API & Integration Documentation

1. API Overview

The Northbound API exposes a RESTful API that allows clients to:

  • Authenticate and obtain JWT tokens

  • Manage device provisioning and configuration

  • Query device status and information

  • Configure network services

  • Monitor service status

2. API Design Principles

The API follows these design principles:

  • RESTful: Resources are identified by URLs and manipulated using standard HTTP methods

  • Stateless: Each request contains all necessary information

  • JSON-based: Request and response payloads use JSON format

  • Versioned: API versioning supports backward compatibility

  • Documented: OpenAPI/Swagger documentation is provided

3. Authentication

The Northbound API is secured via a custom JWT filter (FTApiJwtFilter) that intercepts incoming HTTP requests and delegates token validation to the AuthService.

3.1. Token Extraction

  • The filter reads the authentication token from the HTTP header named by Authorization(IOT_AUTH_HEADER defined in CommonRegistry).

  • Requests to /api/System/Token, non-API endpoints, and HTTP POST requests are excluded from filtering.

3.2. Token Validation

  • For protected endpoints, the filter invokes: authService.authorizeFromHeader(token) to validate the token and populate the Spring Security context.

3.3. Unauthorized Handling

  • After the filter chain, if the response status is 401 Unauthorized and no WWW-Authenticate header is present, the filter adds: WWW-Authenticate: Basic realm="<soapUrl>" where soapUrl is injected from the api.soap.url property.

  • If AuthService throws FriendlyUnauthorizedUserException, the filter:

    • Clears the SecurityContextHolder.

    • Sets response status to 401.

    • Sets Content-Type to application/json.

    • Serializes an error response via Jackson ObjectMapper using: authService.buildErrorResponse(e)

3.4. Configuration

  • api.soap.url (in api.properties) sets the SOAP base URL and realm for authentication challenges.

  • Ensure FTApiJwtFilter is registered as a Spring component to apply this security logic to all API requests.

4. API Endpoints

For detailed API documentation, please refer to the OpenAPI/Swagger documentation available at:

The Swagger UI provides:

  • Interactive documentation for all API endpoints (REST and SOAP)

  • Request and response schemas for each endpoint

  • The ability to try out API calls directly from the browser

  • Authentication requirements and methods

  • Parameter specifications and constraints

The Swagger UI is the most up-to-date source of API documentation as it is automatically generated from the application’s code annotations and includes the full SOAP API specification.

5. Error Response Format

All error responses follow a standardized format.

5.1. SOAP/XML Format

<soap:Envelope xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance"
               xmlns:xsd="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema"
               xmlns:soap="http://schemas.xmlsoap.org/soap/envelope/">
   <soap:Body>
      <ServerWSResponse xmlns="http://www.friendly-tech.com">
         <ServerWSResult>
            <ErrorCode>100</ErrorCode> <!-- 100 = success; other codes = failure -->
            <Message/>              <!-- error message, if any -->
         </ServerWSResult>
      </ServerWSResponse>
   </soap:Body>
</soap:Envelope>

5.2. JSON Format

{
  "errorCode": 100,
  "message": ""
}

The same error codes and meanings apply in JSON responses.

Error Code

Enum

Description

100

SUCCESS

200

FAIL

Operation failed

201

NO_CPE

No CPE

201

USER_EXISTS

Username already exists

201

USER_NOT_EXISTS

Username does not exist

202

NO_DB

No database available

203

INCORRECT_REQUEST

Incorrect request

203

INCORRECT_REQUEST_STRUCTURE

Incorrect request structure or non-writable parameter

204

GENERAL

General error

205

NO_ACS

No ACS available

206

NO_CPE_NEW_SN

No CPE for new serial number

207

NO_CPE_CURR_SN

No CPE for current serial number

401

UNAUTHORISED

Wrong username or password

6. Validation

The API implements validation for request payloads:

  • Required Fields: Fields marked as required must be present

  • Field Formats: Fields must have the correct format (e.g., IP addresses, MAC addresses)

  • Enumerations: Fields with enumerated values must contain valid values

  • Range Constraints: Numeric fields must be within valid ranges

Validation errors return a 400 Bad Request status code with details about the validation failures.

7. Differences from Legacy .NET API

The Java Northbound API is a port of the legacy .NET Northbound API. Wherever practical, behavior is kept identical. In a small number of places the Java port intentionally diverges from the .NET reference to eliminate historical inconsistencies, clarify contracts, or simplify maintenance. This section documents those intentional differences so integrators relying on the legacy behavior can update their clients.

Governing principle. Port parity is the default, not an absolute rule:

  • Where the original behavior is reasonable, the Java port copies it exactly.

  • Where the original behavior contradicts logic, consistency, or sanity, the Java port keeps the saner behavior and documents the difference here.

The goal is a correct, maintainable API — not a bug-for-bug replica. Every entry below is an intentional, reviewed deviation, not an oversight.

Only Message text and HTTP status code semantics may differ. ErrorCode values remain identical to the .NET contract — clients that key off ErrorCode require no changes.

7.1. TransactionId Validation

Endpoints that accept TransactionId reject non-positive values (0 and negative numbers) with a uniform rule across both REST and SOAP transports.

Affected endpoints:

  • POST /api/Task/Pending/Transaction / SOAP FTGetCPEPendingTasksByTransaction

  • POST /api/Parameter/Transaction / SOAP FTGetDeviceParametersByTransID

  • POST /api/Transaction / SOAP FTGetTransactionStatus

Behavior:

  • TransactionId must be a positive integer (> 0).

  • Invalid values (0, negative numbers, or null where the field is required) are rejected before any database access.

  • Response carries the typed response body with default values (empty collections or zero counts), HTTP status 200, and the error fields set as below.

Table 1. Response fields for invalid TransactionId
Field Value

ErrorCode

203 (INCORRECT_REQUEST_STRUCTURE)

Message

TransactionId must be a positive number
Table 2. Message comparison: legacy .NET vs Java port
Endpoint Input .NET (REST / SOAP) Java (REST & SOAP)

Task/Pending/Transaction

-1 or 0

REST: TransactionId must be a positive number
SOAP: No pending task found

TransactionId must be a positive number

Parameter/Transaction

-1 or 0

REST: TransactionId must be a positive number
SOAP: TransactionId must be positive

TransactionId must be a positive number

Transaction

-1 or 0

REST: TransactionId must be a positive number
SOAP: Transid <value> doesn’t exist

TransactionId must be a positive number

Rationale: the .NET message variation is a historical artifact of the legacy codebase, not a documented contract. The Java port standardises on a single, unambiguous message while preserving the ErrorCode=203 contract that clients rely on. Related tickets: DEV-1714, DEV-1715, DEV-1717.

8. API Documentation

The API is fully documented using OpenAPI 3.0 (Swagger):

  • Swagger UI: Available at http://[server]/iot-webservice/swagger-ui/index.html

  • OpenAPI JSON: Available at http://[server]/iot-webservice/v3/api-docs

  • OpenAPI YAML: Available at http://[server]/iot-webservice/v3/api-docs.yaml

The OpenAPI documentation is generated automatically from annotations in the controller classes, ensuring that it’s always up-to-date with the actual implementation. The Swagger UI provides a user-friendly interface for exploring and testing the API.

9. External Integrations

The ACS integration flow follows this general pattern:

Diagram

9.1. ACS Client Configuration

The ACS client is configured in the application:

acs:
  url: ${ACS_URL}
  port: ${ACS_PORT}
  username: ${ACS_USERNAME}
  password: ${ACS_PASSWORD}

9.2. ACS Integration Endpoints

The application communicates with the Auto Configuration Server (ACS) system through SOAP API calls to manage and provision devices. The integration is implemented via the FtAcsApiClient class which encapsulates all ACS-related operations.

9.3. Device Management Endpoints

Operation Method Description

Create Device

createDevice()

Creates a new device in the ACS with specified manufacturer, model, OUI, protocol type, and serial number

Create Non-TR Device

createNonTRDevice()

Creates a non-TR-069 compliant device with custom configuration URL, login, and password

Clear Account Info

clearAccountInfo()

Clears the account information associated with a specified device serial number

Update User Info

updateUserInfo()

Updates detailed user information including custom fields, login credentials, geographic data, and contact details

Add Device To Blacklist

addDeviceToBlacklist()

Adds devices to a blacklist based on serial numbers, manufacturer, and model

Delete Device From Blacklist

deleteDeviceFromBlacklist()

Removes devices from a blacklist based on serial numbers, manufacturer, and model

9.4. Device Configuration Endpoints

Operation Method Description

Set Device Parameters

setDeviceParameters()

Sets or updates parameter values on devices with options for prioritization, grouping, and provisioning

Set Parameters Without Task

setDeviceParametersProvisionWithoutTask()

Sets device parameters without creating a task for immediate application

Get Parameter Data

getParameterDataListFromCPE()

Retrieves parameter data from devices with options to specify which aspects to fetch (names, values, attributes)

Add CPE Object

addCPEObject()

Creates a new object in the device’s data model with specified parameters

Delete CPE Object

deleteCPEObject()

Removes an object from the device’s data model

9.5. Device Operations Endpoints

Operation Method Description

Reboot CPE

rebootCPE()

Issues a reboot command to devices with options for prioritization and pushing

Reset CPE

resetCPE()

Issues a factory reset command to devices

Reprovision CPE

reprovisionCpe()

Triggers reprovisioning of devices with options for customizing what aspects to reprovision

Invoke RPC Method

invokeRPCMethod()

Invokes a custom RPC method on devices with specified content

Invoke RPC Without Task

invokeRPCMethodWithoutTask()

Invokes a custom RPC method without creating a task for immediate execution

Invoke Method

invokeMethod()

Invokes a system-defined method on devices with parameter values

Push Device

pushDevice()

Initiates a connection request to a device with specified timeout

9.6. File Management Endpoints

Operation Method Description

Download Files

downloadFiles()

Initiates file downloads to devices with options for authentication, delivery method, and post-download actions

Upload Files

uploadFiles()

Initiates file uploads from devices to a specified URL

Backup

backup()

Creates a device backup and uploads it to a specified location

Restore

restore()

Downloads and applies a backup to restore device configuration

9.7. Group Update Endpoints

Group Update orchestrates the same set of tasks across many devices grouped by manufacturer/model and selected by All, an existing Condition filter view, or Individual serial numbers. The endpoints are documented in detail (request/response fields, behavior, errors and examples) on a dedicated page: Group Update API.

Operation Path Description

Create Group Update

PUT /api/CreateGroupUpdate

Create a new group update campaign

Delete Group Update

PUT /api/DeleteGroupUpdate

Delete an existing group update campaign

Create Condition

PUT /api/CreateGroupUpdateCondition

Create a device filter condition for group updates

Delete Condition

PUT /api/DeleteGroupUpdateCondition

Delete a device filter condition

View Group Update List

POST /api/ViewGroupUpdateList

List all group update tasks

View Condition List

POST /api/ViewGroupConditionList

List predefined conditions

View Group Update Details

POST /api/ViewGroupUpdateDetails

Retrieve details of a specific group update

View Condition Details

POST /api/ViewGroupUpdateConditionDetails

Retrieve details of a specific condition

Activate Group Update

PUT /api/GroupUpdateActivate

Start execution of a group update

Pause Group Update

PUT /api/GroupUpdatePause

Pause an active group update

Stop Group Update

PUT /api/GroupUpdateStop

Stop a group update completely

9.8. Diagnostics Endpoints

Operation Method Description

Create Diagnostic

createDiagnostic()

Create a diagnostic session with input parameters and output parameter names to collect

9.9. Error Handling

ACS operations are wrapped in error handling that transforms exceptions into consistent API error responses with appropriate codes:

  • Success operations return transaction IDs where applicable

  • Errors are logged and wrapped in FtApiException with appropriate error codes

  • Connection issues to ACS result in NO_ACS error codes

10. Security Considerations

  • HTTPS: All API communications are encrypted using TLS

  • JWT Authentication: Ensures only authorized clients can access protected resources

  • Input Validation: All inputs are validated to prevent injection attacks