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134 lines
5.7 KiB
Markdown
134 lines
5.7 KiB
Markdown
---
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sidebar_position: 1000
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title: "Channels"
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---
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**Channels** transform Open WebUI from a personal interface into a collaborative workspace. Unlike standard "Chats"—which are isolated sessions—Channels are persistent, topic-based rooms (similar to Discord or Slack), allowing multiple users and multiple AI models to interact in a shared timeline.
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:::info Beta Feature
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Channels is currently a **Beta** feature. Functionality is subject to change, and it must be explicitly enabled by an Administrator before it appears in the interface.
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:::
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## Enabling Channels
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By default, the Channels feature may be hidden. An **Admin** must enable it globally for the instance.
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1. Click on your **User Profile** icon in the bottom left (or top right) corner.
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2. Select **Admin Panel**.
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3. Navigate to **Settings** -> **General**.
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4. Locate the toggle labeled **Channels (Beta)**.
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5. Toggle it **On** and click **Save**.
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6. Refresh the page. The "Channels" section should now appear in the main sidebar.
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## Creating a Channel
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1. Locate the **Channels** header in the sidebar.
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2. Click the **(+) Plus** icon next to the "Channels" header.
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3. **Name:** Enter a channel name (e.g., `general`, `python-dev`). Spaces should get converted to hyphens.
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4. **Access Control:**
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* **Public:** All registered users on your Open WebUI instance can see and join this channel.
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* **Private/Group Access:** Only you or users with permission can access this channel.
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## Using Channels
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To access a channel, click on an existing channel to join, or create a new one.
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### The `@mention` System
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Channels function differently than standard Chats. In a standard Chat, you select a model at the top, and it responds to every message. **In Channels, the conversation is passive by default.**
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To trigger a response, you must **tag** a specific model using the `@` symbol.
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1. Type `@` in the input box.
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2. A popup list of your available models will appear.
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3. Select the model you wish to speak to (e.g., `@llama3`, `@gpt-4o`).
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4. Type your prompt.
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**Example:**
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> **User:** `@gpt-4o` Write a Python script to scrape a website.
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>
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> *(GPT-4o responds with code)*
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>
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> **User:** `@llama3` Can you explain the code that GPT-4 just wrote?
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:::tip Multi-Model Workflows
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This allows you to chain different models together in one timeline. You can use a "smart" model for reasoning and a "fast" model for formatting, all within the same context window.
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:::
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### Tagging Users
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You can also use the `@` symbol to ping other human users in the channel to get their attention or direct a message to them specifically.
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1. Type `@` in the input box.
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2. Select the user's name from the list.
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3. **Usage:** `@admin Can you check the server logs?`
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### Linking Channels
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You can reference other channels directly within a conversation using the `#` symbol. This creates a clickable link to that channel.
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1. Type `#` in the input box.
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2. Select the channel name from the list.
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3. **Usage:** `Please post those screenshots in #screenshots instead.`
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:::warning Access Control
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If a user **does not** have access to view a linked channel (e.g., `#admin-only`) within a channel they **do** have access to (e.g., `#general-chat`), the linked channel will appear to them as **`#Unknown`**, and clicking it will have no effect.
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:::
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### Message Interactions
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Hover over any message in the timeline to access interaction options:
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* **Add Reaction:** Click the **Smiley Face** icon to add a visual emoji eaction to a message.
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* **Reply:** Quotes the message within the main channel stream, linking your response to the original message while keeping it visible to everyone in the main flow.
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* **Reply in Thread:** Starts a separate, nested conversation thread centered on that specific message. This allows for focused discussions without cluttering the main channel history.
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* **Edit:** Click the **Pencil** icon to modify the content of your message.
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* **Delete:** Click the **Trash** icon to remove the message from the channel.
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:::note
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Currently, reactions are purely visual and do not influence model behavior.
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:::
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### Collaboration
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If your Open WebUI instance supports multiple users:
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* **Real-time updates:** Messages appear instantly for all users currently viewing the channel.
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* **Shared Context:** When a teammate asks an AI a question, the AI's response becomes part of the context for the *next* user's query. This allows teams to iterate on AI outputs together.
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## Managing Channels
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### Editing and Deleting
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To manage an existing channel:
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1. Hover over the channel name in the sidebar.
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2. Click the **Gear (Edit)** icon.
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:::info
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Only the Channel Creator or an Admin can delete a channel.
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:::
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## Use Cases
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### 1. Team Development (`#dev-team`)
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Create a channel where developers can paste code snippets. Use `@codellama` or `@deepseek-coder` to generate solutions, while human team members comment on the logic in plain text alongside the AI.
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### 2. Roleplay & Creative Writing (`#story-mode`)
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Keep long-running story contexts alive indefinitely without them getting buried in your personal chat history. Switch between different "Character" models (using Modelfiles) within the same story thread to create multi-character dialogues.
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### 3. Project Knowledge Base (`#marketing-strategy`)
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Use a channel as a persistent "War Room" for a specific project. Humans can discuss ideas and paste links freely. When a decision is needed, tag an AI to process the conversation history.
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* *Example:* "Users discuss a marketing plan for 20 messages. Then, a user types: `@gpt-4o` Read the conversation above and create a bulleted list of the action items we just discussed."
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---
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:::warning
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**Privacy Note**
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Remember that **Public Channels** are visible to everyone on your instance. Do not share API keys, passwords, or sensitive personal data in public channels.
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:::
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