Utilities8 min read

UUID Generator: Production-Grade Unique Identifiers

Generate cryptographically strong UUIDs at scale with support for v1, v4, v5, and v7 formats. Perfect for distributed systems, database keys, and session management.

AppHighway Team•January 9, 2025•blog.common.updated January 9, 2025

TL;DR

Generate UUIDs in multiple versions (v1, v4, v5, v7) with different characteristics
Bulk generation: Create up to 10,000 UUIDs per request in 100ms
Multiple format options: Hyphens, case variants, Base64 encoding
Collision probability: Effectively zero for v4 (2^122 possible values)
Production use: 1 point per 100 UUIDs, perfect for high-volume systems

UUID Version Support

Understanding the differences between UUID versions helps you choose the right identifier strategy for your use case.

The UUID Generator supports four UUID versions, each optimized for different scenarios:

Version 1: Timestamp-based

Generated from timestamp and MAC address

Use Cases

Legacy systems, timestamp tracking

Pros

Sortable by creation time, contains timestamp information

Cons: Reveals MAC address, potential privacy concerns

Version 4: Random

Cryptographically random identifiers

Use Cases

General-purpose IDs, session tokens, API keys

Pros

Maximum privacy, no dependencies, most widely supported

Cons: Not sortable, slightly higher collision probability (still negligible)

Version 5: Namespace-based

Generated from namespace and name using SHA-1

Use Cases

Deterministic IDs, content-based addressing

Pros

Reproducible from same input, namespace organization

Cons: Requires namespace management, not cryptographically secure

Version 7: Timestamp-ordered

Modern timestamp-based with random suffix

Use Cases

Database primary keys, distributed systems, event IDs

Pros

Sortable, database-friendly indexes, better than v1

Cons: Newer standard, less widely adopted (as of 2025)

Version Comparison Table

Version	Sortable	Random	Privacy	Best For
v1	Yes (timestamp)	Partially	Low (MAC)	Legacy compatibility
v4	No	Fully	High	General purpose
v5	No	No (deterministic)	Medium	Content addressing
v7	Yes (timestamp)	Partially	High	Modern databases

Recommendation: For new projects, use UUID v7 for database keys (sortable, index-friendly) or v4 for session tokens and API keys (maximum randomness).

Bulk UUID Generation

Generate thousands of UUIDs in a single API call for batch operations and high-throughput systems.

The API supports generating up to 10,000 UUIDs per request, ideal for:

Capabilities

Database seeding and migration scripts
Batch user registration systems
Pre-generating ID pools for offline operations
Load testing and simulation data
Distributed system initialization

Performance Characteristics

Generation speed

10,000 UUIDs in ~100ms

Request limit

1-10,000 UUIDs per request

Collision probability

< 1 in 2^122 for v4

Points cost

1 point per 100 UUIDs

UUID Format Options

Customize UUID output format to match your system requirements and storage constraints.

The API provides multiple formatting options beyond the standard UUID format:

Standard (Hyphenated)

Format: 8-4-4-4-12 with hyphens

550e8400-e29b-41d4-a716-446655440000

Use Case: Default format, maximum compatibility

Compact (No Hyphens)

Format: 32 hexadecimal characters

550e8400e29b41d4a716446655440000

Use Case: Shorter URLs, reduced storage size

Uppercase

Format: Uppercase hexadecimal

550E8400-E29B-41D4-A716-446655440000

Use Case: Legacy system compatibility

Lowercase

Format: Lowercase hexadecimal (default)

550e8400-e29b-41d4-a716-446655440000

Use Case: Modern systems, better readability

Base64 Encoded

Format: 22-character Base64 string

VQ6EAOKbQdSnFkRmVUQAAA

Use Case: Compact representation, URL-safe

Storage Comparison

Format efficiency for 1 million UUIDs:

Standard (with hyphens)

36 bytes

36 MB

Compact (no hyphens)

32 bytes

32 MB

Base64 encoded

22 bytes

22 MB

Binary (native storage)

16 bytes

16 MB

Common Use Cases

UUIDs solve unique identifier challenges across diverse application architectures.

The UUID Generator excels in scenarios requiring distributed, collision-free identifiers:

Database Primary Keys

Replace auto-incrementing integers with globally unique identifiers

Benefits:

• No coordination needed across database shards
• Pre-generate IDs before database insertion
• Merge data from multiple sources without conflicts
• UUID v7 provides natural ordering for better index performance

Recommended: UUID v7

Distributed Systems

Generate unique identifiers across multiple servers and data centers

Benefits:

• No central ID authority required
• Offline ID generation capability
• Natural partition keys for distributed databases
• Event sourcing and CQRS pattern support

Recommended: UUID v7 or v4

Session and Token Management

Create secure, unpredictable session identifiers

Benefits:

• Cryptographically random for security
• No sequential enumeration attacks
• Suitable for authentication tokens
• Built-in uniqueness guarantees

Recommended: UUID v4

File and Resource Naming

Generate collision-free filenames and resource identifiers

Benefits:

• Avoid filename conflicts in cloud storage
• Unique document identifiers
• Cache-busting for static assets
• Content-addressable storage with UUID v5

Recommended: UUID v4 or v5

Transaction and Order IDs

Track financial transactions and customer orders

Benefits:

• Non-sequential IDs prevent enumeration
• Sortable with UUID v7 for chronological tracking
• Cross-system transaction correlation
• Audit trail and compliance support

Recommended: UUID v7

Microservices Communication

Correlation IDs and request tracing across services

Benefits:

• Track requests across service boundaries
• Distributed tracing integration
• Log aggregation and debugging
• No ID coordination between services

Recommended: UUID v4

Implementation Guide

Practical examples for integrating UUID generation into your applications.

The UUID Generator provides a simple REST interface with flexible options:

Example 1: Generate Single UUID v4

Generate a single random UUID for general-purpose use

Code:

curl -X POST https://apphighway.com/api/v1/uuid-generator/generate \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "version": "v4",
    "count": 1,
    "format": "standard"
  }'

# Response:
{
  "status": "success",
  "data": {
    "uuids": [
      "f47ac10b-58cc-4372-a567-0e02b2c3d479"
    ],
    "count": 1,
    "version": "v4",
    "format": "standard"
  },
  "pointsUsed": 1
}

This generates a single cryptographically random UUID suitable for session IDs, API keys, or any general-purpose unique identifier.

Example 2: Bulk Generate UUID v7 for Database

Generate 1,000 sortable UUIDs for database primary keys

Code:

curl -X POST https://apphighway.com/api/v1/uuid-generator/generate \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "version": "v7",
    "count": 1000,
    "format": "compact",
    "case": "lowercase"
  }'

# Response:
{
  "status": "success",
  "data": {
    "uuids": [
      "018d3f5e7b8a7000a1b2c3d4e5f6a7b8",
      "018d3f5e7b8a7001a2b3c4d5e6f7a8b9",
      // ... 998 more UUIDs
    ],
    "count": 1000,
    "version": "v7",
    "format": "compact"
  },
  "pointsUsed": 10
}

UUID v7 includes timestamp information, making them naturally sortable. Perfect for database primary keys as they improve B-tree index performance.

Example 3: Namespace-based UUID v5

Generate deterministic UUIDs from namespace and name

Code:

curl -X POST https://apphighway.com/api/v1/uuid-generator/generate \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "version": "v5",
    "namespace": "6ba7b810-9dad-11d1-80b4-00c04fd430c8",
    "name": "user@example.com",
    "format": "standard"
  }'

# Response:
{
  "status": "success",
  "data": {
    "uuids": [
      "886313e1-3b8a-5372-9b90-0c9aee199e5d"
    ],
    "count": 1,
    "version": "v5",
    "format": "standard",
    "namespace": "6ba7b810-9dad-11d1-80b4-00c04fd430c8",
    "name": "user@example.com"
  },
  "pointsUsed": 1
}

# Same inputs always produce the same UUID:
# namespace + "user@example.com" = 886313e1-3b8a-5372-9b90-0c9aee199e5d

UUID v5 is deterministic: same namespace and name always produce the same UUID. Ideal for content-addressable storage or creating reproducible identifiers from known inputs.

API Parameters

version

string

UUID version to generate

Required: true

Options: v1, v4, v5, v7

count

integer

Number of UUIDs to generate

Default: 1

Range: 1-10000

format

string

Output format

Default: standard

Options: standard, compact, base64

case

string

Character case for hexadecimal output

Default: lowercase

Options: lowercase, uppercase

namespace

string

Namespace UUID (v5 only)

Required: Only for v5

name

string

Name string to hash (v5 only)

Required: Only for v5

Real-World Example: E-commerce Order IDs

How a growing e-commerce platform implemented collision-free order tracking

The Challenge

GlobalShop (E-commerce Platform)

Processing 100,000 daily orders across 5 regional data centers with traditional auto-increment IDs causing:

• ID collisions during database merges
• Cannot pre-generate order IDs before transaction completion
• Poor database performance with random UUID v4
• Security risk: Sequential IDs allow order enumeration
• Sharding complexity with integer keys

The Solution

Implemented UUID v7 for order IDs via AppHighway tool

Implementation:

1. Generate order IDs using UUID v7 before transaction starts
2. Bulk-generate 10,000 UUIDs daily for ID pool
3. Store in compact format (no hyphens) to save storage
4. Natural chronological sorting for customer order history
5. No coordination needed across regional databases

Results

Zero ID collisions

100% unique

Eliminated merge conflicts

Database write performance

+35% faster

Improved B-tree index locality

Storage efficiency

10% reduction

Compact format vs. hyphenated

Processing time

10 seconds/day

Bulk generation (10 batches × 10k UUIDs)

Monthly points cost

30,000 points

$300/month (1M UUIDs)

Implementation Workflow

Step 1: Morning UUID Pool Generation

Cron job generates 10,000 UUID v7 in bulk (100 points)

Step 2: Order Creation

System pulls pre-generated UUID from pool for new orders

Step 3: Database Insertion

Insert with UUID v7 primary key (chronologically ordered)

Step 4: Customer Tracking

Order ID displayed to customer (non-enumerable)

Step 5: Analytics

Natural time-based sorting for reports and dashboards

""Switching to UUID v7 eliminated our database sharding headaches. We generate 100k order IDs daily with zero collisions, and the natural sorting gives us better query performance than we had with integers.""

— Sarah Chen, Lead Backend Engineer at GlobalShop

Error Handling

Common errors and how to handle them gracefully.

The API returns clear error messages for validation and processing failures:

INVALID_VERSION (400)

Unsupported UUID version. Must be v1, v4, v5, or v7

Cause:

Specified an invalid or unsupported UUID version

Solution:

Use one of the supported versions: v1, v4, v5, or v7

COUNT_OUT_OF_RANGE (400)

Count must be between 1 and 10000

Cause:

Requested too many or too few UUIDs

Solution:

Adjust count parameter to be within 1-10,000 range. For larger batches, make multiple requests.

MISSING_NAMESPACE (400)

Namespace and name required for UUID v5

Cause:

UUID v5 requires both namespace and name parameters

Solution:

Provide valid namespace UUID and name string for deterministic v5 generation

INSUFFICIENT_POINTS (402)

Insufficient points. Required: 10, Available: 5

Cause:

Not enough points to generate requested UUIDs

Solution:

Purchase more points or reduce the count parameter. Cost: 1 point per 100 UUIDs.

Error Handling Best Practices

Always validate count parameter before API call
Implement retry logic with exponential backoff for network errors
Cache generated UUIDs locally to avoid regeneration costs
Monitor points balance and set up alerts for low balance
Handle INSUFFICIENT_POINTS gracefully with fallback to smaller batches

Best Practices

Production-ready patterns for UUID generation at scale.

Follow these guidelines to maximize efficiency and reliability:

Choose the Right Version

Select UUID version based on your specific requirements

• Use v7 for database primary keys (sortable, index-friendly)
• Use v4 for session tokens and API keys (maximum randomness)
• Use v5 for content-addressable storage (deterministic)
• Avoid v1 unless required for legacy compatibility

Implement UUID Pooling

Pre-generate UUIDs in bulk to reduce API calls

• Generate daily/hourly pools based on usage patterns
• Monitor pool depletion and refill proactively
• Store pools in Redis or in-memory cache for fast access
• Set alerts when pool drops below 20% capacity

Optimize Storage Format

Choose format based on storage and performance needs

• Use compact format (no hyphens) for storage efficiency
• Use Base64 for URL-safe, shorter representations
• Store as binary (16 bytes) in databases for minimum size
• Use standard format for API responses and user display

Database Index Optimization

Leverage UUID v7 for better database performance

• UUID v7 improves B-tree index locality vs. v4
• Use as primary key in distributed databases
• Combine with database partitioning strategies
• Consider clustered indexes for time-series queries

Validate Before Use

Always validate UUID format before database insertion

• Check format matches expected pattern (length, hyphens)
• Verify version field matches requested version
• Validate uniqueness if required by business logic
• Handle malformed UUIDs gracefully with error logging

Monitor and Alert

Track UUID generation patterns and costs

• Log generation requests with count and version
• Alert on unusual bulk generation patterns
• Track points consumption vs. budget
• Monitor API response times for performance issues

Implement Fallback Strategies

Have backup plans for API unavailability

• Cache pre-generated UUIDs for offline operation
• Implement local UUID generation as fallback
• Queue failed requests for retry during outages
• Document fallback behavior for operations teams

Security Considerations

Use UUIDs appropriately for security-sensitive contexts

• Never use sequential IDs for sensitive resources
• Use v4 for security tokens (maximum entropy)
• Don't expose internal IDs; use UUIDs as public identifiers
• Rotate namespace UUIDs periodically for v5 generation

Next Steps

Ready to implement UUID generation in your application?

Get API Access

Create account at apphighway.com/signup

Test UUID Generation

Try different versions and formats in the tool playground

Visit apphighway.com/docs/uuid-generator

Implement in Your App

Integrate UUID generation into your application workflow

Follow the implementation examples above

Monitor Usage

Track your UUID generation patterns and optimize costs

Use the dashboard analytics to monitor points consumption

Start Generating UUIDs

Join thousands of developers using AppHighway for reliable UUID generation

Conclusion

The UUID Generator provides production-ready unique identifiers for modern distributed systems. With support for multiple UUID versions (v1, v4, v5, v7), bulk generation up to 10,000 per request, and flexible formatting options, it's the ideal solution for database keys, session management, and distributed system coordination. UUID v7, the newest standard, combines the benefits of timestamp-based ordering with cryptographic randomness—perfect for database primary keys that need both uniqueness and performance. At just 1 point per 100 UUIDs, you can generate millions of identifiers cost-effectively. Whether you're building a distributed e-commerce platform, implementing microservices, or managing session tokens, the UUID Generator delivers collision-free identifiers at scale. Start with the free tier and scale as your needs grow.

Unique identifiers are the foundation of distributed systems. Choose the right UUID version for your use case, and let AppHighway handle the generation at scale.