predix-fast-token

Node module to verify UAA tokens used when protecting REST endpoints

Intro

Security is important, but having to make a POST call to UAA with every request to verify a token adds latency. Predix-fast-token reduces the number of network calls and is ~200+ times faster. We ran a test of 100,000 predix-fast-token calls and it came out to <1 ms. Don't trust us though, try youself and see what improvements you can get compared to your current method.

Installation

Install via npm

npm install --save predix-fast-token

Usage

Verify (Local)

Validates the token is a valid JWT, isn't expired, and was issued by a trusted issuer.

Basic usage with a JWT token and list of trusted issuers

const pft = require('predix-fast-token');
pft.verify(token, trusted_issuers).then((decoded) => {
     // The token is valid, not expired and from a trusted issuer
     // Use the value of the decoded token as you wish.
     console.log('Good token for', decoded.user_name);
}).catch((err) => {
    // Token is not valid, or expired, or from an untrusted issuer.
    console.log('No access for you', err);
});

As an expressjs middleware

'use strict';
const express = require('express');
const bearerToken = require('express-bearer-token');
const predixFastToken = require('predix-fast-token');
const app = express();
 
const trusted_issuers = ['https://example.uaa.predix.io/oauth/token', 'https://another.uaa.predix.io/oauth/token'];
 
app.get('/hello', (req, res, next) => {
    res.send('Howdy my unsecured friend!');
});
 
// Ensure Authorization header has a bearer token
app.all('*', bearerToken(), function(req, res, next) {
    console.log('Req Headers', req.headers);
    if(req.token) {
        predixFastToken.verify(req.token, trusted_issuers).then((decoded) => {
            req.decoded = decoded;
            console.log('Looks good');
            next();
        }).catch((err) => {
            console.log('Nope', err);
            res.status(403).send('Unauthorized');
        });
    } else {
        console.log('Nope, no token');
        res.status(401).send('Authentication Required');
    }
});
 
app.get('/secure', (req, res, next) => {
    res.send('Hello ' + req.decoded.user_name + ', my authenticated chum!');
});
 
// Need to let CF set the port if we're deploying there.
const port = process.env.PORT || 9001;
app.listen(port);
console.log('Started on port ' + port);
 

Remote Verification

Validates a token is valid by sending it against the UAA's /check_token endpoint, with optional in-memory caching. Using remote verification adds network latency to the verification request, compared to local verification, but is necessary if you need to validate opaque tokens or check if a token has been revoked.

Parameters

• token - The access token
• issuer- The UAA issuer URI to validate against
• clientId - Your client ID issued by the UAA service
• clientSecret - Your client secret issued by the UAA service
• opts
  • ttl - The maximum time to live in cache for a validated token, in seconds. If zero, does not cache. Default: 0
  • useCache - Whether or not to look for the token in cache. Default: true

Example

const pft = require('predix-fast-token');
const opts = {ttl: 60*60*2, useCache: true}; // Cache tokens for 2 hours
pft.remoteVerify(token, issuer, clientId, clientSecret, opts).then((decoded) => {
     // The token is valid, not expired or revoked, and from the given issuer
     // Use the value of the decoded token as you wish.
     console.log('Good token for', decoded.user_name);
}).catch((err) => {
    // Token is not valid, revoked, expired, or from a different issuer.
    console.log('No access for you', err);
});