implementing-scalekit-nextjs-auth

name	implementing-scalekit-nextjs-auth
description	Implements Scalekit authentication in a Next.js App Router project using the patterns from scalekit-inc/scalekit-nextjs-auth-example. Handles login, OAuth callback, session management, token refresh, logout, and permission-based access control using @scalekit-sdk/node. Use when adding auth routes, protecting pages, managing sessions, or checking permissions in a Next.js + Scalekit codebase.

Scalekit Auth — Next.js App Router

Reference repo: scalekit-inc/scalekit-nextjs-auth-example

Project structure

app/api/auth/
├── login/route.ts       # GET — generates auth URL + sets CSRF state
├── callback/route.ts    # GET — exchanges code, sets session cookie
├── logout/route.ts      # POST — clears session, returns Scalekit logout URL
├── refresh/route.ts     # POST — refreshes access token, updates session
└── validate/route.ts    # Token validation endpoint

lib/
├── scalekit.ts          # Singleton ScalekitClient + default scopes
├── cookies.ts           # Session read/write/clear + OAuth state helpers
└── auth.ts              # isAuthenticated(), getCurrentUser(), hasPermission()

Environment variables

SCALEKIT_ENV_URL=https://your-env.scalekit.io
SCALEKIT_CLIENT_ID=your-client-id
SCALEKIT_CLIENT_SECRET=your-client-secret
SCALEKIT_REDIRECT_URI=http://localhost:3000/auth/callback
NEXT_PUBLIC_APP_URL=http://localhost:3000
SCALEKIT_SCOPES=openid profile email offline_access  # optional, space-separated

SCALEKIT_REDIRECT_URI must exactly match the allowed callback URL in the Scalekit dashboard.

SDK client (lib/scalekit.ts)

Singleton pattern — always use getScalekitClient(), never instantiate directly. Throws if env vars are missing.

import { getScalekitClient, getDefaultScopes } from '@/lib/scalekit';

const client = getScalekitClient();

Session shape (lib/cookies.ts)

Session stored as JSON in a single scalekit_session HttpOnly cookie:

interface SessionData {
  user: { sub, email, name, given_name, family_name, preferred_username };
  tokens: { access_token, refresh_token, id_token, expires_at, expires_in };
  roles?: string[];
  permissions?: string[];
}

Key helpers:

• getSession() — returns SessionData | null
• setSession(data) — writes HttpOnly cookie; expires = token expires_at
• clearSession() — deletes cookie (call on logout)
• isTokenExpired(session) — returns true if token expires within 5 minutes
• getOAuthState() / setOAuthState(state) — CSRF state cookie, 10-min TTL
• Cookie config: httpOnly: true, secure in production, sameSite: 'lax', path: '/'

Auth flow

Login (app/api/auth/login/route.ts — GET)

const state = crypto.randomBytes(32).toString('base64url');
await setOAuthState(state);
const authUrl = client.getAuthorizationUrl(redirectUri, { state, scopes: getDefaultScopes() });
return NextResponse.json({ authUrl });

Callback (app/api/auth/callback/route.ts — GET)

1. Validate state param against stored oauth_state cookie → redirect to /error on mismatch
2. clearOAuthState()
3. client.authenticateWithCode(code, redirectUri) → authResponse
4. client.validateToken(authResponse.accessToken) → extract roles, permissions
   • Permission claims checked in order: permissions → https://scalekit.com/permissions → scalekit:permissions
5. Name resolution priority: user.name → claims.name → givenName + familyName → email → preferred_username → 'User'
6. setSession({ user, tokens, roles, permissions })
7. Redirect to /dashboard

Logout (app/api/auth/logout/route.ts — POST)

const logoutUrl = client.getLogoutUrl({
  idTokenHint: session.tokens.id_token,
  postLogoutRedirectUri: process.env.NEXT_PUBLIC_APP_URL,
});
await clearSession();
return NextResponse.json({ logoutUrl });
// Client receives logoutUrl and redirects

Token refresh (app/api/auth/refresh/route.ts — POST)

const refreshResponse = await client.refreshAccessToken(session.tokens.refresh_token);
// Decode exp from JWT using jose.decodeJwt(); fallback to 3600s if missing
await setSession({ ...session, tokens: { ...session.tokens, access_token, refresh_token, expires_at, expires_in } });

Auth utilities (lib/auth.ts)

isAuthenticated()          // → boolean (session exists)
getCurrentUser()           // → session.user | null
getAccessToken()           // → access_token string | null
hasPermission('read:data') // → validates token, checks permission claim

Protecting routes

For Server Components, call auth helpers directly:

import { isAuthenticated, getCurrentUser } from '@/lib/auth';
import { redirect } from 'next/navigation';

const authenticated = await isAuthenticated();
if (!authenticated) redirect('/login');
const user = await getCurrentUser();

For permission-gated pages:

import { hasPermission } from '@/lib/auth';
const allowed = await hasPermission('org:admin');
if (!allowed) redirect('/permission-denied');

Route map

Route	Auth required
/	No
/login	No
/auth/callback	No
/dashboard	Yes
/sessions	Yes
/organization/settings	Yes + permission
/permission-denied	No
/error	No

Dependencies

npm install @scalekit-sdk/node jose date-fns js-cookie

Tactics

Edge middleware for route protection

Add middleware.ts at the project root to enforce auth before any Server Component renders:

// middleware.ts
import { NextResponse } from 'next/server'
import type { NextRequest } from 'next/server'

const PROTECTED_PATHS = ['/dashboard', '/sessions', '/organization']

export function middleware(request: NextRequest) {
  const session = request.cookies.get('scalekit_session')
  const isProtected = PROTECTED_PATHS.some(p => request.nextUrl.pathname.startsWith(p))
  if (isProtected && !session) {
    const loginUrl = new URL('/login', request.url)
    loginUrl.searchParams.set('next', request.nextUrl.pathname)
    return NextResponse.redirect(loginUrl)
  }
  return NextResponse.next()
}

export  config = {
  : [],
}

Server Components should still call isAuthenticated() as a second layer.

Triggering login from a Client Component

/api/auth/login returns { authUrl } — never navigate there with router.push. OAuth requires a full page navigation:

const { authUrl } = await fetch('/api/auth/login').then(r => r.json())
window.location.href = authUrl  // full navigation, not client-side route change

OIDC logout from the client

Logout returns { logoutUrl } — the client must navigate to it:

const { logoutUrl } = await fetch('/api/auth/logout', { method: 'POST' }).then(r => r.json())
window.location.href = logoutUrl  // navigates to Scalekit end-session endpoint

Local session is already cleared; this step revokes the IdP session so the user isn't silently re-authenticated on next login.

Deep link preservation

In the login page, read ?next from search params and carry it through the state:

// app/login/page.tsx
const next = searchParams.get('next') || '/dashboard'
// Pass next to /api/auth/login as a query param, store in session before redirect
// In /api/auth/callback: redirect to stored next URL after setSession()

Validate next on the server: only allow relative paths (/...) to prevent open redirect.

SameSite=Lax — never Strict

The scalekit_session and oauth_state cookies must use sameSite: 'lax'. The OAuth callback is a cross-site redirect from Scalekit back to your app — 'strict' drops the cookie on that redirect, causing a CSRF state mismatch error every time.

Cache-Control: no-store on protected pages

Without this, the browser back button after logout serves a cached authenticated page:

// In a protected route handler or layout
export const dynamic = 'force-dynamic'

// Or explicitly in a route handler:
return new Response(html, {
  headers: { 'Cache-Control': 'no-store' },
})

Token refresh race condition across tabs

Multiple browser tabs can simultaneously trigger token refresh with the same refresh token — most IdPs reject the second attempt. Mitigation: set a short-lived refresh_in_progress flag in the session before calling the refresh endpoint, and check it at the start of the refresh route to skip concurrent calls.