Box Developer Documentation
 

    Get User Events

    Get User Events

    To get a user's events, authenticate as any user and make a call to the GET /events API.

    cURL
    curl -i -X GET "https://api.box.com/2.0/events" \
         -H "authorization: Bearer <ACCESS_TOKEN>"

    The events returned will only be for the user who's access token the API was made with. To get the event feed for a different user either use the as-user header or an actual access token for that user.

    Stream Types

    The user event stream support 3 types of stream.

    Stream Type
    allReturns everything for a user (default)
    changesReturns events that may cause file tree changes such as file updates or collaborations.
    syncIs similar to changes but only applies to synced folders

    Anonymous Users

    In some cases, the event feed might list a user with an ID of 2. This is Box's internal identifier for anonymous users.

    An anonymous user is a user that is not logged in. This can happen any time a user interacts with content and they aren't asked to log in first. An example would be when a user downloads a file through an open shared link.

    Limitations

    Box does not store events indefinitely.

    User events are stored for between two weeks and two months, after which the user events are removed. Enterprise events are accessible for one year via the API and seven years via exported reports in the Box Admin Console.

    The emphasis of this feed is to return the complete results quickly, which means that Box may return events more than once or out of order. Duplicate events can be identified by their event IDs.

    Long Polling

    The user event stream supports long-polling through the OPTIONS /events API.

    Event Types

    The following events can be triggered for a user. This list is not exhaustive, so it is possible events appear that are not listed.

    The following events are available in all feeds.

    Event nameDescription
    ITEM_CREATEA folder or File was created
    ITEM_UPLOADA folder or File was uploaded
    ITEM_MOVEA file or folder was moved
    ITEM_COPYA file or folder was copied
    LOCK_CREATEA file was locked
    LOCK_DESTROYA file was unlocked. If a locked file is deleted, the source file will be null.
    ITEM_TRASHA file or folder was marked as deleted
    ITEM_UNDELETE_VIA_TRASHA file or folder was recovered out of the trash
    COLLAB_ADD_COLLABORATORA collaborator was added to a folder
    COLLAB_ROLE_CHANGEA collaborator had their role changed
    COLLAB_INVITE_COLLABORATORA collaborator was invited on a folder
    COLLAB_REMOVE_COLLABORATORA collaborator was removed from a folder
    ITEM_SYNCA folder was marked for sync
    ITEM_UNSYNCA folder was unmarked for sync
    ITEM_RENAMEA file or folder was renamed
    ITEM_MAKE_CURRENT_VERSIONA previous version of a file was promoted to the current version
    GROUP_ADD_USERAdded user to group
    GROUP_REMOVE_USERRemoved user from group

    The following events are only available in the all feed.

    Event nameDescription
    COMMENT_CREATEA comment was created on a folder, file, or other comment
    COMMENT_DELETEA comment was deleted on folder, file, or other comment
    ITEM_DOWNLOADA file or folder was downloaded
    ITEM_PREVIEWA file was previewed
    TASK_ASSIGNMENT_CREATEA task was assigned
    TASK_CREATEA task was created
    ITEM_SHARED_CREATEA file or folder was enabled for sharing
    ITEM_SHARED_UNSHAREA file or folder was disabled for sharing
    ITEM_SHAREDA folder was shared
    TAG_ITEM_CREATEA Tag was added to a file or folder
    ENABLE_TWO_FACTOR_AUTH2 factor authentication enabled by user
    MASTER_INVITE_ACCEPTFree user accepts invitation to become a managed user
    MASTER_INVITE_REJECTFree user rejects invitation to become a managed user
    ACCESS_GRANTEDGranted Box access to account
    ACCESS_REVOKEDRevoke Box access to account

    Event notifications

    To reduce the noise of the event stream and optimize event consumption, the event types listed in the table trigger a limited number of notifications.

    Event typeNotification behavior
    COLLAB_ADD_COLLABORATOR, COLLAB_REMOVE_COLLABORATOR, COLLAB_INVITE_COLLABORATOR, COLLAB_ROLE_CHANGEWhen these events take place, the content owner on the changes event stream is notified. Collaborators see an additional event that matches what they see on the all stream.
    ITEM_DOWNLOADWhen an item is downloaded, only the content owner gets the notification. Collaborators are not notified.
    ITEM_PREVIEWWhen an item is previewed, only the content owner gets the notification. Collaborators are not notified.