Authentication

Kite supports programmatic access through API keys. An API key authenticates as a special user and follows the same RBAC model as interactive users.

API key format

The full API key format is:

kite<ID>-<SECRET>

Use the full value directly in the Authorization header. Do not prepend Bearer.

Authorization: kite12-xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Where to configure it

Users with the admin role can create API keys in Settings -> API Keys.

After creating a key, copy the full value and use it as the Authorization header for API requests.

Permissions

API keys use the same RBAC model as regular users.

• Creating an API key does not automatically grant any resource permissions.
• Resource access under /api/v1/... is still checked by RBAC.
• Admin APIs under /api/v1/admin/... require the caller to have the admin role.
• Cluster resource APIs usually also require x-cluster-name.

Authenticate requests

Example:

curl \
  -H "Authorization: kite12-xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx" \
  -H "x-cluster-name: demo-cluster" \
  https://kite.example.com/api/v1/pods/default

Notes:

• Resource endpoints under /api/v1/... usually also require x-cluster-name.