Using the REST/OAuth Connection Type

How to use the REST/OAuth connection type

Representational State Transfer (REST) and Open Authorization (OAuth) are used together to secure access to resources and to communicate with another service. 

REST defines how systems communicate over the web using standardized Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) methods and representations, whereas OAuth defines a protocol for secure authorization, often used in conjunction with REST APIs to control access to resources.

  1. From the Configuration menu on the left, select Data Connections.
  2. Click (Add Connection) to open the Connection window. 
  3. Enter a connection name and description for the REST/OAuth connection. This helps you identify the data connection if you connect to more than one database.
  4. Select REST/OAuth as the connection type.
  5. Select Client Credentials as the grant type. The grant type defines how a form application obtains an access token from the authorization server. The client credential grant type indicates that the form application is acting on its own behalf to access resources.
  6. Enter the authentication server's endpoint in the Access Token URL field. This URL is used to exchange the authorization code for an access token.
  7. Enter the client identifier that was issued to the client during the application registration process in the Client ID field.
  8. Enter the client secret that was issued to the client during the application registration process in the Client Secret field. It displays encrypted. The client secret acts as a password to authenticate the form application to the authorization server.
  9. In the Scope field, specify the level of access the form application is requesting when it requests an access token from the authorization server.  It may have many space-delimited values.
  10. In the Resource field enter the specific endpoint that a form application intends to access.
  11. Click Test Connection to ensure your settings are correct. 
  12. Click Save when you've completed your changes.