How to add WhatsApp to Infor LN
Short answer
Add WhatsApp to Infor LN by listening to LN events through Infor ION (or polling LN tables), sending approved template messages through the WhatsApp Business Platform, and writing replies back through ION or an LN business interface. Keep a thin middleware in between so opt-ins, templates and approvals live outside the ERP.
Infor LN sites, many of them long-time Baan shops, tend to run purchasing, shipping and service with a lot of email and phone calls. Buyers chase suppliers for acknowledgements, customer service answers 'where is my order' calls, and field engineers wait for someone at a desk to approve something. WhatsApp is already on every phone in those conversations, especially with suppliers and customers in Europe, India, Latin America and the Middle East.
LN does not speak WhatsApp, and it should not. The WhatsApp Business Platform has its own rules: message templates approved by Meta, explicit opt-in, a 24 hour customer service window, and webhooks for inbound replies. The clean pattern is a small middleware that translates between LN business events and WhatsApp messages, so the ERP only ever sees validated transactions.
This page walks through what LN actually offers as an integration surface, how to wire it to the Cloud API or a business solution provider, and where on-prem LN installations change the design.
What teams use it for
Supplier order acknowledgement
When a purchase order is approved and released, send the supplier a template message with the order number and a Confirm or Change date button. The reply is matched to the PO line and the promised date is updated after a buyer reviews it.
Shipment notices to customers
When a shipment is confirmed in warehousing, notify the customer contact with carrier, tracking reference and expected arrival. This removes a large share of 'where is my order' calls without opening customer portal access to LN.
Approval requests for managers
Send purchase requisition or engineering change approvals to a manager's phone with Approve and Reject quick replies. The decision is posted to LN only after the middleware checks the approver identity and limits.
Field service dispatch
Notify a service technician of a new service order, with site address and the contact person. The technician replies with arrival and completion codes that update the service order status.
Shortage alerts to planners
When a planned order cannot be covered, push a short message to the responsible planner with the item, the demand date and the gap, linking to the LN session or a read-only page.
Infor LN integration surface
- Infor ION (Intelligent Open Network): LN publishes Business Object Documents (BODs) such as purchase order, sales order and shipment documents to ION, where a Document Flow can route them to an external endpoint. Which BODs are available depends on LN version and your ION setup.
- ION API Gateway: REST access to ION APIs using OAuth 2.0 with a service account and an .ionapi credentials file, usable from middleware to read or post LN data where API sets are enabled.
- LN business interfaces and DAL (Data Access Layer): session-level objects that enforce LN business rules, preferred over direct SQL for any write.
- The LN database tables (for example tdpur400 for purchase orders and tdsls400 for sales orders, with a company number suffix) can be read from a replica for polling, but the exact table layout should be confirmed per version and never written to directly.
- LN Exchange schemes and file based import or export, still common on older Baan and LN 6.1 installations where ION is not deployed.
How it works
- 1
Pick the events and recipients
List the LN events that should trigger a message and which business partner contact receives it. Contact phone numbers in E.164 format must be stored and flagged with WhatsApp opt-in, either in LN contact extensions or in the middleware.
- 2
Get events out of LN
Use an ION Document Flow to forward the relevant BODs to a webhook or message queue. Where ION is not available, poll a read replica on a short interval using a change timestamp, or use a scheduled LN export.
- 3
Set up the WhatsApp channel
Register a WhatsApp Business account with the Cloud API directly or through a business solution provider. Submit templates for each message type with named variables, and wait for approval before building flows around them.
- 4
Build the middleware
A small service maps LN events to templates, checks opt-in, sends the message, stores the message id and correlation to the LN document, and records delivery status webhooks.
- 5
Handle inbound replies
Receive the webhook, verify its signature, match the reply to the stored correlation, and classify intent. Quick reply buttons are far more reliable than free text for transactional replies.
- 6
Write back safely
Post accepted changes through ION or an LN business interface under a dedicated integration user. Anything outside simple confirmations goes to a review queue for a buyer or planner.
Example flows
Purchase order confirmation by WhatsApp
Trigger: A purchase order is approved in LN and the supplier contact has WhatsApp opt-in.
- ION forwards the purchase order BOD to the middleware.
- Middleware picks the po_confirmation template and fills order number, line count and requested date.
- Supplier taps Confirm or Propose new date.
- Middleware matches the reply to the PO and creates a pending update for the buyer.
- Buyer approves, and the promised delivery date is written back to LN.
Result: Acknowledgements arrive in hours instead of days, and every change is reviewed before it touches the order.
Delivery notice with customer reply
Trigger: A shipment is confirmed in LN warehousing.
- The middleware receives the shipment event and finds the customer contact.
- A shipment_update template goes out with carrier and tracking link.
- If the customer replies with a question, the message is routed to the customer service queue rather than answered automatically.
Result: Customers get proactive updates and service staff only see the conversations that need a human.
Keeping data on-prem
WhatsApp itself is a cloud service, so the question is how much LN data leaves your network. On-prem LN can stay entirely behind the firewall: the middleware runs inside your network, reads events from ION or a replica, and makes only outbound HTTPS calls to the WhatsApp Cloud API; inbound webhooks are received through a hardened reverse proxy in a DMZ that forwards to the middleware. Keep message content minimal (order number, status, date), avoid pricing, drawings and controlled technical data, and use links that require login for anything more. If classification rules forbid external messaging for some programs, scope WhatsApp to commercial suppliers and non-controlled orders only.
Security checklist
- Send the minimum data in each template; never include prices, part drawings or export-controlled technical data in a WhatsApp message.
- Verify the webhook signature on every inbound call and reject replays.
- Use a dedicated LN integration user with only the permissions required for confirmations, not a named employee account.
- Keep opt-in records with timestamp and source, and honor stop requests immediately.
- Log every outbound and inbound message with its LN document reference for audit.
Ways to get it done
Off-the-shelf notification tool or BSP workflow builder
Effort: Days to a couple of weeks, plus template approval time.
Good for one-way alerts such as shipment notices where no data returns to LN.
Build in-house on ION and the Cloud API
Effort: Typically several weeks for a first two-way flow, plus ongoing template upkeep.
Fits teams with ION skills and a developer who can own the middleware.
Work with a partner such as Netray
Effort: A scoped pilot on one flow, usually weeks rather than months.
Useful when you want WhatsApp plus an AI layer that classifies replies and drafts LN updates, with the middleware kept on-prem.
Pitfalls
- !Using free-text messages outside the 24 hour window: only approved templates are allowed, so design flows around templates early.
- !Writing replies straight into LN without review, which lets a misread date or quantity corrupt an order.
- !Storing phone numbers without consent records, which creates both compliance and quality-rating problems for your WhatsApp number.
- !Assuming every LN version exposes the same BODs; confirm the available documents in your ION instance before promising a flow.
Frequently asked questions
Does Infor LN have a built-in WhatsApp connector?
Not as a standard feature as far as we know. LN integrates through ION, APIs and file exchange, so WhatsApp is normally added through a middleware or a partner-built connector. Check with Infor and your reseller for anything newer in your version.
Can we use WhatsApp with an on-prem LN installation?
Yes. The middleware sits inside your network, pulls events from ION or a replica, and only calls out to the WhatsApp Cloud API. Inbound webhooks need a controlled entry point such as a reverse proxy, but LN itself does not need to be exposed.
Do suppliers have to opt in?
Yes. WhatsApp requires clear opt-in before you send business-initiated template messages. Capture it through a supplier portal, a contract clause or a first-contact form, and keep a record of when and how it was given.
Can replies update LN automatically?
They can, but we recommend automatic updates only for low-risk confirmations such as acknowledging a date. Anything that changes quantity, price or a date beyond a tolerance should be queued for a buyer to approve first.
How is this different from LN notifications by email?
Email works but is often ignored or delayed on the supplier side. WhatsApp gets faster responses and supports button replies, but it adds template management and opt-in handling. Many teams keep email as the fallback channel.
Want WhatsApp working on your Infor LN?
A free 30 minute assessment: we map the integration path for your version and setup, and where it should run.
Get a free assessment