Kaizen #130 - Zoho CRM Scala SDK (V6) - Configuration and Initialization

Kaizen #130 - Zoho CRM Scala SDK (V6) - Configuration and Initialization

Hello and welcome to another Kaizen week!

In this week's post, we'll show you how to get started with Zoho CRM's Scala SDK, and walk you through the configuration and initialization process. Specifically, we will  discuss how to use the Scala SDK to make API calls authenticated via self-client. Please note that this article holds true for Scala SDK supporting version 6 of Zoho CRM APIs.

Software Development Kits (SDKs) are sets of tools and libraries designed to simplify the development process, and the integration between applications and specific platforms or services. They provide pre-built functionalities and abstract complex tasks, facilitating easier and faster development process. Zoho CRM's Scala SDKs act as a wrapper  for the REST APIs, thus making it easier to use the services of Zoho CRM.

Simplified Authentication using Scala SDK

Authentication with Zoho CRM APIs is facilitated by the OAuth 2.0 protocol, ensuring secure access to its resources. The process begins with the generation of a grant token for your organization in the Zoho Developer Console, where you specify the required scopes. Subsequently, using this grant token, you can generate both the access token, used for API call authentication, and the refresh token, employed for refreshing the access tokens after their one-hour expiry period. You must persist these tokens, along with their expiry times, in your server's data store for seamless API access. 

However, with the Scala SDK, this authentication process is significantly simplified. After generating the grant token and initialization, the SDK takes care of the rest. The SDK handles token generation, persistence, and refreshing the access token automatically, ensuring access to the resources without manual intervention.

Using the Zoho CRM Scala SDK

Before diving into the usage of Scala SDKs, ensure that the following prerequisites are met:
  • Ensure that the client app has Java version 11 or above.
  • Ensure that the client app has Scala version 2.13.5 or above.
  • Have an IDE such as IntelliJ installed.
  • An active Zoho CRM account.

1. Register your application with Zoho CRM

When you register a client with Zoho CRM, you establish a connection between your application and Zoho CRM, enabling your application to securely access and interact with Zoho CRM APIs and resources after authentication. The registration process involves providing essential details such as the client type, homepage URL, and authorized redirect URIs, depending on the type of client you choose.

To register your client:
  1. Go to the Zoho Developer Console
  2. Click on Get Started or +ADD CLIENT
  3. Choose the Client Type as Self-Client or Server based Applications depending on your application. Read our Kaizen post on the different client types to understand better. For this article, we will proceed with Self-client as we aim to develop a Scala application for our own use.
  4. Fill in the necessary details and click CREATE to register your client successfully. This will provide you with a Client ID and Client Secret.

2. Create a Scala project in your preferred IDE

If you already have your project set up, you may skip this step. However, if you are starting out, the next crucial step is to create a Scala Project in your preferred IDE. For the purpose of this guide, we will be using IntelliJ IDEA as the IDE of choice. 

3. Include the Zoho CRM Scala SDK in your project

To include the Zoho CRM Scala SDK in your project, you can follow different methods as outlined here.  However, for the purpose of this guide, we will demonstrate how to include the SDK using the build.sbt file.

Follow these steps to include the Zoho CRM Scala SDK in your project using the build.sbt file:
  1. Open your project in IntelliJ IDEA or your preferred IDE.
  2. Locate the build.sbt file in your project directory.
  3. Add the Zoho CRM Scala SDK dependency to your build.sbt file. To add the latest version (supporting version 6 of Zoho CRM APIs), include this line in the file  and Save: libraryDependencies ++= Seq( "com.zoho.crm" % "zohocrmsdk-6-0" % "2.0.0")
  4. Sync the changes and reload the files to ensure that the SDK has been added to the project.
Please note that when you install the Zoho CRM SDK, there are many dependencies which will also be installed. These dependencies are necessary for the proper functioning of the SDK and will be automatically managed by your build tool (such as sbt) during the installation process.


4. Obtain the grant token to authenticate your client

To make API calls, you need to authenticate your client by generating a grant token with the required scopes. For this guide, we will be using the self-client created in the first step. 
Log in to the Zoho Developer Console, and generate the grant token with the required scopes. Please note that this grant token has a short life span, and that it is used to generate the access and refresh tokens. Refer to our Kaizen on OAuth2.0 for more details.


5. Configuration and Initialization of the SDK

The configuration step in initializing the SDK involves setting up various objects to define how the SDK operates. This includes specifying the domain for API calls, token persistence, error logging, resource information storage, and more.

Before going into the specifics of various configurations, let us first discuss Token Persistence. Token Persistence refers to the mechanism through which access tokens and refresh tokens obtained during authentication are stored and managed by the SDK.  By storing tokens securely, the SDK can automatically manage token expiration and renewal, eliminating the need for manual token handling by the developer.For details on the different persistence methods supported by our SDKs, please refer to the last section of this post. In this guide, we will be using File Persistence as the method for Token Persistence. However, please note that users must choose the method that best suits their requirements and preferences.

Here is a sample code to initialize the SDK. Make sure to replace the client ID, client secret, grantToken, file paths, and other configurations with your specific values. 
  1. import com.zoho.api.authenticator.OAuthToken
  2. import com.zoho.crm.api.dc.USDataCenter
  3. import com.zoho.crm.api.exception.SDKException
  4. import com.zoho.crm.api.{HeaderMap, Initializer, SDKConfig}
  5. import com.zoho.api.logger.Logger
  6. import com.zoho.api.authenticator.store.FileStore

  8. object BulkWrite {
  9.   @throws[SDKException]
  10.   def main(args: Array[String]): Unit = {
  11.     val environment = USDataCenter.PRODUCTION
  12.     val token = new OAuthToken.Builder().clientID("1000.xxx").clientSecret("xxx").grantToken( "1000.xxx").findUser(false).build()
  13.     //Object containing the absolute file path to store tokens
  14.     var tokenstore = new FileStore("/Documents/SDK-Projects/Scala-SDK/ScalaSample/sdk_tokens_new.txt")
  15.     var logger = new Logger.Builder()
  16.       .level(Logger.Levels.ALL)
  17.       .filePath("/Documents/SDK-Projects/Scala-SDK/ScalaSample/scala_sdk_log.log")
  18.       .build
  19.     var sdkConfig = new SDKConfig.Builder().pickListValidation(false).autoRefreshFields(false).connectionTimeout(1000).requestTimeout(1000).socketTimeout(1000).build
  20.     new Initializer.Builder().environment(environment).token(token).store(tokenstore).logger(logger).SDKConfig(sdkConfig).initialize()
  21.   }
  22. }
  23. class BulkWrite {}

During the initialization step, the following configuration details have to be defined to configure the  behavior and functionality of the SDK. While two of them are mandatory, the others are optional.
  1. environment (mandatory): It determines the API environment, which dictates the domain and URL for making API calls. The format follows the Domain.Environment pattern.
    eg : val env = USDataCenter.PRODUCTION
  2. token (mandatory) : Contains the user token details. Create an instance of OAuthToken with the details that you get after registering your Zoho client. Depending on the available tokens, you can select one of the following flows:
    1. Grant Token Flow: Involves storing and persisting the grant token. This flow is used when you have a grant token available. The SDK will generate and persist the access and refresh tokens, and also refresh the access token upon expiry.
    2. Refresh Token Flow: Involves storing and persisting the refresh token. This flow is used when you have a refresh token available. The SDK will generate and persist the access and refresh tokens, and also refresh the access token upon expiry.
    3. Access Token Flow: In this flow, the access token is directly utilized for API calls without token persistence. The SDK will persist the access token, but upon expiry it won't be refreshed, and an INVALID_TOKEN error will be thrown once the access token has expired.
    4. Id FLow : You can use the id from the persisted token file/DB to make API calls. The id is a unique system generated value for each token details entry in the file/DB. Please note that you can use this method only after the SDK has already been initialized.
  3. logger (optional) : You can customize the logging behavior by setting the desired log level, which can be one of the following: FATAL, ERROR, WARNING, INFO, DEBUG, TRACE, ALL, or OFF. Additionally, you can configure the file path and file name for the log file.
  4. store (optional) : Allows you to configure token persistence for your application. If this is skipped, the SDK will create the "sdk_tokens.txt" file in the current working directory by default to persist the tokens. 

    Database Persistence
    File Persistence
    Custom Persistence
    var tokenstore = new DBStore.Builder()
      .host("hostName")
      .databaseName("databaseName")
      .tableName("tableName")
      .userName("userName")
      .password("password")
      .portNumber("portNumber")
      .build
    var tokenstore = new FileStore("/Users/user_name/Documents/scala_sdk_token.txt")
    var tokenStore = new CustomStore()

  5. SDKConfig (optional) : This method takes care of additional SDK configurations.

    Configuration Key
    Description
    autoRefreshFields
    Default Value : False
    A boolean configuration field to enable or disable automatic refreshing of module fields in the background. If set to true, fields are refreshed every hour, and if set to false, fields must be manually refreshed or deleted.
    pickListValidation
    Default Value : True
    This field enables or disables pick list validation. If enabled, user input for pick list fields is validated, and if the value does not exist in the pick list, the SDK throws an error. If disabled, the input is not validated and the API call is made.
    enableSSLVerification
    Default Value : True
    A boolean field to enable or disable curl certificate verification. If set to true, the SDK verifies the authenticity of certificate. If set to false, the SDK skips the verification.
    connectionTimeout
    Default Value : 0
    The maximum time (in seconds) to wait while trying to connect. Use 0 to wait indefinitely.
    timeout
    Default Value : 0
    The maximum time (in seconds) to allow cURL functions to execute. Use 0 to wait indefinitely.

  6. requestProxy (optional) : Configure this only if you're using a proxy server to make the API calls. To configure, create an instance of RequestProxy containing the proxy properties of the user.

    var requestProxy = new RequestProxy.Builder()
      .host("proxyHost")
      .port(80)
      .user("proxyUser")
      .password("password")
      .userDomain("userDomain")
      .build()

  7. resourcePath (optional) : To configure the absolute directory path to store user-specific files containing module fields information. If this object is skipped, the files will be stored in the project directory itself.
Once the initialization is successful, you can verify that the access and refresh tokens are generated and persisted. You can do this by checking the tokens file or the database, depending on the token persistence method you configured during initialization.


Token Persistence

There are three token persistence methods supported by our SDKs. 
  1. Token Persistence using a Database : In Database persistence, tokens are stored and retrieved from a database (e.g., MySQL). In this case, you should create a table in your database with the required columns. The custom database name and table name can be set in DBStore instance, when you initialise the SDK.
    For instance, to persist your tokens in a table named token in database named zoho in your mySQL DB, use this:

    CREATE DATABASE zoho; // use this to create database named zoho
    // use this to create a table named token, with the following necessary columns
    CREATE TABLE token ( 
      id varchar(10) NOT NULL,
      user_name varchar(255) NOT NULL,
      client_id varchar(255),
      client_secret varchar(255),
      refresh_token varchar(255),
      access_token varchar(255),
      grant_token varchar(255),
      expiry_time varchar(20),
      redirect_url varchar(255),
      api_domain varchar(255),
      primary key (id)
    );

  2. File Persistence : This method allows storing and retrieving the authentication tokens from the file in the file path that you configure. The file will contain the id, user_name, client_id, client_secret, refresh_token, access_token, grant_token, expiry_time, redirect_url, and api_domain.
  3. Custom Persistence : This is a method where users can create their own method of storing and retrieving authentication tokens. To use this method, users need to implement the TokenStore interface and override its methods according to their own logic. For more details, please refer here.
We hope that you found this useful. In next week's Kaizen post, we will discuss about Bulk Write operations using the Scala SDK for Zoho CRM, and on how to import both parent and child records in a single operation.

If you have any queries, let us know the comments below, or send an email to support@zohocrm.com. We would love to hear from you. 


Cheers!
Anu Abraham



Recommended Reads:





    • Recent Topics

    • Ability to Initiate WhatsApp Template Messages in Zoho SalesIQ Without Preexisting Chat

      Hi Zoho SalesIQ Team, I hope you're doing well. I understand that with the WhatsApp integration in SalesIQ, clients can contact us via WhatsApp, and we can use WhatsApp templates to send messages outside of the 24-hour window by reopening an existing

    • Related Lists filter

      I have Contacts showing in our Accounts module. I customized the Contacts module with an Employment Status field, with the following picklist options: "Primary Contact", "Secondary Contact", "Active Staff(not a main contact)", and "No longer employed".

    • Making money out of Zoho Sheets - How?

      Hello, Suppose I come up with a brilliant Zoho Sheet that I want to sell to other people, can I do this? How? Thanks.

    • How Do I Refund a Customer Directly to Their Credit Card?

      Hi, I use books to auto-charge my customers credit card. But when I create a credit note there doesn't seem to be a way to directly refund the amount back to their credit card. Is the only way to refund a credit note by doing it "offline" - or manually-

    • Mobile Display Issues on Zoho Sites After Recent Update

      Hello! I’m currently facing an issue with my Zoho website that I created for my small business. After the recent updates, I’ve noticed that my site is not displaying correctly on mobile devices. Specifically, the layout appears distorted, and some elements

    • Can i set per-client hourly rate in Zoho Desk and not to correct the calculation on invoice?

      We use Zoho Desk to run one ticket per client per month. All time entries go to the ticket, we have to enter hourly rate manually and then correct it when we do the invoicing at the end of the month. So, our workflow is as following: I worked for 30 minutes,

    • Unable to add Agents

      I am trying to add agents to my account. While filling the details and sending invitation, the system mentions that invitation is sent. But no email is received on the user side. I have tried this multiple times and have also checked Spam and other

    • How to add new widgets?

      Searched and searched and cannot find anywhere. Why is everything so hidden in zoho! Why is there not a button right here that allows me to create a new one, why is it buried somewhere else! Zoho's UI is so infuriating

    • Submit Ticket from Custom Form on Website

      Hi I would like to create new tickets from our custom form on our website including some custom fields like serial number. I would prefer PHP to create the ticket. I know there is the Zoho webform but we would like to create our own. I have now read into the API and with AuthToken this would work with PHP but it is deprecated  and will not be supported any more in the future, so this not an option. OauthToken on the other hand needs an interaction from the ticket creator (customer) which we would

    • Customising Sign Up Page in Zoho Help Centre Sandbox

      Hi, I would like to customise the Sign Up page in my Help Centre Sandbox Environment but when I try to access it I get this message: What setting or permission do I need to achieve this? Many thanks, Kunal

    • Sort data in Pivot Table

      Is it possible to sort by a data field. I can gruop and filter, but I culdn't find how to sort the results. Tank You.

    • How to interact webhooks with Creator?

      How can I interact webhooks from external websites with Zoho Creator?  I'd like to get notifications from external websites (Stripe, Zoho Subscription, etc.) These notifications are coming as HTTP POST request from those servers, on maybe daily, monthly or based on any events.  How should I prepare my app in creator to receive these requests? Where and how to should I program in Deluge if I'd like to add some part of the JSON/XML data to my form?  Thank you BR, Balazs

    • No Experiment Visitors

      I have an experiment running for five days. PageSense web analytics data shows the page is getting visitors, but the experiment data itself says zero visitors. I am in trial mode, not sure if that's related. A week ago, I contacted support through chat

    • How do I get at the data in "Partially Saved Entries"?

      Hi, Zoho Newbie here - I'm helping to support an existing Zoho installation, so this is all a bit new to me. I have to say, I'm liking what I've seen so far! We've just spotted that we have a number of respondents to our forms who don't end up submitting

    • SOLVED: Stopping Multiple Invitations when sync with Google Calendar

      I wanted to share this solution as I wasn't able to find it when searching through the Zoho community and via web search. The issue: When requestor books a meeting through Zoho Bookings, the requestor receives a confirmation email from both Bookings and

    • Help Needed with Creating Close % Reporting

      Now that our company has a good data set to work with we want to use ZCRM reports ways to track the performance metrics we have established. Specifically, I want to be able to calculate closing % for individual salespeople and individual support people.

    • Restricting Calendar View to Working Hours

      Hi: I'm trying to implement a calendar which displays all of my customer appointments.  Currently, the calendar shows all 24 hours of the day.  Is there a way to restrict the hours to simply the times my business is open? Thanks!

    • Static Prefill URLs Functionality in the App

      Hi, It would be great to be able to use the same functionality within the App, so create the Static Prefill URL as today and be able to use online as today, and then have an area within the App showing these Entries that can be pressed and opens the form

    • Outbound Gateway

      Hi, Is it possible to configure the Outbound Gateway to route external domains only and keep inter-domain emails locally delivered? When one of my users sends an email to another user within our own domain, I want user1@mydomain.com to user2@mydomain.com not to exit. However, if anyone within our domain sends to an external address, I want that email to be routed using the Outbound Gateway. Thanks. P.

    • Free Webinar : Unlock AI driven business insights with Zoho Inventory + Zoho Analytics

      Are you tired of switching between apps and exporting data to build customized reports? Say hello to smarter & streamlined insights! Join us for this exclusive webinar where we explore the power of the Zoho Inventory–Zoho Analytics integration. Learn

    • Delivery Note Delivered item must be reduce in inventory stock

      When I create any Delivery note with product like mobile In our stock if it was 10 Unit I sold thru invoice, 4 unit And thru Delivery note, 2 Unit and I also change Delivery note status as delivered So in my stock it should display remaining 4 unit But write now it display 6 unit only. Please help me for that Because when I creating new invoice it display 6 unit in stock but actually in my physical stock its only 4. So I miss guide with stock display

    • Adding bills from docs *** Internal Error ***

      Same internal errors in Chrome & Edge !

    • Response time when adding customers to the database is increasing over time.

      Response time when adding customers to the ZoHo books database is increasing over time. The response time to retrieve a newly added customer is now 1.5 to 2 minutes. The database has approximately 2,000 customers. I think you need to reorganise the

    • Excluded transactions in Banking

      Why are the payees not checked when 2 payments are for the same amount to avoid exclusion? If there are 2 ( or more ) payment amounts which are the same then they are automatically excluded, this should not happen unless the payee names are the same

    • Introducing Zia AI in Zoho Show

      AI is no longer a distant concept. It’s one of our everyday tools, from answering casual questions to generating critical business documents. And presentations are one area where AI can be especially helpful. At Zoho Show, we’ve been deliberate in how

    • Plug Sample #10 - Simplify Ticket Management (Zoho Desk) with Chatbots

      Hi everyone! We're here with another simple yet effective plug for your chatbot to integrate with Zoho Desk. When a customer reports an issue/request during chat, it's logged as a ticket on Desk. When they return for updates, you end up searching through

    • Trigger a field rule when Choice Availability reaches 0

      First of all, thanks for shipping the new Choice Availability counter. It solves the basic “stop over-booking” problem. What’s missing, though, is a way to react when an option is sold out. Right now we can only disable/hide the choice; we can’t fire

    • Unattended Access on Android without Play Store

      I'm testing Zoho Assist for remote config and maintenance of our IoT devices. The devices are running Android 8.1 and do NOT have Google Play Store installed, nor can it be installed. I've been able to install Zoho Assist on the devices and load the enrollment

    • Zoho People > Performance Management > Appraisal cycle

      Hello All I am using this 2 users to test out how it work on Performance Management User 1 - Reportee User 2 - Reporting Manager : Li Ting Haley User 1 : Self Appraisal Error How do i fix this error?

    • What's New - June 2025 | Zoho Backstage

      Plans change. People cancel. Tickets get handed off. It happens, and we understand. As an organizer, you need tools that offer flexibility for attendees while protecting your event’s integrity. That’s why we’ve built features to help you manage these

    • Include Article Sync Details in SalesIQ–Desk Integration Notification Email

      Dear Zoho SalesIQ Team, Greetings, We are using the integration between Zoho SalesIQ and Zoho Desk to sync articles from the Zoho Desk Knowledge Base into SalesIQ. As part of this integration, we receive the following email notification: "Your scheduled

    • Naming a Visitor in SalesIQ Messes up First and Last Name

      When I go to Visitor History to manually associate a visitor with a known contact, I press the pencil symbol next to the system-generated ID number. I enter first and last name, then email. Looks good so far. However, when it syncs with CRM, first name

    • Partial Sync

      Hi, got an issue with syncing cards across windows app, web app and iphone app. If I create a card and add some text content then everything syncs across all platforms ok. If I create a card and add an attachment, be it pdf, jpg or movie then the card

    • Related activity records for custom modules

      For default modules in CRM, whenever I create a task for a contact, the task also appears in the record for the parent account. How do I replicate this with custom modules? My specific situation is that I have a custom module as a child module to Accounts.

    • Why Do My Portal Users Can't See Any Data in Reports

      In My zoho crm i have created a button automation which basically is it converts a quote into invoice and sales order , so initially when a person who is my app user submits a quotation form it goes into quote module and record is created and in each

    • Introducing Zoho Commerce 2.0 — It's more than just selling!

      Hello! We are proud to launch Zoho Commerce 2.0, a reimagination of how online businesses look, feel, and function. This launch is both timely and symbolic, as we reaffirm our commitment to empowering small and medium enterprises with powerful, yet simple-to-use

    • Introducing prompt builder in Zoho CRM

      We’ve introduced a new way to put Zia’s generative AI to work—right where your teams need it most. With the all new prompt builder for custom buttons, you can create your own AI instructions to generate tailored content, suggestions, or summaries across

    • Item Batch Creation/Updation

      I have a requirement to integrate a local system with Zoho Books. I need to create items in Zoho Books with batch tracking enabled, but I couldn't find a specific API for that in the Zoho Books API documentation. Is there a dedicated API endpoint to create

    • Education Zoho User Group (ZUG) virtual meetup featuring Zoho Sign

      Hi there! The educational sector often faces the hassle of handling extensive paperwork, which leads to increased operational costs. A digital signature solution like Zoho Sign can help you modernize your processes, go fully digital, and seamlessly collect

    • Troubleshooting Delays in Zoho CRM Automation Workflows for Lead Status Updates

      Dear Zoho Community, I am refining a sales pipeline in Zoho CRM, implemented in May 2025, to enhance efficiency for a small business managing client leads. While the CRM effectively tracks leads, I am encountering delays in automation workflows that update

    • Next Page