API Parameters

Every trading platform has its own format for orders, positions, trades and margins. AutoTrader’s job is to hide those differences and give you a single standard format. You pass values in the standard format defined by the AutoTrader team, and the software converts them internally for your trading platform.

The AutoTrader API is offered in multiple programming languages. The descriptions below are generic and apply to all of them, so there may be small differences. Please also check the language-specific examples for your client setup.

Order Id

Data type: Text or String

An order id uniquely identifies an order. In AutoTrader you deal with 3 types of order ids.

1. Publisher Id — Used in languages like AmiBroker AFL or MetaTrader MQL, where direct HTTP REST communication is not possible. This id is generated by the API functions, and AutoTrader maps it to the actual order. It may not be unique across different users, because it is generated on the client side.
2. System Id — When AutoTrader receives a new order, it assigns a new id. This id is unique across all users of the AutoTrader platform.
3. Platform Id — The id given to the order by your stock broker’s trading platform.

Account

Data type: Text or String

A nickname (also known as a pseudo account) you have given for your broker account. The system maps it internally to an actual trading account. Taking a nickname instead of the real broker account lets you switch broker accounts from the system without changing your code. See how to create a nickname.

Depending on the client, this parameter is named pseudoAccount (HTTP, Java, C#), pseudo_account (Python), PseudoAccount (Excel) or simply account (AmiBroker, MetaTrader). Whatever the name, the value you pass is always the nickname. For example:

pseudoAccount=ACC_NICK_NAME

Note: You can rename a nickname later from the Trading Accounts screen. The nickname is the name your code passes here, so if you rename it, update the name in your code to match. If you do not, your orders will fail.

Variety

Data type: Text or String or Enumeration

Variety represents the kind of an order.

Value	Meaning
REGULAR	A regular order
BO	Your broker’s own bracket order — available only on brokers that offer one
CO	Your broker’s own cover order — available only on brokers that offer one
AT_BO	An AutoTrader bracket order — works on every broker we support
AT_CO	An AutoTrader cover order — works on every broker we support

AT_BO and AT_CO are our own bracket and cover orders. Your entry is placed as an ordinary intraday order and AutoTrader Web watches your target and stoploss, so they work even on brokers that do not offer bracket or cover orders. They are always intraday, they do not give the extra margin some brokers give on their own bracket orders, and the position is squared off automatically before the market closes. See Bracket & Cover Orders.

Exchange

Data type: Text or String or Enumeration

An exchange represents the Indian stock exchange on which the order symbol is traded. Pass the standard code for the relevant exchange and market segment, for example the cash segment, the F&O segment or the commodity segment.

Symbol

Data type: Text or String

A symbol represents a stock or derivative contract. The symbol must be a broker independent symbol. You can use this Indian API stock symbol search tool.

Trade Type

Data type: Text or String or Enumeration

Represents a trade type, sometimes called transaction type. The valid trade types are:

Value	Meaning
BUY	A buy order
SELL	A sell order
SHORT	A sell order (added for charting software support — only allowed in csv format used by Desktop client)
COVER	A buy order (added for charting software support — only allowed in csv format used by Desktop client)

Order Type

Data type: Text or String or Enumeration

Represents an order type. There are 4 valid order types.

Value	Meaning
LIMIT	A limit order
MARKET	A market order
STOP_LOSS	A stoploss order
SL_MARKET	A stoploss market order

Product Type

Data type: Text or String or Enumeration

Represents a product type. There are 4 valid product types.

Value	Meaning
INTRADAY	An intraday or MIS order
DELIVERY	A delivery order
NORMAL	A normal order
MTF	A margin trading facility order (also known as buy now pay later). Supported only by brokers that offer MTF.

Validity

Data type: Text or String or Enumeration

Represents order validity. There are 2 valid values.

Value	Meaning
DAY	Order is valid for the day (this is the default)
IOC	Immediate or cancel

Note: Do not confuse Validity with Product Type. They are different things.

Quantity

Data type: Numeric or Integer

AutoTrader passes the quantity as it is to the trading platform.

The confusion usually happens for derivatives: should you pass quantity as a multiple of lot size, or as a number of lots? All trading platforms supported by AutoTrader take quantity in multiple of lot size.

Example: To buy 1 lot of NIFTY Future (assuming a lot size of 75), enter the quantity as:

= (#lots * lots_size) = (1 * 75) = 75

Disclosed Quantity

Data type: Numeric or Integer

Represents a disclosed quantity. It is optional and defaults to zero.

Price

Data type: Decimal or Float

Represents the order price. For a market order, this price defaults to zero.

Note: Price is automatically rounded to the nearest tick price, so you need not worry about price being a multiple of tick size. Example: a price of 50.54 with a tick size of 0.05 becomes 50.55.

Trigger Price

Data type: Decimal or Float

Represents a trigger price. It is used in a stoploss order or a cover order.

For a cover order, this is the actual price your stop-loss sits at. It is a price, not a distance. This is worth remembering, because a bracket order works the other way round: its stoploss is a distance from your entry, not a price. See Stoploss (Bracket Order) below.

Note: Trigger price is automatically rounded to the nearest tick price, so you need not worry about it being a multiple of tick size. Example: a price of 50.54 with a tick size of 0.05 becomes 50.55.

Target (Bracket Order)

Data type: Decimal or Float

Represents the target of a bracket order, as a distance from your entry price. It is not the price you want to exit at.

Example: you buy at 180.50 and pass target=5. Your target sits at 185.50, which is 5 above your entry.

A common mistake is to pass the exit price itself. If you want to exit at 185.50 after buying at 180.50, pass target=5, not target=185.5 — the second one asks for a target 185.50 away from your entry.

On a sell order the target sits below your entry, because that is the profitable side. You still pass the same positive distance.

The same value and the same meaning apply to an AutoTrader bracket order (AT_BO). An AutoTrader cover order (AT_CO) has no target.

Stoploss (Bracket Order)

Data type: Decimal or Float

Represents the stoploss of a bracket order, as a distance from your entry price. It is not the price you want your stop to sit at.

Example: you buy at 180.50 and pass stoploss=2.5. Your stop sits at 178.00, which is 2.50 below your entry.

On a sell order the stop sits above your entry. You still pass the same positive distance.

The same value and the same meaning apply to an AutoTrader bracket order (AT_BO) and to an AutoTrader cover order (AT_CO).

⚠️ Note the difference from your broker’s cover order. On a CO the stop is given as a real price, in Trigger Price above. On an AT_CO it is given here, as a distance from your entry price — and there is no trigger price at all. Passing a stop price where a distance is expected is the one mistake worth checking for when you move a cover order across.

Trailing Stoploss (Bracket Order)

Data type: Decimal or Float

Represents the trailing stoploss of a bracket order: the step your stop-loss moves by as the price moves in your favour. Like the two values above, it is a distance, not a price. It only ever moves your stop closer to the current price, never further away.

Example: you buy at 180.50 with stoploss=2.5 and trailingStoploss=1. Your stop starts at 178.00, and moves up in steps of 1 as the price rises.

Pass it as a rupee amount — for example, 1 for a one-rupee step.

Some brokers work a little differently. Their own system takes the trailing stoploss as a number of ticks. On such a system, a one-rupee step on an instrument with a tick size of 0.05 would have to be entered as 20, calculated as 1 divided by 0.05.

You do not need to do that here. Because AutoTrader is broker independent, always pass the rupee amount. The software reads the tick size and converts it into ticks for you where the broker needs it.

A trailing stoploss needs a stoploss with it. The stoploss says how far behind the price your stop sits; the trailing stoploss says how much it moves each step. On its own, a trailing value cannot say both, so an order carrying only a trailing stoploss is rejected before it is placed. This applies to bracket orders, AutoTrader bracket and cover orders, and alerts alike.

The stop moves in whole steps. Buy at 100 with stoploss=10 and trailingStoploss=2: the stop starts at 90, is still 90 when the price reaches 101, and moves to 92 once the price reaches 102. You can try this on the Bracket & Cover Orders page.

AMO

Data type: Text or String or Boolean

Indicates whether an order is an After Market Order.

Value	Meaning
TRUE	The order is an AMO
FALSE	The order is not an AMO (this is the default)

Validate

Data type: Boolean

This parameter is only used in AmiBroker. When set to True, the system will not accept back to back BUY or back to back SELL orders. It treats them as duplicate orders caused by a known limitation of AmiBroker. When you get a signal in AmiBroker, it stays active until the candle completes. Every time the strategy runs during this active state, it sees the signal is active and places an order, which results in duplicate orders.

AmiBroker experts can set it to False and manage the signal in their own strategy code. This simple flag was built for beginners.

OrderStatus

Data type: Text or String or Enumeration

Represents order status in a broker-independent way. Broker-specific statuses are not uniform, so AutoTrader parses them into a standard status.

Value	Meaning
OPEN	Open
COMPLETE	Complete
CANCELLED	Cancelled
REJECTED	Rejected
TRIGGER_PENDING	Trigger pending
UNKNOWN	Unknown (when the system cannot determine the type from the raw order status received from the stock broker)

MarginCategory

Data type: Text or String or Enumeration

Represents margin category.

Value	Meaning
EQUITY	Margin for the Equity section of your account
COMMODITY	Margin for the Commodity section of your account
ALL	Combined margin for Equity and Commodity

PositionCategory

Data type: Text or String or Enumeration

Represents position category.

Value	Meaning
DAY	Snapshot of the buying and selling activity for that particular day
NET	Actual or current net position

Not every broker sends both. Some brokers give NET only, so a read scoped to DAY returns nothing for those accounts. NET works for every broker, so prefer it unless you specifically need today’s activity on its own. See precautions for the brokers this applies to.

PositionType

Data type: Text or String or Enumeration

Represents position type.

Value	Meaning
MIS	MIS or intraday position
CNC	CNC or delivery position
NRML	Normal position position
BO	BracketOrder position
CO	CoverOrder position

PositionState

Data type: Text or String or Enumeration

Represents the state of the position, which can be either OPEN or CLOSED.

Value	Meaning
OPEN	The position is open
CLOSED	The position is closed

PositionDirection

Data type: Text or String or Enumeration

Represents the direction of the position.

Value	Meaning
LONG	A long position
SHORT	A short position
NEUTRAL	A neutral position

Related pages

• Read Portfolio Summary
• API Rate Limits
• Place Regular Order
• Place Bracket Order
• Place Cover Order
• Read Positions
• Read Margins