Nutshell API Authentication

How to authenticate Nutshell API requests: one Bearer API key plus a connectionId. MindCloud stores your Nutshell credentials — no auth headers to build.

Every Nutshell API request through MindCloud needs two things: a MindCloud API Key and a connectionId for your Nutshell account. This page covers both, plus exactly how to send them, so you do not need to visit any other page to get authenticated.

Steps to authenticate

Create a MindCloud account at app.mindcloud.co if you do not already have one.
Generate a MindCloud API Key in API Keys. This is the Bearer token you send on every request. Keep it on your server.
Create a Nutshell connection in Connections. Nutshell uses a username and password. You enter them when you create the connection — MindCloud stores them securely so your requests never carry raw credentials.
Copy the connection’s connectionId — you will send it on every request alongside your MindCloud API Key.

How requests are authenticated

Authentication has two layers. Your MindCloud API Key authenticates the request to MindCloud, sent as a Bearer token in the Authorization header. The connectionId selects the connected Nutshell account that should run the action. MindCloud stores and refreshes the Nutshell credentials behind that connection, so you never send provider tokens with your requests.

Pass connectionId in the query string for GET and DELETE actions, and in the JSON body for POST, PUT, and PATCH actions.

For example, calling List Leads with an Nutshell connection looks like this:

curl --request POST \
  --url "https://connect.mindcloud.co/v2/universal/apps/nutshell/actions/list-leads/run" \
  --header "Authorization: Bearer $MINDCLOUD_API_KEY" \
  --header "Content-Type: application/json" \
  --data '{
  "connectionId": "$CONNECTION_ID",
  "arguments": {}
}'

The Authorization: Bearer <your MindCloud API Key> header authenticates you to MindCloud; the connectionId tells MindCloud which Nutshell account to run the action against. Missing or invalid Authorization returns 401, and a missing or mismatched connectionId returns 400.

Create a Nutshell API key

You need a Nutshell user account that can sign in to your company workspace.

Open the API keys page in Nutshell
In Nutshell, click your avatar in the lower-left, choose Company settings, then under Connections select API keys.
Avatar menu → Company settings → Connections → API keys
Create a new API key
Click (+) Add API key..., choose the permission type for your integration, and click New API key.
Copy the API key
Open the newly created API key and copy the key value. Treat it like a password because it grants access to your Nutshell data.
Enter your Nutshell credentials in MindCloud
Use the email address you sign in to Nutshell with as the Email value, and paste the generated Nutshell API key into the API Key field.

Keep your key safe

Keep your MindCloud API Key on your server; do not ship it in browser code, mobile apps, public repositories, or logs. Anyone with the key can call the Universal API as your MindCloud account, across every connection you have created.