Zoho Desk API Essential Guide

What type of API does Zoho Desk provide?

REST API

• Zoho CRM provides a comprehensive REST API that allows developers to interact with CRM data and functionality.
• The REST API supports standard HTTP methods like GET, POST, PUT, DELETE etc. for performing CRUD operations on CRM records.

GraphQL API

• More recently, Zoho CRM has introduced a GraphQL API that provides more flexibility and efficiency in querying CRM data.
• The GraphQL API allows developers to:
  • Retrieve precise data without over-fetching or under-fetching
  • Aggregate data from multiple entities in a single API call
  • Use a schema-based approach to construct queries

SOAP API

• While not as prominently featured as REST and GraphQL, Zoho CRM also offers a SOAP API for integration scenarios that require SOAP web services.

Other API Types

• Zoho CRM API provides various other types of APIs, including:
  • Metadata APIs
  • Composite API
  • Bulk APIs
  • Notification APIs
  • Query APIs

Key Considerations

• The most recent version of the Zoho CRM API is Version 6 (V6).
• Zoho CRM provides webhooks to send instant web notifications to third-party applications when specific events occur in the CRM system.
• There are rate limits and concurrency limits in place for API usage.

In summary, Zoho Desk primarily offers REST and GraphQL APIs, with SOAP also available as an option. The GraphQL API is a more recent addition that provides enhanced flexibility and efficiency compared to the traditional REST API.

Does the Zoho Desk API have webhooks?

Yes, the official Zoho Desk API does have webhooks. Here are the key points about Zoho Desk webhooks:

Webhook Support

• Zoho Desk provides webhook APIs that allow you to programmatically create, view, update, or delete webhooks to subscribe to event information from Zoho Desk.
• Webhooks push relevant information to a callback URL whenever an event, such as adding a ticket or updating a contact, occurs in the help desk.

Event Types

You can subscribe to various event types across different Zoho Desk modules, including:

• Ticket events: Add, Update, Delete, Approval Add/Update, Thread Add, Comment Add/Update, Attachment Add/Update/Delete
• Contact events: Add, Update, Delete
• Account events: Add, Update, Delete
• Department events: Add, Update
• Agent events: Add, Update, Delete, Presence Update
• Task events: Add, Update, Delete
• Call events: Add, Update, Delete
• Article events: Add, Update, Delete, Translation Add/Update/Delete, Feedback Add
• Knowledge Base events: Root Category Add/Update/Delete, Section Add/Update/Delete
• IM Message Add event

Key Considerations

1. Webhook limits:

   • The number of webhooks you can enable depends on your Zoho Desk edition (e.g., 5 for Professional, 10 for Enterprise).
   • You can configure up to 20 webhooks in total, but only a limited number can be enabled based on your edition.

2. Authentication:

   • Zoho Desk uses JWT (JSON Web Token) for webhook authentication to verify the authenticity of event information.

3. Ignoring events:

   • You can use the ignoreSourceId attribute to exempt specific client IDs from triggering webhooks, useful for avoiding loops in integrations.

4. Extension webhooks:

   • Zoho Desk Marketplace supports extension-specific webhooks, which are restricted to the extension app alone.

Best Practices

• Use HTTPS callback URLs for better security.
• Verify the authenticity of event information using JWT.
• Configure webhooks to ignore events triggered by your own API calls when necessary.
• For extension webhooks, include the Desk.events.ALL scope in the authorization scope list.

By utilizing Zoho Desk webhooks, you can create real-time integrations and automate workflows based on various events occurring in your help desk system.

Rate Limits and other limitations

The API Rate Limits for the Zoho Desk API are as follows:

API Limit

• Minimum: 4000 requests per day per organization [5]
• Maximum: 25000 requests per day per organization or 500 requests per user license, whichever is lower [5]

Key Points to Consider

1. The PST Time zone is used for calculating daily limits [5].

2. Zoho notifies CRM administrators (users with "Administrator" profile) if an organization exceeds the API limit [5].

3. To optimize API usage, it's recommended to:

   • Get a maximum of 200 records with each request
   • Insert, update, or delete a maximum of 100 records with each request [5]

4. If an application requires more than the upper limit, additional API requests will not be processed [5].

5. Zoho provides API Statistics for better assessment of integration requirements [5].

Example

If an organization has purchased 10 user licenses, they are allowed 2500 requests per day. Using each of those 2500 requests, they can update a maximum of 100 records. This means that 2500 x 100 = 250,000 records can be updated/inserted/deleted per day [5].

Best Practices

1. Assess API requirements well in advance to avoid data transfer issues [5].

2. Contact Zoho support at [email protected] if you need help with API limits [5].

3. Use the API usage monitoring feature in your Zoho Desk account to track your current day's API usage and total limit [5].

4. Optimize your API calls by batching requests when possible, staying within the recommended limits of 200 records for GET requests and 100 records for POST/PUT/DELETE requests [5].

It's important to note that these limits are for the Zoho CRM API, which may differ from the Zoho Desk API. For the most accurate and up-to-date information specific to Zoho Desk API, it's recommended to consult the official Zoho Desk API documentation or contact Zoho Desk support directly.

Latest API Version

I apologize, but I don't have accurate information about the most recent version of the Zoho Desk API based on the provided search results. The search results don't contain specific information about the API version.

However, I can provide some general information about Zoho Desk API:

Key Points to Consider

• Zoho Desk offers an API for developers to integrate Zoho Desk functionality into their applications.
• API versions can change over time, with new features being added and potentially deprecated features being removed.
• To get the most up-to-date information about the Zoho Desk API version, it's best to check the official Zoho Desk API documentation or developer portal.

Best Practices

• Always refer to the official Zoho documentation for the most accurate and current information about their API.
• When working with any API, it's important to stay informed about version changes and updates.
• Consider subscribing to Zoho's developer newsletter or following their developer blog for announcements about API updates.

If you need the most recent version of the Zoho Desk API, I recommend visiting the official Zoho Desk API documentation or contacting Zoho support directly for the most accurate and up-to-date information.

How to get a Zoho Desk developer account and API Keys?

To get a developer account for Zoho Desk and create an API integration, you'll need to follow these steps:

1. Sign up for a Zoho Desk account

First, you need to have a Zoho Desk account. If you don't already have one, you can sign up for a free trial or purchase a plan on the Zoho Desk website.

2. Access the Zoho Desk Developer Portal

Once you have a Zoho Desk account, you can access the Zoho Desk Developer Portal:

• Go to the Zoho Desk Developers page (https://www.zoho.com/desk/developers/).
• This page provides access to various developer resources, including REST APIs, SDKs, and documentation.

3. Create an API client

To use the Zoho Desk API, you'll need to create an API client:

• Go to the Zoho API Console (https://api-console.zoho.com/).
• Create a new client for Zoho Desk.
• Generate the necessary credentials (Client ID and Client Secret) for authentication.

4. Authenticate your requests

Use the OAuth 2.0 protocol to authenticate your API requests. You'll need to:

• Obtain an access token using your client credentials.
• Include this token in the header of your API requests.

5. Start developing your integration

With your developer account set up and API client created, you can now start developing your integration:

• Use the REST APIs to interact with Zoho Desk data.
• Implement the necessary API calls for your specific integration needs.
• Test your integration thoroughly in a development environment before deploying to production.

Key points to consider:

• Make sure to review and comply with Zoho's API usage policies and rate limits.
• Use the Developer Forums to ask questions and get support from the Zoho developer community.
• Keep your API credentials secure and never share them publicly.

What can you do with the Zoho Desk API?

Based on the search results provided, I can give you an overview of the data models you can interact with using the Zoho Desk API. Here's a list of bullet points going over what is possible for each data model:

Accounts

• View account information in Zoho Desk

Agents

• Retrieve agent details in Zoho Desk

ArchivedTickets

• Access archived tickets list for a given department

Contacts

• View contact information in Zoho Desk

CustomerHappiness

• Access customer happiness metrics

Departments

• View department information in Zoho Desk

Organizations

• Retrieve organization details

Products

• Access product information

Teams

• View team details in Zoho Desk

TicketHistory

• Retrieve details of all actions (events) performed on a ticket
• Access information from sub-tabs on the ticket detail page

TicketLatestThread

• Get the most recent thread recorded in a ticket

TicketMetrics

• Access details related to response and resolution times of a ticket

Tickets

• View ticket information in Zoho Desk
• Perform operations like creating, updating, and deleting tickets (implied)

Key Points to Consider:

• The Zoho Desk API allows interaction with various data models related to customer support and ticketing systems.
• Each data model provides specific functionalities and access to different types of information within the Zoho Desk ecosystem.
• The API likely supports standard CRUD (Create, Read, Update, Delete) operations for most of these data models, although the search results don't explicitly mention all operations for each model.
• Authentication and authorization are required to access the API and interact with these data models.

Best Practices:

• Use appropriate authentication methods when accessing the API.
• Refer to the official Zoho Desk API documentation for detailed information on endpoints, request parameters, and response formats for each data model.
• Consider rate limits and API usage quotas when integrating with the Zoho Desk API.
• Handle errors and exceptions properly when interacting with the API to ensure robust integration.