Version: v3.x beta

Authentication Using JWTs

Introduction

This page details how to configure Hasura Engine to use JWT mode in order to authenticate incoming requests.

This process requires that your auth service returns a JWT to the client, which it passes to Hasura GraphQL Engine in an: Authorization: Bearer <JWT> header of the request.

Hasura then verifies and decodes the JWT to extract x-hasura-* session variable claim values. The x-hasura-role session variable is required, and you will also most likely utilize the user id and any other information which you need to determine access to your data.

JWT authentication

You can enable JWT mode by configuring your metadata appropriately:

Example

key:
  fixed:
    algorithm: HS256
    key:
      value: token
tokenLocation:
  type: BearerAuthorization
claimsConfig:
  namespace:
    claimsFormat: Json
    location: "/https:~1~1hasura.io~1jwt~1claims"

All jwt configuration fields

key:
  # either `fixed` or `jwkFromUrl` is expected.
  fixed:
    algorithm: required-algorithm-to-be-used-to-decode-the-JWT
    key: required-key-as-string
  jwkFromUrl: required-JWK-url
claimsConfig:
  # either `namespace` or `locations` is expected.
  namespace:
    location: optional-json-pointer-to-the-claims-default-https://hasura.io/jwt/claims
    claimsFormat: optional-claims-format-default-Json
  locations:
    # Object with keys as session variables and values as object
    x-hasura-role:
      # either `literal` or `path` is expected.
      literal: required-string
      path:
        path: required-json-pointer-to-the-claim
        default: optional-default
tokenLocation: required-object-to-indicate-cookie-or-authorization-header-or-custom-header
audience: "<optional-string-or-list-of-strings-to-verify-audience>"
issuer: "<optional-string-to-verify-issuer>"
allowedSkew: "<optional-number-of-seconds-in-integer>"

Metadata structure

Field	Type	Required	Description
`key`	`JWT key`	true	JWT key type to configure the JWT authentication.
`claimsConfig`	Claims Config	true	Configuration of the Hasura claims within the JWT.
`tokenLocation`	Object	true	Declares the request header or the cookie (with cookie name) from which to read the JWT. Default: `{"type": "tokenLocationValues"}`.
`audience`	String	false	When set, verifies the `aud` claims in the JWT to be equal to this value.
`issuer`	String	false	When set, verifies the `iss` claim in the JWT claim equal to this value.
`allowedSkew`	Int	false	Optional field to provide some leeway (to account for clock skews) while comparing the JWT expiry time. This field expects an integer value which will be the number of seconds of the skew value.

JWT key

Field	Type	Required	Description
`fixed`	Fixed key	false	Fixed JWT mode, when the `algorithm` and the `key` fields are known and aren't expected to change during runtime.
`jwkFromUrl`	URL	false	JWK URL from which the graphql-engine will determine the `algorithm` and `key` fields from dynamically.

Note

Either, the fixed or the jwkFromUrl is expected.

Fixed JWT key

Field	Type	Required	Description
`algorithm`	String	false	Algorithm used to decode the JWT. Possible values are: `HS256`, `HS384`, `HS512`, `ES256`, `ES384`, `RS256`, `RS384`, `RS512`, `PS256`, `PS384`, `PS512` and `EdDSA`.
`key`	String	false	Key to decode the JWT.

JWT claims config

Field	Type	Required	Description
`namespace`	`Namespace`	false	Used when all of the Hasura claims are present in a single object within the decoded JWT.
`claimsMap`	`Claims Map`	false	Can be used when Hasura claims are not all present in the single object, but individual claims are either provided a default value or a JSON pointer within the decoded JWT.

Note

Either, the namespace or the claimsMap is expected. If neither is present, then the default namespace value is used.

JWT claims namespace

Field	Type	Required	Description
`path`	`JSON Pointer`	true	JSON pointer to the Hasura claims object. Default: "https:11hasura.io~~1jwt~~1claims" (JSON Pointer for `https://hasura.io/jwt/claims`).
`format`	String	false	Format of the Hasura claims object. Possible values (`Json`, `StringifiedJson`). Default value: `Json` .

JWT claims map

Field	Type	Required	Description
`x-hasura-allowed-roles`	`Claims Map Object ([String])`	true	JSON pointer to the Hasura claims object.
`x-hasura-default-role`	`Claims Map Object (String)`	true	JSON pointer to the Hasura claims object.
Custom claim*	`Claims Map Object (String)`	false	JSON pointer to the custom Hasura claim.

Note

Any number of Custom claims can be added to the claims map.

JWT claims map object `<T>`

Field	Type	Required	Description
`literal`	`<T>`	false	Literal value of the Hasura claim.
`path`	JSON claims map path object	false	Get claim value using a JSON pointer to the Hasura claim with a fallback default value, if the value is not present at the JSON pointer.

JWT claims map path object `<T>`

Field	Type	Required	Description
`path`	`JSON Pointer`	false	JSON pointer to the Hasura claim.
`default`	`<T>`	false	Default value of the Hasura claim, if there is no value present at the `path`.

Note

For x-hasura-allowed-roles, <T> will be [String] and for x-hasura-default-role or any other custom claims, <T> will be a String.

JWT token location values

Field	Type	Required	Description
`BearerAuthorization`	String	false	JWT is provided in the `Authorization` header in the format of `Bearer <JWT>`
`Header`	Object	false	Name of the header which will contain the JWT. A JSON object with the name of the custom header is expected like: `{ "Header": "<custom-header-name>" }`
`Cookie`	Object	false	JWT is provided in the `Cookie` header. A JSON object with the name of the cookie is expected like: `{ "Cookie": "<custom-cookie-name>" }`

Example Decoded Payload

{
  "sub": "1234567890",
  "name": "John Doe",
  "admin": true,
  "iat": 1516239022,
  "https://hasura.io/jwt/claims": {
    "x-hasura-default-role": "user",
    "x-hasura-allowed-roles": ["user", "admin"],
    "x-hasura-user-id": "123",
    "x-hasura-org-id": "456",
    "x-hasura-custom": "custom-value"
  }
}

Example Encoded JWT

eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJzdWIiOiIxMjM0NTY3ODkwIiwibmFtZSI6IkpvaG4gRG9lIiwiYWRtaW4iOnRydWUsImlhdCI6MTUxNjI
zOTAyMiwiaHR0cHM6Ly9oYXN1cmEuaW8vand0L2NsYWltcyI6eyJ4LWhhc3VyYS1kZWZhdWx0LXJvbGUiOiJ1c2VyIiwieC1oYXN1cmEtYWxsb3dlZC1yb2x
lcyI6WyJ1c2VyIiwiYWRtaW4iXSwieC1oYXN1cmEtdXNlci1pZCI6IjEyMyIsIngtaGFzdXJhLW9yZy1pZCI6IjQ1NiIsIngtaGFzdXJhLWN1c3RvbSI6ImN
1c3RvbS12YWx1ZSJ9fQ.07mlUOhH3Oigz_Yyil8EC579Ht6PbZ1yr8fYJfhQ4NE

Note: x-hasura-default-role and x-hasura-allowed-roles are mandatory, while the rest of the claims are optional.

See here for the JWT debugger of this example JWT token. The signature secret is ultra-secret-very-secret-super-secret-key.

Hasura JWT format

The x-hasura-role value can be sent as a plain header in the request to indicate the role which should be used.

When your auth server generates the JWT, the custom claims in the JWT must contain the following in a custom claims namespace:

A x-hasura-allowed-roles field. A list of allowed roles for the user i.e. acceptable values of the optional x-hasura-role header. See more
A x-hasura-default-role field. The role that will be used when the optional x-hasura-role header is not passed. See more
Add any other optional x-hasura-* claim fields (required as per your defined permissions) to the custom namespace. See more

The JWT should be sent to Hasura Engine in an: Authorization: Bearer <JWT> header. Eg:

POST /v1/graphql HTTP/1.1
Authorization: Bearer eyJhbGciOiJSUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJzdWI...
X-Hasura-Role: editor

...

To summarize, x-hasura-allowed-roles session variable contains a list of all the roles that the user can assume and the x-hasura-role header tells the Hasura Engine which role to use for the request, and if that is missing then the x-hasura-default-role session variable will be used.

This setup makes it more convenient for a JWT to only need to be issued once with a list of allowed roles for the user, and then allow the client to decide which of those roles to actually use for a request. This prevents the user needing to log in again or unnecessary JWT re-issuance.

If, for example, your app will not need to switch user roles and the user only needs one role, for instance: user, you can just issue a JWT with x-hasura-default-role set to user and x-hasura-allowed-roles set to ["user"] and not send the x-hasura-role header in the request.

This setup is designed so that there is one authoritative way to construct your JWT token for the Hasura Engine which can cover a wide range of use cases.

Hasura JWT Claim Description

x-hasura-allowed-roles

The x-hasura-allowed-roles list can contain all the roles which a particular user can assume, eg: [ "user", "manager", "owner" ]. Usually, these will have varying degrees of access to your data as specified in Permissions and by specifying this list it lets the Hasura Engine know that this user can assume any of them.

x-hasura-default-role

The x-hasura-default-role will be the role that the user falls back to when no x-hasura-role value is specified in the header of the request. Usually, this will be the role with the least privileges and can be overridden by the x-hasura-role header when making a request.

x-hasura-*

The JWT can have other user-defined x-hasura-* fields and their values can only be strings (they will be converted to the right type automatically). You can use these x-hasura-* values in your permission rules.

The JWT will normally also contain standard (sub, iat etc.) and custom (name, admin etc.) claims

JWT Notes

JWT claim fields eg: x-hasura-default-role are case-insensitive.
Hasura GraphQL Engine only has access to headers and JWT claims which are prefixed with x-hasura-.
Hasura GraphQL Engine only has access to JWT claims in the https://hasura.io/jwt/claims or custom defined namespace.
All x-hasura-* values should be of type String, they will be converted to the right type automatically.

Hasura JWT configuration options

type

This specifies the cryptographic signing algorithm which is used to sign the JWTs. Valid values are : HS256, HS384, HS512, RS256, RS384, RS512, Ed25519, ES256, ES384, ES512. (see https://jwt.io).

HS* is for HMAC-SHA based algorithms. RS* is for RSA based signing. Ed* is for Edwards-curve Digital Signature algorithms. ES* is for Elliptic-curve Digital Signature algorithms. For example, if your auth server is using HMAC-SHA256 for signing the JWTs, then use HS256. If it is using RSA with SHA-512, then use RS512. If it is using an EdDSA instance of Edwards25519, then use Ed25519. If it is using an ES instance of ECDSA with 256-bit curve, then use ES256.

This is an optional field. This is required only if you are using the key property in the config.

key

In the case of a symmetric key (i.e. a HMAC-based key), just the key as is. (e.g. -"abcdef..."). The key must be long enough for the chosen algorithm, (e.g. for HS256 it must be at least 32 characters long).
In the case of an asymmetric key (RSA, EdDSA, ECDSA etc.), only the public key, in a PEM-encoded string or as an X509 certificate.

This is an optional field. You can also provide a URL to fetch JWKs from using the jwkUrl field.

jwkUrl

An URL where a provider publishes their JWKs (JSON Web Keys - which are used for signing the JWTs). The URL must publish the JWKs in the standard format as described here.

This is optional as you have the alternative of also providing the key (certificate, PEM-encoded public key) as a string - in the key field along with the type.

claimsNamespacePath

This is an optional field. You can specify the key name, inside which the Hasura specific claims will be present, e.g. https://mydomain.com/claims. The default value is https://hasura.io/jwt/claims.

Configure `claimsNamespacePath`

An optional JSON path value to the Hasura claims present in the JWT token. Example values are /hasura/claims or / (i.e. root of the payload).

The JWT token should be in the following format if the claimsNamespacePath is set to /hasura/claims:

{
  "sub": "1234567890",
  "name": "John Doe",
  "admin": true,
  "iat": 1516239022,
  "hasura": {
    "claims": {
      "x-hasura-allowed-roles": ["editor", "user", "mod"],
      "x-hasura-default-role": "user",
      "x-hasura-user-id": "1234567890",
      "x-hasura-org-id": "123",
      "x-hasura-custom": "custom-value"
    }
  }
}

Claims namespace values

When the claimsNamespacePath is not set, the default value is https:~1~1hasura.io~1jwt~1claims (JSON pointer for claims namespace).

claimsFormat

This is an optional field, with only the following possible values allowed: json, stringifiedJson.

The default is json.

This is to indicate whether the Hasura-specific claims are a regular JSON object or a stringified JSON.

This is required because providers like AWS Cognito only allow strings in the JWT claims. See #1176.

Example:

If claimsFormat is json then the JWT claims should look like:

{
  "sub": "1234567890",
  "name": "John Doe",
  "admin": true,
  "iat": 1516239022,
  "https://hasura.io/jwt/claims": {
    "x-hasura-allowed-roles": ["editor", "user", "mod"],
    "x-hasura-default-role": "user",
    "x-hasura-user-id": "1234567890",
    "x-hasura-org-id": "123",
    "x-hasura-custom": "custom-value"
  }
}

If claimsFormat is stringified_json then the JWT claims should look like:

{
  "sub": "1234567890",
  "name": "John Doe",
  "admin": true,
  "iat": 1516239022,
  "https://hasura.io/jwt/claims": "{\"x-hasura-allowed-roles\":[\"editor\",\"user\",\"mod\"],\"x-hasura-default-role\":\"user\",\"x-hasura-user-id\":\"1234567890\",\"x-hasura-org-id\":\"123\",\"x-hasura-custom\":\"custom-value\"}"
}

claimsMap

This is an optional field. Certain providers might not allow adding custom claims. In such a case, you can map Hasura session variables with existing JWT claims using claimsMap. The claimsMap is a JSON object where keys are session variables and values can be a JSON pointer (with a default value option, when the key specified by the JSON pointer doesn't exist) or a literal value.

The literal values should be of type String, except for the x-hasura-allowed-roles claim which expects a string array.

The value of a claim referred by a JSON path must be a string. To use the JSON path value, the path needs to be given in a JSON object with path as the key and the JSON pointer as the value:

{
  "path": "/user/all_roles"
}

{
  "path": "/roles/default",
  "default": "user"
}

Claims map precedence

If claimsMap is provided in the JWT config, claimsNamespacePath and claimsFormat will be ignored.

Example: JWT config with JSON path values

{
  "sub": "1234567890",
  "name": "John Doe",
  "admin": true,
  "iat": 1516239022,
  "user": {
    "id": "ujdh739kd"
  },
  "hasura": {
    "all_roles": ["user", "editor"]
  }
}

The mapping for x-hasura-allowed-roles, x-hasura-default-role and x-hasura-user-id session variables can be specified in the claimsMap configuration as follows:

{
  "type": "RS512",
  "key": "-----BEGIN PUBLIC KEY-----\nMIGfMA0GCSqGSIb3DQEBAQUAA4GNADCBiQKBgQDdlatRjRjogo3WojgGHFHYLugd\nUWAY9iR3fy4arWNA1KoS8kVw33cJibXr8bvwUAUparCwlvdbH6dvEOfou0/gCFQs\nHUfQrSDv+MuSUMAe8jzKE4qW+jK+xQU9a03GUnKHkkle+Q0pX/g6jXZ7r1/xAK5D\no2kQ+X5xK9cipRgEKwIDAQAB\n-----END PUBLIC KEY-----\n",
  "claimsMap": {
    "x-hasura-allowed-roles": { "path": "/hasura/all_roles" },
    "x-hasura-default-role": { "path": "/hasura/all_roles[0]" },
    "x-hasura-user-id": { "path": "/user/id" }
  }
}

Example: JWT config with JSON path values and default values

{
  "sub": "1234567890",
  "name": "John Doe",
  "admin": true,
  "iat": 1516239022,
  "hasura": {
    "all_roles": ["user", "editor"]
  }
}

{
  "type": "RS512",
  "key": "-----BEGIN PUBLIC KEY-----\nMIGfMA0GCSqGSIb3DQEBAQUAA4GNADCBiQKBgQDdlatRjRjogo3WojgGHFHYLugd\nUWAY9iR3fy4arWNA1KoS8kVw33cJibXr8bvwUAUparCwlvdbH6dvEOfou0/gCFQs\nHUfQrSDv+MuSUMAe8jzKE4qW+jK+xQU9a03GUnKHkkle+Q0pX/g6jXZ7r1/xAK5D\no2kQ+X5xK9cipRgEKwIDAQAB\n-----END PUBLIC KEY-----\n",
  "claimsMap": {
    "x-hasura-allowed-roles": { "path": "/hasura/all_roles" },
    "x-hasura-default-role": { "path": "/hasura/all_roles[0]" },
    "x-hasura-user-id": { "path": "/user/id", "default": "ujdh739kd" }
  }
}

In the above case, since the /user/id doesn't exist in the JWT token, the default value of the x-hasura-user-id i.e "ujdh739kd" will be used

Example: JWT config containing literal values

{
  "sub": "1234567890",
  "name": "John Doe",
  "admin": true,
  "iat": 1516239022,
  "user": {
    "id": "ujdh739kd"
  }
}

The corresponding JWT config should be:

{
  "type": "RS512",
  "key": "-----BEGIN PUBLIC KEY-----\nMIGfMA0GCSqGSIb3DQEBAQUAA4GNADCBiQKBgQDdlatRjRjogo3WojgGHFHYLugd\nUWAY9iR3fy4arWNA1KoS8kVw33cJibXr8bvwUAUparCwlvdbH6dvEOfou0/gCFQs\nHUfQrSDv+MuSUMAe8jzKE4qW+jK+xQU9a03GUnKHkkle+Q0pX/g6jXZ7r1/xAK5D\no2kQ+X5xK9cipRgEKwIDAQAB\n-----END PUBLIC KEY-----\n",
  "claimsMap": {
    "x-hasura-allowed-roles": ["user", "editor"],
    "x-hasura-default-role": "user",
    "x-hasura-user-id": { "path": "/user/id" }
  }
}

In the above example, the x-hasura-allowed-roles and x-hasura-default-role values are set in the JWT config and the value of the x-hasura-user-id is a JSON path to the value in the JWT token.

audience

This is an optional field. Certain providers might set a claim which indicates the intended audience for the JWT. This can be checked by setting this field.

When this field is set, during the verification process of the JWT, the aud claim in the JWT will be checked to see whether it is equal to the audience field given in the configuration. If they are not equal then the JWT will be rejected.

See the RFC for more details.

This field can be a string, or a list of strings.

Examples:

{
  "jwkUrl": "https://......",
  "audience": "myapp-1234"
}

{
  "jwkUrl": "https://......",
  "audience": ["myapp-1234", "myapp-6789"]
}

Audience Security Vulnerability

Certain JWT providers share JWKs between multiple tenants. They use the aud claim of the JWT to specify the intended audience. Setting the audience field in the Hasura JWT configuration will make sure that the aud claim from the JWT is also checked during verification. Not doing this check will allow JWTs issued for other tenants to be valid as well.

In these cases, you MUST set the audience field to the appropriate value. Failing to do so is a major security vulnerability.

issuer

This is an optional field. It takes a string value.

When this field is set, during the verification process of the JWT, the iss claim in the JWT will be checked to see whether it is equal to the issuer field given in the configuration. If they are not equal then the JWT will be rejected.

See RFC for more details.

Examples:

{
  "jwkUrl": "https://......",
  "issuer": "https://my-auth-server.com"
}

Issuer notes

Certain providers require you to verify the iss claim on the JWT. To do that you can set this field to the appropriate value.
A JWT configuration without an issuer will match any issuer field present in an incoming JWT.
An incoming JWT without an issuer specified will match a configuration even if it specifies an issuer.

allowedSkew

allowedSkew is an optional field to provide some leeway (to account for clock skews) while comparing the JWT expiry time. This field expects an integer value which will be the number of seconds of the skew value.

This is an optional field, which indicates which request header to read the JWT from. This field is a stringified JSON object.

The following are the possible values:

{"type": "Authorization"}
{"type": "Cookie", "name": "cookie_name" }
{"type": "CustomHeader", "name": "header_name" }

Default is {"type": "Authorization"}.

In the default mode, Hasura expects an Authorization header with a Bearer token.

In the cookie mode, Hasura will try to parse the cookie header with the given cookie name. The value of the cookie should be the exact JWT.

In the custom header mode, Hasura expects a header_name header with the exact JWT token value.

Example:

If header is {"type": "Authorization"} then JWT header should look like:

Authorization: Bearer eyJhbGciOiJSUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJzdWI...

If header is {"type": "Cookie", "name": "cookie_name" } then JWT header should look like:

Cookie: cookie_name=eyJhbGciOiJSUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJzdWI...

If header is {"type": "CustomHeader", "name": "header_name" } then JWT header should look like:

header_name: eyJhbGciOiJSUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJzdWI...

Hasura JWT Config Examples

HMAC-SHA based

Your auth server is using HMAC-SHA algorithms to sign JWTs, and is using a 256-bit key. In this case, the JWT config will look like:

{
  "type": "HS256",
  "key": "3EK6FD+o0+c7tzBNVfjpMkNDi2yARAAKzQlk8O2IKoxQu4nF7EdAh8s3TwpHwrdWT6R"
}

The key is the actual shared secret, which is used by Hasura and the external auth server.

RSA based

If your auth server is using the RSA algorithm to sign JWTs, and is using a 512-bit key, the JWT config only needs to have the public key.

Example 1: public key in PEM format (not OpenSSH format):

{
  "type": "RS512",
  "key": "-----BEGIN PUBLIC KEY-----\nMIGfMA0GCSqGSIb3DQEBAQUAA4GNADCBiQKBgQDdlatRjRjogo3WojgGHFHYLugd\nUWAY9iR3fy4arWNA1KoS8kVw33cJibXr8bvwUAUparCwlvdbH6dvEOfou0/gCFQs\nHUfQrSDv+MuSUMAe8jzKE4qW+jK+xQU9a03GUnKHkkle+Q0pX/g6jXZ7r1/xAK5D\no2kQ+X5xK9cipRgEKwIDAQAB\n-----END PUBLIC KEY-----\n"
}

Example 2: public key as X509 certificate:

{
  "type": "RS512",
  "key": "-----BEGIN CERTIFICATE-----\nMIIDHDCCAgSgAwIBAgIINw9gva8BPPIwDQYJKoZIhvcNAQEFBQAwMTEvMC0GA1UE\nAxMmc2VjdXJldG9rZW4uc3lzdGVtLmdzZXJ2aWNlYWNjb3VudC5jb20wHhcNMTgQt7dIsMTIU9k1SUrFviZOGnmHWtIAw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\nLhTpeP0o+mVYrBmtYVpDpv0e71cfYowSJCCkod/9YbY=\n-----END CERTIFICATE-----"
}

Example 3: public key published as JWKs:

{
  "jwkUrl": "https://www.googleapis.com/service_accounts/v1/jwk/[email protected]"
}

EdDSA based

If your auth server is using EdDSA to sign JWTs, and is using the Ed25519 variant key, the JWT config only needs to have the public key.

Example 1: public key in PEM format (not OpenSSH format):

{
  "type": "Ed25519",
  "key": "-----BEGIN PUBLIC KEY-----\nMCowBQYDK2VwAyEAG9I+toAAJicilbPt36tiC4wi7E1Dp9rMmfnwdKyVXi0=\n-----END PUBLIC KEY-----"
}

Example 2: public key as X509 certificate:

{
  "type":"Ed25519",
  "key": "-----BEGIN CERTIFICATE REQUEST-----\nMIIBAzCBtgIBADAnMQswCQYDVQQGEwJERTEYMBYGA1UEAwwPd3d3LmV4YW1wbGUu\nY29tMCowBQYDK2VwAyEA/9DV/InajW02Q0tC/tyr9mCSbSnNP1txICXVJrTGKDSg\nXDBaBgkqhkiG9w0BCQ4xTTBLMAsGA1UdDwQEAwIEMDATBgNVHSUEDDAKBggrBgEF\nBQcDATAnBgNVHREEIDAegg93d3cuZXhhbXBsZS5jb22CC2V4YW1wbGUuY29tMAUG\nAytlcANBAKbTqnTyPcf4ZkVuq2tC108pBGY19VgyoI+PP2wD2KaRz4QAO7Bjd+7S\nljyJoN83UDdtdtgb7aFgb611gx9W4go=\n-----END CERTIFICATE REQUEST-----"
}

EC based

If your auth server is using ECDSA to sign JWTs, and is using the ES variant with a 256-bit key, the JWT config only needs to have the public key.

Example 1: public key in PEM format (not OpenSSH format):

{
  "type": "ES256",
  "key": "-----BEGIN PUBLIC KEY-----\nMFkwEwYHKoZIzj0CAQYIKoZIzj0DAQcDQgAEEVs/o5+uQbTjL3chynL4wXgUg2R9\nq9UU8I5mEovUf86QZ7kOBIjJwqnzD1omageEHWwHdBO6B+dFabmdT9POxg==\n-----END PUBLIC KEY-----"
}

Example 2: public key as X509 certificate:

{
  "type": "ES256",
  "key": "-----BEGIN CERTIFICATE-----\nMIIBbjCCARWgAwIBAgIUGn02F6Y6s88dDGmIfwiNxWxDjhswCgYIKoZIzj0EAwIw\nDTELMAkGA1UEBhMCSU4wHhcNMjMwNTI0MTAzNTI4WhcNMjgwNTIyMTAzNTI4WjAN\nMQswCQYDVQQGEwJJTjBZMBMGByqGSM49AgEGCCqGSM49AwEHA0IABBFbP6OfrkG0\n4y93Icpy+MF4FINkfavVFPCOZhKL1H/OkGe5DgSIycKp8w9aJmoHhB1sB3QTugfn\nRWm5nU/TzsajUzBRMB0GA1UdDgQWBBSaqFjzps1qG+x2DPISjaXTWsTOdDAfBgNV\nHSMEGDAWgBSaqFjzps1qG+x2DPISjaXTWsTOdDAPBgNVHRMBAf8EBTADAQH/MAoG\nCCqGSM49BAMCA0cAMEQCIBDHHWa/uLAVdGFEk82auTmw995+MsRwv52VXLw2Z+ji\nAiAXzOWIcGN8p25uhUN/7v9gEcADGIS4yUiv8gsn/Jk2ow==\n-----END CERTIFICATE-----"
}

Example 3: public key published as JWKs:

{
  "jwkUrl": "https://www.gstatic.com/iap/verify/public_key-jwk"
}

Security considerations

Setting audience check

Certain JWT providers share JWKs between multiple tenants (like Firebase). They use the aud claim of JWT to specify the intended tenant for the JWT. Setting the audience field in the Hasura JWT configuration will make sure that the aud claim from the JWT is also checked during verification. Not doing this check will allow JWTs issued for other tenants to be valid as well.

In these cases, you MUST set the audience field to appropriate value. Failing to do so is a major security vulnerability.

Popular providers and known issues

Firebase

This page of the Firebase docs mentions that JWKs are published under:

https://www.googleapis.com/robot/v1/metadata/x509/[email protected]

But that is a non-standard format. Firebase also publishes the same certificates as the proper JWK format under:

https://www.googleapis.com/service_accounts/v1/jwk/[email protected]

If you are using Firebase and Hasura, use this config:

{
  "jwkUrl": "https://www.googleapis.com/service_accounts/v1/jwk/[email protected]",
  "audience": "<firebase-project-id>",
  "issuer": "https://securetoken.google.com/<firebase-project-id>"
}

Auth0

Refer to the Auth0 JWT Integration tutorial for a detailed guide on integrating Auth0 with Hasura.

Auth0 publishes their JWK under:

https://<your-auth0-domain>.auth0.com/.well-known/jwks.json

But they have a bug where the certificate thumbprint does not match. Hence, currently this URL does not work with Hasura.

Current workaround is - download the X590 certificate from:

https://<your-auth0-domain>.auth0.com/pem

And use it in the key field:

{
  "type":"RS512",
  "key": "-----BEGIN CERTIFICATE-----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-----END CERTIFICATE-----
"
}

Clerk

Clerk integrates with Hasura GraphQL Engine using JWTs.

Clerk publishes their JWK under: https://<YOUR_CLERK_FRONTEND_API>/.well-known/jwks.json

Refer to the Clerk authentication guide to set up authenticated requests to Hasura with Clerk.

Generate a JWT Config for Auth0 or Firebase

The JWT Config to be used in the metadata can be generated using: https://hasura.io/jwt-config.

Currently, the UI supports generating config for Auth0 and Firebase.

The config generated from this page can be directly pasted in yaml files and command line arguments as it takes care of escaping new lines.

Authentication Using JWTs

Introduction​

JWT authentication​

Example​

All jwt configuration fields​

Metadata structure​

JWT key​

Fixed JWT key​

JWT claims config​

JWT claims namespace​

JWT claims map​

JWT claims map object <T>​

JWT claims map path object <T>​

JWT token location values​

Example Decoded Payload​

Example Encoded JWT​

Hasura JWT format​

Hasura JWT Claim Description​

x-hasura-allowed-roles​

x-hasura-default-role​

x-hasura-*​

JWT Notes​

Hasura JWT configuration options​

type​

key​

jwkUrl​

claimsNamespacePath​

Configure claimsNamespacePath​

claimsFormat​

claimsMap​

audience​

issuer​

Issuer notes​

allowedSkew​

header​

Hasura JWT Config Examples​

HMAC-SHA based​

RSA based​

EdDSA based​

EC based​

Security considerations​

Setting audience check​

Popular providers and known issues​

Firebase​

Auth0​

Clerk​

Generate a JWT Config for Auth0 or Firebase​

Was this helpful?

Introduction

JWT authentication

Example

All jwt configuration fields

Metadata structure

JWT key

Fixed JWT key

JWT claims config

JWT claims namespace

JWT claims map

JWT claims map object `<T>`

JWT claims map path object `<T>`

JWT token location values

Example Decoded Payload

Example Encoded JWT

Hasura JWT format

Hasura JWT Claim Description

x-hasura-allowed-roles

x-hasura-default-role

x-hasura-*

JWT Notes

Hasura JWT configuration options

type

key

jwkUrl

claimsNamespacePath

Configure `claimsNamespacePath`

claimsFormat

claimsMap

audience

issuer

Issuer notes

allowedSkew

header

Hasura JWT Config Examples

HMAC-SHA based

RSA based

EdDSA based

EC based

Security considerations

Setting audience check

Popular providers and known issues

Firebase

Auth0

Clerk

Generate a JWT Config for Auth0 or Firebase