IB Gateway paper-account walkthrough

In this video, I will show you how to connect an Interactive Brokers paper account to BrokerBridge using IB Gateway. By the end, you will know where to enable API access, which host and port to use, and how to confirm BrokerBridge is connected to the right paper account.

Start with IB Gateway signed into Paper Trading. Once you are logged in, open Configure, then Settings. In the menu on the left, open API, then select Settings.

Turn on ActiveX and Socket Clients. For an IB Gateway paper account, set the socket port to 4002. Port 4001 is normally used for live trading, so leave it alone during this paper setup.

Return to BrokerBridge. Under Connect a local IBKR account, choose IB Gateway and select the paper preset. BrokerBridge fills the host with 127.0.0.1 and the port with 4002. The host simply means IB Gateway is running on this computer. Leave the Client ID on Automatic. BrokerBridge will assign an available one.

Select Test broker connection. A successful test confirms the authenticated session, paper mode, and a masked account for you to select. No order is submitted during setup.

If the test fails, confirm IB Gateway is still in Paper Trading, socket clients are enabled, and the port is 4002. If IB Gateway is running on another computer, open Manual connection settings and enter that computer's reachable address.