# Publishing
Publishing messages can be done via HTTP PUT/POST or via the [ntfy CLI](install.md). Topics are created on the fly by
subscribing or publishing to them. Because there is no sign-up, **the topic is essentially a password**, so pick
something that's not easily guessable.
Here's an example showing how to publish a simple message using a POST request:
=== "Command line (curl)"
```
curl -d "Backup successful 😀" ntfy.sh/mytopic
```
=== "ntfy CLI"
```
ntfy publish mytopic "Backup successful 😀"
```
=== "HTTP"
``` http
POST /mytopic HTTP/1.1
Host: ntfy.sh
Backup successful 😀
```
=== "JavaScript"
``` javascript
fetch('https://ntfy.sh/mytopic', {
method: 'POST', // PUT works too
body: 'Backup successful 😀'
})
```
=== "Go"
``` go
http.Post("https://ntfy.sh/mytopic", "text/plain",
strings.NewReader("Backup successful 😀"))
```
=== "Python"
``` python
requests.post("https://ntfy.sh/mytopic",
data="Backup successful 😀".encode(encoding='utf-8'))
```
=== "PHP"
``` php-inline
file_get_contents('https://ntfy.sh/mytopic', false, stream_context_create([
'http' => [
'method' => 'POST', // PUT also works
'header' => 'Content-Type: text/plain',
'content' => 'Backup successful 😀'
]
]));
```
If you have the [Android app](subscribe/phone.md) installed on your phone, this will create a notification that looks like this:
![basic notification](static/img/android-screenshot-basic-notification.png){ width=500 }
Android notification
There are more features related to publishing messages: You can set a [notification priority](#message-priority),
a [title](#message-title), and [tag messages](#tags-emojis) 🥳 🎉. Here's an example that uses some of them at together:
=== "Command line (curl)"
```
curl \
-H "Title: Unauthorized access detected" \
-H "Priority: urgent" \
-H "Tags: warning,skull" \
-d "Remote access to phils-laptop detected. Act right away." \
ntfy.sh/phil_alerts
```
=== "ntfy CLI"
```
ntfy publish \
--title "Unauthorized access detected" \
--tags warning,skull \
--priority urgent \
mytopic \
"Remote access to phils-laptop detected. Act right away."
```
=== "HTTP"
``` http
POST /phil_alerts HTTP/1.1
Host: ntfy.sh
Title: Unauthorized access detected
Priority: urgent
Tags: warning,skull
Remote access to phils-laptop detected. Act right away.
```
=== "JavaScript"
``` javascript
fetch('https://ntfy.sh/phil_alerts', {
method: 'POST', // PUT works too
body: 'Remote access to phils-laptop detected. Act right away.',
headers: {
'Title': 'Unauthorized access detected',
'Priority': 'urgent',
'Tags': 'warning,skull'
}
})
```
=== "Go"
``` go
req, _ := http.NewRequest("POST", "https://ntfy.sh/phil_alerts",
strings.NewReader("Remote access to phils-laptop detected. Act right away."))
req.Header.Set("Title", "Unauthorized access detected")
req.Header.Set("Priority", "urgent")
req.Header.Set("Tags", "warning,skull")
http.DefaultClient.Do(req)
```
=== "Python"
``` python
requests.post("https://ntfy.sh/phil_alerts",
data="Remote access to phils-laptop detected. Act right away.",
headers={
"Title": "Unauthorized access detected",
"Priority": "urgent",
"Tags": "warning,skull"
})
```
=== "PHP"
``` php-inline
file_get_contents('https://ntfy.sh/phil_alerts', false, stream_context_create([
'http' => [
'method' => 'POST', // PUT also works
'header' =>
"Content-Type: text/plain\r\n" .
"Title: Unauthorized access detected\r\n" .
"Priority: urgent\r\n" .
"Tags: warning,skull",
'content' => 'Remote access to phils-laptop detected. Act right away.'
]
]));
```
![priority notification](static/img/priority-notification.png){ width=500 }
Urgent notification with tags and title
## Message title
The notification title is typically set to the topic short URL (e.g. `ntfy.sh/mytopic`). To override the title,
you can set the `X-Title` header (or any of its aliases: `Title`, `ti`, or `t`).
=== "Command line (curl)"
```
curl -H "X-Title: Dogs are better than cats" -d "Oh my ..." ntfy.sh/controversial
curl -H "Title: Dogs are better than cats" -d "Oh my ..." ntfy.sh/controversial
curl -H "t: Dogs are better than cats" -d "Oh my ..." ntfy.sh/controversial
```
=== "ntfy CLI"
```
ntfy publish \
-t "Dogs are better than cats" \
controversial "Oh my ..."
```
=== "HTTP"
``` http
POST /controversial HTTP/1.1
Host: ntfy.sh
Title: Dogs are better than cats
Oh my ...
```
=== "JavaScript"
``` javascript
fetch('https://ntfy.sh/controversial', {
method: 'POST',
body: 'Oh my ...',
headers: { 'Title': 'Dogs are better than cats' }
})
```
=== "Go"
``` go
req, _ := http.NewRequest("POST", "https://ntfy.sh/controversial", strings.NewReader("Oh my ..."))
req.Header.Set("Title", "Dogs are better than cats")
http.DefaultClient.Do(req)
```
=== "Python"
``` python
requests.post("https://ntfy.sh/controversial",
data="Oh my ...",
headers={ "Title": "Dogs are better than cats" })
```
=== "PHP"
``` php-inline
file_get_contents('https://ntfy.sh/controversial', false, stream_context_create([
'http' => [
'method' => 'POST',
'header' =>
"Content-Type: text/plain\r\n" .
"Title: Dogs are better than cats",
'content' => 'Oh my ...'
]
]));
```
![notification with title](static/img/notification-with-title.png){ width=500 }
Detail view of notification with title
## Message priority
All messages have a priority, which defines how urgently your phone notifies you. You can set custom
notification sounds and vibration patterns on your phone to map to these priorities (see [Android config](subscribe/phone.md)).
The following priorities exist:
| Priority | Icon | ID | Name | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Max priority | ![min priority](static/img/priority-5.svg) | `5` | `max`/`urgent` | Really long vibration bursts, default notification sound with a pop-over notification. |
| High priority | ![min priority](static/img/priority-4.svg) | `4` | `high` | Long vibration burst, default notification sound with a pop-over notification. |
| **Default priority** | *(none)* | `3` | `default` | Short default vibration and sound. Default notification behavior. |
| Low priority | ![min priority](static/img/priority-2.svg) |`2` | `low` | No vibration or sound. Notification will not visibly show up until notification drawer is pulled down. |
| Min priority | ![min priority](static/img/priority-1.svg) | `1` | `min` | No vibration or sound. The notification will be under the fold in "Other notifications". |
You can set the priority with the header `X-Priority` (or any of its aliases: `Priority`, `prio`, or `p`).
=== "Command line (curl)"
```
curl -H "X-Priority: 5" -d "An urgent message" ntfy.sh/phil_alerts
curl -H "Priority: low" -d "Low priority message" ntfy.sh/phil_alerts
curl -H p:4 -d "A high priority message" ntfy.sh/phil_alerts
```
=== "ntfy CLI"
```
ntfy publish \
-p 5 \
phil_alerts An urgent message
```
=== "HTTP"
``` http
POST /phil_alerts HTTP/1.1
Host: ntfy.sh
Priority: 5
An urgent message
```
=== "JavaScript"
``` javascript
fetch('https://ntfy.sh/phil_alerts', {
method: 'POST',
body: 'An urgent message',
headers: { 'Priority': '5' }
})
```
=== "Go"
``` go
req, _ := http.NewRequest("POST", "https://ntfy.sh/phil_alerts", strings.NewReader("An urgent message"))
req.Header.Set("Priority", "5")
http.DefaultClient.Do(req)
```
=== "Python"
``` python
requests.post("https://ntfy.sh/phil_alerts",
data="An urgent message",
headers={ "Priority": "5" })
```
=== "PHP"
``` php-inline
file_get_contents('https://ntfy.sh/phil_alerts', false, stream_context_create([
'http' => [
'method' => 'POST',
'header' =>
"Content-Type: text/plain\r\n" .
"Priority: 5",
'content' => 'An urgent message'
]
]));
```
![priority notification](static/img/priority-detail-overview.png){ width=500 }
Detail view of priority notifications
## Tags & emojis 🥳 🎉
You can tag messages with emojis and other relevant strings:
* **Emojis**: If a tag matches an [emoji short code](emojis.md), it'll be converted to an emoji and prepended
to title or message.
* **Other tags:** If a tag doesn't match, it will be listed below the notification.
This feature is useful for things like warnings (⚠️, ️🚨, or 🚩), but also to simply tag messages otherwise (e.g. script
names, hostnames, etc.). Use [the emoji short code list](emojis.md) to figure out what tags can be converted to emojis.
Here's an **excerpt of emojis** I've found very useful in alert messages:
Tag
Emoji
+1
👍️
partying_face
🥳
tada
🎉
heavy_check_mark
✔️
loudspeaker
📢
...
...
Tag
Emoji
-1
👎️
warning
⚠️
rotating_light
️🚨
triangular_flag_on_post
🚩
skull
💀
...
...
Tag
Emoji
facepalm
🤦
no_entry
⛔
no_entry_sign
🚫
cd
💿
computer
💻
...
...
You can set tags with the `X-Tags` header (or any of its aliases: `Tags`, `tag`, or `ta`). Specify multiple tags by separating
them with a comma, e.g. `tag1,tag2,tag3`.
=== "Command line (curl)"
```
curl -H "X-Tags: warning,mailsrv13,daily-backup" -d "Backup of mailsrv13 failed" ntfy.sh/backups
curl -H "Tags: horse,unicorn" -d "Unicorns are just horses with unique horns" ntfy.sh/backups
curl -H ta:dog -d "Dogs are awesome" ntfy.sh/backups
```
=== "ntfy CLI"
```
ntfy publish \
--tags=warning,mailsrv13,daily-backup \
backups "Backup of mailsrv13 failed"
```
=== "HTTP"
``` http
POST /backups HTTP/1.1
Host: ntfy.sh
Tags: warning,mailsrv13,daily-backup
Backup of mailsrv13 failed
```
=== "JavaScript"
``` javascript
fetch('https://ntfy.sh/backups', {
method: 'POST',
body: 'Backup of mailsrv13 failed',
headers: { 'Tags': 'warning,mailsrv13,daily-backup' }
})
```
=== "Go"
``` go
req, _ := http.NewRequest("POST", "https://ntfy.sh/backups", strings.NewReader("Backup of mailsrv13 failed"))
req.Header.Set("Tags", "warning,mailsrv13,daily-backup")
http.DefaultClient.Do(req)
```
=== "Python"
``` python
requests.post("https://ntfy.sh/backups",
data="Backup of mailsrv13 failed",
headers={ "Tags": "warning,mailsrv13,daily-backup" })
```
=== "PHP"
``` php-inline
file_get_contents('https://ntfy.sh/backups', false, stream_context_create([
'http' => [
'method' => 'POST',
'header' =>
"Content-Type: text/plain\r\n" .
"Tags: warning,mailsrv13,daily-backup",
'content' => 'Backup of mailsrv13 failed'
]
]));
```
![priority notification](static/img/notification-with-tags.png){ width=500 }
Detail view of notifications with tags
## Scheduled delivery
You can delay the delivery of messages and let ntfy send them at a later date. This can be used to send yourself
reminders or even to execute commands at a later date (if your subscriber acts on messages).
Usage is pretty straight forward. You can set the delivery time using the `X-Delay` header (or any of its aliases: `Delay`,
`X-At`, `At`, `X-In` or `In`), either by specifying a Unix timestamp (e.g. `1639194738`), a duration (e.g. `30m`,
`3h`, `2 days`), or a natural language time string (e.g. `10am`, `8:30pm`, `tomorrow, 3pm`, `Tuesday, 7am`,
[and more](https://github.com/olebedev/when)).
As of today, the minimum delay you can set is **10 seconds** and the maximum delay is **3 days**. This can currently
not be configured otherwise ([let me know](https://github.com/binwiederhier/ntfy/issues) if you'd like to change
these limits).
For the purposes of [message caching](config.md#message-cache), scheduled messages are kept in the cache until 12 hours
after they were delivered (or whatever the server-side cache duration is set to). For instance, if a message is scheduled
to be delivered in 3 days, it'll remain in the cache for 3 days and 12 hours. Also note that naturally,
[turning off server-side caching](#message-caching) is not possible in combination with this feature.
=== "Command line (curl)"
```
curl -H "At: tomorrow, 10am" -d "Good morning" ntfy.sh/hello
curl -H "In: 30min" -d "It's 30 minutes later now" ntfy.sh/reminder
curl -H "Delay: 1639194738" -d "Unix timestamps are awesome" ntfy.sh/itsaunixsystem
```
=== "ntfy CLI"
```
ntfy publish \
--at="tomorrow, 10am" \
hello "Good morning"
```
=== "HTTP"
``` http
POST /hello HTTP/1.1
Host: ntfy.sh
At: tomorrow, 10am
Good morning
```
=== "JavaScript"
``` javascript
fetch('https://ntfy.sh/hello', {
method: 'POST',
body: 'Good morning',
headers: { 'At': 'tomorrow, 10am' }
})
```
=== "Go"
``` go
req, _ := http.NewRequest("POST", "https://ntfy.sh/hello", strings.NewReader("Good morning"))
req.Header.Set("At", "tomorrow, 10am")
http.DefaultClient.Do(req)
```
=== "Python"
``` python
requests.post("https://ntfy.sh/hello",
data="Good morning",
headers={ "At": "tomorrow, 10am" })
```
=== "PHP"
``` php-inline
file_get_contents('https://ntfy.sh/backups', false, stream_context_create([
'http' => [
'method' => 'POST',
'header' =>
"Content-Type: text/plain\r\n" .
"At: tomorrow, 10am",
'content' => 'Good morning'
]
]));
```
Here are a few examples (assuming today's date is **12/10/2021, 9am, Eastern Time Zone**):
Delay/At/In header
Message will be delivered at
Explanation
30m
12/10/2021, 9:30am
30 minutes from now
2 hours
12/10/2021, 11:30am
2 hours from now
1 day
12/11/2021, 9am
24 hours from now
10am
12/10/2021, 10am
Today at 10am (same day, because it's only 9am)
8am
12/11/2021, 8am
Tomorrow at 8am (because it's 9am already)
1639152000
12/10/2021, 11am (EST)
Today at 11am (EST)
## Webhooks (Send via GET)
In addition to using PUT/POST, you can also send to topics via simple HTTP GET requests. This makes it easy to use
a ntfy topic as a [webhook](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Webhook), or if your client has limited HTTP support (e.g.
like the [MacroDroid](https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.arlosoft.macrodroid) Android app).
To send messages via HTTP GET, simply call the `/publish` endpoint (or its aliases `/send` and `/trigger`). Without
any arguments, this will send the message `triggered` to the topic. However, you can provide all arguments that are
also supported as HTTP headers as URL-encoded arguments. Be sure to check the list of all
[supported parameters and headers](#list-of-all-parameters) for details.
For instance, assuming your topic is `mywebhook`, you can simply call `/mywebhook/trigger` to send a message
(aka trigger the webhook):
=== "Command line (curl)"
```
curl ntfy.sh/mywebhook/trigger
```
=== "ntfy CLI"
```
ntfy trigger mywebhook
```
=== "HTTP"
``` http
GET /mywebhook/trigger HTTP/1.1
Host: ntfy.sh
```
=== "JavaScript"
``` javascript
fetch('https://ntfy.sh/mywebhook/trigger')
```
=== "Go"
``` go
http.Get("https://ntfy.sh/mywebhook/trigger")
```
=== "Python"
``` python
requests.get("https://ntfy.sh/mywebhook/trigger")
```
=== "PHP"
``` php-inline
file_get_contents('https://ntfy.sh/mywebhook/trigger');
```
To add a custom message, simply append the `message=` URL parameter. And of course you can set the
[message priority](#message-priority), the [message title](#message-title), and [tags](#tags-emojis) as well.
For a full list of possible parameters, check the list of [supported parameters and headers](#list-of-all-parameters).
Here's an example with a custom message, tags and a priority:
=== "Command line (curl)"
```
curl "ntfy.sh/mywebhook/publish?message=Webhook+triggered&priority=high&tags=warning,skull"
```
=== "ntfy CLI"
```
ntfy publish \
-p 5 --tags=warning,skull \
mywebhook "Webhook triggered"
```
=== "HTTP"
``` http
GET /mywebhook/publish?message=Webhook+triggered&priority=high&tags=warning,skull HTTP/1.1
Host: ntfy.sh
```
=== "JavaScript"
``` javascript
fetch('https://ntfy.sh/mywebhook/publish?message=Webhook+triggered&priority=high&tags=warning,skull')
```
=== "Go"
``` go
http.Get("https://ntfy.sh/mywebhook/publish?message=Webhook+triggered&priority=high&tags=warning,skull")
```
=== "Python"
``` python
requests.get("https://ntfy.sh/mywebhook/publish?message=Webhook+triggered&priority=high&tags=warning,skull")
```
=== "PHP"
``` php-inline
file_get_contents('https://ntfy.sh/mywebhook/publish?message=Webhook+triggered&priority=high&tags=warning,skull');
```
## Click action
You can define which URL to open when a notification is clicked. This may be useful if your notification is related
to a Zabbix alert or a transaction that you'd like to provide the deep-link for. Tapping the notification will open
the web browser (or the app) and open the website.
Here's an example that will open Reddit when the notification is clicked:
=== "Command line (curl)"
```
curl \
-d "New messages on Reddit" \
-H "Click: https://www.reddit.com/message/messages" \
ntfy.sh/reddit_alerts
```
=== "ntfy CLI"
```
ntfy publish \
--click="https://www.reddit.com/message/messages" \
reddit_alerts "New messages on Reddit"
```
=== "HTTP"
``` http
POST /reddit_alerts HTTP/1.1
Host: ntfy.sh
Click: https://www.reddit.com/message/messages
New messages on Reddit
```
=== "JavaScript"
``` javascript
fetch('https://ntfy.sh/reddit_alerts', {
method: 'POST',
body: 'New messages on Reddit',
headers: { 'Click': 'https://www.reddit.com/message/messages' }
})
```
=== "Go"
``` go
req, _ := http.NewRequest("POST", "https://ntfy.sh/reddit_alerts", strings.NewReader("New messages on Reddit"))
req.Header.Set("Click", "https://www.reddit.com/message/messages")
http.DefaultClient.Do(req)
```
=== "Python"
``` python
requests.post("https://ntfy.sh/reddit_alerts",
data="New messages on Reddit",
headers={ "Click": "https://www.reddit.com/message/messages" })
```
=== "PHP"
``` php-inline
file_get_contents('https://ntfy.sh/reddit_alerts', false, stream_context_create([
'http' => [
'method' => 'POST',
'header' =>
"Content-Type: text/plain\r\n" .
"Click: https://www.reddit.com/message/messages",
'content' => 'New messages on Reddit'
]
]));
```
## Attachments
You can **send images and other files to your phone** as attachments to a notification. The attachments are then downloaded
onto your phone (depending on size and setting automatically), and can be used from the Downloads folder.
There are two different ways to send attachments:
* sending [a local file](#attach-local-file) via PUT, e.g. from `~/Flowers/flower.jpg` or `ringtone.mp3`
* or by [passing an external URL](#attach-file-from-a-url) as an attachment, e.g. `https://f-droid.org/F-Droid.apk`
### Attach local file
To **send a file from your computer** as an attachment, you can send it as the PUT request body. If a message is greater
than the maximum message size (4,096 bytes) or consists of non UTF-8 characters, the ntfy server will automatically
detect the mime type and size, and send the message as an attachment file. To send smaller text-only messages or files
as attachments, you must pass a filename by passing the `X-Filename` header or query parameter (or any of its aliases
`Filename`, `File` or `f`).
By default, and how ntfy.sh is configured, the **max attachment size is 15 MB** (with 100 MB total per visitor).
Attachments **expire after 3 hours**, which typically is plenty of time for the user to download it, or for the Android app
to auto-download it. Please also check out the [other limits below](#limitations).
Here's an example showing how to upload an image:
=== "Command line (curl)"
```
curl \
-T flower.jpg \
-H "Filename: flower.jpg" \
ntfy.sh/flowers
```
=== "ntfy CLI"
```
ntfy publish \
--file=flower.jpg \
flowers
```
=== "HTTP"
``` http
PUT /flowers HTTP/1.1
Host: ntfy.sh
Filename: flower.jpg
Content-Type: 52312
```
=== "JavaScript"
``` javascript
fetch('https://ntfy.sh/flowers', {
method: 'PUT',
body: document.getElementById("file").files[0],
headers: { 'Filename': 'flower.jpg' }
})
```
=== "Go"
``` go
file, _ := os.Open("flower.jpg")
req, _ := http.NewRequest("PUT", "https://ntfy.sh/flowers", file)
req.Header.Set("Filename", "flower.jpg")
http.DefaultClient.Do(req)
```
=== "Python"
``` python
requests.put("https://ntfy.sh/flowers",
data=open("flower.jpg", 'rb'),
headers={ "Filename": "flower.jpg" })
```
=== "PHP"
``` php-inline
file_get_contents('https://ntfy.sh/flowers', false, stream_context_create([
'http' => [
'method' => 'PUT',
'header' =>
"Content-Type: application/octet-stream\r\n" . // Does not matter
"Filename: flower.jpg",
'content' => file_get_contents('flower.jpg') // Dangerous for large files
]
]));
```
Here's what that looks like on Android:
![image attachment](static/img/android-screenshot-attachment-image.png){ width=500 }
Image attachment sent from a local file
### Attach file from a URL
Instead of sending a local file to your phone, you can use **an external URL** to specify where the attachment is hosted.
This could be a Dropbox link, a file from social media, or any other publicly available URL. Since the files are
externally hosted, the expiration or size limits from above do not apply here.
To attach an external file, simple pass the `X-Attach` header or query parameter (or any of its aliases `Attach` or `a`)
to specify the attachment URL. It can be any type of file. Here's an example showing how to upload an image:
=== "Command line (curl)"
```
curl \
-X POST \
-H "Attach: https://f-droid.org/F-Droid.apk" \
ntfy.sh/mydownloads
```
=== "ntfy CLI"
```
ntfy publish \
--attach="https://f-droid.org/F-Droid.apk" \
mydownloads
```
=== "HTTP"
``` http
POST /mydownloads HTTP/1.1
Host: ntfy.sh
Attach: https://f-droid.org/F-Droid.apk
```
=== "JavaScript"
``` javascript
fetch('https://ntfy.sh/mydownloads', {
method: 'POST',
headers: { 'Attach': 'https://f-droid.org/F-Droid.apk' }
})
```
=== "Go"
``` go
req, _ := http.NewRequest("POST", "https://ntfy.sh/mydownloads", file)
req.Header.Set("Attach", "https://f-droid.org/F-Droid.apk")
http.DefaultClient.Do(req)
```
=== "Python"
``` python
requests.put("https://ntfy.sh/mydownloads",
headers={ "Attach": "https://f-droid.org/F-Droid.apk" })
```
=== "PHP"
``` php-inline
file_get_contents('https://ntfy.sh/mydownloads', false, stream_context_create([
'http' => [
'method' => 'PUT',
'header' =>
"Content-Type: text/plain\r\n" . // Does not matter
"Attach: https://f-droid.org/F-Droid.apk",
]
]));
```
![file attachment](static/img/android-screenshot-attachment-file.png){ width=500 }
File attachment sent from an external URL
## E-mail notifications
You can forward messages to e-mail by specifying an address in the header. This can be useful for messages that
you'd like to persist longer, or to blast-notify yourself on all possible channels.
Usage is easy: Simply pass the `X-Email` header (or any of its aliases: `X-E-mail`, `Email`, `E-mail`, `Mail`, or `e`).
Only one e-mail address is supported.
Since ntfy does not provide auth (yet), the rate limiting is pretty strict (see [limitations](#limitations)). In the
default configuration, you get **16 e-mails per visitor** (IP address) and then after that one per hour. On top of
that, your IP address appears in the e-mail body. This is to prevent abuse.
=== "Command line (curl)"
```
curl \
-H "Email: phil@example.com" \
-H "Tags: warning,skull,backup-host,ssh-login" \
-H "Priority: high" \
-d "Unknown login from 5.31.23.83 to backups.example.com" \
ntfy.sh/alerts
curl -H "Email: phil@example.com" -d "You've Got Mail"
curl -d "You've Got Mail" "ntfy.sh/alerts?email=phil@example.com"
```
=== "ntfy CLI"
```
ntfy publish \
--email=phil@example.com \
--tags=warning,skull,backup-host,ssh-login \
--priority=high \
alerts "Unknown login from 5.31.23.83 to backups.example.com"
```
=== "HTTP"
``` http
POST /alerts HTTP/1.1
Host: ntfy.sh
Email: phil@example.com
Tags: warning,skull,backup-host,ssh-login
Priority: high
Unknown login from 5.31.23.83 to backups.example.com
```
=== "JavaScript"
``` javascript
fetch('https://ntfy.sh/alerts', {
method: 'POST',
body: "Unknown login from 5.31.23.83 to backups.example.com",
headers: {
'Email': 'phil@example.com',
'Tags': 'warning,skull,backup-host,ssh-login',
'Priority': 'high'
}
})
```
=== "Go"
``` go
req, _ := http.NewRequest("POST", "https://ntfy.sh/alerts",
strings.NewReader("Unknown login from 5.31.23.83 to backups.example.com"))
req.Header.Set("Email", "phil@example.com")
req.Header.Set("Tags", "warning,skull,backup-host,ssh-login")
req.Header.Set("Priority", "high")
http.DefaultClient.Do(req)
```
=== "Python"
``` python
requests.post("https://ntfy.sh/alerts",
data="Unknown login from 5.31.23.83 to backups.example.com",
headers={
"Email": "phil@example.com",
"Tags": "warning,skull,backup-host,ssh-login",
"Priority": "high"
})
```
=== "PHP"
``` php-inline
file_get_contents('https://ntfy.sh/alerts', false, stream_context_create([
'http' => [
'method' => 'POST',
'header' =>
"Content-Type: text/plain\r\n" .
"Email: phil@example.com\r\n" .
"Tags: warning,skull,backup-host,ssh-login\r\n" .
"Priority: high",
'content' => 'Unknown login from 5.31.23.83 to backups.example.com'
]
]));
```
Here's what that looks like in Google Mail:
![e-mail notification](static/img/screenshot-email.png){ width=600 }
E-mail notification
## E-mail publishing
You can publish messages to a topic via e-mail, i.e. by sending an email to a specific address. For instance, you can
publish a message to the topic `sometopic` by sending an e-mail to `ntfy-sometopic@ntfy.sh`. This is useful for e-mail
based integrations such as for statuspage.io (though these days most services also support webhooks and HTTP calls).
Depending on the [server configuration](config.md#e-mail-publishing), the e-mail address format can have a prefix to
prevent spam on topics. For ntfy.sh, the prefix is configured to `ntfy-`, meaning that the general e-mail address
format is:
```
ntfy-$topic@ntfy.sh
```
As of today, e-mail publishing only supports adding a [message title](#message-title) (the e-mail subject). Tags, priority,
delay and other features are not supported (yet). Here's an example that will publish a message with the
title `You've Got Mail` to topic `sometopic` (see [ntfy.sh/sometopic](https://ntfy.sh/sometopic)):
![e-mail publishing](static/img/screenshot-email-publishing-gmail.png){ width=500 }
Publishing a message via e-mail
## Advanced features
### Authentication
Depending on whether the server is configured to support [access control](config.md#access-control), some topics
may be read/write protected so that only users with the correct credentials can subscribe or publish to them.
To publish/subscribe to protected topics, you can use [Basic Auth](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basic_access_authentication)
with a valid username/password. For your self-hosted server, **be sure to use HTTPS to avoid eavesdropping** and exposing
your password.
Here's a simple example:
=== "Command line (curl)"
```
curl \
-u phil:mypass \
-d "Look ma, with auth" \
https://ntfy.example.com/mysecrets
```
=== "ntfy CLI"
```
ntfy publish \
-u phil:mypass \
ntfy.example.com/mysecrets \
"Look ma, with auth"
```
=== "HTTP"
``` http
POST /mysecrets HTTP/1.1
Host: ntfy.example.com
Authorization: Basic cGhpbDpteXBhc3M=
Look ma, with auth
```
=== "JavaScript"
``` javascript
fetch('https://ntfy.example.com/mysecrets', {
method: 'POST', // PUT works too
body: 'Look ma, with auth',
headers: {
'Authorization': 'Basic cGhpbDpteXBhc3M='
}
})
```
=== "Go"
``` go
req, _ := http.NewRequest("POST", "https://ntfy.example.com/mysecrets",
strings.NewReader("Look ma, with auth"))
req.Header.Set("Authorization", "Basic cGhpbDpteXBhc3M=")
http.DefaultClient.Do(req)
```
=== "Python"
``` python
requests.post("https://ntfy.example.com/mysecrets",
data="Look ma, with auth",
headers={
"Authorization": "Basic cGhpbDpteXBhc3M="
})
```
=== "PHP"
``` php-inline
file_get_contents('https://ntfy.example.com/mysecrets', false, stream_context_create([
'http' => [
'method' => 'POST', // PUT also works
'header' =>
'Content-Type: text/plain\r\n' .
'Authorization: Basic cGhpbDpteXBhc3M=',
'content' => 'Look ma, with auth'
]
]));
```
### Message caching
!!! info
If `Cache: no` is used, messages will only be delivered to connected subscribers, and won't be re-delivered if a
client re-connects. If a subscriber has (temporary) network issues or is reconnecting momentarily,
**messages might be missed**.
By default, the ntfy server caches messages on disk for 12 hours (see [message caching](config.md#message-cache)), so
all messages you publish are stored server-side for a little while. The reason for this is to overcome temporary
client-side network disruptions, but arguably this feature also may raise privacy concerns.
To avoid messages being cached server-side entirely, you can set `X-Cache` header (or its alias: `Cache`) to `no`.
This will make sure that your message is not cached on the server, even if server-side caching is enabled. Messages
are still delivered to connected subscribers, but [`since=`](subscribe/api.md#fetch-cached-messages) and
[`poll=1`](subscribe/api.md#poll-for-messages) won't return the message anymore.
=== "Command line (curl)"
```
curl -H "X-Cache: no" -d "This message won't be stored server-side" ntfy.sh/mytopic
curl -H "Cache: no" -d "This message won't be stored server-side" ntfy.sh/mytopic
```
=== "ntfy CLI"
```
ntfy publish \
--no-cache \
mytopic "This message won't be stored server-side"
```
=== "HTTP"
``` http
POST /mytopic HTTP/1.1
Host: ntfy.sh
Cache: no
This message won't be stored server-side
```
=== "JavaScript"
``` javascript
fetch('https://ntfy.sh/mytopic', {
method: 'POST',
body: 'This message won't be stored server-side',
headers: { 'Cache': 'no' }
})
```
=== "Go"
``` go
req, _ := http.NewRequest("POST", "https://ntfy.sh/mytopic", strings.NewReader("This message won't be stored server-side"))
req.Header.Set("Cache", "no")
http.DefaultClient.Do(req)
```
=== "Python"
``` python
requests.post("https://ntfy.sh/mytopic",
data="This message won't be stored server-side",
headers={ "Cache": "no" })
```
=== "PHP"
``` php-inline
file_get_contents('https://ntfy.sh/mytopic', false, stream_context_create([
'http' => [
'method' => 'POST',
'header' =>
"Content-Type: text/plain\r\n" .
"Cache: no",
'content' => 'This message won't be stored server-side'
]
]));
```
### Disable Firebase
!!! info
If `Firebase: no` is used and [instant delivery](subscribe/phone.md#instant-delivery) isn't enabled in the Android
app (Google Play variant only), **message delivery will be significantly delayed (up to 15 minutes)**. To overcome
this delay, simply enable instant delivery.
The ntfy server can be configured to use [Firebase Cloud Messaging (FCM)](https://firebase.google.com/docs/cloud-messaging)
(see [Firebase config](config.md#firebase-fcm)) for message delivery on Android (to minimize the app's battery footprint).
The ntfy.sh server is configured this way, meaning that all messages published to ntfy.sh are also published to corresponding
FCM topics.
If you'd like to avoid forwarding messages to Firebase, you can set the `X-Firebase` header (or its alias: `Firebase`)
to `no`. This will instruct the server not to forward messages to Firebase.
=== "Command line (curl)"
```
curl -H "X-Firebase: no" -d "This message won't be forwarded to FCM" ntfy.sh/mytopic
curl -H "Firebase: no" -d "This message won't be forwarded to FCM" ntfy.sh/mytopic
```
=== "ntfy CLI"
```
ntfy publish \
--no-firebase \
mytopic "This message won't be forwarded to FCM"
```
=== "HTTP"
``` http
POST /mytopic HTTP/1.1
Host: ntfy.sh
Firebase: no
This message won't be forwarded to FCM
```
=== "JavaScript"
``` javascript
fetch('https://ntfy.sh/mytopic', {
method: 'POST',
body: 'This message won't be forwarded to FCM',
headers: { 'Firebase': 'no' }
})
```
=== "Go"
``` go
req, _ := http.NewRequest("POST", "https://ntfy.sh/mytopic", strings.NewReader("This message won't be forwarded to FCM"))
req.Header.Set("Firebase", "no")
http.DefaultClient.Do(req)
```
=== "Python"
``` python
requests.post("https://ntfy.sh/mytopic",
data="This message won't be forwarded to FCM",
headers={ "Firebase": "no" })
```
=== "PHP"
``` php-inline
file_get_contents('https://ntfy.sh/mytopic', false, stream_context_create([
'http' => [
'method' => 'POST',
'header' =>
"Content-Type: text/plain\r\n" .
"Firebase: no",
'content' => 'This message won't be stored server-side'
]
]));
```
### UnifiedPush
!!! info
This setting is not relevant to users, only to app developers and people interested in [UnifiedPush](https://unifiedpush.org).
[UnifiedPush](https://unifiedpush.org) is a standard for receiving push notifications without using the Google-owned
[Firebase Cloud Messaging (FCM)](https://firebase.google.com/docs/cloud-messaging) service. It puts push notifications
in the control of the user. ntfy can act as a **UnifiedPush distributor**, forwarding messages to apps that support it.
When publishing messages to a topic, apps using ntfy as a UnifiedPush distributor can set the `X-UnifiedPush` header or query
parameter (or any of its aliases `unifiedpush` or `up`) to `1` to [disable Firebase](#disable-firebase). As of today, this
option is mostly equivalent to `Firebase: no`, but was introduced to allow future flexibility. The flag additionally
enables auto-detection of the message encoding. If the message is binary, it'll be encoded as base64.
## Limitations
There are a few limitations to the API to prevent abuse and to keep the server healthy. Almost all of these settings
are configurable via the server side [rate limiting settings](config.md#rate-limiting). Most of these limits you won't run into,
but just in case, let's list them all:
| Limit | Description |
|----------------------------|---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
| **Message length** | Each message can be up to 4,096 bytes long. Longer messages are treated as [attachments](#attachments). |
| **Requests** | By default, the server is configured to allow 60 requests per visitor at once, and then refills the your allowed requests bucket at a rate of one request per 10 seconds. |
| **E-mails** | By default, the server is configured to allow sending 16 e-mails per visitor at once, and then refills the your allowed e-mail bucket at a rate of one per hour. |
| **Subscription limit** | By default, the server allows each visitor to keep 30 connections to the server open. |
| **Attachment size limit** | By default, the server allows attachments up to 15 MB in size, up to 100 MB in total per visitor and up to 5 GB across all visitors. |
| **Attachment expiry** | By default, the server deletes attachments after 3 hours and thereby frees up space from the total visitor attachment limit. |
| **Attachment bandwidth** | By default, the server allows 500 MB of GET/PUT/POST traffic for attachments per visitor in a 24 hour period. Traffic exceeding that is rejected. |
| **Total number of topics** | By default, the server is configured to allow 15,000 topics. The ntfy.sh server has higher limits though. |
## List of all parameters
The following is a list of all parameters that can be passed when publishing a message. Parameter names are **case-insensitive**,
and can be passed as **HTTP headers** or **query parameters in the URL**. They are listed in the table in their canonical form.
| Parameter | Aliases (case-insensitive) | Description |
|-----------------|--------------------------------------------|-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
| `X-Message` | `Message`, `m` | Main body of the message as shown in the notification |
| `X-Title` | `Title`, `t` | [Message title](#message-title) |
| `X-Priority` | `Priority`, `prio`, `p` | [Message priority](#message-priority) |
| `X-Tags` | `Tags`, `Tag`, `ta` | [Tags and emojis](#tags-emojis) |
| `X-Delay` | `Delay`, `X-At`, `At`, `X-In`, `In` | Timestamp or duration for [delayed delivery](#scheduled-delivery) |
| `X-Click` | `Click` | URL to open when [notification is clicked](#click-action) |
| `X-Attach` | `Attach`, `a` | URL to send as an [attachment](#attachments), as an alternative to PUT/POST-ing an attachment |
| `X-Filename` | `Filename`, `file`, `f` | Optional [attachment](#attachments) filename, as it appears in the client |
| `X-Email` | `X-E-Mail`, `Email`, `E-Mail`, `mail`, `e` | E-mail address for [e-mail notifications](#e-mail-notifications) |
| `X-Cache` | `Cache` | Allows disabling [message caching](#message-caching) |
| `X-Firebase` | `Firebase` | Allows disabling [sending to Firebase](#disable-firebase) |
| `X-UnifiedPush` | `UnifiedPush`, `up` | [UnifiedPush](#unifiedpush) publish option, only to be used by UnifiedPush apps |
| `Authorization` | - | If supported by the server, you can [login to access](#authentication) protected topics |