Sending text messages with Twilio from MS Access

As I have started using Twilio in my applications extensively, for one of the clients there was a need to send out texts from the MS Access database application. After looking around, I have read about MS Outlook text messaging service, but most of the providers were quite shady, so I had decided to write code myself. Which I am sharing now with you.

I started off with turning on Microsoft XML library first in References menu in Microsoft Access in order to make my application able of accessing Internet and sending out XML requests to Twilio:

After this is done, just create a new function in your Modules and throw this code in. Remember to replace YOUR_TWILIO_SID_HERE and YOUR_TWILIO_AUTH_TOKEN_HERE with appropriate values:

Public Function SendSmsTwilioMessage(From As String, ToNumber As String, MessageBody As String) As String

Dim Message As String
Dim Number As String

On Error GoTo Error_Handler

Const NOINTERNETAVAILABLE = -2147012889
Dim objSvrHTTP As ServerXMLHTTP
Dim varProjectID, varCatID, strT As String
Set objSvrHTTP = New ServerXMLHTTP

 

objSvrHTTP.Open "POST", "https://api.twilio.com/2010-04-01/Accounts/YOUR_TWILIO_SID_HERE/SMS/Messages.Xml", False, "YOUR_TWILIO_SID_HERE", "YOUR_TWILIO_AUTH_TOKEN_HERE"
objSvrHTTP.setRequestHeader "Content-Type", "application/x-www-form-urlencoded"
strT = "From=" & From & "&To=" & ToNumber & "&Body=" & MessageBody

objSvrHTTP.send strT

If objSvrHTTP.Status = 201 Then
txtXML = objSvrHTTP.responseText
SendSmsTwilioMessage = "Sent"

ElseIf objSvrHTTP.Status = 400 Then
SendSmsTwilioMessage = "Failed with error# " & _
objSvrHTTP.Status & _
" " & objSvrHTTP.statusText & vbCrLf & vbCrLf

ElseIf objSvrHTTP.Status = 401 Then

SendSmsTwilioMessage = "Failed with error# " & objSvrHTTP.Status & _
" " & objSvrHTTP.statusText & vbCrLf & vbCrLf

Else

SendSmsTwilioMessage = "Failed with error# " & objSvrHTTP.Status & _
" " & objSvrHTTP.statusText
End If


Exit_Procedure:

On Error Resume Next
Set objSvrHTTP = Nothing

Exit Function

Error_Handler:

Select Case Err.Number

Case NOINTERNETAVAILABLE

SendSmsTwilioMessage = "Connection to the internet cannot be made or " & _
"Twilio website address is wrong"

Case Else

SendSmsTwilioMessage = "Error: " & Err.Number & "; Description: " _

& Err.Description

Resume Exit_Procedure

Resume

End Select

End Function