The `dataverse-auth` package provides on-behalf-of (OBO) authentication capabilities against Microsoft Dataverse environments, specifically designed for NodeJS applications. It facilitates the process of obtaining and securely storing access tokens locally, which can then be utilized by other applications, such as code generation tools (`dataverse-gen`) or API clients (`dataverse-ify`). The library primarily leverages OAuth 2.0 for its authentication flows, handling interactive logins. The current stable version on npm is 1.0.9. Despite this version being last published over five years ago, the author maintains related Dataverse ecosystem packages, suggesting a maintenance status for `1.x` while newer approaches or specific platform requirements (like for Apple Silicon, which mentions `dataverse-auth@2`) may exist outside of the npm `1.x` release line. Its key differentiator is simplifying the token management for Dataverse within Node.js applications, abstracting away some complexities of Microsoft Entra ID (formerly Azure AD) authentication flows.
npm install dataverse-authVerified import paths — ran on the pinned version, not inferred.
Demonstrates how to programmatically authenticate with Dataverse and retrieve an access token using the `dataverse-auth` library, handling various authentication types.
For Apple Silicon, check for official `dataverse-auth` v2 releases on npm or GitHub. Alternatively, consider running Node.js in Rosetta 2 compatibility mode, or explore alternative Dataverse authentication libraries that explicitly support Apple Silicon.
Ensure the application registration in Microsoft Entra ID is configured to support the required authentication flows (e.g., public client flows for interactive logins). For unattended scenarios, consider using Service Principals with client secrets or certificates, or Managed Identities, which are better suited for MFA-enabled environments. Consult Microsoft Entra ID and Dataverse documentation for best practices with MFA.
Ensure that your Microsoft Entra ID application registration is correctly configured for OAuth 2.0, and that your `dataverse-auth` calls explicitly use modern authentication types (e.g., `ClientSecret`, `DeviceCode`). Avoid hardcoding usernames and passwords if using deprecated flows; switch to service principals or managed identities where possible.
Ensure that the runtime environment for applications using `dataverse-auth` has appropriate security measures, including file system permissions that restrict access to stored tokens and, where applicable, disk encryption. Do not expose machines with stored tokens to untrusted networks or users. Consider token revocation policies for enhanced security.
For multi-tenant applications, ensure that a service principal for your application is registered in each target Microsoft Entra ID tenant. Implement proper tenant consent flows or switch to explicit service principal authentication (client credentials flow) for automated, cross-tenant operations. Refer to Microsoft Entra ID documentation on multi-tenant applications and service principals.
Review Microsoft Entra ID Conditional Access policies and Security Defaults. If interactive login is intended, ensure the application registration supports interactive flows and users complete MFA prompts. For non-interactive scenarios (e.g., backend services), switch to service principal (client credentials flow) or managed identity authentication instead of user-based flows.
Verify that the user account or application user (for service principals) used for authentication has been assigned the appropriate security roles and privileges within the Dataverse environment. This often requires an administrator to grant specific read/write/create/delete permissions on relevant tables.
If using a corporate proxy or self-signed certificates, configure Node.js to trust the necessary CA certificates by setting the `NODE_EXTRA_CA_CERTS` environment variable to the path of your CA certificate bundle. For example: `export NODE_EXTRA_CA_CERTS=/path/to/your/ca-certs.pem`.