Channels
A channel is a named surface where the published assistant is deployed. Every public/published link is really the link to a channel, so channels are where you manage access and presentation for each place the assistant lives.
Channel types: web, mobile, kiosk, other.
Why multiple channels?
Section titled “Why multiple channels?”So the same brain can appear on your website, in a lobby kiosk, and inside an LMS — each with its own URL, access rules, presentation and analytics — without cloning the assistant.
The default preview channel
Section titled “The default preview channel”Every project has one default preview channel — the surface that the dashboard Preview button renders through. This lets you preview your assistant exactly as it appears on that channel, including any custom HTML template, without visiting a published link.
- The first channel you create in a project becomes the default.
- You can switch the default by editing a channel and clicking Set as default preview channel (only available when the project has more than one channel).
- The default channel can never be disabled — it’s always on so Preview keeps working, independent of whether the assistant is published.
- The default channel can only be deleted if it’s the last channel left (at which point Preview has no surface to render through).
Tip: Use the default preview channel when building custom templates — set that channel’s Custom embed template option to “on”, edit and save the template, then click “Preview template” to test it in that channel’s context. This works even before publishing.
Per-channel settings
Section titled “Per-channel settings”| Setting | What it does |
|---|---|
| Name | Human-readable label (e.g. “Lobby Kiosk”, “Marketing Site”). |
| Slug | URL-safe identifier used in the public link (…/<deviceSlug>). Unique per project. |
| Type | web / mobile / kiosk / other — drives grouping and the kiosk map. |
| Default preview channel | (Shown when >1 channel exists) Click to make this the channel the dashboard Preview button renders through. One per project; the default can never be disabled and can only be deleted if it’s the last channel. |
| Enabled toggle | Turn the channel on/off. A disabled channel returns a friendly “unavailable” message instead of the chat. (Locked for the default preview channel.) |
| Unavailable message | Custom text shown when the channel is disabled. |
| LTI-only access | Only reachable through an LMS/LTI launch — see LTI-Only Access. |
| Custom embed template | Serve this channel through your custom HTML shell — see Custom Templates. |
| IP allow-list | Restrict who can open the link by IPv4/IPv6 address. Empty = open to all. |
| Resumable sessions | Let visitors continue a conversation later instead of starting over, with a retention window and optional cross-device / host-managed continuation — see Resumable Sessions. |
| Location | Latitude/longitude and a free-text label, set on the map with place search. Every channel type can have one: where a kiosk stands, the school a learning channel serves, the area a campaign targets. Kiosks can also detect it from the IP address. It places the channel on the Deployment map and on the Findings map in Insights (see Advanced Topics). |
Quick actions
Section titled “Quick actions”Each channel row offers: view analytics, copy URL, edit, delete, and (for custom templates) “preview the draft custom embed template” in a new tab.
Who can open channels at all
Section titled “Who can open channels at all”Above the channel list, the Ragtime users only switch limits every channel URL to signed-in Ragtime users. Valid LTI launches stay accessible. It saves as a draft, so publish the assistant to update live channels. With the switch on, search engine visibility is unavailable.
Search and link previews
Section titled “Search and link previews”The Discoverability tab under Deployment controls how published channels appear outside Ragtime:
- Search engine visibility lets search engines index public channel pages. Private channels are always hidden. Turning it on also turns on server-side rendering, because crawlers only see pages rendered on the server.
- Server-side rendering renders channel metadata on the server for link previews and crawlers. The interactive chat still runs in the browser.
- Link previews are the cards a channel or campaign link turns into on WhatsApp, Slack, LinkedIn and iMessage. They are separate from indexing, so a private link can still show a card. Configure opens the card’s content.
Like other deployment settings, these save as a draft until you publish.
Channel access: IP allow-list vs. Allowed Domains
Section titled “Channel access: IP allow-list vs. Allowed Domains”Two different controls are easy to confuse:
- IP allow-list (on the channel) controls who can open the link directly. This is how you make a published link genuinely private to specific networks.
- Allowed Domains (on the Embedding tab) controls which external websites may embed the assistant in an iframe. It does not restrict the direct link.
If you need “only these people, from this network,” use the IP allow-list (or LTI-only). If you need “only my website may frame this,” use Allowed Domains.
Choosing an access model
Section titled “Choosing an access model”| You want… | Use |
|---|---|
| Internal test only | Preview link (login-gated) |
| Anyone with the link | Published channel link |
| Only my website may frame it | Allowed Domains |
| Only these IPs may open it | Channel IP allow-list |
| Only via our LMS | Channel LTI-only + LTI setup |
| Only these named people, personalized & metered | Campaign + recipient links |
| Signed, tamper-proof embeds | HMAC signing |