Kaizen #87 Multi-user Lookup in API V4

Kaizen #87 Multi-user Lookup in API V4

Hello everyone!

Welcome to another week of Kaizen! In this post, we will discuss multi-user lookup fields and how to handle them in API.

What is multi-user lookup?

    Multi-user look up is a lookup field that lets you add multiple users to a module record. It allows you to establish many-to-many relationships between modules and users in CRM.

     For instance, consider the example of a real estate firm - Zylker Real Estates. Zylker Real Estates uses Zoho CRM for managing properties, buyers, sellers, etc.  The real estate agents in Zylker Real Estates are added as users . We might have one or more agents managing a single property. A multi-user lookup field in the property module allows multiple agents to have read/write access to one property record.

      You can add a multi-user lookup field to a module through the module builder. Go to Setup > Customization > Modules and Fields > {Module}. This field can be added in all modules except the Calls, Tasks,Meetings and Linking Modules. You can add only 1 multi-user lookup field in a module that can include up to 10 users. In the screen-shot below, multi-user lookup field "Associated Agents" is added with full record accessibility. 



      When you enable 'Allow Record Accesibility', users selected in the multi-user lookup field will be able to 'Edit', 'Delete', 'Change the owner' of that respective record. You can also grant different levels of permission to the users. You can choose from Read only, Read/Write, Full access.

Handling multi-user lookups through API

 Let us see how to handle multi-user lookup fields through API. Note that, we have used the V4 API in examples, here.

Inserting value to multi-user field 


You can use Insert Records API to add a record with multi-user lookup. This support is available only from CRM API version 2.1 and up.
For example, for Zylker Real Estates a new property "Villa" can be added with the below API request. Two associated agents are also added.
Details Required : 
  • ID of the users that you want to add to the multi-user field. You can get this from Get Users API In this example 431581000000278001 is the ID of the user J Smith and 431581000000258001 is the ID of the user Patricia Boyle.
  • The connectedlookup_apiname and api_name for the multi-user field that you want to add. You can obtain these details from the multi-user field's json object in the response of Field Meta Data API of the Properties module. 
Sample Response to field meta data API

Request URL :  {api-domain}/crm/{version}/settings/fields?module={module_api_name}
Request Method: GET

{
    "fields": [
        {
            .
            .
            "display_label": "Associated Agents",
            .
             .
            "api_name": "AssociatedAgents",
            .
            .
            "multiuserlookup": {
                "display_label": "Users",
                "linking_module": {
                    "api_name": "Properties_X_Users",
                    "id": "431581000000701218"
                },
                "lookup_apiname": "userlookup221_7",
                "connected_module": null,
                "api_name": "Users7",
                "connectedlookup_apiname": "Agents",
                "id": "431581000000701345",
                "record_access": true
            },
            .
            .

        }
    ]
}

Sample Input to add a record with multi-user lookup

Request URL : {api-domain}/crm/{version}/{module_api_name}
Request Method: POST

{
    "data": [
        {
            "Property_Name": "Villa",
            "AssociatedAgents": [//api_name
                {
                    "Agents": {//connectedlookup_apiname
                        "id": "431581000000278001"
                    },
                },
                {
                    "Agents": {//connectedlookup_apiname
                        "id": "431581000000258001"
                    },
                }
            ],
        }
    ]
}

This is what the record looks like in UI.



Sample Response

{

    "data": [
        {
            "code": "SUCCESS",
            "details": {
                "Modified_Time": "2023-05-25T12:52:03+05:30",
                "Modified_By": {
                    "name": "Patricia Boyle",
                    "id": "431581000000258001"
                },
                "Created_Time": "2023-05-25T12:52:03+05:30",
                "id": "431581000000697288",
                "Created_By": {
                    "name": "Patricia Boyle",
                    "id": "431581000000258001"
                },
                "$approval_state": "approved"
            },
            "message": "record added",
            "status": "success"
        }
    ]
}

Fetching the value of multi-user field


You can use Get Records API to fetch details of your multi-user lookup field. Note that it is returned in the response only when you fetch a specific record. Let us see how to fetch details of a record.

Details Required : ID of the record for which we need to fetch the multi-user field's value

Request URL : {api-domain}/crm/{version}/{module_api_name}/{record_id}

Request Method: GET

Sample Response 

{
    "data": [
        {
            "AssociatedAgents": [
                {
                    "Agents": {
                        "name": "Patricia Boyle",
                        "id": "431581000000258001"
                    },
                    "id": "431581000000697290"
                },
                {
                    "Agents": {
                        "name": "J Smith",
                        "id": "431581000000278001"
                    },
                    "id": "431581000000697289"
                }
            ],
            "id": "431581000000697288",
            "$canvas_id": null,
            "$has_more": {
                "AssociatedAgents": false
            }
        }
    ]
}

Here the highlighted IDs are the IDs of the linking modules created for the multi-user fields. Unlike linking modules for multi-select lookups, these are not exposed in the UI. 

Disassociating users from the multi-user lookup field


You can use Update Records API with the key _delete to disassociate users from a multi-user lookup. You can refer to the sample input below for the same.

 Details Required : ID of the module records and ID of the linking module of multi-user lookup. These can be obtained from the GET Record Response.

Sample Input

Request URL : {api-domain}/crm/{version}/{module_api_name}/{record_id}  
Request Method: PUT



{
    "data": [
        {
            
            "AssociatedAgents": [
                {
                    
                    "id" : "431581000000697061" ,
                    "_delete" : null
                }
            ]
        }
    ]
}

Here the highlighted ID inside the AssociatedAgents array is the ID of the linking module record. You can obtain the ID from the Get Records API response

Sample Response


{
    "data": [
        {
            "code": "SUCCESS",
            "details": {
                "Modified_Time": "2023-05-24T15:15:28+05:30",
                "Modified_By": {
                    "name": "Patricia Boyle",
                    "id": "431581000000258001"
                },
                "Created_Time": "2023-05-24T14:30:23+05:30",
                "id": "431581000000697060",
                "Created_By": {
                    "name": "Patricia Boyle",
                    "id": "431581000000258001"
                }
            },
            "message": "record updated",
            "status": "success"
        }
    ]
}


We hope you found this post useful and it has given you a better understanding of multi-user lookups. We will meet you next week with another interesting post. 

If you have any questions,  let us know in the comment section or write to us at support@zohocrm.com 

    • Recent Topics

    • Zoho Marketing Automation 2.0 - Landing Page function not working

      Dear Zoho Team, I am working on implementing Zoho Marketing Automation 2.0, and am now looking into the section "Lead Generation". If I open the "Landing Pages" section, I immediately get an Error code: Error: internal error occurred. Can you help me

    • Unable to use Sign "You have entereed some invalid characters"

      Unable to use Sign "You have entered some invalid characters" I do not see any invalid characters. The text in "Leave a Note" is plain text which I entered directly into the field. See attached screenshot

    • cannot login from outlook on mobile

      Hi there,   I tried to set up my email accounts on my iphone using outlook, but it always return email address and password error. Please find the attachment for the screenshot. I am pretty sure that I typed in the correct email address and password and the imap has been enabled from zoho admin account. I can configure the email address on iphone default mail service as well as outlook on pc, the problem only occurs on the outlook app on mobile. I do need to use this app instead of the iphone default

    • Elevate your CX delivery using CommandCenter 2.0: Simplified builder; seamless orchestration

      Most businesses want to create memorable customer experiences—but they often find it hard to keep them smooth, especially as they grow. To achieve a state of flow across their processes, teams often stitch together a series of automations using Workflow

    • Messages not displayed from personal LinkedIn profile

      Hello. I connected both our company profile and my personal profile to Zoho social. I do see all messages from our company page but none from my private page. not even the profile is being added on top to to switch between company or private profile,

    • "Performed changes in the query is not allowed due to following reason" when adding columns or reordering data

      I'm trying to make changes to a query but every time i try to save it i get this error message. I'm not touching the data it's flagging. All I've tried to do is reorder a couple of fields and add a new one. Why won't it let me do this? It's a core query

    • Onboard new users easily with native screen recording in Zoho Projects Plus

      Communication involving both visual and audio elements tends to capture more interest among the audience. Whenever we onboard new employees to the organization, the task of engaging them in the induction sessions, and keeping the spark going in their

    • Request to Add Support for PDF Templates and More Flexibility in Email Editor

      Hi Zoho Campaigns Team, I hope you're doing well. I wanted to share some feedback and request a few improvements in the Email Template feature of Zoho Campaigns. Right now, we can create email templates using the HTML editor, which is helpful. But we’re

    • Can you stop Custom View Cadences from un-enrolling leads?

      I'm testing Cadences for lead nurture. I have set un-enroll properties to trigger on email bounce/unsubscribe, and do NOT have a view criteria un-enroll trigger. However, help documents say that emails are automatically un-enrolled from a Cadence when

    • Zoho Desk Android and iOS app update: Agent detail overview

      Hello everyone! We’ve introduced agent detail overview on the Zoho Desk Android and iOS app update. With this feature, you can get a complete view of agent’s tickets, response times, logged hours (for both tickets and activities), customer happiness ratings

    • Blog Widget: Show recent blog posts on my homepage

      Hey there I am using the Zoho Sites Blog feature. On my homepage, on the bottom I'd like to have a featured content section where I show some of my blog posts (selected, most recent, filtered by category and so on...). It would be nice to have a blog

    • How to iterate through excel data using zoho rpa

      I wanted to iterate or loop through excel data ( datatable). How can i do that

    • Zoho Commerce

      Hi, I have zoho one and use Zoho Books. I am very interested in Zoho Commerce , especially with how all is integrated but have a question. I do not want my store to show prices for customers that are not log in. Is there a way to hide the prices if not

    • Mass (Pull back) (Close WOs) (Close APs)

      Hi develop team. Just idea because Zoho FSM is great but its too manual. we have a lot of task to do every day and the system needs to have more features to automatic our tasks. I need to close several WOs, APs and Pull Back per day. Please we need mass

    • Customising Zohidesk portal default widgets

      Hello, I'm wondering how could I customise the default widgets such as "popular topics", "popular articles" using CSS or to make the tiles at the bottom match the ones that I made in the picture attached. I have made some custom widgets and edited them

    • If there’s a batch at the end, the ‘mark as inactive’ function doesn’t work.

      when my batch has a date to batch end and I "mark as inactive" he batch does not obey the status and reactivates the batch.

    • Seamless multilingual messaging and tone control in Zia IM Composer

      Hello everyone! Managing customer conversations across multiple languages can be time-consuming. Using Zia in the Instant Messaging (IM) Composer helps you overcome this by providing tools to translate content, adjust your tone, and refine your messages

    • Advanced Deluge help needed with custom function and COQL limits

      I have a scheduled function that takes a snapshot of specific metrics and saves them to a custom module. However I'm struggling with the limits of COQL. I attach my full code, but an example of the issues I'm having is that it's erroring with a 'Limit

    • Tip of the Week - Conditional Formatting Chart

      Conditional formatting allows you to highlight your data series based on a pattern or a trend in your data. This makes it easy for you to identify when your data reaches certain values or when it deviates from the trend.  Zoho Analytics allows you to

    • Zoho Learn - AI Translate

      Hi Learn team, I had a situation today where I was providing training to a client team and I had written articles into their Zoho Learn to support their learning. I realised that one of the team members was a non-native English speaker and they were struggling

    • Power of Automation :: Auto-Sync Custom Date Field Between Related Tasks via Blueprint Transition

      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

    • Introducing auto-upgrade in Zoho LandingPage

      Hi everyone, We’re excited to share an upcoming update to help you get the most out of your landing pages — the auto-upgrade option, launching on October 22, 2025. Your landing pages are designed to bring in leads, and we want to make sure you never miss

    • Workdrive comment links stopped working.

      I have marked a PDF file with 95 comments, they have worked for a while. When i clicked on them they brought me to the correct page and showed me the outline that i had drew on the plans. The comments included the page number of the outline, but now it

    • How to Bulk-Update Sales Orders in CRM

      Hi - I need to bulk update existing sales orders with dates from our ERP of when the sales orders were created. I made a date field on the Sales Order module where I want to insert that data. I can't Mass Update because I am not updating the fields to

    • Zoho ToDo in Cliq

      Our organization utilizes Zoho ToDo in the Zoho Mail Desktop app. Is there a way for these to show up in Cliq Desktop app as well?

    • 【Zoho CRM】サンドボックス機能のアップデート：カスタムビューが利用可能になりました。

      ユーザーの皆さま、こんにちは。コミュニティチームの中野です。 今回は「Zoho CRM アップデート情報」の中から、サンドボックス機能のアップデートをご紹介します。 目次 1. カスタムビューとは 2. 今回の機能アップデートについて 1. カスタムビューとは カスタムビューは、ユーザーが設定した条件に基づいてデータをフィルタリング・整理し、 重要な情報へ効率的にアクセスできるようにする機能です。 「過去15日間の見込み客」や「受注間近の商談」、「特定の優先度レベルが設定された案件」など 条件を指定してわずか数クリックで設定できます。

    • Changing an agents email address

      How do you change an agent's email address? I keep getting a red circle even though I am an admin. And on one of my agents he has two email addresses? How is that possible?

    • Zoho CRM - Potentials Tab

      Hi! When I create a Deal (Potentials tab) the header looks like this: After a refresh on the page it looks like this: What should I do so that it is displayed like in the second pic without refresh? Also I have a user that as of recently, cannot see this

    • Is there a way to automatically add Secondary Contacts (CCs) when creating a new ticket for specific customers?

      Some of our customers want multiple contacts to receive all notifications from our support team. Is there a way to automatically add secondary contacts to a ticket when our support team opens a new ticket and associates it with an account? This would

    • Unable to create embed code for resource of workdrive using API

      Hello Team, I am trying to create embed code for a resource using workdrive api in powershell, however facing some issues with injecting data in body. Followed Doc: https://workdrive.zoho.com/apidocs/v1/filefoldersharing/shareeveryone Please help, below

    • Feature Request - Insert URL Links in Folders

      I would love to see the ability to create simple URL links with titles in WorkDrive. or perhaps a WorkDrive extension to allow it. Example use case: A team is working on a project and there is project folder in WordDrive. The team uses LucidChart to create

    • not able to convert pdf to jpg and other forms and vice versa.

      i want to change my pdf to jpg, word, etc and some times jpg to pdf. i don't know how to do in this.

    • Enable / show scroll bar when Mega Menu is opened

      Hey there I am using the mega menu add-on and experience a "flicker" whenever the mega menu opens. The reason is, that the scrollbar, which has a width of a few pixels, stops showing when the mega menu opens. As the scrollbar disappears the whole page

    • Reports: Custom Search Function Fields

      Hi Zoho, Hope you'll add this into your roadmap. Issue: For the past 2yrs our global team been complaining and was brought to our attention recently that it's a time consuming process looking/scrolling down. Use-case: This form is a service report with

    • Zoho Inventory - Composite Items - Assembly - Single Line Item Quantity of One

      Hi Zoho Inventory Team, Please consider relaxing the system rules which prevent an assembly items from consisting of a single line item and outputting a quantity of 1. A client I'm currently working with sells cosmetics and offers testers of their products

    • How can I transfer data from Production to Development environment?

      Hi, I am using Creator V6 and would like to bring all the data in production to the Development and Testing environments? Is there an easy way of doing that or I have to export and import each table?

    • New portal SAML authentication error: User not found

      Dears, Has anyone else been experiencing this lately? I am creating a new portal authenticated by SAML (Entra ID). I followed the same process as I did with other portals, but any new portal created after this always encounters this error. I’ve been reporting

    • Devis et facture multi page

      Bonjour, je suis sur Zoho invoice et je rencontre un problème sur mes devis et factures lorsqu'ils dépassent 1 page. je me retrouve souvent avec des lignes coupées ou le sous total page 1 et le total page 2. j'aimerai savoir s'il existe une possibilité

    • Alias Email Id already exists

      Hi, I just verified my domain sesque (dot) com and now I am trying to create the admin account using admin (at) sesque (dot) com, but I am getting an error saying "Alias Email Id already exists". I used to have another Zoho account with this email address, which I have closed down and deleted earlier. There was a similar dicussion here https://help.zoho.com/portal/community/topic/alias-email-id-already-exists-5-6-2019, if it helps you sort out this issue. Thanks, Raoul

    • Help with Filtering Records, HTML Pages, and Automatic File Uploads in Zoho Creator

      Hi Zoho Creator Community, I’m building a Zoho Creator application and need guidance on a few features I’ve been struggling with. I want to implement them safely and efficiently, and I’d appreciate any examples, tips, or best practices. I want users to

    • Next Page