Page Comparison

Overview

The public site API enforces authentication for all API calls. There are two methods a consumer of the API can choose from to authenticate their call. The first method uses the traditional cookie approach. This method is very similar to how a normal website controls authentication, whereby upon successful authentication, a cookie is returned and each subsequent request the cookie is sent. The other method of authentication supported by the API is a custom header/value pair. With this method the caller adds to their request header the issued token set against the header key of `sb-auth-token`.

Maintaining authentication

By default an authentication token/cookie is valid for 2 hours. In addition, each successful request to the API will included in the response a new authentication token/cookie. Simply, the API will slide the expiry of a valid authenticated call. 

Approach one: Always getting a token/cookie before making a call.

Pros: Easy.

Cons: Each API call requires two calls.

Approach two: Keeping token/cookie for the duration of two hours.

Pros: Easy, Allows for single API calls.

...

Cons: Need to track time, Logic to handle token/cookie time out.

How to authenticate

You will be issued a username and password. These credentials can be used to authenticate via the API endpoint /api/v2/authenticate. A successful call to this API will result with being issued a cookie and token.

...

	var client = new RestClient("http://dev.adoptapet.com.au/api/v2/");
	client.CookieContainer = new CookieContainer();
	client.AddDefaultHeader("content-type", "application/json");
	
	var request = new RestRequest("authenticate?username={u}&password={p}", Method.GET);
	request.AddUrlSegmentAddQueryParameter("uusername", "usernameAPIDiscoveries");
	request.AddUrlSegmentAddQueryParameter("ppassword", "passwordyE9kI9tV0hG7sB4z");
	var result = client.Execute(request);

	
	request = new RestRequest("animals?animalStatusId={id}", Method.GET);
	request.AddUrlSegment("id", "3");
	
	result = client.Execute(request);

...