When you must ask repeatedly.
WHEN POLLING IS NECESSARY
No webhooks available Webhooks unreliable Reconciliation alongside webhooks
WHY RECONCILIATION MATTERS EVEN WITH WEBHOOKS
Events are missed, and a periodic sweep catches what slipped.
WHAT TO POLL FOR
Changes since a recorded point, not everything.
WHAT THAT REQUIRES
The interface supporting a modified-since filter or a cursor.
WHAT TO DO IF IT DOES NOT
Fetch and compare, accepting the cost.
WHAT WATERMARK TO STORE
The point reached, updated only after successful processing.
WHY ONLY AFTER
Updating first means losing records when processing fails.
WHAT INTERVAL TO CHOOSE
The longest that meets the need.
WHY
Every poll costs both sides.
WHAT TO ADD
A small random variation.
WHY
It prevents every integration polling on the same second.
WHAT TO RESPECT
Rate limits, and any documented polling guidance.
WHAT TO HANDLE
Empty results Errors, without losing the watermark Large backlogs after an outage
WHAT TO DO ABOUT A BACKLOG
Process in pages, committing progress as you go.
WHAT TO MONITOR
Whether the poll is running, and how far behind it is.
WHAT TO ALERT ON
A watermark that has stopped advancing.
