How it works

Please be sure of your agent type and version and pick the right documentation accordingly.

Node.js

This is the documentation of the forest-express-sequelize and forest-express-mongoose Node.js agents that will soon reach end-of-support.

forest-express-sequelize v9 and forest-express-mongoose v9 are replaced by @forestadmin/agent v1.

Please check your agent type and version and read on or switch to the right documentation.

Ruby on Rails

Python

PHP

How it works

Before you start writing a single line of code, it’s a good idea to get an overview of how Forest Admin works. The magic lies in its architecture.

Forest Admin provides you with:

• An API hosted on your server to retrieve your data. We call it the Admin Backend

  • if you chose a database as a datasource (PostgreSQLL, MySQL / MariaDB, MSSQL, MongoDB), your Admin Backend will be generated as a standalone folder.

  • if you chose an existing app as a datasource (Rails, Django, Laravel, Express/Sequelize, Express/Mongoose), your Admin Backend will be generated within your app.

• A user interface to access and manage your data from your browser. This Forest Admin User Interface is built and managed through resources hosted on Forest Admin's servers.

SQL/Mongodb

The Admin Backend is a Node.JS REST API hosted on your servers

Rails/Django/Laravel

For a more in-depth explanation of Forest Admin's architecture (the Node.JS agent version), please read the following article.

The Admin Backend

The Admin Backend is generated upon install and hosted on your end.

It includes an API allowing to translate calls made from the Forest Admin UI into queries to your database (covering actions such as CRUD, search & filters, pagination, sorting, etc.).

It also provides the Forest Admin servers with the information needed to build the User Interface (the Forest Admin Schema). This information includes table names, column names and types, and relationships. It is sent when you run your Admin Backend within a file called forestadmin-schema.json.

Data Privacy

When logging into the Forest Admin UI in your browser, you will connect to:

1. The Forest Admin servers to retrieve the Forest Admin UI.

2. The Admin Backend to retrieve your data and populate the Forest Admin UI with it.

As your data transits directly from the Admin Backend hosted on your end and the user browser, it never transits through our servers.

SQL/Mongodb

Rails/Django/Laravel

Security

The connection to both servers to the Admin Backend and the Forest Admin Servers are protected using 2 different JWT signed by 2 different keys:

1. FOREST_ENV_SECRET to authenticate all requests made to the Forest Admin Servers

2. FOREST_AUTH_SECRET to authenticate all requests made to the Admin Backend

SQL/Mongodb

Rails/Django/Laravel

FOREST_ENV_SECRET is provided by Forest Admin and ensures your Admin Backend interacts with the relevant environment configuration on our end**.**

FOREST_AUTH_SECRET is chosen freely by you and is never disclosed to anyone**.**

The JWT Data Token contains all the details of the requesting user. On any authenticated request to your Admin Backend, you can access them with the variable req.user.

req.user content example

{
  "id": "172",
  "email": "[email protected]",
  "firstName": "Angelica",
  "lastName": "Bengtsson",
  "team": "Pole Vault",
  "role": "Manager",
  "tags": [{ key: "country", value: "Canada" }],
  "renderingId": "4998",
  "iat": 1569913709,
  "exp": 1571123309
}

No 3rd-party Tracking

The Forest Admin UI has an option to completely disable any 3rd-party provider that could track data available from your browser to guarantee the respect of data privacy.

SQL/Mongodb

Rails/Django/Laravel

IP Whitelisting

The IP whitelisting feature allows you to create a list of trusted IP addresses or IP ranges from which your admin users can both access to the Forest Admin UI and interact with your Admin Backend.

SQL/Mongodb

Rails/Django/Laravel

DMZ & VPN

You're free to host your Admin Backend in the cloud architecture you want to be compliant with your security infrastructure (DMZ, VPN, etc.).

Credentials

We’re already working with companies compliant with the following Industry Standard Certifications.