Authentication

The Eaternity API uses Basic Authentication with your API key to secure all requests.

Overview

Requirement	Details
Authentication Type	HTTP Basic Auth
Username	Your API key
Password	Empty (leave blank)
Protocol	HTTPS only (SSL/TLS required)
SNI Support	Server Name Indication required

Getting Your API Key

To obtain an API key:

1. Contact Eaternity — Email: info@eaternity.ch. Include your company name, use case, and estimated request volume.
2. Receive API Key — You'll receive a unique API key via secure email.
3. Activate License — Your API key will be associated with licensed kitchen(s). Unlicensed kitchens will return 403 Forbidden errors.

Keep Your API Key Secret

Your API key grants access to your data and incurs usage charges. Never share it publicly or commit it to version control.

Authentication Methods

cURL

Use the -u flag with your API key as the username and an empty password (note the colon):

curl -u YOUR_API_KEY: https://co2.eaternity.ch/api/kitchens/

HTTP Header

Manually construct the Basic Auth header:

# Base64 encode "YOUR_API_KEY:"
echo -n "YOUR_API_KEY:" | base64
# Result: WU9VUl9BUElfS0VZOg==

curl -H "Authorization: Basic WU9VUl9BUElfS0VZOg==" \
  https://co2.eaternity.ch/api/kitchens/

Python

import requests

API_KEY = "YOUR_API_KEY"
BASE_URL = "https://co2.eaternity.ch/api"

# Method 1: Using auth parameter
response = requests.get(
    f"{BASE_URL}/kitchens/",
    auth=(API_KEY, "")
)

# Method 2: Using headers
import base64
auth_header = base64.b64encode(f"{API_KEY}:".encode()).decode()
response = requests.get(
    f"{BASE_URL}/kitchens/",
    headers={"Authorization": f"Basic {auth_header}"}
)

JavaScript (Node.js)

// Using fetch with Buffer (Node.js)
const API_KEY = 'YOUR_API_KEY';
const BASE_URL = 'https://co2.eaternity.ch/api';

const authHeader = Buffer.from(`${API_KEY}:`).toString('base64');

fetch(`${BASE_URL}/kitchens/`, {
  headers: {
    'Authorization': `Basic ${authHeader}`,
    'Content-Type': 'application/json'
  }
})
  .then(response => response.json())
  .then(data => console.log(data));

SSL/TLS Requirements

All API requests must use HTTPS. The API server requires Server Name Indication (SNI) support — most modern HTTP libraries handle this by default. See the SSL & SNI section on the introduction page for details.

Rate Limiting

Contact info@eaternity.ch for details on rate limit policies for your API key.

Error Responses

Authentication errors return standard HTTP status codes. See the HTTP Status Codes section on the introduction page for details on all error codes including 401 Unauthorized and 403 Forbidden.

Security Best Practices

Environment Variables

Store API keys in environment variables, not in code:

# .env file (add to .gitignore)
EATERNITY_API_KEY=your_actual_api_key_here

import os
from dotenv import load_dotenv

load_dotenv()
API_KEY = os.getenv('EATERNITY_API_KEY')

API Key Rotation

Rotate your API keys periodically:

1. Request a new API key from support
2. Update your applications with the new key
3. Verify functionality with the new key
4. Request deactivation of the old key

Endpoints

Authentication endpoints including OAuth2 token exchange.

See OAuth 2 Token for the token exchange endpoint.