Seam enables you to lock or unlock your door lock remotely. This guide walks you through how to perform these actions using the Seam API.When you send a command to a smart lock, it might take a while for Seam to confirm the action’s success. To handle this, Seam provides an “action attempt” object, which indicates whether the action was successful.To ensure that the action has been successfully executed, we advise checking the status of the action attempt object by polling the “Get Action Attempt” request. Once Seam has successfully confirmed the action, the action attempt’s status will indicate success.Some providers and device models cannot confirm whether the physical lock or unlock happened in a reasonable time or at all. In those cases, a successful action attempt can still include action_attempt.result.was_confirmed_by_device = false.
Before you attempt to lock or unlock a device, be sure to confirm that your device has the capability to perform these operations. You can inspect the capabilities of a device by checking the following capability flags for the device:
device.can_remotely_lock
device.can_remotely_unlock
Use Get Device for a specific device to return these capability flags. Then, use an if statement or similar check to confirm that the relevant flag is both present and true before attempting to lock or unlock the device.If either of these capability flags is false or not present, you can view the properties of the device, errors or warnings for the device, and events related to the device to learn more about the cause of these issues. For example, you could examine device.properties.online. In addition, you could look for a device.disconnected event.Request:
{ device_id: '11111111-1111-1111-1111-444444444444', can_remotely_lock: true, // You can use seam.locks.lockDoor() on this device. can_remotely_unlock: true, // You can use seam.locks.unlockDoor() on this device. ...}
{ "device": { "device_id": "11111111-1111-1111-1111-444444444444", "can_remotely_lock": true, // You can use /locks/lock_door on this device. "can_remotely_unlock": true, // You can use /locks/unlock_door on this device. ... }, "ok": true}
Device( device_id='11111111-1111-1111-1111-444444444444', can_remotely_lock=True, // You can use seam.locks.lock_door() on this device. can_remotely_unlock=True, // You can use seam.locks.unlock_door() on this device. ...)
< Seam::Device:0x00438 device_id="11111111-1111-1111-1111-444444444444" can_remotely_lock=true // You can use client.locks.lock_door() on this device. can_remotely_unlock=true // You can use client.locks.unlock_door() on this device. ...>
{ "device_id": "11111111-1111-1111-1111-444444444444", "can_remotely_lock": true, // You can use $seam->locks->lock_door() on this device. "can_remotely_unlock": true, // You can use $seam->locks->unlock_door() on this device. ...}
{ "device_id": "11111111-1111-1111-1111-444444444444", "can_remotely_lock": true, // You can use seam.Locks.LockDoor() on this device. "can_remotely_unlock": true, // You can use seam.Locks.UnlockDoor() on this device. ...}
// Get the device.const device = await seam.devices.get({ device_id: '11111111-1111-1111-1111-444444444444',})// Confirm that the device can remotely lock.if (device.can_remotely_lock) { // Perform the lock operation. await seam.locks.lockDoor({ device_id: device.device_id, })}
# Get the device.device=$( # Use GET or POST. curl -X 'GET' \ 'https://connect.getseam.com/devices/get' \ -H 'accept: application/json' \ -H "Authorization: Bearer ${SEAM_API_KEY}" \ -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \ -d '{ "device_id": "11111111-1111-1111-1111-444444444444" }')# Confirm that the device can remotely lock.if $(jq -r '.device.can_remotely_lock' <<< ${device}); then \ # Perform the lock operation. curl -X 'POST' \ 'https://connect.getseam.com/locks/lock_door' \ -H 'accept: application/json' \ -H "Authorization: Bearer ${SEAM_API_KEY}" \ -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \ -d "{ \"device_id\": \"$(jq -r '.device.device_id' <<< ${device})\" }";fi
# Get the device.device = seam.devices.get( device_id="11111111-1111-1111-1111-444444444444")# Confirm that the device can remotely lock.if device.can_remotely_lock: # Perform the lock operation. seam.locks.lock_door(device_id=device.device_id)
# Get the device.device = client.devices.get(device_id: "11111111-1111-1111-1111-444444444444")# Confirm that the device can remotely lock.if (device.can_remotely_lock) # Perform the lock operation. client.locks.lock_door(device_id: device.device_id)end
// Get the device.$device = $seam->devices->get(device_id: "11111111-1111-1111-1111-444444444444");// Confirm that the device can remotely lock.if ($device->can_remotely_lock) { // Perform the lock operation. $seam->locks->lock_door(device_id: $device->device_id);}
// Get the device.Device device = seam.Devices.Get(deviceId: "11111111-1111-1111-1111-444444444444");// Confirm that the device can remotely lock.if (device.CanRemotelyLock == true) { // Perform the lock operation. seam.Locks.LockDoor(deviceId: device.DeviceId);}
// Get the device.const device = await seam.devices.get({ device_id: '11111111-1111-1111-1111-444444444444',})// Confirm that the device can remotely unlock.if (device.can_remotely_unlock) { // Perform the unlock operation. await seam.locks.unlockDoor({ device_id: device.device_id, })}
# Get the device.device=$( # Use GET or POST. curl -X 'GET' \ 'https://connect.getseam.com/devices/get' \ -H 'accept: application/json' \ -H "Authorization: Bearer ${SEAM_API_KEY}" \ -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \ -d '{ "device_id": "11111111-1111-1111-1111-444444444444" }')# Confirm that the device can remotely unlock.if $(jq -r '.device.can_remotely_unlock' <<< ${device}); then \ # Perform the unlock operation. curl -X 'POST' \ 'https://connect.getseam.com/locks/unlock_door' \ -H 'accept: application/json' \ -H "Authorization: Bearer ${SEAM_API_KEY}" \ -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \ -d "{ \"device_id\": \"$(jq -r '.device.device_id' <<< ${device})\" }";fi
# Get the device.device = seam.devices.get( device_id="11111111-1111-1111-1111-444444444444")# Confirm that the device can remotely unlock.if device.can_remotely_unlock: # Perform the unlock operation. seam.locks.unlock_door(device_id=device.device_id)
# Get the device.device = client.devices.get(device_id: "11111111-1111-1111-1111-444444444444")# Confirm that the device can remotely unlock.if (device.can_remotely_unlock) # Perform the unlock operation. client.locks.unlock_door(device_id: device.device_id)end
// Get the device.$device = $seam->devices->get(device_id: "11111111-1111-1111-1111-444444444444");// Confirm that the device can remotely unlock.if ($device->can_remotely_unlock) { // Perform the unlock operation. $seam->locks->unlock_door(device_id: $device->device_id);}
// Get the device.Device device = seam.Devices.Get(deviceId: "11111111-1111-1111-1111-444444444444");// Confirm that the device can remotely unlock.if (device.CanRemotelyUnlock == true) { // Perform the unlock operation. seam.Locks.UnlockDoor(deviceId: device.DeviceId);}
2. Poll the Action Attempt to Verify the Success of the Action
Use the action_attempt_id from the prior response to make a Get Action Attempt request. When the action attempt’s status changes to success, it indicates the action has been successful.
Some providers and device models do not confirm whether a lock or unlock
completed on the physical device. In those cases, the action attempt can still
succeed while action_attempt.result.was_confirmed_by_device is false. Use
this property to set the right expectation in your UI, especially for unlock
flows.
To retrieve the locked status of a specific door lock, use the Get Device endpoint by providing the device_id of the desired lock. This operation returns detailed information, including the current locked status. Note that if the lock is offline, Seam does not return the device.locked property.Request:
Whenever a lock is locked or unlocked, Seam emits a lock.locked or lock.unlocked event. You can retrieve these events by making a List Events request or receive them in real time by setting up a webhook. For more information on how to set up webhooks, see the Webhooks guide. For the complete list of properties on each event, see the Lock Events reference.A lock.unlocked event looks like the following:
Use the method property to determine how the lock was locked or unlocked. Both lock.locked and lock.unlocked events include this property.
method
Meaning
Related properties
keycode
An access code was entered on the keypad.
access_code_id, access_code_is_managed
manual
A direct physical action at the lock, such as turning the thumbturn or pressing a button.
—
remote
A remote action initiated from an app, over Bluetooth, or through the Seam API.
action_attempt_id, is_via_bluetooth, is_via_nfc
automatic
Triggered automatically, without user interaction—for example, by an auto-relock timer or a schedule.
—
unknown
Seam could not determine the method from the provider’s event.
—
For remote events, the following properties tell you which remote channel was used:
action_attempt_id: Present only when the action was initiated through Seam, using a LOCK_DOOR or UNLOCK_DOORaction attempt. Use it to tie the event back to the specific API call your application made. When this property is absent, the remote action originated outside of Seam—for example, from the provider’s own mobile app.
is_via_bluetooth: true when the action was performed over Bluetooth by a remote client, such as the provider’s mobile app, rather than through Seam or a physical interaction.
is_via_nfc: true when the action was performed by tapping an NFC credential, such as an Apple Home Key or an NFC key fob, at the lock.
When method is keycode, the event identifies the access code that was used:
access_code_id: ID of the access code that was entered.
access_code_is_managed: true if the code is managed by Seam—that is, one that you created through the Seam API—or false if it is an unmanaged code that was programmed directly on the device. This property is present only when access_code_id is set.
The following examples show the properties that distinguish common ways a lock is operated. Each event also includes the standard event_id, device_id, occurred_at, and other envelope properties, omitted here for brevity.
