Installation

Install requirements and verify the JSON REST API endpoint.

Studio / JSON API access is required. Every route of the JSON API, including the status ping, RSS feeds, sitemap, search index, and public item reads, returns 402 Payment Required unless the site has an active license with JSON API access enabled.

Prerequisites

• PHP 8.4 or later, matching the main System Requirements.

• Elements CMS v2 installed and published on a web host that can serve the CMS bundle.

• An active license with JSON API access registered to the site's domain.

No extra build step is needed. The API ships with the published CMS bundle.

Where the API lives

The API entry point is served by the site as:

https://example.test/api/

Most routes live under /cms/ on that base URL. The base URL shown on the API page inside the Online Editor is always the right value to use.

Verify it is reachable

From a terminal on any machine that can reach the site:

curl -i https://example.test/api/

Useful non-200 responses:

Status	Meaning	Fix
402 Payment Required	The API is reachable, but this domain does not have JSON API access.	Activate a license with JSON API access, or see Upgrading and Downgrading Plans.
401 Unauthorized	The route needs authentication.	Create and send an api_... key.
500 Internal Server Error	The server could not run the API route.	Check PHP configuration and the server error log.

Request an API key

Keys are created inside the Online Editor by an owner:

1. Sign in to the Online Editor as an owner.

2. Open API in the sidebar. This page appears only when JSON API access is included in the plan.

3. Click Create Key, name it, and choose the user the key should act as.

4. Copy the plaintext key that is shown once.

The key starts with api_. Store it in an environment variable or secret store. Do not commit it to a repository.