Advanced Trade WebSocket Authentication

This guide explains how to authenticate requests to the Advanced Trade WebSocket API server channels. It assumes that you have already created API keys.

Sending Messages with API Keys

Making Requests

Use the code samples below to generate/export a JSON Web Token (JWT) and make an authenticated request.

WebSocket JWTs (vs those for REST API) are not built with a request method or request path.

Generating a JWT

Regardless of which code snippet you use, follow these steps:

Replace key name and key secret with your key name and private key. key secret is a multi-line key and newlines must be preserved to properly parse the key. Do this on one line with \n escaped newlines, or with a multi-line string.
Run the generation script that prints the command export JWT=....
Run the generated command to save your JWT.

Your JWT expires after 2 minutes, after which all requests are unauthenticated.

Code samples

The easiest way to generate a JWT is to use the built-in functions in our Python SDK as described below. Otherwise, use the code samples below to generate/export a JWT and make an authenticated request.

Install the SDK.
```
pip3 install coinbase-advanced-py
```
In the console, run: python main.py (or whatever your file name is).
Set the JWT to that output, or export the JWT to the environment with export JWT=$(python main.py).

from coinbase import jwt_generator

api_key = "organizations/{org_id}/apiKeys/{key_id}"
api_secret = "-----BEGIN EC PRIVATE KEY-----\nYOUR PRIVATE KEY\n-----END EC PRIVATE KEY-----\n"

def main():
    jwt_token = jwt_generator.build_ws_jwt(api_key, api_secret)
    print(f"export JWT={jwt_token}")

if __name__ == "__main__":
    main()

Install the SDK.
```
pip3 install coinbase-advanced-py
```
In the console, run: python main.py (or whatever your file name is).
Set the JWT to that output, or export the JWT to the environment with export JWT=$(python main.py).

from coinbase import jwt_generator

api_key = "organizations/{org_id}/apiKeys/{key_id}"
api_secret = "-----BEGIN EC PRIVATE KEY-----\nYOUR PRIVATE KEY\n-----END EC PRIVATE KEY-----\n"

def main():
    jwt_token = jwt_generator.build_ws_jwt(api_key, api_secret)
    print(f"export JWT={jwt_token}")

if __name__ == "__main__":
    main()

Install dependencies PyJWT and cryptography.
```
pip install PyJWT
pip install cryptography
```
In the console, run: python main.py (or whatever your file name is).
Set JWT to that output, or export the JWT to the environment with export JWT=$(node main.py).

import jwt
from cryptography.hazmat.primitives import serialization
import time
import secrets

key_name     = "organizations/{org_id}/apiKeys/{key_id}"
key_secret   = "-----BEGIN EC PRIVATE KEY-----\nYOUR PRIVATE KEY\n-----END EC PRIVATE KEY-----\n"

def build_jwt():
    private_key_bytes = key_secret.encode('utf-8')
    private_key = serialization.load_pem_private_key(private_key_bytes, password=None)

    jwt_payload = {
        'sub': key_name,
        'iss': "cdp",
        'nbf': int(time.time()),
        'exp': int(time.time()) + 120,
    }

    jwt_token = jwt.encode(
        jwt_payload,
        private_key,
        algorithm='ES256',
        headers={'kid': key_name, 'nonce': secrets.token_hex()},
    )

    return jwt_token

def main():
    jwt_token = build_jwt()

    print(f"export JWT={jwt_token}")

if __name__ == "__main__":
    main()

Create a new directory and generate a Go file called main.go.
Paste the Go snippet below into main.go.
Run go mod init jwt-generator and go mod tidy to generate go.mod and go.sum and manage your dependencies.
In the console, run: go run main.go.
Set your JWT with that output, or export the JWT to environment with export JWT=$(node main.go).

package main

import (
    "crypto/rand"
    "crypto/x509"
    "encoding/pem"
    "fmt"
    "math"
    "math/big"
    "time"

    log "github.com/sirupsen/logrus"
    "gopkg.in/go-jose/go-jose.v2"
    "gopkg.in/go-jose/go-jose.v2/jwt"
)

const (
    keyName     = "organizations/{org_id}/apiKeys/{key_id}"
    keySecret   = "-----BEGIN EC PRIVATE KEY-----\nYOUR PRIVATE KEY\n-----END EC PRIVATE KEY-----\n"
)

type APIKeyClaims struct {
    *jwt.Claims
}

func buildJWT() (string, error) {
    block, _ := pem.Decode([]byte(keySecret))
    if block == nil {
        return "", fmt.Errorf("jwt: Could not decode private key")
    }

    key, err := x509.ParseECPrivateKey(block.Bytes)
    if err != nil {
        return "", fmt.Errorf("jwt: %w", err)
    }

    sig, err := jose.NewSigner(
        jose.SigningKey{Algorithm: jose.ES256, Key: key},
        (&jose.SignerOptions{NonceSource: nonceSource{}}).WithType("JWT").WithHeader("kid", keyName),
    )
    if err != nil {
        return "", fmt.Errorf("jwt: %w", err)
    }

    cl := &APIKeyClaims{
        Claims: &jwt.Claims{
            Subject:   keyName,
            Issuer:    "cdp",
            NotBefore: jwt.NewNumericDate(time.Now()),
            Expiry:    jwt.NewNumericDate(time.Now().Add(2 * time.Minute)),
        },
    }
    jwtString, err := jwt.Signed(sig).Claims(cl).CompactSerialize()
    if err != nil {
        return "", fmt.Errorf("jwt: %w", err)
    }
    return jwtString, nil
}

var max = big.NewInt(math.MaxInt64)

type nonceSource struct{}

func (n nonceSource) Nonce() (string, error) {
    r, err := rand.Int(rand.Reader, max)
    if err != nil {
        return "", err
    }
    return r.String(), nil
}

func main() {
    jwt, err := buildJWT()

    if err != nil {
        log.Errorf("error building jwt: %v", err)
    }
    fmt.Println("export JWT=" + jwt)
}

Install jsonwebtoken.
```
npm install jsonwebtoken
```
In the console, run: node main.js (or whatever your file name is).
Set JWT to that output, or export the JWT to environment with export JWT=$(node main.js).

const { sign } = require('jsonwebtoken');
const crypto = require('crypto');

const key_name       = 'organizations/{org_id}/apiKeys/{key_id}';
const key_secret = '-----BEGIN EC PRIVATE KEY-----\nYOUR PRIVATE KEY\n-----END EC PRIVATE KEY-----\n';

const algorithm = 'ES256';

const token = sign(
        {
           iss: 'cdp',
           nbf: Math.floor(Date.now() / 1000),
           exp: Math.floor(Date.now() / 1000) + 120,
           sub: key_name,
        },
        key_secret,
        {
           algorithm,
           header: {
              kid: key_name,
              nonce: crypto.randomBytes(16).toString('hex'),
           },
        }
);
console.log('export JWT=' + token);

Add PHP dependencies with Composer (for JWT and environment variable management):
```
composer require firebase/php-jwt
composer require vlucas/phpdotenv
```
Run generate_jwt.php (or a filename of your choice).
Output the JWT to the command line and use a shell script to export it:
```
export JWT=$(php generate_jwt.php)
```

Code Snippet

<?php
require 'vendor/autoload.php';
use Firebase\JWT\JWT;
use \Dotenv\Dotenv;

// Load environment variables
$dotenv = Dotenv::createImmutable(__DIR__);
$dotenv->load();

function buildJwt() {
    $keyName = $_ENV['NAME'];
    $keySecret = str_replace('\\n', "\n", $_ENV['PRIVATE_KEY']);

    $privateKeyResource = openssl_pkey_get_private($keySecret);
    if (!$privateKeyResource) {
        throw new Exception('Private key is not valid');
    }
    $time = time();
    $nonce = bin2hex(random_bytes(16));  // Generate a 32-character hexadecimal nonce
    $jwtPayload = [
        'sub' => $keyName,
        'iss' => 'cdp',
        'nbf' => $time,
        'exp' => $time + 120,  // Token valid for 120 seconds from now
    ];
    $headers = [
        'typ' => 'JWT',
        'alg' => 'ES256',
        'kid' => $keyName,  // Key ID header for JWT
        'nonce' => $nonce  // Nonce included in headers for added security
    ];
    $jwtToken = JWT::encode($jwtPayload, $privateKeyResource, 'ES256', $keyName, $headers);
    return $jwtToken;
}

Add Java Dependencies to your project’s Maven or Gradle configuration:

nimbus-jose-jwt (version 9.39), bcpkix-jdk18on (version 1.78), and java-dotenv (version 5.2.2)

Compile your Java application to generates a JWT, for example:
```
mvn compile
```
Capture and export the JWT output from your Java application to an environment variable:
```
export JWT=$(mvn exec:java -Dexec.mainClass=Main)
```

Code Snippet

import com.nimbusds.jose.*;
import com.nimbusds.jose.crypto.*;
import com.nimbusds.jwt.*;
import java.security.interfaces.ECPrivateKey;
import java.util.Map;
import java.util.HashMap;
import java.time.Instant;
import java.util.Base64;
import org.bouncycastle.jce.provider.BouncyCastleProvider;
import org.bouncycastle.openssl.PEMParser;
import org.bouncycastle.openssl.jcajce.JcaPEMKeyConverter;
import java.security.spec.PKCS8EncodedKeySpec;
import java.security.KeyFactory;
import java.io.StringReader;
import java.security.PrivateKey;
import java.security.Security;
import io.github.cdimascio.dotenv.Dotenv;

public class Main {
    public static void main(String[] args) throws Exception {
        // Register BouncyCastle as a security providerx
        Security.addProvider(new BouncyCastleProvider());

        // Load environment variables
        Dotenv dotenv = Dotenv.load();
        String privateKeyPEM = dotenv.get("PRIVATE_KEY").replace("\\n", "\n");
        String name = dotenv.get("NAME");

        // create header object
        Map<String, Object> header = new HashMap<>();
        header.put("alg", "ES256");
        header.put("typ", "JWT");
        header.put("kid", name);
        header.put("nonce", String.valueOf(Instant.now().getEpochSecond()));

        // create data object
        Map<String, Object> data = new HashMap<>();
        data.put("iss", "cdp");
        data.put("nbf", Instant.now().getEpochSecond());
        data.put("exp", Instant.now().getEpochSecond() + 120);
        data.put("sub", name);

        // Load private key
        PEMParser pemParser = new PEMParser(new StringReader(privateKeyPEM));
        JcaPEMKeyConverter converter = new JcaPEMKeyConverter().setProvider("BC");
        Object object = pemParser.readObject();
        PrivateKey privateKey;

        if (object instanceof PrivateKey) {
            privateKey = (PrivateKey) object;
        } else if (object instanceof org.bouncycastle.openssl.PEMKeyPair) {
            privateKey = converter.getPrivateKey(((org.bouncycastle.openssl.PEMKeyPair) object).getPrivateKeyInfo());
        } else {
            throw new Exception("Unexpected private key format");
        }
        pemParser.close();

        // Convert to ECPrivateKey
        KeyFactory keyFactory = KeyFactory.getInstance("EC");
        PKCS8EncodedKeySpec keySpec = new PKCS8EncodedKeySpec(privateKey.getEncoded());
        ECPrivateKey ecPrivateKey = (ECPrivateKey) keyFactory.generatePrivate(keySpec);

        // create JWT
        JWTClaimsSet.Builder claimsSetBuilder = new JWTClaimsSet.Builder();
        for (Map.Entry<String, Object> entry : data.entrySet()) {
            claimsSetBuilder.claim(entry.getKey(), entry.getValue());
        }
        JWTClaimsSet claimsSet = claimsSetBuilder.build();

        JWSHeader jwsHeader = new JWSHeader.Builder(JWSAlgorithm.ES256).customParams(header).build();
        SignedJWT signedJWT = new SignedJWT(jwsHeader, claimsSet);

        JWSSigner signer = new ECDSASigner(ecPrivateKey);
        signedJWT.sign(signer);

        String sJWT = signedJWT.serialize();
        System.out.println(sJWT);
    }
}

Install C++ project dependencies like so:

apt-get update
apt-get install libcurlpp-dev libssl-dev
git clone https://github.com/Thalhammer/jwt-cpp
cd jwt-cpp
mkdir build && cd build
cmake ..
make
make install

After you’ve saved your code to a file name, for example main.cpp, compile the program:

g++ main.cpp -o myapp -lcurlpp -lcurl -lssl -lcrypto -I/usr/local/include -L/usr/local/lib -ljwt -std=c++17

Capture and export the JWT output from your C++ application to an environment variable:
```
export JWT=$(./myapp)
```

Code Snippet

#include <iostream>
#include <sstream>
#include <string>
#include <curlpp/cURLpp.hpp>
#include <curlpp/Easy.hpp>
#include <curlpp/Options.hpp>
#include <jwt-cpp/jwt.h>
#include <openssl/evp.h>
#include <openssl/ec.h>
#include <openssl/pem.h>
#include <openssl/rand.h>

std::string create_jwt() {
    // Set request parameters
    std::string key_name = "organizations/{org_id}/apiKeys/{key_id}";
    std::string key_secret = "-----BEGIN EC PRIVATE KEY-----\nYOUR PRIVATE KEY\n-----END EC PRIVATE KEY-----\n";

    // Generate a random nonce
    unsigned char nonce_raw[16];
    RAND_bytes(nonce_raw, sizeof(nonce_raw));
    std::string nonce(reinterpret_cast<char*>(nonce_raw), sizeof(nonce_raw));

    // Create JWT token
    auto token = jwt::create()
        .set_subject(key_name)
        .set_issuer("cdp")
        .set_not_before(std::chrono::system_clock::now())
        .set_expires_at(std::chrono::system_clock::now() + std::chrono::seconds{120})
        .set_header_claim("kid", jwt::claim(key_name))
        .set_header_claim("nonce", jwt::claim(nonce))
        .sign(jwt::algorithm::es256(key_name, key_secret));

    return token;
};

int main() {
    try {
        std::string token = create_jwt();
        std::cout << "Generated JWT Token: " << token << std::endl;
    } catch (const std::exception& e) {
        std::cerr << "Error: " << e.what() << std::endl;
        return 1;
    }
    return 0;
};

Install the JSON Web Token and TypeScript dependencies:

npm install jsonwebtoken
npm install @types/jsonwebtoken
npm install -g typescript

Create a TypeScript file named main.ts and add the following code:

import * as jwt from 'jsonwebtoken';
import * as crypto from 'crypto';

const keyName = 'organizations/{org_id}/apiKeys/{key_id}';
const keySecret = `-----BEGIN EC PRIVATE KEY-----
YOUR PRIVATE KEY
-----END EC PRIVATE KEY-----`;
const algorithm = 'ES256';


const generateJWT = (): string => {
  const payload = {
    iss: 'cdp',
    nbf: Math.floor(Date.now() / 1000),
    exp: Math.floor(Date.now() / 1000) + 120,
    sub: keyName,
  };

  const header = {
    alg: algorithm,
    kid: keyName,
    nonce: crypto.randomBytes(16).toString('hex'),
  };

  return jwt.sign(payload, keySecret, { algorithm, header });
};

const main = () => {
  const token = generateJWT();
  console.log(token);
};

main();

Compile the TypeScript file to JavaScript:
```
tsc main.ts
```
This will generate a main.js file.
Run the generated JavaScript file:
```
node main.js
```
Set the JWT to the output, or export the JWT to the environment with:
```
export JWT=$(node main.js)
```

Code Snippet

import * as jwt from 'jsonwebtoken';
import * as crypto from 'crypto';

const keyName = 'organizations/{org_id}/apiKeys/{key_id}';
const keySecret = `-----BEGIN EC PRIVATE KEY-----
YOUR PRIVATE KEY
-----END EC PRIVATE KEY-----`;
const algorithm = 'ES256';

const generateJWT = (): string => {
  const payload = {
    iss: 'cdp',
    nbf: Math.floor(Date.now() / 1000),
    exp: Math.floor(Date.now() / 1000) + 120,
    sub: keyName,
  };

  const header = {
    alg: algorithm,
    kid: keyName,
    nonce: crypto.randomBytes(16).toString('hex'),
  };

  return jwt.sign(payload, keySecret, { algorithm, header });
};

const main = () => {
  const token = generateJWT();
  console.log(token);
};

main();

Create a new console project by running the following command:
```
dotnet new console
```
Open the Program.cs file in a text editor or IDE (e.g., Visual Studio Code, Visual Studio, or any text editor). Replace the contents of Program.cs with the provided bellow in the Code Snippet.

Install C# project dependencies like so:

dotnet add package Microsoft.IdentityModel.Tokens
dotnet add package System.IdentityModel.Tokens.Jwt
dotnet add package Jose-JWT

Build the project by running the following command:
```
dotnet build
```
Run the project by running the following command:
```
dotnet run
```

Code Snippet

// Environment is .NET 6.0 C#

using Microsoft.IdentityModel.Tokens;
using System.IdentityModel.Tokens.Jwt;
using System.Security.Claims;
using System.Security.Cryptography;
using Jose;

namespace JwtTest {
    internal class Program {

        static Random random = new Random();

        static void Main(string[] args) {

            string name = "organizations/{org_id}/apiKeys/{key_id}";
            string cbPrivateKey = "-----BEGIN EC PRIVATE KEY-----\nYOUR PRIVATE KEY\n-----END EC PRIVATE KEY-----\n";

            string key = parseKey(cbPrivateKey);
            string token = generateToken(name, key);

            Console.WriteLine($"Token is valid? {isTokenValid(token, name, key)}");

        }


        static string generateToken(string name, string secret) {
             var privateKeyBytes = Convert.FromBase64String(secret); // Assuming PEM is base64 encoded
             using var key = ECDsa.Create();
             key.ImportECPrivateKey(privateKeyBytes, out _);

             var payload = new Dictionary<string, object>
             {
                 { "sub", name },
                 { "iss", "coinbase-cloud" },
                 { "nbf", Convert.ToInt64((DateTime.UtcNow - new DateTime(1970, 1, 1, 0, 0, 0, DateTimeKind.Utc)).TotalSeconds) },
                 { "exp", Convert.ToInt64((DateTime.UtcNow.AddMinutes(1) - new DateTime(1970, 1, 1, 0, 0, 0, DateTimeKind.Utc)).TotalSeconds) },
             };

             var extraHeaders = new Dictionary<string, object>
             {
                 { "kid", name },
                 // add nonce to prevent replay attacks with a random 10 digit number
                 { "nonce", randomHex(10) },
                 { "typ", "JWT"}
             };

             var encodedToken = JWT.Encode(payload, key, JwsAlgorithm.ES256, extraHeaders);

            // print token
            Console.WriteLine(encodedToken);
            return encodedToken;
        }

        static bool isTokenValid(string token, string tokenId, string secret) {
            if (token == null)
                return false;

            var key = ECDsa.Create();
            key?.ImportECPrivateKey(Convert.FromBase64String(secret), out _);

            var securityKey = new ECDsaSecurityKey(key) { KeyId = tokenId };

            try {
                var tokenHandler = new JwtSecurityTokenHandler();
                tokenHandler.ValidateToken(token, new TokenValidationParameters {
                    ValidateIssuerSigningKey = true,
                    IssuerSigningKey = securityKey,
                    ValidateIssuer = false,
                    ValidateAudience = false,
                    ClockSkew = TimeSpan.Zero
                }, out var validatedToken);

                return true;
            } catch {
                return false;
            }
        }

        static string parseKey(string key) {
            List<string> keyLines = new List<string>();
            keyLines.AddRange(key.Split('\n', StringSplitOptions.RemoveEmptyEntries));

            keyLines.RemoveAt(0);
            keyLines.RemoveAt(keyLines.Count - 1);

            return String.Join("", keyLines);
        }


        static string randomHex(int digits) {
            byte[] buffer = new byte[digits / 2];
            random.NextBytes(buffer);
            string result = String.Concat(buffer.Select(x => x.ToString("X2")).ToArray());
            if (digits % 2 == 0)
                return result;
            return result + random.Next(16).ToString("X");
        }

    }
}

Install dependencies JWT and OpenSSL.
```
gem install JWT
gem install OpenSSL
```
In the console, run: ruby main.rb (or whatever your file name is).
Set the JWT to that output, or export the JWT to the environment with export JWT=$(ruby main.rb).

require 'jwt'
require 'openssl'
require 'time'
require 'securerandom'

Key_name = "organizations/{org_id}/apiKeys/{key_id}"
Key_secret = "-----BEGIN EC PRIVATE KEY-----\nYOUR PRIVATE KEY\n-----END EC PRIVATE KEY-----\n"

def build_jwt()
    header = {
      typ: 'JWT',
      kid: Key_name,
      nonce: SecureRandom.hex(16)
    }

    claims = {
      sub: Key_name,
      iss: 'cdp',
      aud: ['cdp_service'],
      nbf: Time.now.to_i,
      exp: Time.now.to_i + 120, # Expiration time: 2 minute from now.
    }

    private_key = OpenSSL::PKey::read(Key_secret)
    JWT.encode(claims, private_key, 'ES256', header)
  end


token = build_jwt()
puts token

Sending Messages without API Keys

Subscribing

// Request
// Subscribe to ETH-USD and ETH-EUR with the level2 channel
{
    "type": "subscribe",
    "product_ids": [
        "ETH-USD",
        "ETH-EUR"
    ],
    "channel": "level2"
}

Unsubscribing

// Request
{
    "type": "unsubscribe",
    "product_ids": [
        "ETH-USD",
        "ETH-EUR"
    ],
    "channel": "level2"
}

Sequence Numbers

Most feed messages contain a sequence number. Sequence numbers are increasing integer values for each product, with each new message being exactly one sequence number greater than the one before it.

Sequence numbers that are greater than one integer value from the previous number indicate that a message has been dropped. Sequence numbers that are less than the previous number can be ignored or represent a message that has arrived out of order.

In either situation you may need to perform logic to make sure your system is in the correct state.

Even though a WebSocket connection is over TCP, the WebSocket servers receive market data in a manner that can result in dropped messages. Your feed consumer should be designed to handle sequence gaps and out of order messages, or should use channels that guarantee delivery of messages.

To guarantee that messages are delivered and your order book is in sync, consider using the level2 channel.

See Also:

WebSocket Channels

GET STARTED

WALLETS

PAYMENTS

SWAPS

BASE TOOLS

DATA

AI

STAKING

FAUCET

CONSUMER APIS

BUSINESS APIS

INSTITUTIONAL APIS

Advanced Trade WebSocket Authentication

Sending Messages with API Keys

Making Requests

Generating a JWT

Code samples

Sending Messages without API Keys

Subscribing

Unsubscribing

Sequence Numbers

GET STARTED

WALLETS

PAYMENTS

SWAPS

BASE TOOLS

DATA

AI

STAKING

FAUCET

CONSUMER APIS

BUSINESS APIS

INSTITUTIONAL APIS

​Sending Messages with API Keys

​Making Requests

​Generating a JWT

​Code samples

​Sending Messages without API Keys

​Subscribing

​Unsubscribing

​Sequence Numbers

Sending Messages with API Keys

Making Requests

Generating a JWT

Code samples

Sending Messages without API Keys

Subscribing

Unsubscribing

Sequence Numbers