Rodger's Helpful Deluge Scripts #3 - Automatically attach files to CRM records when a file is added to Workdrive

Rodger's Helpful Deluge Scripts #3 - Automatically attach files to CRM records when a file is added to Workdrive

Hi Everyone,

I'm hoping this one will be really helpful for a lot of people. One thing that's missing from Zoho is a tighter integration between Workdrive and CRM. Whilst an update is in the works as far as I'm aware, file management can still be a needlessly complicated problem. And while there are apps out there that help with this, they often don't work with custom modules, or in the way you want.

Wouldn't it be great if you could just drag and drop your files into a workdrive folder and they all get renamed and appear on your CRM record without any effort from you? In this post, I will show you how to automatically create folders in workdrive AND LINK THEM TO THE CRM RECORD so that when a new file is added to the folder, it's automatically attached to the CRM record.

This is the basic process:
  1. CRM record is created
  2. Workdrive folder is created
  3. A Data Bind is created between the CRM Record and the Workdrive Folder
  4. When a new file is added to the Workdrive Folder, a function is triggered that attaches the file to the CRm Record.
When the file is attached to the CRM Record, we can take this opportunity to do whatever we want to aid in file management. In one of our organisations we accomplish the following in one of our business processes:

If the new file is a csv, the data is parsed and added to a subform on the recocrd
If the new file is a PDF, it is renamed with a specific format
If the new file contains a specific string of text, we know it's a thumbnail image, so it's uploaded to the record image
...

You get the idea of what we can do, so let's get into it.

Step 1: Create a CRM Function to receive the Data
First we need to create a function in CRM to receive a webhook, essentially a packed of data sent from Workdrive to CRM.

Head over to your functions in CRM and create a new Standalone function. Give it a name and description if you want.



We're going to create an argument called crmAPIRequest (spelled exactly like that, this is case sensitive) and se tthe argument type as string



Now save that and save the function, we don't need anything in there yet. In your function menu, click on the elipses (the 3 dots) and select REST API

 

Turn on "API Key" and the system will generate a url for you. Copy and save that URL as we will need it for Step 2. This finishes Step 1.

Step 2: Create an app in Workdrive
Firstly, we need to create an "App" in Workdrive. This will monitor your folder for specific events and send a webhook when that event is triggered, i.e new file created.

In Workdrive, head to the Admin Console --> Apps --> + New Custom App



Give your app a name that's descriptive and informative and paste your client ID. (There's insructions in the opo-up window about how to get your client ID)

When you have created your Custom App, go into it and head over to "Webhooks" and click "+ Create New Webhook"




Give your webhook a name and description if you please. The endpoint URL will be the url of your function that you created in step 1. This tells the app where to send the packed of data.

Next we select the event that will trigger the webhook. In this case, we want it to trigger when a file is uploaded.



Finally we want to specify the folder to monitor. This will be the parent folder that all your new folders will sit under. When you're done, click "Create Webhook"

Step 3: Setup the Data bind

A data bind links 2 records together with their unique ids. To do this we need a field on your CRM Record to store the Wokdrive Folder ID. Make this a single line field. If you don't know how to do this, then this  guide is not for you.

So that stores the Workdrive folder ID, but what stores the CRM record ID? The answer is a Data Template. In you Workdrive Admin Console, head over to Data Templates and create a data template. Add a single line text field to your data template. This will store the CRM Record ID



Step 4: Create folders in Workdrive with Deluge function.

Now that we have set this up, we need to create folders and associate store the respective IDs. This will be done on record creation.

Use the following code snipped to create your folder

  2. // Create folder
  3. header = Map();
  4. header.put("Accept","application/vnd.api+json");
  5. data = Map();
  6. data_param1 = Map();
  7. att_param1 = Map();
  8. att_param1.put("name",<Folder Name>);
  9. att_param1.put("parent_id",<Parent Folder ID>);
  10. data_param1.put("attributes",att_param1);
  11. data_param1.put("type","files");
  12. data.put("data",data_param1);
  13. createFolder = invokeurl
  14. [
  15. url :"https://www.zohoapis.com.au/workdrive/api/v1/files"
  16. type :POST
  17. parameters:toString(data)
  18. headers:header
  19. connection: <Your Workdrive Connection>
  20. ];
  21. info createFolder;
  22. // m_record.put("Folder_Id",createFolder.get("data").get("id")); - Put the created folder ID into the map for your CRM record
  23. // Associate Data Template
  24. header = Map();
  25. header.put("Accept","application/vnd.api+json");
  26. data = Map();
  27. data_param1 = Map();
  28. att_param1 = Map();
  29. att_param1.put("resource_id",createFolder.get("data").get("id"));
  30. att_param1.put("data_template_id","s1a2u5f693092015d4edc876d9043efcf9bcd-73963000001705001"); // 
  31. innerattr_param = List();
  32. innerattr_param_map1 = Map();
  33. innerattr_param_map1.put("custom_field_id",<Custom Field ID>);
  34. innerattr_param_map1.put("value",<CRM Record ID>));
  35. innerattr_param.add(innerattr_param_map1);
  36. att_param1.put("custom_data",innerattr_param);
  37. data_param1.put("attributes",att_param1);
  38. data_param1.put("type","custommetadata");
  39. data.put("data",data_param1);
  40. associateDataTemplate = invokeurl
  41. [
  42. url :"https://www.zohoapis.com.au/workdrive/api/v1/custommetadata"
  43. type :POST
  44. parameters:data.toString()
  45. headers:header
  46. connection: <Your Workdrive Connection>
  47. ];
  48. info associateDataTemplate;

Note: Use the following documentation to get the ID of your Data Template Field needed for line 33 above Zoho WorkDrive API Documentation

Then update your CRM record with the ID of the workdrive folder you created.

Generally, we don't attach this folder to the CRM Record, all we want to see in the CRM record are the files within the folder, not the folder itself.

Step 5: Set-up CRM Function to receive Webhook and attach file to CRM Record

Now we need to go back to your CRM Function which you setup in Step 1 and we're going to add some code:

  2. crmAPIRequest = crmAPIRequest.get("body");
  3. getFolderMetadata = invokeurl
  4. [
  5. url :"https://www.zohoapis.com.au/workdrive/api/v1/files/" + crmAPIRequest.get("data").get(0).get("resource_info").get("parent_id") + "/custommetadata"
  6. type :GET
  7. headers:{"Accept":"application/vnd.api+json"}
  8. connection: <Your Workdrive Connection>
  9. ];
  10. info getFolderMetadata.get("data").get(0).get("attributes").get("custom_data").get(0).get("value");
  11. recordId = getFolderMetadata.get("data").get(0).get("attributes").get("custom_data").get(0).get("value"); // Gets the Data out of the Data Template - This is the CRM Record ID
  12. r_record = zoho.crm.getRecordById(<Module>,recordId); //Get your CRm Record
  13. fileID = crmAPIRequest.get("data").get(0).get("resource_info").get("resource_id");
  14. m_map = Map();
  15. // Attach new file to CRM Record
  16. //
  17. l_attachments = list();
  18. data = Map();
  19. data.put("$link_url","https://workdrive.zoho.com.au/file/" + fileID);
  20. data.put("File_Name",<Your File Name>);
  21. if(!data.isEmpty())
  22. {
  23. data.put("$resource_id",recordId);
  24. data.put("$type","teamdrive");
  25. l_attachments.add(data);
  26. payload = "attachments=" + zoho.encryption.urlEncode({"data":l_attachments});
  27. attachFile = invokeurl
  28. [
  29. url :"https://www.zohoapis.com.au/crm/v2/<Module>/" + recordId + "/Attachments"
  30. type :POST
  31. parameters:payload
  32. connection: <Your CRM Connection>
  33. content-type:"application/x-www-form-urlencoded"
  34. ];
  35. info attachFile;
  36. // Rename File in Work Drive
  37. data = Map();
  38. data_param1 = Map();
  39. att_param1 = Map();
  40. att_param1.put("name",<Your File Name>);
  41. data_param1.put("attributes",att_param1);
  42. data_param1.put("type","files");
  43. data.put("data",data_param1);
  44. renameFile = invokeurl
  45. [
  46. url :"https://www.zohoapis.com.au/workdrive/api/v1/files/" + fileID
  47. type :PATCH
  48. parameters:data.toString()
  49. headers:{"Accept":"application/vnd.api+json"}
  50. connection: <Your Workdrive Connection>
  51. ];
  52. info renameFile;
  53. }
  54. if(!m_map.isempty())
  55. {
  56. info zoho.crm.updateRecord(<Module>,recordId,m_proof);
  57. }
  58. return "";

So how does the above code work?

Firstly, we get the body of the Webhook, this has all the data we really want.
Next we get the file metadata, this will contain the data in teh Data Template, which of course is the CRM Record ID.
Now that we have the CRM Record ID from the file Metadata, we can fetch the CRM Record. Contained within the Webhook is also the File ID in Workdrive, so this gives us all the information we need to attach the file to your CRM Record and rename the file in Workdrive.

Within this function you can now do whatever you want with the file or anything else. Let's say you want to send an email when a specific file is  uploaded, you can do that here. Or if you want to send a notification via Cliq to someone when a file is uploaded, do that here. You can code specific filename syntaxes so that all your files are perfectly name all the time, the limits are endless.

This is far more advanced than most deluge functions posted on here, so see how you go, play around and have fun. If you have any questions, I'll try to respond as soon as possible.

    Access your files securely from anywhere








                            Zoho Developer Community



                                Bootcamp
                                Community
                                Pricing
                                Webinars
                                What's New
                                Integrations
                                Contact Support
                                Contact Sales
                                  Zoho Survey Resources
                                    Features
                                    Survey Templates
                                    Integrations
                                    Community
                                    iOS Mobile Surveys
                                    Pricing
                                    Android Mobile Surveys
                                    Insurvey Blogs
                                    Insight Blogs
                                    Tips & Tricks





                                                Latest Feature Updates

                                                  • Desk Community Learning Series


                                                  • Digest


                                                  • Functions


                                                  • Meetups


                                                  • Kbase


                                                  • Resources


                                                  • Glossary


                                                  • Desk Marketplace


                                                  • MVP Corner


                                                  • Word of the Day


                                                  • Ask the Experts




                                                      Zoho SalesIQ Resources


                                                            Manage your brands on social media
                                                            Access Zoho Social

                                                              Zoho Pagesense Resources


                                                                  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 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

                                                                                                              • Hotmail is blocking the zoho mail IP

                                                                                                                Greetings, Since last Tuesday (5 days ago today) I wrote to Zoho support and I still haven't received a single response (Ticket ID: 2056917). Is this how you treat people who pay for your email service? I am making this public so that those who want to

                                                                                                              • Read webpage - MSXML2.ServerXMLHTTP

                                                                                                                I have the following VBA script, put together from various sources (mainly zoho forum/help/support, so it once worked, I guess): private Sub GetListOfSheets() Dim url As String Dim xmlhttp As Object Dim parameters As String Dim html As String range("B1").value

                                                                                                              • Zoho Creator Form Search

                                                                                                                I'm new to Zoho Creator and so far i do like it but im shocked there seems to be no easy way to add a search function and/or navigation to there forms as this readily available in every platform i have used in the past. Anyway i have a form which i have

                                                                                                              • How to setup DKIM / SPF in Zoho Mail

                                                                                                                Hello there! I'm having a hard time understanding how to setup the TXT records for SPF and DKIM with Zoho Mail. I'm following the instructions here: https://www.zoho.com/campaigns/help/setup-spf-dkim.html Specifically, when it comes to the value for the

                                                                                                              • Mass update cant trigger a workflow?

                                                                                                                Hello there, Is this a normal Creator behaviour? In a report, if I manually edit each data row, it will pass those changes to all other reports. However, if I perform a Mass Update on a few data rows at once, the new data is not pushed to other reports.

                                                                                                              • Exciting Updates to the Kiosk Studio Feature in Zoho CRM!

                                                                                                                Hello Everyone, We are here again with a series of new enhancements to Kiosk Studio, designed to elevate your experience and bring even greater efficiency to your business processes. These updates build upon our ongoing commitment to making Kiosk a powerful

                                                                                                              • search and Smart Bar both missing in Mail

                                                                                                                One of the users on my account does not have the search bar at the top right or the Smart Bar at the bottom left of the desktop Mail app. Any ideas how to get those back?

                                                                                                              • "Wrong password or login" Problem to configure Zoho on MAIL App on my Macbook

                                                                                                                Hi, I'm having problems to configure my e-mail on my MAIL App(Macbook pro). My e-mail is hari@trespontoum.net Actually was working perfectly, and still working on my Iphone. My MAIL App prompt me that my login or password is wrong. I tried to change 3

                                                                                                              • Remote Control Functionality During Screen Sharing in Zoho Cliq

                                                                                                                Hello Zoho Cliq Team, We would like to request the addition of remote control functionality during screen sharing sessions in Zoho Cliq. Currently, while screen sharing in Cliq is very useful, it lacks the ability for another participant to take control

                                                                                                              • Looking for best practices to import data from SAP Business One (on-prem) into Zoho Analytics via Zoho DataPrep / Databridge — daily automated schedule

                                                                                                                Hi all, I’m using SAP Business One on-prem (SQL Server / or HANA — depending on DB backend) as our ERP. I want to build a pipeline that, every morning at 9:00 AM IST: pulls transactional data (invoices, customers, products, stock, etc.) from SAP B1, loads

                                                                                                              • Let us add Lookup fields in the Blueprint Transitions

                                                                                                                We are unable to add Lookup Fields in the blueprint transitions in Zoho Desk, we wanted to make it a requirement for our workflow but since it's not available in the transition we cannot. The lookup field exists in the Layout: But it cannot be added/selected

                                                                                                              • Zoho Projects API Scope for Issue Attachments

                                                                                                                I try to download issue attachments via the API, unfortunately I always get the following error code when trying to download the file from the supplied URL: {"ERROR_MESSAGE":"INVALID_OAUTHSCOPE","ERROR_CODE":401} indicating an auth scope error. I've tried

                                                                                                              • How to fetch custom fields for time entries in Zoho Project API v3

                                                                                                                In the previous Zoho Projects REST API, we were able to retrieve custom field details for time entries, including picklist options, using the endpoint: GET /restapi/portal/[PORTAL_ID]/timesheetcustomfields In the new Zoho Projects API v3, we tried using

                                                                                                              • Zoho Survey Enhancements

                                                                                                                We love Survey. We use it a ton. It needs some enhancements. Maybe some of these are already on the roadmap? API - this is crucial. We have some complex surveys that take place and need to update records, trigger other functions/automations, etc. I would

                                                                                                              • Images Don't Display on Blog

                                                                                                                Hi, I've just posted a new blog entry, but regardless of format (png or jpeg) Images that display in Preview mode do not display on any browser in the published post.  I've not done anything different with this post than others regarding images, please advice. Thanks! Edit:  I've discovered that moving the image files from a my sub directory folder "Pics for Blog" to the top level of the "Files" folder on my site allows the images to display live.  This, even though my other blog posts are correctly

                                                                                                              • Creating multiple CRM leads from a Zoho Forms subform

                                                                                                                Hi all, We have a heavily used intake form that is used for new leads as a part of our intake. There is a subform that allows the lead to add additional team members, their titles and other basic info. That form submission creates a new Lead and the subform

                                                                                                              • Checkbox Field Mapping Zoho Forms to Zoho Sign

                                                                                                                I have an application that will be filled out via Forms that I am mapping into a PDF Filler on Zoho Sign. I need to have a series of checkboxes mapped to the corresponding fields in Sign and I only see single checkboxes available via the mapping, though

                                                                                                              • MCP > Creator connection failing with Claude

                                                                                                                I'm trying to get claude to access any of my Zoho Creator apps and it keeps failing. I have enabled all tools for creator and ensured in claude settings that everything is authorised. Here is what claude says : Unfortunately, the error messages I'm receiving

                                                                                                              • Books P&L by Customer

                                                                                                                Lately, we have found that the Customer field filter for the Profit & Loss report in Zoho Books is no longer available. We have several projects with the same customer and look at the P&Ls by project AND by Customer (overall). Can you please add back in this field selection alongside the Project field to the P&L report filter? Thanks! -Gina

                                                                                                              • Sent mail sort by date disappeared

                                                                                                                Hello, We used to be able to sort the emails by date in the sent folder, but this feature has recently disappeared. Can we bring it back?

                                                                                                              • I cannot check out to Zoho People.

                                                                                                                When I tried to check out today, there's prompt that inhibits me to check out: To add entry in Attendance, log time for any of your jobs

                                                                                                              • Pricing Strategies: #2 Plan your Service Offerings using Plans

                                                                                                                Meet Harvey & Mia, hailing from the same Tech school, carrying the dream of setting up their own IT maintenance firm in their location. They drew up a clear business plan and put their business in motion on New Year's Eve. They had great reception right

                                                                                                              • Open a record to edit based on another form being edited

                                                                                                                Hi all, I am trying to edit a record based on another record being edited. It works out like this: When I create a Monthly_Update and then submit I open the Monthly_Levels form and pass the ID from the Monthly_Update to a field called mu. I want it to

                                                                                                              • Problem with signature on zoho survey

                                                                                                                Hello, I'm trying to export individual responses with signatures on zoho survey. But the signatures on some of my surveys are not exported as the original image, but as a generic image, same for all (screen joins). Is there a solution to have the signatures

                                                                                                              • Change in Zoho CRM API?

                                                                                                                Hello, I am using the Zoho API trough the PHP SDK v2.1 Since few days, I noticed that I have to change the way I pass the data to the API when I create, update, or upsert a record. Dates Before I was passing a PHP date object to "$record->addKeyValue(...)",

                                                                                                              • MTA - BAD IP reputation by outlook/hotmail

                                                                                                                Messages to Microsoft email servers are bouncing back due to poor reputation. Message: 4.7.650 The mail server [136.143.188.206] has been temporarily rate limited due to IP reputation. For e-mail delivery information see https://postmaster.live.com (S775)

                                                                                                              • QuickBooks Extension for Zoho CRM - Advanced Features -2025

                                                                                                                Hello Everyone, We’re happy to announce the latest version of our QuickBooks Extension for Zoho CRM, now officially live on the Zoho Marketplace! This release introduces one-click data sync, a user-friendly UI, enhanced performance, and a powerful set

                                                                                                              • Changing Department often causes the Firefox tab to freeze

                                                                                                                Title, it doesn't seem to happen with neither Opera nor Chrome. And even in Firefox, sometimes it just lets me change the department I'm in no problem, even to All Departments which is probably the most, like, resource heavy? But most of the time, the

                                                                                                              • Need to integrate Zoho Mail Mobile app with Zoho Meeting Mobile App for Android and Apple

                                                                                                                Hello Zoho Team, Please bring integration of Zoho Mail Mobile app with Zoho Meeting for Android and Apple Thanks

                                                                                                              • ¡Muchas gracias por participar a los Meetups de Usuarios de Zoho! Y Novedades del ecosistema Zoho

                                                                                                                ¡Hola Comunidad de Zoho en Español! 👋 Después de un breve lapso de tiempo, volvemos con una nueva edición de nuestro Community Digest, donde te contamos las novedades de los productos de Zoho en los últimos meses. Estas mejoras se centran en nuestros

                                                                                                              • Anyway to move mail from one account to another yet?

                                                                                                                Hello, Is there any way to move email from one mailbox account to another mailbox account in zoho yet? Thanks, Ryan.

                                                                                                              • Using a CRM Client Script Button to create a Books Invoice

                                                                                                                Hello, I need help handling error messages returned to my client script from a function. The scenario I have setup a client script button which is available from each Deal. This CS executes a crm function, which in turn creates an invoice based on the

                                                                                                              • Building Toppings #2 - Learn how to use Bigin's Developer Console to build toppings

                                                                                                                Hey Biginners, In our last post, we discussed what toppings are, why they're essential to extending Bigin's capabilities, and how the Bigin Developer Center serves as the starting point for building them. As a cloud platform, the Developer Center empowers

                                                                                                              • Proposal for Creating a Unique "Address" Entity in Zoho FSM

                                                                                                                The "Address" entity is one of the most critical components for a service-oriented company. While homeowners may change and servicing companies may vary, the address itself remains constant. This constancy is essential for subsequent services, as it provides

                                                                                                              • Links are incorrect when sent out

                                                                                                                I'm adding in hyperlinks into my eDM. When I send a test email, it's all correct. However, when I send out the eDM, all the hyperlinks jump up one space so none of the links are opening to the correct page. Why is this happening and how can I fix it?

                                                                                                              • Tip of the week #16 - Search and filter threads based on criteria

                                                                                                                Zoho TeamInbox lets you search and filter threads with any information that you have about the thread. You just have to input the criteria and Zoho TeamInbox will list all the threads that match the condition.   Firstly, there is a global search you can

                                                                                                              • Introducing recipient authentication via Stripe Identity in Zoho Sign

                                                                                                                Hi everyone! It's important to authenticate your recipient's identity before they access and sign important documents to ensure the highest level of compliance. Zoho Sign already helps businesses do this with various authentication methods: SMS OTP Email

                                                                                                              • Introducing Multi-Asset Support in Work Orders, Estimates, and Service Appointments

                                                                                                                We’re excited to announce a highly requested enhancement in Zoho FSM — you can now associate multiple assets with Work Orders, Estimates, and Service Appointments. This update brings more clarity, flexibility, and control to your field service operations,

                                                                                                              • CRM: hosting a single html file in Zoho and displaying it as a widget

                                                                                                                I have seen that CRM offers the option of uploading a web project to Zoho itself and displaying it as a widget in CRM. The instructions then talk about setting a development environment with Node and developing an application to upload to Zoho. But I

                                                                                                              • Keep Converted Leads

                                                                                                                How do I keep the converted leads in the Leads Module after conversion (converting it to account, contact, deal). I want to add it in a converted stage in the leads module in order to get a report or dashboard and see all converted leads from my pip

                                                                                                              • Next Page