Chat & Messaging Overview

Overview

The Chat & Messaging module encompasses two distinct communication surfaces:

1. Live Chat — customer-facing chat widget that lets website visitors start a conversation with a support agent in real time.
2. Internal Messaging — team channels for internal communication.

Live Chat

How It Works

The live chat widget is embedded on your website or customer portal. When a visitor clicks the chat button and starts a conversation:

1. A Chat Session is created in the WAITING state.
2. All available agents see the new session in their Chat Queue (the chat icon in the sidebar shows an unread badge).
3. An agent claims the session by clicking Accept. The session moves to ACTIVE.
4. The agent and visitor exchange messages in real time.
5. When the issue is resolved, the agent closes the session. The session moves to CLOSED.

Converting to a Ticket

If the conversation reveals a more complex issue, click Create Ticket on the chat session page. A new helpdesk ticket is created with the visitor's name, email (if provided), and the full chat transcript as the description. The session is linked to the ticket.

Chat Queue

Navigate to Chat → Queue to see all sessions:

• Waiting — sessions not yet picked up by an agent.
• Active — sessions you or other agents are currently handling.
• Closed — recent completed sessions.

Internal Messaging Channels

Internal message channels work like Slack channels. Use them for team announcements, project discussions, and cross-departmental coordination.

Creating a Channel

1. Go to Chat → Channels.
2. Click + New Channel.
3. Set:
   • Name — e.g. "#infrastructure-team".
   • Description — what the channel is for.
   • Folder — organise channels into folders for large teams.
4. Invite members.
5. Click Create.

Slash Commands

Type / in any message field to see available slash commands — shortcuts for common actions like creating tickets, looking up contacts, and more.

Channel Folders

Group channels into folders (e.g. "Management", "Engineering", "Customer Projects") for better organisation. Channel folders are managed at Chat → Folders.