json https://an.facebook.com/placementbid.ortb

...
> Content-Type: application/json
>
* Connection state changed (MAX_CONCURRENT_STREAMS updated)!
< HTTP/2 400
< x-fb-an-request-id: fb_an_request_id
...
< x-fb-an-errors: Value cannot be null: value given: null
...

Please refer to HTTP Error Description and Resolutions in Bid Request to fix your bid request.

HTTP Error Description and Resolutions in Bid Request

When testing your bidding implementation, you may experience one of several possible error codes when making a bid request. These error codes and resolutions are described below.

400 Response: Invalid Parameter Errors

400 Response: Unauthorized Errors

204 Response: Empty Error Message

Troubleshooting No Bids

• Make sure you are capturing and logging the x-fb-an-errors HTTP header to help you understand the cause of an error.
• Ensure the Facebook app is installed on the device where your app is running and you are logged into Facebook with your real user account. Fake or testing Facebook user accounts are a violation of Facebook's policy and will be disabled.
• Ensure you are getting the bidder token from the Audience Network SDK by calling com.facebook.ads.BidderTokenProvider.getBidderToken() on Android and [FBAdSettings bidderToken] on iOS and sending the returned string into buyeruid field of the bid request.
• Ensure you are sending the correct device id in ifa field in the bid request (Android -- AdvertisingIdClient.getAdvertisingIdInfo(context).getId(), iOS -- [[[ASIdentifierManager sharedManager] advertisingIdentifier] UUIDString]).
• Ensure that the do-not-track(dnt) is not enabled on your device, and then pass dnt: 0 (do-not-track) in bid request.