box

Box

Access the Box API with managed OAuth authentication. Manage files, folders, collaborations, shared links, and cloud storage.

Quick Start

# Get current user info
python <<'EOF'
import urllib.request, os, json
req = urllib.request.Request('https://gateway.maton.ai/box/2.0/users/me')
req.add_header('Authorization', f'Bearer {os.environ["MATON_API_KEY"]}')
print(json.dumps(json.load(urllib.request.urlopen(req)), indent=2))
EOF

Base URL

https://gateway.maton.ai/box/2.0/{resource}

The gateway proxies requests to api.box.com/2.0 (for most endpoints) or upload.box.com/api/2.0 (for upload endpoints) and automatically injects your OAuth token. The routing is handled automatically based on the endpoint path.

Authentication

All requests require the Maton API key in the Authorization header:

Authorization: Bearer $MATON_API_KEY

Environment Variable: Set your API key as MATON_API_KEY:

export MATON_API_KEY="YOUR_API_KEY"

Getting Your API Key

1. Sign in or create an account at maton.ai
2. Go to maton.ai/settings
3. Copy your API key

Connection Management

Manage your Box OAuth connections at https://ctrl.maton.ai.

List Connections

python <<'EOF'
import urllib.request, os, json
req = urllib.request.Request('https://ctrl.maton.ai/connections?app=box&status=ACTIVE')
req.add_header('Authorization', f'Bearer {os.environ["MATON_API_KEY"]}')
print(json.dumps(json.load(urllib.request.urlopen(req)), indent=2))
EOF

Create Connection

python <<'EOF'
import urllib.request, os, json
data = json.dumps({'app': 'box'}).encode()
req = urllib.request.Request('https://ctrl.maton.ai/connections', data=data, method='POST')
req.add_header('Authorization', f'Bearer {os.environ["MATON_API_KEY"]}')
req.add_header('Content-Type', 'application/json')
print(json.dumps(json.load(urllib.request.urlopen(req)), indent=2))
EOF

Get Connection

python <<'EOF'
import urllib.request, os, json
req = urllib.request.Request('https://ctrl.maton.ai/connections/{connection_id}')
req.add_header('Authorization', f'Bearer {os.environ["MATON_API_KEY"]}')
print(json.dumps(json.load(urllib.request.urlopen(req)), indent=2))
EOF

Response:

{
  "connection": {
    "connection_id": "{connection_id}",
    "status": "ACTIVE",
    "creation_time": "2026-02-08T21:14:41.808115Z",
    "last_updated_time": "2026-02-08T21:16:10.100340Z",
    "url": "https://connect.maton.ai/?session_token=...",
    "app": "box",
    "metadata": {}
  }
}

Open the returned url in a browser to complete OAuth authorization.

Delete Connection

python <<'EOF'
import urllib.request, os, json
req = urllib.request.Request('https://ctrl.maton.ai/connections/{connection_id}', method='DELETE')
req.add_header('Authorization', f'Bearer {os.environ["MATON_API_KEY"]}')
print(json.dumps(json.load(urllib.request.urlopen(req)), indent=2))
EOF

Specifying Connection

If you have multiple Box connections, specify which one to use with the Maton-Connection header:

python <<'EOF'
import urllib.request, os, json
req = urllib.request.Request('https://gateway.maton.ai/box/2.0/users/me')
req.add_header('Authorization', f'Bearer {os.environ["MATON_API_KEY"]}')
req.add_header('Maton-Connection', '{connection_id}')
print(json.dumps(json.load(urllib.request.urlopen(req)), indent=2))
EOF

If omitted, the gateway uses the default (oldest) active connection.

API Reference

User Info

Get Current User

GET /box/2.0/users/me

Response:

{
  "type": "user",
  "id": "48806418054",
  "name": "Chris",
  "login": "chris@example.com",
  "created_at": "2026-02-08T13:12:34-08:00",
  "modified_at": "2026-02-08T13:12:35-08:00",
  "language": "en",
  "timezone": "America/Los_Angeles",
  "space_amount": 10737418240,
  "space_used": 0,
  "max_upload_size": 262144000,
  "status": "active",
  "avatar_url": "https://app.box.com/api/avatar/large/48806418054"
}

Get User

GET /box/2.0/users/{user_id}

Folder Operations

Get Root Folder

The root folder has ID 0:

GET /box/2.0/folders/0

Get Folder

GET /box/2.0/folders/{folder_id}

Response:

{
  "type": "folder",
  "id": "365037181307",
  "name": "My Folder",
  "description": "Folder description",
  "size": 0,
  "path_collection": {
    "total_count": 1,
    "entries": [
      {"type": "folder", "id": "0", "name": "All Files"}
    ]
  },
  "created_by": {"type": "user", "id": "48806418054", "name": "Chris"},
  "owned_by": {"type": "user", "id": "48806418054", "name": "Chris"},
  "item_status": "active"
}

List Folder Items

GET /box/2.0/folders/{folder_id}/items

Query parameters:

• limit - Maximum items to return (default 100, max 1000)
• offset - Offset for pagination
• fields - Comma-separated list of fields to include

Response:

{
  "total_count": 1,
  "entries": [
    {
      "type": "folder",
      "id": "365036703666",
      "name": "Subfolder"
    }
  ],
  "offset": 0,
  "limit": 100
}

Create Folder

POST /box/2.0/folders
Content-Type: application/json

{
  "name": "New Folder",
  "parent": {"id": "0"}
}

Response:

{
  "type": "folder",
  "id": "365037181307",
  "name": "New Folder",
  "created_at": "2026-02-08T14:56:17-08:00"
}

Update Folder

PUT /box/2.0/folders/{folder_id}
Content-Type: application/json

{
  "name": "Updated Folder Name",
  "description": "Updated description"
}

Copy Folder

POST /box/2.0/folders/{folder_id}/copy
Content-Type: application/json

{
  "name": "Copied Folder",
  "parent": {"id": "0"}
}

Delete Folder

DELETE /box/2.0/folders/{folder_id}

Query parameters:

• recursive - Set to true to delete non-empty folders

Returns 204 No Content on success.

File Operations

Get File Info

GET /box/2.0/files/{file_id}

Download File

GET /box/2.0/files/{file_id}/content

Returns a redirect to the download URL.

Upload File

Upload a new file (up to 50 MB for direct upload):

POST /box/api/2.0/files/content
Content-Type: multipart/form-data

attributes={"name":"file.txt","parent":{"id":"0"}}
file=

The attributes field is a JSON string with:

• name (required) - Filename to use
• parent.id (required) - Folder ID to upload to (use "0" for root)
• content_created_at - Optional timestamp
• content_modified_at - Optional timestamp

Response:

{
  "total_count": 1,
  "entries": [
    {
      "type": "file",
      "id": "123456789",
      "name": "file.txt",
      "size": 1024,
      "created_at": "2026-04-14T10:00:00-07:00",
      "modified_at": "2026-04-14T10:00:00-07:00",
      "parent": {"type": "folder", "id": "0", "name": "All Files"}
    }
  ]
}

Note: The gateway automatically routes upload endpoints to upload.box.com.

Upload New File Version

Upload a new version of an existing file:

POST /box/api/2.0/files/{file_id}/content
Content-Type: multipart/form-data

attributes={"name":"file.txt"}
file=

Chunked Upload (Large Files)

For files larger than 50 MB (up to 50 GB), use chunked upload sessions. The gateway automatically routes these endpoints to upload.box.com.

Create Upload Session

POST /box/api/2.0/files/upload_sessions
Content-Type: application/json

{
  "folder_id": "0",
  "file_size": 104857600,
  "file_name": "large_file.zip"
}

Response:

{
  "id": "F971964745A5CD0C001BBE4E58196BFD",
  "type": "upload_session",
  "session_expires_at": "2026-04-15T10:00:00-07:00",
  "part_size": 8388608,
  "total_parts": 13,
  "num_parts_processed": 0,
  "session_endpoints": {
    "list_parts": "https://upload.box.com/api/2.0/files/upload_sessions/F971964745A5CD0C001BBE4E58196BFD/parts",
    "commit": "https://upload.box.com/api/2.0/files/upload_sessions/F971964745A5CD0C001BBE4E58196BFD/commit",
    "upload_part": "https://upload.box.com/api/2.0/files/upload_sessions/F971964745A5CD0C001BBE4E58196BFD",
    "status": "https://upload.box.com/api/2.0/files/upload_sessions/F971964745A5CD0C001BBE4E58196BFD",
    "abort": "https://upload.box.com/api/2.0/files/upload_sessions/F971964745A5CD0C001BBE4E58196BFD"
  }
}

Create Upload Session for New Version

POST /box/api/2.0/files/{file_id}/upload_sessions
Content-Type: application/json

{
  "file_size": 104857600,
  "file_name": "large_file.zip"
}

Upload Part

PUT /box/api/2.0/files/upload_sessions/{session_id}
Content-Type: application/octet-stream
Content-Range: bytes 0-8388607/104857600
Digest: sha=

Response:

{
  "part": {
    "part_id": "6F2D3A7B8C4E5F6A",
    "offset": 0,
    "size": 8388608,
    "sha1": "134b65991ed521fcfe4724b7d814ab8ded5185dc"
  }
}

List Uploaded Parts

GET /box/api/2.0/files/upload_sessions/{session_id}/parts

Commit Upload Session

After all parts are uploaded:

POST /box/api/2.0/files/upload_sessions/{session_id}/commit
Content-Type: application/json
Digest: sha=

{
  "parts": [
    {"part_id": "6F2D3A7B8C4E5F6A", "offset": 0, "size": 8388608},
    {"part_id": "7G3E4B8D9F5A6C7B", "offset": 8388608, "size": 8388608}
  ]
}

Response: Returns the created file object.

Abort Upload Session

DELETE /box/api/2.0/files/upload_sessions/{session_id}

Returns 204 No Content on success

Update File Info

PUT /box/2.0/files/{file_id}
Content-Type: application/json

{
  "name": "renamed-file.txt",
  "description": "File description"
}

Copy File

POST /box/2.0/files/{file_id}/copy
Content-Type: application/json

{
  "name": "copied-file.txt",
  "parent": {"id": "0"}
}

Delete File

DELETE /box/2.0/files/{file_id}

Returns 204 No Content on success.

Get File Versions

GET /box/2.0/files/{file_id}/versions

Shared Links

Create a shared link by updating a file or folder:

PUT /box/2.0/folders/{folder_id}
Content-Type: application/json

{
  "shared_link": {
    "access": "open"
  }
}

Access levels:

• open - Anyone with the link
• company - Only users in the enterprise
• collaborators - Only collaborators

Response includes:

{
  "shared_link": {
    "url": "https://app.box.com/s/sisarrztrenabyygfwqggbwommf8uucv",
    "access": "open",
    "effective_access": "open",
    "is_password_enabled": false,
    "permissions": {
      "can_preview": true,
      "can_download": true,
      "can_edit": false
    }
  }
}

Collaborations

List Folder Collaborations

GET /box/2.0/folders/{folder_id}/collaborations

Create Collaboration

POST /box/2.0/collaborations
Content-Type: application/json

{
  "item": {"type": "folder", "id": "365037181307"},
  "accessible_by": {"type": "user", "login": "user@example.com"},
  "role": "editor"
}

Roles: editor, viewer, previewer, uploader, previewer_uploader, viewer_uploader, co-owner

Update Collaboration

PUT /box/2.0/collaborations/{collaboration_id}
Content-Type: application/json

{
  "role": "viewer"
}

Delete Collaboration

DELETE /box/2.0/collaborations/{collaboration_id}

Search

GET /box/2.0/search?query=document

Query parameters:

• query - Search query (required)
• type - Filter by type: file, folder, web_link
• file_extensions - Comma-separated extensions
• ancestor_folder_ids - Limit to specific folders
• limit - Max results (default 30)
• offset - Pagination offset

Response:

{
  "total_count": 5,
  "entries": [...],
  "limit": 30,
  "offset": 0,
  "type": "search_results_items"
}

Events

GET /box/2.0/events

Query parameters:

• stream_type - all, changes, sync, admin_logs
• stream_position - Position to start from
• limit - Max events to return

Response:

{
  "chunk_size": 4,
  "next_stream_position": "30401068076164269",
  "entries": [...]
}

Trash

List Trashed Items

GET /box/2.0/folders/trash/items

Get Trashed Item

GET /box/2.0/files/{file_id}/trash
GET /box/2.0/folders/{folder_id}/trash

Restore Trashed Item

POST /box/2.0/files/{file_id}
POST /box/2.0/folders/{folder_id}

Permanently Delete

DELETE /box/2.0/files/{file_id}/trash
DELETE /box/2.0/folders/{folder_id}/trash

Collections (Favorites)

List Collections

GET /box/2.0/collections

Response:

{
  "total_count": 1,
  "entries": [
    {
      "type": "collection",
      "name": "Favorites",
      "collection_type": "favorites",
      "id": "35223030868"
    }
  ]
}

Get Collection Items

GET /box/2.0/collections/{collection_id}/items

Recent Items

GET /box/2.0/recent_items

Webhooks

List Webhooks

GET /box/2.0/webhooks

Create Webhook

POST /box/2.0/webhooks
Content-Type: application/json

{
  "target": {"id": "365037181307", "type": "folder"},
  "address": "https://example.com/webhook",
  "triggers": ["FILE.UPLOADED", "FILE.DOWNLOADED"]
}

Note: Webhook creation may require enterprise permissions.

Delete Webhook

DELETE /box/2.0/webhooks/{webhook_id}

Pagination

Box uses offset-based pagination:

GET /box/2.0/folders/0/items?limit=100&offset=0
GET /box/2.0/folders/0/items?limit=100&offset=100

Some endpoints use marker-based pagination with marker parameter.

Response:

{
  "total_count": 250,
  "entries": [...],
  "offset": 0,
  "limit": 100
}

Code Examples

JavaScript

const response = await fetch(
  'https://gateway.maton.ai/box/2.0/folders/0/items',
  {
    headers: {
      'Authorization': `Bearer ${process.env.MATON_API_KEY}`
    }
  }
);
const data = await response.json();

Python

import os
import requests

response = requests.get(
    'https://gateway.maton.ai/box/2.0/folders/0/items',
    headers={'Authorization': f'Bearer {os.environ["MATON_API_KEY"]}'}
)
data = response.json()

Python (Create Folder)

import os
import requests

response = requests.post(
    'https://gateway.maton.ai/box/2.0/folders',
    headers={
        'Authorization': f'Bearer {os.environ["MATON_API_KEY"]}',
        'Content-Type': 'application/json'
    },
    json={
        'name': 'New Folder',
        'parent': {'id': '0'}
    }
)
folder = response.json()
print(f"Created folder: {folder['id']}")

Python (Upload File)

import os
import json
import requests

file_path = '/path/to/local/file.txt'
parent_folder_id = '0'  # Root folder

with open(file_path, 'rb') as f:
    response = requests.post(
        'https://gateway.maton.ai/box/api/2.0/files/content',
        headers={
            'Authorization': f'Bearer {os.environ["MATON_API_KEY"]}'
        },
        files={
            'attributes': (None, json.dumps({
                'name': os.path.basename(file_path),
                'parent': {'id': parent_folder_id}
            })),
            'file': (os.path.basename(file_path), f)
        }
    )
result = response.json()
file_entry = result['entries'][0]
print(f"Uploaded: {file_entry['name']} (ID: {file_entry['id']})")

Python (Chunked Upload for Large Files)

import os
import json
import hashlib
import base64
import requests

CHUNK_SIZE = 8 * 1024 * 1024  # 8 MB (Box's default part size)
file_path = '/path/to/large/file.zip'
parent_folder_id = '0'

headers = {'Authorization': f'Bearer {os.environ["MATON_API_KEY"]}'}
file_size = os.path.getsize(file_path)
file_name = os.path.basename(file_path)

# Step 1: Create upload session
response = requests.post(
    'https://gateway.maton.ai/box/api/2.0/files/upload_sessions',
    headers={**headers, 'Content-Type': 'application/json'},
    json={
        'folder_id': parent_folder_id,
        'file_size': file_size,
        'file_name': file_name
    }
)
session = response.json()
session_id = session['id']
part_size = session['part_size']

# Step 2: Upload parts
parts = []
file_sha1 = hashlib.sha1()

with open(file_path, 'rb') as f:
    offset = 0
    while offset < file_size:
        chunk = f.read(part_size)
        chunk_size = len(chunk)
        end_byte = offset + chunk_size - 1
        
        # Calculate SHA-1 for this part
        part_sha1 = hashlib.sha1(chunk).digest()
        file_sha1.update(chunk)
        
        response = requests.put(
            f'https://gateway.maton.ai/box/api/2.0/files/upload_sessions/{session_id}',
            headers={
                **headers,
                'Content-Type': 'application/octet-stream',
                'Content-Range': f'bytes {offset}-{end_byte}/{file_size}',
                'Digest': f'sha={base64.b64encode(part_sha1).decode()}'
            },
            data=chunk
        )
        part_info = response.json()['part']
        parts.append({
            'part_id': part_info['part_id'],
            'offset': part_info['offset'],
            'size': part_info['size']
        })
        offset += chunk_size
        print(f"Uploaded part {len(parts)}: {offset}/{file_size} bytes")

# Step 3: Commit upload session
response = requests.post(
    f'https://gateway.maton.ai/box/api/2.0/files/upload_sessions/{session_id}/commit',
    headers={
        **headers,
        'Content-Type': 'application/json',
        'Digest': f'sha={base64.b64encode(file_sha1.digest()).decode()}'
    },
    json={'parts': parts}
)
result = response.json()
print(f"Upload complete: {result['entries'][0]['name']}")

Notes

• Root folder ID is 0
• The gateway automatically routes upload endpoints to upload.box.com
• Direct upload supports files up to 50 MB; use chunked upload for files up to 50 GB
• Upload endpoints use multipart/form-data with attributes JSON and file fields
• Chunked uploads require SHA-1 digest headers for integrity verification
• Delete operations return 204 No Content on success
• Use fields parameter to request specific fields and reduce response size
• Shared links can have password protection and expiration dates
• Some operations (list users, create webhooks) require enterprise admin permissions
• ETags can be used for conditional updates with If-Match header
• IMPORTANT: When piping curl output to jq or other commands, environment variables like $MATON_API_KEY may not expand correctly in some shell environments

Error Handling

Box errors include detailed messages:

{
  "type": "error",
  "status": 409,
  "code": "item_name_in_use",
  "message": "Item with the same name already exists"
}

Troubleshooting: API Key Issues

1. Check that the MATON_API_KEY environment variable is set:

echo $MATON_API_KEY

1. Verify the API key is valid by listing connections:

python <<'EOF'
import urllib.request, os, json
req = urllib.request.Request('https://ctrl.maton.ai/connections')
req.add_header('Authorization', f'Bearer {os.environ["MATON_API_KEY"]}')
print(json.dumps(json.load(urllib.request.urlopen(req)), indent=2))
EOF

Troubleshooting: Invalid App Name

1. Ensure your URL path starts with box. For example:

• Correct: https://gateway.maton.ai/box/2.0/users/me
• Incorrect: https://gateway.maton.ai/2.0/users/me

Resources

• Box API Reference
• Box Developer Documentation
• Authentication Guide
• Box SDKs
• Maton Community
• Maton Support