API Overview

Ripple’s Web API (Application Programming Interface) is a powerful tool that allows you to transfer data between Ripple and a third-party system using developer tools or command-line operations. This article provides an overview of how Ripple’s API works and the basic requirements for exporting and importing data efficiently.

What Is the API?

Ripple’s  API enables you to automate the transfer of data to and from Ripple via your computer’s terminal or command-line interface. It uses HTTP requests to:

• Export data from Ripple into a CSV file
  
  
• Import data into Ripple from a third-party system
  
  

The API is ideal for bulk data transfers and helps eliminate the need for manual entry within the Ripple interface. This reduces duplicate work and helps ensure consistency across systems such as:

• Electronic Data Capture (EDC) systems
  
  
• Clinical Trial Management Systems (CTMS)
  
  
• Customer Relationship Management (CRM) tools
  
  

NOTE: The API does not enable real-time sync between systems. You must separately run import and export commands for each direction of data transfer.

Export API

The Export API allows you to extract data either from the Registry or from a specific study in Ripple.

Requirements:

• You must be a Site Admin or Site Manager
  
  
• You must have access to the study you're exporting from
  
  

How It Works:

1. From a command line, or any suitable development tool or script command that specifies:
   
   
   • The data source (Registry or study)
     
     
   • The variables you want to export
     
     
   • Your authorization key (created from your sign-in credentials). How to Create your Authorization key.
2. Execute the command.
   
   
3. The result will be a downloadable CSV file.
   
   
4. You can then import this data into your third-party system.
   
   

NOTE: You cannot filter the exported data prior to the export. All data for the selected variables will be included in the output file.

Import API

The Import API allows you to upload data from a third-party system into Ripple.

Requirements:

• You must be a Site Admin or Site Manager
  
  
• Data must follow Ripple’s Import Tool Data Dictionary format
  
  

How It Works:

1. Format your external data to match Ripple’s import requirements to the Data Dictionary rules.
   
   
2. From a command line, or any suitable development tool or script, write a command that includes:
   
   
   • The destination (Registry or a specific study)
     
     
   • The formatted data file
     
     
   • Your authorization key (created from your sign-in credentials). How to Create your Authorization key.
     
     
3. Execute  the command to import the data into Ripple.
   
   

Permissions and Access

• Only users with Site Admin or Site Manager roles can use the cURL API.
  
  
• You must have permissions for the study you're trying to access.
  
  
• Each cURL command must include a valid authorization key.