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

# Introduction

Helix is an enterprise API gateway and developer platform. The data plane sits in front of your backend services and enforces routing, authentication, rate-limiting, transformation, and observability policy. The Helix Portal is the control plane you use every day.

{% hint style="info" %}
**Who this guide is for.** You are the engineer who runs the API gateway: you operate production traffic, manage backend pools, configure routing and traffic policy, attach plugins, issue and rotate credentials for external consumers, and read the dashboards during a release. This guide covers the mechanics of doing that work in Helix; it does not re-explain gateway concepts you already know.
{% endhint %}

<table data-view="cards"><thead><tr><th></th><th></th><th data-hidden data-card-target data-type="content-ref"></th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td><strong>API Gateway</strong></td><td>APIs, upstreams, routes, plugins, and environments. The core traffic-management surface.</td><td><a href="/api-gateway/api-gateway/defining-apis.md">Defining APIs</a></td></tr><tr><td><strong>Observability</strong></td><td>Custom widgets, request traces, and custom reports for live traffic.</td><td><a href="/api-gateway/observability/building-custom-widgets.md">Building custom widgets</a></td></tr><tr><td><strong>Developer Portal</strong></td><td>The consumer experience and API distribution, documented as a separate product.</td><td><a href="https://docs.digitalapi.ai/developer-portal">https://docs.digitalapi.ai/developer-portal</a></td></tr><tr><td><strong>Setup</strong></td><td>Organisation, users, groups, roles, and identity-provider connections.</td><td><a href="/api-gateway/setup/managing-your-organisation.md">Managing your organisation</a></td></tr></tbody></table>

## Get started

<table data-view="cards"><thead><tr><th></th><th></th><th data-hidden data-card-target data-type="content-ref"></th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td><strong>Getting started</strong></td><td>Sign in, learn the portal layout, and walk the first-day path.</td><td><a href="/api-gateway/getting-started.md">Getting started</a></td></tr><tr><td><strong>Defining APIs</strong></td><td>Create an API and bind it to a backend.</td><td><a href="/api-gateway/api-gateway/defining-apis.md">Defining APIs</a></td></tr><tr><td><strong>Configuring upstreams</strong></td><td>Define backend pools with health checks and load balancing.</td><td><a href="/api-gateway/api-gateway/configuring-upstreams.md">Configuring upstreams</a></td></tr><tr><td><strong>Browsing the plugin catalogue</strong></td><td>Find and understand the plugins you can attach.</td><td><a href="/api-gateway/api-gateway/browsing-the-plugin-catalogue.md">Browsing the plugin catalogue</a></td></tr></tbody></table>

## Core features

<table data-view="cards"><thead><tr><th></th><th></th><th data-hidden data-card-target data-type="content-ref"></th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td><strong>Working with environments</strong></td><td>Promote APIs and rotate credentials across environments.</td><td><a href="/api-gateway/api-gateway/working-with-environments.md">Working with environments</a></td></tr><tr><td><strong>Building custom widgets</strong></td><td>Build named widgets for the metrics you watch every day.</td><td><a href="/api-gateway/observability/building-custom-widgets.md">Building custom widgets</a></td></tr><tr><td><strong>Investigating with request traces</strong></td><td>Drill from a data point into the end-to-end timing of a single request.</td><td><a href="/api-gateway/observability/investigating-with-request-traces.md">Investigating with request traces</a></td></tr><tr><td><strong>Plugin reference</strong></td><td>Every plugin by category, with priority and configuration fields.</td><td><a href="/api-gateway/plugin-reference/plugin-reference.md">Plugin reference</a></td></tr></tbody></table>

## Administer and operate

<table data-view="cards"><thead><tr><th></th><th></th><th data-hidden data-card-target data-type="content-ref"></th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td><strong>API Gateway</strong></td><td>Define APIs, configure upstreams, attach plugins, and bind environments.</td><td><a href="/api-gateway/api-gateway/defining-apis.md">Defining APIs</a></td></tr><tr><td><strong>Developer Portal</strong></td><td>The consumer experience and API distribution, documented as a separate product.</td><td><a href="https://docs.digitalapi.ai/developer-portal">https://docs.digitalapi.ai/developer-portal</a></td></tr><tr><td><strong>Managing your organisation</strong></td><td>Users, groups, roles, and identity-provider connections.</td><td><a href="/api-gateway/setup/managing-your-organisation.md">Managing your organisation</a></td></tr><tr><td><strong>Troubleshooting and FAQs</strong></td><td>Symptom-cause-fix lookups and common onboarding questions.</td><td><a href="/api-gateway/reference/troubleshooting.md">Troubleshooting</a></td></tr></tbody></table>

{% hint style="success" %}
**New here?** Start with [Getting started](/api-gateway/getting-started.md) to sign in and learn the portal layout, then follow the first-day path to put one API in front of one consumer. For what Helix is, its capabilities, and deployment models, read the [Overview](/api-gateway/overview.md).
{% endhint %}


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