> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.zata.ai/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.zata.ai/manage/access-keys.md).

# Access Keys

An Access Key is used to authenticate and make secure programmatic API calls to the Zata.ai S3 service. It allows applications and S3-compatible tools to interact with object storage for operations such as uploading, downloading, listing, and managing files.

Each access key consists of two parts:

* **Access Key ID** – Acts as a public identifier (similar to a username).
* **Secret Access Key** – Acts as a private credential (similar to a password).

Both are required to authenticate requests to the Zata.ai API.

Access keys are used to make secure REST or Query protocol requests to the Zata.ai service. When configuring any S3-compatible client such as S3 Browser or Cyberduck, you must enter the Access Key ID and Secret Access Key in the respective fields.

The Zata.ai S3 endpoints are:

| Region         | Endpoint      |
| -------------- | ------------- |
| Central India  | idr01.zata.ai |
| Southern India | bom01.zata.ai |

For security reasons, the Secret Access Key should never be shared with anyone. It is recommended to store access keys securely and rotate them periodically as a best practice.

Access keys provide a standardized and secure way to connect applications and tools with Zata.ai Object Storage.