---
title: Add a Zendesk source
slug: '1880'
canonical_url: https://docs.coveo.com/en/1880/
collection: index-content
source_format: adoc
---
# Add a Zendesk source
When you have the [required privileges](#required-privileges), you can add the content of a Zendesk instance to a [Coveo organization](https://docs.coveo.com/en/185/).

> **Leading practice**
>
> The number of [items](https://docs.coveo.com/en/210/) that a source processes per hour (crawling speed) depends on various factors, such as network bandwidth and source configuration.
> See [About crawling speed](https://docs.coveo.com/en/2078/) for information on what can impact crawling speed, as well as possible solutions.

## Source key characteristics

The following table presents the main characteristics of a Zendesk source.

[%header,cols="~,~,~,~"]
|===
2+|Features
^|Supported
|Additional information

2+|Zendesk version
^|Latest cloud version
|

2+|Indexable content
^|Organizations, users, groups, tickets, articles, article comments, and ticket and article attachments
|

.3+|[Content update operations](https://docs.coveo.com/en/2039/)
|[refresh](https://docs.coveo.com/en/2710/)
^|[check]
|[Takes place every hour by default.](https://docs.coveo.com/en/1933/)

|[rescan](https://docs.coveo.com/en/2711/)
^|[check]
|

|[rebuild](https://docs.coveo.com/en/2712/)
^|[check]
|

.3+|[Content security](https://docs.coveo.com/en/1779/) options
|[Same users and groups as in your content system](https://docs.coveo.com/en/1779#same-users-and-groups-as-in-your-content-system)
^|[check]
|

|[Specific users and groups](https://docs.coveo.com/en/1779#specific-users-and-groups)
^|[check]
|

|[Everyone](https://docs.coveo.com/en/1779#everyone)
^|[check]
|

.3+|[Metadata indexing for search](#index-metadata)

|Automatic mapping of [metadata](https://docs.coveo.com/en/218/) to [fields](https://docs.coveo.com/en/200/) that have the same name
2+a|This setting is disabled by default and [not recommended for this source type](https://docs.coveo.com/en/1640#about-the-performfieldmappingusingallorigins-setting).

|Automatically indexed [metadata](https://docs.coveo.com/en/218/)
2+a|Examples of [auto-populated default fields](https://docs.coveo.com/en/1833#field-origin) (no user-defined metadata required):  
 

* `clickableuri`

* `title`

* `zendeskcreationdate`

* `zendesksubmittername`

* `zendeskticketstatus`  
 

After a content update, [inspect your item field values](https://docs.coveo.com/en/2053#inspect-search-results) in the **Content Browser**.

|Extracted but not indexed metadata
2+a|The Zendesk source extracts some of the metadata that the Zendesk API makes available.  
 

After a rebuild, review the [**View and map metadata**](https://docs.coveo.com/en/m9ti0339#view-and-map-metadata-subpage) subpage for the list of indexed metadata, and [index additional metadata](https://docs.coveo.com/en/m9ti0339#index-metadata).
|===

> **Notes**
>
> * Users may see [limited results](https://docs.coveo.com/en/3428#zendesk-guide-limitation) when performing searches against secured content while on Zendesk Guide sites.
> 
> * If you set the content option to **Everyone**, apply [additional filtering](https://docs.coveo.com/en/m3nd7323/) to ensure that your content is accessible to the intended audience.

## Add a Zendesk source

> **Leading practice**
>
> It's best to create or edit your source in your sandbox organization first.
> Once you've confirmed that it indexes the desired content, you can copy your source configuration to your production organization, either [with a snapshot](https://docs.coveo.com/en/3239/) or manually.
> 
> See [About non-production organizations](https://docs.coveo.com/en/2959/) for more information and best practices regarding sandbox organizations.

. Create a Zendesk administrator [crawling account](https://docs.coveo.com/en/2122/) dedicated to your Coveo source.
This account must have access to the content you want to index.

. Log out of your Zendesk session.
In a couple steps, you'll need to log in to Zendesk with the crawling account you just created.
If you remain logged in with your personal account, Zendesk will automatically log you in with this account instead.

. On the [**Sources**](https://platform.cloud.coveo.com/admin/#/orgid/content/sources/) ([platform-ca](https://platform-ca.cloud.coveo.com/admin/#/orgid/content/sources/) | [platform-eu](https://platform-eu.cloud.coveo.com/admin/#/orgid/content/sources/) | [platform-au](https://platform-au.cloud.coveo.com/admin/#/orgid/content/sources/)) page of the Coveo Administration Console, click **Add source**, and then select **Zendesk**.

. Enter a **Name** for your source.

> **Leading practice**
>
> A source name can't be modified once it's saved, therefore be sure to use a short and descriptive name, using letters, numbers, hyphens (`-`), and underscores (`_`). Avoid spaces and other special characters.

. Click **Authorize account**.

. In the window that opens, enter your Zendesk subdomain name, and then click **Sign in**.
For example, if your Zendesk URL is `+https://subdomain.zendesk.com+`, enter `subdomain`.

. Log in with the crawling account you created earlier.

. Click **Allow** to grant Coveo access to your Zendesk account.
You'll then be redirected back to the Coveo Administration Console.

. Optionally, under **Project**, select the [project](https://docs.coveo.com/en/n7ef0517/) you want to associate your source with.

. Click **Add source**.

. Specify your source settings.
Refer to the following sections for detailed information on the source settings:

** ["Configuration" tab](#configuration-tab)

** ["Content security" tab](#content-security-tab)

** ["Access" tab](#access-tab)

### "Configuration" tab

The **Configuration** tab lets you manage the content to index, authentication methods, and advanced settings of your source.
These configuration groups are presented in subtabs.

#### "Content to index" subtab

The **Content to index** subtab lets you define the content that you want to make available as search results.

##### Locale

By default, Coveo indexes items in American English (`en-us`).
To index items in a different language, enter the corresponding [locale code](https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/203761906-Language-codes-for-Zendesk-supported-languages).
For example, enter `de` to index content in German.

##### Tickets

To index Agent Workspace tickets, check the corresponding box.

When you do so, you can then choose to index:

* Archived and deleted tickets.

* Tickets from specific organizations only.

* Tickets with specific tags only.

##### Articles

To index articles from the Help Center, check the corresponding box.
When you do so, you can choose to index article translations as well.

##### Additional content

Select additional content to index: message attachments, user data, and/or message tags.

#### "Authentication" subtab

The **Authentication** subtab shows your Zendesk instance address and the user account that the source uses to authenticate to Zendesk.

To change the account with which the source authenticates, or to change the Zendesk instance to index:

. Click **Re-authorize**.

. In the window that opens, enter your Zendesk subdomain name, and then click **Sign in**.
For example, if your Zendesk URL is `+https://subdomain.zendesk.com+`, enter `subdomain`.

. Log in with the crawling account you created earlier.

. Click **Allow** to grant Coveo access to your Zendesk account.
You'll then be redirected back to the Coveo Administration Console.

#### "Identification" subtab

The **Identification** subtab contains general information about the source.

## Name

The source name.
It can't be modified once it's saved.

Use the **Project** selector to associate your source with one or more Coveo [projects](https://docs.coveo.com/en/n7ef0517/).

### "Items" tab

On the **Items** tab, you can specify how the source handles items based on their file type or content type.

#### File types

File types let you define how the source handles [items](https://docs.coveo.com/en/210/) based on their file extension or content type.
For each file type, you can specify whether to index the item content and [metadata](https://docs.coveo.com/en/218/), only the item metadata, or neither.

You should fine-tune the file type configurations with the objective of indexing only the content that's relevant to your users.

**Example**

Your repository contains `.pdf` files, but you don't want them to appear in search results.
You click **Extensions** and then, for the `.pdf` extension, you change the **Default action** and **Action on error** values to `Ignore item`.

For more details about this feature, see [File type handling](https://docs.coveo.com/en/l3qg9275/).

#### Content and images

If you want Coveo to extract text from image files or PDF files containing images, enable the appropriate option.
The extracted text is processed as item data, meaning that it's fully searchable and will appear in the item [Quick view](https://docs.coveo.com/en/2760#search-result-quick-view).

> **Note**
>
> When OCR is enabled, ensure the source's relevant [file type configurations](https://docs.coveo.com/en/l3qg9275/) index the item content.
> Indexing the item's metadata only or ignoring the item will prevent OCR from being applied.

See [Enable optical character recognition](https://docs.coveo.com/en/2937/) for details on this feature.

### "Content security" tab

Select who will be able to access the source items through a Coveo-powered [search interface](https://docs.coveo.com/en/2741/).
For details on the content security options, see [Content security](https://docs.coveo.com/en/1779/).

**If you select "Same users and groups as in your content system"**
<details><summary>Details</summary>

When you want to [replicate your Zendesk instance's permission system in your Coveo-powered search interface](https://docs.coveo.com/en/1779/), select the permission scope to index with your Zendesk content.
In other words, determine who should have access to the indexed content.

If you select **Specific organizations only**, enter the ID of the desired organizations.

</details>

### "Access" tab







. On the **Access** tab, specify whether each group (and API key, if applicable) in your [Coveo organization](https://docs.coveo.com/en/185/) can view or edit the current source.

For example, when creating a new source, you could decide that members of Group A can edit its configuration, while Group B can only view it.

For more information, see [Custom access level](https://docs.coveo.com/en/3151#custom-access-level).
On the **Access** tab, specify whether each group (and API key, if applicable) in your [Coveo organization](https://docs.coveo.com/en/185/) can view or edit the current source.

For example, when creating a new source, you could decide that members of Group A can edit its configuration, while Group B can only view it.

For more information, see [Custom access level](https://docs.coveo.com/en/3151#custom-access-level).

### Build the source

. Finish adding or editing your source:

** When you're done editing the source and want to make your changes effective, click **Add and build source**/**Save and rebuild source**.

** When you want to save your source configuration changes without starting a build/rebuild, such as when you know you want to make other changes soon, click **Add source**/**Save**.
On the [**Sources**](https://platform.cloud.coveo.com/admin/#/orgid/content/sources/) ([platform-ca](https://platform-ca.cloud.coveo.com/admin/#/orgid/content/sources/) | [platform-eu](https://platform-eu.cloud.coveo.com/admin/#/orgid/content/sources/) | [platform-au](https://platform-au.cloud.coveo.com/admin/#/orgid/content/sources/)) page, click **Launch build** or **Start required rebuild** when you're ready to make your changes effective and index your content.

> **Leading practice**
>
> By default, a Jira Software source indexes the entire Jira Software instance content.
> To index only certain projects, click **Save**, and then specify the desired address patterns in your [source JSON configuration](https://docs.coveo.com/en/1685/) before launching the initial build.
> See [Add source filters](https://docs.coveo.com/en/2006#add-source-filters) for further information.

. On the [**Sources**](https://platform.cloud.coveo.com/admin/#/orgid/content/sources/) ([platform-ca](https://platform-ca.cloud.coveo.com/admin/#/orgid/content/sources/) | [platform-eu](https://platform-eu.cloud.coveo.com/admin/#/orgid/content/sources/) | [platform-au](https://platform-au.cloud.coveo.com/admin/#/orgid/content/sources/)) page, follow the progress of your source addition or modification.

. Once the source is built or rebuilt, [review its content in the Content Browser](https://docs.coveo.com/en/2053/).

. Optionally, consider [editing or adding mappings](https://docs.coveo.com/en/1640/).


> **Note**
>
> If you selected **Specific URLs** or **User profiles** in the [**Content**](https://docs.coveo.com/en/1739#content) section, some additional items will appear in the Content Browser.
> To retrieve user profiles, Coveo must crawl your SharePoint Online instance, including your host site collection and the documents it contains.
> Items encountered during this process are also retrieved and therefore appear in the Content Browser.

### Index metadata

To use [metadata](https://docs.coveo.com/en/218/) values in [search interface](https://docs.coveo.com/en/2741/) [facets](https://docs.coveo.com/en/198/) or result templates, the metadata must be [mapped](https://docs.coveo.com/en/217/) to [fields](https://docs.coveo.com/en/200/).
Coveo automatically [maps](https://docs.coveo.com/en/217/) only a subset of the metadata it extracts.
You must map any additional metadata to fields manually.

> **Note**
>
> Not clear on the purpose of indexing metadata?
> Watch [this video](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BmmmVJ3AWi0).

. On the [**Sources**](https://platform.cloud.coveo.com/admin/#/orgid/content/sources/) ([platform-ca](https://platform-ca.cloud.coveo.com/admin/#/orgid/content/sources/) | [platform-eu](https://platform-eu.cloud.coveo.com/admin/#/orgid/content/sources/) | [platform-au](https://platform-au.cloud.coveo.com/admin/#/orgid/content/sources/)) page, click your source, and then click **More** > **View and map metadata** in the Action bar.

. Review the default [metadata](https://docs.coveo.com/en/218/) that your source is extracting from your content.

. Map any currently _not indexed_ metadata that you want to use in facets or result templates to fields.

.. Click the metadata and then, at the top right, click **Add to Index**.

.. In the **Apply a mapping on all item types of a source** panel, select the field you want to map the metadata to, or [add a new field](https://docs.coveo.com/en/1833#add-a-field) if none of the existing fields are appropriate.

> **Note**
>
> For advanced mapping configurations, like applying a mapping to a specific item type, see [Manage mappings](https://docs.coveo.com/en/1640#manage-mappings).

.. Click **Apply mapping**.

. Return to the [**Sources**](https://platform.cloud.coveo.com/admin/#/orgid/content/sources/) ([platform-ca](https://platform-ca.cloud.coveo.com/admin/#/orgid/content/sources/) | [platform-eu](https://platform-eu.cloud.coveo.com/admin/#/orgid/content/sources/) | [platform-au](https://platform-au.cloud.coveo.com/admin/#/orgid/content/sources/)) page.

. To reindex your source with your new mappings, click your source, and then click **More** > **Rebuild** in the Action bar.

. Once the source is rebuilt, review your item field values.
They should now include the values of the metadata you selected to index.

.. On the [**Sources**](https://platform.cloud.coveo.com/admin/#/orgid/content/sources/) ([platform-ca](https://platform-ca.cloud.coveo.com/admin/#/orgid/content/sources/) | [platform-eu](https://platform-eu.cloud.coveo.com/admin/#/orgid/content/sources/) | [platform-au](https://platform-au.cloud.coveo.com/admin/#/orgid/content/sources/)) page, click your source, and then click **More** > **Open in Content Browser** in the Action bar.

.. Select the card of the item for which you want to inspect properties, and then click **Properties** in the Action bar.

.. In the panel that appears, select the **Fields** tab.

## Required privileges

You can assign privileges to allow access to specific tools in the [Coveo Administration Console](https://docs.coveo.com/en/183/).
The following table indicates the privileges required to view or edit elements of the [**Sources**](https://platform.cloud.coveo.com/admin/#/orgid/content/sources/) ([platform-ca](https://platform-ca.cloud.coveo.com/admin/#/orgid/content/sources/) | [platform-eu](https://platform-eu.cloud.coveo.com/admin/#/orgid/content/sources/) | [platform-au](https://platform-au.cloud.coveo.com/admin/#/orgid/content/sources/)) page and associated panels.
See [Manage privileges](https://docs.coveo.com/en/3151/) and [Privilege reference](https://docs.coveo.com/en/1707/) for more information.

> **Note**
>
> The **Edit all** privilege isn't required to create sources.
> When granting privileges for the [Sources](https://docs.coveo.com/en/1707#sources-domain) domain, you can grant a group or API key the **View all** or [**Custom**](https://docs.coveo.com/en/3151#custom-access-level) access level, instead of **Edit all**, and then select the **Can Create** checkbox to allow users to create sources.
> See [Can Create ability dependence](https://docs.coveo.com/en/3151#can-create-ability-dependence) for more information.

## What's next?

* [Schedule source updates](https://docs.coveo.com/en/1933/).
[Schedule source updates](https://docs.coveo.com/en/1933/).