> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://developers.askparable.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# How connectors work

> A connector is a definition plus your instance: auth strategies, taps, and rate limits.

A **connector** is Parable's integration with one of the tools your company
uses: GitHub, Jira, Slack, Linear, Workday, and dozens more. When you
configure a connector in your workspace, Parable syncs data from that tool
into [your data lake](/data).

<Info>
  Connectors use read-only API access. Parable never writes to, modifies,
  or deletes anything in your source systems.
</Info>

## The model

Every connector is a **definition** Parable ships, plus an **instance** you
configure in your workspace.

```mermaid theme={null}
flowchart TD
  V["Vendor in the catalog"] --> D["Connector definition"]
  D --> A["Auth strategies"]
  D --> T["Taps"]
  D --> G["Traversal"]
  D --> R["Rate limits"]
  A --> I["Your connector instance"]
  T --> I
  G --> I
  I --> L["Tables in your data lake"]
```

| Piece                | What it is                                                                                                                                            |
| -------------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Vendor               | The company in the catalog (GitHub, Linear, Google).                                                                                                  |
| Connector definition | How Parable talks to that product: auth options, taps, rate limits, base URL.                                                                         |
| Auth strategy        | One way to authenticate. A connector can offer several. You pick one when you connect. See [Auth strategies](/connectors/auth).                       |
| Tap                  | One stream of records (`issues`, `pull_requests`, `channels`). See [Taps and streams](/connectors/taps).                                              |
| Traversal            | The graph that tells ingestion which taps run first and which fan out from parent records. See [How ingestion walks a source](/connectors/ingestion). |
| Connector instance   | Your configured copy: credentials, chosen auth strategy, enabled taps, sync status.                                                                   |

The definition is the same for every workspace. Your instance is yours:
credentials, which streams are on, and health.

You can read the definition nested on an instance. List yours, then look
at `connector.supportedAuthStrategies` and `connector.taps`:

```bash theme={null}
curl "https://api.askparable.com/api/vendors/tenant-connector-instances" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $PARABLE_API_TOKEN"
```

Browse the catalog (including auth strategies on a leaf grouping) without
configuring anything:

```bash theme={null}
curl "https://api.askparable.com/api/vendors/parable-vendors" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $PARABLE_API_TOKEN"
```

## What your workspace controls

* **Which connectors are configured**, with which auth strategy and
  credentials. Credentials are encrypted at rest and never returned by
  the API.
* **Which taps are enabled.** Some streams are on by default; others are
  opt-in.
* **Sync health.** Each instance has `connectionStatus`,
  `hasValidCredentials`, and last-sync fields.

You do not pick pagination style or sync mode. Those are part of each
tap's definition so Parable can walk that source API correctly. You
inspect them; you do not set them. [How ingestion walks a source](/connectors/ingestion)
is the field-by-field map of that walk.

## Rate limits

Each connector definition includes rate limits so Parable stays inside
the source API's budget: requests per second, max concurrent calls, and
whether to honor `Retry-After`. Some taps override the connector-level
limits. You do not configure these; they explain why a large backfill
is paced.

## Requesting a connector Parable does not have yet

If a tool you rely on is missing, file a connector request through the API
(`POST /api/connector-requests/connector-requests`) or in the app.

<Note>
  Step-by-step setup guides (OAuth apps, API keys, scopes) live in the
  [product documentation](https://docs.parable.work).
</Note>