> ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://www.nexrender.com/docs/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # Inspecting Templates > Fetch template details, discover compositions and layers, download the source file, and update template properties Once a template is uploaded, you can inspect it to discover its available compositions and layers before submitting jobs. You can also update its display name and download the original source file. > [!WARNING] > > The v2 inspection API (`GET /api/v2/templates/{id}` returning embedded `compositions` and `layers` arrays) is deprecated and will be removed in a future release. Use the v3 endpoints below for all new integrations. ## Fetch a Template (v3) The v3 API splits introspection into three separate endpoints. The main metadata endpoint returns a lightweight object - compositions and layers are fetched separately. ### 1. Get template metadata ```bash theme={null} curl -X GET https://api.nexrender.com/api/v3/templates/01JTGM9GCR71JV7EJYDF45QAFD \ -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" ``` ```json theme={null} { "id": "01JTGM9GCR71JV7EJYDF45QAFD", "type": "zip", "displayName": "Product Promo", "status": "uploaded", "createdAt": "2025-05-05T16:25:59.961Z", "updatedAt": "2025-05-05T16:30:12.000Z" } ``` ### 2. List compositions `GET /v3/templates/{id}/compositions` returns paginated compositions with full AE metadata. ```bash Request theme={null} curl -X GET "https://api.nexrender.com/api/v3/templates/01JTGM9GCR71JV7EJYDF45QAFD/compositions" \ -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" ``` ```json Response theme={null} [ { "aeid": "1", "name": "main", "width": 1920, "height": 1080, "duration": 15.0, "frame_rate": 30, "data": {} }, { "aeid": "2", "name": "intro", "width": 1920, "height": 1080, "duration": 3.0, "frame_rate": 30, "data": {} } ] ``` The `name` field is the value to use as `template.composition` when submitting a render job. | Field | Description | | - | - | | `aeid` | After Effects internal composition ID | | `name` | Composition name - use this as `template.composition` in jobs | | `width` / `height` | Composition dimensions in pixels | | `duration` | Duration in seconds | | `frame_rate` | Frames per second | | `data` | Additional parser metadata | ### 3. List layers `GET /v3/templates/{id}/layers` returns paginated layers with full structural metadata. ```bash Request theme={null} curl -X GET "https://api.nexrender.com/api/v3/templates/01JTGM9GCR71JV7EJYDF45QAFD/layers" \ -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" ``` ```json Response theme={null} [ { "composition_id": 1, "aeid": 1, "name": "title", "top": 200, "left": 100, "width": 1720, "height": 120, "start_time": 0, "in_point": 0, "out_point": 15.0, "layer_type": "TextLayer", "source_type": null, "source_comp_id": null, "parent_id": null, "data": {} }, { "composition_id": 1, "aeid": 2, "name": "logo", "top": 880, "left": 80, "width": 200, "height": 80, "start_time": 0, "in_point": 0, "out_point": 15.0, "layer_type": "AVLayer", "source_type": "image", "source_comp_id": null, "parent_id": null, "data": {} } ] ``` | Field | Description | | - | - | | `composition_id` | `aeid` of the composition this layer belongs to | | `aeid` | After Effects internal layer ID | | `name` | Layer name - use this as `layerName` in job assets and functions | | `top` / `left` / `width` / `height` | Layer bounds at time 0, in pixels | | `start_time` | Layer start time in seconds | | `in_point` / `out_point` | Layer in/out points in seconds | | `layer_type` | AE layer type: `TextLayer`, `AVLayer`, `ShapeLayer`, `CameraLayer`, etc. | | `source_type` | Source type for AV layers: `image`, `video`, `audio` (null for non-AV) | | `source_comp_id` | AE composition ID of the source precomp, when this layer is a precomp | | `parent_id` | AE ID of the parent layer when parented | ### Pagination Both `/compositions` and `/layers` support `limit` and `offset` query parameters (default `limit` is 300, max 1000). Use these for templates with large numbers of layers: ```bash theme={null} curl "https://api.nexrender.com/api/v3/templates/01JTGM9GCR71JV7EJYDF45QAFD/layers?limit=100&offset=200" \ -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" ``` ## Template Status Values | Status | Meaning | | - | - | | `awaiting_upload` | Template created but file not yet uploaded | | `downloading` | Template file is being fetched (clean room / remote `src`) | | `processing` | File received, introspection in progress | | `uploaded` | Introspection complete - ready for rendering | | `error` | Processing failed - see the `error` field for details | ## List All Templates ```bash theme={null} curl -X GET https://api.nexrender.com/api/v3/templates \ -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" ``` ## Update Display Name Use `PATCH /templates/{id}` to rename a template. Only `displayName` can be updated. ```bash Request theme={null} curl -X PATCH https://api.nexrender.com/api/v2/templates/01JTGM9GCR71JV7EJYDF45QAFD \ -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \ -H "Content-Type: application/json" \ -d '{ "displayName": "Product Promo v2" }' ``` ```json Response theme={null} { "id": "01JTGM9GCR71JV7EJYDF45QAFD", "type": "zip", "displayName": "Product Promo v2", "status": "uploaded" } ``` ## Download the Source File `GET /templates/{id}/download` returns a presigned URL for downloading the original template file from storage. ```bash Request theme={null} curl -X GET https://api.nexrender.com/api/v2/templates/01JTGM9GCR71JV7EJYDF45QAFD/download \ -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" ``` ```json Response theme={null} { "url": "https://nx1-assets-eu.cloudflarestorage.com/...?X-Amz-Expires=3600&..." } ``` The URL is temporary - use it promptly. If you need to re-download, request a fresh URL via the same endpoint. ## Template Storage and Retention Templates are persisted indefinitely unless deleted manually. Regularly delete old or unused templates to keep your account tidy - use `DELETE /templates/{id}` or see the [Deleting Templates](https://www.nexrender.com/docs/cloud/templates/deleting.md) page. For clean room setups, templates can be stored in secure customer-owned storage rather than on Nexrender's side. In this case, template introspection (compositions, layers) and caching are not available - your job payloads must reference composition and layer names directly. ## API Reference ## OpenAPI ````yaml GET /v3/templates/{id} openapi: 3.0.4 info: title: Nexrender API version: '2.0' description: > REST API for the Nexrender cloud rendering platform, enabling programmatic control over After Effects template processing, job management, and asset handling. Features include: - Template upload and management (AEP, MOGRT, ZIP files) - Job creation and status monitoring with real-time progress - Job nesting for multi-composition renders (parent/child jobs) - Job stitching to combine multiple videos into one - Batch job creation for submitting up to 1000 jobs at once - Font library management for typography consistency - Secret management for secure API key storage - Webhook notifications for job lifecycle events - Asset injection for dynamic content replacement Authentication is required for all endpoints using Bearer token authorization. servers: - url: https://api.nexrender.com/api/v2 description: Production API server security: - apiToken: [] paths: /v3/templates/{id}: servers: - url: https://api.nexrender.com/api description: Production API server get: tags: - Template Management summary: Get template metadata (v3) description: >- Retrieve lightweight metadata for one template. Use the compositions and layers subresources to inspect template structure. operationId: getTemplateV3 parameters: - in: path name: id required: true description: Unique template identifier in ULID format schema: type: string pattern: ^[0-9A-HJKMNP-TV-Z]{26}$ responses: '200': description: Successfully retrieved template metadata content: application/json: schema: $ref: '#/components/schemas/TemplateV3' '400': description: Invalid template id content: application/json: schema: $ref: '#/components/schemas/ErrorResponse' '401': description: Unauthorized - invalid or missing API token content: application/json: schema: $ref: '#/components/schemas/ErrorResponse' '404': description: >- Template not found - the specified template ID does not exist or is not accessible content: application/json: schema: $ref: '#/components/schemas/ErrorResponse' components: schemas: TemplateV3: type: object description: >- Lightweight template metadata returned by the v3 template API. Composition and layer structure is exposed through separate paginated endpoints. properties: id: type: string pattern: ^[0-9A-HJKMNP-TV-Z]{26}$ description: >- Unique template identifier used for referencing in jobs and API operations type: type: string enum: - aep - zip - mogrt description: Template file format displayName: type: string description: Human-readable template name status: type: string enum: - awaiting_upload - downloading - processing - uploaded - error description: Current template processing status createdAt: type: string format: date-time description: ISO timestamp when the template was created updatedAt: type: string format: date-time description: ISO timestamp when the template was last updated required: - id - type - displayName - status - createdAt - updatedAt ErrorResponse: type: object description: Standard error response format properties: error: type: string description: Human-readable error message explaining what went wrong required: - error securitySchemes: apiToken: type: http scheme: bearer description: > Bearer token authentication using API tokens for team-based access control. You can generate your own API token at: https://app.nexrender.com/settings/api-tokens ```` This documentation is built and hosted on [Mintlify](https://mintlify.com), a developer documentation platform.