NATS JetStream Configuration for Tyk AI Studio

Availability

Edition	Deployment Type
Community & Enterprise	Self-Managed, Hybrid

This guide covers configuring Tyk AI Studio to use NATS JetStream as the message queue backend for distributed deployments and high availability scenarios.

Overview

Tyk AI Studio supports two queue implementations:

In-Memory Queue (default): For single-instance deployments
NATS JetStream Queue: For distributed, persistent message handling

NATS JetStream provides:

Persistent Message Storage: Messages survive server restarts
Distributed Architecture: Scale across multiple instances
Automatic Reconnection: Handle network disruptions gracefully
Message Deduplication: Ensure exactly-once delivery
Authentication & Security: Multiple authentication methods including JWT and TLS

Configuration Options

Tyk AI Studio can be configured to use NATS JetStream by setting the appropriate environment variables.

Basic Configuration

Enable NATS Queue

Set the queue type to NATS in your environment configuration:

QUEUE_TYPE=nats
NATS_URL=nats://your-nats-server:4222

NATS Server Configuration

# NATS Connection
NATS_URL=nats://localhost:4222              # NATS server URL

# JetStream Settings  
NATS_STORAGE_TYPE=file                      # Use persistent storage (file|memory)
NATS_RETENTION_POLICY=interest              # Delete messages when consumed (interest|limits|workqueue)
NATS_MAX_AGE=2h                             # Maximum message age
NATS_MAX_BYTES=104857600                    # Max stream size (100MB)
NATS_DURABLE_CONSUMER=true                  # Use durable consumers for restart recovery

# Performance Tuning
NATS_ACK_WAIT=30s                           # Acknowledgment timeout
NATS_MAX_DELIVER=3                          # Maximum delivery attempts
NATS_FETCH_TIMEOUT=5s                       # Message fetch timeout
NATS_RETRY_INTERVAL=1s                      # Retry interval for failed operations
NATS_MAX_RETRIES=3                          # Maximum retry attempts

Advanced Configuration

Custom Stream Configuration

For advanced use cases, configure streams directly in NATS:

# Create custom stream for chat messages
nats stream add CHAT_CUSTOM \
  --subjects "chat.sessions.*.chat_response" \
  --storage file \
  --retention interest \
  --max-age 4h \
  --max-bytes 500MB

High Availability Setup

For production HA deployments:

# Connect to NATS cluster
NATS_URL=nats://nats-1:4222,nats-2:4222,nats-3:4222

# Enable clustering support
NATS_DURABLE_CONSUMER=true
NATS_MAX_DELIVER=5

This configuration ensures message delivery even if individual NATS servers fail.

Authentication Methods

1. No Authentication (Development Only)

NATS_URL=nats://localhost:4222

Use Case: Local development, testing environments Security: None - suitable only for development

2. Username/Password Authentication

NATS_URL=nats://localhost:4222
NATS_USERNAME=chat_service
NATS_PASSWORD=secure_password_123

Use Case: Simple deployments with basic security Security: Basic authentication with shared credentials

3. Token-Based Authentication

NATS_URL=nats://localhost:4222
NATS_TOKEN=your-secret-token-here

Use Case: Simple token-based access control Security: Shared secret token authentication

4. JWT/User Credentials Authentication (Recommended)

NATS_URL=nats://localhost:4222
NATS_CREDENTIALS_FILE=/etc/nats/user.creds

Use Case: Production deployments requiring fine-grained access control Security: JWT-based authentication with user credentials Benefits:

Decentralized authentication
Subject-level permissions
Automatic token renewal
Audit trails

Creating User Credentials

Generate user credentials with NATS CLI:

# Create account
nsc add account TykAIStudio

# Create user for chat service
nsc add user chat_service --account TykAIStudio

# Generate credentials file
nsc generate creds --account TykAIStudio --name chat_service > /etc/nats/user.creds

Configure permissions in account settings:

nsc edit user chat_service --allow-pub "chat.>" --allow-sub "chat.>"

5. NKey Authentication

NATS_URL=nats://localhost:4222
NATS_NKEY_FILE=/etc/nats/user.nkey

Use Case: Cryptographic authentication without JWT overhead Security: Ed25519 key-based authentication

Creating NKey

# Generate NKey
nsc add user chat_service_nkey --account TykAIStudio --allow-pub "chat.>" --allow-sub "chat.>"
nk -gen user > /etc/nats/user.nkey

6. TLS Configuration

Basic TLS (Server Authentication)

NATS_URL=nats://your-secure-nats:4222
NATS_TLS_ENABLED=true

Mutual TLS (Client + Server Authentication)

NATS_URL=nats://your-secure-nats:4222
NATS_TLS_ENABLED=true
NATS_TLS_CERT_FILE=/etc/ssl/certs/client-cert.pem
NATS_TLS_KEY_FILE=/etc/ssl/private/client-key.pem
NATS_TLS_CA_FILE=/etc/ssl/certs/ca-cert.pem

TLS Development Mode (Skip Verification)

NATS_URL=nats://localhost:4222
NATS_TLS_ENABLED=true
NATS_TLS_SKIP_VERIFY=true  # Only for development!

7. Combined Authentication (Production Recommended)

# TLS + JWT Authentication
NATS_URL=nats://secure-nats.production:4222
NATS_TLS_ENABLED=true
NATS_CREDENTIALS_FILE=/etc/nats/production-user.creds
NATS_TLS_CA_FILE=/etc/ssl/certs/nats-ca.pem

# Additional security settings
NATS_TLS_SKIP_VERIFY=false
NATS_MAX_DELIVER=3
NATS_ACK_WAIT=30s

Docker/Kubernetes Configuration

Docker Compose

version: '3.8'
services:
  nats:
    image: nats:latest
    command: 
      - "--jetstream"
      - "--store_dir=/data"
    ports:
      - "4222:4222"
    volumes:
      - nats_data:/data
      
  midsommar:
    image: tyk/midsommar:latest
    environment:
      QUEUE_TYPE: "nats"
      NATS_URL: "nats://nats:4222"
      NATS_STORAGE_TYPE: "file"
      NATS_RETENTION_POLICY: "interest"
    depends_on:
      - nats
      
volumes:
  nats_data:

Kubernetes ConfigMap

apiVersion: v1
kind: ConfigMap
metadata:
  name: nats-config
data:
  QUEUE_TYPE: "nats"
  NATS_URL: "nats://nats-cluster:4222"
  NATS_STORAGE_TYPE: "file"
  NATS_RETENTION_POLICY: "interest"
  NATS_MAX_AGE: "2h"
  NATS_DURABLE_CONSUMER: "true"

Kubernetes Secrets (for Authentication)

apiVersion: v1
kind: Secret
metadata:
  name: nats-auth
type: Opaque
data:
  credentials: <base64-encoded-creds-file>
  username: <base64-encoded-username>
  password: <base64-encoded-password>

Migration from In-Memory

To migrate from in-memory to NATS queue:

Deploy NATS Server: Set up NATS with JetStream enabled
Configure Authentication: Set up appropriate auth method
Update Configuration: Change QUEUE_TYPE=nats
Restart Application: Deploy updated configuration
Verify Operation: Check logs for successful NATS connection

The migration is seamless as the queue interface abstracts the implementation details.

Troubleshooting

Connection Status

Monitor NATS connection status in application logs:

kubectl logs -f deployment/midsommar | grep NATS

Expected log messages:

INFO NATS authentication configured with credentials file file=/etc/nats/user.creds
INFO NATS reconnected session_id=abc123 url=nats://nats:4222

Common Issues

Connection Failures

ERROR failed to connect to NATS: nats: no servers available for connection

Solution: Check NATS server is running and URL is correct

Authentication Failures

ERROR failed to connect to NATS: nats: Authorization Violation

Solution: Verify credentials file exists and has correct permissions

TLS Certificate Issues

ERROR failed to configure NATS authentication: failed to load TLS client certificate

Solution: Check certificate files exist and have correct permissions

Permission Errors

ERROR failed to create stream: insufficient permissions

Solution: Ensure user has pub/sub permissions for chat.> subjects

Performance Tuning

For high-throughput deployments:

# Increase buffer sizes
QUEUE_BUFFER_SIZE=1000

# Optimize NATS settings
NATS_MAX_BYTES=1048576000          # 1GB max stream size
NATS_MAX_AGE=24h                   # Longer retention
NATS_FETCH_TIMEOUT=10s             # Longer fetch timeout
NATS_ACK_WAIT=60s                  # Longer ack timeout

General

AI Studio

MCPs

NATS JetStream Configuration for Tyk AI Studio

Availability

Overview

Configuration Options

Basic Configuration

Enable NATS Queue

NATS Server Configuration

Advanced Configuration

Custom Stream Configuration

High Availability Setup

Authentication Methods

1. No Authentication (Development Only)

2. Username/Password Authentication

3. Token-Based Authentication

4. JWT/User Credentials Authentication (Recommended)

Creating User Credentials

5. NKey Authentication

Creating NKey

6. TLS Configuration

Basic TLS (Server Authentication)

Mutual TLS (Client + Server Authentication)

TLS Development Mode (Skip Verification)

7. Combined Authentication (Production Recommended)

Docker/Kubernetes Configuration

Docker Compose

Kubernetes ConfigMap

Kubernetes Secrets (for Authentication)

Migration from In-Memory

Troubleshooting

​Availability

​Overview

​Configuration Options

​Basic Configuration

​Enable NATS Queue

​NATS Server Configuration

​Advanced Configuration

​Custom Stream Configuration

​High Availability Setup

​Authentication Methods

​1. No Authentication (Development Only)

​2. Username/Password Authentication

​3. Token-Based Authentication

​4. JWT/User Credentials Authentication (Recommended)

​Creating User Credentials

​5. NKey Authentication

​Creating NKey

​6. TLS Configuration

​Basic TLS (Server Authentication)

​Mutual TLS (Client + Server Authentication)

​TLS Development Mode (Skip Verification)

​7. Combined Authentication (Production Recommended)

​Docker/Kubernetes Configuration

​Docker Compose

​Kubernetes ConfigMap

​Kubernetes Secrets (for Authentication)

​Migration from In-Memory

​Troubleshooting

Availability

Overview

Configuration Options

Basic Configuration

Enable NATS Queue

NATS Server Configuration

Advanced Configuration

Custom Stream Configuration

High Availability Setup

Authentication Methods

1. No Authentication (Development Only)

2. Username/Password Authentication

3. Token-Based Authentication

4. JWT/User Credentials Authentication (Recommended)

Creating User Credentials

5. NKey Authentication

Creating NKey

6. TLS Configuration

Basic TLS (Server Authentication)

Mutual TLS (Client + Server Authentication)

TLS Development Mode (Skip Verification)

7. Combined Authentication (Production Recommended)

Docker/Kubernetes Configuration

Docker Compose

Kubernetes ConfigMap

Kubernetes Secrets (for Authentication)

Migration from In-Memory

Troubleshooting