Authentication

Authentication Overview

The Plexe Platform uses a robust authentication system to secure access to your resources and services. This page explains how authentication works, how to manage API keys, and best practices for security.

Authentication Methods

API Keys

For programmatic access to the Plexe API, API keys are the primary authentication method. API keys:

Are long, random strings prefixed with plx_sk_
Must be included in the x-api-key header of all API requests
Have specific permission levels assigned when created
Can be revoked or rotated at any time
Are tied to your account for usage tracking and billing

Example API request with authentication:

curl -X GET https://api.plexe.ai/models \
  -H "x-api-key: plx_sk_12345abcdef67890ghijklmnop"

Console Authentication

For access to the Plexe Console, the following authentication methods are supported:

Email/Password: Standard account credentials
OAuth Providers: Sign in with Google, GitHub, etc. (if enabled)

The Console uses secure, token-based authentication with automatic session expiration for security.

Managing API Keys

Creating API Keys

API keys can be created in two ways:

Via the Console:
- Navigate to the Settings → API Keys section
- Click “Create New API Key”
- Assign a descriptive name and required permissions
- Copy the key immediately (it will only be shown once)
Via the API:
- You can programmatically create API keys using an existing key with appropriate permissions
- See the Manage API Keys guide for details

Security Features

TLS Encryption

All communication with the Plexe Platform (both API and Console) is encrypted using TLS (HTTPS). This ensures that your data and authentication credentials are protected in transit.

Key Visibility

For security, full API keys are only displayed once at creation time. After that, the Console will only show a truncated version (first few and last few characters).

Access Logs

The Platform maintains comprehensive logs of authentication attempts and API key usage. These can be viewed in the Console for security monitoring and auditing.

Rate Limiting

To protect against brute force and denial of service attacks, the API implements rate limiting. If you exceed the allowed request rate, you’ll receive a 429 Too Many Requests status code.

Session Management

For Console users, sessions automatically expire after periods of inactivity. Sensitive actions may require re-authentication for additional security.

Authentication Errors

Common authentication-related errors you may encounter:

HTTP Status	Error Code	Description
401	`invalid_key`	API key is invalid or malformed
401	`expired_key`	API key has expired
401	`revoked_key`	API key has been revoked
403	`insufficient_permissions`	API key lacks required permissions for this operation
429	`rate_limit_exceeded`	Too many requests in a given time period

Example Authentication Workflows

API Key Authentication in Python

import requests
import os

# Best practice: Load API key from environment variable
api_key = os.environ.get("PLEXE_API_KEY")
if not api_key:
    raise ValueError("PLEXE_API_KEY environment variable not set")

# Set up headers with authentication
headers = {
    "x-api-key": api_key,
    "Content-Type": "application/json"
}

# Make authenticated request
response = requests.get(
    "https://api.plexe.ai/models",
    headers=headers
)

# Check for authentication errors
if response.status_code == 401:
    print("Authentication failed: Invalid or expired API key")
elif response.status_code == 403:
    print("Permission denied: Your API key doesn't have access to this resource")
else:
    # Process successful response
    print(f"Success! Found {len(response.json())} models")

API Key Rotation Best Practice

import requests
import os
import json
from datetime import datetime

# Current and new API keys (latter will be obtained from API response)
current_api_key = os.environ.get("PLEXE_API_KEY")
new_api_key = None

# Headers for the request to create new key
headers = {
    "x-api-key": current_api_key,
    "Content-Type": "application/json"
}

# Step 1: Create a new API key
try:
    create_response = requests.post(
        "https://api.plexe.ai/auth/api-keys",
        headers=headers,
        json={
            "name": "Rotated Key " + datetime.now().strftime("%Y-%m-%d"),
            "permission_level": "read_write"
        }
    )
    
    if create_response.status_code == 200:
        result = create_response.json()
        new_api_key = result.get("key")
        key_id = result.get("key_id")
        print(f"Created new API key with ID: {key_id}")
    else:
        print(f"Failed to create new key: {create_response.text}")
        exit(1)
        
    # Step 2: Verify the new key works
    verify_headers = {
        "x-api-key": new_api_key,
        "Content-Type": "application/json"
    }
    
    verify_response = requests.get(
        "https://api.plexe.ai/models",
        headers=verify_headers
    )
    
    if verify_response.status_code == 200:
        print("New key verified working!")
        
        # Step 3: Revoke the old key
        # First, list keys to find the old key ID
        list_response = requests.get(
            "https://api.plexe.ai/auth/api-keys",
            headers=verify_headers
        )
        
        if list_response.status_code == 200:
            keys = list_response.json().get("keys", [])
            old_keys = [k for k in keys if k["key_id"] != key_id]
            
            if old_keys:
                old_key_id = old_keys[0]["key_id"]
                revoke_response = requests.delete(
                    f"https://api.plexe.ai/auth/api-keys/{old_key_id}",
                    headers=verify_headers
                )
                
                if revoke_response.status_code == 200:
                    print("Old key successfully revoked")
                else:
                    print(f"Failed to revoke old key: {revoke_response.text}")
            else:
                print("No old keys found to revoke")
        else:
            print(f"Failed to list keys: {list_response.text}")
            
    else:
        print(f"New key verification failed: {verify_response.text}")
        print("Keeping old key active")
        
except Exception as e:
    print(f"Error during key rotation: {e}")

Enterprise Authentication Features

Enterprise SSO integration is on our roadmap. Please contact Plexe’s support team if you need specific authentication solutions for your organization.

Introduction

Plexe Python Library

Plexe Platform

Authentication Overview

Authentication Methods

API Keys

Console Authentication

Managing API Keys

Creating API Keys

Security Features

TLS Encryption

Key Visibility

Access Logs

Rate Limiting

Session Management

Authentication Errors

Example Authentication Workflows

API Key Authentication in Python

API Key Rotation Best Practice

Enterprise Authentication Features

Further Reading

​Authentication Overview

​Authentication Methods

​API Keys

​Console Authentication

​Managing API Keys

​Creating API Keys

​Security Features

​TLS Encryption

​Key Visibility

​Access Logs

​Rate Limiting

​Session Management

​Authentication Errors

​Example Authentication Workflows

​API Key Authentication in Python

​API Key Rotation Best Practice

​Enterprise Authentication Features

​Further Reading

Authentication Overview

Authentication Methods

API Keys

Console Authentication

Managing API Keys

Creating API Keys

Security Features

TLS Encryption

Key Visibility

Access Logs

Rate Limiting

Session Management

Authentication Errors

Example Authentication Workflows

API Key Authentication in Python

API Key Rotation Best Practice

Enterprise Authentication Features

Further Reading