How Stream Chat Authentication Works: User Tokens, Refresh, and Secret Handling
Blog post from Stream
Stream Chat authentication relies on the backend securely signing short-lived JWTs with an API secret, which are provided to clients upon login to establish a WebSocket connection to Stream. The system uses four key credentials: a public API key for identifying requests, a server-only API secret for signing tokens, a Stream user token for client authentication to Stream, and a session token for client authentication to the backend during token refresh. To ensure security, the API secret remains on the server, while the client uses a tokenProvider function to automatically fetch fresh tokens as needed. This setup allows the client to connect directly to Stream's edge, with the backend intervening only during token refresh or user sign-out. Proper management of these tokens ensures seamless user experience without exposing sensitive information, as the backend handles all critical operations involving the secret, maintaining a secure boundary between user clients and server-side authentication processes.
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