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Share a dataset for read-only access

Public sharing gives people a browser preview and gives applications or AI agents a dedicated read-only JSON API. Both use the same explicit public setting and optional password.

When to use a public preview

Use public previews for:

  • quick review by a teammate or client
  • sharing a small live table without building an app
  • giving non-technical users a browser-friendly view
  • letting an application or agent retrieve deliberately public rows

Use authenticated REST or MCP when data must remain private or a client needs to write rows.

Enable a preview

Ask your agent to call update_dataset_public_preview, or call the REST endpoint:

PATCH https://rowset.lvtd.dev/api/datasets/{dataset_key}/public-preview
Content-Type: application/json

{
  "public_enabled": true,
  "public_page_size": 25,
  "public_password": "optional-password"
}

The response includes the public preview URL and public key.

If the data is not meant for unrestricted access, add a password. Anyone with the link and password can view the preview or call the public read API.

Read the shared dataset as JSON

An unprotected public dataset needs no API key:

GET https://rowset.lvtd.dev/api/public/datasets/{public_key}
GET https://rowset.lvtd.dev/api/public/datasets/{public_key}/rows?limit=500&offset=0

For a protected dataset, send the password on every request:

X-Rowset-Public-Password: optional-public-password

The rows response includes has_more and offset, so clients can request every page. See the Dataset API for the complete pagination loop, filters, and response boundaries.

Security notes

  • Public browser and JSON access are read-only.
  • Password protection is optional, but recommended for anything private.
  • Disable the preview when the sharing window is over.
  • Do not use public access for private data or as a replacement for authenticated writes.

Public preview vs API

  • Public browser preview: human-readable table, read-only, optional password.
  • Public Dataset API: safe metadata and paginated rows, read-only, optional password.
  • Authenticated Dataset API: private reads, row writes, lookup, exports, assets, and relationships.

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