API Authentication

Authenticate API requests using tokens for programmatic access to Zygo

Zygo supports two authentication methods: browser sessions for the web UI and API tokens for programmatic access. This guide covers API token authentication.

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How It Works

1. Generate a Token

   Obtain a signed JWT token from the Zygo API while logged in via the browser or using an existing valid token.

2. Pass the Token

   Include the token in the token HTTP header on every API request.

3. Specify the Tenant

   The tenant is determined by the {tenant_id} in each endpoint’s URL path. No session or tenant switching is needed.

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Generating a Token

You must be logged in via the browser to generate your first token. After that, you can use the token itself to generate new tokens.

curl -X GET "https://your-zygo-instance.com/api/token?expiration=3600" \
  -H "Cookie: session=YOUR_SESSION_COOKIE"

Response:

{
  "token": "eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIs...",
  "expires_in": 3600
}

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Parameters

Parameter	Type	Default	Description
expiration	integer (query)	600	Token lifetime in seconds

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Using the Token

Pass the token in the token header on every request. No session cookie is needed.

curl

curl -X GET "https://your-zygo-instance.com/api/tenants/{tenant_id}/flows" \
  -H "token: eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIs..."

Python

import requests

TOKEN = "eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIs..."
BASE = "https://your-zygo-instance.com/api"

response = requests.get(
    f"{BASE}/tenants/{tenant_id}/flows",
    headers={"token": TOKEN}
)
print(response.json())

JavaScript

const TOKEN = "eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIs...";
const BASE = "https://your-zygo-instance.com/api";

const response = await fetch(
  `${BASE}/tenants/${tenantId}/flows`,
  { headers: { token: TOKEN } }
);
const data = await response.json();

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Token vs. Session

Understanding the difference between the two authentication methods:

	Browser Session	API Token
How it works	Cookie-based, managed by Flask-Login	Stateless JWT in token header
Tenant context	Set once via the UI or /session/{tenant_id}	Determined per-request from the URL
State	Stateful — server stores session data	Stateless — no server-side state
Best for	Web UI interactions	Scripts, integrations, CI/CD
Login count	Incremented on login	Not incremented
Multi-tenant	Switch tenants with /session/{tenant_id}	Access any tenant per-request via URL

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Multi-Tenant Access

Unlike browser sessions where you switch tenants, API tokens let you access any tenant you’re a member of by changing the tenant_id in the URL:

# Access Tenant A
curl -H "token: $TOKEN" /api/tenants/tenant-a-id/flows

# Access Tenant B (same token, different URL)
curl -H "token: $TOKEN" /api/tenants/tenant-b-id/flows

The token identifies you. The URL identifies what you’re accessing. Your roles are resolved per-tenant — you might be an Admin in Tenant A and a Viewer in Tenant B.

Each individual API request is scoped to a single tenant. You cannot access resources from multiple tenants within a single request.

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Error Responses

Status	Meaning
401	Token is missing, invalid, or expired
403	Token is valid but you lack permission (wrong role or not a tenant member)
404	Resource not found (or belongs to a tenant you don’t have access to)

For security, Zygo returns 404 rather than 403 when you try to access a specific resource in a tenant you’re not a member of. This prevents leaking information about whether a resource exists.

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Security Best Practices

Use short expiration times

Set token expiration to the minimum duration you need. For scripts that run once, 600 seconds (10 minutes) is reasonable. For long-running integrations, consider refreshing the token periodically rather than using a very long expiration.

Never commit tokens to source control

Store tokens in environment variables or a secrets manager. Treat them like passwords.

Use one token per integration

If you have multiple scripts or services calling the API, generate a separate token for each. This makes it easier to revoke access if one is compromised.

Rotate tokens regularly

Tokens are short-lived by design. Build your integrations to handle token refresh gracefully.