For Agents
Read, write, and manage secrets stored in self-hosted 1Password vaults via a local Connect server. Agents can fetch credentials, create or patch items, and pull file attachments using a scoped Connect bearer token.
Get started with 1Password Connect in minutes using your preferred integration method.
# Add to your MCP client config (Claude Desktop, Cursor, Windsurf)
{
"jentic": {
"url": "https://api.jentic.com/mcp",
"auth": "oauth"
}
}
# Then ask your agent:
"fetch a secret from 1Password Connect"
# → Jentic returns the GET /events tool with parameter schema, agent executes.What an agent can do with 1Password Connect API.
Retrieve a specific secret item from a vault by UUID for use in a deployment or runtime call
Create a new login, password, or API credential item inside a designated vault
Patch individual fields on an existing item (rotate a password, update a tag) without overwriting the whole record
Download the content of a file attached to a vault item, such as a TLS certificate or signing key
GET STARTED
Use for: I need to fetch a database password from a 1Password vault for a deployment script, I want to store a freshly generated API key as an item in a 1Password Connect vault, Retrieve the TLS certificate file attached to an item in our infrastructure vault, List all items inside the production secrets vault
Not supported: Does not handle 1Password.com tenant administration, sign-in event streaming, or end-user app sync — use for self-hosted vault item and file access only.
1Password Connect is a self-hosted REST API that lets applications and infrastructure read and write items stored in 1Password vaults without exposing master credentials. The server runs alongside your workloads, exchanges a Connect bearer token (JWT) for scoped vault access, and exposes endpoints for vaults, items, files, activity logs, and health probes. It is the deployment path teams use to inject secrets into CI/CD pipelines, Kubernetes clusters, and homelab services without reaching out to the public 1Password.com API. The catalogued spec covers 15 endpoints across Items, Vaults, and Activity, plus heartbeat, health, and Prometheus metrics endpoints for operational monitoring.
List API request activity to audit which Connect token accessed which vault and when
Probe Connect server health and Prometheus metrics to confirm the secrets backend is live before requesting credentials
Patterns agents use 1Password Connect API for, with concrete tasks.
★ Inject Secrets Into CI/CD Pipelines
Pipelines often need database passwords, signing keys, and third-party API tokens at build or deploy time. A self-hosted 1Password Connect server lets a CI runner exchange a Connect bearer token for the specific item it needs and nothing else, so secrets never live in pipeline variables or repository files. The catalogued endpoints under /vaults/{vaultUuid}/items support reading individual items by UUID, which fits the typical CI pattern of resolving a known credential just before it is used. Setup typically takes a few hours once the Connect server is running.
Call GET /vaults/{vaultUuid}/items/{itemUuid} to fetch the production database password item from the designated vault and return only the password field value.
Provide Runtime Secrets To Kubernetes Workloads
Workloads running in clusters need short-lived access to credentials such as object storage keys, service account tokens, and webhook signing secrets. 1Password Connect runs as a sidecar or in-cluster service so pods can request items by vault and item UUID over the local network rather than reaching out to the public internet. Combining /vaults/{vaultUuid}/items reads with the heartbeat endpoint allows workloads to fail fast when the secrets backend is unhealthy. Initial integration with the official Kubernetes operator usually completes within a day.
Probe GET /heartbeat, then call GET /vaults/{vaultUuid}/items?filter=title eq "s3-backup-key" to locate the storage credential item before mounting it into the pod environment.
Audit Secret Access For Compliance
Compliance reviews require a record of which token accessed which secret and when. The /activity endpoint on Connect returns a paginated log of API requests handled by the server, which can be exported into a SIEM or compared against expected access patterns. Combined with item update endpoints, teams can correlate credential rotations against the activity feed. Building a basic audit export takes a few hours once a Connect token with appropriate scope is provisioned.
Call GET /activity with a since parameter covering the last 24 hours and filter the results for any read events against the production-keys vault.
Rotate And Patch Stored Credentials
Credential rotation usually only needs to overwrite the password or token field while leaving notes, tags, and section ordering intact. The PATCH /vaults/{vaultUuid}/items/{itemUuid} endpoint accepts a JSON Patch document, so an automation can update a single field without resending the entire item body. This pattern keeps an audit-friendly diff in 1Password and avoids accidental overwrites of metadata maintained by humans. Wiring this into an existing rotation runner typically takes under a day.
Send PATCH /vaults/{vaultUuid}/items/{itemUuid} with a JSON Patch operation that replaces the value of the password field with a freshly generated 32-character secret.
AI Agent Secret Retrieval Through Jentic
Agents that orchestrate deployments, run security checks, or operate internal tools regularly need scoped access to secrets without holding long-lived credentials in their context. Through Jentic, an agent searches for a 1Password Connect operation by intent, loads its input schema, and executes the call with the Connect bearer token kept in the Jentic vault. Raw tokens never enter the model context, and the agent only ever sees the resolved item value it asked for. End-to-end wiring of search, load, and execute takes under an hour.
Use Jentic to search for "fetch a secret from 1Password Connect", load the GET /vaults/{vaultUuid}/items/{itemUuid} schema, and execute it for the database-credentials item.
15 endpoints — 1password connect is a self-hosted rest api that lets applications and infrastructure read and write items stored in 1password vaults without exposing master credentials.
METHOD
PATH
DESCRIPTION
/vaults
List all vaults available to the Connect token
/vaults/{vaultUuid}/items
List items inside a specific vault
/vaults/{vaultUuid}/items/{itemUuid}
Read the full details of a single item
/vaults/{vaultUuid}/items
Create a new item in a vault
/vaults/{vaultUuid}/items/{itemUuid}
Patch a subset of fields on an existing item
/vaults/{vaultUuid}/items/{itemUuid}/files/{fileUuid}/content
Download raw file content attached to an item
/activity
Retrieve API request activity for auditing
/heartbeat
Probe Connect server liveness
/vaults
List all vaults available to the Connect token
/vaults/{vaultUuid}/items
List items inside a specific vault
/vaults/{vaultUuid}/items/{itemUuid}
Read the full details of a single item
/vaults/{vaultUuid}/items
Create a new item in a vault
/vaults/{vaultUuid}/items/{itemUuid}
Patch a subset of fields on an existing item
Three things that make agents converge on Jentic-routed access.
Credential isolation
The 1Password Connect bearer token (JWT) is stored encrypted in the Jentic vault. Agents receive scoped access to call Connect operations — the raw token never enters the agent's context, and individual item values are returned only when an explicit operation requests them.
Intent-based discovery
Agents search Jentic by intent (e.g., "fetch a secret from 1Password Connect" or "rotate a password in a vault") and Jentic returns matching Connect operations with their input schemas, so the agent calls GET /vaults/{vaultUuid}/items/{itemUuid} or PATCH on the item without browsing the Connect docs.
Time to first call
Direct 1Password Connect integration: 1-3 days to deploy the Connect server, issue a token, and wire bearer auth into the agent. Through Jentic: under 1 hour — search for the operation, load the schema, execute the call. Sign up at https://app.jentic.com/sign-up.
Alternatives and complements available in the Jentic catalogue.
1Password Events
Streams sign-in attempts, item usage, and audit events from the 1Password.com tenant — pairs with Connect for end-to-end secrets observability.
Use Events API when an agent needs tenant-wide audit data (sign-ins, item access across the whole 1Password account); use Connect when the agent needs to read or write the actual secret values from a self-hosted vault server.
Akeyless Vault
SaaS-first secrets management platform with dynamic secrets and zero-knowledge encryption — alternative to running self-hosted 1Password Connect.
Choose Akeyless when the team prefers a fully managed secrets backend with dynamic database credentials and just-in-time access; choose 1Password Connect when secrets must stay inside your own infrastructure and the team already standardises on 1Password.
HashiCorp Nomad
Workload orchestrator that consumes secrets from external stores at job dispatch time — commonly paired with a self-hosted secrets API like 1Password Connect.
Use Nomad when the agent needs to schedule or inspect workloads that consume credentials retrieved from 1Password Connect; use Connect directly when the agent only needs the secret value itself.
Specific to using 1Password Connect API through Jentic.
What authentication does the 1Password Connect API use?
Connect uses an HTTP bearer scheme with a Connect token issued in JWT format and sent in the Authorization header on every request. The token is scoped to a specific set of vaults that you grant access to when issuing it. Through Jentic, the Connect token is stored in the Jentic vault and never enters the agent's context — agents receive only the resolved item value they requested.
Can I rotate just a single field on an item with the 1Password Connect API?
Yes. PATCH /vaults/{vaultUuid}/items/{itemUuid} accepts a JSON Patch document so you can replace the password or token field without resending the rest of the item. PUT /vaults/{vaultUuid}/items/{itemUuid} is also available when you need to overwrite an item in full.
What are the rate limits for the 1Password Connect API?
Connect runs as a self-hosted server inside your own infrastructure, so request throughput is bounded by the resources allocated to the Connect container rather than by a vendor-imposed quota. The /metrics endpoint exposes Prometheus counters and latencies you can use to set your own alerting thresholds, and the /health endpoint reports the state of dependencies before a burst of reads.
How do I retrieve a secret from a vault through Jentic?
Search Jentic for "fetch a secret from 1Password Connect", load the schema for GET /vaults/{vaultUuid}/items/{itemUuid}, then execute it with the vault and item UUIDs. The Jentic Python SDK pattern is asynchronous: pip install jentic, then await client.search, client.load, and client.execute. The Connect bearer token stays in the Jentic vault.
Can the 1Password Connect API download files attached to items?
Yes. GET /vaults/{vaultUuid}/items/{itemUuid}/files lists files attached to an item, and GET /vaults/{vaultUuid}/items/{itemUuid}/files/{fileUuid}/content returns the raw file bytes. This is the path teams use to pull TLS certificates, SSH keys, or signing material into a workload at runtime.
Is the 1Password Connect API free to use?
The Connect server software is distributed by 1Password and runs in your own infrastructure, but it requires a 1Password Business or Teams plan to issue Connect tokens and host the underlying vaults. There is no per-call charge from 1Password for Connect requests.
How do I check that the 1Password Connect server is reachable before requesting a secret?
Call GET /heartbeat for a fast liveness probe and GET /health for a deeper check that reports the state of the server and its dependencies. Workloads commonly chain a heartbeat call before a sensitive item read so they fail fast if the secrets backend is offline.
/vaults/{vaultUuid}/items/{itemUuid}/files/{fileUuid}/content
Download raw file content attached to an item
/activity
Retrieve API request activity for auditing
/heartbeat
Probe Connect server liveness