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Connector downloads: Zapier, Make, and n8n

The Developer → Connectors page in the dashboard generates app-definition files you import into Zapier, Make, or n8n — so you can automate Orbit from those tools without hand-writing API calls. Each file is pre-wired to your org’s API host, and none of them embed a credential: you paste your own secret API key (dv_live_sk_…) into the tool after import. Every trigger across all three platforms subscribes to Orbit’s existing webhook event catalog, and every action posts to existing send and write endpoints — the connectors add no new auth, scopes, or provider routing.

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1. Create your API key first

The imported app authenticates every request with an X-API-Key header carrying one of your secret keys. Create one before you start:
  1. Open Settings → API Keys in the dashboard.
  2. Generate a secret key (it starts with dv_live_sk_).
  3. Keep it somewhere safe — you paste it into Zapier, Make, or n8n once, after import.
Use a dedicated key per tool so rotating or revoking one integration doesn’t break the others. The same endpoints are available over the API if you prefer a terminal — /developers/connector/zapier, /developers/connector/make, or /developers/connector/n8n:
Open Developer → Connectors and pick one of the three downloads:
  • Download Zapier app — orbit-<your-org>.zapier-app.json, the seed for a Zapier Platform CLI app pushed with zapier push.
  • Download Make app — orbit-<your-org>.make-app.json, a Make custom-app blueprint with its shared base, keychain connection, and modules.
  • Download n8n nodes — orbit-<your-org>.n8n-nodes.json, the definition behind the n8n-nodes-orbit community node pack.
Below the download buttons, the page shows a live preview of every trigger and action the three apps share, sourced from GET /developers/connector/catalog.

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2. Zapier: push the app with the Platform CLI

The Zapier file is the app definition a zapier-platform-core app exports — authentication, triggers, and creates. Use it as the basis of a Zapier Platform CLI project, then push:
After the push, the first thing Zapier asks for when someone connects the app is the API key — paste your dv_live_sk_ secret. The bundled authentication.test calls GET /api/v1/me with your X-API-Key header, so Zapier can verify the key before a Zap runs. Each trigger (New Inbound Message, Message Delivered, Message Failed, New Contact, Contact Updated, Call Completed, Verification Approved, Campaign Completed) subscribes a REST hook via POST /webhooks and tears it down via DELETE /webhooks/:id — the same webhook CRUD the dashboard uses. Actions (Send SMS, Send WhatsApp Message, Send Email, Create Contact, Create Voice Call, Start Verification) POST to the matching /api/v1 endpoint.

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3. Make: import the custom app blueprint

The Make file splits the app the way Make expects: a base (shared URL and headers), a connection (the orbit-api-key keychain), and one module per trigger or action.
  1. In Make, open your team’s custom Apps section and start a new app.
  2. Import the downloaded orbit-<your-org>.make-app.json.
  3. Save the app, then create a connection — Make prompts for the API Key parameter; paste your dv_live_sk_ secret.
Instant trigger modules register Make’s shared webhook and subscribe it to exactly one Orbit event over the same /webhooks CRUD; action modules POST to their endpoint with fields mapped from module parameters.

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4. n8n: use the n8n-nodes-orbit community node pack

The n8n file is the deterministic definition behind the n8n-nodes-orbit community node pack. On a self-hosted n8n instance with community nodes enabled, the workflow is:
  1. Install the pack (npm install n8n-nodes-orbit in your n8n environment, or via Settings → Community nodes).
  2. Add the Orbit Trigger node and pick the event it listens for, and/or add the Orbit action node and pick an operation.
  3. Create the Orbit API credential when prompted — it carries your dv_live_sk_ secret in a password field.
The trigger node manages its subscription lifecycle through n8n’s webhook methods, calling the same POST /webhooks / DELETE /webhooks/:id endpoints. The action node routes each operation (send_sms, send_whatsapp, send_email, create_contact, send_voice_call, start_verification) to its matching endpoint via declarative routing. The credential test hits GET /api/v1/me, so an invalid key fails at credential-check time, not mid-workflow.

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5. Browse the catalog before you download

GET /developers/connector/catalog returns a lightweight, templating-free summary of every trigger and action across all three platforms — the same summary the dashboard page renders as its “what can I automate?” preview. Use it to check coverage without downloading a full definition:
The response lists each trigger’s webhook event (for example, message.received, call.completed) and each action’s endpoint path (for example, /api/v1/messages/sms, /api/v1/contacts).

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Why there is no OAuth here

For your own org, OAuth would add a consent screen and a token exchange without adding protection. The connected-app OAuth flow exists for a different case: building an app that other Orbit customers install into their orgs. When you’re automating your own tenant, a secret API key you own is the right tool — and because each imported app holds your key in the tool’s own credential store, you can revoke it server-side without touching the Zap, scenario, or workflow.

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Keep the key out of the files

The downloads are safe to share with whoever runs your Zapier, Make, or n8n setup: the generated JSON contains only the public API base URL and your organization name (for the connection label). It never contains the API key — each file’s auth template references the key as a variable the target tool fills in from its own credential store. Treat the key itself like a password: paste it only into the tool’s connection/credential field, and rotate it from Settings → API Keys if it’s ever exposed.

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See also