Service identity

A service identity lets your instance authenticate itself to other services on the network. When a user’s PDS routes a request, it finds the destination by resolving the instance’s DID, so without a service identity, standard atproto service proxying can’t reach your instance.

Identity modes

HappyView supports three ways to establish a service identity during setup. The setup wizard offers them as Use your domain, Create a new network identity and Use an existing AT Protocol account.

Domain identity (did:web)

Your domain name becomes your identity. HappyView generates a signing keypair and serves a DID document at /.well-known/did.json automatically.

This is the simplest option, because it needs no external registration. The identity is tied to your domain: if you change domains, you’ll need to reconfigure.

Network identity (did:plc)

HappyView registers a new identity in the PLC directory, a public registry that maps DIDs to their metadata. This is the most durable option: the identity survives domain changes because it isn’t tied to any single hostname.

During registration, HappyView generates two keypairs:

Signing key: Used to authenticate requests from your instance. HappyView stores it encrypted and manages it automatically.
Rotation key: Used to recover or update the identity if the signing key is lost or the instance goes down. HappyView keeps an encrypted copy to update the identity’s service entries, but you can download it only during setup, so download it then.

Store the rotation key file somewhere safe and offline (e.g. a password manager, encrypted USB drive, or secure backup). You need it to move your identity to a new instance or recover from data loss.

Attached account

Link your instance to an existing atproto account you control. HappyView verifies ownership by redirecting you to sign in through that account’s PDS, then uses the account’s existing DID as the service identity.

Choosing an identity mode

	Domain (did:web)	Network (did:plc)	Attached account
Setup complexity	Automatic	Requires key backup	Requires existing account
Domain independence	No, tied to your domain	Yes, survives domain changes	Depends on the attached account
Key management	Automatic	You must back up the rotation key	Managed by the attached account’s PDS
Best for	Single-domain instances	Long-lived production instances	Operators who already have an atproto presence

Skipping setup

You can skip service identity configuration during setup. Your instance works with HappyView’s built-in authentication, but standard atproto service proxying isn’t available. You can configure a service identity later from System > Service Identity in the dashboard.