Kiteconnect Python on WebNotes

How to authenticate Kite Connect with TOTP automation

Tue, 12 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Algo trading scripts need a fresh access_token every morning before market open. The standard Kite Connect authentication flow requires opening a browser, completing the Zerodha login, and pasting the request_token. For unattended or server-based strategies, that manual step is a bottleneck. This guide shows how to automate the entire login using pyotp to generate the TOTP code, eliminating the need for any browser interaction.

How TOTP automation works

The standard Kite Connect login involves three steps at Zerodha’s end: submit client ID and password, then submit a TOTP OTP, after which Zerodha redirects to your registered URL with a request_token. A browser performs these steps interactively. Automation replaces the browser with a requests.Session that sends the same HTTP POST calls, and replaces the TOTP app with pyotp.TOTP(secret).now() to generate the current OTP.

How to generate the request_token and access_token on Kite Connect

Tue, 12 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Every Kite Connect API session requires a fresh access_token that is valid for the current trading day. Generating an access_token involves a two-step OAuth-style flow: the user logs in through Zerodha’s browser-based consent screen to obtain a request_token, and the server then exchanges that request_token, along with a cryptographic checksum, for an access_token. This guide explains both steps using the official kiteconnect Python SDK .

How the token flow works

Kite Connect’s authentication is modelled on OAuth 2.0 with a custom checksum step. The flow has three actors: your application, the user’s browser, and Zerodha’s API server.

How to migrate from Pi bridge to Kite Connect

Tue, 12 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Zerodha Pi was Zerodha’s desktop trading terminal that included a bridge allowing algorithmic strategies written in AFL (AmiBroker Formula Language) or Excel macros to place orders programmatically via a COM/DDE interface. Zerodha discontinued Pi and the Pi bridge, directing users to the Kite Connect API as the supported replacement. This guide walks through every step of migrating a Pi bridge-based strategy to Kite Connect, with direct function-level equivalents and rewritten code examples.

How to place an order via the Kite Connect REST API

Tue, 12 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The Kite Connect API exposes a clean REST interface for order management that supports all major Indian exchanges and order types. Once you have a valid access_token (see How to generate the request_token and access_token ), you can place, modify, and cancel orders programmatically using the kiteconnect Python SDK . This guide covers the full order-placement workflow, parameter reference, and production-grade error handling.

Order model in Kite Connect

Kite Connect organises every order placement call around four orthogonal dimensions.

How to stream live ticks via Kite WebSocket

Tue, 12 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The Kite Connect API provides a binary WebSocket feed for real-time market data through a class called KiteTicker in the kiteconnect Python SDK . Unlike the REST endpoints, which are request-response, KiteTicker maintains a persistent connection and pushes price updates as they occur. This guide explains how to establish that connection, subscribe to instruments, decode ticks, and handle network interruptions reliably.

How the KiteTicker WebSocket works

Kite Connect’s WebSocket endpoint at wss://ws.kite.trade streams binary-encoded tick packets. Each packet contains price, volume, and depth data for one or more instruments. The KiteTicker class handles the binary decoding, connection lifecycle, and reconnection internally, so your application receives clean Python dictionaries.

How to use postback URLs on Kite Connect

Tue, 12 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The Kite Connect API includes a postback (webhook) mechanism that pushes order update notifications to your server the moment an order changes state. Instead of polling GET /orders repeatedly, your server receives an HTTP POST at the registered postback URL each time an order moves from OPEN to COMPLETE, REJECTED, CANCELLED, or any intermediate state. This guide covers registration, checksum verification, a Python server implementation, and production hardening.

What is a postback URL?

A postback URL is an HTTP POST endpoint you register in the Kite Connect developer console. Whenever an order placed through your app changes state at Zerodha’s OMS (Order Management System), Zerodha sends an HTTP POST request to your postback URL with the updated order details in the request body.

How to write a basic Python script using kiteconnect

Tue, 12 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The kiteconnect Python SDK is the official client library for the Kite Connect API from Zerodha . It wraps every REST endpoint and the WebSocket tick stream into a clean, Pythonic interface. This guide takes you from a blank directory to a working script that authenticates with Kite Connect, fetches your portfolio, queries live market prices, and places a paper-trade-style order. By the end you will have a reusable project structure suitable as the foundation for any algo trading strategy.