Provider environment floor (API keys)

API keys carry a minimum provider execution environment floor (E-class). See Data routing policy for the full D×E chat model.

Environment classes

Class	Typical use
E0 — Unclassified	No minimum requirement
E1 — Public managed	Public cloud SaaS providers
E2 — Enterprise managed	Enterprise-managed cloud
E3 — Private cloud	Private cloud deployments
E4 — Customer hosted	Customer-hosted infrastructure
E5 — On premise	On-premise only

Ordering is strict: E0 < E1 < E2 < E3 < E4 < E5.

At key creation

When you create an API key in Settings → API Keys (for the active context), you choose a minimum provider environment. That choice is your responsibility — pick the lowest class that still protects the data you send.

In organizations, only owners and admins can create API keys.

Provider matching

Each enabled inference provider in Settings → Providers has its own execution environment. For a completion or model list:

The backing provider must be at or above the API key’s minimum environment.
Models on weaker providers are hidden from GET /v1/models and rejected on POST /v1/chat/completions with 403 / provider_not_permitted.

API vs chat

Web chat enforces the full D×E routing matrix (data sensitivity + provider environment).
API keys enforce an E-class floor only at the Platform API layer; pick keys and providers accordingly.

Recommendations

Create a dedicated API key for each integration or workload so you can revoke or rotate keys independently.
Revoke unused keys promptly.
For the highest sensitivity workloads, prefer BYOK providers you control and mark them with the appropriate environment class in provider settings.