SSO Login - PanelDNS

Single sign-on (SSO) lets you redirect your customers directly into their portal session from your billing system or control panel — no password required.

How it works

Your system calls POST /api/v1/sub-clients/{id}/sso-token with your API token
PanelDNS returns a one-time login_url
You redirect the customer’s browser to that URL
PanelDNS validates the token, creates a session, and lands the customer on their zones page

The token is valid for 60 seconds and single-use — once clicked, it cannot be reused.

WHMCS example

// Called from a WHMCS hook when a client clicks "Manage DNS"
function paneldns_ClientAreaPage($vars) {
    $serviceId = $vars['serviceid'];
    
    // Look up the sub-client ID stored during provisioning
    $subClientId = Capsule::table('tblcustomfieldsvalues')
        ->where('relid', $serviceId)
        ->where('fieldid', PANELDNS_SUBCLIENT_FIELD_ID)
        ->value('value');

    if (!$subClientId) {
        return ['error' => 'No sub-client found for this service.'];
    }

    $response = paneldnsApiPost('/api/v1/sub-clients/' . $subClientId . '/sso-token');
    
    if ($response['ok']) {
        header('Location: ' . $response['data']['login_url']);
        exit;
    }
}

Response

{
  "ok": true,
  "data": {
    "login_url": "https://your-paneldns-domain.com/sso/consume?token=eyJ...",
    "expires_in": 60
  }
}

Security notes

SSO tokens are signed JWTs with a 5-minute expiry — they cannot be forged without your signing key
Each token is single-use — reuse returns 401 Unauthenticated
The token is bound to the specific sub-client — it cannot be used to access another sub-client’s portal
Tokens are transmitted in the URL query string; use HTTPS in production (enforced by default)
Generating an SSO token for a suspended sub-client returns 422 — suspended accounts cannot log in

Custom portal domain

If you have a custom domain configured (e.g. dns.acme-hosting.com), the login_url in the response uses that domain automatically — no extra configuration needed.

​How it works

​WHMCS example

​Response

​Security notes

​Custom portal domain

How it works

WHMCS example

Response

Security notes

Custom portal domain