> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://kernel.sh/docs/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.
# Overview
> Maintain authenticated browser sessions for agents
Managed Auth creates and maintains authenticated browser sessions for your AI agents. Store credentials once, and Kernel can automatically reauthenticate supported login flows when needed. When you launch Kernel browsers with Managed Auth connections, your agent can start logged in and ready to go.
## How It Works
A **Managed Auth Connection** attaches a domain's authentication state to a browser [profile](/docs/auth/profiles) so future browsers can reuse it. A single profile can have multiple auth connections, one per domain.
```typescript TypeScript theme={null}
const auth = await kernel.auth.connections.create({
domain: 'netflix.com',
profile_name: 'netflix-user-123',
});
```
```python Python theme={null}
auth = await kernel.auth.connections.create(
domain="netflix.com",
profile_name="netflix-user-123",
)
```
```go Go theme={null}
auth, err := client.Auth.Connections.New(ctx, kernel.AuthConnectionNewParams{
ManagedAuthCreateRequest: kernel.ManagedAuthCreateRequestParam{
Domain: "netflix.com",
ProfileName: "netflix-user-123",
},
})
if err != nil {
panic(err)
}
_ = auth
```
A **Managed Auth Session** is the corresponding login flow for the specified connection. Users provide credentials via a Kernel-hosted page or your own UI.
Specify a [Credential](/docs/auth/credentials) to enable automatic reauthentication for supported credential-based flows.
```typescript TypeScript theme={null}
const login = await kernel.auth.connections.login(auth.id);
// Send user to login page
console.log('Login URL:', login.hosted_url);
// Stream state changes until the flow completes
const events = await kernel.auth.connections.follow(auth.id);
let finalState;
for await (const event of events) {
if (event.event === 'managed_auth_state') {
finalState = event;
}
}
if (finalState?.flow_status === 'SUCCESS') {
console.log('Authenticated!');
}
```
```python Python theme={null}
login = await kernel.auth.connections.login(auth.id)
# Send user to login page
print(f"Login URL: {login.hosted_url}")
# Stream state changes until the flow completes
events = await kernel.auth.connections.follow(auth.id)
final_state = None
async for event in events:
if event.event == "managed_auth_state":
final_state = event
if final_state and final_state.flow_status == "SUCCESS":
print("Authenticated!")
```
```go Go theme={null}
login, err := client.Auth.Connections.Login(ctx, auth.ID, kernel.AuthConnectionLoginParams{})
if err != nil {
panic(err)
}
// Send user to login page
fmt.Println("Login URL:", login.HostedURL)
// Stream state changes until the flow completes
events := client.Auth.Connections.FollowStreaming(ctx, auth.ID)
authenticated := false
for events.Next() {
event := events.Current()
if event.Event == "managed_auth_state" && event.FlowStatus == "SUCCESS" {
authenticated = true
}
}
if err := events.Err(); err != nil {
panic(err)
}
if authenticated {
fmt.Println("Authenticated!")
}
```
Once the auth connection completes, the authenticated session is saved to the browser [profile](/docs/auth/profiles) specified in step 1. You can attach additional auth connections to the same profile for other domains. When you create a browser with the profile, it loads the saved authentication state for every connected domain.
```typescript TypeScript theme={null}
const browser = await kernel.browsers.create({
profile: { name: 'netflix-user-123' },
stealth: true,
});
// Navigate with the saved authentication state
await page.goto('https://netflix.com');
```
```python Python theme={null}
browser = await kernel.browsers.create(
profile={"name": "netflix-user-123"},
stealth=True,
)
# Navigate with the saved authentication state
await page.goto("https://netflix.com")
```
```go Go theme={null}
browser, err := client.Browsers.New(ctx, kernel.BrowserNewParams{
Profile: shared.BrowserProfileParam{
Name: kernel.String("netflix-user-123"),
},
Stealth: kernel.Bool(true),
})
if err != nil {
panic(err)
}
_ = browser
// Navigate with the saved authentication state
_, err = client.Browsers.Playwright.Execute(ctx, browser.SessionID, kernel.BrowserPlaywrightExecuteParams{
Code: `await page.goto("https://netflix.com");`,
})
if err != nil {
panic(err)
}
```
The steps above are the integration loop you wire up once per connection. After the initial login, Kernel monitors the connection with periodic health checks and can automatically reauthenticate eligible flows. See [Connection Lifecycle](/docs/auth/connection-lifecycle) for the runtime behavior and configuration options.
## Choose Your Integration
**Start here** - Simplest integration
Redirect users to Kernel's hosted page. Add features incrementally: save credentials for eligible automatic reauthentication, set custom login URLs, and configure SSO.
**Embed in your app** - Drop-in component
Mount `` on a route in your own app. Same flow as Hosted UI, rendered on your origin and trivial to restyle to match your brand.
**Full control** - Custom UI or headless
Build your own credential collection. Handle login fields, SSO buttons, MFA selection, and external actions (push notifications, security keys).
## Why Managed Auth?
Managed Auth runs **login flows** by navigating login pages, filling credentials, following SSO redirects, and guiding users through additional authentication steps. It saves the resulting session state to a reusable profile.
The most valuable workflows live behind logins. Managed Auth provides:
* **Broad site coverage** - Login pages are discovered and handled across common website login flows
* **SSO/OAuth support** - Kernel follows common SSO redirects. Common provider domains are allowed by default; add custom provider domains to `allowed_domains`
* **2FA/OTP handling** - Kernel attempts to provide TOTP codes automatically; interactive login can collect other verification steps
* **Post-login URL** - Get the URL where login landed (`post_login_url`) so you can start automations from the right page
* **Session monitoring** - [Periodic health checks](/docs/auth/connection-lifecycle) and automatic reauthentication for eligible credential-based flows
* **Secure by default** - Credentials are encrypted at rest and never exposed in API responses or passed to LLMs
## Security
| Feature | Description |
| -------------------------- | -------------------------------------------------- |
| **Encrypted credentials** | Values encrypted with per-organization keys |
| **No credential exposure** | Never returned in API responses or passed to LLMs |
| **Encrypted profiles** | Browser session state encrypted end-to-end |
| **Isolated execution** | Each login runs in an isolated browser environment |