AppKey Apps

What is a AppKey Application? #

apps

Simplicity is prerequisite for reliability. – Edsger Dijkstra

Within the AppKey Portal, a developer maintains a number of applications that each contain a collection of users. The portal provides a developer with functionality to create, edit, and delete applications. It also provides a developer with the capability to manage users within each application, if the developer is using the AppKey Auth authentication service.

AppKey Portal #

An application within the AppKey Portal maps onto a client Application that is being implemented by the developer, which may or many not use the AppKey Auth authentication service. The mapping between a AppKey application and a mobile, desktop, or web application is isomorphic. AppKey can serve as a JWT authentication provider for any mobile or web application.

Application Users #

An application can have multiple users, each with their own set of Passkeys for authentication. Each user is identified by a unique handle, which can be an email, phone number, or both. Within the application, a handle can only be associated with one user. Before a handle (email or phone number) can be used to identify a user, it must be verified by sending a six-digit code to confirm that the user actually owns the handle. In AppKey, this verification occurs only during Passkey creation. Additionally, AppKey supports unique usernames, which can also be used for login. Like handles, usernames must be unique within the application for each user.

Developers are charged based on the number of users within their applications within a tiered pricing model.

  • 250 users are FREE
  • 1,000 users cost $0.05 cents per month
  • 10,000 users cost $0.03 cents per month
  • Additional 10,000 users cost $0.02 cents per month
  • Self-hosted Enterprise solution (unlimited users) cost $2,000/month

Onboarding #

AppKey applications offer two onboarding options: open signup or invitation-only. The choice is up to the application developer. In an open signup, any user can register by providing a unique handle—such as an email or phone number—which is then verified through a six-digit code. If the onboarding process is by invitation only, the application developer must explicitly invite user handles through the AppKey Portal. The invited user is notified and can proceed with onboarding just as they would in an open signup.

Application Status #

The AppKey application status determines whether an application is operational or not. There are two possible application status values:

  • active,
  • inactive,

If the application status is active, it is up and running and can allow users to be authenticated into it. At any time, a developer can choose to set the status of an application to inactive. When this is done, all REST API calls to the AppKey Auth service will no longer work - including login.

Application Attributes #

An application within the AppKey Portal has the following attributes:

  • Application Name,
  • Application Id (assigned at creation),
  • Status (active, or inactive),
  • Users.

The Application Name is a descriptive name for the application; it must be unique within the list of applications owned by the developer. It can also be changed at any time. The Application Id is a unique global identifier - of the form application-name-XXXXX, where XXXXX is designed to make the id unique - that is assigned to the application at creation.