---
title: "Configure a Connector Proxy — Spiff Arena 0.1 documentation"
description: "Once a Connector Proxy has been deployed, to integrate it with Spiff Arena, we simply need to update an environment variable and restart the backend. If you’re using the Getting Started Guide , open the…"
source_url: https://spiff.works/docs/spiff-arena/how_to_guides/deployment/configure_a_connector_proxy.html
---

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# Configure a Connector Proxy[](#configure-a-connector-proxy "Link to this heading")

## Setting the Environment Variable[](#setting-the-environment-variable "Link to this heading")

Once a `Connector Proxy` has been deployed, to integrate it with Spiff Arena, we simply need to update an environment variable and restart the backend.
If you’re using the [Getting Started Guide](https://www.spiffworkflow.org/posts/articles/get_started/), open the docker-compose.yml file; otherwise, edit the environment variable in the way that is appropriate for your deployment.
The variable we need to change is called `SPIFFWORKFLOW_BACKEND_CONNECTOR_PROXY_URL`.

Here’s an example diff using the function URL from the AWS tutorial:

```
diff --git a/docker-compose.yml b/docker-compose.yml
index 95b87b39..7d55c492 100644
--- a/docker-compose.yml
+++ b/docker-compose.yml
@@ -26,7 +26,7 @@ services:
       SPIFFWORKFLOW_BACKEND_URL: "http://localhost:${SPIFF_BACKEND_PORT:-8000}"

       SPIFFWORKFLOW_BACKEND_BPMN_SPEC_ABSOLUTE_DIR: "/app/process_models"
-      SPIFFWORKFLOW_BACKEND_CONNECTOR_PROXY_URL: "http://spiffworkflow-connector:8004"
+      SPIFFWORKFLOW_BACKEND_CONNECTOR_PROXY_URL: "https://crbxgaopinfxqscntkqixjbl4e0gigpm.lambda-url.us-east-1.on.aws"
       SPIFFWORKFLOW_BACKEND_DATABASE_URI: "mysql+mysqlconnector://root:${SPIFF_MYSQL_PASS:-my-secret-pw}@spiffworkflow-db:${SPIFF_MYSQL_PORT:-8003}/spiffworkflow_backend_development"
       SPIFFWORKFLOW_BACKEND_LOAD_FIXTURE_DATA: "false"
       SPIFFWORKFLOW_BACKEND_OPEN_ID_CLIENT_ID: "spiffworkflow-backend"
```

To restart:

```
docker compose down
docker compose up -d
```

## Securing the Connector Proxy with an API Key[](#securing-the-connector-proxy-with-an-api-key "Link to this heading")

If your Connector Proxy is publicly accessible (for example, deployed as an AWS Lambda function with a public URL), you can restrict access to it using an API key.
When configured, Spiff Arena’s backend will include a `Spiff-Connector-Proxy-Api-Key` header on every request it sends to the proxy.
Your connector proxy can then validate this header and reject requests that don’t include the correct key.

Set the API key using the `SPIFFWORKFLOW_BACKEND_CONNECTOR_PROXY_API_KEY` environment variable:

```
SPIFFWORKFLOW_BACKEND_CONNECTOR_PROXY_API_KEY: "your-secret-api-key"
```

When this variable is set, all requests from the Spiff Arena backend to the connector proxy (command discovery, authentication listing, and command execution) will include:

```
Spiff-Connector-Proxy-Api-Key: your-secret-api-key
```

If the variable is not set, no API key header is sent and access is unrestricted (suitable for connector proxies on private networks).

See [Connector Proxy](../../explanation/dev/connector_proxy.html) for details on how to validate this header in your own connector proxy implementation.

## Testing[](#testing "Link to this heading")

Create a new process model as described in the [Getting Started Guide](https://www.spiffworkflow.org/posts/articles/get_started/).
Add a `Service Task` and in its properties panel, you will see a dropdown from which you can select the connector in your `Connector Proxy` to call.
In this demo, we deployed HTTP GET and POST connectors:

![Screenshot from 2023-04-06 16-38-02](https://user-images.githubusercontent.com/100367399/230489492-63cf88bf-7533-4160-95cb-d6194506dd5d.png)

Choose the `http/GetRequest` operator ID and enter a publicly available test URL such as `https://httpbin.org/json`, or another API endpoint that you control.
Remember to quote it since parameters are evaluated as Python expressions.

![Screenshot from 2023-04-06 16-50-42](https://user-images.githubusercontent.com/100367399/230491661-abdfdd3a-48f5-4f50-b6e5-9e3a5f562961.png)

Run the process and once it’s complete, you can see the response in the workflow:

![Screenshot from 2023-04-06 16-49-53](https://user-images.githubusercontent.com/100367399/230491713-9d3f9bd0-f284-4004-b00c-cb6dc94b53df.png)

You have successfully configured a `Connector Proxy` for use with `Spiff Arena`.
You made a call from a workflow to an external HTTP API.
Now, imagine if that call was to communicate with an external system relevant to your business processes.