How to authorize QuickBooks Online requests for a private desktop application

Question

I know there are other questions regarding this issue, but even after reading those, looking at the associated links and checking the QuickBooks docs, I'm struggling to understand it all and I feel like I'm going around in circles.

I need to create a load of invoices in my QuickBooks Online account based on data in Excel/CSV files. I will take a long time to do it manually (as well as being really tedious work) and I'll have to do it again in the future. I'm just trying to write a Java desktop application that will parse the file data and create the invoices in QuickBooks Online.

This is only for me and only for my companies QuickBooks account. I don't need my application to access other QuickBooks accounts, but I understand that I still need to go through the oAuth process (or do I?) to get the credentials that will allow me to make requests.

OAuthRequestValidator oauthValidator = new OAuthRequestValidator(
        accessToken, accessTokenSecret, consumerKey, consumerSecret);

ServiceContext context = new ServiceContext(
        realmID, IntuitServicesType.QBD, oauthValidator);

I keep hearing that I have to register my app with Intuit to get the consumerKey and consumerSecret, but when I try to do that through developer.intuit.com, it's requiring an app URL and host name domain. This is a desktop app, I don't have those.

Is there seriously no way to simply access my QuickBooks Online account using the SDK by just supplying my userID and password?

Answer 1

I understand that I still need to go through the oAuth process (or do I?)

Yes, you do.

but when I try to do that through developer.intuit.com, it's requiring an app URL and host name domain.

Just enter in localhost to get through the registration process.

Then, you can use Intuit's OAuth Playground tool to get the access tokens you need, without having to actually implement any website-based stuff.

• https://appcenter.intuit.com/Playground/OAuth

Is there seriously no way to simply access my QuickBooks Online account using the SDK by just supplying my userID and password?

There is no way to access your QuickBooks Online account programatically with just a username and password. You need to use OAuth.

It's really not that difficult if you just enter localhost in and use the Playground tool. Should take all of 30 minutes tops to get going.