HTTP: Connecting to your application's API

Connecting to your application's API using HTTP

How to create a secure connection to your application data using Workato

HTTP connector allows users to connect to their favourite application's API to extend the usage of Workato recipe. Users can do so with Workato's HTTP Connector.

Connecting APIs

In order to send and receive data to your application, you will first need to create a connection to your account's data via the application's API. This requires you to understand and decipher the methods of connection. 

Workato provides two types of Connectors, HTTP and HTTP (OAuth2).  This article will focus on the HTTP Action that is non-OAuth2

To learn more about determining the method of connection for your application, check out this tutorial on determining which action should you use.

Establishing the non-OAuth2 connection is slightly more complex - you would have to select the authentication type specific to the application you're attempting to integrate with. 

The following options are available: 

• None
  
• Basic 
• Header Auth
  
• Query Params
  
• Custom
  

1. None
   

   None allows you to create a connection without providing any authentication details.
   
   

   
   
   
   

1. Basic
   Basic authentication usually requires your username and password. An alternative to this would be using API key or API token - where this key or token should be placed would depend on the application you're connecting to - some apps specify that the API key be placed in the user field, some apps specify that the API key be placed in the password field. This is encoded with Base64 in transit.
   
   
   

1. Header Auth
   

   Header auth authentication type is for applications which require additional headers outside of the usual username and password or API key, or if you want to customize the headers sent in the request. Header authentication can be used when you have a generated token ready for use. All you'll need to do is add this token to the Header authorization field with the appropriate key name, one per line as the hint specified.
   
   

   

   
   

2. Query params
   

   This connection type is useful when the authentication structure is based on validating an API key as a parameter. What you need to do is to add the parameter key/value pair in the params authorization field and you are good to go.

   
   

    

   

   
   
   
3. Custom
   Custom authentication is when none of the above fits your application's connection requirements, or if you wish to have more flexibility over the authentication request sent to the application, as it exposes all the different fields available.