Manual Connection Setup
How to manually configure a platform connection with your own API credentials.
Advanced: Connect With Your Own Credentials
For advanced users or custom setups, SoSocial allows you to manually configure a platform connection by entering your own API credentials directly — bypassing the standard OAuth flow.
When to Use Manual Connection
Manual connections are useful when:
- You already have your own API access tokens from the platform’s developer portal.
- You’re setting up a connection in a testing or development environment.
- Your SoSocial instance doesn’t have OAuth app credentials configured for a particular platform.
- You need to connect with custom scopes or a specialized API setup.
How to Set Up a Manual Connection
- Go to Settings from the sidebar.
- Under Platform Connections, find the manual connection option.
- Select the platform you want to connect.
- Enter the required credentials:
- Access Token — The API access token for your account.
- Account/Page ID — The platform-specific user or page identifier (e.g., your Facebook Page ID, Instagram Business Account ID, or X user ID).
- Click Save to store the connection.
SoSocial encrypts the provided access token with AES-256-GCM, just like tokens obtained through the standard OAuth flow.
Obtaining Your Own Tokens
Each platform has a developer portal where you can generate tokens:
- Facebook/Instagram: Use the Meta Graph API Explorer to generate a Page Access Token with the required permissions.
- X/Twitter: Create a project in the X Developer Portal and generate OAuth 2.0 tokens.
- TikTok: Use the TikTok Developer Portal to obtain access tokens.
Important Considerations
- Token expiration: Manually entered tokens may expire depending on the platform. Unlike OAuth-obtained tokens, they may not auto-refresh. Monitor for publishing failures and update the token when needed.
- Permissions: Ensure your manually generated token includes all the scopes SoSocial needs for publishing and reading engagement data.
- Security: Treat access tokens like passwords. Only use this method if you understand the implications of managing tokens yourself.
Switching to OAuth
You can switch from a manual connection to a standard OAuth connection at any time. Simply disconnect the manual connection and use the regular Connect button to go through the OAuth flow.