REST APIs
We recommend using REST APIs to integrate your third-party applications with BMC Helix ITSM. The platform-based REST API leverages the capabilities of the BMC Helix ITSM platform and lets you perform operations on BMC Helix ITSM forms.
You can integrate external applications with BMC Helix ITSM by using SOAP web services that eliminate the need to create API applications. It is possible to consume and publish web services with AR server.
The following graphic provides high-level differences between SOAP web services and REST APIs:
To use REST API to integrate with ITSM applications
We recommend using the REST APIs to integrate your third-party applications with BMC Helix ITSM.
The different actions supported by REST API are - GET, PUT, POST, and DELETE.
Staging or interface forms are available for all the different ITSM core forms that has OOTB framework and workflows to push the data to the target forms. For example, the HPD_IncidentInterface_Create form needs to be used to create incident data via the REST API call, and the HPD_IncidentInterface form can be used to perform update actions.
For more information on step by step details on how to call REST API to create an incident, see Example of using the platform REST API to create an incident request.
The same steps can be used for integrating REST API with other modules like Change, Problem, Service Request (SRM), etc.
To see examples of using the platform REST API to modify other ticket types, see Integrating third-party applications with BMC Helix ITSM by using the platform REST API.
Log into Developer Studio and in the Forms list, you can query forms list for interface forms. You will typically see multiple interface forms for each module. The interface forms with suffix _Create must be used for the insert or submit use case and the other forms must be used for updates.
To use REST API to integrate with custom forms
Use the ITSM framework and workflows as a reference to understand how interface forms are used for the POST/Create Data and PUT/Modify Data use cases. You can then create interface forms for your custom forms, and the needed supporting workflows.
You will need an interface_create form for inserts and an interface form for an update.
For more information on REST API framework and how to use the API calls, see Integrating AR System forms with a third-party application by using the REST API.