Import JSON feed data automatically without FeedMe

Question

Can JSON feed data be displayed in a Craft site automatically?

I have a page: URL/asdfh3 I've been dynamically using 'asdfh3' to pull in data from the JSON feed that is associated with 'asdfh3'. This template works - BUT ONLY if an entry for 'asdfh3' already exists in craft.

Whilst this can be achieved by running a feed update using the FeedMe plugin, it isn't a satisfactory method - as the site breaks if new data is entered into JSON without a feed update in Craft (no template found).

So, how can Craft display external content without having to set up entries for each piece of external content?

Answer 1

The answer is Routing. Define a wildcard route e.g. URL/path/* Then tell it to use a particular template if that route is used.

The key thing to do (which I didn't do first time around) is: Don't duplicate the same route in a section. If you do, Craft follows the section path not the routing path and expect entries to be in the CMS.