Getting Started with N‑central REST APIs: Tips and Tricks

For some the term API can signal an immediate tune out. I have to admit, despite being in the IT game for 25 years now, I was one of those people. However, that changed to a degree when I took up the Head Nerd role here at N‑able, driven in no small part by the fact that I had to deliver a Head Nerd Boot Camp on Leveraging APIs in N‑central. Unfortunately, these APIs were SOAP based, hadn’t had much development in recent years, and weren’t exactly easy to work with.

That all changed though late in 2023, with the release of N‑central 2023.9, which brought brand new REST APIs. Now some people may argue that SOAP are better than REST, but it’s my blog so I’m telling you, that REST APIs are a lot easier to use and work with than SOAP APIs—hence they are better in my opinion. If you have been avoiding using APIs before in N‑central or maybe looked at the old SOAP APIs and thought, these aren’t for me, then now’s the time to look at them again. In this blog, I’m going to give you some ideas on how you can work with the new REST APIs in N‑central and remove the apprehension you might have had working with them.

These new APIs have got Swagger!

First up we are going to start with how you access the REST APIs, this is the easy part: just throw a /api-explorer onto the end of your N‑central URL and boom you’re in Swagger. What’s Swagger I hear you aks? Swagger is an open-source framework that allows developers to design, document, and consume REST APIs. Swagger simplifies API development by facilitating the creation of comprehensive, well-structured, and easily understandable API documentation. In here you will see all the categories of APIs available on your version of N‑central, and you can expand each category to see what functions are available under each one as well. Clicking on a function will also tell you what parameters are used, including which of these parameters are required in order to run the API call. Scroll a little further down the page and you’ll find the Schemas, think of this as your dictionary that explains all the information that the API calls retrieve, this can save you time as you can ensure the information you are looking for is retrievable.

Now, when it comes to using APIs, typically we’re going to use scripts for that, but sometimes you just want to confirm the API function has the information you’re looking for—Swagger is great for this too. You can authenticate and execute the functions all from within the Swagger interface. If you want to know how to create an API-Only User for your N‑central server and authenticate using Swagger, then head over to or brand new Developer Portal, where you’ll find two short videos on how to do just that.

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Can I still use these APIs if scripting isn’t my thing?

The first steps can always be the hardest, and if you haven’t done a ton of scripting before then the idea of building scripts that use the API functions can be off-putting. Thankfully there’s a little thing that we pretty much hear about every day that can help—Generative AI. You can use tools like ChatGPT to create the scripts for you. For Example, you could ask it to create a PowerShell script using the information available on YourN‑centralURL/api-explorer to create a script that will export all your devices to a local CSV file. You can play around with the information you are looking for in terms of what columns you wish to include and how to organize them. Remember to reference the information that’s in the Swagger UI to have a generative AI tool build exactly what you need.

A little knowledge goes a long way

If you’ve dabbled a bit in scripting already, and you’re not quite ready to cede your job to computers, but you’d still like a bump to get you started. Then fear not! The N‑able Automation Cookbook is here to help. Once in there, search for the NC REST API scripts. These sample scripts can be used individually or combined, viewing these scripts will help you understand how they are constructed and are a quick way of learning how you can interact with these API functions. I’ll be personally looking to grow this library of scripts as new API calls are added to N‑central, so don’t forget to check in regularly to see what additional scripts are available.

These are just a few examples that will help you better leverage APIs to enhance how you use N‑central to manage and maintain your customers. If you haven’t been using APIs up to this point, hopefully this blog will inspire you to do so.

If you have questions join me on the N-Central office hours or register for our Leveraging REST APIs in N‑central Boot Camp, check the schedule at www.n-able.com/events.

Paul Kelly is the Head Nerd at N‑able. You can follow him on Twitter at @HeadNerdPaul, LinkedIn and Reddit at u/Paul _Kelly. Alternatively you can email me direct.