> ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.trysignalbase.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # Update a Definition > Start or pause one of your team's own definitions. `active: true` starts a ready definition (its test leads become its first signals, reported under `seeded`) or resumes a paused one; `active: false` pauses an active one and keeps the definition, its slot and its signals. Starting a definition that is still compiling, testing or failed is a 400. Free (0 credits). ## OpenAPI ````yaml PUT /signals/custom/definitions/{slug} openapi: 3.1.0 info: title: Custom Signals API description: >- Signals produced by custom signal definitions — signal types defined as data (out of stealth, new office or market entry, first or founding hire, …) rather than the four built-in families. One endpoint serves every definition; `type` selects which. A free companion endpoint lists the definitions, and a team can create, start, pause and remove definitions of its own. license: name: MIT version: 2.1.0 servers: - url: https://www.trysignalbase.com/api/v2 security: - bearerAuth: [] paths: /signals/custom/definitions/{slug}: put: summary: Update a Custom Signal Definition description: >- Start or pause one of your team's own definitions. `active: true` starts a ready definition (its test leads become its first signals, reported under `seeded`) or resumes a paused one; `active: false` pauses an active one and keeps the definition, its slot and its signals. Starting a definition that is still compiling, testing or failed is a 400. Free (0 credits). operationId: updateCustomSignalDefinition parameters: - $ref: '#/components/parameters/DefinitionSlug' requestBody: required: true content: application/json: schema: $ref: '#/components/schemas/DefinitionUpdateRequest' example: active: true responses: '200': description: The definition after the change. content: application/json: schema: $ref: '#/components/schemas/OwnDefinitionResponse' example: success: true data: slug: first_sales_leader_x7k2 name: First sales leader description: >- The author's own company announces its first sales leader (VP Sales, Head of Sales, CRO) or founding sales hire. Not: a sales hire at a company with an existing sales team; a recruiter post about another company. sourceDescription: >- The author's own company announces hiring its first sales leader or is building its first sales team: a first VP Sales, Head of Sales, CRO or founding account executive. Exclude ordinary sales hires at companies that already have a sales team, and recruiter posts about other companies. status: active scope: team attributes: - role - seniority keywordCount: 7 restricted: false monitorId: null compileError: null test: ranAt: '2026-11-10T09:16:40.000Z' mode: global fetched: 140 classified: 140 matched: 4 companiesChecked: 0 leads: - companyName: Acme companyLinkedinUrl: https://www.linkedin.com/company/acme headline: Acme hires its first VP Sales confidence: 0.91 sourceUrl: >- https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7515785729281671168 author: Jane Doe evidenceQuotes: - >- Thrilled to welcome our first ever VP of Sales as we build out the go-to-market team. attributes: role: VP Sales seniority: vp postedAt: '2026-11-08T14:02:00.000Z' lastRunAt: null lastRunStats: null activatedAt: '2026-11-10T09:30:11.000Z' createdAt: '2026-11-10T09:12:04.000Z' signals30d: 4 signalsTotal: 4 lastSignalAt: '2026-11-10T09:30:11.000Z' nextStep: >- Running. New matches arrive as custom signals under this slug and alert like any other signal. seeded: ingested: 4 skipped: 0 meta: endpoint: customSignals.update creditsUsed: 0 '400': description: >- Bad request — a malformed body, slug or value; the message names the field content: application/json: schema: $ref: '#/components/schemas/ErrorResponse' example: success: false error: Cannot start a definition that is compiling. '401': description: Unauthorized - Invalid or missing API key content: application/json: schema: $ref: '#/components/schemas/ErrorResponse' example: success: false error: Invalid API key '403': description: >- Forbidden — custom signals need a Pro plan, or the team has no active subscription content: application/json: schema: $ref: '#/components/schemas/ErrorResponse' example: success: false error: Custom signals are part of the Pro plan. '404': description: >- Not found — no definition with this slug belongs to your team (global definitions are not managed here), or custom signals are not enabled for your account yet content: application/json: schema: $ref: '#/components/schemas/ErrorResponse' example: success: false error: Custom signal not found '429': description: Rate limited content: application/json: schema: $ref: '#/components/schemas/ErrorResponse' example: success: false error: Rate limit exceeded '500': description: Internal server error content: application/json: schema: $ref: '#/components/schemas/ErrorResponse' example: success: false error: Internal server error components: parameters: DefinitionSlug: name: slug in: path required: true schema: type: string pattern: ^[a-z][a-z0-9_]{2,39}$ description: >- The definition's slug, as returned when it was created or by the catalogue. schemas: DefinitionUpdateRequest: type: object required: - active properties: active: type: boolean description: >- true starts a ready or paused definition (a first start makes its test leads its first signals); false pauses an active one. Other transitions are a 400. OwnDefinitionResponse: type: object properties: success: type: boolean data: $ref: '#/components/schemas/OwnDefinition' meta: $ref: '#/components/schemas/Meta' ErrorResponse: type: object properties: success: type: boolean example: false error: type: string OwnDefinition: type: object description: One of your team's own definitions, as the Custom signals page shows it. properties: slug: type: string description: >- Derived from the name and made unique with a short suffix. Pass it as `type` on GET /signals/custom or in a monitor's signal_types. name: type: string description: type: string description: >- The compiled rule a post must satisfy. Written by the compile step from sourceDescription; empty until compiled. sourceDescription: type: - string - 'null' description: What you sent as `description` when creating it. status: type: string enum: - compiling - testing - ready - active - paused - disabled - failed description: >- compiling: search phrases and a rule are being derived. testing: a test run is in flight. ready: tested, not started; review test.leads. active: running. paused: kept, not swept. failed: see compileError. disabled: removed. scope: type: string enum: - team attributes: type: array items: type: string description: >- The definition-specific fields its signals carry (set by the compile step). keywordCount: type: integer description: How many search phrases the compile step produced. restricted: type: boolean description: >- true when the definition only sweeps its targets' posts (through a monitor). monitorId: type: - string - 'null' description: The monitor that holds the targets of a restricted definition. compileError: type: - string - 'null' test: oneOf: - $ref: '#/components/schemas/TestRun' - type: 'null' lastRunAt: type: - string - 'null' format: date-time description: When the sweep last ran this definition. lastRunStats: type: - object - 'null' additionalProperties: true activatedAt: type: - string - 'null' format: date-time createdAt: type: string format: date-time signals30d: type: integer signalsTotal: type: integer lastSignalAt: type: - string - 'null' format: date-time nextStep: type: string description: What to do next, given the status. attached: type: - object - 'null' description: >- Create only: how the targets resolved. null when the definition is global. properties: companies: type: integer invalid: type: array items: type: string seeded: type: object description: >- Update with active:true, first start only: how many test leads became signals. properties: ingested: type: integer skipped: type: integer Meta: type: object properties: endpoint: type: string creditsUsed: type: integer creditsRemaining: type: integer TestRun: type: object description: >- The last test run: how many recent posts were fetched and classified, how many matched, and the matches themselves. properties: ranAt: type: - string - 'null' format: date-time mode: type: string enum: - global - restricted description: restricted when the definition has targets. fetched: type: integer classified: type: integer matched: type: integer companiesChecked: type: integer description: 'Restricted runs only: how many of the targets were checked.' leads: type: array items: $ref: '#/components/schemas/TestLead' TestLead: type: object description: >- One post the test run matched. The leads of a ready definition become its first signals when it is started. properties: companyName: type: - string - 'null' companyLinkedinUrl: type: - string - 'null' headline: type: - string - 'null' description: The event, stated as a fact. confidence: type: - number - 'null' minimum: 0 maximum: 1 sourceUrl: type: string description: The post. author: type: - string - 'null' evidenceQuotes: type: array items: type: string description: Verbatim from the post. attributes: type: object additionalProperties: type: - string - 'null' postedAt: type: - string - 'null' format: date-time securitySchemes: bearerAuth: type: http scheme: bearer bearerFormat: API key description: API key authentication. Include as Bearer token in Authorization header. ```` This documentation is built and hosted on [Mintlify](https://mintlify.com), a developer documentation platform.