AWS Cognito API Essential Guide

What type of API does AWS Cognito provide?

AWS Cognito does not have a specific API type like REST, GraphQL, or SOAP. Instead, AWS Cognito provides multiple ways to interact with it:

1. AWS SDKs: AWS provides official SDKs for various programming languages that allow developers to interact with Cognito programmatically.

2. CLI (Command Line Interface): AWS offers CLI commands for interacting with Cognito, such as sign-up, forgot password, and other user management operations.

3. REST-like API: While not explicitly called a REST API, Cognito does provide HTTP endpoints for certain operations. However, these are not comprehensive and do not cover all functionality, particularly for authentication.

4. Authentication APIs: Cognito uses various authentication mechanisms, including OAuth and OpenID Connect, which are typically implemented over HTTP.

Does the AWS Cognito API have webhooks?

Direct Answer

The official AWS Cognito API does not have traditional webhooks. Instead, it uses AWS Lambda triggers to customize user pool workflows and respond to events.

Key Points

1. AWS Cognito uses Lambda triggers to modify authentication behavior and customize user pool operations.

2. These Lambda triggers are invoked at various stages of the authentication flow, allowing you to customize the behavior before, during, and after authentication events.

3. Lambda triggers are not the same as webhooks, but they serve a similar purpose of allowing you to respond to events and customize behavior.

Events You Can Subscribe To

AWS Cognito allows you to subscribe to various events using Lambda triggers. Some of the key events include:

1. Custom Authentication Flow events:

   • Define Auth Challenge
   • Create Auth Challenge
   • Verify Auth Challenge Response

2. Authentication events:

   • Pre-authentication
   • Post-authentication
   • Pre-token generation

3. Sign-Up events:

   • Pre sign-up
   • Post confirmation
   • Migrate user

4. Message Customization:

   • Custom message

5. Token Creation:

   • Pre token generation

6. Third-party Providers:

   • Custom sender for SMS and email messages

Implementation

To use these Lambda triggers:

1. You create a Lambda function that will be invoked by Cognito.
2. Cognito passes event information to your Lambda function.
3. Your function can modify the default behavior, make API requests, or communicate with external systems.
4. The function returns the event object back to Cognito with any changes in the response.

Best Practices

1. Be aware that the events Cognito sends to Lambda triggers might change with new features.
2. Lambda functions must respond within 5 seconds, or Cognito will retry the call (up to three times).
3. Custom sender Lambda triggers are invoked asynchronously, while all others are invoked synchronously.

In conclusion, while AWS Cognito doesn't offer traditional webhooks, its Lambda triggers provide a powerful way to customize authentication flows and respond to events in your user pool.

Rate Limits and other limitations

Here are the key points about API rate limits for AWS Cognito:

Default Rate Limits

• Amazon Cognito enforces rate limits on API operations grouped into categories for user pools [1]. Some of the main default limits are:

  • UserAuthentication: 120 requests per second (RPS) [3]
  • UserCreation: 50 RPS [3]
  • UserRead: 120 RPS [3]
  • UserToken: 120 RPS [3]
  • UserFederation: 25 RPS [3]

• For identity pools, each API operation has its own individual rate limit [1].

Key Considerations

• The rate limits apply across all user pools or identity pools in an AWS account within a Region [1].

• Some operations like RespondToAuthChallenge can use up to 3x the category limit (e.g. 3 * 80 RPS for UserAuthentication) [1].

• There are also per-user limits, like 10 RPS for read/write user profile operations [1].

• Rate limits are measured in Monthly Active Users (MAUs). Accounts with <2 million MAUs can operate within default limits [1].

Requesting Limit Increases

• Many of the rate limits are adjustable and can be increased by requesting a quota increase [1].

• Quota increases can be requested through the Service Quotas console or API [1].

• AWS targets completing quota increase requests within 10 days, but it may take longer in some cases [1].

• When increasing limits, consider if other related AWS services like SNS or SES also need increased quotas [1].

Best Practices

• Calculate your quota requirements based on expected user activity and peak-to-average ratios [1].

• Consider optimizing your app if you have <1 million MAUs and are hitting limits [1].

• Monitor your usage in the Service Quotas console [1].

• For high-scale needs, Amazon Cognito now offers provisioned capacity for higher API limits at an additional cost [2].

In summary, AWS Cognito has default rate limits on API operations, but many can be increased as needed to support application scaling. Careful planning and monitoring of API usage is recommended.

Latest API Version

Based on the search results provided, I cannot determine the most recent version of the AWS Cognito API. The search results do not contain specific information about API versions or the latest release. However, I can provide some relevant information about AWS Cognito API:

Key Points:

1. AWS Cognito offers multiple API interfaces and endpoints for different features.

2. The API reference documentation for Amazon Cognito user pools is available, which provides detailed information about API operations and syntax.

3. AWS regularly updates and improves its services, including Amazon Cognito. The most recent update mentioned in the search results is from January 25, 2024, which allows purchasing additional capacity for Amazon Cognito request-rate quotas.

Best Practices:

1. To find the most up-to-date information about the AWS Cognito API, it's recommended to check the official AWS documentation regularly.

2. When using the AWS Cognito API, always refer to the latest API reference documentation to ensure you're using the most current operations and syntax.

3. Keep your SDK and client libraries updated to the latest versions to access the most recent features and improvements.

Additional Information:

• Amazon Cognito provides different API interfaces for user pools and identity pools (federated identities).
• The AWS SDK for JavaScript v3 includes a client for Cognito Identity Provider.
• For specific programming languages, you can find the latest supported version in the respective SDK documentation. For example, the PHP SDK documentation provides information about the latest supported version for the CognitoIdentityClient.

To get the most accurate and up-to-date information about the latest version of the AWS Cognito API, I recommend checking the official AWS Cognito documentation or contacting AWS support directly.

How to get a AWS Cognito developer account and API Keys?

To get a developer account for AWS Cognito and create an API integration, you'll need to follow these steps:

Create an AWS Account

1. Go to the AWS website (aws.amazon.com) and click on "Create an AWS Account".

2. Follow the prompts to create your account, providing the necessary information like email address, password, contact information, and payment method.

Set Up Amazon Cognito

1. Once you have an AWS account, log in to the AWS Management Console.

2. Search for "Cognito" in the AWS services search bar and select it.

3. Click on "Create user pool" to start setting up your Cognito user directory.

Create a User Pool

1. Follow the user pool creation wizard, selecting options that fit your needs.

2. For a basic setup, you can choose the simplest configuration options.

3. Make note of the user pool ID, client ID, and any client secrets generated during this process.

Integrate with API Gateway (if needed)

1. Use the API Gateway console, CLI, SDK, or API to create an API Gateway authorizer with your chosen user pool.

2. Enable the authorizer on selected API methods.

What can you do with the AWS Cognito API?

Based on the provided search results, here's a list of data models you can interact with using the AWS Cognito API, along with what is possible for each:

User Pools

• Create and manage user pools
• Configure user pool settings and attributes (e.g., password policy)
• Create and manage app clients within user pools
• Set up authentication flows for user pools
• Enable and configure identity providers (IdPs) for federation
• Manage user accounts and profiles
• Handle sign-up, sign-in, and sign-out processes
• Implement password change and recovery
• Configure Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) settings
• Set up device remembering
• Manage user groups

Identity Providers

• Create and manage SAML identity providers
• Configure federation with third-party IdPs (e.g., Microsoft Entra ID, AD FS, Okta)
• Set up social provider sign-in

App Clients

• Create and manage app clients within user pools
• Configure app client settings (e.g., token expirations, OAuth flows, scopes)
• Generate and manage client secrets

Authentication Flows

• Implement various authentication flows (e.g., Authorization Code, Implicit)
• Configure and manage OAuth 2.0 and OpenID Connect (OIDC) flows

Tokens

• Manage and verify JSON Web Tokens (JWTs)
• Handle ID tokens, access tokens, and refresh tokens

Authorization Rules

• Set up and manage authorization rules for user pools
• Configure access control policies

Analytics and Events

• Listen to and handle authentication events

Identity Pools (Federated Identities)

• While not directly part of the User Pools API, Cognito Identity Pools can be used in conjunction with User Pools for authorization of AWS resources access

Custom Resources

• Override Amplify-generated Cognito resources for advanced customization

Each of these data models allows for various operations such as creation, reading, updating, and deletion, as well as specific actions related to authentication, authorization, and user management. The exact API calls and operations available may vary depending on the specific Cognito feature and the SDK or API version being used.