how to get the token from an API?

What this is saying is you need to make a GET request to the Request URL
The request must include in the header

Content-Type : application/x-www-form-urlencoded

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The URL must also include URL encoded parameters for username / password and client_id

In other words (assume username = MickeyMouse, password = letmein and ClientID = 00001)

https://www.api-url-here.com/auth-function-here?grant_type=password&username=MickeyMouse&password=letmein&client_id=00001

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This will return some text. You have not given us enough information to say what the return format is - I am assuming JSON (could be XML) - but you will need to parse the results.

For instance - if the return is JSON then you would do this

$data = json_decode($return);

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You should end up with something like this

array(
  "access_token" => "abc123",
  "token_type" => "bearer",
  "expires_in" => "3600"
);

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For all subsequent calls you would need to include the access_token (in this case abc123) in all future requests to the API. This is done using the Authorization header.

In your request add the following header
(Assuming that abc123 is the token)

Authorization: Bearer abc123

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You would then pass any service specific data either as URL encoded parameters on the request URI or in the body depending on the service type.

Dear Julian Hansen,
my return format is as you said is Json.

thank you so much for the info.

would it be correct to write it like this? thank you

//Initialize cURL.
$ch = curl_init();
 
//Set the URL that you want to GET by using the CURLOPT_URL option.
curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_URL, 'https://www.api-url-here.com/auth-function-here?grant_type=password&username=MickeyMouse&password=letmein&client_id=00001');

curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_HTTPHEADER, array('Content-Type: application/x-www-form-urlencoded'));
 
//Set CURLOPT_RETURNTRANSFER so that the content is returned as a variable.
curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_RETURNTRANSFER, true);
 
//Set CURLOPT_FOLLOWLOCATION to true to follow redirects.
curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_FOLLOWLOCATION, true);
 
//Execute the request.
$return = curl_exec($ch);
 
//Close the cURL handle.
curl_close($ch);
 
//Print the data out onto the page.
$data = json_decode($return);

var_dump ($data);

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That should return the token - to use the token will require adding the Authorization Header as described above.

Dear Julian,
thank you very much.

it gives Request Timeout error.
is something wrong with my code?

as soon as I get the Authorization code, I will add it to the header.

thank you

Thank you Julian

You are welcome.