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Authorizing Custom Applications in Sandbox and Production Environments

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Box has an app approval flow that streamlines the custom app authorization and enablement process. In one unified view, Box enables developers to decide whether they want to authorize their apps in a linked developer sandbox or directly in a production environment.

This way, developers create their apps in a sandbox, without touching the main production instance. When the app is ready, developers have a direct pathway to promote the app to production in the parent enterprise.

This approach simplifies the collaboration between Admins and developers, reduces the risk of releasing an application into production prematurely, and shortens time to production for custom app development.

Developers can create:

  • Custom server authentication apps, such as JSON Web Token (JWT) apps, client credential app, and limited access app. These apps must be authorized by a Box Admin.
  • Custom user authentication apps, such as OAuth 2.0 app. A Box admin may need to enable these apps depending on the unpublished apps setting.

After the app is created, developers can request authorization in the current sandbox environment or directly in the parent enterprise.

 

As a developer, to request authorization for an application:

  1. Open your Developer Console.
  2. Go to My Apps and click the application you want to authorize or enable.
  3. Depending on the custom app type, go to Authorization tab for server authentication applications or Enablement for user authentication applications.

    IMPORTANT: The Enablement tab is visible only if a Box Admin enabled the Disable unpublished apps by default setting.

  4. Click Review and Submit. 
  5. Review the app details.
    • If you are working in a sandbox environment, use the Publish Location section to select whether to publish in the parent enterprise or in the same sandbox.
    • If you are using a production instance of the parent enterprise, you will not see the Publish Location section because the app is automatically published in the production environment.
  6. Wait for a Box Admin to approve your application. When this happens, you will receive an email with the details.

For the  details on Admin approval flow, refer to Managing custom apps.

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