Ultraworked with [Sisyphus](https://github.com/code-yeongyu/oh-my-openagent) Co-authored-by: Sisyphus <clio-agent@sisyphuslabs.ai>
45 KiB
05 - Channels and Messaging
Channels connect external messaging platforms to the GoClaw agent runtime via a shared message bus. Each channel implementation translates platform-specific events into a unified InboundMessage, and converts agent responses into platform-appropriate outbound messages.
1. Message Flow
flowchart LR
subgraph Platforms
TG["Telegram"]
DC["Discord"]
SL["Slack"]
FS["Feishu/Lark"]
ZL["Zalo Bot"]
ZLP["Zalo Personal"]
WA["WhatsApp"]
end
subgraph "Channel Layer"
CH["Channel.Start()<br/>Listen for events"]
HM["HandleMessage()<br/>Build InboundMessage"]
end
subgraph Core
BUS["MessageBus"]
AGENT["Agent Loop"]
end
subgraph Outbound
DISPATCH["Manager.dispatchOutbound()"]
SEND["Channel.Send()<br/>Format + deliver"]
end
TG --> CH
DC --> CH
SL --> CH
FS --> CH
ZL --> CH
ZLP --> CH
WA --> CH
CH --> HM
HM --> BUS
BUS --> AGENT
AGENT -->|OutboundMessage| BUS
BUS --> DISPATCH
DISPATCH --> SEND
SEND --> TG
SEND --> DC
SEND --> SL
SEND --> FS
SEND --> ZL
SEND --> ZLP
SEND --> WA
Internal channels (cli, system, subagent, browser) are silently skipped by the outbound dispatcher and never forwarded to external platforms. The browser channel uses WebSocket directly on the gateway connection.
Message Routing Prefixes
The consumer routes system messages based on sender ID prefixes:
| Prefix | Route | Scheduler Lane |
|---|---|---|
subagent: |
Parent session queue | subagent |
delegate: |
Parent agent's original session (legacy session key format) | team |
teammate: |
Target agent session | team |
Inbound Debounce
Normal channel messages pass through the shared inbound debouncer before agent execution. gateway.inbound_debounce_ms merges rapid text messages from the same channel:chatID:senderID:agentID; 0 means no debounce and positive values set the wait window. Agents can override the global value with other_config.inbound_debounce_ms; unset inherits the global config. Command/control messages such as /stop, /reset, and system escalations bypass the debouncer.
Human-like Delivery
gateway.chat_behavior controls optional channel-only delivery polish. Delivery
text is not added to session history or the main provider messages.
quick_acksends one short receipt for non-streaming channel runs.mode="sidecar_generated"uses a bounded sidecar LLM call;mode="llm_generated"is kept as a backward-compatible alias;mode="fixed_template"sends the first template;mode="off"disables it.quick_ack.provider/modelcan choose a cheaper sidecar provider/model. If unset, the delivery generator falls back to the agent provider/model. Timeout, max token, and max char limits bound the call; templates are fallback output on errors, timeouts, or empty sidecar text.intermediate_repliessends sidecar-generated progress during tool phases. It is independent fromquick_ack: either feature can be enabled or disabled alone.- Sidecar progress uses bounded delivery metadata only: message preview, locale, channel/peer, agent label, and tool phase. It does not receive session history, tool arguments, tool output, tool schemas, memory, or system prompts.
- Deterministic Tool Status Messages no longer emit channel text. Platform reactions and explicit Show Reasoning delivery remain separate behavior.
final_splitsplits long final text replies into a bounded number of paragraph messages.- Override order is Channel > Agent > Workspace. Agent overrides live in
agents.other_config.delivery_behavior; channel overrides continue underchat_behavior. - Legacy
gateway.block_replyand channelblock_replyvalues are still read as inheritedintermediate_replies.enableddefaults when the newerchat_behavior.intermediate_replies.enabledfield is unset.
Splitting is intentionally conservative. Replies containing fenced code, tables, lists, quotes, JSON/XML-ish blocks, or URL-only paragraphs remain a single message. Media replies and streaming deliveries are not split.
Progress messages are not added to session history by this behavior. Existing run timeline handling for explicit block.reply remains unchanged.
Outbound Media Delivery
Agent tools can queue media files through Result.Media; the consumer converts
those entries into OutboundMessage.Media and preserves file order, MIME type,
filename, and optional captions.
send_fileaccepts either the legacy singlepath+ optionalcaption, orattachments: [{path, caption?}, ...]for batch delivery of existing workspace files.- Telegram groups compatible outbound media into
sendMediaGroupalbum chunks of 2-10 items. Photo/video items can share a chunk; documents group only with documents; audio groups only with audio. Voice-mode audio, singleton chunks, oversized images sent as documents, and incompatible runs use the existing ordered single-send fallback. - Discord already sends multiple files plus optional text in one message.
- Slack and other media-capable channels keep ordered fallback behavior unless their adapter advertises a stronger batch capability.
Reasoning Delivery
Telegram channel config supports explicit reasoning delivery:
reasoning_delivery |
Behavior |
|---|---|
streaming_only |
Legacy behavior. Show model reasoning only in the live streaming lane. |
always_bubbles |
Force provider streaming internally and send reasoning as bounded channel bubbles, even when dm_stream / group_stream are off. |
off |
Suppress reasoning output in the channel. Traces and provider usage remain unaffected. |
Backward compatibility: if reasoning_delivery is missing, legacy reasoning_stream=false resolves to off; otherwise it resolves to streaming_only. Explicit reasoning_delivery always wins over the legacy boolean. Reasoning bubbles are delivery-only messages and are not added to assistant history.
Multi-attachment coalescing (#63). Messages carrying attachments do NOT bypass the debouncer — that pre-fix shortcut was the source of N-replies for one user action. Instead, when media is present the effective window is max(configured, mediaFloor) so multi-file uploads land in the same buffer and flush together. Three surfaces apply the same invariant:
| Surface | Buffer key | Trigger |
|---|---|---|
internal/bus/inbound_debounce.go |
(channel, chatID, senderID, agentID) |
Any inbound passing through the shared bus |
internal/gateway/methods/chat_debounce.go |
(userKey, sessionKey) |
/v1/chat/completions streaming sessions |
internal/channels/telegram/album_aggregator.go |
(chatID, MediaGroupID) |
Telegram media-group updates (album = N updates sharing one MediaGroupID) |
The Telegram album aggregator runs at the channel layer after all access gates (mention, pairing, allow-list) pass — it buffers per MediaGroupID, pins the sender on first arrival as a security tripwire (mismatched sender → security.album_sender_mismatch + drop), and dispatches ONE call to the downstream pipeline on a 500ms silence window. Channel.Stop() synchronously drains pending albums before pollCancel so in-flight bursts always reach the agent loop. See CONTRIBUTING.md → "Multi-attachment coalescing" for the eight cross-surface invariants any new surface must honor.
2. Channel Interfaces
Every channel must implement the base interface:
| Method | Description |
|---|---|
Name() |
Channel instance name (e.g., "telegram", "discord") |
Type() |
Platform type identifier (e.g., "telegram", "zalo_personal"). For config-based channels equals Name(); for DB instances may differ. |
Start(ctx) |
Begin listening for messages (non-blocking) |
Stop(ctx) |
Graceful shutdown |
Send(ctx, msg) |
Deliver an outbound message to the platform |
IsRunning() |
Whether the channel is actively processing |
IsAllowed(senderID) |
Check if a sender passes the allowlist |
Extended Interfaces
| Interface | Purpose | Implemented By |
|---|---|---|
StreamingChannel |
Real-time streaming updates | Telegram, Slack |
WebhookChannel |
Webhook HTTP handler mounting | Facebook, Feishu/Lark, Pancake |
ReactionChannel |
Status reactions on messages | Telegram, Slack, Feishu |
ActivityIndicatorChannel |
Ephemeral "agent is working" indicator | Bitrix24 |
BlockReplyChannel |
Override gateway block_reply setting | Discord, Feishu/Lark, Pancake, Slack, Zalo Bot, Zalo Personal |
ChatBehaviorChannel |
Override gateway chat_behavior setting | Bitrix24, Discord, Feishu/Lark, Pancake, Slack, Telegram, WhatsApp, Zalo Bot, Zalo Personal |
ReasoningDeliveryChannel |
Override channel-visible reasoning delivery | Telegram |
BaseChannel provides a shared implementation that all channels embed: allowlist matching, HandleMessage(), CheckPolicy(), and user ID extraction.
Activity Indicator (ActivityIndicatorChannel)
Shows a native, ephemeral "agent is working" indicator while the agent thinks or runs tools, so users on non-streaming channels aren't left staring at silence until the final reply. It is not a chat message — nothing is persisted, no extra LLM call is made.
Driven by the existing agent event stream in Manager.HandleAgentEvent:
run.started→THINKING, and a conditional heartbeat ticker starts.tool.call→ status mapped from the tool name (SEARCHING,READING_DOCS,GENERATING,CONNECTING,PROCESSING) viaresolveToolActivityStatus.tool.result→ANALYZING.- terminal events → ticker stops.
Because non-streaming turns emit no events during LLM inference, a conditional heartbeat ticker re-sends the current status only when the run has been idle beyond a threshold — filling the gap without spamming. Calls are best-effort and dropped on rate limit (they never retry into the portal's leaky bucket, so real message sends are never starved).
Bitrix24 implements it via imbot.v2.Chat.InputAction.notify (status codes
IMBOT_AGENT_ACTION_*). Toggle per channel with activity_indicator (default on).
Webhook Mount
Channels implementing WebhookChannel expose an HTTP handler that can be mounted on the gateway's main HTTP mux. This enables single-port operation — no separate webhook server needed.
flowchart TD
GW["Gateway HTTP Mux"] --> WH{"WebhookChannel?"}
WH -->|Yes| MOUNT["Mount handler on main mux<br/>(e.g., /feishu/events)"]
WH -->|No| SKIP["Channel uses its own transport<br/>(polling, gateway events, etc.)"]
3. Channel Policy
DM Policies
| Policy | Behavior |
|---|---|
pairing |
Require pairing code for new senders |
allowlist |
Only whitelisted senders accepted |
open |
Accept all DMs |
disabled |
Reject all DMs |
Group Policies
| Policy | Behavior |
|---|---|
open |
Accept all group messages |
allowlist |
Only whitelisted groups accepted |
disabled |
No group messages processed |
Policy Evaluation
flowchart TD
MSG["Incoming message"] --> KIND{"PeerKind?"}
KIND -->|direct| DMP{"DM Policy?"}
KIND -->|group| GPP{"Group Policy?"}
DMP -->|disabled| REJECT["Reject"]
DMP -->|open| ACCEPT["Accept"]
DMP -->|allowlist| AL1{"In allowlist?"}
AL1 -->|Yes| ACCEPT
AL1 -->|No| REJECT
DMP -->|pairing| PAIR{"Already paired<br/>or in allowlist?"}
PAIR -->|Yes| ACCEPT
PAIR -->|No| PAIR_REPLY["Send pairing instructions<br/>(debounce 60s)"]
GPP -->|disabled| REJECT
GPP -->|open| ACCEPT
GPP -->|allowlist| AL2{"In allowlist?"}
AL2 -->|Yes| ACCEPT
AL2 -->|No| REJECT
4. Channel Comparison
| Feature | Telegram | Feishu/Lark | Discord | Slack | Zalo Bot | Zalo Personal | Bitrix24 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Connection | Long polling | WS (default) / Webhook | Gateway events | Socket Mode | Direct protocol (in-process) | Long polling | Internal protocol | Long polling (REST) |
| DM support | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes (DM only) | Yes | Yes |
| Group support | Yes (mention gating) | Yes | Yes | Yes (mention gating + thread cache) | Yes | No | Yes | Yes |
| Forum/Topics | Yes (per-topic config) | Yes (topic session mode) | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| Message limit | 4,096 chars | Configurable (default 4,000) | 2,000 chars | 4,000 chars | WhatsApp native limit | 2,000 chars | 2,000 chars | 4,096 chars |
| Streaming | Typing indicator | Streaming message cards | Edit "Thinking..." | Edit "Thinking..." (throttled 1s) | No | No | No | No |
| Media | Photos, voice, files | Images, files (30 MB) | Files, embeds | Files (download w/ SSRF protection) | Images, audio, video, documents | Images (5 MB) | -- | Files (20 MB default) |
| Speech-to-text | Yes (STT proxy) | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| Voice routing | Yes (VoiceAgentID) | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| Rich formatting | Markdown → HTML | Card messages | Markdown | Markdown → mrkdwn | Plain text | Plain text | Plain text | Plain text |
| Bot commands | 10+ commands | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| Tool allow list | Per-topic | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| Pairing support | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Status reactions | Yes | Yes | -- | Yes | -- | -- | -- | -- |
5. Telegram
The Telegram channel uses long polling via the telego library (Telegram Bot API).
Core Behaviors
- Group mention gating: By default, bot must be @mentioned in groups (
requireMention: true). Pending messages without a mention are stored in a history buffer (default 50 messages) and included as context when the bot is eventually mentioned. - Typing indicator: A "typing" action is sent while the agent is processing.
- Proxy support: Optional HTTP proxy configured via channel config.
- Cancel commands:
/stopand/stopallintercepted before the 800ms debouncer. See 08-scheduling-cron.md for details. - Concurrent group support: Group sessions support up to 3 concurrent agent runs.
- Bot reply as implicit mention: Replying to a bot message in a group counts as mentioning the bot.
- Show Reasoning delivery:
reasoning_delivery=always_bubblesdecouples provider streaming from Telegram live streaming so reasoning can appear as bounded normal messages while the final answer remains non-streaming.
Formatting Pipeline
flowchart TD
IN["LLM Output (Markdown)"] --> S1["Extract tables as placeholders"]
S1 --> S2["Extract code blocks as placeholders"]
S2 --> S3["Extract inline code as placeholders"]
S3 --> S4["Convert Markdown to HTML<br/>(headers, bold, italic, links, lists)"]
S4 --> S5["Restore placeholders:<br/>inline code → code tags<br/>code blocks → pre tags<br/>tables → pre (ASCII-aligned)"]
S5 --> S6["Chunk at 4,000 chars<br/>(split at paragraph > line > space)"]
S6 --> S7["Send as HTML<br/>(fallback: plain text on error)"]
Tables are rendered as ASCII-aligned text inside <pre> tags. CJK and emoji characters are counted as 2-column width for proper alignment.
Forum Topics
Telegram forum topics (supergroup threads) get per-topic configuration with layered merging.
flowchart TD
GLOBAL["Global defaults<br/>(TelegramConfig)"] --> WILD["Wildcard group '*'<br/>(if configured)"]
WILD --> GROUP["Specific group<br/>by chat ID"]
GROUP --> TOPIC["Specific topic<br/>within group"]
TOPIC --> RESOLVED["Resolved topic config"]
Configurable per topic:
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
groupPolicy |
open, allowlist, pairing, disabled |
requireMention |
Override mention gating for this topic |
allowFrom |
User/ID allowlist for this topic |
enabled |
Enable/disable this specific topic |
skills |
Override available skills (nil=inherit, []=none, ["x","y"]=whitelist) |
tools |
Override available tools (supports group:xxx syntax) |
systemPrompt |
Additional system prompt (concatenated at topic level) |
Session key format:
| Context | Key Format |
|---|---|
| Regular chat | "-12345" |
| Forum topic | "-12345:topic:99" |
| DM thread | "-12345:thread:55" |
General topic (ID=1) is stripped during send — Telegram API requires no thread ID for the general topic. Deleted topics are detected via error message matching and retried without the thread ID.
Tool Allow List (Per-Topic)
Each topic can restrict which tools the agent may use. The tools field accepts tool names and group references:
nil= inherit all tools (no restriction)[]= no tools for this topic["web_search", "group:fs"]= only web search and filesystem tools
The tool allow list is passed via message metadata and applied by the policy engine before the LLM sees the tool definitions.
Voice Message Transcription (STT)
Voice and audio messages are transcribed through a unified audio.Manager interface. All channels (Telegram, Discord, Feishu, WhatsApp) route transcription requests through the same STT chain.
Unified STT Flow
flowchart TD
VOICE["Voice/audio message"] --> ROUTE{Channel type?}
ROUTE -->|Telegram/Discord/Feishu| DOWNLOAD["Download audio file"]
ROUTE -->|WhatsApp| WHATSAPP_CHECK{"whatsapp_enabled<br/>in settings?"}
WHATSAPP_CHECK -->|No| WA_FALLBACK["[Voice message]<br/>(default opt-out)"]
WHATSAPP_CHECK -->|Yes| DOWNLOAD
DOWNLOAD --> STT_CHECK{"STT providers<br/>configured?"}
STT_CHECK -->|Yes| STT_CHAIN["Try providers in order:<br/>elevenlabs, proxy"]
STT_CHECK -->|No| LEGACY{"Legacy bridge<br/>providers?"}
LEGACY -->|Yes| STT_CHAIN
LEGACY -->|No| FALLBACK["[Voice message]"]
STT_CHAIN -->|Success| TEXT["Transcribed text"]
STT_CHAIN -->|Fails/Timeout 10s| FALLBACK
TEXT --> INJECT["Prepend to message:<br/>[audio: filename] Transcript: text"]
FALLBACK --> FALLBACK_INJECT["[Voice message]"]
INJECT --> AGENT["Agent context"]
FALLBACK_INJECT --> AGENT
VOICE --> ROUTING{"VoiceAgentID<br/>configured<br/>(Telegram)?"}
ROUTING -->|Yes| VOICE_AGENT["Route to voice-specific agent"]
ROUTING -->|No| DEFAULT_AGENT["Default channel agent"]
Configuration & Decision Rules
Decision 2 (Conflict rule): When builtin_tools[stt].settings.providers[] is present in the database, it OVERRIDES all legacy channel-specific STT configs. The legacy STT bridge (STTProxyURL → proxy provider) only activates when the providers list is empty or missing.
| Setting | Behavior |
|---|---|
providers: ["elevenlabs", "proxy"] |
Try ElevenLabs Scribe first; fall back to legacy proxy |
providers: [] (empty) |
Skip all STT; voice → [Voice message] fallback |
providers missing (nil) |
Check for legacy bridge at startup; activate if STTProxyURL exists |
Decision 6 (WhatsApp opt-in): WhatsApp voice message STT is OFF by default (whatsapp_enabled: false). Rationale: WhatsApp voice messages are end-to-end encrypted; sending audio to an external STT provider breaks E2E encryption. Admins must explicitly toggle STT in the UI at Config → Audio → STT and acknowledge the E2E breaking change.
When disabled (default):
- Voice messages surface in agent context as
[Voice message](localized via i18n keychannel.voice_message_fallback) - No audio leaves the device
When enabled:
- Voice audio is transcribed via the configured STT chain
- Fallback to
[Voice message]on failure/timeout (10s wall clock)
Per-Channel Behavior
| Channel | STT Support | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Telegram | Yes | Uses unified chain; preserves Telegram voice MIME; legacy proxy override is keyed by platform type telegram; voice routing via VoiceAgentID config |
| Discord | Yes | Standard flow; no special routing |
| Feishu | Yes | Standard flow; no special routing |
| Yes (opt-in) | Requires explicit admin approval; default OFF |
Factory Integration
All channel factories accept audioMgr *audio.Manager:
- Telegram:
FactoryWithStoresAndAudio(..., audioMgr) - Discord:
FactoryWithAudio(..., audioMgr) - Feishu:
FactoryWithStoresAndAudio(..., audioMgr) - WhatsApp:
FactoryWithDBAudio(..., audioMgr, builtinToolStore)
WhatsApp additionally accepts builtinToolStore store.BuiltinToolStore to fetch the per-message whatsapp_enabled opt-in flag. Wiring is in cmd/gateway_channels_setup.go and cmd/gateway.go.
Bot Commands
Commands are processed before enriching content with reply/forward context (to prevent parsing issues).
| Command | Description | Group Restriction |
|---|---|---|
/help |
Show command list | -- |
/start |
Passthrough to agent | -- |
/stop |
Cancel current run | -- |
/stopall |
Cancel all runs | -- |
/reset |
Clear session history | Writers only |
/status |
Bot status + username | -- |
/tasks |
Team task list | -- |
/task_detail <id> |
View task detail | -- |
/addwriter |
Add group file writer (reply to target user) | Writers only |
/removewriter |
Remove group file writer | Writers only |
/writers |
List group file writers | -- |
Group File Writer Restrictions
In group chats, write-sensitive operations (file writes, /reset) are restricted to designated writers. The group ID format is group:telegram:{chatID}.
- Permission check queries the database:
IsGroupFileWriter(agentID, groupID, senderID) - Fail-open on database errors (security logged as
security.reset_writer_check_failed) - Writers are managed via
/addwriterand/removewritercommands
6. Feishu/Lark
The Feishu/Lark channel connects via native HTTP with two transport modes.
Transport Modes
flowchart TD
MODE{"Connection mode?"} -->|"websocket (default)"| WS["WebSocket Client<br/>Persistent connection<br/>Auto-reconnect"]
MODE -->|"webhook"| WH["Webhook endpoint<br/>Mounted on gateway mux<br/>or separate port"]
When using webhook mode with port=0, the handler is mounted directly on the gateway's main HTTP mux (see webhook mount in Section 2). If a separate port is configured, a dedicated server is started.
Configuration
| Field | Default | Description |
|---|---|---|
ConnectionMode |
"websocket" |
"websocket" or "webhook" |
WebhookPort |
0 | 0 = mount on gateway mux; >0 = separate server |
WebhookPath |
"/feishu/events" |
Webhook endpoint path |
RenderMode |
"auto" |
"auto" (detect code/tables), "card", or default text |
TextChunkLimit |
4,000 | Max characters per text message |
MediaMaxMB |
30 | Max file size for media (MB) |
TopicSessionMode |
disabled | "enabled" for thread-per-topic session isolation |
RequireMention |
true | Require bot mention in group |
GroupAllowFrom |
-- | Group-level allowlist (separate from DM) |
ReactionLevel |
-- | "off", "minimal" (terminal only), or full |
Streaming Message Cards
Responses are delivered as interactive card messages with real-time streaming updates.
flowchart TD
START["Agent starts responding"] --> CREATE["Create card<br/>(streaming_mode: true)"]
CREATE --> SEND["Send interactive message<br/>with card JSON"]
SEND --> UPDATE["Update card element<br/>with accumulated text<br/>(throttled: 100ms min)"]
UPDATE -->|"more chunks"| UPDATE
UPDATE -->|"done"| CLOSE["Close stream<br/>(streaming_mode: false)"]
Each update increments a sequence number for ordering. Updates are throttled at 100ms minimum intervals to avoid API rate limiting. The streaming card displays content with a print animation effect (50ms frequency, 2-character steps).
Media Handling
Receive (inbound): Images, files, audio, video, and stickers are downloaded from the Feishu API with configurable size limits (default 30 MB). Oversized files are silently skipped.
| Media Type | Saved As |
|---|---|
| Image | .png |
| File | Original extension |
| Audio | .opus |
| Video | .mp4 |
| Sticker | .png |
Filename preservation: When a user uploads or shares a file with a recognizable name, the channel adapter populates bus.MediaFile.Filename with the original filename (e.g., Feishu file display name, Telegram file_name). This filename is then sanitized and persisted to disk in the format {stem}-{8hex}{ext} (e.g., báo-cáo-2024-a1b2c3d4.pdf → bao-cao-2024-a1b2c3d4.pdf). The sanitizer supports Vietnamese diacritics, CJK scripts, and filesystem safety. Media without a user-provided filename (voice notes, clipboard pastes) fall back to UUID-only names. Disk names with semantic stems enable vault enrichment to process documents contextually. See internal/agent/media_filename.go for sanitization rules.
Send (outbound): Files are uploaded to Feishu with automatic type detection (opus, mp4, pdf, doc, xls, ppt, or generic stream).
Mention Resolution
Feishu sends content with placeholder tokens (e.g., @_user_1) for mentioned users. GoClaw processes these:
- Bot mentions: Stripped entirely (just the trigger, not meaningful content)
- User mentions: Replaced with
@DisplayNamefrom the mention list - Fallback detection when bot ID is unknown
Topic Session Mode
When enabled, each thread gets an isolated session:
- Session key includes the thread root message ID:
"{chatID}:topic:{rootID}" - Different threads within the same group maintain separate conversation histories
- Disabled by default
Thread Reply Routing
When a message is sent inside a Lark thread (detected via the thread_id field in the inbound event), the inbound handler stamps metadata["feishu_reply_target_id"] with the triggering message ID. During outbound delivery, the channel routes responses back to the same thread using LarkClient.ReplyMessage() which POSTs to /open-apis/im/v1/messages/{message_id}/reply with reply_in_thread: true.
- Automatic thread detection: No configuration needed; replies are routed based on inbound
thread_id - Metadata propagation: The
feishu_reply_target_idkey is included in theroutingMetaKeysallowlist so replies, block replies, and placeholder updates all land in the correct thread - Graceful fallback: If the reply endpoint fails (e.g., thread root deleted), the channel falls back to
SendMessage()for the regular chat - Applies to: Text, card, image, and file messages
Document URL Auto-Fetch
When a user pastes a Lark docx (document) URL in a message, the channel automatically fetches the document raw text and injects it into the agent prompt for context.
URL detection: Regex pattern matches https://*.larksuite.com/docx/<id> and *.feishu.cn/docx/<id> URLs.
Auto-fetch behavior:
- Document content fetched via Lark API
GET /open-apis/docx/v1/documents/{id}/raw_content - Content injected as
[Lark Doc: <url>] ... [End of Lark Doc]markers around the raw text - Rune-safe truncation at 8000 runes per document to respect token budgets
- Results cached per channel instance with LRU eviction (128 entries, 5-minute TTL)
Access control: Requires bot app to have docx:document:readonly permission and document owner must explicitly grant the bot access to each document. If access is denied or document not found, a visible inline marker appears: [Lark Doc X: access denied — grant the bot app read permission on this document]
Safeguards:
- Limited to docx documents only (sheets, base, wiki deferred)
- Maximum 10 document fetches per inbound message (spam protection)
- Soft-fail on API errors (no outbound message blocks)
Configuration: No new config flags. Supported document type and cache tunables (8000 rune limit, 10-URL cap, 5-min TTL, 128-entry cache) are hardcoded.
Writer Management Commands
Group chats support file-write permission management via slash commands. Permissions are scoped to the group via group:feishu:<chatID>. DM users who attempt these commands receive a hint that they only work in groups.
Commands (group-only):
| Command | Description | Requires Target | Permission |
|---|---|---|---|
/addwriter <@user or reply> |
Grant file_writer permission to target user | Yes | Writers only |
/removewriter <@user or reply> |
Revoke file_writer permission from target user | Yes | Writers only |
/writers |
List current group writers with displayName | No | -- |
Target specification: Commands require explicit identification via reply-to or @mention. Bare /addwriter without a target is rejected — prevents accidental privilege capture.
Bootstrap behavior: Groups with no writers allow the first writer to grant themselves via /addwriter @self (explicit self-mention). This enables initial configuration without external admin intervention.
Authorization:
- Only existing writers can manage the writer list (enforce via
IsGroupFileWritercheck) - Last-writer guard: If removing a writer would leave zero writers, operation is rejected with user-facing message
- Database errors are fail-open; security issues are logged as
security.writer_check_failed
Implementation: Timeout of 10 seconds bounds Feishu API calls. Requires AgentStore and ConfigPermissionStore wired to the Feishu channel via constructor options.
7. Discord
The Discord channel uses the discordgo library to connect via the Discord Gateway.
Key Behaviors
- Gateway intents: Requests
GuildMessages,DirectMessages, andMessageContentintents - Message limit: 2,000-character limit with automatic splitting at newlines
- Placeholder editing: Sends "Thinking..." → edits with actual response
- Mention gating:
requireMentiondefault true; bot mention stripped from content - Bot identity: Fetches
@meon startup to detect and ignore own messages - Typing indicator: 9-second keepalive while agent processes
- Group history: Pending message buffer for context when mentioned
- Thread backfill: When the bot is mentioned inside a Discord thread, the channel fetches up to 25 prior thread messages before the triggering message through Discord REST, prepends their text as context, and downloads up to 15 prior attachments for the same inbound media pipeline. This is thread-only, bounded to 5 MB per backfilled file with a 30-second timeout, and gracefully falls back to the current message when Discord lacks
READ_MESSAGE_HISTORYor the REST request fails. - Thread presentation titles: Where a Discord thread is presented as the current chat, a session, a contact, or a delivery target, its label may be qualified as
thread / parent channel. This is display-only; routing and selection continue to use stable IDs. - Metadata refresh: Refreshing the contact cache unions the Discord group IDs stored in contacts with group and parent IDs retained by pending-message history. It directly looks up targets not already resolved from the live guild/channel state, so titles and parent metadata can be backfilled for inactive or archived threads when Discord returns them. The API response includes per-source coverage and individual failures; the gateway emits an INFO summary for every refresh and WARN entries for individual lookup failures. If any target cannot be fetched (for example, it was deleted or the bot lacks permission), the refresh reports failure rather than false success.
8. Slack
The Slack channel uses the slack-go/slack library to connect via Socket Mode (WebSocket).
Key Behaviors
- Socket Mode: Uses
xapp-App-Level Token for WebSocket connection (no public URL needed) - Three token types:
xoxb-(Bot Token, required),xapp-(App-Level Token, required),xoxp-(User Token, optional for custom identity) - Token prefix validation: Tokens validated at startup (
xoxb-,xapp-,xoxp-prefixes) - Message limit: 4,000-character limit with automatic splitting at newline boundaries
- Placeholder editing: Sends "Thinking..." → edits with actual response (same as Discord)
- Mention gating:
requireMentiondefault true;<@botUserID>stripped from content - Thread participation cache: After bot replies in a thread, subsequent messages in that thread auto-trigger response without @mention (24h TTL)
- Message dedup:
channel+tskey prevents duplicate processing on Socket Mode reconnect - Message debounce: Per-thread batching of rapid messages (300ms default, configurable;
debounce_delay: 0disables) - Dead socket classification: Non-retryable auth errors (invalid_auth, token_revoked) fail fast instead of infinite reconnect
- Streaming: Edit-in-place via
chat.updatewith 1000ms throttle (Slack Tier 3 rate limit) - Reactions: Status emoji on user messages (thinking_face, hammer_and_wrench, white_check_mark, x, hourglass_flowing_sand)
- SSRF protection: File download hostname allowlist (*.slack.com, *.slack-edge.com, *.slack-files.com), auth token stripped on redirect
- Health probe:
auth.test()with 2.5s timeout for monitoring integration
Formatting Pipeline
LLM markdown → htmlTagsToMarkdown() → extractSlackTokens() → escapeHTMLEntities()
→ extractCodeBlocks() → convertTablesToCodeBlocks() → bold/strike/header/link conversion
→ restore tokens/code blocks → Slack mrkdwn
Key conversions: **bold** → *bold*, ~~strike~~ → ~strike~, [text](url) → <url|text>, # Header → *Header*, tables → code blocks.
Environment Variables
GOCLAW_SLACK_BOT_TOKEN → channels.slack.bot_token
GOCLAW_SLACK_APP_TOKEN → channels.slack.app_token
GOCLAW_SLACK_USER_TOKEN → channels.slack.user_token (optional)
Auto-enables when both bot_token and app_token are set.
9. WhatsApp
The WhatsApp channel connects directly to the WhatsApp network via the multi-device protocol. Authentication state is stored in the database (PostgreSQL standard, SQLite for desktop edition).
Key Behaviors
- Direct connection: In-process WhatsApp client (direct to WhatsApp servers, no external bridge)
- Database auth store: Persists auth state, keys, and device info in the database
- QR code authentication: Interactive QR code for initial pairing, served via WebSocket API
- Auto-reconnect: Built-in reconnection with exponential backoff
- DM and group support: Full group messaging with mention detection via JID format
- Media handling: Direct media download/upload to WhatsApp servers with type detection
- Typing indicators: Typing state managed per chat with auto-refresh
- Group mention gating: Detects when bot is mentioned via LID (Local ID) and JID (standard format)
10. Zalo Bot
The Zalo Bot channel uses the official Zalo Bot API via long polling. It connects to a Zalo bot created with Zalo Bot Manager/Creator and does not require a Zalo Official Account.
Key Behaviors
- DM only: No group support. Only direct messages are processed
- Text limit: 2,000-character maximum per message
- Long polling: Default 30-second timeout, 5-second backoff on errors
- Media: Image support with 5 MB default limit
- Default DM policy:
"pairing"(requires pairing code) - Pairing debounce: 60-second debounce on pairing instructions
11. Zalo Personal
The Zalo Personal channel provides access to personal Zalo accounts using a reverse-engineered protocol. This is an unofficial integration.
Key Differences from Zalo Bot
| Aspect | Zalo Bot | Zalo Personal |
|---|---|---|
| Protocol | Official Bot API | Reverse-engineered (zcago, MIT) |
| DM support | Yes | Yes |
| Group support | No | Yes |
| Default DM policy | pairing |
allowlist (restrictive) |
| Default group policy | N/A | allowlist (restrictive) |
| Authentication | Bot credentials | Pre-loaded credentials or QR scan |
| Risk | None | Account may be locked/banned |
Security Warning
Zalo Personal uses an unofficial, reverse-engineered protocol. The account used may be locked or banned by Zalo at any time. A security warning is logged on startup: security.unofficial_api.
Resilience
- Maximum 10 restart attempts
- Exponential backoff up to 60 seconds
- Special handling for error code 3000: 60-second initial delay
- Typing controller per thread
12. Channel-Isolated Workspaces
Each channel instance can target a specific agent, providing workspace isolation across channels.
flowchart TD
CH1["Telegram Channel<br/>→ Agent: assistant"] --> WS1["Workspace: assistant/"]
CH2["Discord Channel<br/>→ Agent: coder"] --> WS2["Workspace: coder/"]
CH3["Feishu Channel<br/>→ Agent: assistant"] --> WS1
WS1 --> USER1["user_alice/"]
WS1 --> USER2["user_bob/"]
WS2 --> USER3["user_charlie/"]
Channel instances are loaded from the database with their assigned agent ID. The agent key is resolved and propagated through the message pipeline, ensuring all filesystem tools, context files, and memory operations use the correct workspace.
13. Passive Memory Extraction
Passive channel memory is an opt-in per-channel feature. When enabled in
channel_instances.config.passive_memory, the gateway periodically reads the
existing tenant-scoped channel_pending_messages group buffers, redacts sensitive
content, asks the background LLM provider for durable fact candidates, and stores
only candidates in the review queue.
Default behavior is privacy-first:
- Disabled by default.
- Group-only in v1.
- Review mode enabled by default.
- Runs by manual trigger, message cap, or interval.
- New extraction tables store metadata, summaries, topics/entities, confidence, status, and redaction counts, but not raw message bodies.
- Tenant admins may append non-secret extraction instructions globally from
/configwithsystem_configs["channel_memory.extraction.custom_prompt"], per channel withchannel_instances.config.passive_memory.custom_prompt, and per Discord group/history key withchannel_instances.config.passive_memory.group_custom_prompts. These prompts append after the built-in extraction instructions in global, channel, then group order; they do not replace redaction or strict JSON requirements. - Discord extraction input includes best-effort channel context when available: channel/thread ID, channel name, parent channel, category, and history key. Lookup failures fall back to IDs and do not fail extraction.
- Discord passive-memory metadata retains raw
group_titleandparent_group_titleas separate fields. A qualified thread label such asthread / parent channelis presentation-only and is not written back into either raw field. - New Discord pending history rows include display name, handle when available, and stable Discord user ID in sender/reply labels to make extracted facts less ambiguous when display names change.
Approved items write an episodic_summaries row with source_type='channel'
and a deterministic source_id; existing consolidation workers then handle KG
promotion. Candidate topics and entities are forwarded to KG extraction as
disambiguation hints only; they do not create graph nodes or relations unless
the approved summary supports the fact. Reject/delete prevents later writes.
Delete also removes the linked episodic row when one exists; already-promoted KG
nodes are not synchronously deleted in v1.
14. Local Key Propagation
Thread/topic context is preserved through the entire message pipeline using a local_key in message metadata. This ensures subagent, delegation, and team message results land in the correct thread — not the root chat.
| Platform | Local Key Format |
|---|---|
| Telegram (chat) | "-12345" |
| Telegram (topic) | "-12345:topic:99" |
| Telegram (thread) | "-12345:thread:55" |
| Feishu (chat) | "oc_xyz" |
| Feishu (topic) | "oc_xyz:topic:{root_msg_id}" |
All channel state — placeholders, streams, reactions, typing controllers, thread IDs — is keyed by this composite local_key. When delegation or team messages complete, the local_key from the original message is preserved in metadata and used to route the response back to the correct location.
15. Per-User Isolation
Channels provide per-user isolation through compound sender IDs and context propagation:
- User scoping: Each channel constructs a compound sender ID (e.g.,
telegram:123456) which maps to auser_id. The session key formatagent:{agentId}:{channel}:direct:{peerId}ensures each user has isolated conversation history per agent. - Context propagation:
HandleMessage()injectsAgentID,UserID, andAgentTypeinto the context. These flow to the ContextFileInterceptor, MemoryInterceptor, and per-user file seeding. - Pairing storage: PostgreSQL (
pairing_requestsandpaired_devicestables). - Session persistence: PostgreSQL
sessionstable with write-behind caching.
16. Pairing System
The pairing system provides a DM authentication flow for channels using the pairing DM policy.
flowchart TD
NEW["New user sends DM"] --> CHECK{"DM policy = pairing?"}
CHECK -->|No| PROCESS["Process normally"]
CHECK -->|Yes| PAIRED{"Already paired<br/>or in allowlist?"}
PAIRED -->|Yes| PROCESS
PAIRED -->|No| CODE["Generate 8-char code<br/>(valid 60 min)"]
CODE --> REPLY["Send pairing instructions<br/>(debounce 60s)"]
REPLY --> WAIT["Wait for admin approval"]
WAIT --> APPROVE["Admin approves via<br/>device.pair.approve"]
APPROVE --> DONE["User paired, future messages<br/>processed normally"]
Code Specification
| Aspect | Value |
|---|---|
| Length | 8 characters |
| Alphabet | ABCDEFGHJKLMNPQRSTUVWXYZ23456789 (excludes ambiguous: 0, O, 1, I, L) |
| TTL | 60 minutes |
| Max pending per account | 3 |
| Reply debounce | 60 seconds per sender |
16. Bitrix24
The Bitrix24 channel connects to a Bitrix24 portal via the imbot.v2.* REST API. Authentication uses an app token with imbot scope.
Key Behaviors
- Text limit: 4,096 characters per message with automatic splitting at newlines
- Media support: Both inbound and outbound file transfers with MIME preservation
- Default DM policy:
"pairing"(requires pairing code) - Pairing debounce: 60-second debounce on pairing instructions
- Media max size: Configurable
media_max_mb(default 20 MB) applies symmetrically to inbound downloads and outbound uploads
Inbound Media
When a user sends a file to the bot:
- Resolve file metadata via
imbot.v2.File.download→ obtain one-time authenticated download URL - Stream file to temp directory, preserving MIME type
- Forward to agent via
bus.MediaFilewith original filename - Agent pipeline routes to appropriate reader (
read_image,read_document,read_audio,read_video)
Configuration: Size cap via media_max_mb (per channel_instance or config default). Oversized files are silently skipped (best-effort).
Outbound Media
Agent-produced media files are uploaded to the chat via imbot.v2.File.upload:
- Read file from workspace
- Encode as base64
- POST to
imbot.v2.File.uploadwith bot ID and chat ID - Upload succeeds atomically: file is stored in portal Drive, attached to chat, and posted in a single REST call
Configuration: Size cap via same media_max_mb knob (symmetric with inbound).
OAuth Scope
The bot app must have the imbot scope granted. The disk scope is not required — all file operations are scoped to the message thread context.
Implementation: internal/channels/bitrix24/download.go (inbound), send_media.go (outbound). New BaseChannel.HandleMessageMedia() method (in internal/channels/channel.go) centralizes media-aware message handling across all channels.
File Reference
| Module | Path | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| Channel core | internal/channels/ |
Channel interface, BaseChannel (incl. HandleMessageMedia() method), Manager (StartAll/StopAll), outbound dispatcher, DB instance loader |
| Platform adapters | internal/channels/{telegram,feishu,discord,slack,whatsapp,zalo,bitrix24}/ |
Per-platform: message handling, formatting, streaming, reactions, media, pairing |
| Bitrix24 media | internal/channels/bitrix24/download.go, send_media.go |
Inbound file download via imbot.v2.File.download, outbound upload via imbot.v2.File.upload |
| Audio / STT | internal/audio/ |
Audio manager, STT chain resolution, legacy STT bridge |
| Pairing & routing | internal/store/pg/pairing.go, cmd/gateway_consumer.go |
Pairing code persistence, inbound message routing and cancel interception |
Use grep or your editor's symbol search for specific files.
Cross-References
| Document | Relevant Content |
|---|---|
| 00-architecture-overview.md | Channel startup in gateway sequence |
| 03-tools-system.md | Tool policy engine, per-request tool allow list |
| 08-scheduling-cron.md | /stop and /stopall commands, scheduler lanes, cron |
| 09-security.md | Group file writer restrictions, security logging |
| 11-agent-teams.md | Team message routing, delegation result delivery |
| project-changelog.md | Phase 5 audio manager & unified STT implementation |