# Telegram Setup

Before installation, prepare a Telegram bot token and the chat IDs that will be allowed to control the gateway.

## Create a Bot

1. Open `@BotFather` in Telegram.
2. Send `/newbot`.
3. Follow the prompts to set the bot name and username.
4. Save the issued bot token securely.

The bot token is a secret. Do not expose it in shell history, documents, tickets, chats, or logs.

## Find the Chat ID

Identify the Telegram chat ID that should be allowed.

For a personal chat, `@userinfobot` can show the user ID.

For a group or supergroup, use the actual group chat ID. Supergroup IDs are commonly negative and may begin with `-100`.

## Token Usage Rules

Do not share one bot token across concurrently running `rtmn` instances.

Telegram long polling can race when multiple clients poll with the same bot token. In that case, it becomes unpredictable which server or instance receives a message.

Recommended rules:

- Use a different bot token per server.
- Use a different bot token per account-isolated instance.
- Rotate the token immediately if it is exposed.
- Revoke unused bots in Telegram.