How to find broken macros in Zendesk
By Jake Marsh · Updated
To find broken macros across your Zendesk account, install Slotwell, click its icon in the left navigation bar and open Check macros. It reads every macro and lists each problem: blanks written wrong, blocks that never close, ticket field ids that don't exist or are inactive, drop-down values that aren't options, and Zendesk placeholders for deleted ticket fields. Try it opens any macro with blanks in Try a macro so you can see the fixed reply.
Steps
- Open Slotwell from the left navigation bar. The Check macros tab shows how many macros are broken.
- Click Check macros. Every macro with a problem is listed with what's wrong.
- Open the macro in Admin Center > Workspaces > Agent tools > Macros and fix it.
- Run Check macros again until the list is empty.
- Click Try it on a macro with blanks to open it in Try a macro with a sample requester, enter answers and read the exact reply and ticket changes.
What Check macros reports
| Problem | What it usually means |
|---|---|
| Unknown blank type | A typo such as [[nubmer:Amount]] |
| A token that never closes | A missing ]] |
| A block that never closes, or closes twice | A missing or extra [[/if]] |
| A condition on a label no blank has | The blank was renamed but the [[#if ...]] wasn't |
| A value that isn't an option | [[#if Resolution = Refnd]] when the choices are Refund and Replacement |
| A pick list with fewer than two options | A choice blank with nothing to choose |
| Bounds that aren't numbers or dates | min= or max= written wrong |
| A ticket field id that doesn't exist or is inactive | The field was deleted or turned off after the macro was written |
| A drop-down value that isn't an option | The field's options changed |
A default= source Slotwell doesn't know | A typo in requester., org. or ticket. |
| Blanks in the subject | Slotwell fills the reply only |
| A Zendesk placeholder for a deleted ticket field | {{ticket.ticket_field_<id>}} pointing at a field that's gone |
The last row covers Zendesk's own placeholders, so Check macros is useful even for macros with no Slotwell blanks.
Test before agents see it
Try a macro takes sample answers and shows the reply as the customer would read it, plus the tags and ticket fields the macro would set. Use it after any change to branches, defaults or ticket fields. Nothing is written to a real ticket.
Catch repeats too
Separate from broken macros, the sidebar shows an Already sent to this requester box if this requester got this prompt macro on another ticket recently, with a link to that ticket. The window is 14 days by default and is set in Repeat warning window (days); 0 turns it off.
What it costs
Slotwell is billed monthly by Zendesk per Zendesk account: Team $99 a month for up to 25 shared macros, Professional $199 for up to 250, Enterprise $349 for any number. Every feature is on every plan, with a 14-day free trial. If your account grows past its plan, Check macros and Try a macro keep working. The Slotwell documentation has the full list of checks.
Slotwell
Fill-in macro prompts: macros that ask agents for details, check answers and add conditional text. From $99 a month per Zendesk account.
Questions
Why is my macro placeholder blank?
A common cause is a placeholder for a ticket field that has since been deleted. Check macros lists those. Zendesk also covers the topic in its own article on blank placeholders in custom fields.
Does Check macros change my macros?
No. It only reads and reports. You fix macros in Admin Center as usual.
Which macros does it read?
Every macro it can read with the signed-in user's permissions. Plans count shared macros: all-agent and group macros.
Can I find macros that will set the wrong ticket field?
Yes. Field ids that don't exist or are inactive, and drop-down values that aren't options, are both reported.
More Slotwell guides
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