Note: The below article uses examples of accessing the Decipher API from a Unix system that has the Beacon library package installed. Click here to learn more about accessing the Decipher REST API.
You can use the following API calls to perform a variety of tasks involving survey metadata. Click any call name to view more information.
| Call Name | Description |
|---|---|
| Run Simulated Data | Runs simulated test data through the specified survey. |
| Close | Closes the specified survey. |
| Launch | Launches the specified survey. |
| Warnings | Retrieves a list of all possible launch warnings for the specified survey. |
| Evaluate | Retrieves the specified respondent's state and survey progress information. |
| Get Quota | Retrieves the quota structure for the specified survey. |
| Update Quotas | Updates survey quotas as specified. |
| List Files | Retrieves a list of all files and resources for the specified survey. |
| Upload / Replace File |
Uploads a new file or resource to the specified survey. Can also be used to replace the specified survey file or resource with a new file or resource. A list of allowed file types can be found here. |
| Download File | Retrieves only the specified survey file or resource. |
| Delete File |
Deletes the specified survey file or resource. You may delete any of the file types allowed for upload by the file manager, as well as .index files. Note: You cannot delete the survey.xml file from a static directory. |
| Debug Logic Nodes | Retrieves all debug information for the specific logic node. |
| Generate Test Link | Generates a test URL link for the specified survey. |
| Update Survey Category | Updates the survey category and / or description displayed on the Project Overview page in the Portal. |
Note: By default, API calls in the shell output information directly to the console screen. If you want to reuse that output, you will want to save it to a file.
Note: If you are using a web call method to access the API, you will need to have a way of providing your API key. Click here for more information.
Note: You will need to change tes.decipherinc.com to the domain that you use to log into the Decipher platform.
Viewing Returned Data
You can use the global select parameter to retrieve a subset of any GET call's returned data. You can pass in select as an argument set to a comma-separated list of properties to return.
For example, select=id, login, active will only retrieve these three specific fields when calling in the User List API:
beacon get rh/users select=id,login,active
Note: The select parameter should only be used on GET method API calls to filter information retrieved via an API call, and not information that you send (e.g., via a PUT or POST method) to Decipher.