Configure runners for internal APIs

As an Admin or Super Admin, you can use Private API Monitoring to create runners that monitor and test your organization’s APIs. Runners enable your team to run monitors from your internal network, without publicly exposing your endpoints.

You can create a runner when configuring a monitor or from Runner settings. Start a runner with the Postman CLI from your internal network where it securely polls Postman for monitor runs.

Once set up, your teammates can configure monitors with the runner and view monitor results in Postman.

Create a runner with Private API Monitoring

You can create a runner when configuring a monitor or from Runner settings.

To create a runner when configuring a monitor, follow the steps to create or edit a monitor. Under Runners, click Add Runner.

To create a runner from the Runner settings, click your profile icon in the Postman header, click your organization or team name, and then click Runners in the left sidebar. Click Add Runner in the upper right.

To create a runner, do the following:

1. Give your runner a name and description.

2. Choose internal workspaces where the runner is visible. Select one of the following:

   • All internal workspaces — The runner is visible in all internal workspaces in your team.

   • Selected workspace — Click the Select workspace dropdown list and then select the internal workspace where the runner is visible.

     You can change this later when you’re ready to make the runner visible in all your team’s internal workspaces.

3. Click Next: install runner.

4. Click Copy to clipboard to copy the Postman CLI runner command with the runner ID and key. Postman identifies a runner using its runner ID, and a runner uses the runner ID and key to authenticate with Postman.

   You can’t access the runner key again later. You can reset the runner key later, if needed.

5. Click Done.

6. Set up the runner in your internal network.

Learn how to manage your runners from Runner settings.

Set up a runner with the Postman CLI

You can get started by learning how to start the runner in your internal network. You can containerize the runner using Docker to set up the runner in your cloud network, like a virtual private cloud. Learn more about setting up the runner with the Postman CLI.

Once the runner is set up and running, your teammates can configure a monitor with the runner.

Configure a monitor with a runner

When creating a monitor, select a runner to run in your internal network. Runners are only supported in internal workspaces. After you’ve created the monitor with the runner, you can check your monitor’s results in Postman.

To create a monitor that uses an existing runner, do the following

1. Create or edit a monitor.
2. Under Run method, specify how often Postman runs the selected monitor. This can be as often as every five minutes for a status page, or a basic check once a week on your endpoints. You can also configure the monitor to only run when trigger by the Postman CLI.
3. Under Runners, click the dropdown list to search for and select runners created with Private API Monitoring.
4. Continue configuring your monitor.
5. Click Create Monitor or Update Monitor.

Check your internal API monitor

Your monitor’s results show the health and performance of your internal APIs. For more information about Postman Monitor features, see View monitor results.