> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.fastn.ai/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.fastn.ai/build/connectors/connect-a-system.md).

# Connect a system

Making a connection, from picking the connector to confirming it landed.

Making a connection is how a connector goes from a definition to something that can actually call an API. There are two ways in (the **Connect** button on the connector itself, or **New connection** on the [Connections](/build/connections.md) page) and both lead to the same authorisation flow.

{% stepper %}
{% step %}

#### Pick the connector

Press **Connect** (or **Add another connection**) on the connector's card or detail header, or open **New connection** and find the system in the **Connect a system** picker: a searchable, A–Z list of every connector in the catalogue.
{% endstep %}

{% step %}

#### Choose the authentication method

If the connector offers more than one method, choose one. The **Auth** tab (above) describes the two shapes in the customer's own terms: *Your customers sign in with the provider and approve access* for OAuth, and *Your customers paste a key they generate themselves* for an API key.
{% endstep %}

{% step %}

#### Provide the credential

**OAuth** sends you to the provider to sign in and approve the requested access; fastn receives the tokens. An **API key** (and the other keyed methods) is entered in the connect form itself. Either way, fastn stores the credential encrypted and never displays it again.
{% endstep %}

{% step %}

#### Confirm it landed

A completed connection appears on the connector's **Connections** tab (which reads `Nobody has connected yet` until the first one) and on the workspace-wide [Connections](/build/connections.md) page, where you can check its status and **Reconnect** or **Disconnect** it.
{% endstep %}
{% endstepper %}

{% hint style="info" %}
Customer connections are meant to be made by the customer, through your embedded widget. That is what keeps their credentials theirs. Use **New connection** for links your own organisation owns, such as your own Slack workspace.
{% endhint %}


---

# Agent Instructions
This documentation is published with GitBook. GitBook is the documentation platform designed so that both humans and AI agents can read, navigate, and reason over technical content effectively. Learn more at gitbook.com.

## Querying This Documentation
If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question.

Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter, and the optional `goal` query parameter:

```
GET https://docs.fastn.ai/build/connectors/connect-a-system.md?ask=<question>&goal=<endgoal>
```

`ask` is the immediate question: it should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language.
`goal` is optional and describes the broader end goal you are ultimately trying to accomplish on behalf of the user. GitBook uses it to tailor the answer towards what is most useful for that goal.

The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation.

Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.