AWS AmplifyBackend
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For Agents
Generate, configure, and remove Amplify backend environments and their auth, API, storage, and config resources programmatically through 31 admin operations.
Use for: I want to clone an existing Amplify backend environment, Generate a backend authentication resource for an Amplify app, List all backend environments for a given Amplify app, Get the configuration for a specific backend environment
Not supported: Does not handle frontend hosting, build pipelines, or branch deployments — use for managing Amplify backend environments and their auth, API, storage, and config resources only.
Jentic publishes the only available OpenAPI specification for AmplifyBackend, keeping it validated and agent-ready. AWS AmplifyBackend is the admin API that powers backend resource generation for Amplify Hosting applications, including auth, API, storage, and config resources tied to specific Amplify backend environments. The API exposes 31 operations to clone, configure, list, and remove backends, manage authentication and API resources, and import existing Cognito user pools. Platform teams use it to script Amplify CLI generated backends from CI rather than developer machines.
Install Jentic One Beta
Connect the AmplifyBackend to your agent
Jentic One is a self-hosted execution layer for AI agents. It lets your agent call the AmplifyBackend, or any other public or private API you need. You set the rules, the agent never sees your credentials, and every call is logged.
Two steps, two machines. Install the instance in a safe environment, then register your agent from wherever it runs.
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Step 1: Jentic One Host machine
# On the machine that will host your Jentic One instance:
curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/jentic/jentic-one/main/tools/install.sh | sh2
Step 2: Agent machine
# On the machine where your agent runs (keep this separate from the instance):
curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/jentic/jentic-one/main/tools/install.sh | sh
jentic register # connects your agent to your Jentic One instanceJentic One is in public beta. The setup above keeps your agent separate from the instance, which is what you want before using real credentials: an agent running as the same OS user as Jentic One can read its stored keys directly. Just evaluating? A single local install is fine to start. See the secure deployment guide for the tiers.
Capabilities
What an agent can do with AmplifyBackend API.
Clone an existing Amplify backend environment to spin up an isolated dev or QA stack
Generate auth resources backed by Amazon Cognito user pools and identity pools
Generate API resources for REST and GraphQL backends with associated Lambda and DynamoDB infrastructure
Configure storage backends backed by S3 with per-user access rules
Import an existing Cognito user pool so multiple Amplify environments share the same identity
Inspect and remove backend resources without leaving orphaned CloudFormation stacks
Use Cases
Patterns agents use AmplifyBackend API for, with concrete tasks.
★ Programmatic Backend Environment Cloning
Platform teams use CloneBackend to copy a working backend environment into a new one for QA, staging, or feature work without rerunning the full Amplify CLI flow. The clone preserves auth, API, storage, and config so the new environment can be wired to a different Amplify Hosting branch and used by reviewers or QA testers within minutes.
Call POST /backend/{appId}/environments/{backendEnvironmentName}/clone with TargetEnvironmentName=qa to copy an existing backend
Auth Resource Generation
Application teams use the auth endpoints to generate Cognito-backed authentication for an Amplify app from a structured config rather than the local CLI. CreateBackendAuth provisions a Cognito user pool and identity pool with the requested settings, and UpdateBackendAuth applies subsequent changes. The same flow can be triggered from a CI job, so backend changes deploy alongside frontend changes.
Call POST /backend/{appId}/auth with ResourceConfig describing the Cognito user pool and identity pool requirements for the target environment
Existing Cognito Pool Import
Teams that already have a Cognito user pool use ImportBackendAuth to attach it to a new Amplify backend rather than duplicating identities. The same pool then underpins the Amplify generated client config so frontends authenticate against the existing identity store, making it straightforward to migrate legacy apps onto Amplify without forcing user resets.
Call POST /backend/{appId}/auth/{backendEnvironmentName}/import with the existing UserPoolId, IdentityPoolId, and NativeClientId
AI Agent Backend Provisioner
An AI agent invoked through Jentic provisions a new Amplify backend environment for each new microsite or experiment. The agent searches Jentic for the create-backend-auth and create-backend-api operations, executes them with the requested resource configs, and reports the resulting endpoints back to a chat workflow. Jentic handles SigV4 signing, so the agent only deals with the structured ResourceConfig payloads.
Search Jentic for create amplify backend auth, execute it with the auth resource config, then create matching API and storage resources for the same backend environment
Key Endpoints
31 endpoints — jentic publishes the only available openapi specification for amplifybackend, keeping it validated and agent-ready.
METHOD
PATH
DESCRIPTION
POST
/backend
Create a new Amplify backend
POST
/backend/{appId}/environments/{backendEnvironmentName}/clone
Clone an existing backend environment into a new one
POST
/backend/{appId}/auth
Create a Cognito-based auth resource for the backend
POST
/backend/{appId}/api
Create a REST or GraphQL API resource for the backend
POST
/backend/{appId}/storage
Create an S3-backed storage resource for the backend
POST
/backend/{appId}/environments/{backendEnvironmentName}/remove
Remove a backend environment and its associated resources
POST
/backend
Create a new Amplify backend
POST
/backend/{appId}/environments/{backendEnvironmentName}/clone
Clone an existing backend environment into a new one
POST
/backend/{appId}/auth
Create a Cognito-based auth resource for the backend
POST
/backend/{appId}/api
Create a REST or GraphQL API resource for the backend
POST
/backend/{appId}/storage
Create an S3-backed storage resource for the backend
POST
/backend/{appId}/environments/{backendEnvironmentName}/remove
Remove a backend environment and its associated resources
Why Jentic?
Three things that make agents converge on Jentic-routed access.
Credential isolation
AWS access key id and secret access key for AmplifyBackend are stored encrypted in the Jentic vault. Jentic performs SigV4 signing server side and supports STS temporary credentials, so the agent never sees the raw secret access key.
Intent-based discovery
Agents search Jentic with phrases like create amplify backend auth or clone amplify backend environment, and Jentic returns the matching AmplifyBackend operation with its ResourceConfig schema, so the agent does not have to map operation names to AWS path conventions.
Time to first call
Direct integration: 2 to 4 days for SigV4 signing, ResourceConfig payload shaping, and async job polling. Through Jentic: under 1 hour — search, load schema, execute.
Related APIs
Alternatives and complements available in the Jentic catalogue.
FAQs
Specific to using AmplifyBackend API through Jentic.
Why is there no official OpenAPI spec for AmplifyBackend?
AWS does not publish an OpenAPI specification for AmplifyBackend; the official surface is the AWS SDKs and the Smithy model. Jentic generates and maintains this spec so that AI agents and developers can call AmplifyBackend via structured tooling. It is validated against the live API and kept up to date. Get started at https://app.jentic.com/sign-up.
What authentication does the AmplifyBackend API use?
AmplifyBackend uses AWS Signature Version 4 (SigV4) signed with an IAM access key id and secret access key, optionally with an STS session token. Through Jentic the access key id and secret access key are stored encrypted in the vault and SigV4 signing is performed server side, so the agent never sees the raw secret access key.
Can I clone an existing Amplify backend with the AmplifyBackend API?
Yes. POST /backend/{appId}/environments/{backendEnvironmentName}/clone with a TargetEnvironmentName produces a new backend environment with the same auth, API, storage, and config as the source. It is the API equivalent of amplify env add --copy-from-existing in the Amplify CLI.
What are the rate limits for the AmplifyBackend API?
AmplifyBackend applies per-region throttling on each operation. Most mutating operations like CreateBackendAuth and CreateBackendAPI are throttled at lower rates than read operations like GetBackend and ListBackendJobs. Persistent throttling returns ThrottlingException; back off with exponential delay and retry.
How do I generate a backend auth resource with the AmplifyBackend API through Jentic?
Install the SDK with pip install jentic, search Jentic for create amplify backend auth, load the CreateBackendAuth operation schema, and execute it with a ResourceConfig describing the Cognito user pool and identity pool you need. Jentic handles SigV4 signing and returns the JobId you can poll with GetBackendJob until the resource is ready.
Can I import an existing Cognito user pool into an Amplify backend?
Yes. POST /backend/{appId}/auth/{backendEnvironmentName}/import with the existing UserPoolId, IdentityPoolId, and NativeClientId attaches the pool to the backend instead of creating a new one. This is the recommended path when migrating an existing app onto Amplify Hosting without forcing users to reset credentials.
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