Resources · Zapier integration

PDQ Connect Zapier integrationAutomate PDQ Connect with Zapier.

The PDQ Connect Zapier integration gives you 9 triggers, 3 actions and 7 searches. Enough to react to new devices, packages and deployments, push software to a machine, tag it with a custom field and pull its vulnerabilities into the rest of your IT tools.

See the 19 operations

Verified Trustpilot reviews · AI, automation & growth agency

Overview

What the PDQ Connect Zapier integration lets you do

It connects PDQ Connect, a cloud service that manages Windows and macOS computers (patching, software deployment, vulnerability fixes), to the rest of your stack through Zapier. A Zap (an automation built on Zapier: one event that starts it, then the steps that follow) reacts to what happens in your fleet and acts on it.

Three results come up most. A new laptop that sets itself up: New Device spots a freshly enrolled machine and Deploy Package sends it your baseline software. A tagged, searchable inventory: Create Custom Field defines a field once, and Set Device Custom Field Value fills it per machine, for an owner, a cost center or a ticket number. Security findings where your team works: Find Device Vulnerabilities lists the known vulnerabilities on a device, so a later step can post them to a ticket or a chat channel.

Now what Zapier does not do here. Every one of the nine triggers is a polling trigger: none is instant, so the plan you are on sets how fast a Zap reacts. Matching Deployment reads a deployment's status once, the first time it sees it, and never checks again. And the actions stop at three: there is no step to remove a device, delete a package or cancel a deployment.

Two families of triggers coexist, and the difference matters. The New ones fire once per new item; the Matching ones also fire for items that already exist. To compare Zapier with other platforms on this kind of IT flow, see n8n vs Zapier and Make vs Zapier.

Vocabulary

Zapier vocabulary for IT teams

Eight words come back throughout this page. Here they are, in plain English, as they apply to PDQ Connect.

Trigger
The PDQ Connect event that starts a Zap: a new device, a new package, a deployment, a group, or a custom field.
Action
What the Zap does once started: deploy a package, create a custom field, or set its value on a device.
Task
The unit Zapier bills: one action that succeeds. Your plan's task count only counts those successful actions.
Polling trigger
A trigger Zapier checks at a fixed interval, keeping only what it has not seen before. All nine PDQ triggers work this way.
Instant trigger
A trigger the app reports itself, the moment the event happens. PDQ Connect offers none on Zapier.
Filter
A step that lets the Zap continue only when the data meets your condition, and stops it otherwise.
Search step
A step that fetches something already in PDQ, like a device or a deployment, so later steps can use what it found.
Connection
Your PDQ Connect account linked to Zapier once, then reused by every PDQ step in all of your Zaps.
Cost

What a PDQ Connect Zap costs

The trigger never costs a task, and neither does Zapier checking PDQ for new items, however often it looks.

  • Free plan100 tasks per month, unlimited Zaps
  • Steps on the free plan2 (one trigger, one action)
  • Premium appNo, PDQ Connect works on every plan
  • PDQ triggers9, all polling: the grid below applies

Each successful action is one task, so deploying a package then setting a custom field spends two per device. A failed action is not counted. PDQ Connect is not a premium app and works on the free plan: 100 tasks a month, polling every 15 minutes, and two-step Zaps only. A search, a filter or a second action makes the Zap multi-step, which needs a paid plan. Since all nine triggers poll, your plan's interval below sets the reaction time.

Connect

Connect PDQ Connect to Zapier

  1. 01

    Open the Apps page

    In your Zapier account, open Apps and click + Add connection. You need an existing PDQ Connect account first; Zapier links accounts, it does not create them.

  2. 02

    Pick PDQ Connect

    Search for PDQ Connect in the dialog, select it and click Add connection. A new tab opens on the PDQ side, which is where both accounts actually get linked.

  3. 03

    Sign in and grant access

    Sign in to PDQ Connect in that tab and allow Zapier to use the account. If the devices, groups or packages you want to touch are managed by someone else, check your read and write rights first.

First Zap

Your first PDQ Connect Zap

GoalWhen a new computer enrolls in PDQ, deploy the standard package to it, then record on the device that onboarding ran.

  1. 01

    Build: start on New Device

    Create a Zap, pick PDQ Connect and New Device as the event, then select your connection. Only machines enrolled from now on will start it.

  2. 02

    Test the trigger

    Run the test. Zapier brings back the three most recent devices of your account, so you map the next steps on a real machine.

  3. 03

    Add Deploy Package

    Add Deploy Package, choose the package in Target Package and map the device from the trigger into Device or Group Targets.

  4. 04

    Add the custom field

    Add Set Device Custom Field Value, map the same device and pick the field. This second action makes the Zap multi-step, so it needs a paid plan.

  5. 05

    Test each step, then publish

    Run each step once and read what came back, ideally on a test machine rather than a colleague's laptop. Then click Publish to switch the Zap on.

Triggers

PDQ Connect triggers

9 events start a Zap when something happens in PDQ Connect. Zapier checks for them at the interval your plan allows.

1

Matching Custom Field

Polling trigger

In Zapier“Triggers when a custom field definition is returned on each poll. Use this to populate dropdowns or fan out over your custom fields.”

This one returns your custom field definitions, the extra columns you added to devices in PDQ, each time Zapier checks. It is less an alert than a way to walk through every field you have defined.

How it fires
Zapier goes and looks at regular intervals, and how often depends on your plan: every 15 minutes on the free one
When to use it
an IT lead who keeps a reference sheet of every custom field used across the fleet and wants each definition copied into it.
Watch out
a Zap on this trigger that ends with Create Custom Field writes exactly where it watches, and can set itself off again.
2

Matching Deployment

Polling trigger

In Zapier“Triggers when a deployment matches your filters on each poll, including deployments that already exist. Each deployment fires once with its status counts as of first sight — status is not re-polled, so for live progress or failure counts on a known deployment use Find Deployment by ID.”

Starts the Zap for every deployment that matches the filters you set, including deployments that already existed before the Zap was switched on. Each one fires once, with its status counts as they were when Zapier first saw it.

How it fires
Zapier goes and looks at regular intervals, and how often depends on your plan: every 15 minutes on the free one
When to use it
building a log of past and current deployments in a spreadsheet for an audit.
Watch out
the status is never checked again; for live progress or failure counts on a known deployment, add Find Deployment by ID.
3

Matching Device

Polling trigger

In Zapier“Triggers when a device matches your filters on each poll, including devices that already exist. Use this to fan out over your inventory; unlike New Device, it fires for existing devices too.”

Goes through your inventory and starts the Zap for each device matching your filters, existing machines included. Unlike New Device, it does not wait for an enrollment: whatever is already there counts.

How it fires
Zapier goes and looks at regular intervals, and how often depends on your plan: every 15 minutes on the free one
When to use it
pushing your whole current fleet, filtered to one office, into an asset register in one pass.
Watch out
on the first run every matching machine fires, which costs a task per device and can trip Zapier's flood protection on a large fleet.
4

Matching Group

Polling trigger

In Zapier“Triggers when a group matches your filters on each poll, including groups that already exist. Use this to fan out over your groups; unlike New Group, it fires for existing groups too.”

Fires for each device group that matches your filters, the groups you already had as well as new ones. It lets a Zap loop over the way your fleet is organized rather than over single machines.

How it fires
Zapier goes and looks at regular intervals, and how often depends on your plan: every 15 minutes on the free one
When to use it
mirroring the list of PDQ groups into a project tool so each team has a card for its machines.
Watch out
if only freshly created groups matter, New Group avoids a first run over everything that already exists.
5

Matching Package

Polling trigger

In Zapier“Triggers when a package matches your filters on each poll, including packages that already exist. Use this to fan out over your library; unlike New Package, it fires for existing packages too.”

Walks through your PDQ library and starts the Zap for every package that matches your filters, including those already in place. Handy when the job is to act on the library as a whole.

How it fires
Zapier goes and looks at regular intervals, and how often depends on your plan: every 15 minutes on the free one
When to use it
producing a catalog of approved software for the service desk, one row per package.
Watch out
by default the name filter matches partially; switch on Exact Name Match or a search for one product can catch several packages.
6

New Deployment

Polling trigger

In Zapier“Triggers when a new deployment is created in PDQ. Only fires once per deployment — use Matching Deployment to act on existing deployments.”

Reacts when a deployment is created in PDQ, and only once for each. Existing deployments are left alone, which makes it the right pick for following what happens from now on.

How it fires
Zapier goes and looks at regular intervals, and how often depends on your plan: every 15 minutes on the free one
When to use it
posting every newly launched deployment in the IT team's chat so nobody pushes the same update twice.
Watch out
it reports the creation, not the outcome; pair it with Find Deployment by ID later in the Zap to read the status counts.
7

New Device

Polling trigger

In Zapier“Triggers when a new device is enrolled in PDQ. Only fires once per device — use Matching Device to act on existing devices.”

Your Zap starts when a computer is enrolled in PDQ for the first time. Each machine fires once, and devices that were enrolled before the Zap went live never do.

How it fires
Zapier goes and looks at regular intervals, and how often depends on your plan: every 15 minutes on the free one
When to use it
an MSP that onboards each new client laptop by deploying the standard toolset and opening a ticket.
Watch out
to act on machines that are already enrolled, switch to Matching Device; this trigger will never pick them up.
8

New Group

Polling trigger

In Zapier“Triggers when a new group is created in PDQ. Only fires once per group — use Matching Group to act on existing groups.”

Fires once whenever a group is created in PDQ. Groups that were there before the Zap was published stay out of it, so the first run is quiet.

How it fires
Zapier goes and looks at regular intervals, and how often depends on your plan: every 15 minutes on the free one
When to use it
notifying the security lead each time someone creates a new group, since groups can become deployment targets.
Watch out
groups created before publication never show up; for those, Matching Group is the trigger to reach for.
9

New Package

Polling trigger

In Zapier“Triggers when a new package is added to your PDQ library. Only fires once per package — use Matching Package to act on existing packages.”

Each package added to your PDQ library sets this one off, once per package. What was already in the library before publication is ignored.

How it fires
Zapier goes and looks at regular intervals, and how often depends on your plan: every 15 minutes on the free one
When to use it
announcing each newly available application to the service desk so they can answer user requests about it.
Watch out
its name filter matches partially unless you turn on Exact Name Match, so a short name can let unrelated packages through.
Actions

PDQ Connect actions

PDQ Connect gives you 3 actions. For each one: what it does for you, when to reach for it, and what to watch out for.

1

Create Custom Field

Action

In Zapier“Creates a new custom field definition in PDQ.”

Adds a new custom field definition to PDQ, a column you can then fill on every device. Field Name and Field Type are required.

When to use it
creating an Owner field the day your asset tool starts tracking who holds each laptop.
Watch out
the name must be unique across the organization, and the type cannot be changed once the field exists.
2

Deploy Package

Action

In Zapier“Deploys a package on the specified target devices.”

Sends a package from your library to the devices or groups you target. You can pick a device from the dropdown or type several IDs separated by commas, spaces, semicolons or new lines.

When to use it
installing a security agent on every machine a new hire receives.
Watch out
device IDs start with dvc_ and group IDs with grp_; test on a single test device before targeting a whole group.
3

Set Device Custom Field Value

Action

In Zapier“Sets the value of a custom field on a specific device.”

Writes a value into one custom field on one device, identified by its Device ID (it starts with dvc_). The field must already exist.

When to use it
stamping the ticket number of a repair onto the machine it concerns, so the history stays on the device.
Watch out
Device ID and Custom Field are both required; map them from earlier steps rather than typing them.
Searches

PDQ Connect searches

7 search steps look for data that already exists in PDQ Connect, so a later step can use it.

A search step fetches something already in PDQ so later steps can use it. In the editor, searches sit at the bottom of the Action event list, under SEARCH. Adding one makes the Zap multi-step. Three settings decide what happens with the result.

1

Find Deployment by ID

Search

In Zapier“Finds a specific deployment by ID and returns its status counts.”

Looks up one deployment from its ID (it starts with dpl_) and returns its status counts as they stand now.

When to use it
after Deploy Package or New Deployment, to see how many machines succeeded or failed before alerting anyone.
Watch out
this is the step to use for live status; the Matching Deployment trigger only gives the counts from its first look.
2

Find Device by ID

Search

In Zapier“Finds a specific device by ID and returns its full details.”

Fetches the full details of one device when you already hold its Device ID, so the next steps can reuse them.

When to use it
a helpdesk ticket carries the device ID, and the Zap needs the machine's details to fill in the ticket.
Watch out
with the default setting, an unknown ID stops the Zap here.
3

Find Device Vulnerabilities

Search

In Zapier“Finds all known vulnerabilities detected on a specific device.”

Lists every known vulnerability detected on one device, identified by its Device ID.

When to use it
a security analyst who wants the findings of each newly enrolled laptop sent to the risk register.
Watch out
one device can carry many findings; the multiple-results setting decides whether the next step sees one or all of them.
4

Find Package by ID

Search

In Zapier“Finds a single package by ID and returns its details including version history.”

Retrieves one package from its ID (it starts with pkg_), including its version history. You can also pick the package from a list.

When to use it
checking which version a package is on before a Zap deploys it to production machines.
Watch out
the Package ID is required, so a Zap without one upstream has nothing to look up.
5

Find Device

Search

In Zapier“Finds a single device in your PDQ account. Returns the first match. To get all matching devices, use the "Matching Device" trigger instead.”

Searches your PDQ account for a device and returns the first match only.

When to use it
finding the machine an employee mentions in a support form, so the Zap can deploy a fix to it.
Watch out
it never returns several devices; to process every match, use the Matching Device trigger instead.
6

Find Device Group

Search

In Zapier“Finds a single device group in PDQ. Returns the first match. To get all matching groups, use the "Matching Group" trigger instead.”

Looks for a device group in PDQ and hands the first match to the following steps.

When to use it
resolving a department name from your HR tool into the PDQ group to target with Deploy Package.
Watch out
only one group comes back; for all matching groups, the Matching Group trigger is the right tool.
7

Find Package

Search

In Zapier“Finds a single package in the PDQ library. Returns the first match. To get all matching packages, use the "Matching Package" trigger instead.”

Finds one package in the PDQ library by name and returns the first match.

When to use it
turning a software request typed in a form into the package Deploy Package will send.
Watch out
matching is partial unless Exact Name Match is on, so the first result may not be the package you meant.

The three settings every search exposes

  1. Successful if no search results are found?
    Left on its default, a search that finds nothing stops the Zap there and the steps depending on it are skipped. Switched on, the Zap carries on empty-handed.
  2. Create X if it doesn't exist yet?
    This box would turn a search into a find-or-create. PDQ Connect offers no such variant, so none of its seven searches shows it.
  3. If multiple search results are found?
    Three ways out when several items match: keep the first one (the default), stop the Zap, or hand all of them on at once.
When it breaks

When a PDQ Connect Zap breaks

Zapier ties no help article to PDQ Connect and lists no limit of its own for it.

The trouble comes from Zapier's general behavior and from how the two trigger families differ. Six cases are worth knowing before you publish. If a Zap still misbehaves, the Zapier troubleshooting page is the next stop.

  • New triggers skip your existing fleet

    New Device, New Group, New Package and New Deployment only see what appears after you publish. Machines already enrolled never start them.

  • Matching triggers fire for everything

    Matching triggers include existing items, so the first run can start the Zap for your whole fleet or library at once, one task per action each time.

  • A huge first batch is held back

    When a trigger suddenly returns a large batch, after a bulk enrollment or a first Matching run, Zapier's flood protection can hold it back.

  • Deployment status frozen at first sight

    Matching Deployment reports status counts once and never rechecks. Read live progress with Find Deployment by ID instead.

  • The custom field loop

    A Zap on Matching Custom Field that ends with Create Custom Field writes where its own trigger looks, and can set itself off over and over.

  • A custom field you cannot fix

    Field Type is immutable and Field Name must be unique: a wrong type or a duplicate name from Create Custom Field cannot be corrected by the Zap.
Need help

Need help automating PDQ Connect with Zapier?

A person reads every message.

FAQ

PDQ Connect Zapier integration: your questions

01Is the PDQ Connect Zapier integration free?
Yes on the Zapier side, because PDQ Connect is not a premium app. The free plan gives 100 tasks a month and unlimited Zaps, each limited to two steps: one trigger and one action. New Device followed by Deploy Package fits. Add a search such as Find Device Vulnerabilities, a filter or a second action and the Zap becomes multi-step, which needs a paid plan. Your PDQ Connect subscription is a separate matter, set by PDQ's own terms.
02How many tasks does a PDQ Connect Zap use?
One task per successful action, nothing for the trigger or for Zapier checking PDQ for new items. A Zap that deploys a package and then sets a custom field spends two tasks per device. A failed action is not counted. Be careful with the Matching triggers: they also fire for items that already exist, so the first run over a large fleet or library can spend a big part of the free plan's 100 monthly tasks in one go.
03Is PDQ Connect on Zapier real-time?
No. All nine PDQ Connect triggers are polling triggers: Zapier checks PDQ at a fixed interval and keeps only what it has not seen yet. That interval depends on your plan: 15 minutes on Free, 2 on Professional, 1 on Team and Enterprise. A new device can therefore wait up to a full interval before its Zap starts. On paid plans the frequency can be changed, and a check can also be run by hand from the editor.
04What do you need to connect PDQ Connect to Zapier?
An existing PDQ Connect account, with access to the devices, groups and packages you plan to automate. In Zapier, open Apps, click + Add connection, search for PDQ Connect, click Add connection, then sign in to PDQ in the tab that opens and grant access. If part of the fleet is managed by a colleague, your account needs read or write rights on it. The connection is made once and every PDQ step reuses it.
05Why does Matching Device fire for devices that already exist?
Because that is what Matching triggers are for. Matching Device, Matching Group, Matching Package and Matching Deployment go through everything that fits your filters, existing items included, so a Zap can work across your whole inventory. Zapier then remembers what it has seen, so each item fires once. If you only want machines enrolled from now on, use New Device instead, which fires once per new device and ignores the ones already there.
06What if the PDQ Connect operation you need is missing?
Then the integration does not offer it, and no setting will add it. Zapier shows 19 visible PDQ Connect operations: 9 triggers, 3 actions and 7 searches. There is, for example, no step to remove a device, delete a package or cancel a deployment, and no instant trigger. The practical route is to do the missing part in PDQ itself, or to chain what exists, such as a search followed by Deploy Package, on a paid plan.
07Zapier, Make or n8n for PDQ Connect?
Decide on criteria, not on a ranking. On Zapier, PDQ Connect is not premium, but all nine triggers poll, so reaction time depends on your plan's interval, 15 minutes on Free. Most useful IT flows chain a search or a second action, which makes the Zap multi-step and needs a paid plan, with each successful action billed. Weigh delay, step count and per-action billing against what the other platforms offer for PDQ Connect.
Same platform

Other docs you might need on this stack.

Browse all integrations