Extension pointers #6: Working with widgets to power up extension capabilities (Part-3)
Widgets are useful for exchanging data between the third-party applications and Zoho CRM, as well as for displaying the data on a customized basis within Zoho CRM. They let you create customized UI interfaces that allow the data to be showcased through your own perspective. Embedding the widget in Zoho CRM helps to seamlessly synchronise the third-party application data into native CRM components and thereby perform certain functions using that data.
In our previous posts (Part-1 and Part-2), we covered the detailed steps involved in installing ZET CLI, creating a widget, associating it with a connected app, embedding it inside Zoho CRM, and hosting it. In this post, let's see a full-fledged example that demonstrates how widgets help you build powerful extensions.
We'll look at how you can use widgets to easily upload a document present on your desktop to a folder in Dropbox from within Zoho CRM. You can utilize the key benefit of widgets to personalize the UI according to your needs and implement this process. Design a UI interface using a widget that can be easily embedded into Zoho CRM, and let that UI enable you to choose a file from Desktop and upload it to Dropbox.
The steps involved to achieve the above mentioned functionality using widgets are as follows:
1. Create a connector to establish a connection between Zoho CRM and Dropbox in your extension
2. Create a widget that performs the file upload functionality (ZET CLI should have been installed—refer to Part-1)
3. Associate the widget with a Connected app and host it
4. Embed the widget inside Zoho CRM
5. Test your widget's functionality
Create a connector for Zoho CRM and the Dropbox integration
1. Go to the Extension's detail page in the Zoho Developer console.
2. Create a connector called "Dropbox Connector". Please refer to the post on connectors to view the detailed steps to create, publish, and associate a connector with an extension.
In our example, the connector details are as follows:
DropBox Token URLs required for creating a Connector
Request Token URL | |
Access Token URL |
3. Create an API with necessary parameters to upload files from Zoho CRM to Dropbox.
In our example:
File upload Connector API details
Method Type | POST |
URL | |
Headers |
After creating the connector and adding the API, publish and associate it with the extension.
Build a widget to upload a file from Zoho CRM to Dropbox
Using ZET CLI, create a new project called "DropboxProject".
Add the necessary files:
- HTML, CSS file—UI that will enable you to choose a file from your desktop
- JS file—Includes the business logic to upload the chosen file and invoke the DropBox connector using API helpers provided by Zoho CRM's JS SDK
It's important to add the ZohoEmbeddedAppSDK.min.js file (available here) to use the JS SDK's that are needed for your project. Please refer to JS SDK to get information on the different Zoho CRM APIs supported by the SDK. These APIs are significant in helping the Javascript code interact with Zoho CRM.
dropbox.js code snippet
var entity; var id var entityName; var record; Util={}; // PageLoad listener that returns the entity details of the active page ZOHO.embeddedApp.on("PageLoad", function(data) { id = data.EntityId[0]; entity = data.Entity; // Get the record details of the entity using the value returned by PageLoad listener ZOHO.CRM.API.getRecord({ Entity: entity, RecordID: id }).then(function(data) { // Fetch the required details from the response obtained through getRecord API var dataa = data.data[0]; record=dataa.Full_Name; }) }) // The File Upload function fetches the file and uploads it to Dropbox Util.uploadFile = function(){ var file = $("#fileupload"); //Fetch the file details var file = document.getElementById("fileupload").files[0]; var fileType; if (file.type === "application/pdf"){ fileType = file.type; } else if((file.type === "image/jpeg") || (file.type === "image/png")){ fileType = file.type; } else if(file.type === "text/plain"){ fileType = "application/msword"; } else if(file.type === ""){ fileType = "application/text"; } var name = file.name; name = encodeURIComponent(name); //Construct the params required by the Dropbox upload API using the fetched details var data = { "VARIABLES":{ "module" : "Zoho CRM/"+entity, "record" : record, "file_name": name }, "CONTENT_TYPE":"multipart", "FORWARD_TYPE":"data-binary", "FILE":{ "fileParam":"content", "file":file } } //Invoke DropBox Connector using invokeAPI ZOHO.CRM.CONNECTOR.invokeAPI("testextension97.dropboxconnector.uploadfileapi", data) } |
The code snippet mentioned above invokes the "Dropbox Connector" to perform the file upload functionality. There are a few Zoho CRM APIs that are used in the above dropbox.js code snippet to perform the specified functionality. Let's have a look at it.
ZOHO.embeddedApp.on("PageLoad",function(data)) - An event listener that is triggered whenever an entity Page (Details Page) is loaded.
ZOHO.CRM.API.getRecord(config) - API that gets all details of a record when provided with the entity and record ID information.
ZOHO.CRM.CONNECTOR.invokeAPI(nameSpace, data) - API to invoke the connector API based on the namespace and data provided.
- In our example, PageLoad listener is used to fetch the entity and ID of the record in active page.
- By passing the retrieved entity and ID to the getRecordAPI, the complete record information is gathered.
- Finally, the information (module, record, name, content type, etc) to be passed as data parameter to DropBox Upload API is extracted and passed to Connector.invokeAPI CRM API in order to invoke the connector. Along with this, the namespace is also passed as a parameter. (In our example, "testextension97.dropboxconnector.uploadfileapi" is the namespace for "Dropbox Connector.")
- invokeAPI will invoke the Dropbox Connector and performs the File Upload functionality.
On adding the necessary files, validate and run the widget project to check if it is running fine locally.
The localhost output on testing the widget using ZET CLI:
Finally, pack the project to obtain the packed and zipped file.
Associate the widget with a connected app and host it
Now that the widget is created, the next step is to associate the widget with a connected app and host it.
1. Go to the Extension's detail page in the Zoho Developer console.
2. Click on Connected Apps from the left panel under Utilities.
3. Choose Internal Hosting. Zoho's servers are used to host an application internally.
4. Upload the "DropboxProject" zipped file from the dist folder of your project and click Save.
Embed the widget inside Zoho CRM
After successfully associating the widget with the connected app, the next step is to embed it inside Zoho CRM in the location you want to use it. Let's embed the widget into a custom button in our example.
1. Choose Components from the left panel of the Zoho Developer console under Build. Click Create New Button.
2. Choose Invoke a Widget as the action you'd like the "Upload File" button to perform. Add the location of the widget's HTML file along with the base sandbox URL and click Save.
Test the functionality of your widget locally in an isolated sandbox environment. It's important to keep the localhost server running while testing the sandbox. Run localhost by using the command "zet run" in the ZET CLI.
i. In the sandbox environment, choose the Contacts module and select a contact
ii. Click the Upload File custom button
iii. The Upload file widget will open
iv. Choose a file and click the Upload button
The file will be uploaded to Dropbox according to the path specified in the File Upload APIs Header.
As you see, using widgets, we could easily create a customized UI interface and exchange data across applications. You can customize and enhance your widget's functionality according to your requirements. For more information, keep following this space.
SEE ALSO
Access your files securely from anywhere
Zoho Developer Community
New to Zoho LandingPage?
Zoho LandingPage Resources
New to Zoho Survey?
New to Zoho CRM Plus?
Deliver unforgettable customer experiences
New to Zoho CRM Plus?
Deliver unforgettable customer experiences
New to Zoho Marketing Plus?
Everything you need to run your marketing
New to Zoho Marketing Plus?
Everything you need to run your marketing
New to Bigin?
Topic Participants
Nanditha Somasundaram Somasundaram
Rene21 De Ridder
Praveen Sankar
Developer
Sticky Posts
Client Script | Update - Introducing Commands in Client Script!
Have you ever wished you could trigger Client Script from contexts other than just the supported pages and events? Have you ever wanted to leverage the advantage of Client Script at your finger tip? Discover the power of Client Script - Commands! CommandsKaizen #165 : How to call Zoho CRM APIs using Client Script
Welcome back to another exciting Client Script post! In this post, we will discuss one of the most frequently asked questions: How do you call Zoho CRM APIs from Client Scripts? In this kaizen post, 1. Ways to make calls to Zoho CRM APIs using ClientKaizen#162 : Add Tags and Open Pre-filled Email Drafts via Client Scripts
Hello everyone! Welcome to another informative Kaizen post. In this post, let us see how to accomplish the following using Client Script. 1. How to auto-tag a record based on field update? 2. How to Open a pre-filled email draft This post will provideExtension Pointers - JS SDK series #4: Managing data from a widget using ZOHO.CRM.HTTP
Handling and managing the data between two applications is a major factor for an efficient business. There are a variety of ways to handle data between Zoho CRM and other third-party applications. You can use deluge CRM tasks, create connectors, use APIKaizen #152 - Client Script Support for the new Canvas Record Forms
Hello everyone! Have you ever wanted to trigger actions on click of a canvas button, icon, or text mandatory forms in Create/Edit and Clone Pages? Have you ever wanted to control how elements behave on the new Canvas Record Forms? This can be achieved
New to Zoho TeamInbox?
Zoho TeamInbox Resources
Zoho DataPrep Resources
Zoho CRM Plus Resources
Zoho Books Resources
Zoho Subscriptions Resources
Zoho Projects Resources
Zoho Sprints Resources
Qntrl Resources
Zoho Creator Resources
Zoho Campaigns Resources
Zoho CRM Resources
Design. Discuss. Deliver.
Zoho Show Resources
Get Started. Write Away!
Writer is a powerful online word processor, designed for collaborative work.
Zoho CRM コンテンツ
-
オンラインヘルプ
-
Webセミナー
-
機能活用動画
-
よくある質問
-
Ebook
-
-
Zoho Campaigns
- Zoho サービスのWebセミナー
その他のサービス コンテンツ
Nederlandse Hulpbronnen
ご検討中の方
Recent Topics
Duplicate New Ticket Emails
I am getting two Ticket emails when a ticket is created. The first one goes to me as the Admin helpdesk@ And because I am an Agent as well it also send to helpdesk@, support1@ and support2@ Is there any way to stop this?Ticket Response Email Template
Is there a way to have an email template automatically selected when I click on Reply for a ticket?Unpublishing Job Post for LinkedIn
Hi, We have experienced issue with the above. We did unpublish a job in Recruit but it still appear under Job section in our LinkedIn page. It did not remove from LinkedIn as it should be. Please check and advise. Regards, SnyderPower of Automation :: Automatically start / pause / stop timer on task status update.
Hello Everyone, A Custom function is a user-written set of code to achieve a specific requirement. Set the required conditions needed as when to trigger using the Workflow rules (be it Tasks / Project) and associate the custom function to it. Requirement:-Editor limitations to define screen types
Guys I have noticed that even in version 2.0 of the editor (which is this new one we use) we still have a lot to improve... When I compare to some more global solutions like Wix, Zyro, Go Daddy, Squarespace and Weebly feel that we have some limitationsDúvidas do Zoho Creator
Pessoal, Estou colocando um tópico para dúvidas do Zoho Creator. Um abraço, LeandroTropicalize Books
Books is an incredibly powerful tool that works well in many countries. But I feel that it is a product that is not yet "tropicalized" for Brazil as we speak (this would be like adapting the local reality). We have many strong competitors who do moreAutomatic Sitemap Generation
Guys are all right? Doesn't make sense for me to have to generate a map site and upload it... because it's not automatically generated just as it is done in WIX? where the customer doesn’t have to worry about this.SEO improvements with ZIA
Are you okay? I would like to bring an idea that would be amazing to improve the product that is the possibility of being able to improve the SEO of the pages (this of each page or each article on the blog) through ZIA so that it could create page SummaryAutomatically updating field(s) of lookup module
I have a lookup field, which also pulls through the Status field from the linked record. When the lookup is first done, the Status is pulled through - this works perfectly. If that Status is later updated, the lookup field does not update as well. AsInitiating a SalesIQ Zobot from a custom button on Zoho Sites
I have created a Zobot set to initiate on a custom action called "Fast_Answers". On Zoho Sites, I created a code snippet button and set it to on-click run the event called "Fast_Answers". I installed the SalesIQ integration code into the Zoho Sites PageZoho Desk -> Zoho Analytics : Where is the field for "Layout" ?
I have many different layouts on my helpdesks and I want to be able to identify the stats for each one, however I can not file the field in the raw data from the Zoho Desk datasource. I thought it might be under "Tickets" but there is nothing. There isSet resolution mandatory field
Hi, i have 2 questions:) : - i want to set the resolution field mandatory before close the ticket. Because for now, i can close the ticket without writing how i solve it - how can i setup zoho desk to receive ticket by email(e.g. clients sent email to support@mydomain.com) and it create a ticket in zoho deskImpuesto automatico en cotizaciones
Buen dia Mi pregunta es como se puede poner alguna operacion para que las cotizaciones me salgan automaticamente con impuestos ya que uno al cargarla al final tienen que añadir el porcentaje de impuesto SaludosZoho Assist "Agree and Download" Button "Greyed Out" ("Light Blued" Out)
Anyone else having issue where support clients are unable to click "Agree and Download" to access the client so that we can provide remote support? This is for "on demand" support via accessing the support page and entering the support key and name. ThisProject Billing with the Staff Hours Method in Zoho Projects
The Staff Hours Billing Method in Zoho Projects allows you to bill your clients based on the actual time spent by each team member on a project, at the rate set for each user. This is useful for projects where different skill sets are needed and serviceCreator Subform to CRM Subform
Hello all, Has anyone successfully written data from a Creator Subform into CRM subform? I have been able to get the rows to populate but none of the data will come through. I'll add my code and the result in CRM. Creator Subform is 'Delivery_Receiving_Hours'.custom fields not populating from deluge script into invoice
Hello, I've created some Deluge script that is meant to take a few inputted invoice custom fields and calculate a few others. I can see when I execute the function that my inputted custom fields are being passed, yet im still ending up with all "null"tax summation function - getting error
Hello, I'm trying to create a function that adds all of individual tax rates from a few jurisdictions. I'm getting an error on line 9 - Value is empty and 'get' function cannot be applied. I've checked that I have data in each of the required fields,Backstage / Zoho Books integration
Hello. We have Zoho One and have slowly started using Backstage. Loving it. Problem is, we have ZERO accounting control over what is sold through this product. When will we be able to connect it to our existing Zoho Books tenant? Thank you very much!Getting list of calendar events over api for zoho mail calendar
Hi, I am using just Zoho mail without using Zoho CRM. I wanted to get all events booked in my zoho mail calendar through an api at regular intervals. I could find such API support for Zoho CRM calendar but not for zoho mail calendar. Can you kindly letAllocate emails to user in a shared mailbox
Hi, This might be obvious, but I cannot find the answer. I have 3 shared mailboxes so any team member can see the emails. Is there a way of allocating a specific email to a user so that it is their responsibility to deal with it? Thanks in advance.Introducing Zoho Campaigns' own gateway for SMS campaigns
We are excited to announce the launch of our SMS Gateway to send SMS through Zoho Campaigns. We have also made a few other changes in our current SMS Campaign model to improve your over all user experience. These updates are planned with an aim to expandUpdate a lookup field in CRM from Creator using deluge
I have a Creator form that creates a new account. When it creates the new account in the Accounts Module, I need it to also populate the Parent Account, which is a lookup field coming from the Module Parent Accounts, field Parent Account Name. I haveSMS Keyword Tracking in Zoho CRM From Zoho Campaigns
Is there a way to track SMS leads in campaigns by associating them with specific keywords or codes? Additionally, can these leads be pushed to the CRM while retaining the keyword for tracking and reporting purposes?Projects Multiselect API
Having troubles setting a mutli select field via API. updateMap = map(); updateMap.put("UDF_MULTI1","picklist_id1,picklist_id2"); updateProjectRes = invokeurl [ url :"https://projects.zoho.com/restapi/portal/XXXX/projects/" + projectID + "/" type :POSTBill quantity received / PO quantity
PO's are raised & often the quantity received is greater than the PO quantity, so when we receive the bill & adjust the quantity on the bill we get.... Quantity recorded cannot be more than quantity ordered. This necessitates the adjustment of the POZOHO BOOKS - RECEIVING MORE ITEMS THAN ORDERED
Hello, When trying to enter a vendor's bill that contains items with bigger quantity than ordered in the PO (it happens quite often) - The system would not let us save the bill and show this error: "Quantity recorded cannot be more than quantity ordered."Adding Bluesky channel
Hello, Is Bluesky (AT protocol) soon added on Social ? Bluesky is being developped and is now open to anyone (no more invitation) Thank youUsing Queries with dynamic parameters in Kiosk Studio
Hi, I'm pretty new when it comes to developing within Zoho (I'm really a .NET developer), as it was just added to my responsibilities. For a new feature in the CRM, I'm trying to develop a Kiosk function to show a list of records (retrieved by the newUnused items should not count into the available number of custom fields
Hey, I realized that unused Items reduce the number of available custom fields. I can't see a case where that makes sense. Especially in our case where we have two different layouts in Deals with a lot of different fields, this causes problems.Introducing Bot Filtering for Accurate Email Campaign Analytics
Dear Marketers, We're excited to announce a new feature designed to enhance the accuracy of your email campaign analytics: bot filtering. This feature helps you filter out bot-generated opens and clicks, ensuring your campaign reports reflect genuineTip 37: Time Log Restriction in Zoho Projects
Timesheet in Zoho Projects helps you big time in entering log hours for the tasks and issues and approving them. Now, with the new Time Log Restriction option, you can set daily and weekly log hour limits. You can restrict users from entering extra log hours than the permissible limit. The limits are restricted to 24 hours per day and 168 hours per week by default based on business hours. To customize, navigate to Task & Timesheet settings under Portal Configuration in Zoho Projects setup and enableChart showing schedule
I want to be able to create a chart for everyday to check and which of which driver is available on the timeframe. Here's my table Name City Day Start Time End Time Driver1 Medicine Hat Monday 11:45 AM 4:45 PM Driver 2 Medicine Hat Tuesday 11:00 AM 7:00Multiple Vendor SKUs
One of the big concerns we have with ZOHO Inventory is lack of Vendor Skus like many other inventory software packages offer. Being able to have multiple vendor skus for the same product would be HUGE! It would populate the appropriate vendor Sku forIn Zoho Projects, is there a way to create a folders template under documents that can be used once a project is created?
We have a specific folder structure that we would like to use that is standard across every project. Instead of having to create this structure every time a project is created, is there a way to create a template for the folders that can be added?Zoho Payroll in France
When will Zoho Payroll be available in France ?Blueprint - 'On hold' state with an automatic transition?
I think I'm missing something here so I'm hoping if I explain what I'm trying to achieve someone might be able to give me a way around it. We sometimes get request far in advance but we don't want to action them unless it is 7 days from when they areHOW TO VIEW INDIVIDUAL COST OF NEWLY PURCHASED GOODS AFTER ALLOCATING LANDED COSTS
Hello, I have been able to allocate landed costs to the purchase cost of the new products. however, what i need to see now is the actual cost price (original cost plus landed cost), of only my newly purchased products to enable me set a selling priceClient Script: $Client.refresh({ triggerOnLoad: true }); not triggering onLoad Client Scripts
Hey friends! I'm trying to store a temporary var, refresh the page for the user, then check that temporary var and do some actions. Theoretically using the title's code: $Client.refresh({ triggerOnLoad: true }); should refresh the page and trigger onNext Page