APIs (Application Programming Interfaces) allow different software applications to communicate and exchange data. They are fundamental for building Forge applications, whether you want to access an Atlassian product API or integrate with an external system.
Most APIs require some sort of authentication to prevent unauthorized access. Commonly this is done via either basic authentication, using an API key, or using bearer tokens (such as with OAuth).
When calling Atlassian product APIs using Forge, the Forge platform provides managed APIs that apps can use to make secure REST API calls. API calls are automatically authenticated on behalf of the app - making API calls much simpler.
When calling third party APIs you will need to manage authentication using Basic Auth, an Authentication token, or using managed OAuth 2.0 authentication.
Learn more about Simple and secure authentication with Forge.
Forge apps can access the following product REST APIs:
There are different options for accessing these APIs depending on the API you want to access, and how you want to call it.
The Forge API package lets you make requests to Bitbucket, Confluence, Jira and GraphQL via the backend serverless infrastructure using a resolver.
Calling product API's in this way lets you decide whether you want to make the call asApp() or asUser().
See the @forge/api reference documentation for the appropriate product below:
The Forge bridge API is a Javascript API that allows Forge UI Kit and Custom UI apps to securely integrate with Jira and Confluence to make API calls directly - rather than via the backend serverless infrastructure.
When making API calls via the Forge bridge, the call is made as the current user.
See the @forge/bridge reference documentaiton for the appropriate produt below:
The Forge API package also lets you make requests to third party APIs using the Fetch API. The Fetch API is a partial implementation of node-fetch, which fetches data from an HTTP server.
When making a call using the Fetch API, it must be made via the backend serverless infrastructure using a resolver.
If you'd like to see an example, the Build a Jira Dashboard Gadget tutorial uses the basic fetch client to call a third party API.
See the Basic fetch client docs to learn more.
You can also call external APIS using OAuth 2.0, to learn more see the guided tutorial
Product REST APIs Reference Docs
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