# Getting Started

### Welcome to the Vauchar API

Welcome! You can use our powerful RESTful API to programmatically access and interact with your Vauchar resources. Our API is designed to be predictable and intuitive, following standard web conventions.

Key architectural features include:

* **RESTful Design**: The API is built on REST principles, providing a structured and logical approach to resource management.
* **Standard HTTP**: We leverage built-in HTTP features and use conventional HTTP response codes to indicate the status of each request.
* **JSON-Only Responses**: All API responses, including errors, are returned in a clean and easy-to-parse JSON format.

### Base URL

All URLs referenced in this documentation are relative to the following base URL:

```
https://api.vauchar.com

```

### Authentication

Vauchar uses **API keys** to grant access to the API. Your keys control access to all of your merchant data, so be sure to keep them secure!

You can obtain your free API keys by registering on our website:

* **Register for an API Key:** [vauchar.com/user/register](http://vauchar.com/user/register)

Our API uses **HTTP Basic Authentication**. You must include your Merchant ID and API Key in every request by providing an `Authorization` header. The value is a Base64 encoded string of your `Merchant_Id:Api_Key`.

**Header Format:**

```
Authorization: Basic base64_encoded(<Your_Merchant_Id>:<Your_Api_Key>)

```

### Errors

The Vauchar API uses standard HTTP status codes to indicate the success or failure of a request. Responses with a status code in the 4xx or 5xx range indicate an error.

#### HTTP Status Code Summary

| Code  | Description                                                                                  |
| ----- | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| `400` | **Bad Request** – The request was unacceptable, often due to missing a required parameter.   |
| `401` | **Unauthorized** – Your Merchant ID or API key is wrong.                                     |
| `402` | **Insufficient Balance** – Your account does not have enough balance to perform the action.  |
| `403` | **Forbidden** – You do not have permission to access the requested resource.                 |
| `404` | **Not Found** – The requested resource could not be found.                                   |
| `405` | **Method Not Allowed** – You tried to access a resource with an invalid HTTP method.         |
| `406` | **Not Acceptable** – You requested a response format other than JSON.                        |
| `500` | **Internal Server Error** – We had a problem with our server. Try again later.               |
| `503` | **Service Unavailable** – We're temporarily offline for maintenance. Please try again later. |