API Access and Restrictions

Using the API

We provide several different API’s. Each API has its own ID. When running witness_node, initially two API’s are available.

  • API 0 provides read-only access to the database. (e.g. state-less RPC-calls querying)

  • API 1 is used to login and gain access to additional, restricted API’s. (e.g. authenticated interaction)

Note

To access the restricted API-1 we are required to use the websocket connection with callbacks to access API-1

Examples

using wscat package from npm for websockets:

$ npm install -g wscat
$ wscat -c ws://127.0.0.1:8090
> {"id":1, "method":"call", "params":[0,"get_accounts",[["1.2.0"]]]}
< {"id":1,"result":[{"id":"1.2.0","annotations":[],"membership_expiration_date":"1969-12-31T23:59:59","registrar":"1.2.0","referrer":"1.2.0","lifetime_referrer":"1.2.0","network_fee_percentage":2000,"lifetime_referrer_fee_percentage":8000,"referrer_rewards_percentage":0,"name":"committee-account","owner":{"weight_threshold":1,"account_auths":[],"key_auths":[],"address_auths":[]},"active":{"weight_threshold":6,"account_auths":[["1.2.5",1],["1.2.6",1],["1.2.7",1],["1.2.8",1],["1.2.9",1],["1.2.10",1],["1.2.11",1],["1.2.12",1],["1.2.13",1],["1.2.14",1]],"key_auths":[],"address_auths":[]},"options":{"memo_key":"GPH1111111111111111111111111111111114T1Anm","voting_account":"1.2.0","num_witness":0,"num_committee":0,"votes":[],"extensions":[]},"statistics":"2.7.0","whitelisting_accounts":[],"blacklisting_accounts":[]}]}

the same thing using an HTTP client such as curl for API’s which do not require login or other session state:

$ curl --data '{"jsonrpc": "2.0", "method": "call", "params": [0, "get_accounts", [["1.2.0"]]], "id": 1}' http://127.0.0.1:8090/rpc
{"id":1,"result":[{"id":"1.2.0","annotations":[],"membership_expiration_date":"1969-12-31T23:59:59","registrar":"1.2.0","referrer":"1.2.0","lifetime_referrer":"1.2.0","network_fee_percentage":2000,"lifetime_referrer_fee_percentage":8000,"referrer_rewards_percentage":0,"name":"committee-account","owner":{"weight_threshold":1,"account_auths":[],"key_auths":[],"address_auths":[]},"active":{"weight_threshold":6,"account_auths":[["1.2.5",1],["1.2.6",1],["1.2.7",1],["1.2.8",1],["1.2.9",1],["1.2.10",1],["1.2.11",1],["1.2.12",1],["1.2.13",1],["1.2.14",1]],"key_auths":[],"address_auths":[]},"options":{"memo_key":"GPH1111111111111111111111111111111114T1Anm","voting_account":"1.2.0","num_witness":0,"num_committee":0,"votes":[],"extensions":[]},"statistics":"2.7.0","whitelisting_accounts":[],"blacklisting_accounts":[]}]}

API 0 is accessible using regular JSON-RPC:

$ curl --data '{"jsonrpc": "2.0", "method": "get_accounts", "params": [["1.2.0"]], "id": 1}' http://127.0.0.1:8090/rpc

Since restricted APIs require login, they are only accessible over the websocket RPC. However, to monitor incoming deposits, we only need API 0.

Accessing Restricted API’s

You can restrict API’s to particular users by specifying an api-access in a configuration file or by using the --api-access /full/path/to/api-access.json startup node command.

Example:

api-access.json file which allows user bytemaster with password supersecret to access four different API’s, while allowing any other user to access the three public API’s necessary to use the wallet:

{
   "permission_map" :
   [
      [
         "bytemaster",
         {
            "password_hash_b64" : "9e9GF7ooXVb9k4BoSfNIPTelXeGOZ5DrgOYMj94elaY=",
            "password_salt_b64" : "INDdM6iCi/8=",
            "allowed_apis" : ["database_api", "network_broadcast_api", "history_api", "network_node_api"]
         }
      ],
      [
         "*",
         {
            "password_hash_b64" : "*",
            "password_salt_b64" : "*",
            "allowed_apis" : ["database_api", "network_broadcast_api", "history_api"]
         }
      ]
   ]
}

  • Passwords are stored in ase64 as as salted sha256 hashes.

  • A simple Python script, saltpass.py is avaliable [click here] to obtain hash and salt values from a password.

  • A single asterisk * may be specified as username or password hash to accept any value.

With the above configuration, how to call add_node from the network_node API

{"id":1, "method":"call", "params":[1,"login",["bytemaster", "supersecret"]]}
{"id":2, "method":"call", "params":[1,"network_node",[]]}
{"id":3, "method":"call", "params":[2,"add_node",["127.0.0.1:9090"]]}

Note

the call to network_node is necessary to obtain the correct API identifier for the network API. It is not guaranteed that the network API identifier will always be 2.

The full node offers a set of API(s), of which only the database calls are avaiable via RPC. Calls that are restricted by default (i.e. network_node_api) or have been restricted by configuration are not accessible via RPC because a statefull protocol (websocket) is required for login.

The network_node API requires login, it is only accessible over the websocket RPC.

Please check. Our doxygen documentation contains the most up-to-date information about APIs.

Accessing the Named API via HTTP

When you access the API via HTTP, use the name of the APIs like below,

curl --data '{"jsonrpc": "2.0", "params": ["history", "get_account_history", ["1.2.31489", "1.11.0", 10, "1.11.0"]], "method": "call", "id": 10}' http://testgraphene:8090/rpc

If the API is restricted, specify the credentials using standard HTTP Headers,

curl -u bytemaster:supersecret --data '{"jsonrpc": "2.0", "params": ["history", "get_account_history", ["1.2.31489", "1.11.0", 10, "1.11.0"]], "method": "call", "id": 10}' http://testgraphene:8090/rpc

When you use WS, use like below to prevent unnecessary round trips (login, query API number, call function)

wscat -c ws://bytemaster:supersecret@testgraphene:8090

Login In

The login_api class implements the bottom layer of the RPC API. All other APIs must be requested from this API.

class login_api

The login_api class implements the bottom layer of the RPC API.

All other APIs must be requested from this API.

Public Functions

variant login(const optional<string> &user, const optional<string> &password)

Authenticate to the RPC server, or retrieve the API set ID of the login API set.

Note

Provide both user and password to authenticate, or provide none of them (or null without quotes) to retrieve the API set ID of the login API set.

Note

This is called automatically for authentication when a HTTP or WebSocket connection is established, assuming credentials are provided with HTTP Basic authentication headers.

Note

When trying to authenticate again, even if failed to log in, already allocated API set IDs are still accessible.

Parameters:

  • user – Username to login with, optional

  • password – Password to login with, optional

Returns:

true if to authenticate and logged in successfully, false if to authenticate and failed to log in, or the API set ID if to retrieve it

bool logout()

Log out.

Note

Already allocated API set IDs are still accessible after calling this.

Returns:

false

string get_info() const

Retrive the node info string configured by the node operator.

application_options get_config() const

Retrieve configured application options.

Note

It requires the user to be logged in and have access to at least one API set other than login_api.

flat_set<string> get_available_api_sets() const

Retrieve a list of API sets that the user has access to.

fc::api<block_api> block()

Retrieve the network block API set.

fc::api<network_broadcast_api> network_broadcast()

Retrieve the network broadcast API set.

fc::api<database_api> database()

Retrieve the database API set.

fc::api<history_api> history()

Retrieve the history API set.

fc::api<network_node_api> network_node()

Retrieve the network node API set.

fc::api<crypto_api> crypto()

Retrieve the cryptography API set.

fc::api<asset_api> asset()

Retrieve the asset API set.

fc::api<orders_api> orders()

Retrieve the orders API set.

fc::api<graphene::debug_witness::debug_api> debug()

Retrieve the debug API set.

fc::api<custom_operations_api> custom_operations()

Retrieve the custom operations API set.

fc::api<dummy_api> dummy()

Retrieve a dummy API set, not reflected.

bool is_database_api_allowed() const

Check whether database_api is allowed, not reflected.

Returns:

true if database_api is allowed, false otherwise