API integration
An API integration connects two systems through their programming interfaces (APIs), so data flows between them automatically instead of being typed in twice.
Also known as: API-integrasjon, integration via API, REST integration
An API (application programming interface) is a documented way for one system to read and write data in another. Most cloud services have a REST or GraphQL API, and many can also notify other systems through webhooks when something changes. An API integration decides which data flows which way, which system owns each field, and what happens when something fails. What separates a robust integration from a fragile script is everything around the call itself: secure authentication (often OAuth 2.0 or API keys), handling rate limits, retries that do not create duplicates, a log of what has been synchronised, and an alert when a sync fails. Where a system has no API, the integration has to go through file import, the database or, as a last resort, RPA.
In Norwegian context
Norwegian accounting and ERP systems such as Tripletex, Fiken, PowerOffice Go, Visma.net and Xledger have documented APIs. What each API allows, and whether write access requires a separate agreement or licence, varies between vendors and should be checked before the integration is priced.
Related terms
- RPA (Robotic Process Automation) — RPA is software that mimics human clicking in a user interface — typically used to integrate against legacy systems without an API.
- EHF (Elektronisk HandelsFormat) — EHF is the Norwegian standard for electronic invoices — mandatory for any supplier to the Norwegian public sector.
- Project accounting — Project accounting is the tracking of income and costs per project: budget or estimate, hours and purchases incurred, amount invoiced and the expected result when the project is finished.