Working with Chats and Channels

Finding Chats & Channels

How to Find a Chat With a User?

To find a personal chat, enter the user's name (full name) in the search field above the chat list. The user will be found even if you do not have a personal chat with them but share a group chat. If there are no common chats, find the user via the Contacts section or use the new chat creation button (pencil or plus icon).

Where to Find Shared Chats on the Server?

To view open corporate chats, channels, and bots, select Catalog above the chat list.

I Need a Corporate Chat, but It's Not in the Catalog. Why?

If a chat or channel is closed, it will not appear in the catalog. To join a closed chat, you need an invitation from the creator or administrator. You can also contact the corporate server administrator to be added via the admin panel.

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❓Related Topics:
• Empty chat list on iOS after restarting the app

How to Join a Chat or Channel?

If the chat or channel you are looking for is not in the directory (it is private), contact its administrator to be added there, or contact your organization’s support to be added through the server administrator.

Search for Chans and Channels with Exact Match

The Exact Match Search feature is available in the app settings directly or in the Interface/Special settings section.

State	Description
Exact Match Search Off	By default, this feature is disabled, and the search is performed with typo support.
Exact Match Search On	Only results that exactly match the request will be displayed.

Chats & Channels Members

How to send a private message?

To create a personal chat, follow these steps:

App Version	Actions
Android	1. Open the contact card from the Contacts section > click the message button. 2. Find the contact through chat search. 3. Tap on the “pencil” icon at the bottom right of the chat list > find the user > open their card > tap the message button.
iOS	1. Open the contact card from the Contacts section > click the message button. 2. Tap on the “pencil” icon in the top right corner > find the user > open their card > tap the message button.
Web/Desktop	1. Open the contact card from the Contacts section > click the message button. 2. Find the contact through chat search. 3. Click the “plus” icon above the chat list > Start a personal chat > select the contact.

How to Create a Group or Channel?

To create a group chat or channel, follow these steps:

App Version	Actions
Android	Tap on the “pencil” icon at the bottom right of the chat list > select Group chat or Channel > add users via search or create an invite link > specify the chat name.
iOS	Tap on the “pencil” icon in the top right corner > select Group Chat or Channel > add users via search or create an invite link > specify the chat name.
Web/Desktop	Click the “plus” icon above the chat list > select Group chat or Channel > add users via search or create an invite link > specify the chat name.

How to Create an Open Chat Available in the Corporate Catalog?

A corporate server administrator can create an open chat. For more details see the public & private chats description.

How to Add Members to a Chat or Channel?

Users and chatbots can be members of chats or channels. They can be added in the following ways:

Method	Description
Manually	The chat or channel administrator can add members via the special button in the chat card. Starting with version 3.58, you can search not only by name but also by profile link or HUID.
Invite Link or QR Code	The chat or channel administrator can create a link or QR code with access parameters: Users from their own and trusted corporate servers. Users from any corporate server. All users (including guests).
CTS eCTS Open Chat	A group chat or channel can be made open, so users can find it via Catalog. Contact your organization's support team or system administrator.
CTS eCTS Automatic Addition	Use the Invite Bot to automatically add newly registered users based on criteria. Contact your organization's support team or system administrator to get the bot and instructions.
CTS eCTS Via Admin Panel	Contact your organization's support team or system administrator. For Administrators: Bulk Adding Users to a Chat by List To add users in bulk via the Admin Panel: 1. Export all registered users: Users > Download as CSV > select only cts_user > save the file. ⚠️ Do not delete any fields or columns from the exported file to avoid errors during subsequent import. 2. In the admin panel, open the chat > Users > Import Users and upload the file.

Chat and Channel Administration

The creator of a group chat or channel can appoint other members (users and chatbots) as administrators. Administrators, like the chat creator, can manage the member list, change chat or channel information, and see channel subscribers. Avatars of administrator members in the mention list (@) are marked with a star icon.

How to Revoke Administrator Rights?

The creator or another chat administrator can revoke administrator rights from a member via the member's context menu (web/desktop) or by long-pressing them in the members list (mobile clients).

For Administrators: Managing Chat Administrator Rights on the Server

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eCTS

You can manage chat administrator rights in the admin panel: in the Chats section, find the desired chat > open Users > toggle true and false in the Administrator column for the desired users. Note that for this, the chat must have an administrator registered on this corporate server.

Why a New Channel Administrator Does Not Get Rights Immediately

In channels, service events — adding and removing participants, assigning administrators — are not sent to subscribers so as not to clutter the publication feed.

Therefore, changes to membership and rights are not applied in the app immediately: they will appear after signing in to the app again, reloading the page, or opening the channel card. The publications themselves continue to arrive as usual.

Can an Administrator View Channel Statistics?

Currently, you can only track the number of views on posts in channels. Additional statistics for analyzing reach, engagement, and so on for channels will be available later.

How Do I Disable Calls and Conferences in a Chat?

The group chat administrator can prevent other participants from starting calls and conferences in it: open the chat menu > chat settings > the Allowed in chat section and turn off the Calls or Conferences toggle. By default, both are enabled; regular participants do not have these toggles.

When Calls is turned off, the call button in the top bar of the chat becomes gray and crossed out, and the call does not start. When Conferences is turned off, the chat card under the name shows the gray label Conferences are disabled instead of Join conference, and the button with the number of participants is not displayed. The toggles are available on Android starting from version 3.59 and on iOS starting from version 3.72; they will appear in the web/desktop app later. The restriction itself is stored on the server, so it applies to all chat participants: where the toggles are not yet available, the call simply will not start.

Invitation Links to Chats and Channels

Who Can Create an Invitation Link and How?

A participant who is an administrator can create an invitation link to join a chat or channel: open the chat/channel info card > click the add participants button.

What Settings Can Be Configured for a Link?

On the link creation and editing screens, you can set its name, expiration date, which servers' users it will be available to, and whether a password will be required to open it. A QR code generator is available.

Access Option	Description
Trusted corporate servers	Access for users from your or trusted (trusted) corporate servers in your organization ( Lite , CTS , eCTS ).
Any corporate servers	Access for users from any corporate server, including other organizations ( Lite , CTS , eCTS ).
Everyone (including guests)	Access for any users, including personal account holders on RTS and guests ( RTS , Lite , CTS , eCTS ). CTS eCTS By default, guest profiles are created on RTS . If necessary, the corporate server administrator can switch guest profile creation to corporate server. After this, guest profiles will be created there for all new links to chats, calls, and conferences created by users of this corporate server.

How to Manage Previously Created Links?

Open the chat or channel info card > select Access links. Here you'll see a list of all previously created links, where you can change their settings, copy them, or revoke (delete) them. ⚠️ This feature was introduced in version 3.63 of the mobile clients; it will be available in the web/desktop app later.

Can the Link Be Shown to Regular Participants, Not Just Administrators?

Yes. To do this, open Access links > Edit and make the link visible and copyable for participants.

Restoring Chats

How to Return to a Chat If I Deleted It?

If you deleted a personal chat, you can recreate it from the contacts list.

If you deleted a group chat or channel, it's administrator or creator of the chat can restore your access. The administrator can also send you an invitation link.

How to Reenter a Chat After Leaving a Corporate Server?

If you log out of the corporate server (request logout and the server administrator confirms it), you will lose access:

• to all corporate chats (you will be removed from the list of participants);
• to correspondence in personal chats that occurred while you were on the corporate server (correspondence from your personal account will remain).

If you return to the same corporate server usinf the same phone number for logging in, your personal corporate correspondence will be restored, and correspondence in group chats and channels will become available after you rejoin them through the administrator.

How to Restore a Group Chat or Channel That All Participants Have Left?

If all participants have left a group chat or channel, it can be restored. To do this, contact your organization's administrator.

For Administrators: Restoring a Group Chat/Channel That All Participants Have Left

Find and open the group chat or channel in the admin panel, click the Make Chat Public button — the chat will appear in the

CTS

/

eCTS

catalog. Ask any

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/

eCTS

user to join the chat via the Catalog section. Then click the Users button on the chat page in the admin panel, and make the joining user an administrator by clicking the false label in the Administrator column. This user will be able to add other participants and create an invitation link.

⚠️ A group chat or channel can only be made public if it had an administrator from the current server.

Bulk Messages

How to Send Mass Messages?

You can organize mass messaging in the following ways:

Method	Description
Create a channel	RTS Lite CTS eCTS Use a channel by adding the desired users. CTS eCTS You can add all server users to it — more details.
Use Global Chat	CTS ETS eCTS Become an administrator of a special bot for the global chat and create a post in the global chat — see the instructions.
Use the server maintenance notification	CTS ETS eCTS The corporate server administrator can create a notification that will be displayed in the application for all server users — more details.
Create a bot	CTS eCTS Create a bot that will send messages to users — see API description.
Use «Общий чат» (“General Chat”), or «Общий канал» (“General Channel”)	Lite If you're an eXpress Lite administrator, use the special chat and special channel to send notifications to all users on your server.

How to Create a Post in the Global Chat?

If the global chat is enabled by the administrator and you have been assigned as the administrator of the notification bot on the corporate server, you will be able to send messages to the global chat that will be visible to all server users:

1. Start a chat with the Notifications bot in one of the following ways:
   • Open a global chat from your desired server in the app. Click the chat name to open its properties. In the participant list, find Notifications bot > in the context menu, select Send Message or click on the bot and in its properties, click the Write button.
   • Or find the Notifications bot from your desired server in the corporate catalog > start a chat with the bot.
2. If necessary, click the Start button in the chat with the bot.
3. Send the command /start_post.
4. Send any number of messages to the bot that you want to post in the global chat. You can edit and delete them within 48 hours before sending the completion command. All message types are supported except geolocation and polls. Contacts and voice messages will appear as attached files, and links will be without previews.
5. When the messages are ready, send the /finish_post command, then click Confirm (Confirm).
6. Your messages will appear in the global chat.
⚠️ Messages sent to the global chat via the bot cannot be deleted. This feature will be added in the future.

Saved Messages (Sending to Myself)

For sending messages and files to yourself you can use the Saved Messages chat. Any message can be sent there via the context menu: in the web or desktop version, right-click on the message, and in the mobile app, press and hold the message.

If I Leave a Corporate Server, Will My Saved Messages Disappear?

You will lose access to messages saved while you were a corporate user. Messages you saved on the public server are always available. If you rejoin the same corporate server later, the saved messages from that corporate server will be restored.

Chat Archiving

The chat archiving (hiding) feature is not currently available in the app.

Chat Tags (Chat Tabs)

You can use tags for sorting your chats, contacts, and messages on tabs. See tags and tabs.

PC Keyboard Shortcuts for Working With Chats

A list of keyboard shortcuts for the web/desktop app is available in the knowledge base (in Russian only).