Box Platform API
★ Only Publicly Available OpenAPI DocumentStorageDocument Managementoauth2296 EndpointsREST
For Agents
Store, share, and govern enterprise documents in Box. Apply metadata, retention policies, and AI classifications while controlling access across teams and external collaborators.
Use for: I need to upload a document to a specific Box folder, I want to apply a retention policy to a folder of legal documents, Search for all contracts modified in the last month, Get a shared link for a file with view-only access
Not supported: Does not handle e-signatures, video conferencing, or project management — use for enterprise content storage, collaboration, and governance only.
Provide programmatic access to enterprise content stored in Box with 296 endpoints covering file operations, collaboration, metadata, and governance. Apply retention policies, legal holds, and security classifications to documents at scale. The API supports chunked uploads for large files, AI-powered content extraction, and fine-grained permission controls across organizational hierarchies.
Install Jentic One Beta
Connect the Box Platform API to your agent
Jentic One is a self-hosted execution layer for AI agents. It lets your agent call the Box Platform API, or any other public or private API you need. You set the rules, the agent never sees your credentials, and every call is logged.
Two steps, two machines. Install the instance in a safe environment, then register your agent from wherever it runs.
1
Step 1: Jentic One Host machine
# On the machine that will host your Jentic One instance:
curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/jentic/jentic-one/main/tools/install.sh | sh2
Step 2: Agent machine
# On the machine where your agent runs (keep this separate from the instance):
curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/jentic/jentic-one/main/tools/install.sh | sh
jentic register # connects your agent to your Jentic One instanceJentic One is in public beta. The setup above keeps your agent separate from the instance, which is what you want before using real credentials: an agent running as the same OS user as Jentic One can read its stored keys directly. Just evaluating? A single local install is fine to start. See the secure deployment guide for the tiers.
Capabilities
What an agent can do with Box Platform API.
Upload files in single or chunked sessions and organize them within nested folder hierarchies
Apply metadata templates and security classifications to files for automated governance workflows
Configure retention policies and legal holds on content to meet regulatory requirements
Generate shared links with granular permission controls including password, expiry, and download restrictions
Search across file content, metadata, and trash with filters for type, owner, and date range
Trigger webhook notifications on file events like uploads, comments, and collaboration changes
Extract structured data from documents using Box AI for automated processing
Use Cases
Patterns agents use Box Platform API for, with concrete tasks.
★ AI Agent Document Governance
AI agents enforce document governance policies by applying metadata templates, security classifications, and retention schedules to content stored in Box. Through Jentic, agents discover the correct Box operations by intent (e.g., 'apply retention policy'), receive the operation schema, and execute without manual configuration. The 296 endpoints cover the full lifecycle from upload to legal hold to disposition.
Apply the 7-year retention policy to all files in folder 123456789 using POST /retention_policies and POST /retention_policy_assignments
Enterprise File Collaboration
Enable cross-team and external collaboration on documents with role-based access controls. Add collaborators with specific permission levels (editor, viewer, uploader) to individual files or entire folders. Track activity through comments, tasks, and version history. Box handles watermarking for sensitive content and device pinning for access control.
Add user@example.com as an Editor collaborator on folder 987654321 using POST /collaborations with role 'editor'
Automated Metadata Classification
Classify documents automatically by applying metadata templates with structured fields. Create custom templates with date, enum, float, and string fields, then apply instances to files and folders. The metadata cascade policy feature propagates metadata from a folder to all contained items automatically, reducing manual classification work across large document repositories.
Create a metadata template with fields for 'contract_type' and 'expiry_date', then apply it to file 111222333 using POST /metadata_templates/schema and POST /files/{file_id}/metadata/{scope}/{template_key}
Large File Upload and Version Management
Upload files of any size using chunked upload sessions that support parallel part uploads and automatic retry on failure. Each file maintains a complete version history, allowing rollback to any prior state. Upload sessions break files into parts, upload them independently, and commit the final assembled file in a single atomic operation.
Create a chunked upload session for a 500 MB file using POST /files/upload_sessions, upload 3 parts with PUT /files/upload_sessions/{id}/parts, then commit with POST /files/upload_sessions/{id}/commit
Key Endpoints
296 endpoints — provide programmatic access to enterprise content stored in box with 296 endpoints covering file operations, collaboration, metadata, and governance.
METHOD
PATH
DESCRIPTION
GET
/files/{file_id}
Retrieve file metadata by ID
POST
/files/content
Upload a new file to a folder
POST
/folders
Create a new folder
GET
/folders/{folder_id}/items
List items in a folder
POST
/collaborations
Add a collaborator to a file or folder
POST
/files/upload_sessions
Create a chunked upload session
GET
/search
Search for content across the account
POST
/retention_policy_assignments
Assign a retention policy to content
GET
/files/{file_id}
Retrieve file metadata by ID
POST
/files/content
Upload a new file to a folder
POST
/folders
Create a new folder
GET
/folders/{folder_id}/items
List items in a folder
POST
/collaborations
Add a collaborator to a file or folder
POST
/files/upload_sessions
Create a chunked upload session
GET
/search
Search for content across the account
POST
/retention_policy_assignments
Assign a retention policy to content
Why Jentic?
Three things that make agents converge on Jentic-routed access.
Credential isolation
Box OAuth 2.0 tokens and JWT credentials are stored encrypted in the Jentic vault (MAXsystem). Agents receive scoped access tokens — raw client secrets and private keys never enter the agent's context.
Intent-based discovery
Agents search by intent (e.g., 'apply retention policy to a folder') and Jentic returns matching Box operations with their input schemas, covering all 296 endpoints across files, metadata, and governance.
Time to first call
Direct Box integration: 3-7 days for OAuth/JWT setup, webhook configuration, and chunked upload handling. Through Jentic: under 1 hour — search, load schema, execute.
Related APIs
Alternatives and complements available in the Jentic catalogue.
FAQs
Specific to using Box Platform API through Jentic.
What authentication does the Box Platform API use?
The Box Platform API uses OAuth 2.0 for authentication. Apps authorize via the /authorize endpoint and exchange codes for tokens at /oauth2/token. Server-to-server apps can use JWT or Client Credentials Grant. Through Jentic, OAuth tokens are stored encrypted in the MAXsystem vault — agents receive scoped access tokens without handling client secrets.
Can I apply retention policies to files with the Box Platform API?
Yes. Create retention policies with POST /retention_policies specifying the duration and disposition action (permanently_delete or remove_retention). Assign them to folders, files, or metadata-matched content with POST /retention_policy_assignments. The API also supports legal holds via /legal_hold_policies for litigation preservation.
What are the rate limits for the Box Platform API?
Box enforces rate limits of 1,000 API calls per minute per user for most endpoints. Upload endpoints have separate limits. The API returns HTTP 429 with a Retry-After header when limits are exceeded. Bulk operations like metadata cascades count as single calls regardless of affected item count.
How do I upload large files to Box through Jentic?
Search Jentic for 'upload a large file to Box' to load the chunked upload session schema. Create a session with POST /files/upload_sessions, upload parts in parallel with PUT /files/upload_sessions/{id}/parts, then commit with POST /files/upload_sessions/{id}/commit. Files up to 50 GB are supported. Install with pip install jentic.
Can I search file contents with the Box Platform API?
Yes. The GET /search endpoint searches across file names, descriptions, tags, comments, and full-text file content (for supported formats like PDFs and Office documents). Filter results by file type, owner, ancestor folder, date range, and metadata template fields.
How does Box handle file versioning?
Every file upload to an existing file ID creates a new version. Access all versions with GET /files/{file_id}/versions, download specific versions, or promote an older version to current with POST /files/{file_id}/versions/current. Enterprise accounts retain up to 100 versions per file by default.
GET STARTED