| title | Customize OpenAPI documents |
|---|---|
| author | captainsafia |
| description | Learn how to customize OpenAPI documents in an ASP.NET Core app |
| ms.author | safia |
| monikerRange | >= aspnetcore-9.0 |
| ms.custom | mvc |
| ms.date | 10/26/2024 |
| uid | fundamentals/openapi/customize-openapi |
Transformers provide an API for modifying the OpenAPI document with user-defined customizations. Transformers are useful for scenarios like:
- Adding parameters to all operations in a document.
- Modifying descriptions for parameters or operations.
- Adding top-level information to the OpenAPI document.
Transformers fall into three categories:
- Document transformers have access to the entire OpenAPI document. These can be used to make global modifications to the document.
- Operation transformers apply to each individual operation. Each individual operation is a combination of path and HTTP method. These can be used to modify parameters or responses on endpoints.
- Schema transformers apply to each schema in the document. These can be used to modify the schema of request or response bodies, or any nested schemas.
Transformers can be registered onto the document by calling the xref:Microsoft.AspNetCore.OpenApi.OpenApiOptions.AddDocumentTransformer%2A method on the xref:Microsoft.AspNetCore.OpenApi.OpenApiOptions object. The following snippet shows different ways to register transformers onto the document:
- Register a document transformer using a delegate.
- Register a document transformer using an instance of xref:Microsoft.AspNetCore.OpenApi.IOpenApiDocumentTransformer.
- Register a document transformer using a DI-activated xref:Microsoft.AspNetCore.OpenApi.IOpenApiDocumentTransformer.
- Register an operation transformer using a delegate.
- Register an operation transformer using an instance of xref:Microsoft.AspNetCore.OpenApi.IOpenApiOperationTransformer.
- Register an operation transformer using a DI-activated xref:Microsoft.AspNetCore.OpenApi.IOpenApiOperationTransformer.
- Register a schema transformer using a delegate.
- Register a schema transformer using an instance of xref:Microsoft.AspNetCore.OpenApi.IOpenApiSchemaTransformer.
- Register a schema transformer using a DI-activated xref:Microsoft.AspNetCore.OpenApi.IOpenApiSchemaTransformer.
Transformers are executed as follows:
- Schema transformers are executed when a schema is registered to the document. Schema transformers are executed in the order in which they were added. All schemas are added to the document before any operation processing occurs, so all schema transformers are executed before any operation transformers.
- Operation transformers are executed when an operation is added to the document. Operation transformers are executed in the order in which they were added. All operations are added to the document before any document transformers are executed.
- Document transformers are executed when the document is generated. This is the final pass over the document, and all operations and schemas have been add by this point.
- When an app is configured to generate multiple OpenAPI documents, transformers are executed for each document independently.
For example, in the following snippet:
SchemaTransformer2is executed and has access to the modifications made bySchemaTransformer1.- Both
OperationTransformer1andOperationTransformer2have access to the modifications made by both schema transformers for the types involved in the operation they are called to process. OperationTransformer2is executed afterOperationTransformer1, so it has access to the modifications made byOperationTransformer1.- Both
DocumentTransformer1andDocumentTransformer2are executed after all operations and schemas have been added to the document, so they have access to all modifications made by the operation and schema transformers. DocumentTransformer2is executed afterDocumentTransformer1, so it has access to the modifications made byDocumentTransformer1.
Document transformers have access to a context object that includes:
- The name of the document being modified.
- The xref:Microsoft.AspNetCore.Mvc.ApiExplorer.ApiDescriptionGroupCollectionProvider.ApiDescriptionGroups associated with that document.
- The xref:System.IServiceProvider used in document generation.
Document transformers can also mutate the OpenAPI document that is generated. The following example demonstrates a document transformer that adds some information about the API to the OpenAPI document.
Service-activated document transformers can utilize instances from DI to modify the app. The following sample demonstrates a document transformer that uses the xref:Microsoft.AspNetCore.Authentication.IAuthenticationSchemeProvider service from the authentication layer. It checks if any JWT bearer-related schemes are registered in the app and adds them to the OpenAPI document's top level:
Document transformers are unique to the document instance they're associated with. In the following example, a transformer:
- Registers authentication-related requirements to the
internaldocument. - Leaves the
publicdocument unmodified.
Operations are unique combinations of HTTP paths and methods in an OpenAPI document. Operation transformers are helpful when a modification:
- Should be made to each endpoint in an app, or
- Conditionally applied to certain routes.
Operation transformers have access to a context object which contains:
- The name of the document the operation belongs to.
- The xref:Microsoft.AspNetCore.Mvc.ApiExplorer.ApiDescription associated with the operation.
- The xref:System.IServiceProvider used in document generation.
For example, the following operation transformer adds 500 as a response status code supported by all operations in the document.
Schemas are the data models that are used in request and response bodies in an OpenAPI document. Schema transformers are useful when a modification:
- Should be made to each schema in the document, or
- Conditionally applied to certain schemas.
Schema transformers have access to a context object which contains:
- The name of the document the schema belongs to.
- The JSON type information associated with the target schema.
- The xref:System.IServiceProvider used in document generation.
For example, the following schema transformer sets the format of decimal types to decimal instead of double:
After all transformers have been applied, the framework makes a pass over the document to transfer certain schemas
to the components.schemas section, replacing them with $ref references to the transferred schema.
This reduces the size of the document and makes it easier to read.
The details of this processing are complicated and might change in future versions of .NET, but in general:
- Schemas for class/record/struct types are replaced with a
$refto a schema incomponents.schemasif they appear more than once in the document. - Schemas for primitive types and standard collections are left inline.
- Schemas for enum types are always replaced with a
$refto a schema in components.schemas.
Typically the name of the schema in components.schemas is the name of the class/record/struct type,
but in some circumstances a different name must be used.
ASP.NET Core lets you customize which schemas are replaced with a $ref to a schema in components.schemas
using the xref:Microsoft.AspNetCore.OpenApi.OpenApiOptions.CreateSchemaReferenceId property of xref:Microsoft.AspNetCore.OpenApi.OpenApiOptions.
This property is a delegate that takes a xref:System.Text.Json.Serialization.Metadata.JsonTypeInfo object and returns the name of the schema
in components.schemas that should be used for that type.
The framework provides a default implementation of this delegate, xref:Microsoft.AspNetCore.OpenApi.OpenApiOptions.CreateDefaultSchemaReferenceId%2A
that uses the name of the type, but you can replace it with your own implementation.
As a simple example of this customization, you might choose to always inline enum schemas. This is done by setting xref:Microsoft.AspNetCore.OpenApi.OpenApiOptions.CreateSchemaReferenceId to a delegate that returns null for enum types, and otherwise returns the value from the default implementation. The following code shows how to do this:
builder.Services.AddOpenApi(options =>
{
// Always inline enum schemas
options.CreateSchemaReferenceId = (type) =>
type.Type.IsEnum ? null : OpenApiOptions.CreateDefaultSchemaReferenceId(type);
});- xref:fundamentals/openapi/using-openapi-documents
- OpenAPI specification