Linking channels (bridges)

The Channel links module connects text channels so that messages sent in one are relayed automatically to the other. It is the ideal tool for connecting two communities or creating a shared discussion channel across several servers.

On the Discord side

For the link management commands on Discord and how relayed messages behave (webhooks), read the Discord guide to linking channels.

Availability

This feature lives under the Cross-server → Channel links section of your dashboard: Open the Channel links module ↗. You must be a server administrator to create or edit these links.

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One bridge, several channels

A link is no longer a pair but a bridge: a group of channels, across as many servers as needed. A message sent in one is copied to all the others, and an edit, a deletion, a reaction or a pin finds every copy - including from a copy.

The bridge carries a Bridge name, optional, to help you find it back, and shows how many servers it connects. The Bridge channels block lists its participants; the Add a server to the bridge button brings in one more.

When creating it, the Servers to link field accepts as many servers as you want: every channel picked relays to all the others.

Two channels minimum

A bridge needs at least two channels: removing one more will delete it.

A channel whose server is no longer reachable shows as Paused: the bridge keeps running between the others.

A channel’s participation

Every channel in the bridge picks its role:

• Send and receive
• Send only
• Receive only

The relay mode

• Webhook (mirror) (recommended): Kotbo uses a Discord webhook to send the message with the original author’s real username and avatar. The result looks clean and natural.
• Embed: the message is wrapped in a styled embed sent under Kotbo’s name, naming the original server and author.

Permission diagnostics

A Permissions badge flags whatever is holding the relay back, channel by channel:

• The bot can no longer see this channel: nothing is relayed there.
• The bot lacks these permissions in this channel. Relaying will be incomplete.
• Discord strips emojis and stickers from other servers as long as @everyone lacks these permissions in this channel. The bridge webhook borrows @everyone’s rights, it has no role of its own.

Kotbo changes nothing on the linked servers: those rights belong to their administrators. The same diagnostic is shown on Discord after every channel is added.

Link-only servers

A server without an activation key carries the Link-only badge: Kotbo only relays that channel there and collects nothing.

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Case 1: linking two channels on the same server

You can link two separate channels inside your own server (for example to duplicate announcements or relay discussions from a private channel to a public one).

Setup steps

1. Open your server’s dashboard and go to Cross-server → Channel links.
2. Click the Create a link button in the top right.
3. Fill in the form:
   • Channel on this server: choose the first (source) channel.
   • Target server: select your own server from the list.
   • Channel on the target server: select the second channel (the list automatically excludes the source channel you already picked).
   • Direction and Relay mode: adjust to suit your needs (for example Bidirectional and Webhook).
4. Click Create the link. The connection is instant.

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Case 2: linking two channels on different servers

To connect two separate Discord servers, the Kotbo bot must be installed on both. You have two options depending on your rights on the remote server.

Method A: direct linking (if you are an administrator on both servers)

If you have administrator rights on both servers, you can establish the link straight from your dashboard.

1. Go to Cross-server → Channel links on the source server.
2. Click Create a link.
3. Select the local source channel.
4. Under Target server, select the remote server (it appears in the list if you are an administrator there and the bot is present).
5. Select the target channel from the list.
6. Adjust your options and click Create the link.

Method B: linking by invitation (if the target server belongs to someone else)

If you want to link your channel to one on a server you do not manage, you need to generate an invitation code for the other administrator to accept. In this scenario, Server A is the server where you start the setup and create the invitation, and Server B is the target server that receives it.

Step 1: generate the invitation (Server A — the initiating server)

1. On server A, go to Cross-server → Channel links and click Create a link.
2. Select your local channel.
3. Enable the Generate a Discord invite option (this also creates an access invite in case members want to join the other server).
4. Select the direction and relay mode you want.
5. Click Create the link.
6. A green box appears with a link code (for example A1B2C3D4), plus a Discord invite link if you ticked the option. Copy that code and pass it to the administrator of the remote server.

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Customising the relayed content

By default, Kotbo synchronises text and images. You can fine-tune this behaviour for each active link.

1. In your list of links under Cross-server → Channel links, find the link in question and click the gear icon (Configure).
2. Turn the toggles on or off to suit your preferences:
   • Text: relays ordinary written messages.
   • Images: relays images and attachments.
   • Embeds: relays the embed cards generated by external links or other bots.
   • Reactions: relays emoji added as reactions to messages.
   • Edits: if a user edits their message on one side, the change is mirrored on the other.
   • Deletions: if an original message is deleted, its copy in the other channel is deleted too.
3. Click Save.

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Removing a link

To break a link, go back to Cross-server → Channel links, click the red bin icon (Delete) next to the link and confirm. The relay stops immediately.

If the Update channel descriptions option was enabled, the bot automatically removes the invite links it inserted into the topic of the Discord channels involved.