posthog-install-auth

name	posthog-install-auth
description	Install and configure PostHog SDKs with authentication. Use when setting up posthog-js (browser), posthog-node (server), or configuring API keys for a new PostHog integration. Trigger: "install posthog", "setup posthog", "posthog auth", "configure posthog API key", "posthog init".
allowed-tools	Read, Write, Edit, Bash(npm:*), Bash(pip:*), Grep
version	1.12.0
license	MIT
author	Jeremy Longshore <[e-mail]>
tags	["saas","posthog","api","authentication"]
compatibility	Designed for Claude Code, also compatible with Codex and OpenClaw

PostHog Install & Auth

Overview

Install PostHog SDKs and configure authentication. PostHog uses two key types: Project API Key (phc_...) for event capture (public, safe for frontend) and Personal API Key (phx_...) for private API endpoints (never expose to clients).

Prerequisites

• Node.js 20+ or Python 3.10+
• PostHog account at app.posthog.com
• Project API key from Project Settings > Project API Key
• Personal API key from Settings > Personal API Keys (for server-side admin)

Instructions

Step 1: Install the SDK

set -euo pipefail
# Browser SDK (posthog-js)
npm install posthog-js

# Node.js server SDK (posthog-node)
npm install posthog-node

# Python SDK
pip install posthog

Step 2: Configure Environment Variables

# .env (add to .gitignore — never commit)
NEXT_PUBLIC_POSTHOG_KEY=phc_your_project_api_key    # Safe for frontend
POSTHOG_HOST=https://us.i.posthog.com               # US Cloud (or eu.i.posthog.com)
POSTHOG_PERSONAL_API_KEY=phx_your_personal_key      # Server-only, never expose
POSTHOG_PROJECT_ID=12345                             # From project URL

Step 3: Initialize Browser SDK (posthog-js)

// lib/posthog.ts
import posthog from 'posthog-js';

export function initPostHog() {
  if (typeof window === 'undefined') return;

  posthog.init(process.env.NEXT_PUBLIC_POSTHOG_KEY!, {
    api_host: process.env. || ,
    : ,        
    : ,       
    : ,             
    : ,
    :  {
       (process.. === ) {
        ph.();  
      }
    },
  });
}