Export and share
Save your work to a file: the whole workspace for a backup or a colleague, or one collection in a format other tools read.
Choose a format
| Format | Contains | Use it for |
|---|---|---|
| ApiWorkbench workspace | Every collection, environment and global, in one JSON file. | Backups, moving to another computer, sharing with ApiWorkbench users. Nothing is lost. |
| Postman collection | One collection, as Postman Collection v2.1. | Sharing with Postman users, or running with tools that read Postman files. |
| Postman environment | One environment. | The variables that go with a Postman collection. |
| Postman globals | The Globals list. | Global variables for Postman. |
| OpenAPI 3.0 | One collection as an API description, in JSON or YAML. | Documentation tools, code generators and other API tools. |
Export a file
Select Export on the icon rail.
On a phone, open the menu at the top right and choose Export workspace…. To export one collection, you can also open its menu and choose Export….
Select the format.
For a Postman collection or OpenAPI, pick the Collection. For a Postman environment, pick the Environment. For OpenAPI, also choose JSON or YAML under File type.
Decide whether to turn on Include current values (see below).
Select Export and choose where to save the file.
The dialog confirms what was exported and where. It says "Nothing was left out", or lists what the format had no place for under Left out.
Select Done.
The suggested file names are apiworkbench-workspace.json, <name>.postman_collection.json, <name>.postman_environment.json, workspace.postman_globals.json and <name>.openapi.json or .yaml.
Current values and secrets
Each variable has an initial value, which is meant to be shared, and a current value, which scripts and captures write. Session tokens usually end up in current values. See Variables.
- Include current values off (the default): only initial values are exported.
- Include current values on: a workspace file keeps each current value next to its initial one. A Postman file gets the current value in place of the initial value, where there is one.
OpenAPI files hold no variable values, so the option is not shown for them.
DANGER
Exported files are plain text. Values are written as they are, including secret variables, tokens and passwords stored in requests. Check a file before you send it to someone or commit it to a repository.
Share or back up a workspace
A workspace file is the complete copy of your work.
Export with the ApiWorkbench workspace format.
Copy the file to the other computer, or keep it as your backup.
On the other computer, select Import, choose the file and select Import. See Import from Postman for the dialog.
The file keeps the ids of collections and environments. When you import it again, an item with the same id replaces the existing one instead of adding a duplicate. That lets a team pass an updated workspace file around.
WARNING
Replacing is whole-item. If you import a colleague's workspace file, their version of a collection you both have replaces yours, including any changes you made since. Export your own workspace first if you want a way back.
Export for Postman
A Postman collection file keeps:
- Folders with their description, auth and scripts.
- Requests with every body type, auth, path variables, scripts, saved examples and request settings.
- The collection's own auth, scripts, description and variables.
Two things to know:
- WebSocket, Socket.IO, MQTT, Server-Sent Events and gRPC requests are left out. The Postman collection format has no place for them. They are listed under Left out.
- Tests and captures become script lines. Postman only has scripts, so the checks on the Tests tab and the values on the Captures tab are written into each request's test script.
A Postman environment file marks secret variables as secret and keeps disabled variables disabled.
Export as OpenAPI
The OpenAPI 3.0 format describes one collection as an API:
- The collection's name and description become the document's
info. - The server address comes from the collection's
baseUrlvariable. Without one, the address most requests share is used. - Folders become tags.
- Each HTTP request becomes an operation, with its path variables, params and headers as parameters, and its body as a request body with an example.
- Saved examples become responses.
- Bearer, Basic, Digest, API key and OAuth 2.0 auth become security schemes.
Requests with the same method and path become one operation, with all their examples. Streaming requests (WebSocket, MQTT, gRPC and the others) are skipped. Scripts, tests and captures are not part of an OpenAPI document.
Other ways out
- One request as a command or as code: cURL in and out and Code snippets.
- A collection as readable documentation: Collection docs.