Connectors Overview
Send a Slack notification when an order ships. Read customer records from Salesforce. Write results to a Google Sheet. Query a database and return the data in an API response.
Connectors make these integrations possible without writing low-level HTTP or protocol code. WSO2 Integrator includes pre-built connectors for the services your business already uses.
How connectors fit into your integration
Most integrations follow a similar pattern:
The connector action is where WSO2 Integrator communicates with the external service.
Key concepts
Connector
A connector is a pre-built integration component that exposes an external service's API as ready-to-use operations. Instead of constructing HTTP requests and parsing responses by hand, you select an action from the connector's list and configure its inputs.
Connection
A connection is a named, reusable configuration that holds the credentials and endpoint settings for an external service, such as API keys, OAuth tokens, and hostnames. You define it once; every action in your integration uses it by name.
For details on creating and managing connections, see Connections.
Action
An action is a specific operation you invoke through a connection, such as "send SMS", "create contact", or "execute query". Each connector exposes a list of available actions. Actions are outbound: your integration calls the external service.
Trigger
Some connectors also support triggers, which are inbound events the external service pushes into your integration. A database trigger fires when a row changes. A messaging trigger fires when a new message arrives.
| Actions | Triggers | |
|---|---|---|
| Direction | Your integration calls the service | The service calls your integration |
| Example | Send an SMS, create a Salesforce record | New database row, incoming webhook |
Most connectors are action-only. Trigger support is available for select connectors, primarily databases (MySQL, PostgreSQL, MSSQL), messaging systems (Kafka, RabbitMQ), and file storage. See each connector's documentation for what's available.
Libraries without client connectors
Not everything in the connector catalog is a client connector. Some packages are libraries that provide integration capabilities without a client, such as PDF generation, string manipulation, I/O, and cloud function invocation (AWS Lambda and Azure Functions). Use them inside your integration logic the same way you would any other Ballerina library.
What's next
- Connector catalog: Browse all available connectors
- Connections: Create and manage connections in your integration
- Build your own connector: Create a custom connector for a service not in the catalog