DescopeKit is the Descope SDK for Swift. It provides convenient access to the Descope user management and authentication APIs for applications written in Swift. You can read more on the Descope Website.
Add the DescopeKit package using the Swift package manager.
The SDK supports iOS 13 and above, and macOS 12 and above.
A Descope Project ID is required to initialize the SDK. Find it
on the project page in
the Descope Console.
import DescopeKit
func application(_ application: UIApplication, didFinishLaunchingWithOptions launchOptions: [UIApplication.LaunchOptionsKey: Any]?) -> Bool {
Descope.setup(projectId: "<Your-Project-Id>")
return true
}You can authenticate a user in your application by starting one of the authentication methods. For example, let's use OTP via email:
// sends an OTP code to the given email address
try await Descope.otp.signUp(with: .email, loginId: "andy@example.com", details: nil)We finish the authentication by verifying the OTP code the user entered:
// if the user entered the right code the authentication is successful
let authResponse = try await Descope.otp.verify(with: .email, loginId: "andy@example.com", code: code)
// we create a DescopeSession object that represents an authenticated user session
let session = DescopeSession(from: authResponse)
// the session manager takes care of saving the session to the keychain and
// refreshing it for us as needed
Descope.sessionManager.manageSession(session)The session manager will automatically load the session from the keychain the next time the application is launched. At that point we might check if there's a logged in user to decide which screen to show:
func initialViewController() -> UIViewController {
// check if we have a valid session from a previous launch and that it hasn't expired yet
if let session = Descope.sessionManager.session, !session.refreshToken.isExpired {
print("Authenticated user found: \(session.user)")
return MainViewController()
}
return LoginViewController()
}We use the active session to authenticate an outgoing API request to the application's backend:
var request = URLRequest(url: url)
try await request.setAuthorizationHTTPHeaderField(from: Descope.sessionManager)
let (data, response) = try await URLSession.shared.data(for: request)The DescopeSessionManager class is used to manage an authenticated
user session for an application.
The session manager takes care of loading and saving the session as well
as ensuring that it's refreshed when needed. For the default instances of
the DescopeSessionManager class this means using the keychain for secure
storage of the session and refreshing it a short while before it expires.
Once the user completes a sign in flow successfully you should set the
DescopeSession object as the active session of the session manager.
let authResponse = try await Descope.otp.verify(with: .email, loginId: "andy@example.com", code: "123456")
let session = DescopeSession(from: authResponse)
Descope.sessionManager.manageSession(session)The session manager can then be used at any time to ensure the session is valid and to authenticate outgoing requests to your backend with a bearer token authorization header.
var request = URLRequest(url: url)
try await request.setAuthorizationHTTPHeaderField(from: Descope.sessionManager)
let (data, response) = try await URLSession.shared.data(for: request)If your backend uses a different authorization mechanism you can of course
use the session JWT directly instead of the extension function. You can either
add another extension function on URLRequest such as the one above, or you
can do the following.
try await Descope.sessionManager.refreshSessionIfNeeded()
guard let sessionJwt = Descope.sessionManager.session?.sessionJwt else { throw ServerError.unauthorized }
request.setValue(sessionJwt, forHTTPHeaderField: "X-Auth-Token")When the application is relaunched the DescopeSessionManager loads any
existing session automatically, so you can check straight away if there's
an authenticated user.
func application(_ application: UIApplication, didFinishLaunchingWithOptions launchOptions: [UIApplication.LaunchOptionsKey: Any]?) -> Bool {
Descope.setup(projectId: "...")
if let session = Descope.sessionManager.session {
print("User is logged in: \(session)")
}
return true
}When the user wants to sign out of the application we revoke the active session and clear it from the session manager:
guard let refreshJwt = Descope.sessionManager.session?.refreshJwt else { return }
try await Descope.auth.revokeSessions(.currentSession, refreshJwt: refreshJwt)
Descope.sessionManager.clearSession()You can customize how the DescopeSessionManager behaves by using
your own storage and lifecycle objects. See the documentation
for more details.
We can authenticate users by building and running Flows. Flows are built in the Descope flow editor. The editor allows you to easily define both the behavior and the UI that take the user through their authentication journey. Read more about it in the Descope getting started guide.
Before we can run a flow, it must first be defined and hosted. Every project comes with a set of predefined flows out of the box. You can customize your flows to suit your needs and host them somewhere on the web. Follow the getting started guide for more details.
If your flows use Magic Link authentication, the user will need to be routed back to the app when they tap on the link in the authentication email message. If you don't intend to use Magic Link authentication you can skip this step. Otherwise, see Apple's universal links guide to learn more.
When your application delegate is notified about a universal link being triggered, you'll
need to provide it to the flow so it can continue with the authentication. See the documentation
for Descope.handleURL for more details.
func application(_ application: UIApplication, continue userActivity: NSUserActivity, restorationHandler: @escaping ([UIUserActivityRestoring]?) -> Void) -> Bool {
guard userActivity.activityType == NSUserActivityTypeBrowsingWeb, let url = userActivity.webpageURL else { return false }
let handled = Descope.handleURL(url)
return handled
}You can use either a DescopeFlowViewController or a DescopeFlowView to run a flow.
The former provides a ready made component to present a flow modally with a few lines
of code, while the latter can be used to show the flow however you want in your view
hierarchy. See the documentation for both classes for more details.
func showLoginScreen() {
let flow = DescopeFlow(url: "https://example.com/myflow")
let flowViewController = DescopeFlowViewController()
flowViewController.delegate = self
flowViewController.start(flow: flow)
navigationController?.pushViewController(flowViewController, animated: true)
}
func flowViewControllerDidFinish(_ controller: DescopeFlowViewController, response: AuthenticationResponse) {
let session = DescopeSession(from: response)
Descope.sessionManager.manageSession(session)
showMainScreen()
}You can use hooks to customize how the flow page looks or behaves when running as a native flow. For example, these hooks will override the flow page to have a transparent background and set a margin on the body element.
let flow = DescopeFlow(url: "https://example.com/myflow")
flow.hooks = [
.setTransparentBody,
.addStyles(selector: "body", rules: ["margin: 16px"]),
]See the documentation for DescopeFlowHook for more examples on using hooks and how
to create your own.
Here are some examples for how to authenticate users:
Send a user a one-time password (OTP) using your preferred delivery method (email / SMS). An email address or phone number must be provided accordingly.
The user can either sign up, sign in or sign up or in
// Every user must have a loginId. All other user details are optional:
try await Descope.otp.signUp(with: .email, loginId: "andy@example.com", details: SignUpDetails(
name: "Andy Rhoads"
))The user will receive a code using the selected delivery method. Verify that code using:
let authResponse = try await Descope.otp.verify(with: .email, loginId: "andy@example.com", code: "123456")
let session = DescopeSession(from: authResponse)
Descope.sessionManager.manageSession(session)Send a user a Magic Link using your preferred delivery method (email / SMS). The Magic Link will redirect the user to page where the its token needs to be verified. This redirection can be configured in code, or globally in the Descope Console
The user can either sign up, sign in or sign up or in
// If configured globally, the redirect URI is optional. If provided however, it will be used
// instead of any global configuration
try await Descope.magiclink.signUp(with: .email, loginId: "andy@example.com", details: nil)To verify a magic link, your redirect page must call the validation function
on the token (t) parameter (https://your-redirect-address.com/verify?t=<token>):
let authResponse = try await Descope.magiclink.verify(token: "<token>")When a user wants to use social login with Apple you can leverage the Sign in with Apple feature to show a native authentication view that allows the user to login using the Apple ID they are already logged into on their device. Note that the OAuth provider you choose to use must be configured with the application's Bundle Identifier as the Client ID in the Descope console.
do {
showLoading(true)
let authResponse = try await Descope.oauth.native(provider: .apple, options: [])
let session = DescopeSession(from: authResponse)
Descope.sessionManager.manageSession(session)
showHomeScreen()
} catch DescopeError.oauthNativeCancelled {
showLoading(false)
print("Authentication cancelled")
} catch {
showError(error)
}Users can authenticate using any other social login providers, using the OAuth protocol via a browser based authentication flow. Configure your OAuth settings on the Descope console. To start an OAuth authentication call:
// Choose an oauth provider out of the supported providers
// If configured globally, the redirect URL is optional. If provided however, it will be used
// instead of any global configuration.
// Redirect the user to the returned URL to start the OAuth redirect chain
let authURL = try await Descope.oauth.start(provider: .github, redirectURL: "exampleauthschema://my-app.com/handle-oauth", options: [])Take the generated URL and authenticate the user using ASWebAuthenticationSession
(read more here).
The user will authenticate with the authentication provider, and will be
redirected back to the redirect URL, with an appended code HTTP URL parameter.
Exchange it to validate the user:
// Start the authentication session
let session = ASWebAuthenticationSession(url: authURL, callbackURLScheme: "exampleauthschema") { callbackURL, error in
// Extract the returned code
guard let url = callbackURL else { return }
let components = URLComponents(url: url, resolvingAgainstBaseURL: false)
guard let code = components?.queryItems?.first(where: { $0.name == "code" })?.value else { return }
Task {
// Exchange code for session
let authResponse = try await Descope.oauth.exchange(code: code)
let session = DescopeSession(from: authResponse)
Descope.sessionManager.manageSession(session)
}
}Users can authenticate to a specific tenant using SAML or Single Sign On. Configure your SSO/SAML settings on the Descope console. To start a flow call:
// Choose which tenant to log into
// If configured globally, the return URL is optional. If provided however, it will be used
// instead of any global configuration.
// Redirect the user to the returned URL to start the SSO/SAML redirect chain
let authURL = try await Descope.sso.start(emailOrTenantName: "my-tenant-ID", redirectURL: "exampleauthschema://my-app.com/handle-saml", options: [])Take the generated URL and authenticate the user using ASWebAuthenticationSession
(read more here).
The user will authenticate with the authentication provider, and will be redirected
back to the redirect URL, with an appended code HTTP URL parameter. Exchange it
to validate the user:
// Start the authentication session
let session = ASWebAuthenticationSession(url: authURL, callbackURLScheme: "exampleauthschema") { callbackURL, error in
// Extract the returned code
guard let url = callbackURL else {return}
let component = URLComponents(url: url, resolvingAgainstBaseURL: false)
guard let code = component?.queryItems?.first(where: {$0.name == "code"})?.value else { return }
// ... Trigger asynchronously
// Exchange code for session
let authResponse = try await Descope.sso.exchange(code: code)
let session = DescopeSession(from: authResponse)
Descope.sessionManager.manageSession(session)
}Users can authenticate by creating or using a passkey. Configure your Passkey/WebAuthn settings on the Descope console. Make sure it is enabled and that the top level domain is configured correctly.
After that, go through Apple's Supporting passkeys
guide, in particular be sure to have an associated domain configured for your app
with the webcredentials service type, whose value matches the top level domain
you configured in the Descope console earlier.
do {
showLoading(true)
let authResponse = try await Descope.passkey.signUpOrIn(loginId: "andy@example.com", options: [])
let session = DescopeSession(from: authResponse)
Descope.sessionManager.manageSession(session)
showHomeScreen()
} catch DescopeError.oauthNativeCancelled {
showLoading(false)
print("Authentication cancelled")
} catch {
showError(error)
}The user can authenticate using an authenticator app, such as Google Authenticator.
Sign up like you would using any other authentication method. The sign up response
will then contain a QR code image that can be displayed to the user to scan using
their mobile device camera app, or the user can enter the key manually or click
on the link provided by the provisioningURL.
Existing users can add TOTP using the update function.
// Every user must have a loginID. All other user information is optional
let totpResponse = try await Descope.totp.signUp(loginId: "andy@example.com", details: nil)
// Use one of the provided options to have the user add their credentials to the authenticator
// totpResponse.provisioningURL
// totpResponse.keyThere are 3 different ways to allow the user to save their credentials in their authenticator app - either by clicking the provisioning URL, scanning the QR image or inserting the key manually. After that, signing in is done using the code the app produces.
let authResponse = try await Descope.totp.verify(loginId: "andy@example.com", code: "987654")Create a new user that can later sign in with a password:
let authResponse = try await Descope.password.signUp(loginId: "andy@example.com", password: "securePassword123!", details: SignUpDetails(
name: "Andy Rhoads"
))
// in another screen
let authResponse = try await Descope.password.signIn(loginId: "andy@example.com", password: "securePassword123!")You can update the current password for a logged in user:
try await Descope.password.update(loginId: "andy@example.com", newPassword: "newSecurePassword456!", refreshJwt: "user-refresh-jwt")You can also replace the password for a user by providing both the new password and the current one:
let authResponse = try await Descope.password.replace(loginId: "andy@example.com", oldPassword: "SecurePassword123!", newPassword: "NewSecurePassword456!")You can also trigger a password reset email to be sent to the user:
try await Descope.password.sendReset(loginId: "andy@example.com", redirectURL: "appscheme://my-app.com/handle-reset")If anything is missing or not working correctly please open an issue or pull request.
To learn more please see the Descope documentation.
If you need help you can hop on our Slack community or send an email to Descope support.