Windshaft-cartodb/docs/general_concepts.md
2016-02-18 13:15:28 -05:00

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# General Concepts
The following concepts are the same for every endpoint in the API except when it's noted explicitly.
## Auth
By default, users do not have access to private tables in CartoDB. In order to instantiate a map from private table data an API Key is required. Additionally, to include some endpoints, an API Key must be included (e.g. creating a Named Map).
To execute an authorized request, `api_key=YOURAPIKEY` should be added to the request URL. The param can be also passed as POST param. Using HTTPS is mandatory when you are performing requests that include your `api_key`.
## Errors
Errors are reported using standard HTTP codes and extended information encoded in JSON with this format:
```javascript
{
"errors": [
"access forbidden to table TABLE"
]
}
```
If you use JSONP, the 200 HTTP code is always returned so the JavaScript client can receive errors from the JSON object.
## CORS support
All the endpoints, which might be accessed using a web browser, add CORS headers and allow OPTIONS method.