> ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.chift.eu/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # How Chift works Chift sits between your software and your customers' financial tools. Whichever way you use it, the same three objects show up — learn them once here. ## The three objects Everything in Chift is built from three objects, and how they relate is the part worth getting straight up front: A consumer holds connections, each linking to one connector * **Connector** — software Chift talks to (Odoo, Sage, Shopify, Lightspeed). Chift builds and maintains these; you choose which to activate. In your product, an integration you offer. * **Consumer** — one of your customers, identified by a uuid (`consumerid`). In your product, a tenant or account in your database — usually one per customer. * **Connection** — one consumer linked to one connector, holding that customer's credentials and configuration. *"This customer connected their Odoo."* Chift's API paths and fields use the word **integration** (`GET /integrations`, `integrationid`) for historical reasons. In the documentation we say **connector**. They mean the same thing. ## Two ways to use Chift Both start from the same connectors, consumers, and connections. What differs is who writes the integration logic and who triggers it. **You build the integration and you have the lead.** You call Chift's endpoints directly and read or write your customers' data whenever your product needs to. **Chift builds the integration and triggers the flows.** We set up the synchronisation with you and run it on an event or a schedule — no integration code on your side. Most developers start with the Unified API. Syncs suit teams who would rather delegate the build and the running of the flow to Chift. ## Next steps Exchange your API key for a bearer token — needed for both models. Short definitions of every Chift term.