Clerk Authentication Patterns

Authentication integration patterns for Clerk with Next.js and Convex backends.

Core Concepts

Authentication Flow

1. User authenticates via Clerk (sign-in/sign-up)
2. Clerk issues session token (JWT)
3. Frontend passes token to backend
4. Backend verifies token and extracts user identity

Key Components

• Clerk Dashboard: User management, JWT templates, webhooks
• @clerk/nextjs: React hooks, middleware, components
• Convex auth: ctx.auth.getUserIdentity() for backend verification

Next.js Setup