PIPO (Punch-In/Punch-Out)

The PIPO (Punch-In/Punch-Out) endpoints enable external procurement and ordering systems to embed PrintNow workflows. PIPO uses a dual-authentication model: API-level Basic Auth (same as all other endpoints) plus a user-level session token for identifying the end user within the external system.

PIPO endpoints have a lower minimum license requirement of BusinessPlus (vs. Enterprise for other endpoints).

Dual Authentication

PIPO requests require two layers of authentication:

1. Basic Auth -- Standard API token/key pair in the Authorization header (same as all other Enterprise API endpoints).
2. Session Token -- A user-specific session token in the X-PN-TOKEN header, obtained by calling the Login endpoint. This token identifies which customer is performing the action.

curl -X GET https://api.printnow.com/api/v2/pipo/user/info \
  -u "YOUR_TOKEN:YOUR_KEY" \
  -H "X-PN-TOKEN: SESSION_TOKEN_HERE"

Session tokens expire after a period of inactivity. Each API call that includes a valid token automatically refreshes its expiration. If a token expires or is invalid, the API returns 403 Forbidden.

Endpoints

Login

Authenticate a storefront user and receive a session token. The token is used in the X-PN-TOKEN header for all subsequent PIPO calls.

POST /api/v2/pipo/user/login

Request Body

Example Request

curl -X POST https://api.printnow.com/api/v2/pipo/user/login \
  -u "YOUR_TOKEN:YOUR_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "username": "janesmith",
    "password": "userpass123",
    "storefront_id": 1
  }'

Returns a session token string on success. Returns 401 Unauthorized if the username or password is incorrect.

Logout

Invalidate the current session token.

GET /api/v2/pipo/user/logout

Check Login Status

Determine if the current session token is still valid. Also refreshes the token's expiration.

GET /api/v2/pipo/user/loggedin

Returns true or false.

Get User Info

Retrieve the current user's profile information.

GET /api/v2/pipo/user/info

User Response Fields

Update User Info

Update the current user's profile. Only non-temporary users can be updated. Password changes require providing the current password for verification.

POST /api/v2/pipo/user/info

Request Body

Create User

Create a new permanent user account on a storefront. Does not require a session token.

POST /api/v2/pipo/user/create

Request Body

Returns 200 OK on success. Returns 409 Conflict if the username or email is already in use (with a descriptive message like "duplicate user name" or "duplicate email").

Create Temporary User

Create a temporary (anonymous) user account. Returns the user object with system-generated credentials.

POST /api/v2/pipo/user/createtemp

Request Body

Returns the created User object with is_temp: true.

Convert Temporary User

Convert the current temporary user session into a permanent account. Requires the session token of a temporary user.

POST /api/v2/pipo/user/convert

Request Body

Returns 200 OK on success. Returns 409 Conflict if the username or email is already in use.

Transfer Temporary User

Transfer the current temporary user's data (image albums, saved projects) to an existing permanent account. The session token is updated to point to the destination user.

POST /api/v2/pipo/user/transfer

Request Body

Returns 200 OK on success. Returns 403 Forbidden with specific error messages:

Check If Temporary

Determine if the current session user is a temporary account.

GET /api/v2/pipo/user/istemp

Returns true or false.

List Projects

Retrieve all saved projects for the current session user.

GET /api/v2/pipo/project/all

Project Fields

Get Project

Retrieve a specific project by ID. The project must belong to the current session user.

GET /api/v2/pipo/project/{id}

Returns the Project object. Returns 404 Not Found if the project does not exist or belongs to a different user.

Delete Project

Delete a saved project. The project must belong to the current session user.

DELETE /api/v2/pipo/project/{id}

Returns 200 OK on success.

Create Order

Create an order from one or more product/project IDs. The order is assigned to the current session user and given the storefront's first (lowest-sequence) order status.

POST /api/v2/pipo/order/create

Request Body

Example Request

curl -X POST https://api.printnow.com/api/v2/pipo/order/create \
  -u "YOUR_TOKEN:YOUR_KEY" \
  -H "X-PN-TOKEN: SESSION_TOKEN_HERE" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "product_id": [42, 43],
    "external_id": "EXT-ORDER-001"
  }'

Returns the created order ID (integer) on success. Returns 400 Bad Request if no valid product IDs are provided.

Process Order

Trigger file processing (merge) for an order. This sends a request to the admin system to begin generating print-ready files for the order's items.

GET /api/v2/pipo/order/{id}/process

The order must belong to the current session user. Returns 200 OK on success.

PIPO Workflow

A typical PIPO integration follows this flow:

1. Create temp user -- POST /api/v2/pipo/user/createtemp to create an anonymous session.
2. Login -- POST /api/v2/pipo/user/login (or use a known account's credentials) to get a session token.
3. Design -- Direct the user to the PrintNow editor to create or modify designs. Saved projects are linked to the session user.
4. List projects -- GET /api/v2/pipo/project/all to see what the user has designed.
5. Create order -- POST /api/v2/pipo/order/create with the desired project/product IDs.
6. Process order -- GET /api/v2/pipo/order/{id}/process to trigger file generation.
7. Convert or transfer -- If the user was temporary, either convert to permanent (POST /api/v2/pipo/user/convert) or transfer to existing (POST /api/v2/pipo/user/transfer).
8. Logout -- GET /api/v2/pipo/user/logout to end the session.

Related Pages

• Authentication — Basic Auth credentials required alongside PIPO session tokens
• Customers — alternative customer CRUD endpoints without dual authentication
• Orders — retrieve order details and download files after PIPO order creation