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XRPC API

XRPC is the HTTP-based RPC protocol used by the atproto. HappyView dynamically registers XRPC endpoints based on your uploaded lexicons: query lexicons become GET /xrpc/{nsid} routes, procedure lexicons become POST /xrpc/{nsid} routes.

If a query or procedure lexicon has a Lua script attached, the script handles the request. Otherwise, HappyView uses built-in default behavior (described below).

Auth

  • Queries (GET /xrpc/{method}): unauthenticated
  • Procedures (POST /xrpc/{method}): require DPoP authentication (Authorization: DPoP + DPoP proof header + X-Client-Key)
  • getProfile: requires auth
  • uploadBlob: requires auth

Fixed endpoints

These endpoints are always available regardless of which lexicons are loaded.

Health check

GET /health
curl http://localhost:3000/health

Response: 200 OK with body ok

Get profile

GET /xrpc/app.bsky.actor.getProfile

Returns the authenticated user's profile, resolved from their PDS via PLC directory lookup.

curl http://localhost:3000/xrpc/app.bsky.actor.getProfile \
-H "X-Client-Key: $CLIENT_KEY" \
-H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN"

Response: 200 OK

{
"did": "did:plc:abc123",
"handle": "user.bsky.social",
"displayName": "User Name",
"description": "Bio text",
"avatarURL": "https://pds.example.com/xrpc/com.atproto.sync.getBlob?did=did:plc:abc123&cid=bafyabc"
}

Upload blob

POST /xrpc/com.atproto.repo.uploadBlob

Proxies a blob upload to the authenticated user's PDS. Maximum size: 50MB.

curl -X POST http://localhost:3000/xrpc/com.atproto.repo.uploadBlob \
-H "X-Client-Key: $CLIENT_KEY" \
-H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" \
-H "Content-Type: image/png" \
--data-binary @image.png

Response: proxied from the user's PDS.

Dynamic query endpoints

Query endpoints are generated from lexicons with type: "query". Without a Lua script, they support two built-in modes depending on whether a uri parameter is provided.

Single record

GET /xrpc/{method}?uri={at-uri}
curl "http://localhost:3000/xrpc/xyz.statusphere.listStatuses?uri=at%3A%2F%2Fdid%3Aplc%3Aabc%2Fxyz.statusphere.status%2Fabc123" \
-H "X-Client-Key: $CLIENT_KEY"

Response: 200 OK

{
"record": {
"uri": "at://did:plc:abc/xyz.statusphere.status/abc123",
"$type": "xyz.statusphere.status",
"status": "\ud83d\ude0a",
"createdAt": "2025-01-01T12:00:00Z"
}
}

Media blobs are automatically enriched with a url field pointing to the user's PDS.

List records

GET /xrpc/{method}?limit=20&cursor=<opaque>&did=optional
ParamTypeDefaultDescription
limitinteger20Max records to return (max 100)
cursorstring---Opaque pagination cursor from a previous response
didstring---Filter records by DID
curl "http://localhost:3000/xrpc/xyz.statusphere.listStatuses?limit=10&did=did:plc:abc" \
-H "X-Client-Key: $CLIENT_KEY"

Response: 200 OK

{
"records": [
{
"uri": "at://did:plc:abc/xyz.statusphere.status/abc123",
"status": "\ud83d\ude0a",
"createdAt": "2025-01-01T12:00:00Z"
}
],
"cursor": "MjAyNS0wMS0wMVQxMjowMDowMFp8YXQ6Ly9kaWQ6..."
}

The cursor field is an opaque string present only when more records exist. Pass it back as-is to fetch the next page.

Dynamic procedure endpoints

Procedure endpoints are generated from lexicons with type: "procedure". Without a Lua script, HappyView auto-detects create vs update based on whether the request body contains a uri field.

Create a record

POST /xrpc/{method}

When the body does not contain a uri field, a new record is created.

curl -X POST http://localhost:3000/xrpc/xyz.statusphere.setStatus \
-H "X-Client-Key: $CLIENT_KEY" \
-H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d '{ "status": "\ud83d\ude0a", "createdAt": "2025-01-01T12:00:00Z" }'

HappyView proxies this to the user's PDS as com.atproto.repo.createRecord, then indexes the created record locally.

Update a record

When the body contains a uri field, the existing record is updated.

curl -X POST http://localhost:3000/xrpc/xyz.statusphere.setStatus \
-H "X-Client-Key: $CLIENT_KEY" \
-H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d '{
"uri": "at://did:plc:abc/xyz.statusphere.status/abc123",
"status": "\ud83c\udf1f",
"createdAt": "2025-01-01T13:00:00Z"
}'

HappyView proxies this to the user's PDS as com.atproto.repo.putRecord, then upserts the record locally.

Response for both: proxied from the user's PDS.

Errors

All error responses return JSON with an error field:

{
"error": "description of what went wrong"
}
StatusMeaningCommon causes
400 Bad RequestInvalid inputMissing required fields, malformed JSON, invalid AT URI
401 UnauthorizedAuthentication failedMissing or invalid client identification or DPoP authentication
404 Not FoundMethod or record not foundXRPC method has no matching lexicon, or the requested record doesn't exist
500 Internal Server ErrorServer-side failureLua script error, database error, or upstream PDS failure

Lua script errors

When a Lua script fails, the response is 500 with one of:

  • {"error": "script execution failed"}: syntax error, runtime error, or missing handle() function
  • {"error": "script exceeded execution time limit"}: the script hit the 1,000,000 instruction limit

The full error details are logged server-side but not exposed to the client. See Lua Scripting - Debugging for how to diagnose script issues.

PDS errors

When a procedure proxies a write to the user's PDS and the PDS returns an error, HappyView forwards the PDS response status code and body directly to the client.

Next steps

  • Lua Scripting: Override the default query and procedure behavior with custom logic
  • Lexicons: Understand how lexicons generate these endpoints
  • Admin API: Manage lexicons and monitor your instance