Managing Box

Box Management Skill

Manage and analyze Box cloud content resources including files, folders, users, and collaborations.

API Conventions

Authentication

All API calls use Bearer OAuth 2.0 token, injected automatically.

Base URL

https://api.box.com/2.0

Core Helper Function

#!/bin/bash

box_api() {
    local method="$1"
    local endpoint="$2"
    local data="${3:-}"

    if [ -n "$data" ]; then
        curl -s -X "$method" \
            -H "Authorization: Bearer $BOX_ACCESS_TOKEN" \
            -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
            "https://api.box.com/2.0${endpoint}" \
            -d "$data"
    else
        curl -s -X "$method" \
            -H "Authorization: Bearer $BOX_ACCESS_TOKEN" \
            "https://api.box.com/2.0${endpoint}"
    fi
}

Output Rules

• Target ≤50 lines per script output
• Use jq to extract only needed fields
• Never dump full API responses

Phase 1: Discovery

#!/bin/bash
echo "=== Current User ==="
box_api GET "/users/me" \
    | jq '{id: .id, name: .name, login: .login, space_amount: .space_amount, space_used: .space_used, status: .status}'

echo ""
echo "=== Root Folder Contents ==="
box_api GET "/folders/0/items?limit=20&fields=id,name,type,size,modified_at" \
    | jq -r '.entries[] | "\(.type)\t\(.id)\t\(.name[0:30])\t\(.size // "-")\t\(.modified_at[0:10] // "")"' \
    | column -t | head -20

echo ""
echo "=== Enterprise Users ==="
box_api GET "/users?limit=20&fields=id,name,login,status,space_used" \
    | jq -r '.entries[] | "\(.id)\t\(.name[0:20])\t\(.login)\t\(.status)\t\(.space_used) bytes"' \
    | column -t | head -15

Phase 2: Analysis

Storage & Usage

#!/bin/bash
echo "=== Storage Summary ==="
box_api GET "/users/me" \
    | jq '{
        space_used_gb: (.space_used / 1073741824 | . * 10 | floor / 10),
        space_total_gb: (.space_amount / 1073741824 | . * 10 | floor / 10),
        usage_pct: (.space_used / .space_amount * 100 | floor)
    }'

echo ""
echo "=== Enterprise Storage by User ==="
box_api GET "/users?limit=50&fields=name,login,space_used" \
    | jq -r '.entries[] | "\(.name[0:20])\t\(.login)\t\(.space_used / 1073741824 | . * 10 | floor / 10) GB"' \
    | sort -t$'\t' -k3 -rn | head -15

echo ""
echo "=== Recent Events ==="
box_api GET "/events?stream_type=admin_logs&limit=20&event_type=UPLOAD,DELETE,SHARE" \
    | jq -r '.entries[] | "\(.created_at[0:16])\t\(.event_type)\t\(.created_by.login[0:25])\t\(.source.name[0:25] // "?")"' \
    | head -15

Collaboration Health

#!/bin/bash
echo "=== Shared Links (sample) ==="
box_api GET "/shared_items" 2>/dev/null || echo "Check shared links via folder/file endpoints"

echo ""
echo "=== Groups ==="
box_api GET "/groups?limit=20&fields=id,name,group_type" \
    | jq -r '.entries[] | "\(.id)\t\(.name)\t\(.group_type)"' | head -15

echo ""
echo "=== Recent Collaborations ==="
box_api GET "/folders/0/collaborations?limit=20" \
    | jq -r '.entries[] | "\(.accessible_by.login // "?")\t\(.role)\t\(.status)\t\(.created_at[0:10])"' \
    | head -15

echo ""
echo "=== Retention Policies ==="
box_api GET "/retention_policies?limit=10" \
    | jq -r '.entries[] | "\(.id)\t\(.policy_name[0:30])\t\(.policy_type)\t\(.status)"' | head -10

Output Format

=== Box Account: <name> (<login>) ===
Storage: <used>GB / <total>GB (<pct>%)

--- Users ---
Total: <n>  Active: <n>

--- Activity (recent) ---
Uploads: <n>  Deletes: <n>  Shares: <n>

--- Collaborations ---
Groups: <n>  Active Collabs: <n>

Anti-Hallucination Rules

1. NEVER assume resource names — always discover via CLI/API in Phase 1 before referencing in Phase 2.
2. NEVER fabricate metric names or dimensions — verify against the service documentation or --help output.
3. NEVER mix CLI commands between service versions — confirm which version/API you are targeting.
4. ALWAYS use the discovery → verify → analyze chain — every resource referenced must have been discovered first.
5. ALWAYS handle empty results gracefully — an empty response is valid data, not an error to retry.

Counter-Rationalizations

Common Pitfalls

• Folder ID 0: Root folder always has ID 0
• Fields parameter: Use fields query param to select specific fields and avoid large responses
• Rate limits: 1000 API calls/minute for enterprise; 10 calls/second per user
• Pagination: Use limit and offset; check total_count in response
• Admin events: admin_logs stream type requires admin privileges