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

# External IDs

> Map your internal user/device IDs to Bota resources

Use `external_id` to link Bota resources to entities in your own system. This avoids storing PII in Bota and keeps lookups idempotent.

### End Users

* Provide `external_id` when creating an EndUser.
* Lookup by `external_id` to avoid duplicate records.

### Devices

* Store your hardware inventory IDs or ERP references in `metadata` on the Device object.

### Best Practices

* Use stable identifiers from your source-of-truth system.
* Enforce idempotent creation: on 409/conflict, fetch by `external_id` and reuse.
* Never expose `sk_*` keys client-side—proxy calls from your backend.