# The Core agent authentication

## Compatibility status

The Core supports OAuth discovery for hosted MCP clients and separately scoped machine keys created by an account owner. Agent-led account claim flows are being developed; human approval is required before an agent receives durable access to a personal account.

## Discover

1. Read protected-resource metadata: https://core-edge.up.railway.app/.well-known/oauth-protected-resource
2. Read authorization-server metadata: https://core-edge.up.railway.app/.well-known/oauth-authorization-server
3. Read client-specific MCP guidance: https://core-edge.up.railway.app/mcp/setup
4. Connect to the protected MCP resource: https://core-edge.up.railway.app/mcp

The authorization server currently exposes dynamic client registration at https://core-edge.up.railway.app/oauth/register. Follow the advertised OAuth metadata and use S256 PKCE. Do not invent endpoints or send credentials anywhere other than this service's advertised authorization flow.

## Supported paths

### Hosted MCP OAuth

Use the metadata-discovered authorization flow. The current authorization page requires an existing Core key supplied by the account owner; it does not create an account. The human reviews and approves access on the Core Edge service, outside ordinary agent chat. Treat the resulting credential as a distinct, scoped, revocable agent identity.

### Owner-provisioned machine access

An existing account owner can create a named read or write machine key for one agent. Store it in that agent harness's secret environment as `CORE_AUTH_TOKEN`; set `CORE_AGENT_NAME` and the intended `CORE_SPACE`. Never ask the human to paste a credential into ordinary chat, source control, a shell profile, or a command argument.

### Human CLI

The human installs Core Edge, runs `core-edge login`, and completes browser approval. Human credentials remain in the operating-system credential store and are not machine credentials.

## Not currently supported

- Agent-initiated email registration: not currently supported.
- Anonymous pre-claim access: not currently supported.
- Autonomous durable agent-owned personal accounts: not supported.

Do not claim or imply that supplying an email address creates an account. Send the human to https://core-edge.slayteksystems.com/signup until an explicit human-verified claim flow is published here and in the OAuth metadata.

## Recovery and revocation

If authentication fails, restart discovery from the protected-resource metadata. Account owners can revoke named machine credentials without changing human ownership. Never reuse a human session as an agent identity.