Getting Started with the Chat

This tutorial explains how to set up a basic Telerik UI for ASP.NET MVC Chat and highlights the major steps in the configuration of the component.

You will initialize a Chat component and load it with data.

Prerequisites

To successfully complete the tutorial, you need a project that is already configured to use the Telerik UI for ASP.NET MVC components:

• To create a new pre-configured project for the Telerik UI for ASP.NET MVC components, you can use a project template.

• To manually configure an existing project by using NuGet, see the Adding Telerik UI through NuGet.

1. Prepare the CSHTML File

The first step is to add the required directives at the top of the .cshtml document:

• To use the Telerik UI for ASP.NET MVC HtmlHelpers:

  @using Kendo.Mvc.UI
  

2. Initialize the Chat

Use the Chat HtmlHelper to add the component to the page. The Name() configuration method is mandatory as its value is used for the id and the name attributes of the Chat element.

    @using Kendo.Mvc.UI

    @(Html.Kendo().Chat()
        .Name("chat")
    )

3. Configure a Default User

The next step is to configure the User property and set a default avatar and name for the current user.

    @using Kendo.Mvc.UI

    @(Html.Kendo().Chat()
        .Name("chat")
        .User(u => u
            .Name("ChatBot Name")
            .IconUrl("https://demos.telerik.com/aspnet-core/shared/images/site/devcraft-ninja-small.svg")
        )
    )

4. Handle a Chat Event

The Chat exposes different client-side events that you can handle and use to customize the component's functions. In this tutorial, you will use the SendMessage event. Attach a handler in the declaration of the Chat and declare the onSendMessage JavaScript function.

    @(Html.Kendo().Chat()
        .Name("chat") 
        .User(u => u
            .Name("ChatBot Name")
            .IconUrl("https://demos.telerik.com/aspnet-core/shared/images/site/devcraft-ninja-small.svg")
        )
        .Events(e => e
            .SendMessage("onSendMessage")
        )
    )
    <script>
        function onSendMessage() {
            // Handle the send message event.
        }
    </script>

5. (Optional) Reference Existing Chat Instances

To use the client-side API of the Chat and build on top of its initial configuration, you need a reference to the Chat instance. Once you get a valid reference, you can call the respective API methods:

1. Use the .Name() (id attribute) of the component instance to get a reference.

       <script>
           $(document).ready(function() {
               var chatReference = $("#chat").data("kendoChat"); // chatReference is a reference to the existing Chat instance of the helper.
           })
       </script>
   

2. Use the Chat client-side API to control the behavior of the control. In this example, you will set up a kendoChatBotUser and will iterate an array of strings to render an automated greeting message with the use of the renderMessage method.

       <script>
       $(document).ready( function () {
           var kendoChatBotUser = {
               id: kendo.guid(),
               name: "Telerik Support Bot", // the name of the use will be shown in the Chat
               iconUrl: "https://demos.telerik.com/kendo-ui/content/chat/avatar.png" // url for the avatar of the user shown in the Chat
           }; 
           var primary_messages = ["Hello,","Welcome to our Support Service Portal"] // array of messages
   
           renderMessages(primary_messages,kendoChatBotUser)
       });
       function renderMessages(messages,user){
           var chat = $("#chat").data("kendoChat"); // access the client-side reference of the Chat component
           messages.forEach((message,i)=>{
                   // render a message for each string of the array
                   chat.renderMessage({
                   type: "text",
                   text: message
               }, user );
           })
       }
       </script>
   

Next Steps

• Subscribing to Chat Events
• Configuring a Peer-to-Peer Chat
• Automating Chat Responses with a DirectLine Agent (Demo)

See Also

• Using the Toolbar of the Chat for ASP.NET MVC (Demo)
• Client-Side API of the Chat
• Server-Side API of the Chat
• Knowledge Base Section