add-telegram

name	add-telegram
description	Add Telegram as a channel. Can replace WhatsApp entirely or run alongside it. Also configurable as a control-only channel (triggers actions) or passive channel (receives notifications only).

Add Telegram Channel

This skill adds Telegram support to ClaudeClaw, then walks through interactive setup.

Phase 1: Pre-flight

Check if already applied

Check if src/channels/telegram.ts exists. If it does, skip to Phase 3 (Setup). The code changes are already in place.

Ask the user

Use AskUserQuestion to collect configuration:

AskUserQuestion: Do you have a Telegram bot token, or do you need to create one?

If they have one, collect it now. If not, we'll create one in Phase 3.

Phase 2: Apply Code Changes

Ensure channel remote

git remote -v

If telegram is missing, add it:

git remote add telegram https://github.com/qwibitai/claudeclaw-telegram.git

Merge the skill branch

git fetch telegram main
git merge telegram/main || {
  git checkout --theirs package-lock.json
  git add package-lock.json
  git merge --continue
}

This merges in:

• src/channels/telegram.ts (TelegramChannel class with self-registration via registerChannel)
• src/channels/telegram.test.ts (unit tests with grammy mock)
• import './telegram.js' appended to the channel barrel file src/channels/index.ts
• grammy npm dependency in package.json
• TELEGRAM_BOT_TOKEN in .env.example

If the merge reports conflicts, resolve them by reading the conflicted files and understanding the intent of both sides.

Validate code changes

npm install
npm run build
npx vitest run src/channels/telegram.test.ts

All tests must pass (including the new Telegram tests) and build must be clean before proceeding.

Phase 3: Setup

Create Telegram Bot (if needed)

If the user doesn't have a bot token, tell them:

I need you to create a Telegram bot:

1. Open Telegram and search for @BotFather
2. Send /newbot and follow prompts:
   • Bot name: Something friendly (e.g., "Andy Assistant")
   • Bot username: Must end with "bot" (e.g., "andy_ai_bot")
3. Copy the bot token (looks like 123456:ABC-DEF1234ghIkl-zyx57W2v1u123ew11)

Wait for the user to provide the token.

Configure environment

Add to .env:

TELEGRAM_BOT_TOKEN=<their-token>

Channels auto-enable when their credentials are present — no extra configuration needed.

Sync to container environment:

mkdir -p data/env && cp .env data/env/env

The container reads environment from data/env/env, not .env directly.

Disable Group Privacy (for group chats)

Tell the user:

Important for group chats: By default, Telegram bots only see @mentions and commands in groups. To let the bot see all messages:

1. Open Telegram and search for @BotFather
2. Send /mybots and select your bot
3. Go to Bot Settings > Group Privacy > Turn off

This is optional if you only want trigger-based responses via @mentioning the bot.

Service name: Derived from the directory name: com.claudeclaw.<dirname> (macOS) / claudeclaw-<dirname> (Linux). For example, if cwd is my-assistant, the service is com.claudeclaw.my-assistant. Determine the correct service name before running service commands below.

Build and restart

npm run build
launchctl kickstart -k gui/$(id -u)/com.claudeclaw  # macOS
# Linux: systemctl --user restart claudeclaw

Phase 4: Registration

Get Chat ID

Tell the user:

1. Open your bot in Telegram (search for its username)
2. Send /chatid — it will reply with the chat ID
3. For groups: add the bot to the group first, then send /chatid in the group

Wait for the user to provide the chat ID (format: tg:123456789 or tg:-1001234567890).

Register the chat

The chat ID, name, and folder name are needed. Use npx tsx setup/index.ts --step register with the appropriate flags.

For a main chat (responds to all messages):

npx tsx setup/index.ts --step register -- --jid "tg:<chat-id>" --name "<chat-name>" --folder "telegram_main" --trigger "@${ASSISTANT_NAME}" --channel telegram --no-trigger-required --is-main

For additional chats (trigger-only):

npx tsx setup/index.ts --step register -- --jid "tg:<chat-id>" --name "<chat-name>" --folder "telegram_<group-name>" --trigger "@${ASSISTANT_NAME}" --channel telegram

Phase 5: Verify

Test the connection

Tell the user:

Send a message to your registered Telegram chat:

• For main chat: Any message works
• For non-main: @Andy hello or @mention the bot

The bot should respond within a few seconds.

Check logs if needed

tail -f logs/claudeclaw.log

Troubleshooting

Bot not responding

Check:

1. TELEGRAM_BOT_TOKEN is set in .env AND synced to data/env/env
2. Chat is registered in SQLite (check with: sqlite3 store/messages.db "SELECT * FROM registered_groups WHERE jid LIKE 'tg:%'")
3. For non-main chats: message includes trigger pattern
4. Service is running: launchctl list | grep claudeclaw (macOS) or systemctl --user status claudeclaw (Linux)

Bot only responds to @mentions in groups

Group Privacy is enabled (default). Fix:

1. @BotFather > /mybots > select bot > Bot Settings > Group Privacy > Turn off
2. Remove and re-add the bot to the group (required for the change to take effect)

Getting chat ID

If /chatid doesn't work:

• Verify token: curl -s "https://api.telegram.org/bot${TELEGRAM_BOT_TOKEN}/getMe"
• Check bot is started: tail -f logs/claudeclaw.log

After Setup

If running npm run dev while the service is active:

# macOS:
launchctl unload ~/Library/LaunchAgents/com.claudeclaw.plist
npm run dev
# When done testing:
launchctl load ~/Library/LaunchAgents/com.claudeclaw.plist
# Linux:
# systemctl --user stop claudeclaw
# npm run dev
# systemctl --user start claudeclaw

Agent Swarms (Teams)

After completing the Telegram setup, use AskUserQuestion:

AskUserQuestion: Would you like to add Agent Swarm support? Without it, Agent Teams still work — they just operate behind the scenes. With Swarm support, each subagent appears as a different bot in the Telegram group so you can see who's saying what and have interactive team sessions.

If they say yes, invoke the /add-telegram-swarm skill.

Removal

To remove Telegram integration:

1. Delete src/channels/telegram.ts and src/channels/telegram.test.ts
2. Remove import './telegram.js' from src/channels/index.ts
3. Remove TELEGRAM_BOT_TOKEN from .env
4. Remove Telegram registrations from SQLite: sqlite3 store/messages.db "DELETE FROM registered_groups WHERE jid LIKE 'tg:%'"
5. Uninstall: npm uninstall grammy
6. Rebuild: npm run build && launchctl kickstart -k gui/$(id -u)/com.claudeclaw (macOS) or npm run build && systemctl --user restart claudeclaw (Linux)