How to build Aliyun SMS passwordless sign-in with Auth.js (Next Auth)

For our new friends:

Logto is an Auth0 alternative designed for modern apps and SaaS products. It offers both Cloud and Open-source services to help you quickly launch your identity and management (IAM) system. Enjoy authentication, authorization, and multi-tenant management all in one.

We recommend starting with a free development tenant on Logto Cloud. This allows you to explore all the features easily.

In this article, we will go through the steps to quickly build the Aliyun sign-in experience (user authentication) with Auth.js (Next Auth) and Logto.

Prerequisites

A running Logto instance. Check out the introduction page to get started.
Basic knowledge of Auth.js (Next Auth).
A usable Aliyun account.

Create an application in Logto

Logto is based on OpenID Connect (OIDC) authentication and OAuth 2.0 authorization. It supports federated identity management across multiple applications, commonly called Single Sign-On (SSO).

To create your Traditional web application, simply follow these steps:

Open the Logto Console. In the "Get started" section, click the "View all" link to open the application frameworks list. Alternatively, you can navigate to Logto Console > Applications, and click the "Create application" button.
In the opening modal, click the "Traditional web" section or filter all the available "Traditional web" frameworks using the quick filter checkboxes on the left. Click the "Auth.js (Next Auth)" framework card to start creating your application.
Enter the application name, e.g., "Bookstore," and click "Create application".

🎉 Ta-da! You just created your first application in Logto. You'll see a congrats page which includes a detailed integration guide. Follow the guide to see what the experience will be in your application.

Integrate Auth.js (Next Auth) with Logto

tip:

In this guide, we assume you have set up Next Auth in your Next.js project. If you haven't, check out the Next Auth documentation to get started.

Installation

Install Auth.js via your favorite package manager:

npm
pnpm
yarn

npm i next-auth@beta

pnpm add next-auth@beta

yarn add next-auth@beta

See Auth.js documentation for more details.

Set up Auth.js provider

tip:

You can find and copy "App Secret" from application details page in Admin Console:

Modify your API route config of Auth.js, add Logto as an OIDC provider:

Auth.js v5
Next Auth v4

Setup environment variables:

AUTH_LOGTO_ISSUER=https://xxxx.logto.app/oidc
AUTH_LOGTO_ID=your-logto-app-id
AUTH_LOGTO_SECRET=your-logto-app-secret

./app/api/auth/[...nextauth]/route.ts
import { handlers } from '@/auth';
export const { GET, POST } = handlers;

./auth.ts
import NextAuth from 'next-auth';
import Logto from 'next-auth/providers/logto';

export const { handlers, signIn, signOut, auth } = NextAuth({
  providers: [Logto],
});

Then you can also add an optional Middleware to keep the session alive:

./middleware.ts
export { auth as middleware } from '@/auth';

app/api/auth/[...nextauth]/route.ts
import NextAuth from 'next-auth';

const handler = NextAuth({
  providers: [
    {
      id: 'logto',
      name: 'Logto',
      type: 'oauth',
      // You can get the well-known URL from the Logto Application Details page,
      // in the field "OpenID Provider configuration endpoint"
      wellKnown: 'https://xxxx.logto.app/oidc/.well-known/openid-configuration',
      authorization: { params: { scope: 'openid offline_access profile email' } },
      clientId: '<logto-app-id>',
      clientSecret: '<logto-app-secret>',
      client: {
        id_token_signed_response_alg: 'ES384',
      },
      profile(profile) {
        // You can customize the user profile mapping here
        return {
          id: profile.sub,
          name: profile.name ?? profile.username,
          email: profile.email,
          image: profile.picture,
        };
      },
    },
  ],
});

export { handler as GET, handler as POST };

Replace the wellKnown URL with your Logto application's "OpenID Provider configuration endpoint".
Replace the clientId and clientSecret with your Logto application's ID and secret.
Customize the profile function to map the user profile to the Next Auth user object, the default mapping is shown in the example.
Remember to set the id_token_signed_response_alg to ES384.

You can find more details in the Auth.js documentation.

Before we dive into the details, here's a quick overview of the end-user experience. The sign-in process can be simplified as follows:

Your app invokes the sign-in method.
The user is redirected to the Logto sign-in page. For native apps, the system browser is opened.
The user signs in and is redirected back to your app (configured as the redirect URI).

This authentication process follows the OpenID Connect (OIDC) protocol, and Logto enforces strict security measures to protect user sign-in.
If you have multiple apps, you can use the same identity provider (Logto). Once the user signs in to one app, Logto will automatically complete the sign-in process when the user accesses another app.

To learn more about the rationale and benefits of redirect-based sign-in, see Logto sign-in experience explained.

note:

In the following code snippets, we assume your app is running on http://localhost:3000/.

Let's switch to the Application details page of Logto Console. Add a Redirect URI http://localhost:3000/api/auth/callback/logto and click "Save changes".

app/components/sign-in.tsx
import { signIn } from '@/auth';

export default function SignIn() {
  return (
    <form
      action={async () => {
        'use server';
        await signIn('logto');
      }}
    >
      <button type="submit">Sign In</button>
    </form>
  );
}

app/components/sign-out.tsx
import { signOut } from '@/auth';

export function SignOut() {
  return (
    <form
      action={async () => {
        'use server';
        await signOut();
      }}
    >
      <button type="submit">Sign Out</button>
    </form>
  );
}

app/page.tsx
import SignIn from './components/sign-in';
import SignOut from './components/sign-out';
import { auth } from '@/auth';

export default function Home() {
  const session = await auth();

  return <div>{session?.user ? <SignOut /> : <SignIn />}</div>;
}

Above is a simple example, you can check the Auth.js documentation for more details.

Checkpoint

Now, you can test your application to see if the authentication works as expected.

Add Aliyun connector

SMS connector is a method used to send one-time passwords (OTPs) for authentication. It enables Phone number verification to support passwordless authentication, including SMS-based registration, sign-in, two-factor authentication (2FA), and account recovery. You can easily connect Aliyun as your SMS provider. With the Logto SMS connector, you can set this up in just a few minutes.

To add a SMS connector, simply follow these steps:

Navigate to Console > Connector > Email and SMS connectors.
To add a new SMS connector, click the "Set up" button and select "Aliyun".
Review the README documentation for your selected provider.
Complete the configuration fields in the "Parameter Configuration" section.
Customize the SMS template using the JSON editor.
Test your configuration by sending a verification code to your Phone number.

note:

If you are following the in-place Connector guide, you can skip the next section.

Set up Aliyun SMS connector

Set up a short message service in Aliyun SMS Console

Create an Aliyun account

Go to the Aliyun website and register your Aliyun account if you don't have one.

Enable and Configure Aliyun Short Message Service

Sign-in with your Aliyun account at the Aliyun website and go to the SMS service console page.
Click the "Open for free" (免费开通) button on the top left of the SMS service page and begin the configuration process.
Read and agree to the "SMS service activation Agreement" (短信服务开通条款) and click "Subscribe to a service" (开通服务) to move on.
You are now on the SMS service console page, go to either "Mainland China" (国内消息) or "Outside Mainland China" (国际/港澳台消息) button on the sidebar per your use case.
Add signature and template following the guidelines, and provide the materials or information required for review.
- Remember to select "Verification Code Message" (验证码) as "Scenario" (适用场景) when filling out the signature application and also "Verification Code Message" (验证码) for "Type" (模板类型) when applying for a template review because we are using these signatures and templates to send verification code. Currently, we do not support sending SMS messages other than verification-code-related text messages.
- Also, use {{code}} as a placeholder where you want to place your digital verification code in template contents.
After submitting your SMS signature and template application, you need to wait for it to take effect. At this point, we can go back to the SMS service console page and send a test SMS. If your signatures and templates are ready for use, you can try them directly; if they are not taking effect yet, Aliyun also provides test templates.
- You may need to recharge a small amount of money before sending test messages.
- You may also be asked to bind a test phone number before sending test messages. For more details, go to "Quick Start" (快速学习) tab from the sidebar of the SMS service console page.

Compose the connector JSON

From the SMS service console page, hover on your avatar in the top right corner and go to "AccessKey Management" (AccessKey 管理), and click "Create AccessKey" (创建 AccessKey). You will get an "AccessKey ID" and "AccessKey Secret" pair after finishing security verification. Please keep them properly.
Go to the "Mainland China" (国内消息) or "Outside Mainland China" (国际/港澳台消息) tab you just visited, you can find "Signature" (签名名称) and "Template Code" (模板 CODE) easily.
- If you want to use the test-only signature and template, go to the "Quick Start" (快速学习) tab instead, and you will find them below "Signature & Templates (For Test Only)".
Fill out the Aliyun SMS Connector settings:
- Fill out the accessKeyId and accessKeySecret fields with access key pairs you've got from step 1.
- Fill out the signName field with "Signature" (签名名称) which is mentioned in step 2. All templates will share this signature name.
- You can add multiple SMS connector templates for different cases. Here is an example of adding a single template:
  - Fill the templateCode field, which is how you can control SMS context, with "Template Code" (模板 CODE) from step 2.
  - Fill out usageType field with either Register, SignIn, ForgotPassword or Generic for different use cases. (usageType is a Logto property to identify the proper use case.) In order to enable full user flows, templates with usageType Register, SignIn, ForgotPassword and Generic are required.

Test Aliyun SMS connector

You can type in a phone number and click on "Send" to see whether the settings can work before "Save and Done".

That's it. Don't forget to Enable connector in sign-in experience.

Config types

Name	Type
accessKeyId	string
accessKeySecret	string
signName	string
templates	Template[]

Template Properties	Type	Enum values
templateCode	string	N/A
usageType	enum string	'Register' \| 'SignIn' \| 'ForgotPassword' \| 'Generic'

Save your configuration

Double check you have filled out necessary values in the Logto connector configuration area. Click "Save and Done" (or "Save changes") and the Aliyun connector should be available now.

Once you create a connector successfully, you can enable phone number-based passwordless login and registration.

Navigate to Console > Sign-in experience > Sign-up and sign-in.
Set up sign-up methods (Optional):
1. Select "Phone number" or "Email or phone number" as the sign-up identifier.
2. "Verify at sign-up" is forced to be enabled. You can also enable "Create a password" on registration.
Set up sign-in methods:
1. Select Phone number as one of sign-in identifiers. You can provide multiple available identifiers (email, phone number, and username).
2. Select "Verification code" and / or "Password" as the authentication factor.
Click "Save changes" and test it in "Live preview".

In addition to registration and login via OTPs, you can also have password recovery and -based security verification enabled, as well as linking Phone number to profile. See End-user flows for more details.

Testing and Validation

Return to your Auth.js (Next Auth) app. You should now be able to sign in with Aliyun. Enjoy!

Create an application in Logto​

Integrate Auth.js (Next Auth) with Logto​

Installation​

Set up Auth.js provider​

Configure sign-in redirect URI​

Regarding redirect-based sign-in​

Implement sign-in and sign-out​

Implement sign-in and sign-out button​

Show sign-in and sign-out button in the page​

Checkpoint​

Add Aliyun connector​

Set up Aliyun SMS connector​

Set up a short message service in Aliyun SMS Console​

Create an Aliyun account​

Enable and Configure Aliyun Short Message Service​

Compose the connector JSON​

Test Aliyun SMS connector​

Config types​

Save your configuration​

Enable Aliyun connector in Sign-in Experience​

Testing and Validation​

Further readings​

Create an application in Logto

Integrate Auth.js (Next Auth) with Logto

Installation

Set up Auth.js provider

Configure sign-in redirect URI

Regarding redirect-based sign-in

Implement sign-in and sign-out

Implement sign-in and sign-out button

Show sign-in and sign-out button in the page