Kaizen #21 - Functions in Zoho CRM

Kaizen #21 - Functions in Zoho CRM

Hello everyone!

Welcome back to another week in the Kaizen series!
This week, we will discuss Functions in detail.

What will you learn from this post?
  1. What are Functions in Zoho CRM?
  2. Creating a function
    1. Choosing a function category
    2. Function body
  3. Integration Tasks
  4. Triggering Functions
    1. From Zoho CRM functionalities
    2. From third-party applications
  5. Limits of Functions

1. What are Functions in Zoho CRM?
  • Functions help you accomplish the tasks that are not available by default in Zoho CRM. 
  • You must write custom functions using DELUGE [Data Enriched Language for the Universal Grid Environment]—An online scripting language.
  • Using custom functions, you can automate actions within Zoho CRM, across Zoho products, or between Zoho CRM and any other third-party application.
Note:
Functions are supported only in the enterprise and ultimate editions.

2. Creating a function

To create a function:

Step 1: Go to Setup > Developer Space > Functions


Step 2: Click +New Function


Step 3: Enter details like the Function Name, Display Name, Description, and choose the function category.


2a. Choosing a function category

Functions can fall under five categories:
  • Button: The function gets executed when the user clicks the custom button.
  • Automation: The function gets executed based on workflow rules.
  • Schedule: The function gets executed based on a schedule.
  • Related List: The function gets invoked from a related list.
  • Standalone: A stand-alone function that can be triggered externally.
  • Validation Rule: The function gets executed based on a validation rule.

Step 4: Write the function logic in the console. To know more about DELUGE, refer to Deluge.
Here is an example of a function that automatically generates a quote from a deal on just the click of a button. In DealToQuote() function, the input values are extracted from deals. You can also choose to get them from the users as arguments or JSON request body.


2b. Function Body
potDetails = zoho.crm.getRecordById("Deals",potId.toLong());//integration task
/*Extracting details from the deal*/
quotesubject = ifnull(potDetails.get("Deal_Name"),""); 
contact = ifnull(potDetails.get("Contact_Name").get("id"),""); 
account = ifnull(potDetails.get("Account_Name").get("id"),"");
description = ifnull(potDetails.get("Description"),"");
RelatedProducts = zoho.crm.getRelatedRecords("Products","Potentials",potId.toLong());
product_items = List();
sub = 0.0;
/*Extracting product details from the deal and adding it to quote*/
for each product in RelatedProducts
{
proid = product.get("id");
proname = product.get("Product_Name");
productDesc = ifnull(product.get("Description"),"Manque Description Produit !!!");
quantity = 1;
price = ifnull(product.get("Unit_Price"),"0.0").toDecimal();
listprice = price * quantity;
lineitem = Map();
lineitem.put("product",{"name":proname,"id":proid});
lineitem.put("product_description",productDesc);
lineitem.put("quantity",quantity);
lineitem.put("net_total",listprice);
lineitem.put("total",listprice);
lineitem.put("list_price",listprice);
sub = sub + listprice;
product_items.add(lineitem);
}
/*Storing quote details*/
paramap = Map();
paramap.put("Product_Details",product_items);
paramap.put("Subject",quotesubject);
paramap.put("Contact_Name",contact);
paramap.put("Account_Name",account);
paramap.put("Deal_Name",potId.toLong());
paramap.put("Sub_Total",sub);
paramap.put("Grand_Total",sub);
paramap.put("Description",description);
createResp = zoho.crm.createRecord("Quotes",paramap);
info paramap;
info createResp;
newid = createResp.get("id");
return "Success";

Step 5: Once you have written your logic, click save and execute.


Step 6: Enter the argument values, if any.


Step 7: If your function gets executed successfully, you will get a success message.

Step 7: Click Save.

3. Integration Tasks
Integration tasks are pre-defined functions that allow you to get, create, and update records in Zoho CRM. You can simply use these method names in your Deluge script along with the required data to make API calls. 
In the above example, we have used the getRecordById() integration task that retrieves the details of the deal. For instance, the Deal Name, Contact Name, Account Name, and so on.

Syntax:
<response>=zoho.crm.getRecordById(<module_name>, <record_ID>, <connections>);

Parameters:
Parameter
Description
response
The response with the list of records matching the criteria.
module_name
string, mandatory
The API name of the module you want to fetch the records from.
record_ID
string, mandatory
The unique ID of the record.
connections
string, optional
The connectors that are associated with the function.

Example:
potDetails = zoho.crm.getRecordById("Deals",potId.toLong());

Some of the other available integration tasks are:
To know more about integration tasks, click here.

4. Triggering functions

A function needs a trigger to get executed. You can trigger a function in two ways:
      4a. From Zoho CRM functionality
      4b. From third-party applications

Scenario:
Functions are primarily used to write custom business logic in Zoho CRM. Consider a scenario, where you want your sales representatives to create a quote after reviewing the deal. Instead of letting them create each quote manually, you can add a custom button in the Edit Deal page, which when clicked upon, triggers a function that creates a quote. 

Also, you can configure a third-party system to automatically create a quote in Zoho CRM when the deal amount is less than 1000 OR the deal stage is closed-won. Thus, avoiding manual intervention and enabling them to emphasise on substantial deals. 

Let us discuss how to trigger the DealToQuote() function via a custom button and a third-party application. You can also trigger the same function from a third-party application as a REST API webhook

4a. From Zoho CRM functionality (Custom Button)
  1. Go to Setup > Customization > Modules and Fields.
  2. From the List of Modules, select the required module.
  3. In the Links & Buttons tab, click Create New Button.
  4. In the Create Your Button page, do the following:
    1. Enter the name of the button. The button name should not exceed 30 characters.
    2. Click the Add Description link and specify the details of your custom button. The description should not exceed 250 characters.
    3. Choose the location of your custom button from the drop-down list.
    4. Custom buttons can be placed in 6 different places in your CRM account - Create/Clone page, Edit page, View page, List View page, a button to each record in the list view and Related Lists Page. Note that you can create up to 50 buttons for each module.
  5. Choose an action to be executed when a user clicks the custom button. You can either choose a predefined action from the gallery or the existing functions that were already created by the users in your organization. Also, define your own action by writing a custom function, open a new web tab or invoke a URL based on your needs. It is mandatory to choose the button action. In our case, From Existing Actions in Functions. Choose the function and click Configure.


6. Map the input values to the fields in that module and click Save.


Once the custom button is associated with an action, CRM Administrators can manage permissions by assigning only specific profiles to view and access the custom button.

Similarly, you can associate functions with SchedulesWorkflowsValidation Rules, and Related Lists.

To know more, click here.

4b. From third-party applications

Here, we are going to configure a third-party system to automatically create a quote in Zoho CRM when the deal amount is less than 1000 OR the deal stage is closed-won, thus avoiding manual intervention. 

To achieve this, we are going to trigger the DealToQuote() function from a third-party application (automate.io), whenever the above conditions are met. 



If you want to trigger a function from a third-party application, you must make it available as REST API. 

1. Go to SetupDeveloper SpaceFunctions
2. Choose the function > Click more options > Click REST API


3.Enter the API name for the function. 
4. Enable OAuth 2.0 to share the function as an API within your organization and enable API key to share the function as a webhook with any third-party user.
Click Save.


You must make the API call from the third-party application using the request URL received here.

The DealToQuote() function is triggered from a third-party application (automate.io). You can achieve the same using:
  • Zoho Flow
  • Zoho CRM workflow rule that is triggered whenever a deal is updated
Sample bot configuration in automate.io:


We have triggered the DealToQuote() function using custom button as well as a third-party application. 



5. Limits of Functions
Function calls in Zoho CRM are associated with credits. Each function call results in reduction of one credit from your account. 
Maximum credit limit based on your edition
Edition
Allowed Credits
Maximum credits that can be availed in a 24 hour window
Starter
5,000 credits + (Number of User licenses x 200)
10,000 credits
Standard
5,000 credits + (Number of User licenses x 200)
15,000 credits
Professional
5,000 credits + (Number of User licenses x 200)
20,000 credits
Enterprise/Zoho One/CRM Plus
20,000 credits + (Number of User licenses x 500)
1,00,000 credits
Ultimate
20,000 credits + (Number of User licenses X 1000)
2,00,000 credits

Limits based on properties of a function
Functionality
Description
Limits
Execution Time
Function should be executed within the specified time.
1 minute
Response Limit
Function should return the response within a particular size.
10 MB
Lines of execution
The number of lines in a function code has a limit.
200,000
Send Mail
The number of emails that you can using the send mail syntax has a limit.
1000 per day
Webhooks
GET and POST URLs
50,000 requests per day

For more tips, refer to function tips.

We hope you found this post useful. Stay tuned for more!

Cheers!

Previous 'Kaizen' - Node JS SDK
Next 'Kaizen' - Connections in Zoho CRM

    Access your files securely from anywhere







                            Zoho Developer Community




                                                  • Desk Community Learning Series


                                                  • Digest


                                                  • Functions


                                                  • Meetups


                                                  • Kbase


                                                  • Resources


                                                  • Glossary


                                                  • Desk Marketplace


                                                  • MVP Corner


                                                  • Word of the Day


                                                  • Ask the Experts



                                                            • Sticky Posts

                                                            • Kaizen #217 - Actions APIs : Tasks

                                                              Welcome to another week of Kaizen! In last week's post we discussed Email Notifications APIs which act as the link between your Workflow automations and you. We have discussed how Zylker Cloud Services uses Email Notifications API in their custom dashboard.
                                                            • Kaizen #216 - Actions APIs : Email Notifications

                                                              Welcome to another week of Kaizen! For the last three weeks, we have been discussing Zylker's workflows. We successfully updated a dormant workflow, built a new one from the ground up and more. But our work is not finished—these automated processes are
                                                            • Kaizen #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
                                                            • Kaizen #142: How to Navigate to Another Page in Zoho CRM using Client Script

                                                              Hello everyone! Welcome back to another exciting Kaizen post. In this post, let us see how you can you navigate to different Pages using Client Script. In this Kaizen post, Need to Navigate to different Pages Client Script ZDKs related to navigation A.
                                                            • Kaizen #210 - Answering your Questions | Event Management System using ZDK CLI

                                                              Hello Everyone, Welcome back to yet another post in the Kaizen Series! As you already may know, for the Kaizen #200 milestone, we asked for your feedback and many of you suggested topics for us to discuss. We have been writing on these topics over the


                                                            Manage your brands on social media



                                                                  Zoho TeamInbox Resources



                                                                      Zoho CRM Plus Resources

                                                                        Zoho Books Resources


                                                                          Zoho Subscriptions Resources

                                                                            Zoho Projects Resources


                                                                              Zoho Sprints Resources


                                                                                Qntrl Resources


                                                                                  Zoho Creator Resources



                                                                                      Zoho CRM Resources

                                                                                      • CRM Community Learning Series

                                                                                        CRM Community Learning Series


                                                                                      • Kaizen

                                                                                        Kaizen

                                                                                      • Functions

                                                                                        Functions

                                                                                      • Meetups

                                                                                        Meetups

                                                                                      • Kbase

                                                                                        Kbase

                                                                                      • Resources

                                                                                        Resources

                                                                                      • Digest

                                                                                        Digest

                                                                                      • CRM Marketplace

                                                                                        CRM Marketplace

                                                                                      • MVP Corner

                                                                                        MVP Corner







                                                                                          Design. Discuss. Deliver.

                                                                                          Create visually engaging stories with Zoho Show.

                                                                                          Get Started Now


                                                                                            Zoho Show Resources

                                                                                              Zoho Writer

                                                                                              Get Started. Write Away!

                                                                                              Writer is a powerful online word processor, designed for collaborative work.

                                                                                                Zoho CRM コンテンツ



                                                                                                  Nederlandse Hulpbronnen


                                                                                                      ご検討中の方




                                                                                                              • Recent Topics

                                                                                                              • 【開催報告】 大阪 ユーザー交流会 2025/11/20(木)Zoho CRM Plus 活用のアイデアとデータの“見える化”

                                                                                                                皆さま、こんにちは。コミュニティチームの中野です。 11/20(木)に、大阪 ユーザー交流会を開催しました。本投稿では、その様子をお届けします。 当日の登壇資料などもこちらに共有しますので、参加できなかった皆さまもご参照ください。 (Zoho 社員セッションの登壇資料については、11/28(金)に開催予定の東京回の開催報告で共有いたします) 今年2回目の開催となる大阪 ユーザー交流会では、株式会社KDDIウェブコミュニケーションズ 山田さんによる Zoho CRM Plus の事例セッションのほか、「Zoho
                                                                                                              • Every rating counts: Shaping customer experience

                                                                                                                We are back to that beautiful time of the year. It is the season to reflect, be thankful, and appreciate everything that has happened throughout the year. Thanksgiving is a time we connect with our family, friends, and relatives to strengthen relationships,
                                                                                                              • Paging through API results. a major gap in your documentation.

                                                                                                                There is no way for me. to get all of my data through a single API call. Typically REST APis have mechanisms for paging through API results. But the documentation for the API I am using: https://desk.zoho.com/DeskAPIDocument#Introduction Has no mention
                                                                                                              • How to remove duplicate contacts

                                                                                                              • Custom Field for Subscription

                                                                                                                Hi, I can't find a way to add a custom field (to contain a license key generated from our software) against a subscription? Is the only place to add this information in the Invoice module (as custom field for invoice)? When a customer views his subscription via the customer portal, there appears no way to display a license key for them? The invoice is not the natural place to store a license key for a particular subscription, so where else can this be stored and displayed?
                                                                                                              • Custom View and Custom Fields on Zoho Books

                                                                                                                Hi, I have some custom fields on Estimates and Invoices. I also use Custom Views so I can have a lot of information at a glance. I want to include my custom fields as columns in my custom views of estimates / invoice, but it looks like is not possible.
                                                                                                              • Dropdown data depends on filters in another field.

                                                                                                                In my quote form I have a lookup field called Reseller that pulls from Accounts. I would like it to pull from Accounts, but only those accounts with an account field 'Type' where that is 'Reseller'. Does anyone know a way to do this? Similarly, I'd like
                                                                                                              • Is it possible to adjust the web browser tab title (when a ZoHo Desk ticket is opened)

                                                                                                                Hi All, When I open a ZoHo Desk ticket in a web browser, the tab title (text that appears at the top of the browser tab) uses the logic: *company icon picture* (xxxx) #ticket number - company name See below (highlighted in red) for reference. Company
                                                                                                              • Collections Management: #7 Common Mistakes during Payment Collection

                                                                                                                Payment collection may appear straightforward in most cases. Still, as your customer base expands and transaction volume increases, it becomes clear that even small inefficiencies can lead to delayed payments, increased support load, or even revenue loss.
                                                                                                              • Rename Record Summary PDF in SendMail task

                                                                                                                So I've been tasked with renaming a record summary PDF to be sent as part of a sendmail task. Normally I would offer the manual solution, a user exports the PDF and uploads it to a file upload field, however this is not acceptable to the client in this
                                                                                                              • Recruit API search

                                                                                                                Hi all, Attempting to call the search api endpoint from Postman using the word element as mentioned in api docs Search Records - APIs | Online Help - Zoho Recruit When making the call to /v2/Candidates/search?word=Saudi receive response of { "code": "MANDATORY_NOT_FOUND",
                                                                                                              • Text/SMS With Zoho Desk

                                                                                                                Hi Guys- Considering using SMS to get faster responses from customers that we are helping.  Have a bunch of questions; 1) Which provider is better ClickaTell or Screen Magic.  Screen Magic seems easier to setup, but appears to be 2x as expensive for United States.  I cannot find the sender id for Clickatell to even complete the configuration. 2) Can customer's reply to text messages?  If so are responses linked back to the zoho ticket?  If not, how are you handling this, a simple "DO NOT REPLY" as
                                                                                                              • Custom Field in Zoho Projects pulling into Analytics

                                                                                                                We have a client that we have built our their new business process using Zoho Projects, and we have build a lot of custom fields with their their Projects where they are capturing specific data points that we want to be able to track and pull data, as
                                                                                                              • Marketer's Space - Holiday season email marketing tips you should know

                                                                                                                Hello Marketers! Welcome back to another post in Marketer's Space! 'Tis the season—that time of the year everyone eagerly anticipates. While most look forward to relaxing, marketers will be super-busy from late November to early January. Mistakes can
                                                                                                              • Zia Competitor Alerts made easy with Zia's suggestions

                                                                                                                Hi everyone, In addition to the existing manually added competitors, Zia will now find your competitors for you - instantly. Earlier, you had to identify competitors through research manually, support tickets, or tradeshows—a time-consuming process that
                                                                                                              • Add Custom Field Inside Parts Section

                                                                                                                How to Add Custom Field Inside Parts Section in Workorder like Category and Sub- Category
                                                                                                              • Zoho CRM Community Digest October 2025 | Part 2

                                                                                                                Hello Everyone! From new mobile capabilities and smarter integrations to real-world workflow fixes and developer insights, all the highlights from the second half of October is covered right here. Let’s dive in. Product Updates: Zoho CRM Mobile Updates:
                                                                                                              • Understanding Zoho Contracts

                                                                                                                Effective contract management relies on systems that are structured, organized, and reliable. Every feature, workflow, rule, and restriction in Zoho Contracts are designed the way they are to ensure consistency, compliance, and control across every stage
                                                                                                              • Tip of the Week #76– Automate your inbox during vacation in Zoho TeamInbox

                                                                                                                When you're on vacation or away from your desk, the last thing you want is for important emails to be missed or left unanswered. The good news is, you can easily set up rules in Zoho TeamInbox to assign incoming messages automatically to a teammate who's
                                                                                                              • Domain restriction for User Management actions in Zoho One

                                                                                                                Greetings, Zoho One Admins! To strengthen account security further and safeguard user management settings, we are imposing domain-based restrictions for user account-focused admin actions in Zoho One. In addition to password reset of user, organization
                                                                                                              • Zoho Mail iOS app update: Signature

                                                                                                                Hello everyone! In the latest version(3.1.7) of the Zoho Mail app update, we have brought in support to create, edit and remove signature within the app. You can create signature from the compose screen as well as from within the Settings module(inside
                                                                                                              • Copy paste from word document deletes random spaces

                                                                                                                Hello Dear Zoho Team, When copying from a word document into Notebook, often I face a problem of the program deleting random spaces between words, the document become terribly faulty, eventhough it is perfect in its original source document (and without
                                                                                                              • Desktop app doesn't support notecards created on Android

                                                                                                                Hi, Does anybody have same problem? Some of last notecards created on Android app (v. 6.6) doesn't show in desktop app (v. 3.5.5). I see these note cards but whith they appear with exclamation mark in yellow triangle (see screenshot) and when I try to
                                                                                                              • Approval Button in Subform

                                                                                                                Hi Team, I’m working on a subform-based requirement where users will submit requests, and these requests must go through approval by multiple team managers. Each line item in the subform needs to be individually approved or declined based on the user's
                                                                                                              • Setting checkbox value on template in Sign from Creator

                                                                                                                Good day, Please help me understand how do I set a tick from a checkbox in Creator into a checkbox on a Sign template. Below is the only values on the Sign template and the code from Creator, "field_boolean_data": {}, "field_date_data": {}, "field_radio_data":
                                                                                                              • Zoho Projects - Unread Comment Icon

                                                                                                                Hi Projects Team, It would be great if there was a notification I con on the comments icon so it's easy to see which tasks have new comments. Something like a red circle with a number of unread comments would be great. Thanks for considering my feed
                                                                                                              • Zoho Projects - Update Feed via API

                                                                                                                Hi Projects Team, Please consider adding an API to allow update and retrieval of messages to the Feed. Thank you
                                                                                                              • Automated log-out/session end

                                                                                                                I'm concerned about security of our data. Is it possible to set an automatic time-out for user sessions on Zoho CRM, after a certain period of inactivity or when the session reaches a certain duration (12 hours perhaps)? 
                                                                                                              • Subform auto populate values

                                                                                                                Hi Team, I’m trying to retrieve values from Zoho People using API functions and dynamically populate them into a subform. For example, I’ve created a form with several fields that users will fill out. Based on their input, I need to fetch records from
                                                                                                              • What is New in CRM Functions?

                                                                                                                What is New in CRM Functions? Hello everyone! We're delighted to share that Functions in Zoho CRM have had a few upgrades that would happen in phases. Phase 1 An all new built-in editor for better user experience and ease of use. ETA: In a couple of days.
                                                                                                              • Gantt Chart - Zoho Analytics

                                                                                                                Are there any plans to add Gantt Charts capabilities to Zoho Analytics?
                                                                                                              • WhatsApp Calling Integration via Zoho Desk

                                                                                                                Dear Zoho Desk Team, I would like to request a feature that allows users to call WhatsApp numbers directly via Zoho Desk. This integration would enable sending and receiving calls to and from WhatsApp numbers over the internet, without the need for traditional
                                                                                                              • Identify long running sync jobs/tables

                                                                                                                My sync process causes strain on my production database and I'd love some tools/alerts to help me identify which tables are taking the longest. The current screen only shows 3 tables at a time and truncates the last fetch time so that it is very cumbersome
                                                                                                              • Temporarily rate limited due to IP reputation.

                                                                                                                We have suddenly started receiving the following Mail Delivery Status Notification: Diagnostic-Code: 4.7.650 The mail server [136.143.184.12] has been temporarily rate limited due to IP reputation. For e-mail delivery information, see https://aka.ms/postmaster
                                                                                                              • Automatically CC an address using Zoho CRM Email Templates

                                                                                                                Hi all - have searched but can't see a definitive answer. We have built multiple email templates in CRM. Every time we send this we want it to CC a particular address (the same address for every email sent) so that it populates the reply back into our
                                                                                                              • Solution to Import PST File into Office 365.

                                                                                                                MailsDaddy OST to Office 365 Migration Tool is an outstanding solution to recover OST files and migrate them into Office 365 without any hassle. Using this software users can multiple OST files into Office 365 with complete data security. It offers users
                                                                                                              • Best-practice setup in Zoho One for managing combined candidate pools and exporting anonymised CVs

                                                                                                                We are new users of the Zoho One bundle and operate a consulting and engineering company. Our workforce model includes a mix of permanent employees, active job applicants, and freelance/independent consultants. All three groups need to be searchable,
                                                                                                              • Associate emails from both primary and secondary contacts to deal

                                                                                                                We need to associate emails from multiple contacts to a deal. Please advise how this can be achieved. At present, only emails from primary contacts can be associated. Thanks
                                                                                                              • New integration: Zoho Sign for Zoho Projects

                                                                                                                Hey there! We’re excited to announce the brand-new Zoho Sign integration for Zoho Projects! With this integration, users can now send documents for signatures, track their progress, and manage approvals—all without leaving Zoho Projects. This bridges
                                                                                                              • Update to attachment display in ticket threads

                                                                                                                This enhancement will provide faster access for support teams and end-users, significantly boosting productivity for everyone. Get ready for a more efficient and satisfying experience! Immediate benefits Faster ticket rendering reduces wait times and
                                                                                                              • Next Page