> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://mintlify.com/kubernetes-retired/dashboard/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# API Overview

> Kubernetes Dashboard API overview, architecture, and getting started

## Introduction

The Kubernetes Dashboard API is a RESTful API that provides programmatic access to Kubernetes cluster resources through a unified interface. The API acts as a proxy between clients and the Kubernetes API server, offering enhanced features like metrics aggregation, resource management, and web terminal access.

## Base URL

All API endpoints are prefixed with:

```
/api/v1
```

### Example

```bash theme={null}
https://dashboard.example.com/api/v1/pod
```

## Architecture

The Dashboard API consists of several key components:

* **API Handler**: Core request routing and processing (`apihandler.go`)
* **Resource Handlers**: Kubernetes resource-specific endpoints
* **Integration Manager**: Metrics and external service integration
* **Authentication**: Bearer token-based authentication
* **WebSocket Support**: Real-time terminal and log streaming via SockJS

## Server Configuration

The API server can be configured with the following options:

<ParamField path="--bind-address" type="string" default="0.0.0.0">
  The IP address on which to serve HTTPS (set to 0.0.0.0 for all interfaces)
</ParamField>

<ParamField path="--port" type="number" default="8443">
  The secure port to listen on for HTTPS
</ParamField>

<ParamField path="--insecure-bind-address" type="string">
  The IP address on which to serve HTTP (disabled by default)
</ParamField>

<ParamField path="--insecure-port" type="number" default="8080">
  The port to listen on for HTTP
</ParamField>

<ParamField path="--metrics-provider" type="string" default="sidecar">
  Metrics provider for resource metrics (options: `sidecar`, `none`)
</ParamField>

<ParamField path="--sidecar-host" type="string">
  The metrics-scraper sidecar host URL
</ParamField>

## OpenAPI Documentation

When enabled, the API provides OpenAPI/Swagger documentation at:

```
/apidocs.json
```

Enable OpenAPI documentation with the `--enable-openapi` flag.

## Common Query Parameters

Many list endpoints support the following query parameters for filtering, sorting, and pagination:

<ParamField query="filterBy" type="string">
  Comma-delimited string for filtering: `propertyName,filterValue`

  **Example**: `filterBy=name,nginx`
</ParamField>

<ParamField query="sortBy" type="string">
  Column name to sort by

  **Example**: `sortBy=creationTimestamp`
</ParamField>

<ParamField query="itemsPerPage" type="number" default="10">
  Number of items to return per page
</ParamField>

<ParamField query="page" type="number" default="1">
  Page number for pagination
</ParamField>

<ParamField query="metricNames" type="string">
  Comma-separated list of metric names to download

  **Example**: `metricNames=cpu/usage,memory/usage`
</ParamField>

<ParamField query="aggregations" type="string">
  Aggregation methods for metrics (default: `sum`)

  **Options**: `sum`, `avg`, `min`, `max`
</ParamField>

## Response Format

All API responses are in JSON format with the following general structure:

### Success Response

```json theme={null}
{
  "listMeta": {
    "totalItems": 100
  },
  "items": [...],
  "errors": []
}
```

### Error Response

```json theme={null}
{
  "status": "Failure",
  "message": "Error message",
  "reason": "BadRequest",
  "code": 400
}
```

## Content Types

The API accepts and returns the following content types:

* **Accept**: `application/json`
* **Content-Type**: `application/json`

## Rate Limiting

The API implements client-side rate limiting with configurable QPS (queries per second) and burst settings:

* Default QPS: Follows Kubernetes client-go defaults
* Configurable via server startup parameters

## CSRF Protection

POST requests require CSRF token validation. Obtain a CSRF token using:

```bash theme={null}
GET /api/v1/csrftoken/{action}
```

<ResponseField name="token" type="string">
  One-time CSRF token for the specified action
</ResponseField>

Include the token in the `X-CSRF-TOKEN` header for POST requests.

## Metrics Integration

The API supports metrics collection through the metrics-scraper sidecar:

* **CPU usage**: `cpu/usage`
* **Memory usage**: `memory/usage`
* **Custom metrics**: Extensible through integrations

## Proxy Mode

The API can run in proxy mode for development and testing, bypassing in-cluster authentication.

## Next Steps

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Authentication" icon="lock" href="/api/authentication">
    Learn about API authentication mechanisms
  </Card>

  <Card title="Resources" icon="cube" href="/api/resources">
    Explore Kubernetes resource endpoints
  </Card>

  <Card title="Handlers" icon="terminal" href="/api/handlers">
    Discover special handlers for terminal and logs
  </Card>

  <Card title="Metrics" icon="chart-line" href="/api/metrics">
    Access metrics and monitoring data
  </Card>
</CardGroup>