Skip to main content

Integration with Telegram (BotFather)

Step 1: Create the Bot in Telegram​

  1. Open Telegram and search @BotFather
  2. Click Start
  3. Send the command /newbot
  4. Follow the instructions:
    • Bot name: Small ISP Lab Bot (or whatever name you prefer)
    • Bot username: small_isp_lab_bot (must end in bot)
  5. BotFather will give you a token like: 123456789:ABCdefGHIjklMNOpqrsTUVwxyz

Bot creation in BotFather

Token provided by BotFather

Step 2: Get your Chat ID​

  1. Open Telegram and search @userinfobot, @raw_data_bot, or @getmyid_bot
  2. Click Start
  3. The bot will respond with something like:
Your ID: 6111111116
Current chat ID: 6111111116
  1. That number is your Chat ID

Chat ID retrieved from Telegram

Step 3: Configure secrets.env​

Edit the configs/cbot/secrets.env file:

TELEGRAM_BOT_TOKEN=123456789:ABCdefGHIjklMNOpqrsTUVwxyz
ALLOWED_ADMINS=6111111116
ALLOWED_USERS=6111111116
ENABLE_SCRIPT_UPLOAD=false
MGMT_PROBE_IP=10.99.1.2
POST_BOOT_SLEEP=30
LOG_LEVEL=INFO

Notes:

  • TELEGRAM_BOT_TOKEN is required.
  • ALLOWED_ADMINS and ALLOWED_USERS accept comma-separated IDs.
  • if both are empty, the bot runs in open development mode.
  • the versioned reference file is configs/cbot/secrets.env.example.

Step 4: Download the Image​

# From the containerbot repository root
docker pull ghcr.io/abelperezr/containerbot:0.0.1

Step 5: Deploy the Lab​

sudo containerlab deploy -t lab.yml

The containerbot will start automatically and connect to Telegram.

Using the Bot​

Once connected, the bot will present a menu with script categories. Select a category to see available scripts and run them with a tap.

Useful Commands
  • /start - Shows the main menu
  • /help - Show help
  • /menu - Interactive category menu
  • /list - List available scripts/playbooks
  • /run <filename> - Run a script by filename