Unlocking Supabase: How to Allow External Users to Access Certain Tables in Your DB

Are you tired of being the sole gatekeeper of your Supabase database? Do you want to share the power with external users, but still maintain control over what they can access? Look no further! In this article, we’ll dive into the world of Supabase access control and show you how to allow external users to access specific tables in your database.

Why You Need to Control Access

Before we dive into the how, let’s talk about the why. As your database grows, so does the need for access control. You can’t have just anyone wandering around your database, accessing sensitive information, or making unauthorized changes. That’s like leaving your house keys on the front porch – not a great idea!

By controlling access, you can:

• Ensure data security and integrity
• Protect sensitive information from unauthorized access
• Prevent data breaches and cyber attacks
• Improve collaboration and sharing of data with external users

Understanding Supabase Roles and Permissions

Supabase uses a role-based access control (RBAC) system, which means you can assign specific permissions to users or groups based on their role. Think of roles like job titles, and permissions like the tasks they can perform.

There are two types of roles in Supabase:

• Internal roles: These are roles that you create and manage within your Supabase instance.
• External roles: These are roles that are linked to external authentication providers, such as Google, GitHub, or Azure.

Permissions, on the other hand, define what actions a user or role can perform on a specific resource, such as a table or row.

Creating a New Role for External Users

Let’s create a new internal role for our external users. This role will have limited permissions, allowing them to access only the tables we specify.

Follow these steps:

1. Log in to your Supabase dashboard and navigate to the Settings tab.
2. Click on Roles and then click the New Role button.
3. Enter a name for your role, such as externals, and a description.
4. Click Create Role.

Assigning Permissions to the New Role

Now that we have our new role, let’s assign some permissions. We’ll give our externals role access to a specific table, but with limited permissions.

Follow these steps:

1. Navigate to the Tables tab in your Supabase dashboard.
2. Click on the table you want to share with external users, and then click the Permissions tab.
3. Click the Edit button next to the Roles section.
4. Select the externals role from the dropdown menu.
5. Choose the permissions you want to assign, such as SELECT, INSERT, or UPDATE.
6. Click Save.

Creating an External User Account

Now that we have our role and permissions set up, let’s create an external user account. This account will be linked to an external authentication provider, such as Google or GitHub.

Follow these steps:

1. Navigate to the Auth tab in your Supabase dashboard.
2. Click on the External Auth tab.
3. Choose the external authentication provider you want to use, such as Google or GitHub.
4. Follow the provider’s instructions to set up the external auth flow.
5. Once set up, click the Save button.

Linking the External User to the New Role

Now that we have our external user account, let’s link it to our externals role.

Follow these steps:

1. Navigate to the Users tab in your Supabase dashboard.
2. Click on the external user account you just created.
3. Click the Roles tab.
4. Click the Edit button.
5. Select the externals role from the dropdown menu.
6. Click Save.

Testing the New Role and Permissions

Let’s test our new role and permissions to make sure everything is working as expected.

Follow these steps:

1. Log out of your Supabase dashboard.
2. Log back in as the external user account you created.
3. Navigate to the Tables tab.
4. Try to access a table that you didn’t grant permission to. You should get an error.
5. Try to access the table you granted permission to. You should be able to view or edit the data based on the permissions you assigned.

Table	Permission	Result
my_secret_table	No access	Error
my_shared_table	SELECT, INSERT, UPDATE	Access granted

Conclusion

And that’s it! You’ve successfully allowed external users to access certain tables in your Supabase database. By creating a new role, assigning permissions, and linking the role to an external user account, you’ve taken the first step in controlling access to your database.

Remember to always follow best practices for access control and security, and to regularly review and update your permissions to ensure your database remains secure.

// Supabase API example to grant permissions to a role
const { data, error } = await supabase
  .from('my_table')
  .grantPermission({ role: 'externals', permissions: ['SELECT', 'INSERT', 'UPDATE'] });

Now, go forth and share your data with the world (or at least, with the external users you trust)!

Frequently Asked Question

Got questions about sharing your Supabase DB with external users? We’ve got answers!