Adding Authentication to API Calls

Step 1 - Enable Authentication

1. Open the Incoming API/API End Point Actionflow
2. On the toolbar click 

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3. In the API section, disable 

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    Allow Anonymous Connection 
   1. This will then only allow authenticated calls to the API

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    the changes

Step 2 - Create an Authentication User

1. In the

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   , expand the application with the Incoming API
2. Expand

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    and create an New Role by clicking 

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   1. Pin the tab as we will need it to remain open
   2. Provide a useful Name, e.g. GenerateToken
   3. In the Privileges section, click 

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   4. Search for the privilege in the Full Repository : Use API Key
   5. Drag the Use API Key into the Privileges section of the Role 

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   6. 

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       the changes
3. In the 

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    section, click 

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   1. Add a new Group for your Role
      1. Give it a useful Name e.g. API Users
      2. Add any users you require to be able to run the API. This could be a dedicated API user with limited privileges
         1. To create a user see Managing User Accounts → Creating Users
      3. Click 

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          and close the tab
   2. Now drag the new user group into the 

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       section of the new role

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4. The setup should look similar to:
   1. 

Step 3 - Authentication Token KeyStore

A signing key is used to generate the PhixFlow API key and this is stored on the server to ensure secure access.

Using the page Configure a Keystore and Aliases, configure phixflow-api-key to be used as the signing key for PhixFlow API Keys in the same way as the pepperKey is configured. This secret string must be a minimum of 32 bytes length.

Step 4 - Generate Authentication Token

1. The Incoming API will run as a specified user, this means that when it is called the audit trail will show the specified user as having performed the Incoming API Actionflow
2. You do not need to login as this user, however, if you were already logged in as this user, you will need to logout and login again to pick up the user group change 
3. In the 

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   , scroll down to the Full Repository section and expand it
4. Expand the

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    section
5. Double click on the user who will run the Incoming API
6. Click the 3-dot more menu in the top right of the user properties
7. Click Generate API Key
8. Copy the value displayed and store it somewhere safe

Step 5 - Send Authorization

When calling the Incoming API, the authorisation token must be passed in as a header called: Authorization.

1. In the Headers section, click 

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   1. Name: Authorization
   2. Expression: ${_datasource.APIKey}

Worked Example

Here's a worked example using the Company Data (available from the Learning Centre).

In this example, we are using:  

• A Company Call API screen containing a fixed drop down list of industries, a string fields for Status, StatusMessage, Industry, CompanyName, CompanyID the API Status and a multi-line string field for Results the Results - this screen was created using the Tile with Buttons template

Add Authentication to API Calling Actionflow

In this example, we'll add authentication to the Actionflow that calls the an API. 

Prerequisites

For this example, we'll modify an API End Point Actionflow containing company data to only allow authenticated calls and we'll add secret key details to an Actionflow that calls the API.

The two Actionflows that will be modified were created in 3.01 Setting up an API End Point. If you have not completed this chapter, expand the section below and follow the steps to create the Actionflows.

Enable Authentication on API End Point Actionflow

1. Open the API Company Data Actionflow
2. On the toolbar click 

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3. In the API section, disable 

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    Allow Anonymous Connection 
   1. This will then only allow authenticated calls to the API

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    the changes

Create Authentication User

1. In the 

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   , expand the 

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    section 
2. Click 

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    to create a new user who will be able to run the API
   1. Login: apiagent
   2. First Name: API
   3. Surname: Agent
   4. Password: Phixflow123!
   5. Enabled: 

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       the userIn the  Insert excerpt_user_group_user_groupnopaneltrue section, click the  Insert excerpt_user_group_user_groupnameiconnopaneltrue iconAdd a new User Group called APIUsersIn the Users section, click Insert excerpt_user_ usernameiconnopaneltrue icon and drag across your API Agent user into the Users section
   7. Close the Users window
   Click  Insert excerpt_save_savenopaneltrue on the User Group tab

Create Role

We need to create a role then assign the privilege and user group(s) to it.

1. In the

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    for the application (not the full repository), expand the application you're working in
2. Expand

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    and create an New Role by clicking 

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   1. Pin the tab as we will need it to remain open
   2. Name: GenerateAPIToken
   3. In the Privileges section, click 

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   4. Search for the privilege, Use API Key and drag it into the Privileges section of the Role 

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   5. 
   6. Search for the privilege, Run Actions and drag it into the Privileges section of the Role 

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       the changes
3. In the 

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    section, click 

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   1. Add Create a new User Group called APIUsersIn the Users section, click  by clicking the 

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      user

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      1. Name: APIUsers

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          icon and drag across your API Agent user into  the new user group
      3. On the User Group, in the Users section, click Click the 

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          icon and drag across the Role, User, your API Agent user into the Roles section of the APIUsers User GroupClose the Users windowUsers section
      4. Click 

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          on the User Group tab the changes
4. Click back onto the GenerateAPIToken Role tab
5. Drag the APIUsers user group into the 

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    section of the GenerateAPIToken Role

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       the changes

Generate Authentication Token

1. In the 

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   , expand the

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    section
2. Double click on the API Agent user
3. Hover over the 3-dot more menu in the top right corner
4. Click Generate API Key
5. Copy the value displayed and store it somewhere safe

Send Authorization

1. On the screen, Company Call API, open the Actionflow on the Call API button
2. Click on the HTTP Action, Call API, to open its

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3. In the Secret Key Details section, click 

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   1. Name: APIKey
   2. Enabled: 

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   4. Secret: click 

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      1. In the Secret field, paste the API Key you copied above

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4. In the Headers section, click 

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   1. Name: Authorization
   2. Expression: ${_datasource.APIKey}

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    the changes