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Managing your installed apps

Jennifer Rowe
  • Edited
Zendesk Documentation Team

Support, Chat, Sell

Apps are not available on Support Essential or Chat Lite. Only public apps are available on Team. Public and private apps are available on Professional and Enterprise.

You can make changes to your installed apps in the My Apps page in Support, Sell, and Chat. Any updates you make to apps appear for all agents.

Installed apps might include public apps from the Zendesk Marketplace and private apps that have been built by your company.

You must be an administrator to update your installed apps.

Topics covered in this article include:

Managing app location and order

App placement is determined by the app's developer. When you install apps in your Zendesk, they can appear in a number of different locations.

If you are using Sell, you can manage app location in Settings > Layouts, on the widget panel for leads, people, companies, and deals (see customizing your app layout in Sell).

If you are using Support or Chat, you can manage app location from:

  • Top Navigation, along the top of the Zendesk Support screen.
  • Main Navigation, down the left side of the Zendesk Support screen.
  • Ticket, in the body of an existing ticket, when the Apps panel is open.
  • New Ticket, in the body of a ticket being created, when the Apps panel is open.
  • User Profile, on the profile page of a selected user, when the Apps panel is open.
  • Organization Profile, on the profile page of a selected organization, when the Apps panel is open.

Within each of these locations, you can update the order in which the apps appear.

To see the apps in a location (Support and Chat)

  1. On the My apps page, click the Reorder apps button on the top right.

    The Reorder apps page appears.  Here is an example from Support.

  2. Click any of the items under Location to see which apps are there. The available locations depend on where you currently have apps in Zendesk Support. You can select only locations where you have apps.

From here, you can change the order of your apps.

To reorder your apps in a location (Support and Chat)

  1. On the My apps page, click the Reorder apps button on the top right.
  2. Click the location in which you want to change the app order.
  3. Drag and drop an app into a new position.

    The new order is automatically saved after you move the app.

  4. Repeat to reposition the other apps in the list.
Some apps appear in more than one location; reordering apps in one location does not update their position in another location. For example, you can set a different order for apps on ticket pages than new ticket pages. Perhaps you want the Linked Ticket app at the top of the apps list for new tickets, but it's not as important for existing tickets, so you can place it near the bottom of the apps list for existing tickets.

Changing app settings

You can change the settings for an app, including the title.

To change app settings
  1. On the My Apps page, find the app you want to change.
  2. Click the options menu on the app you where you want to change settings, then select Change settings.
  3. Make the changes you want, then click Update at the bottom of the page.

    Your changes are saved.

Restricting app access

You can restrict access to an app so that only agents in the groups or roles you list can access it.

To restrict access to an app

  1. On the My Apps page, find the app you want to restrict.
  2. Click the options menu on the app you want to restrict, then select Change settings.
  3. Enable Role restrictions, Group restrictions, or both, and then enter the names of the groups or roles that you want to be able to access the app.

    No other agents will be able to access the app.

  4. Make the changes you want, then click Update at the bottom of the page.

    Your changes are saved.

Disabling your apps

You can disable apps installed in Zendesk at any time. When you enable or disable an app, it's enabled or disabled for all agents in your Zendesk.

If you want to permanently remove an app, you can uninstall it instead.

To disable an app
  • On the My Apps page, click the options menu on the app you want to disable, then click the Enabled toggle to disable the app.

The disabled app appears in the Disabled Apps section of the My Apps page and can be re-enabled.

To enable a disabled app
  • On the My Apps page, click the options menu on the app you want to enable, then click the Disabled toggle to enable the app.

The enabled app appears in the Installed Apps section of the page.

Uninstalling an app

You can uninstall an app that you no longer need. Uninstalling an app removes it from Zendesk for all agents.

If you want to temporarily remove an app, you can disable it as described above, then enable it when you're ready to use it again. You can uninstall both enabled and disabled apps as outlined below.

To uninstall an app

  1. On the My Apps page, find the app you want to uninstall.
  2. Click the options menu on the app, then select Uninstall.
  3. In the Uninstall App window, click Uninstall App.

Contacting an app's developer

As apps are tweaked and improved, updates may become available for them. Apps are updated to their latest versions automatically. If you have a question about an app you can contact the app developer directly.

To view an app's developer's website
  • On the My Apps page, click the options menu on the app, then select Developer website.

Managing private apps (Professional and Enterprise)

Private apps are apps that have been built by your company and uploaded into Support. They are not listed on the public Zendesk Marketplace and cannot be installed and used by other Zendesk customers.

Private apps are available on Professional and Enterprise. For more information on private apps, see Build your first Support app and Build your first Chat app.

Once you build an app, you can upload it into Zendesk Support.

To upload and install a private app

  1. On the My Apps page, click the Upload private app button in the upper right of the page.
  2. Give your app a name.
  3. Select the zipped app you want to install.
  4. Click the Upload button.
  5. On the install screen, follow the instructions to install the app.

To update a private app

  1. On the My Apps page, find the app you want to update.
  2. Click the options menu on the app, then select Update.
  3. Upload your updated zip file.

To download a private app

  1. On the My Apps page, find the app you want to enable.
  2. Click the options menu on the app, then select Download.
  3. Download the ZIP file containing all the assets for your app
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29 Comments

  • Steffen Wilhelm

    Jessie, can I add to Ron's need / question: I'd lik my agents to have access and use the apps I (as admin) have downloaded. But in the role restrictions menu, I'm only given a choice to enable for "Admin" and/or "Light-Agents". What about the normal "Agent" role? Is that included within "Light-Agent"? Thanks!

    1
  • Joel Hellman

    Could we improve on this article by clarifying some things?

    1 The effects of 'Disable' vs. 'Uninstalling' an app, and 'Disable' and then 'Enable'.

    - Is disabling an app safe and reversible? I.e. should you ever be concerned about possible data loss or locked custom fields.
    - Is there any difference in uninstalling a disabled vs an enabled app?

    2 How to go about to update an app. Apps doesn't seem to auto-update, but new versions are regularly released, so you could update your apps to benefit from bug fixes and new features.

    For apps I have written myself, I know I can use the Update action (only available for private apps as far as I know). And this is how I update non-private apps:
    1. First uninstall it. (You may lose custom field data here, depending on the app. If so, I believe you would get a warning first, during the uninstall action, but I'm not 100%).
    2. Manually removing any triggers/custom fields left over by the app.
    3. Install the app again.

    0
  • Colin Piper

    And just to make it more fun, there are some apps that do automatically update.

    In general, apps developed and supported by Zendesk (such as the time tracking app) do update automatically. Those that are Zendesk Labs apps do not and for any that are written by third parties, it is down to that third party if they wish to build in some form of update I believe.

    0
  • Jennifer Rowe
    Zendesk Documentation Team

    That's great feedback, Joel and Colin. We'll work on an update to clarify those things. Thanks for your comments!

    0
  • Andrew J
    Community Moderator

    App ordering appear to not work properly on a new ticket.  App order is find on an existing ticket, but on a new ticket page, my Sweekhawk deadlines and reminders app is no longer at the top.

    0
  • Tom Cerceo

    Hi, Is it possible to change a private app to show limited information for specific people, like Administrators and Agents? For example, I want one Agent to be able to have access to an app but not have access to all the information contained in it, and another agent will be able to have access to everything. Thank you in advance for your help.  

    0
  • Alex Culligan

    Hi Tom,

    That can be written into the JavaScript. You could get the current User Object then display things based on the user id, custom role id, or user tag. For example:

    client.get('currentUser').then(function (data) {
      var userId = data.user.id;
      if (userId === 1234) {
        // Action for this specific user
      } else {
        // Action for all other users
      }
    });

    Hope this helps.

    0
  • Julia

    Hi there,

    what do you think about this article about app updates? Is it covering that topic? - https://www.cleveroad.com/blog/how-to-update-apps-on-iphone-and-android-based-device

    0
  • Maxutow Andrei

    Hi there!

    After installing and starting to use Zendesk Support  app on the iPhone 7, the phone began to hang very strongly (exactly when entering the application). After the next Zendesk Support app using the phone is frozen and now it does not help even hard reset

     

    0
  • Eldien Hasmanto

    Hi Jennifer,

    Is it possible to disable download button in cog menu for private apps ?                               Similar like the apps from marketplace that there is option to download the apps.

    Thanks

     

    0
  • Jessie Schutz
    Zendesk team member

    Hi Eldien!

    I'm not sure I understand what you're asking...where are you seeing this download option?

    0
  • Andrew J
    Community Moderator

    I see what you mean Eldien, @jessie there is an option there to redownload an app you have installed. However if you sell private apps or simply don't want other admins backwards engineering them this option could be a pain.

    0
  • Eldien Hasmanto

    Hi @Andrew , yes correct. Is it possible to do that ? Since I want restrict other admins to not do backwards engineering, they have to consult with the apps developer if need to modify

    0
  • Jessie Schutz
    Zendesk team member

    Thanks for the clarification, Andrew!

    Eldien, to the best of my knowledge there isn't a way to prevent this but I'm going to check on it and see what I can find out.

    0
  • Brad Ladwig

    Hi Eldien,

    As it turns out, since there is no way to refine role access for administrators, it is not possible to prevent any admin from having access to that download button.  Additionally, it is not possible to access the agent interface code to make any custom changes.  Sorry we can't be more helpful on this one.  

    0
  • Luz Marsen

    Hi,

    we are using specific apps which are important for some agents, but not for all.

    Is there a way to set the order (or appearance) of apps in the panel individually, so that every agent can arrange the order by him/herself?

    0
  • Andrew J
    Community Moderator

    Hello Luz, you cannot reorder app for individual agents. However you can limit app access by group. This isn't necessarily a solution, but you can add more than one of some app types... So maybe you could have one in a certain position for one group and another for the others... Just thought of that so haven't tested it.

    0
  • Jessica Chlarson

    A few of my colleagues and myself are experiencing our apps disappearing from the right side of our tickets. What would cause this?  Sometimes if we log out and then back in, they re-appear - but not usually. What can we do to be able to use Zendesk as it was designed? 

    1
  • Oliver Jackson

    Am I right in thinking that "Agents" cannot view the "Manage" sub-menu under "Apps"? 

    If so, does this mean that the only way they can install private apps is by making them temporarily admins to do this? And again, if so, will making them simply "agents" again lead to them losing their private app?

    Three questions there, apologies! :)

    O.

    0
  • Matilde Sanabria

    Hi Jessica,

    For this type of behavior we normally recommend to clear your browser's cache and then restart it and log back in to your Zendesk and it clears it up.

    In your case you mentioned that you are not the only one experiencing this issue, but some of your colleagues as well, being that the case I suggest to open a ticket with our support team and to please provide screenshots, browser the affected agents are using? and any other information you may find relevant.

    0
  • Madison Davis
    Zendesk Community Team

    Hi Oliver! Unfortunately, there's no way to grant a user with any role other than Admin the permissions to install or manage apps (even with custom roles). So to answer your questions, yes, a temporary bump would allow them access to install an app! And yes, when you downgrade them again, they'd lose that access; however, to be clear, private apps aren't private to individual users in your account! Private apps simply are apps that aren't publicly available in our apps marketplace. 

    0
  • Niels

    Hi,

    If I (admin) install and activate and app for all our "Agents", will they have to download & activate the apps themselves as well? Or will that happen as I download and activate it for them?

    0
  • Madison Davis
    Zendesk Community Team

    Hi Niels! If you install an app and make it available for your agents, it will appear for them automatically. Different apps appear in different places throughout the product, so you may find the images on each app's page in our Marketplace useful to know where it ought to show up for agents. If they don't see it, they may need to log out and back in, or refresh the page. 

    1
  • Brent P

    Where is the best place to find what apps we have installed that are paid apps and how much we are paying for those? 

     

    1
  • Brett Bowser
    Zendesk Community Team

    Hey Brent,

    You can use the /api/v2/apps/installations.json API call which will contain a paid attribute of true or false.

    Hope this helps!

    1
  • Daniel Chikanov

    Hello,

     

    How do I permenantly remove Tymeshift across all Zendesk instances? I have successfully deleted and uninstalled the app in the APp Manage space, however, the triggers and extensions keep coming back and firing. I have deleted them at least 5 times now. 

     

    0
  • Nicole S.
    Zendesk Community Team

    Hi Daniel - 

    Just to confirm, you've followed the steps above to uninstall it via the "My Apps" page? 

    If so and it keeps coming back, you may need to reach out to the folks at Tymeshift. Here's their listing on the app marketplace; there's a link to their email address and website there. 

    0
  • Craig Roberts

    Hello!

    I installed a private app to appear in the ticket_sidebar. Even though I have placed it at the top of the 'Reorder Apps' screen, it is appearing at the bottom of the ticket_sidebar when I view a ticket. Is there any way I can control the order of private vs marketplace apps on the sidebar?

    Thanks

    0
  • Brett Bowser
    Zendesk Community Team

    Hey Craig,

    Can you make sure when re-ordering your apps that you're selecting both New Ticket and Ticket under the Location category? That should hopefully resolve the issue but let me know if it doesn't.

    Cheers!

    0

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