Webhooks simulator dashboard

Use the Webhooks simulator dashboard to verify that your webhook listener URL for notification messages can successfully receive event data without any connectivity issues. The simulator queues the test events as you send them. The simulator sends queued test events asynchronously.

Note: You can also use the Webhooks API to simulate a webhook event.

After the simulator queues one or more events, your webhook listener URL can listen for HTTP POST notification messages. Each test event appears in your logs in the order that your listener receives them.

The simulator sends:

  • Mock static event data. Includes the ID, create time, update time, and state for the event.

  • Event headers. Contain the PayPal-generated asymmetric signature and information that you can use to validate the signature.

Note: You cannot resend an event notification or show webhook details for the mock event data that the simulator sends.

To use the simulator:

  1. Go to Webhooks simulator.
  2. Click Log In.
  3. Enter your webhooks URL and select an event from the drop-down list.
  4. Click Send Test.

The simulator queues and sends the event to your webhook listener URL.

The information that the dashboard displays depends on whether the simulator succeeds or fails to queue the event:

Simulator queues the event

If the simulator queues the event, you can expect to see the event in the logs for your webhook listener URL in a few minutes.

The dashboard shows the event status and the event data sent:

Event Status

Your event has been successfully queued at July 13 2016, 9:42:52

Event Data Sent

{
  "id": "WH-2N1678257S892762B-8MC99539P4557624Y",
  "create_time": "2016-04-28T11:21:44Z",
  "resource_type": "plan",
  "event_type": "BILLING.PLAN.CREATED",
  "summary": "A billing plan was created",
  "resource":
  {
    "merchant_preferences":
    {
      "setup_fee":
      {
        "currency": "USD",
        "value": "1"
      },
      "return_url": "http://www.paypal.com",
      "cancel_url": "http://www.yahoo.com",
      "auto_bill_amount": "YES",
      "initial_fail_amount_action": "CONTINUE",
      "max_fail_attempts": "21"
    },
    "id": "P-7LT50814996943336LSNDODY",
    "update_time": "2016-04-28T11:21:31.151Z",
    "description": "test web new",
    "name": "Fast Speed Plan",
    "payment_definitions": [
    {
      "name": "Payment Definition-1",
      "type": "REGULAR",
      "frequency": "Month",
      "frequency_interval": "1",
      "amount":
      {
        "currency": "USD",
        "value": "10"
      },
      "cycles": "15",
      "charge_models": [
      {
        "type": "SHIPPING",
        "amount":
        {
          "currency": "USD",
          "value": "1"
        },
        "id": "CHM-29V063578B632154XLSNDODY"
      },
      {
        "type": "TAX",
        "amount":
        {
          "currency": "USD",
          "value": "2"
        },
        "id": "CHM-72N78855RJ303084YLSNDODY"
      }],
      "id": "PD-28U66480VB469201XLSNDODY"
    },
    {
      "name": "Payment Definition-2",
      "type": "TRIAL",
      "frequency": "Month",
      "frequency_interval": "1",
      "amount":
      {
        "currency": "USD",
        "value": "5"
      },
      "cycles": "5",
      "charge_models": [
      {
        "type": "SHIPPING",
        "amount":
        {
          "currency": "USD",
          "value": "1"
        },
        "id": "CHM-4CT119433N5199501LSNDODY"
      },
      {
        "type": "TAX",
        "amount":
        {
          "currency": "USD",
          "value": "1"
        },
        "id": "CHM-38H015979N656741TLSNDODY"
      }],
      "id": "PD-99B78670BE878604GLSNDODY"
    }],
    "create_time": "2016-04-28T11:21:31.151Z",
    "state": "CREATED",
    "links": [
    {
      "href": "https://api.paypal.com/v1/payments/billing-plans/P-7LT50814996943336LSNDODY",
      "rel": "self",
      "method": "GET"
    }],
    "type": "FIXED"
  },
  "links": [
  {
    "href": "https://api.paypal.com/v1/notifications/webhooks-events/WH-2N1678257S892762B-8MC99539P4557624Y",
    "rel": "self",
    "method": "GET",
    "encType": "application/json"
  },
  {
    "href": "https://api.paypal.com/v1/notifications/webhooks-events/WH-2N1678257S892762B-8MC99539P4557624Y/resend",
    "rel": "resend",
    "method": "POST",
    "encType": "application/json"
  }],
  "event_version": "1.0"
}

Simulator fails to queue the event

If the simulator fails to queue the event, the dashboard shows the event status and the error details:

Event Status

Your event failed to queue at date time

Error Details

error-details-from-the-simulator

Examine the error details for more information.