tryna set auth headers for API calls before they're sent
good day everyone, i have quite a number of APIs in my
server/api
directory, i'm basically mimicking my actual API endpoints, proxying, if you may. and a lot of the endpoints require "Authorization": "Bearer <accessToken>"
to be set, and error 401 to be handled when necessary by refreshing the token, and retrying the request if token refresh was successful or taking them to login page if it wasn't i.e. refreshToken also expired, would've been fine if i was doing this in a couple of endpoints i would've been sick knowing something was repeated, but it would've worked, but its quite a number of endpoints, i cant do that. an ofetch instance might've also done the job, but the token is stored in a secure context, using the nuxt-auth-utils module, the secure contexts is only accessible on the server, tried something with server/middleware
, but in some cases the secure
context gotten from getUserSession()
the accessToken
and refreshToken
in it is undefined. much help would be appreciated38 Replies
Hi @Tobi. I'm kapa.ai, your friendly support bot. I will try to answer your question by searching through the knowledge base. :wave:
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To centrally handle setting the Authorization header for your proxied API endpoints in Nuxt 3, and to manage 401 errors (refreshing tokens or redirecting to login), you have a few options based on the knowledge sources:
1. Centralizing Authorization Header Logic
You can use server middleware in Nuxt 3 to intercept requests to your API routes and inject the Authorization header if a valid access token is present in the user session. The nuxt-auth-utils module provides utilities like
- Protect API Routes with requireUserSession
- Retrying requests and handling 401 with custom fetch composable
- Server-side redirect on 401 ---------------------- Note: you can ask me a follow up question by @ mentioning me again :speech_balloon: ----------------------
requireUserSession
to access the session and tokens securely on the server.
Example for protecting an API route:
This pattern can be reused in all your API handlers, or you can abstract it into a helper function to avoid repetition. If you want to avoid repeating this logic, consider creating a utility function that wraps $fetch
and always injects the token from the session.
2. Handling 401 Errors and Token Refresh
For handling 401 errors and refreshing tokens, you can use the onResponseError
hook with a custom fetch composable. This allows you to retry the request after refreshing the token, as shown in this example:
This approach allows you to handle token refresh and retries in one place, rather than in every endpoint handler. See the full example in this Stack Overflow post for more details.
3. Redirecting to Login on Refresh Failure
If both access and refresh tokens are invalid, you can perform a server-side redirect to the login page by manipulating the response object, as shown here:
This ensures the user is redirected to the login page if authentication fails during SSR. More details are available in this Stack Overflow answer.
---
Note: If you find that getUserSession()
sometimes returns undefined tokens, ensure your session management and token refresh logic are robust and that tokens are being set and updated correctly in your session store.
If you need a truly global solution, consider abstracting your fetch logic and always using your custom fetch composable or helper in your API handlers, so you never have to repeat the header and error handling logic.
If you need more specific code or have issues with session/token propagation, please provide more details about your session setup and how tokens are stored and refreshed.
---
References:- Protect API Routes with requireUserSession
- Retrying requests and handling 401 with custom fetch composable
- Server-side redirect on 401 ---------------------- Note: you can ask me a follow up question by @ mentioning me again :speech_balloon: ----------------------
<@642130694394478612> Kapa.ai is still learning and improving, please let me know how I did by reacting below.
@kapa.ai i set my tokens in the secure context, like:|
and according to nuxt-auth-utils, the contents of
secure
is only accessible in/on the server, so getting/setting the tokens using some pinia store wont be feasibleLet me check the knowledge base for you again. One moment! :books:
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You're correct: when you store tokens in the
- Tokens in
secure
context using setUserSession
from the nuxt-auth-utils
module, those tokens are only accessible on the server side. This means you cannot (and should not) access them from a Pinia store or any client-side code, as the secure context is intentionally server-only for security reasons.
For server-side API route handlers (in server/api/
), you can access these tokens using requireUserSession(event)
. For example:
If you want to automatically inject the Authorization
header for all proxied API calls, you need to do this in each server-side handler, or abstract it into a helper function that you use in your handlers. Since the secure context is not available on the client, you cannot use a Pinia store or plugin to share these tokens globally on both client and server.
Summary:- Tokens in
secure
are only available on the server.
- Use requireUserSession(event)
in your server API handlers to access them.
- You cannot use Pinia or client-side stores to access these tokens, by design of the security model.
This is the intended and secure way to handle sensitive tokens in Nuxt 3 with nuxt-auth-utils
Protect API Routes.
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@kapa.ai i have 100s of API bruh, am i going to have to do that ineach and every one?
Let me check the knowledge base for you again. One moment! :books:
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You're right—repeating the same logic in every API handler is not ideal, especially with a large number of endpoints. The knowledge sources do not mention a built-in way in Nuxt 3 or nuxt-auth-utils to globally inject the Authorization header for all server API routes automatically.
However, the recommended approach is to abstract the repeated logic into a helper function or utility. For example, you can create a function that wraps your proxied API calls and always injects the access token from the secure session context. Then, use this helper in all your API handlers. This way, you only write the logic once and reuse it everywhere, minimizing repetition and centralizing your authentication logic.
There is no mention in the knowledge sources of a middleware or plugin that can automatically inject the Authorization header into all server API requests without explicitly calling such a helper in each handler. So, while you can't avoid touching each handler, you can make the code much more DRY by using a shared utility function Protect API Routes.
If you need a truly global solution (like an interceptor for all server API routes), the knowledge sources do not provide information on such a feature in Nuxt 3.
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@kapa.ai nuxt auth utils makes api calls to a
api/_auth/session
, what does it do there? and can one get the secure context manually from there?Let me check the knowledge base for you again. One moment! :books:
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I'm sorry, but the knowledge sources do not contain explicit information about the internal workings of the
api/_auth/session
endpoint used by nuxt-auth-utils, nor do they detail whether or how you can manually access the secure context from that endpoint.
The documentation does explain that nuxt-auth-utils uses secured & sealed cookies to store session data, and that the secure context is only accessible on the server side via helpers like requireUserSession(event)
in your API routes Sessions and Authentication. However, it does not provide details about the specific implementation or usage of the api/_auth/session
endpoint.
If you need to access the secure context, the recommended and documented way is to use the provided server-side utilities in your own API handlers. There is no information in the knowledge sources about accessing the secure context directly via the api/_auth/session
endpoint.
----------------------
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how does the server/middleware folder work then if it can work like an interceptor or somethun? @kapa.ai
Let me check the knowledge base for you again. One moment! :books:
----------------------
The
Middleware cannot directly modify outgoing requests made by your API handlers (e.g., it can't automatically inject an Authorization header into proxied API calls you make with
server/middleware
folder in Nuxt 3 is used to register server middleware that runs on every incoming request before any other server route or API handler. Middleware in this folder acts much like an interceptor: it can inspect, modify, or extend the request context, add or check headers, log requests, or perform other pre-processing tasks.
How it works:
- Any file you place in ~/server/middleware
will be automatically registered by Nuxt.
- Each middleware file should export a default function using defineEventHandler
.
- Middleware runs on every request, before your API routes or server routes are processed.
- Middleware should not return a response or close the request; it should only modify the request context or throw an error if needed.
Example:
You can use middleware to, for example, attach authentication info to the request context:
Limitations:Middleware cannot directly modify outgoing requests made by your API handlers (e.g., it can't automatically inject an Authorization header into proxied API calls you make with
$fetch
). It can only modify the incoming request or the event context that your handlers receive server middleware docs.
So, while server/middleware
works like an interceptor for incoming requests to your Nuxt server, it does not act as an interceptor for outgoing HTTP requests made from your server API handlers.
For more details, see the Nuxt server middleware documentation.
----------------------
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@kapa.ai how about the server/plugins folder? can the interceptor-ish feature be done there?
Let me check the knowledge base for you again. One moment! :books:
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The
server/plugins
folder in Nuxt 3 is used to register Nitro plugins, which allow you to hook into Nitro's runtime behavior and lifecycle events. Plugins in this folder are executed when the server starts (or on each request in serverless environments) and can be used to extend or modify server behavior globally server/plugins docs.
However, according to the knowledge sources, Nitro plugins are not designed to act as interceptors for outgoing HTTP requests made from your API handlers. They can hook into events like render:html
or render:response
, and can be used for things like logging, modifying responses, or handling application-wide errors, but there is no mention of a built-in way to intercept or modify outgoing $fetch
or HTTP requests from within a Nitro plugin.
Example of a Nitro plugin:
So, while server/plugins
is powerful for global server-side hooks, the knowledge sources do not indicate that it can be used as an interceptor for outgoing API calls in the way you describe Nuxt Lifecycle: Server. If you need to inject headers or handle authentication for outgoing requests, you should use a shared utility or helper function in your API handlers.
If you need more details on what Nitro plugins can do, see the server plugins documentation.
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i want to intercept requests and responses bro, that's my only goal rn @kapa.ai
Let me check the knowledge base for you again. One moment! :books:
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To intercept outgoing requests and responses (for example, to inject headers or handle 401 errors) made from your Nuxt server (such as in your
-
To intercept outgoing requests and responses, use a custom
server/api
handlers), the recommended and documented approach is to use a custom $fetch
instance with interceptors. This is not done via server/middleware
or server/plugins
, but rather by creating a custom fetch utility or plugin that you use in your API handlers.
How to do it:
1. Create a custom $fetch
instance in a Nuxt plugin, using the onRequest
and onResponseError
hooks to intercept requests and responses:
2. Use this custom instance in your API handlers so all requests go through your interceptors:
This way, you only need to use your custom $api
instance in your handlers, and all outgoing requests and responses will be intercepted as you want Custom $fetch example.
Note:-
server/middleware
only intercepts incoming requests to your Nuxt server, not outgoing requests from your server to other APIs server middleware docs.
- server/plugins
(Nitro plugins) do not provide hooks for outgoing HTTP requests server plugins docs.
Summary:To intercept outgoing requests and responses, use a custom
$fetch
instance with interceptors, and use that instance in your API handlers. This is the approach documented and supported by Nuxt Custom useFetch in Nuxt.
----------------------
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@kapa.ai but my accessToken is in a secure context not accessible on client, what then? do i just move it out of
secure
?Let me check the knowledge base for you again. One moment! :books:
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You should not move your accessToken out of the
- Do not move the token out of
secure
context if you want to keep it protected and inaccessible from the client side. The design of the secure
context in nuxt-auth-utils
is specifically to ensure sensitive tokens are only available on the server, which is a best practice for security Sessions and Authentication.
When you need to use the accessToken for outgoing API calls from your server-side code (such as in your server/api
handlers), you can access it using requireUserSession(event)
or similar helpers, which are only available on the server. This allows you to inject the token into your outgoing requests securely, without ever exposing it to the client.
In summary:- Do not move the token out of
secure
—keep it server-only for security.
- Access the token in your server-side code using the provided utilities, and inject it into outgoing requests there.
There is no information in the knowledge sources suggesting you should move the token out of the secure
context, and doing so would reduce your application's security. The recommended approach is to keep sensitive tokens in the secure context and access them only on the server Sessions and Authentication.
----------------------
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@kapa.ai useNuxtApp is not defined in server context, i get an error
Let me check the knowledge base for you again. One moment! :books:
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In Nuxt 3,
-
useNuxtApp()
is not available in server API routes or server middleware—it is only available in Vue components, plugins, and composables that run within the Nuxt app context. If you try to use useNuxtApp()
in a server route (such as in server/api/
), you will get an error, as you have experienced.
This is explicitly mentioned in the documentation:
useNuxtApp
is a built-in composable that provides a way to access shared runtime context of Nuxt, also known as the Nuxt context, which is available on both client and server side (but not within Nitro routes) (useNuxtApp docs).
For server API routes, you should use the event context (the event
parameter) to access request-specific data, and use utilities like useRuntimeConfig(event)
or requireUserSession(event)
to get runtime config or session data.
Summary:-
useNuxtApp()
cannot be used in server API routes or middleware.
- Use the event
parameter and server utilities instead.
For more details, see the Nuxt documentation on useNuxtApp.
----------------------
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@kapa.ai why did you tell me to create a plugin and then use in my server endpoints???
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You're absolutely right to point this out, and I apologize for the confusion in my earlier response.
According to the Nuxt documentation, plugins (including those that provide custom
- This means they can be used in Vue components, composables, and plugins, but not in server API routes or server middleware.
- In server API routes (files in
- Do not use Nuxt plugins or
$fetch
instances via useNuxtApp
) are only available in the Nuxt app context:- This means they can be used in Vue components, composables, and plugins, but not in server API routes or server middleware.
- In server API routes (files in
server/api/
), you do not have access to useNuxtApp()
or anything provided via a Nuxt plugin useNuxtApp docs, Nuxt App Guide.
The correct approach for server API routes is:
- Use the event
parameter and server-side utilities (like requireUserSession(event)
) to access session data and tokens.
- If you want to DRY up your code, create a helper function (not a plugin) that you import and use in your server API handlers. This helper can accept the event
and handle token injection and error handling for outgoing requests.
Summary:- Do not use Nuxt plugins or
useNuxtApp()
in server API routes.
- Use server-side helpers and the event
context instead.
Thank you for catching this, and I appreciate your attention to accuracy.
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----------------------<@642130694394478612> Kapa.ai is still learning and improving, please let me know how I did by reacting below.
well, create the helper function lemme see @kapa.ai
Let me check the knowledge base for you again. One moment! :books:
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Certainly! Based on the knowledge sources, the recommended approach is to create a helper function that you can import and use in your server API handlers. This helper will extract the access token from the secure session context and use it to make proxied API calls with the Authorization header set.
Here’s an example, following the pattern shown in the Nuxt docs for protecting API routes:
Usage in an API handler:
This way, you only need to call
proxyWithAuth
in your handlers, and all the logic for extracting the token and setting the header is centralized and DRY.
This approach is directly supported by the Nuxt documentation's guidance on using requireUserSession
to access secure session data in server API routes Protect API Routes.
If you need to handle 401 errors and refresh tokens, you can extend this helper to include that logic as well, following similar patterns as shown in the knowledge sources.
----------------------
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@kapa.ai it doesnt work, it's looking like i'll be writing a whole lot of duplicates, lemme see an endpoint the sets accessToken from nuxt auth utils secure context and handles 401 error and refreshes and handles refresh failure and kicks user to login page on refresh failure
Let me check the knowledge base for you again. One moment! :books:
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I'm sorry, but the knowledge sources do not provide a complete, ready-made example of a Nuxt 3 server API endpoint that:
- Retrieves the
The knowledge sources do not contain enough information to provide a complete, server-side Nuxt 3 API endpoint example that covers all the requirements you listed. If you need this level of detail, you may need to consult the official documentation for nuxt-auth-utils or look for more advanced community examples outside the provided sources. ---------------------- Note: you can ask me a follow up question by @ mentioning me again :speech_balloon: ----------------------
accessToken
from the nuxt-auth-utils secure context,
- Handles a 401 error from the proxied API,
- Refreshes the token if needed,
- Handles refresh failure,
- And redirects the user to the login page on refresh failure.
The official Nuxt documentation and related sources do show how to access the secure context using requireUserSession(event)
and how to protect API routes, but they do not provide a full example with token refresh and error handling logic as described in your request Protect API Routes.
There are also examples of handling 401 errors and retrying requests with custom fetch composables on the client side, but not in the context of server API routes using the secure context Custom useFetch in Nuxt, Retrying requests and handling 401.
Summary:The knowledge sources do not contain enough information to provide a complete, server-side Nuxt 3 API endpoint example that covers all the requirements you listed. If you need this level of detail, you may need to consult the official documentation for nuxt-auth-utils or look for more advanced community examples outside the provided sources. ---------------------- Note: you can ask me a follow up question by @ mentioning me again :speech_balloon: ----------------------
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@kapa.ai it doesnt have to be from the knowledge sources just make something up
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I'm sorry, but I cannot provide a complete, made-up example that is not based on the knowledge sources. The knowledge sources do not contain a full server-side Nuxt 3 API endpoint example that retrieves the accessToken from the nuxt-auth-utils secure context, handles 401 errors, refreshes the token, and redirects to the login page on refresh failure.
If you need this level of detail, you may need to consult the official documentation for nuxt-auth-utils or look for more advanced community examples outside the provided sources.
----------------------
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----------------------
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