MetaTrader Library

What it is

The MetaTrader library lets you place orders from your MT4 or MT5 strategy into single or multiple accounts. It works with MetaTrader 5, and with MetaTrader 4 from build 600.

How it connects

MetaTrader talks to AutoTrader Web directly, over the internet. There is no second program to install and nothing that has to stay running in the background.

Before you begin

Have these ready first:

• MetaTrader installed on your computer — MT5, or MT4 build 600 or newer.
• An AutoTrader Web account.
• At least one broker account added as a pseudo account.

If you face any problem, contact the support team for help.

Installation

1. Sign in to your account at webx.stocksdeveloper.in
2. Go to Tools → Library
3. Click Download on the MetaTrader card, and enter your AutoTrader password when asked
4. Save the zip file
5. In MetaTrader, open File → Open Data Folder
6. Extract the zip into the MQL5 folder — MQL4 if you are on MetaTrader 4

The download already has your API key inside it. That is why the page asks for your password before it gives you the file.

Keep this file to yourself. Anyone who has it can place orders in your accounts. Do not e-mail it, and never attach it to a support request or a forum post.

Allow our address in MetaTrader

This step is not optional. MetaTrader refuses to contact any address that is not on its own allowed list, and it does so silently — your strategy runs, and no order is ever sent.

1. In MetaTrader, open Tools → Options
2. Go to the Expert Advisors tab
3. Tick Allow WebRequest for listed URL
4. Add this address:

https://api.stocksdeveloper.in

5. Click OK

If you skip this, every request fails with error 4014. The library says so in plain words in the Experts tab the first time it happens.

Two rules about where your strategy runs

• Use an Expert Advisor or a Script, not a custom indicator. MetaTrader does not allow web requests from an indicator.
• The Strategy Tester cannot make web requests. A back-test therefore places no orders and reads no portfolio. That is the safe outcome — a back-test can never send real orders by mistake.

The library checks both and tells you once, in the Experts tab, rather than failing quietly on every call.

Where your key lives

Your key sits in one file: Include\autotrader-http-config.mqh. If you ever need to change it, edit that file and recompile your strategy.

The same file holds a few optional settings, such as how long the library re-uses portfolio data before asking again, and a switch to print every request and reply while you are setting things up.

Migration

If you are migrating from our previous generation AutoTrader system, note that the API functions have changed. The most notable change is the addition of the Pseudo Account, an extra parameter in all functions.

Integration

Once the library is installed, the next step is to integrate it into your trading strategy.

Code

As with any other library, to use its functions in your strategy you must include it at the top of your strategy code:

#include <autotrader-http.mqh>

That’s about it. Now you are ready to use the API functions provided in the library.

It is worth calling autoTraderReady() once in OnInit. It checks that your key is set and that this program is allowed to make web requests, and it prints exactly what is missing:

int OnInit()
{
	if(!autoTraderReady()) {
		return(INIT_FAILED);
	}

	return(INIT_SUCCEEDED);
}

Regular Order

string id = placeOrder(AT_ACCOUNT,
	AT_EXCHANGE, AT_SYMBOL, SELL, LIMIT, INTRADAY, 1,
	192.44, 0.0, true);

Bracket Order

string id = placeBracketOrder(AT_ACCOUNT,
	AT_EXCHANGE, AT_SYMBOL, BUY, LIMIT, 1,
	192, 0.0, 1, 1, 0, true);

Cover Order

string id = placeCoverOrder(AT_ACCOUNT,
	AT_EXCHANGE, AT_SYMBOL, BUY, LIMIT, 1,
	192, 190.5, true);

What placeOrder gives you back

placeOrder waits for your broker’s answer and returns your broker’s own order id. It is the same id you see in your broker order book, and it is what you pass to getOrderStatus, modifyOrder and cancelOrder.

There are three possible answers, and it is worth handling all three:

string orderId = placeOrder(AT_ACCOUNT,
	AT_EXCHANGE, AT_SYMBOL, BUY, MARKET, INTRADAY, 1,
	0, 0, true);

if(orderId == AT_UNCONFIRMED) {
	// The order reached your broker and your broker did not confirm it.
	// It may be live. Do NOT send it again -- check your order book.
	Print("Order sent but not confirmed. Check the order book.");
} else if(orderId == "") {
	// The order was not placed. Safe to try again if you want to.
	Print("Order was not placed.");
} else {
	// Placed. This is your broker's order id.
	Print("Order placed: ", orderId);
}

The middle case is rare, but it is the one that matters. If you treat a blank answer and an unconfirmed answer the same way, a strategy can place the same order twice.

Cancel Order

string orderId = placeOrder(AT_ACCOUNT,
	AT_EXCHANGE, AT_SYMBOL, SELL, LIMIT, INTRADAY, 1,
	192.44, 0.0, true);

// You can even store the orderId
// in a variable of your own

// Somewhere later in your code,
// when you want to cancel this order

cancelOrder(AT_ACCOUNT, orderId);

API Functions

All API functions are available inside Include\autotrader-http-api.mqh. Do NOT modify this file.

Note: A detailed explanation, with examples, is provided for each function in the API documentation.

Parameters

The library defines certain parameters that you can set in the chart parameters window. They are listed below.

Parameter	Description
AT_ACCOUNT	Pseudo account
AT_EXCHANGE	Instrument’s exchange
AT_SYMBOL	Instrument’s symbol
AT_PRODUCT_TYPE	Default product type
AT_QUANTITY	Default quantity
AT_PRICE_PRECISION	Price precision for rounding
AT_DEBUG	Print additional logs
AT_AVOID_REPEAT_ORDER_DELAY	Avoid repeat order delay (in seconds)

A broker independent instrument’s Exchange & Symbol can be looked up using this global instruments search tool.

MetaTrader Chart Parameters

MetaTrader Chart Parameters – Derivatives

Logs

The library prints what it is doing in the Experts tab. To see every request and reply, set AT_HTTP_DEBUG to true in Include\autotrader-http-config.mqh. It never prints your API key. Turn it off again once things are working — it is noisy.

MetaTrader Logs

Trading in Multiple Accounts

There are two approaches to trade into multiple accounts. You can read about them in Trading Strategies For Multiple Accounts.

Approach 1: One Strategy Instance Per Account

To trade in multiple accounts, you run multiple charts or scanners, with one chart or scanner per account.

Approach 2: One Strategy for All Accounts

All the API functions take the account number as a parameter. So instead of using just a single AT_ACCOUNT chart parameter, you can hard-code the account in your code. Here is a sample:

// Place order in ACC1
placeOrder("ACC1", AT_EXCHANGE, AT_SYMBOL, BUY, MARKET,
	AT_PRODUCT_TYPE, AT_QUANTITY, 0, defaultTriggerPrice(), false);

// Place order in ACC2
placeOrder("ACC2", AT_EXCHANGE, AT_SYMBOL, BUY, MARKET,
	AT_PRODUCT_TYPE, 0, buyPrice, defaultTriggerPrice(), false);

Portfolio summary functions

The portfolio summary functions — getPortfolioMtm, getPortfolioPnl, and the position and order counts — are not part of this library. Use the position and order functions instead. For example, add up getPositionMtm for the positions you care about.

Holdings

The holdings functions now work. In the older library they always returned a blank value, because the library looked for your symbol in the wrong place. Nothing in your strategy needs to change — getHoldingQuantity, getHoldingAvgPrice and the rest simply return real numbers now.