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. Search will find the user 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 click 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.

Why Isn't the Corporate Chat I Need in the Catalog?

If a chat or channel is closed, it will not appear in the catalog. To join a closed chat, ask its creator or administrator for an invitation. You can also ask the corporate server administrator to add you via the admin panel.

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How to Join a Chat or Channel?

If a chat or channel isn't in the catalog, it means it's closed. Ask its administrator to add you or contact your organization's Support: you will be added via the server administrator.

Search for Chans and Channels with Exact Match

The Exact match search feature is available in the application settings or in the Interface/Special settings section.

Exact Match Search	What the search shows
Disabled (by default)	Results with typos taken into account.
Enabled	Only results that exactly match the query.

Chats & Channels Members

How to send a private message?

To create a personal chat:

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

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	Who adds and how
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 participants by name, 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 your 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	The Invite Bot automatically adds newly registered users based on criteria. To get the bot and instructions, contact Support or your organization's system administrator.
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 as a list through the admin panel: Export all registered users: Users > Download as CSV > select only cts_user > save the file. ⚠️ Don't delete fields and columns from the exported file: otherwise, errors will occur during import. In the admin panel, open the chat > Users > Import of users and upload the file.

Can Participants Be Moved to Another Chat or Channel?

There is no separate transfer feature. To split a large channel into several, the channel administrator removes participants from the old channel and adds them to new ones.

You can do this manually or with a bot: the BotX API has methods for removing and adding chat participants. You can also add participants as a list via the Administrator panel, see For Administrators: Bulk Adding Users to a Chat by List.

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. 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?

For now, only the count of post views is visible in channels. Statistics on reach, engagement, and other metrics will appear later.

How Do I Disable Calls and Conferences in a Chat?

The administrator of a group chat can prevent other participants from starting calls and conferences in it. To do this, open the chat menu > chat settings > section Allowed in Chat 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 ban is stored on the server, so it applies to all chat participants. Where the toggles are not available yet, the call will not start either.

Invitation Links to Chats and Channels

Who Can Create an Invitation Link and How?

The chat or channel administrator can create an invitation link to join it: open the chat or channel info card > click the add participants button.

What Settings Can Be Configured for a Link?

On the screens for creating and editing a link, you can set its name, expiration date, and password to open it. This is also where you select which servers' users the link will be available to. A QR code generator is available.

Access Option	Who gets access
Users from your and trusted corporate servers	Access for users from your or trusted (trusted) corporate servers in your organization ( Lite , CTS , eCTS ).
Users from any corporate server	Access for users from any corporate server, including other organizations ( Lite , CTS , eCTS ).
All users (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 . 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. The list of all previously created links will open. In it, you can change link settings, copy, and revoke (delete) them. ⚠️ This feature appeared in version 3.63 of mobile clients and is expected later in the web/desktop application.

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?

To leave the corporate server means to request logout, which the server administrator confirms. After a logout, you will lose access:

• to all corporate chats: you will be removed from the list of participants;
• to the conversations in personal chats that took place while you were on the corporate server. The correspondence from the personal account will remain.

If you return to the same corporate server and sign in with the same phone number, your personal corporate chat history will be restored. Conversations in group chats and channels will become available to you when the administrator returns you to them.

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 server administrator: they restore the chat in the Chats section.

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 on the chat page in the admin panel, click the Users button. Set the user who joined as chat admin: click 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 send messages in bulk as follows:

Method	Who can and how
Create a channel	RTS Lite CTS eCTS This method is available to any user. Use a channel: add the users you need to it. 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, notify all users of your server through a special chat and a special channel.

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 can send messages to the global chat. All users of the server will see them. To send messages:

1. Start a chat with the Notifications bot in one of the following ways:
   • Open the global chat of the required 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 (web and desktop) or Send private message (Android). Or click on the bot and in its properties, click the Message button.
   • Or find the Notifications bot of the required 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)

To send messages and files to yourself, use the Saved messages chat. Any message can be sent there via the context menu. In the web or desktop version, right-click the message; in the mobile app, tap and hold the message.

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

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 return to the same corporate server, the saved messages there will be restored.

Chat Archiving

You can't archive (hide) chats in the app yet.

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

Keyboard shortcuts are visible in tooltips for the web and desktop application interface.