Anaplan concepts applied to API

Anaplan APIs work with the objects you create, configure, and use in Anaplan. These objects include workspaces, models, modules, views, lists, files, imports, exports, processes, and actions.

A tenant represents a customer's overall Anaplan environment. It's the broadest context for access, authentication, rate limits, and available resources. API users typically operate within the tenant associated with their authenticated Anaplan account. Tenant-level context affects which workspaces, models, and users the API can return or interact with.

A workspace is a container for one or more Anaplan models. Many API calls require a workspaceId so the API knows where the target model or action belongs. Workspace information is often retrieved early in an integration workflow, especially when the integration needs to discover available models or validate access.

A model is the main planning application or data model in Anaplan. It contains the modules, lists, line items, views, actions, imports, exports, and processes that the API interacts with. Most Integration API workflows target a specific model, so the modelId is one of the most important identifiers used in API calls.

A module is a structured area within a model that holds related planning data, calculations, and views. API calls can retrieve module IDs and names, list views within a module, and access data exposed through views. Modules are especially relevant when an integration needs to understand where data lives inside a model.

A view is a particular presentation of module data. Views are important because integrations often read from or export data through saved views. A view can define the shape of the data returned by the API, including the rows, columns, pages, and dimensional context.

A line item is a specific measure, calculation, or data field within a module. Examples might include revenue, cost, quantity, forecast value, or headcount. Line items are important to the API because they describe the data points that an integration may need to read, write, or inspect. Metadata about line items can help external systems understand formulas, formats, dimensions, and access settings.

A list is a structural dimension in Anaplan, such as products, regions, employees, cost centers, or accounts. Lists define many of the dimensions used by modules and line items. Through the API, integrations can retrieve list metadata, read list items, add list items, update list items, or delete list items where permissions allow.

A dimension defines how data is organized, such as by time, version, product, region, or another list. Dimensions matter because they identify the coordinates of data in a model. When reading or writing cell data, an integration often needs to know which dimensions apply so it can target the correct intersection.

An import is a saved Anaplan action that brings data into a model. The API can start imports, monitor import tasks, and retrieve failure information. Imports are central to bulk integration workflows, where an external system uploads a file and then triggers Anaplan to load the data.

An export is a saved Anaplan action that extracts data from a model. The API can start exports, monitor their progress, and download exported files. Exports are commonly used to send Anaplan outputs to reporting tools, data warehouses, or downstream business systems.

Files are used in bulk integration workflows. An external system may upload a file to Anaplan before running an import, or download a file generated by an export. File IDs and file chunks matter when integrations handle larger datasets or need to resume transfer steps reliably.

An action is a runnable operation saved in a model, such as an import, export, or delete action. The API can retrieve action metadata and start certain action types. Actions are important because the API usually doesn't recreate business logic directly; instead, it triggers logic already configured in the model.

A process is a sequence of actions that run together in a defined order. Processes are useful when an integration needs to execute a multi-step workflow, such as importing data, running calculations, exporting results, and cleaning up temporary data. The API can start processes and monitor their task status.

A task represents a running or completed execution of an action, import, export, delete, or process. When the API starts one of these operations, it returns or exposes a task ID that can be used to check progress, completion, errors, or failure details. Tasks are essential for building reliable automations because many operations don't complete instantly.

A user is the authenticated person or service account making the API request, or another user available within the Anaplan environment. User identity matters because API access is permission-based. The user's workspace access, model role, and administrator status determine which objects they can see and which actions they can run.

Permissions determine what the API user can do. Some operations require Workspace Administrator access, while others depend on the user's model role or access to a specific action, module, list, or view. Permission checks are a key part of integration design because an API call may fail even when the endpoint and IDs are correct.

A typical API workflow moves from a broad call to request object ids, to a specific operation. For example, an integration may authenticate, retrieve the available workspaces, select a workspace, retrieve the models in that workspace, select a model, find an import or export action, start that action, and then monitor the resulting task. Other workflows may inspect model metadata first, such as modules, views, line items, lists, and dimensions, so the external system can understand the structure of the Anaplan model before reading or writing data.