telegram-automation

SKILL.md

Telegram Automation via Rube MCP

Automate Telegram operations through Composio's Telegram toolkit via Rube MCP.

Prerequisites

Rube MCP must be connected (RUBE_SEARCH_TOOLS available)

Active Telegram connection via RUBE_MANAGE_CONNECTIONS with toolkit telegram

Always call RUBE_SEARCH_TOOLS first to get current tool schemas

Telegram Bot Token required (created via @BotFather)

Setup

Get Rube MCP: Add https://rube.app/mcp as an MCP server in your client configuration. No API keys needed — just add the endpoint and it works.

Verify Rube MCP is available by confirming RUBE_SEARCH_TOOLS responds

Call RUBE_MANAGE_CONNECTIONS with toolkit telegram

If connection is not ACTIVE, follow the returned auth link to configure the Telegram bot

Confirm connection status shows ACTIVE before running any workflows

Core Workflows

1. Send Messages

When to use: User wants to send text messages to a Telegram chat

Tool sequence:

TELEGRAM_GET_ME - Verify bot identity and connection [Prerequisite]

TELEGRAM_GET_CHAT - Get chat details and verify access [Optional]

TELEGRAM_SEND_MESSAGE - Send a text message [Required]

Key parameters:

chat_id: Numeric chat ID or channel username (e.g., '@channelname')

text: Message text content

parse_mode: 'HTML' or 'MarkdownV2' for formatting

disable_notification: Send silently without notification sound

reply_to_message_id: Message ID to reply to

Pitfalls:

Bot must be a member of the chat/group to send messages

MarkdownV2 requires escaping special characters: _*[]()~>#+-=|{}.!

HTML mode supports limited tags: <b>, <i>, <code>, <pre>, <a>

Messages have a 4096 character limit; split longer content

2. Send Photos and Documents

When to use: User wants to share images or files in a Telegram chat

Tool sequence:

TELEGRAM_SEND_PHOTO - Send an image [Optional]

TELEGRAM_SEND_DOCUMENT - Send a file/document [Optional]

Key parameters:

chat_id: Target chat ID

photo: Photo URL or file_id (for SEND_PHOTO)

document: Document URL or file_id (for SEND_DOCUMENT)

caption: Optional caption for the media

Pitfalls:

Photo captions have a 1024 character limit

Document captions also have a 1024 character limit

Files up to 50MB can be sent via bot API

Photos are compressed by Telegram; use SEND_DOCUMENT for uncompressed images

3. Manage Chats

When to use: User wants to get chat information or manage chat settings

Tool sequence:

TELEGRAM_GET_CHAT - Get detailed chat information [Required]

TELEGRAM_GET_CHAT_ADMINISTRATORS - List chat admins [Optional]

TELEGRAM_GET_CHAT_MEMBERS_COUNT - Get member count [Optional]

TELEGRAM_EXPORT_CHAT_INVITE_LINK - Generate invite link [Optional]

Key parameters:

chat_id: Target chat ID or username

Pitfalls:

Bot must be an administrator to export invite links

GET_CHAT returns different fields for private chats vs groups vs channels

Member count may be approximate for very large groups

Admin list does not include regular members

4. Edit and Delete Messages

When to use: User wants to modify or remove previously sent messages

Tool sequence:

TELEGRAM_EDIT_MESSAGE - Edit a sent message [Optional]

TELEGRAM_DELETE_MESSAGE - Delete a message [Optional]

Key parameters:

chat_id: Chat where the message is located

message_id: ID of the message to edit or delete

text: New text content (for edit)

Pitfalls:

Bots can only edit their own messages

Messages can only be deleted within 48 hours of sending

In groups, bots with delete permissions can delete any message

Editing a message removes its 'edited' timestamp history

5. Forward Messages and Get Updates

When to use: User wants to forward messages or retrieve recent updates

Tool sequence:

TELEGRAM_FORWARD_MESSAGE - Forward a message to another chat [Optional]

TELEGRAM_GET_UPDATES - Get recent bot updates/messages [Optional]

TELEGRAM_GET_CHAT_HISTORY - Get chat message history [Optional]

Key parameters:

from_chat_id: Source chat for forwarding

chat_id: Destination chat for forwarding

message_id: Message to forward

offset: Update offset for GET_UPDATES

limit: Number of updates to retrieve

Pitfalls:

Forwarded messages show the original sender attribution

GET_UPDATES returns a limited window of recent updates

Chat history access may be limited by bot permissions and chat type

Use offset to avoid processing the same update twice

6. Manage Bot Commands

When to use: User wants to set or update bot command menu

Tool sequence:

TELEGRAM_SET_MY_COMMANDS - Set the bot's command list [Required]

TELEGRAM_ANSWER_CALLBACK_QUERY - Respond to inline button presses [Optional]

Key parameters:

commands: Array of command objects with command and description

callback_query_id: ID of the callback query to answer

Pitfalls:

Commands must start with '/' and be lowercase

Command descriptions have a 256 character limit

Callback queries must be answered within 10 seconds or they expire

Setting commands replaces the entire command list

Common Patterns

Chat ID Resolution

From username:

1. Use '@username' format as chat_id (for public channels/groups)
2. For private chats, numeric chat_id is required
3. Call GET_CHAT with username to retrieve numeric ID

From GET_UPDATES:

1. Call TELEGRAM_GET_UPDATES
2. Extract chat.id from message objects
3. Use numeric chat_id in subsequent calls

Message Formatting

Use parse_mode: 'HTML' for <b>bold</b>, <i>italic</i>, <code>code</code>

Use parse_mode: 'MarkdownV2' for *bold*, _italic_, `code`

Escape special chars in MarkdownV2: _ * [ ] ( ) ~ > # + - = | { } . !

Omit parse_mode for plain text without formatting

Known Pitfalls

Bot Permissions:

Bots must be added to groups/channels to interact

Admin permissions needed for: deleting messages, exporting invite links, managing members

Bots cannot initiate conversations; users must start them first

Rate Limits:

30 messages per second to the same group

20 messages per minute to the same user in groups

Bulk operations should implement delays between calls

API returns 429 Too Many Requests when limits are hit

Chat Types:

Private chat: One-on-one with the bot

Group: Multi-user chat (bot must be added)

Supergroup: Enhanced group with admin features

Channel: Broadcast-only (bot must be admin to post)

Message Limits:

Text messages: 4096 characters max

Captions: 1024 characters max

File uploads: 50MB max via bot API

Inline keyboard buttons: 8 per row

Quick Reference

Task
Tool Slug
Key Params

Verify bot
TELEGRAM_GET_ME
(none)

Send message
TELEGRAM_SEND_MESSAGE
chat_id, text, parse_mode

Send photo
TELEGRAM_SEND_PHOTO
chat_id, photo, caption

Send document
TELEGRAM_SEND_DOCUMENT
chat_id, document, caption

Edit message
TELEGRAM_EDIT_MESSAGE
chat_id, message_id, text

Delete message
TELEGRAM_DELETE_MESSAGE
chat_id, message_id

Forward message
TELEGRAM_FORWARD_MESSAGE
chat_id, from_chat_id, message_id

Get chat info
TELEGRAM_GET_CHAT
chat_id

Get chat admins
TELEGRAM_GET_CHAT_ADMINISTRATORS
chat_id

Get member count
TELEGRAM_GET_CHAT_MEMBERS_COUNT
chat_id

Export invite link
TELEGRAM_EXPORT_CHAT_INVITE_LINK
chat_id

Get updates
TELEGRAM_GET_UPDATES
offset, limit

Get chat history
TELEGRAM_GET_CHAT_HISTORY
chat_id

Set bot commands
TELEGRAM_SET_MY_COMMANDS
commands

Answer callback
TELEGRAM_ANSWER_CALLBACK_QUERY
callback_query_id

When to Use

This skill is applicable to execute the workflow or actions described in the overview.

Limitations

Use this skill only when the task clearly matches the scope described above.

Do not treat the output as a substitute for environment-specific validation, testing, or expert review.

Stop and ask for clarification if required inputs, permissions, safety boundaries, or success criteria are missing.