Credentials - Authentication Management

What are Credentials

A secure storage system for authentication data such as API keys, tokens, passwords, and database connections. Credentials are stored encrypted in the database and loaded on demand by modules that need authentication with external services. They are stored in the servicecredentials table.

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How They Work

• They are created and managed from the administration panel.
• They are stored as JSON in the credentials column of the servicecredentials table.
• Modules load them via getCredentials(config.credentials_id).
• The identifier can be numeric (ID) or string (service_name).
• Each credential is associated with a client_id.

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Common Credential Types

API Key

For services such as OpenAI, Telegram, among others:

{ "apiKey": "sk-xxxx..." }

Basic Auth

For HTTP, REST APIs:

{ "username": "user", "password": "pass123" }

OAuth2 / Token

For Shopify, Amazon, Google, among others:

{ "access_token": "token_xxx", "refresh_token": "refresh_xxx" }

Database

For PostgreSQL, MySQL, MSSQL, Oracle:

{
  "host": "db.example.com",
  "port": 5432,
  "user": "admin",
  "password": "secret",
  "database": "mydb",
  "ssl": true
}

SMTP (Email)

For SendMail:

{
  "host": "smtp.gmail.com",
  "port": 465,
  "secure": true,
  "auth_user": "user@gmail.com",
  "auth_pass": "app_password"
}

Webhook URL

For Slack:

{ "webhookUrl": "https://hooks.slack.com/services/xxx", "username": "Bot" }

Bot Token

For Telegram:

{ "botToken": "123456:ABC-DEF..." }

E-commerce

For Shopify:

{
  "shop_domain": "mitienda.myshopify.com",
  "access_token": "shpat_xxx..."
}

For WooCommerce:

{
  "url": "https://mitienda.com",
  "consumer_key": "ck_xxx",
  "consumer_secret": "cs_xxx"
}

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Using Credentials in a Module

In the visual editor, the credentials_id field displays a selector of available credentials. The module’s metadata.json file defines the field with "type": "credentials". Optionally, "provider": "stripe" can be included to filter credentials by service type.

In the module code, they are accessed as follows:

const credentials = await getCredentials(config.credentials_id);
// credentials.apiKey, credentials.host, etc.

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Security and Best Practices

• Never include credentials directly in the node configuration.
• Always use the credentials_id field to reference stored credentials.
• Credentials are not exposed in logs or execution traces.
• Each client has their own isolated credentials via client_id.
• Rotate tokens and passwords periodically to maintain security.

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Service Reference Table

Service	Required Fields	Where to Obtain Them
OpenAI	apiKey	platform.openai.com/api-keys
Stripe	secret_key	dashboard.stripe.com/apikeys
Telegram	botToken	@BotFather on Telegram
Shopify	shop_domain, access_token	Shopify Admin Panel > Apps
Google	OAuth2 tokens (automatic)	Google Cloud Console
PostgreSQL	host, port, user, password, database	Your DB server
SMTP	host, port, auth_user, auth_pass	Your email provider