How to Programmatically Start and Stop Call Recordings via the Genesys Cloud API

What You Will Build

You will build a Python script that intercepts an active conversation and programmatically toggles recording status using the Genesys Cloud Recording API.
This tutorial uses the Genesys Cloud REST API v2 for conversations and recordings.
The implementation uses Python 3.9+ with the requests library for direct HTTP interaction.

Prerequisites

• OAuth Client: A Genesys Cloud OAuth2 Client with the client_credentials grant type.
• Required Scopes:
  • conversation:read (to locate the conversation ID)
  • conversation:write (to update the recording state)
  • recording:read (to verify recording status and retrieve media)
• SDK/API Version: Genesys Cloud API v2.
• Runtime: Python 3.9 or higher.
• Dependencies:
  • requests (v2.31.0+)
  • python-dotenv (for secure credential management)

Install dependencies using pip:

pip install requests python-dotenv

Authentication Setup

Genesys Cloud uses OAuth2 for all API access. For server-to-server integrations, the client_credentials flow is standard. You must store your Client ID and Client Secret securely. Using environment variables is the recommended practice.

Create a .env file in your project root:

GENESYS_CLIENT_ID=your_client_id_here
GENESYS_CLIENT_SECRET=your_client_secret_here

The following Python class handles token acquisition and caching. Tokens expire after 3600 seconds (1 hour). This implementation includes a simple in-memory cache to avoid unnecessary network calls for every API request.

import os
import time
import requests
from dotenv import load_dotenv

load_dotenv()

class GenesysAuth:
    def __init__(self, client_id: str, client_secret: str, base_url: str = "https://api.mypurecloud.com"):
        self.client_id = client_id
        self.client_secret = client_secret
        self.base_url = base_url
        self.token = None
        self.token_expiry = 0

    def get_token(self) -> str:
        """
        Retrieves an OAuth2 token. Returns the cached token if valid.
        """
        current_time = time.time()
        
        # Check if we have a valid token
        if self.token and current_time < self.token_expiry:
            return self.token

        # Fetch new token
        token_url = f"{self.base_url}/oauth/token"
        data = {
            "grant_type": "client_credentials",
            "client_id": self.client_id,
            "client_secret": self.client_secret
        }

        try:
            response = requests.post(token_url, data=data)
            response.raise_for_status()
            
            token_data = response.json()
            self.token = token_data["access_token"]
            # Set expiry slightly before actual expiry to handle clock skew
            self.token_expiry = current_time + token_data["expires_in"] - 60
            
            return self.token

        except requests.exceptions.HTTPError as e:
            if e.response.status_code == 401:
                raise Exception("Invalid Client ID or Secret") from e
            raise Exception(f"Failed to obtain token: {e}") from e

# Initialize Auth
auth = GenesysAuth(
    client_id=os.getenv("GENESYS_CLIENT_ID"),
    client_secret=os.getenv("GENESYS_CLIENT_SECRET")
)

Implementation

Step 1: Locate the Active Conversation

To start or stop a recording, you must first identify the specific conversationId. Genesys Cloud does not expose a “start recording” button on the conversation object directly in all contexts; rather, you update the conversation’s metadata to trigger the recording engine. However, the most robust method for programmatic control during an active call is to query for the active conversation involving specific participants.

We will use the /api/v2/conversations endpoint to list active conversations. Note that this endpoint requires pagination handling if you have many concurrent calls.

Endpoint: GET /api/v2/conversations
Scope: conversation:read

import json

class GenesysConversationManager:
    def __init__(self, auth: GenesysAuth):
        self.auth = auth
        self.base_url = auth.base_url

    def get_active_conversations(self, participant_id: str = None) -> list:
        """
        Retrieves active conversations. Optionally filters by a participant ID.
        """
        headers = {
            "Authorization": f"Bearer {self.auth.get_token()}",
            "Content-Type": "application/json"
        }
        
        # Base query for active conversations
        params = {
            "status": "active",
            "type": "call" # Filter only for voice calls
        }
        
        if participant_id:
            params["participantId"] = participant_id

        try:
            response = requests.get(
                f"{self.base_url}/api/v2/conversations",
                headers=headers,
                params=params
            )
            response.raise_for_status()
            
            data = response.json()
            return data.get("entities", [])

        except requests.exceptions.HTTPError as e:
            print(f"Error fetching conversations: {e}")
            raise

    def find_conversation_by_participant(self, participant_id: str) -> dict:
        """
        Finds the first active call involving a specific participant.
        """
        conversations = self.get_active_conversations(participant_id)
        
        if not conversations:
            raise ValueError(f"No active calls found for participant: {participant_id}")
        
        # Return the first match
        return conversations[0]

Step 2: Toggle Recording Status

Once you have the conversationId, you can update the conversation state. In Genesys Cloud, recording is typically controlled by the recording property within the conversation update payload.

Critical Note: Genesys Cloud has two modes for recording:

1. Automatic: Configured in the Admin Console (Quality Management). This is the default.
2. Manual/Programmatic: You can override the automatic setting by sending a PATCH request to the conversation endpoint.

To start a recording programmatically, you set recording to true. To stop it, you set recording to false.

Endpoint: PATCH /api/v2/conversations/{conversationId}
Scope: conversation:write

The request body must be a JSON object containing the recording boolean flag.

    def toggle_recording(self, conversation_id: str, start: bool) -> dict:
        """
        Starts or stops recording for a specific conversation.
        
        Args:
            conversation_id: The UUID of the conversation.
            start: True to start recording, False to stop.
        """
        headers = {
            "Authorization": f"Bearer {self.auth.get_token()}",
            "Content-Type": "application/json"
        }
        
        payload = {
            "recording": start
        }
        
        url = f"{self.base_url}/api/v2/conversations/{conversation_id}"
        
        try:
            response = requests.patch(url, headers=headers, json=payload)
            
            # Genesys often returns 200 OK with the updated conversation object
            # or 204 No Content. We handle both.
            if response.status_code in [200, 204]:
                return {"status": "success", "recording_active": start}
            
            response.raise_for_status()
            
        except requests.exceptions.HTTPError as e:
            error_detail = e.response.text
            raise Exception(f"Failed to toggle recording: {error_detail}") from e

Step 3: Verify Recording Status

After issuing the command, it is prudent to verify the state. The conversation object returned from the PATCH or a subsequent GET request contains a recording boolean field.

Additionally, you can query the Recording API to see if a recording entity has been created.

Endpoint: GET /api/v2/recordings/conversations/{conversationId}
Scope: recording:read

    def get_recording_details(self, conversation_id: str) -> dict:
        """
        Retrieves recording details for a conversation.
        """
        headers = {
            "Authorization": f"Bearer {self.auth.get_token()}",
            "Content-Type": "application/json"
        }
        
        url = f"{self.base_url}/api/v2/recordings/conversations/{conversation_id}"
        
        try:
            response = requests.get(url, headers=headers)
            
            # A 404 here might mean no recording exists yet (if just started)
            if response.status_code == 404:
                return {"status": "not_found", "message": "No recording found for this conversation"}
            
            response.raise_for_status()
            return response.json()
            
        except requests.exceptions.HTTPError as e:
            if e.response.status_code == 404:
                return {"status": "not_found"}
            raise

Complete Working Example

This script demonstrates the full lifecycle: finding an active call, starting the recording, waiting briefly, and then stopping it.

Note: Replace YOUR_PARTICIPANT_ID with a valid User ID or Queue ID from your Genesys Cloud instance.

import os
import time
import requests
from dotenv import load_dotenv

# --- Authentication Class ---
class GenesysAuth:
    def __init__(self, client_id: str, client_secret: str, base_url: str = "https://api.mypurecloud.com"):
        self.client_id = client_id
        self.client_secret = client_secret
        self.base_url = base_url
        self.token = None
        self.token_expiry = 0

    def get_token(self) -> str:
        current_time = time.time()
        if self.token and current_time < self.token_expiry:
            return self.token

        token_url = f"{self.base_url}/oauth/token"
        data = {
            "grant_type": "client_credentials",
            "client_id": self.client_id,
            "client_secret": self.client_secret
        }

        try:
            response = requests.post(token_url, data=data)
            response.raise_for_status()
            token_data = response.json()
            self.token = token_data["access_token"]
            self.token_expiry = current_time + token_data["expires_in"] - 60
            return self.token
        except requests.exceptions.HTTPError as e:
            raise Exception(f"Auth failed: {e}") from e

# --- Business Logic Class ---
class RecordingController:
    def __init__(self, client_id: str, client_secret: str):
        self.auth = GenesysAuth(client_id, client_secret)
        self.base_url = self.auth.base_url

    def _get_headers(self) -> dict:
        return {
            "Authorization": f"Bearer {self.auth.get_token()}",
            "Content-Type": "application/json"
        }

    def find_active_call(self, user_id: str) -> str:
        """Returns the conversation ID of the first active call for the user."""
        params = {"status": "active", "type": "call", "participantId": user_id}
        try:
            resp = requests.get(f"{self.base_url}/api/v2/conversations", 
                                headers=self._get_headers(), params=params)
            resp.raise_for_status()
            entities = resp.json().get("entities", [])
            if not entities:
                raise Exception("No active calls found for user.")
            return entities[0]["id"]
        except Exception as e:
            raise Exception(f"Error finding call: {e}")

    def set_recording_state(self, conversation_id: str, enabled: bool) -> None:
        """Starts or stops recording."""
        payload = {"recording": enabled}
        url = f"{self.base_url}/api/v2/conversations/{conversation_id}"
        
        try:
            resp = requests.patch(url, headers=self._get_headers(), json=payload)
            resp.raise_for_status()
            print(f"Recording {'started' if enabled else 'stopped'} for conversation {conversation_id}")
        except Exception as e:
            raise Exception(f"Failed to toggle recording: {e}")

    def verify_recording(self, conversation_id: str) -> dict:
        """Checks current recording status."""
        url = f"{self.base_url}/api/v2/recordings/conversations/{conversation_id}"
        try:
            resp = requests.get(url, headers=self._get_headers())
            if resp.status_code == 404:
                return {"exists": False}
            resp.raise_for_status()
            return resp.json()
        except Exception as e:
            print(f"Warning: Could not verify recording: {e}")
            return {"exists": None}

def main():
    load_dotenv()
    
    client_id = os.getenv("GENESYS_CLIENT_ID")
    client_secret = os.getenv("GENESYS_CLIENT_SECRET")
    target_user_id = os.getenv("TARGET_USER_ID") # e.g., "8c3b...a1d2"

    if not all([client_id, client_secret, target_user_id]):
        raise ValueError("Missing environment variables: GENESYS_CLIENT_ID, GENESYS_CLIENT_SECRET, TARGET_USER_ID")

    controller = RecordingController(client_id, client_secret)

    try:
        print("1. Finding active conversation...")
        conv_id = controller.find_active_call(target_user_id)
        print(f"   Found Conversation ID: {conv_id}")

        print("2. Starting recording...")
        controller.set_recording_state(conv_id, enabled=True)
        
        # Wait for the system to register the recording start
        time.sleep(5)
        
        print("3. Verifying recording started...")
        status = controller.verify_recording(conv_id)
        print(f"   Status: {status}")

        print("4. Stopping recording...")
        controller.set_recording_state(conv_id, enabled=False)
        
        print("5. Done.")

    except Exception as e:
        print(f"Error: {e}")

if __name__ == "__main__":
    main()

Common Errors & Debugging

Error: 403 Forbidden

Cause: The OAuth token does not have the required scope.
Fix: Ensure your OAuth Client in the Genesys Admin Console has conversation:write and recording:read scopes enabled. If you are using the SDK, check the settings object during initialization.

# Check scopes in your token response
token_data = response.json()
print(token_data["scope"]) 
# Must include: conversation:write, recording:read

Error: 409 Conflict

Cause: You attempted to start a recording on a conversation that is already being recorded, or the conversation state does not support recording (e.g., already ended).
Fix: Check the current status of the conversation before issuing the PATCH.

# Defensive check
def safe_toggle(self, conv_id: str, start: bool):
    # Get current state
    current = self.get_conversation(conv_id)
    if current.get("recording") == start:
        print("Recording state already matches desired state.")
        return
    # Proceed with toggle
    self.set_recording_state(conv_id, start)

Error: 429 Too Many Requests

Cause: You are hitting the Genesys Cloud rate limits. The Conversation API has strict rate limits per tenant and per user.
Fix: Implement exponential backoff.

import time

def make_request_with_retry(self, url, method="GET", **kwargs):
    max_retries = 3
    for i in range(max_retries):
        try:
            resp = requests.request(method, url, **kwargs)
            if resp.status_code == 429:
                wait_time = 2 ** i
                print(f"Rate limited. Waiting {wait_time}s...")
                time.sleep(wait_time)
                continue
            resp.raise_for_status()
            return resp
        except requests.exceptions.RequestException:
            raise
    raise Exception("Max retries exceeded")

Error: Recording Not Appearing in Quality Management

Cause: Programmatic recording via the API does not always trigger the same post-processing workflows as Quality Management (QM) recordings.
Fix: If you need the recording to appear in the QM dashboard for agent evaluation, you must ensure that the “Recording” feature is enabled for the Queue or User in the Admin Console. Programmatic toggles override the automatic setting but do not bypass the configuration requirements for where the media is stored.

Official References

• Genesys Cloud API: Conversations
• Genesys Cloud API: Recordings
• Genesys Cloud Developer Portal