SimTX API/Game tickets

A game ticket is a short-lived, single-use credential that a client presents to a game server in the ClientHello. Tickets keep reusable credentials away from game servers: the server only ever sees a ticket that is worthless sixty seconds later. A ticket can also be bound to a station, which is how a receiver or transmitter session gets the right to use one of the account's persistent stations.

Anonymous ad-hoc receivers and anonymous control connections do not need a ticket.

Request

POST /api/v1/game-tickets

Requires a bearer credential. Rate limit: 120 requests per minute per IP address.

{
  "serverId": "argon",
  "role": "tx-audio",
  "stationId": "3f2504e0-4f89-41d3-9a0c-0305e82c3301",
  "antennaId": "9b2c1e47-2f0a-4c55-8d1e-6a7b8c9d0e1f"
}

Field	Type	Required	Description
serverId	string	Yes	A serverId from the server directory.
role	string	Yes	The protocol role the ticket will be used for. See Roles.
stationId	string (UUID)	No	Bind the ticket to a persistent station. Transmitter roles need a station the account owns; receiver also accepts another account's PUBLIC station.
antennaId	string (UUID)	No	The station's antenna. Default: its first antenna by ordinal.
rigId	string (UUID)	No	The station's rig. Default: its first rig by ordinal, or none when the station has no rigs.

Roles

The ticket is bound to one role. The role string in the request must correspond to the role sent in the hello.

Ticket role	Hello role	Permission required to obtain the ticket	Station binding
receiver	ROLE_RECEIVER (1)	None	Optional
tx-audio	ROLE_TX_AUDIO (2)	game.transmit	Optional; transmitting through a station needs it
tx-generated	ROLE_TX_GENERATED (3)	game.transmit	Optional; transmitting through a station needs it
control	ROLE_CONTROL (4)	catalog.publish	Not allowed
moderation	ROLE_MODERATION (5)	moderation.manage	Not allowed

An authenticated control connection is only needed to publish to or delete from the extension catalog and to monitor one's own transmitters. Reading the station list, maps, ephemerides, passes and the catalog works anonymously.

The permission check uses the intersection of the credential's scopes and the account's effective permissions on that server. A credential created with scope catalog.publish cannot obtain a tx-audio ticket, even if the account itself may transmit.

Response

201 Created:

{
  "ticket": "stx_gt1_7e21...",
  "expiresAt": "2026-10-24T12:01:00Z",
  "station": {
    "stationId": "3f2504e0-4f89-41d3-9a0c-0305e82c3301",
    "antennaId": "9b2c1e47-2f0a-4c55-8d1e-6a7b8c9d0e1f",
    "rigId": "c41d7a52-0e3b-4f6a-9c8d-1b2a3c4d5e6f",
    "revision": 7,
    "access": "OWNER"
  }
}

Field	Type	Description
ticket	string	The ticket. Place it in ClientHello.credential with auth = AUTH_KIND_GAME_TICKET.
expiresAt	string	Expiry time, 60 seconds after issue.
station	object	Only for station-bound tickets: what was bound.
station.stationId	string	The station.
station.antennaId	string	The bound antenna, also when the request named none.
station.rigId	string	The bound rig. Omitted when none is bound.
station.revision	integer	The station's revision when the ticket was minted.
station.access	string	OWNER (transmit and receive) or LISTENER (receive only, on another account's PUBLIC station).

Station-bound sessions

A session started with a station-bound ticket must send a StationBinding for the same station, antenna and rig in its ReceiverStart or TransmitterStart. Copy the ids from the station object; an empty antenna or rig id in the binding selects the station's first antenna or rig, or the one the ticket was minted for. A binding that does not match, or an ad-hoc site sent with a station-bound ticket, is refused with ERROR_CODE_FORBIDDEN. See Binding a session.

The station snapshot the game server uses is taken when the ticket is consumed. A ticket minted for a station without rigs gets the station's first rig if one was added before the ticket was used.

Rules

• A ticket is valid for 60 seconds and can be used once.
• It is bound to the requested serverId and role, and to the station if one was given. Presenting it to another server or with another role fails with HELLO_STATUS_CREDENTIAL_INVALID.
• Fetch a new ticket for every connection, including every reconnect. Do not fetch tickets in advance.
• Station-bound tickets are issued only for servers that advertise the feature stations.v1.
• A ticket does not carry the user's identity in readable form. The server resolves it and returns the account in the ServerHello.

Errors

HTTP	code	Cause
400	ticket_request_invalid	The message distinguishes: serverId and role are required; unknown protocol role; unknown, disabled, or offline server; credential is not authorized for the requested protocol role (the credential's scopes or the account's permissions lack the role's permission). With station fields: antennaId and rigId need a stationId; station binding is only available for transmitter and receiver roles.
404	station_not_found	Unknown station.
403	station_forbidden	A transmitter role on a station the account does not own, or receiver on another account's UNLISTED station.
409	station_inactive	The station is deleted or deorbited.
409	station_binding_unsupported	That server does not advertise the feature stations.v1.
400	antenna_not_found, rig_not_found	The antenna or rig does not belong to the station.

401 credential_missing and 401 credential_invalid apply as for every authenticated endpoint.

Example

curl -s -X POST https://auth.simtx.net/api/v1/game-tickets \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $SIMTX_TOKEN" \
  -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  -d '{"serverId":"argon","role":"receiver","stationId":"3f2504e0-4f89-41d3-9a0c-0305e82c3301"}'