question Re: Best way to alter a nifi processor configuration - use curl & API or python? Or something else? in Support Questions

Best way to alter a nifi processor configuration - use curl & API or python? Or something else?

zzzz77 — Tue, 25 Nov 2025 00:50:51 GMT

What is the preferred method to alter a nifi processor configuration please?

We want to be able to get a user to choose from one of 3 options from a drop down menu in a GUI screen. The chosen option then is passed to either a curl command to make changes to the processor via the Nifi API, or can we create a python command to then alter a nifi processor configuration possibly by curl, but maybe there is another way?

Curl looks a safer option, but python might be better? Not sure....?

Thanks in advance.

Re: Best way to alter a nifi processor configuration - use curl & API or python? Or something else?

vafs — Tue, 25 Nov 2025 16:56:38 GMT

Hello @zzzz77,

The best way here should be the NiFi API. It's safer and more standardized. Also, since it's NiFi provided, it's easier to integrate.
https://nifi.apache.org/docs/nifi-docs/rest-api/index.html

You can use the Processors options.

Re: Best way to alter a nifi processor configuration - use curl & API or python? Or something else?

zzzz77 — Thu, 27 Nov 2025 04:32:22 GMT

Hi,

Thanks, will do.

I did try reading Provenance data via the nifi 2.5.0 API and it seems to fail

I installed NIfi on my PC with no modifications and all default settings, and just use the default user and password that's created when you install it.

I run this in my local windows CMD window and get "unknown error" :

curl --insecure -X POST -H "Authorization: Bearer <my token> " https://localhost:8443/nifi-api/provenance

Then I run this and get :

curl --insecure -X POST -H "Authorization: Bearer <token>" https://localhost:8443/nifi-api/provenance > test.txt

In text.txt file I get :

"An unexpected error has occurred. Please check the logs for additional details."

I just wanted to check I have the syntax right. I ran other API queries for flows etc and they work fine.

What I'm trying to do is get a list of all files that have passed through my small local nifi installation so we can track what files have moved through nifi and when, as a form of monitoring.

Re: Best way to alter a nifi processor configuration - use curl & API or python? Or something else?

vafs — Thu, 27 Nov 2025 17:34:49 GMT

Hello @zzzz77,

That happens because NiFi 2.x API does not work with an empty POST on for provenance, it always needs to consume a valid JSON:

https://nifi.apache.org/docs/nifi-docs/rest-api/#provenance

You need to add the query, something like this:
curl --insecure -X POST -H "Authorization: Bearer <token>" -H "Content-Type: application/json" -d "{\"provenance\":{\"request\":{\"maxResults\":1000}}}" https://localhost:8443/nifi-api/provenance

Check in your environment.

Re: Best way to alter a nifi processor configuration - use curl & API or python? Or something else?

vafs — Tue, 02 Dec 2025 15:27:04 GMT

Hello @zzzz77,

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