Skip to main content

ServFlow Engine Documentation

Welcome to the complete documentation for ServFlow Engine - a free, standalone declarative API engine that transforms YAML configurations into production-ready APIs.

ServFlow Platform​

ServFlow consists of two components:

  • ServFlow Engine (free, open source) - Runs your APIs from YAML configuration files
  • ServFlow Dashboard (visual interface) - Build and deploy APIs with a graphical interface

This documentation covers the ServFlow Engine. You can use the Engine standalone or integrate it with the Dashboard for enhanced development experience.

🚀 Quick Links​

📘 Where to Start​

New to ServFlow?​

Learn by Building​

Deep Dive​

🛠️ What is ServFlow Engine?​

ServFlow Engine transforms how you build backend APIs. Instead of writing traditional server code, you define your APIs through simple YAML configurations. The engine handles everything else:

  • Database operations - Query, insert, update, delete data
  • AI integrations - Connect to OpenAI, Claude, and other AI services
  • Authentication - User registration, login, JWT tokens
  • Business logic - Conditional flows, data validation, transformations
  • External APIs - Call third-party services and process responses

Example: YAML becomes a working API​

id: users_api
name: Users API

http:
  listenPath: /users
  method: GET
  next: action.fetch_users

actions:
  fetch_users:
    type: mongoquery
    config:
      collection: users
      integrationID: mongo
    next: response.success

responses:
  success:
    code: 200
    responseObject:
      fields:
        users:
          value: "{{ .variable_actions_fetch_users }}"

Result: A fully functional /users API endpoint that queries your MongoDB database and returns JSON results.

🔍 Why Use ServFlow Engine?​

  • ⚡ Rapid Development - Build and deploy APIs in minutes instead of hours
  • 🔗 Pre-built Integrations - Connect to popular databases, AI services, and APIs out-of-the-box
  • 🛡️ Secure by Default - Built-in authentication, validation, and security features
  • 📈 Production Ready - Enterprise-grade performance, error handling, and scalability
  • ⚙️ Configuration-Driven - Version control your entire API logic as code
  • 🆓 Free Forever - Use ServFlow Engine at any scale without licensing costs

💡 What You Can Build​

🤖 AI-Powered APIs​

  • Natural language database queries - Let users ask questions in plain English
  • Content generation - Create articles, summaries, or responses using AI
  • Data processing - Automate analysis and insights from your data

📊 Data APIs​

  • CRUD operations - Create, read, update, delete records with REST endpoints
  • Complex queries - Multi-table joins, aggregations, and filtering
  • Real-time data - Stream updates and live data feeds

🔐 Authentication Systems​

  • User management - Registration, login, password reset flows
  • JWT tokens - Secure API access with automatic token generation
  • Role-based access - Control permissions and access levels

🔗 Integration Hubs​

  • Multi-service orchestration - Combine multiple APIs into single endpoints
  • Webhook processing - Receive and process external events
  • Data synchronization - Keep systems in sync automatically

🎯 Perfect For​

  • Developers building API-first applications and microservices
  • Startups needing to prototype and iterate quickly
  • Teams wanting to focus on business logic instead of infrastructure
  • Projects requiring AI integration without ML expertise
  • Organizations looking to reduce backend development complexity

🏃‍♂️ Quick Start​

Get your first API running in under 2 minutes:

# 1. Install ServFlow Engine
curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/servflow/servflow/main/install.sh | bash

# 2. Clone examples
git clone https://github.com/servflow/servflow.git
cd servflow/examples/hello-world

# 3. Start the engine
servflow start --integrations integrations.yaml configs/

# 4. Test your API
curl http://localhost:8080/hello

Next Steps: Follow our complete installation guide for detailed setup instructions.

📚 Documentation Structure​

This documentation is organized to take you from beginner to expert:

🎯 Getting Started​

Step-by-step tutorials to get you building APIs immediately:

  • Installation and setup
  • Your first simple API
  • Working with examples
  • Building real-world endpoints

🧠 Core Concepts​

Deep understanding of how ServFlow Engine works:

  • API configuration structure
  • Available actions and their uses
  • Integration setup and management
  • Template functions and data flow

📖 Guides & Patterns​

Advanced topics and best practices:

  • Security and authentication patterns
  • Performance optimization
  • Production deployment
  • Common architectural patterns

📋 Reference​

Complete technical reference:

  • Configuration syntax
  • Action types and parameters
  • Template function library
  • Troubleshooting guide

🤝 Community & Support​

Get Help​

  • 📖 This Documentation - Comprehensive guides and reference
  • 💬 GitHub Discussions - Community Q&A and sharing
  • 🐛 Issues - Bug reports and feature requests

Stay Updated​

Ready to build your first API with ServFlow? Start with our Installation Guide!