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Platform Documentation

WhatsApp Business Accounts

WhatsApp Business Accounts connect your system to the Meta WhatsApp Cloud API, enabling WhatsApp messaging through Thirdlane Connect. Each tenant can have one or more WhatsApp Business accounts, subject to the limit set by the administrator.

Prerequisites

Before configuring a WhatsApp Business Account, you need:

  1. A Meta Business Account with access to the WhatsApp Business Platform
  2. A WhatsApp Business Account (WABA) created in the Meta Business Manager
  3. A System User Access Token with whatsapp_business_messaging and whatsapp_business_management permissions
  4. At least one phone number registered with your WABA

Create/Edit WhatsApp Account

Name. A friendly name to identify this WhatsApp Business account (e.g., “Support WhatsApp” or “Sales WABA”).

WABA ID. The WhatsApp Business Account ID from Meta Business Manager. Found under Business Settings > Accounts > WhatsApp Accounts.

Access Token. A permanent System User Access Token generated in Meta Business Manager. This token authenticates API calls to send messages and manage phone numbers.

App Secret. The App Secret from your Meta App settings. Used to verify the signature of incoming webhook payloads from Meta, ensuring they are authentic.

Verify Token. A custom string you define. When Meta sends a webhook verification request, it includes this token so the system can confirm the webhook subscription is legitimate. Choose any secure random string.

Status. The current connection status of this account:

  • Active — Connected and operational
  • Inactive — Not yet configured or intentionally disabled
  • Error — Connection issue detected (see status message for details)

Phone Numbers

After creating a WhatsApp account, use the Sync Phones button to retrieve all phone numbers registered under your WABA from Meta. Each phone number shows:

  • Display Phone Number — The phone number as displayed to recipients
  • Verified Name — The business name verified by Meta for this number
  • Quality Rating — Meta’s quality assessment (GREEN, YELLOW, RED)
  • Messaging Limit — Current sending tier assigned by Meta
  • Status — Registration status of the phone number
  • DID — The DID/phone number mapped to this WhatsApp number for routing

Message Templates

Use the Sync Templates button to retrieve approved message templates from Meta. Templates are required for initiating conversations with contacts outside the 24-hour messaging window. Each template shows its name, language, category, approval status, and component structure.

Variable Mappings

Templates contain numbered variable placeholders ({{1}}, {{2}}, etc.) that must be filled with actual values when sending. The mapping status column in the template grid shows how many variables have been mapped (e.g., “3/7 mapped”).

Click the pencil icon on any template row to open the Variable Mappings window. The window shows a grid of all parsed variables with their index, component type (HEADER, BODY, BUTTONS), and example value from Meta.

Click the pencil icon on any variable row to configure its mapping:

  • Source — where the value comes from:
    • Contact Field — from the CRM contact record (name, email, phone, etc.)
    • Account Field — from the contact’s linked company/account record
    • Custom Field — from a tenant-defined custom field
    • Static Value — always uses the default value you enter
    • Agent Enters — the agent fills the value manually at send time
  • Field — the specific field to use (dropdown updates based on the selected source)
  • Default Value — fallback value if the mapped field is empty
  • Label — optional label shown to agents to describe what to enter

After editing one or more variables, click Save at the bottom of the mappings window to persist all changes. Click Cancel to discard changes. If you close the window (via the X button) with unsaved changes, you will be prompted to confirm.

Webhook Configuration

To receive inbound WhatsApp messages, you must configure a webhook in your Meta App settings. The webhook callback URL follows this pattern:

https://your-server-domain/whatsapp

Where your-server-domain is the FQDN of your Thirdlane server (the same domain used to access the management interface).

In your Meta App’s WhatsApp settings:

  1. Navigate to Configuration > Webhook
  2. Set the Callback URL to https://your-server-domain/whatsapp
  3. Set the Verify Token to the same value you entered in the WhatsApp account form
  4. Subscribe to the messages webhook field

DID Mapping

WhatsApp phone numbers can be mapped to DIDs for unified routing. This mapping is managed from the DID form — when editing a DID that belongs to a tenant with WhatsApp enabled, a WhatsApp Phone dropdown appears allowing you to associate a WhatsApp number with that DID.