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I developed a Google Apps Script to process some emails automatically (connected to Gmail), more or less like a bot, and it's working as expected. It runs every minute, using a Time-driven trigger Minutes timer > Every minute:

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Is it possible to distribute this "script" for other users (including commercially), or will it necessarily be open-sourced? (note: Google Apps Scripts are using Javascript internally)

I see Deploy as web app, Deploy as API executable, Register in Chrome Web Store, Deploy as web add-on, Deploy from manifest, but I don't know which one to use to offer this service for other users.

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Also, will it necessarily be on the Chrome Web Store or are there other ways to commercially distribute/grant access to a customer to such apps?

TL;DR: How to distribute to customers a Google Apps Script that processes Gmail emails? (that needs to run automatically every minute).

Note: It seems that Gmail add-ons are available here: https://gsuite.google.com/marketplace/category/works-with-gmail. But it seems that we cannot sell an add-on commercially. Are Gmail add-ons necessarily free?

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Note: the script is not linked to a precise browser or computer (thus it cannot be installed with a browser extension on a particular computer), it quietly runs on the Gmail server every minute.

Basj
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  • Have you looked at the documentation for [GMail Add-ons](https://developers.google.com/gmail/add-ons/) – Alan Wells May 19 '18 at 17:21
  • Yes @SandyGood but I see many deployment options in the menu shown here, so I don't know which one to choose to distribute to customers. Also I need the script to run every 2 minutes (it checks if new emails have come in a specific gmail label), is this possible with a commercial apps script / add on? – Basj May 19 '18 at 17:26
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    The only option is "Deploy from manifest" None of the other options are for a GMail Add-on. It's not a web app. It's not an API executable. Registering in the Chrome Web Store is for web apps as Chrome extensions, I believe. The "web add-on" option does not have an option for GMail, only Docs, Sheets, Forms and Slides. And it's definitely not an Android add-on, so the only thing left is "Deploy from manifest." Public GMail add-ons are being restricted. [You need to be approved](https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdQD9F5TXZvlpQcY1I6fvaZqLvULG1THhou3y5IpRRwjgwZYg/viewform) – Alan Wells May 19 '18 at 18:23
  • @SandyGood Thank you. Where can I distribute my Gmail add-on when it will be ready ? The only place I see is: https://gsuite.google.com/marketplace/category/works-with-gmail. But it seems that we cannot sell an add-on commercially. Are Gmail add-ons necessarily free? – Basj May 23 '18 at 22:16
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    You can implement a payment system in an add-on even though it's advertised as free. – Alan Wells May 23 '18 at 22:30
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    You certainly can't run a time based trigger in an add-on more than once per hour, though. If you want that level of querying, use the addon to configure a cron service on your server for people who are paying you, and from your server run your functions via the apps script API. (etc). – tehhowch May 24 '18 at 01:18
  • @tehhowch Which kind of manifest file / trigger is used to run an add-on once per hour? I have looked at the doc, but I don't find a trigger to put in the manifest file that allows to run every x hours. I've only found things like `"contextualTriggers": [{ "unconditional": { }, "onTriggerFunction": "buildAddOn" }]` – Basj May 28 '18 at 15:42
  • @Basj Gmail add-ons only have the unconditional trigger available - i.e. they can only activate when the user opens a new message and then selects the add-on. Other add-ons (i.e. Sheets & Docs) can use time-based triggers. Ref: https://developers.google.com/gmail/add-ons/guides/restrictions#wzxhzdk7wzxhzdk8use_apps_script_triggers – tehhowch May 28 '18 at 17:41

1 Answers1

2

Partial answer:

The page Restrictions about Gmail add-ons states that they don't provide a direct way to charge users to install an add-on:

We don't provide a way to charge users for installing add-ons, and add-ons can't include ads. However, you can roll your own payment system or call into an existing billing database. Your add-on can connect to non-Google services that bill users.

However, it's unclear for me if it's possible to run a time-driven background task (let's say once every 15 minutes) by a Gmail add-on. On the one hand, I see in the Restrictions page:

You can't create or use Apps Script simple or installable triggers in a Gmail add-on.

and time-driven triggers seem to be included in "simple" or "installable" category, but I'm not sure. For example, everyMinutes(n):

Specifies to run the trigger every n minutes. n must be 1, 5, 10, 15 or 30. 

ScriptApp.newTrigger("myFunction")
    .timeBased()
    .everyMinutes(10)
    .create();

On the other hand, I see an example here with so-called Universal Actions:

/**
 * Run background tasks, none of which should alter the UI.
 * Also records the time of sync in the script properties.
 *
 * @param {Object} e an event object
 */
function runBackgroundSync(e) {
    ...
Basj
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  • As per example, `runBackgroundSync` will be triggered only by the user. If the user explicitly clicks on the universal action. – V.i.K.i Mar 14 '19 at 07:01