Name the units that arrived

POST /items/{sku}/identify

Name the units that arrived, which is what lets them into the sellable pool: one serial per unit for a serial-tracked SKU, a batch (optionally with an expiry) for a batch-tracked one.

Moves the quantity out of awaitingIdentification and into on-hand, and appends inventory.stock-identified — the event the registry fold reads to put the named units on the shelf. 409 NothingAwaitingIdentification if more units are named than have arrived unidentified; 409 IdentityTrackingMismatch if the identity does not match the SKU's tracking mode, including any attempt to identify an untracked SKU (whose stock never waits). Idempotency key: reference, the receipt id that caused the arrival — purchasing issues this itself straight after its receipt, so a receipt that carries serials never leaves stock in the holding bucket at all. Note the seam: the shelf registry (/shelf/:sku) still takes its identity from the purchasing receipt, so units identified here without a purchase order behind them reach on-hand but not the shelf. Moving the registry's identity source onto this event is the change that closes it.

Access

Requires stock:write or receiving:write.

Any one of these scopes is enough.

How scopes come from roles: Scopes and roles. Getting a token: Authentication and app tokens.

Retries

Idempotency key: reference, the receipt id that caused the arrival — purchasing issues this itself straight after its receipt, so a receipt that carries serials never leaves stock in the holding bucket at all.

A retry with the same key answers 200, with what the first call recorded.

Why every write carries a key: Idempotency and retries.

Facts appended

inventory.stock-identified

What a fact is: Facts and the journal.

AI agent tool

Agents call this as inventory_identify_stock (Inventory: Identify stock), in the stock toolset.

Connecting an agent: AI agents.

Example

Name the two serialised units a receipt left waiting, so they can be sold.

curl

curl -X POST 'https://inventory.getmanifold.io/items/WIDGET-SERIAL/identify' \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $MANIFOLD_TOKEN" \
  -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  -d '{
  "quantity": 2,
  "locationId": "loc_019cadd3-8330-7e12-aa44-2cd5f05da74a",
  "serials": [
    "WS-000187",
    "WS-000188"
  ],
  "reference": "rcpt_01a165c6-5860-7504-9e88-9a2239177d20:WIDGET-SERIAL"
}'

JavaScript (fetch)

const response = await fetch("https://inventory.getmanifold.io/items/WIDGET-SERIAL/identify", {
  method: "POST",
  headers: { Authorization: `Bearer ${process.env.MANIFOLD_TOKEN}`, "Content-Type": "application/json" },
  body: JSON.stringify({
    "quantity": 2,
    "locationId": "loc_019cadd3-8330-7e12-aa44-2cd5f05da74a",
    "serials": [
      "WS-000187",
      "WS-000188"
    ],
    "reference": "rcpt_01a165c6-5860-7504-9e88-9a2239177d20:WIDGET-SERIAL"
  }),
});
if (!response.ok) throw new Error(`${response.status}: ${await response.text()}`);
const answer = await response.json();

Request body · application/json

{
  "quantity": 2,
  "locationId": "loc_019cadd3-8330-7e12-aa44-2cd5f05da74a",
  "serials": [
    "WS-000187",
    "WS-000188"
  ],
  "reference": "rcpt_01a165c6-5860-7504-9e88-9a2239177d20:WIDGET-SERIAL"
}

Response · 200 · application/json

{
  "id": "itm_019dfab1-0b40-7767-ab5a-c0a2dbf90526",
  "sku": "WIDGET-SERIAL",
  "name": "Widget controller, serialised",
  "tracking": "serial",
  "costingMethod": "special-serial",
  "kind": "stock",
  "counted": true,
  "sellable": true,
  "barcodes": [],
  "hsCodes": [],
  "accounts": {
    "inventory": "1400",
    "revenue": "4000",
    "expense": "5000"
  },
  "taxClass": "standard",
  "stock": [
    {
      "locationId": "loc_019cadd3-8330-7e12-aa44-2cd5f05da74a",
      "onHand": 7,
      "reserved": 0,
      "damaged": 0,
      "awaitingIdentification": 0,
      "inTransit": 0,
      "incoming": 0
    }
  ],
  "backordered": 0,
  "cost": {
    "costCents": 8900,
    "source": "receipt",
    "at": "2026-10-22T22:41:00.000Z"
  },
  "createdAt": "2026-05-06T00:30:00.000Z",
  "updatedAt": "2026-10-22T22:41:02.000Z"
}

The panel writes this call in other languages. It does not send it: Manifold's APIs do not take calls from a web page on another site, so run the call from your own code or terminal. The whole API as OpenAPI: inventory-manager.openapi.json. Base URL https://inventory.getmanifold.io.

Errors

Every refusal is a status and a JSON body whose _tag names it. A refused call changes nothing.

`401`

Refusal	What it means	What to do
`Unauthorized` reason	The token is missing, expired or not one Manifold issued.	Get a fresh token and send the call again.
`TokenAlreadyUsed` tokenId	A single-use app token was already spent.	Mint a new token for this call.

`402`

Refusal	What it means	What to do
`SubscriptionRequired` status	The organization's subscription has lapsed, so writes are refused.	An owner settles billing. Reads still work meanwhile.

`403`

Refusal	What it means	What to do
`TenantRequired` userId	The token names no organization.	Choose the organization, then get a new token.
`ScopeRequired` required	The token's roles do not grant the scope this call needs.	Ask an owner or admin for a role that grants it.

`404`

Refusal	What it means	What to do
`ItemNotFound` sku	No such record in this organization.	Check the id in the path or the body.
`LocationNotFound` locationId	No such record in this organization.	Check the id in the path or the body.

`409`

Refusal	What it means	What to do
`LocationArchived` locationId	The location is archived, and an archived location takes no changes or stock.	Use an active location.
`NothingAwaitingIdentification` sku, awaiting, requested	More units are named than arrived unidentified. `awaiting` says how many wait.	Name at most `awaiting` units.
`IdentityTrackingMismatch` sku, tracking, reason	The serials or batch do not fit how the SKU is tracked. `tracking` says how it is.	Name serials for a serial-tracked SKU, a batch for a batch-tracked one, nothing for an untracked one.
`MirroredFromSource` source	This area is fed by your source system until the organization goes live.	Make the change in the source system, or go live first.

`503`

Refusal	What it means	What to do
`RequestLogUnavailable` tokenId, reason	The service could not record the request, so it did nothing.	Send the same request again, with the same key.

How refusals work everywhere: Errors.

Used in

Ordering stock in, and counting it when it lands, step 4: Name the units
What happens when you get it wrong, or send it twice, step 6: Try to identify stock that never waited