Kaizen 179: Choosing between ZDK CLI and Web UI : When to Use Each

Kaizen 179: Choosing between ZDK CLI and Web UI : When to Use Each


Hello everyone, 
Welcome back! ZDK CLI uses commands to manipulate with Zoho CRM metadata from a terminal.  While Zoho CRM Web UI remains the primary tool for manipulating Zoho CRM metadata like creating modules, configuring fields/layouts etc., using ZDK CLI has its own advantages.  In this post, we will explore scenarios where each option excels, empowering developers and administrators to make informed decisions as per their requirements. Let's dive in!

Smith, a consultant at TechSolutions Inc. (a Zoho CRM Partner), is enhancing the Deals module for Springfield University, to align it with their admissions workflow. Springfield University is using customized Zoho CRM  for  learning management system (LMS). The Deals module now tracks student enrollment stages ( "Application Received," "Scholarship Review," and "Admission Offer Sent") instead of the sales pipeline. To support this, Smith needs to add a custom field like “Financial Aid Status” to the Deals module. 

Should he use Zoho CRM UI or ZDK CLI?

 For simple changes like adding this field, Smith would use the Zoho CRM UI—it’s faster. But this raises the question-

When does a customization demand use of ZDK CLI?

The answer becomes clear with Smith’s next project: customizing Zoho CRM for Brookside University. He has to create customizations for Student Management, Course Management, Admissions, Finances, etc., which takes days or even weeks. If Smith were to use the Zoho CRM UI , he has to navigate through multiple tabs in the setup and creates them one by one. When his customization is done in the sandbox, he completes testing it and deploys it to the sandbox environment.  Smith designs a Student Dashboard Widget that displays a student’s academic progress, attendance, extracurricular activities, and advisor notes in one place. For creating the widget, he uses the ZET CLI tool in terminal and after development he packages it separately and upload it to Zoho CRM. 

If Smith opts for ZDK CLI to build the customizations, he can create modules, fields, layouts, roles, and profiles directly from the terminal. He can use ZET commands in ZDK CLI project directory for developing the widget and can add the widget to the Zoho CRM through ZDK CLI.

By leveraging ZDK CLI alongside Version Control Systems like Git or Mercurial, Smith along with his team mates ensures every customization is traceable. Git logs resolve disputes like “Who modified the Admissions pipeline?”. Using ZDK CLI with VCS facilitates team collaboration. One team member can build up on another team member's work.

Riding on the success wave of Brookside University’s LMS integration, Smith’s firm, TechSolutions Inc., now needs to replicate the same Zoho CRM customization for their next project. Without ZDK CLI, Smith would have to do it all over again: manually rebuilding every module, field, and widget through the UI.

With ZDK CLI, the effort required is minimal.
  • Using zdk org:export command, Smith can export the metadata of Brookside University. 
  • He can use the exported files and "tweak" them to suit the needs of his new project.
  • Using zdk org:push  command, he can deploy the refined configuration to the new environment.
ZDK CLI transforms CRM customization from a manual process into a repeatable strategy—ensuring TechSolutions Inc.’s  growth.

When to Use ZDK CLI 

  • Bulk Metadata Management: You can use ZDK CLI to pull the metadata from one organization which has metadata customizations for LMS, make minor changes, and deploy it for a different CRM organization which needs customizations for the same.
  • Version Control of metadata changes: With ZDK CLI you can use Version Control Systems like  Git/Mercurial to track and manage metadata changes made by different team members, clearly showing who made updates and when, enabling transparency. This also makes it easy to revert changes if issues arise.
  • Collaboration - Reuse Components: Using ZDK CLI you can easily export your local metadata changes with zdk org:export, which creates a zip file of the the crm directory in your local ZDK CLI project. You can share this zip file with your fellow developers to collaborate seamlessly by building on each other’s work. You can also achieve the same using VCS. Checkout our previous Kaizen post on using ZDK CLI with git: Leveraging ZDK CLI with VCS to reuse components across different Zoho CRM org. 
  • Widget Development: You can create and update widgets via CLI commands.You can use ZET commands in ZDK CLI project directory and widgets can be added to your organization from the terminal itself without the need of packaging the widget.
  • Automate commands: You can automate ZDK CLI commands using scripts, reducing manual intervention. Take a look at this Kaizen post where we discuss a shell script designed to automate the process of pushing locally modified metadata along with conflict management.
  • Conflict Resolution:  Conflict resolution in ZDK CLI guarantees that changes done does not get accidentally overwritten.  Resolve merge conflicts with zdk org:pull:resolve, which opens a browser-based diff editor to reconcile code differences.

Best Practices

  • Use ZDK CLI for development in sandbox environments and the Web UI for minor fixes and to deploy it to Production environment.
  • Pull configurations via CLI (zdk org:pull) before major edits to maintain a backup.
  • For developing widgets zet commands along with ZDK CLI commands in the terminal.
  • Refrain from making simultaneous changes via Web UI and ZDK CLI to prevent conflicts.
  • If you are unfamiliar with a command, use zdk help command for to check the description of the command.
  • Though ZDK CLI lacks the visual simplicity of the Web UI, pairing it with IDEs like VSCode improves its usability.

Notes
For the current beta release, ZDK CLI will exclusively be available for Sandbox environment and will not be operational in Production environments. 

We hope you found this post useful. We will meet you next week with another interesting topic!
If you have any questions, let us know in the comment section.

Happy Customizing!





    • Recent Topics

    • Are there any plans to add Triggers for Subform edits?

      By The Grace of G-D.  Hi, How are you? Can you tell me if you have any plans to support subform edit as a workflow trigger? And what about have them trigger an "onChange" client script?

    • Zoho commerce

      i am facing issue with order summary emails.i am getting 1 continuous email for order received yesterday and today.ideally 1 email should be received for a particular date ie for 02/08 i should received 1 email from 12.01am till 11.59pm but it is being

    • Feature Request: Improve Category Page Sorting for "Out of Stock" Products

      Hi there, I'm writing to request a new feature that I believe would significantly improve the user experience in my online store. Currently, on category pages, products are sorted by popularity. However, when a popular product goes "Out of Stock," it

    • POSTMAN - There was an error in evaluating the Pre-request Script:Error: Cannot read properties of undefined (reading 'json')

      I am beginning the journey to learn how to use the API for Zoho Sign. I am getting the following error when I try to use postman. To walk you through how I am getting this error... I wanted to start with a simple GET and expand my learning from there.

    • How do i integrate shipstation with zoho inventory

      Wanting to set up my own delivery driver in ship station so we can get real time tracking of where the package is but then i want it to automatically update zoho inventory packages/shipments how can i do this

    • Invalid value passed for salesorder_id

      Hi, I am using sales return API, details are given below: API: https://inventory.zoho.com/api/v1/salesreturns?organization_id=700571811 Post Json Data: { "salesreturn_number": "", "date": "2020-11-12", "reason": "Testing from API", "line_items": [ { "item_id":

    • Create Invoice and Invoice Items from Sales Order via API

      Currently, when creating an Invoice associated with a Sales Order via the API, it appears that I must manually include all of the items (line_items) even though they are already part of the Sales Order. My question is this: is it possible to raise an Invoice via the API based on all of the information associated with a Sales Order--such as the  items? In other words, do I always have to manually include the items (line_items) when raising an Invoice via the API when the Invoice is associated with

    • Outlook 2013 Calendar Syncs but "Related To" Field in Zoho is blank

      Outlook 2013 Calendar Syncs but Related To Field in Zoho is blank I expect the "Realted To" field to be populated with the calendar participants

    • Export a Course

      Is it possible to export a course from Zoho Learn to a SCORM file?

    • Add and Remove Agents from Departments and Groups in Zoho One

      Hi Zoho Flow Team, We hope you're doing well. Currently, Zoho Flow provides an action to add an agent to a group in zoho one, but there is no action to remove an agent from a group or a department. Another action that we find missing is the option to

    • Zoho learn Custom portal - networkurl & CustomPortalId

      I want to get my individual account’s networkurl and customportalId to use in this API: https://learn.zoho.com/learn/api/v1/portal/<networkurl>/customportal/<customportalId>/manual How can I retrieve the networkurl and customportalId using the API? I

    • Consumer Financing

      Does Zoho currently have a payment gateway (such as Stripe, Square, etc) which offers financing for customers? So, let's say the estimate we give the customer is greater than what they can afford at the time, but we can sell the service now, letting them

    • Intégration de la gestion des Passkeys dans Zoho Vault

      Zoho Vault est depuis plus d’une décennie une solution fiable pour les entreprises : pour la gestion, le partage et le stockage des mots de passe. En 2018, nous avons fait un pas en avant en proposant la connexion unique (SSO). Nous sommes fiers de franchir

    • Scan & Fill with double quote key/value pairs

      Hi, An old Ticket moved to a Topic/Idea: I love the idea of the new Scan & Fill as it nearly covers my previous request for a QR Scanner to read a multi-part QR Code. My QR Codes are hard-coded as below: {"key1":"value1","key2":"value2","key3":"value3"}

    • Analytics SQL Queries should allow # as comment

      # and // are very common for commenting in SQL. Not sure why analytics only allows /* and */ for commenting. Especially when # grays the line as if it's being commented out. This should be added for sure.

    • SalesIQ Operator Activity Reports in Zoho Analytics

      I'm busy building a dashboard in Zoho Analytics and I want to include SalesIQ stats in the dashboard, but I'm unable to get the statistics mentioned in the attached image. Any idea where I can get the stats for Operator Activity?

    • Default in fields on Form B based on the user selection in Form A

      Hi Everyone, I have added an action button to a form report to bring up a new form based on user selection, see it indicated in red below: Then when the ne form loads, I want to default in some of the fields based on the record the user was selected on.

    • No longer can indent

      Hey there! Is it just me or were we used to be allowed to used tab or indent when writing. It’s not working right now, has this always been the case?

    • Free webinar alert! Seamless Transition with Lossless Migration: Zoho One + Zoho Mail

      Hello Zoho Mail Community! 🚀 Attention IT Admins and Email Administrators! Are you planning to migrate your organization's email to Zoho Mail within the Zoho One ecosystem? 📧 Join our exclusive webinar, Seamless Transition with Lossless Migration: Zoho

    • Add Resource to Export

      The Export Data feature does not include a column for the Resource field. Without this column, Zoho Bookings cannot be used by any business for resource-based services or event types e.g. room bookings, equipment bookings. It seems to be an oversight,

    • Client Script | Update - Client Script Support For Custom Buttons

      Hello everyone! We are excited to announce one of the most requested features - Client Script support for Custom Buttons. This enhancement lets you run custom logic on button actions, giving you greater flexibility and control over your user interactions.

    • Mandatory field via deluge code

      I would like to ask you if it is possible to make a field mandatory via deluge script. For example, if I have a decision box and I click on it then I want a single line field to be mandatory. If uncheck the decision box then to do the single line as optional. I think it is not possible to do that and I have to do it via validation in 'on validate' field. 

    • Revenue Management: #1 What does it mean to "recognize" revenue?

      Earning revenue isn't just about collecting cash from your customers. It's about recording the income correctly and consistently. Revenue recognition is the process of deciding when and how to record revenue in financial statements so that they reflect

    • Power of Automation :: Auto-Populate Integration Field in Projects with CRM Account Data

      Hello Everyone, A custom function is a software code that can be used to automate a process and this allows you to automate a notification, call a webhook, or perform logic immediately after a workflow rule is triggered. This feature helps to automate

    • Zoho Forms and ChatGPT - populating a field using AI.

      I have a form where I would like the user to enter a response or query, and have another field populated using AI. For example, user enters Field 1, AI populates Field 2 in response. I want to be able to wrap some additional instruction text around the

    • campo tag para api

      debo conectarme a una api de zoho inventory y ocupo tomar el campo tag para poder asi jalar el articulo que cuente con el campo correcto en tag ejemplo que tag existen carro y avion que cuando busque los articulo con tag carro arroje solo estos por mas

    • Uploading file as attachment to Zoho CRM

             Hi,   I am trying to attach a file to a Zoho CRM contact using Zoho Flow. Right now, I try to do it through the “Upload File” field in Zoho CRM (In my screenshots, it’s called Téléchargement du fichier 1).   Here is what I tried:   Case 1: Webmerge document The Flow is called “Custom Function” (see screenshot 101).   Step  1: Creating a Webmerge document (screenshot 99)   Step 2: I use “Update module entry” to upload the created file. I upload Webmerge’s “Document” in my “Téléchargemet du

    • Zia Answer Bot - Create Ticket

      Surprisingly, the current iteration of Zia will try to answer a question and unless you have "transfer to SalesIQ chat" enabled, it won't create a ticket for the user or offer them a method to create a ticket. We don't want it to create chats for us,

    • meassure leads phases

      Hi, I need to create a table to meassure the time that a lead stay in blueprint phases. the phases are first contact, second contact, lead spam, contacted, appointment. any idea? I have attached an example

    • Zoho Desk API Documentation missing a required field

      We are trying to create a section using this information. Even after preparing everything based on that page, we still get an error. The error we get is this: {"errorCode":"INVALID_DATA","message":"The data is invalid due to validation restrictions","errors":[{"fieldName":"/translations","errorType":"missing","errorMessage":""}]}

    • In the Custom Module I have 500 Records , this 500 record only want to view to the specific user only example user A ,

      In the Custom Module, I have 500 Old records that should only be visible to a specific user, for example, User A. Any new records created from today onwards should be visible to Record owner in the Custom Module. Pls help how i achive this .

    • Invoice template, how to change the text under "Notes" and "Terms and Conditions"

      In "Invoice templates", there are two text/info sections at the bottom:"Notes" and "Terms and Conditions". It is possible to change the names of these two headings, but how is it possible to change/alter the text under it. As a standard it says "Thank you for your business" under Notes - I need to change it into something different- How? Thank you.

    • How to reply to thread via API

      We have built a webapp for our customers that uses the Zoho Desk API to enable each customer to view their full list of tickets, view individual tickets and raise new tickets. The Zoho Desk API doesn't have the ability to reply to a ticket/thread. Replies

    • Sending merged mail templates for signatures fail since today

      We have ZOHO one, we use merge templates in CRM to edit in ZOHO Writer, and from there send it for signature through zoho sign. This all worked up until today, suddenly we read in the log that the merge is succesfull but the sending for signature failed.

    • Feature Request - Make Lead List Larger and Adjustable

      Hi LandingPage team, I recently started using LandingPage and I am happy to share my feedback to help improve the app. I've noticed on the Leads page, there is no option to make the columns wider. It would be great if the comlumns expanded to fit the

    • Zoho Projects - Pin Recent Projects

      Hi Projects Team, It would be great if I could "pin" projects on the Recent Projects list in Zoho Projects. We have some internal projects which we regularly have to add time and some regular client projects. It would be great if I could pin those projects

    • ZDK Error

      I get this error when trying to trigger a CRM Function from Client Script: Uncaught (in promise) ZDKError: {"code":"NOT_ACTIVE","details":{"api_name":"activate_client_from_prospect"},"message":"api is inactive for the given custom function","status":"error"}

    • "Disbursing product components in phases, monitoring them, and displaying only the final product."

      i have a product composed of multiple components, and these components will be delivered to the customer in batches. However, the final invoice should only show the finished product. How can I issue (or release) the components and track their delive

    • Followed Subtasks doesn't show up in the Subtasks Section

      I have a task assigned to me now in the same task, there's a subtask and I am added as the follower on that task Even though I am a follower I still don't see that in the subtasks section The view permission for the profile is Related It's supposed to

    • Tip #39- Strengthen account security with Multi-factor Authentication (MFA) – ‘Insider Insights’

      Securing your organization's data begins with verifying that only the correct individuals have access to it. One of the simplest yet most effective ways to accomplish this is to enable Multi-factor Authentication (MFA) within Zoho Assist. MFA introduces

    • Next Page