Channels: Mobile Guide

What are Discord Categories & Channels?

• Categories on Discord are used to group up server channels; such as 'Important' channels.

• Channels are places where members can talk in a server. There are multiple types, such as: text, voice chats, forums, announcements and stage channels.

In the following example, the category is called "Information / Updates", and the channels are the following titles, such as "Server-Rules", "Announcements", "Resources" and "Applications".

Server Channel & Category Example

In the above example, the channel names are customized, such as "📕┃server-rules". Note that the emojis and symbols in this example are not automatically created alongside your channel's name.

Channel Names

Channel names are usually lowercase, and spaces are replaced with a - character. However, with voice channels, spaces and uppercase characters can be used. This is the same with forums and threads.

Voice Channel Name

Creating a New Category & Channel

To create a new category or channel, head on over to a server you either own or have permissions in.

To create your own Discord server, click the '+' icon in the server list, and select 'Create My Own'.

Then, while viewing the server's channel list, click the server's name. Then, the following page will pop-up, and you can access the buttons: "Create Channel" and "Create Category".

Creating a Category

When entering your category name, you can enter emojis (excluding Discord custom emojis), symbols and any text; such as: "☕・General Chats". Categories, unlike most channels, can have spaces.

Upon the category's creation, note that any text you enter will be capitalized.

Private Category

Private categories are where only specific members, or roles, are able to access all of the channels within the category (unless a channel has permission overrides).

When creating a category, if you toggle a private category, you'll enter the following page:

Here, you can select any role or member to access the category. These permissions can be edited, in more depth at any time (see Editing a Category / Channel).

Once you have created your category, you'll see the following in your server's channel list:

Until you add channels to the category, it will remain empty.

Creating a Channel

To create a new channel, Creating a New Category & Channel.

Without community enabled on your server, your channel creation page will be the following:

1. Text Channels: are channels that are normal chat rooms. However, you can add additional chat rooms within text channels, called threads!

   Threads can be both private and public. These are in-channel chat rooms, which can be used to talk about a specific topic, or to organize a list.

More about Threads

Threads work differently to other text channels; though, threads are similar to forums.

• Each thread can be archived. This means that they are marked as inactive after a set duration: after 1 hour, 24 hours, 3 days or 1 week.

• Members can choose to follow a thread by sending a message inside of them. This comes with the option for unfollowing a thread, and no longer being notified for new messages.

• Threads can also be locked: which means that only moderators can chat inside of them.

To manage a channel's threads, start by clicking the thread icon at the top of the channel and right clicking a thread. Here, you can leave, close, lock edit and delete a thread.

Public Threads

• Public threads can be created by tapping and holding down on message. After a second, a new menu will pop up, giving you several options:

  

Public threads can be used to open a separate chatroom, inside of a text channel. After you have created this thread, and assigned it a name, your original message will link to the thread.

Here, users can chat about the original message. This can free up space in lively chats, allowing users to have clear discussions without any flooding or confusion!

• Here's an example of how a public thread looks, when it's created from a message:

  

Private Threads

Private threads are similar to private text channels, whereby only the users who are tagged inside of the thread can see and chat.

In order to create a private thread, tap into a channel (go into a channel, and tap it's name at the top), and click 'Threads'. This will open a menu with all of your channel's active threads. From here, you can click the '+' icon to create a new thread.

After, you'll see a new tab, asking you for a thread name, option to make the thread private, and to enter a starter-message.

To invite members to the private thread, you will need to ping them.

Permissions

Threads can be edited, like other channels, however the permissions differ. For instance, you can not set any specific permission overrides for members or roles.

Instead, you can only edit a thread's name, slowmode, inactivity duration (until the thread is archived), and if anybody can be invited to the thread.

A thread's permissions, will depend on any overrides the parent channel has, or on any interacting users' role permissions.

2. Voice Channels: are channels were users can join and voice chat! For each voice channel, you can access a text-based channel, for users who wish to join in without a microphone. You can find this chat, by hovering your mouse over the voice channel, and clicking the speech bubble icon. Voice channel text chats do not have as many features as Text Channels. For instance, you can not pin messages or start threads.

Community Channels

However, with community enabled, you will have access to more channel types, including:

3. Forums: a channel that holds multiple chatrooms, usually for sharing art, talking about specific games, or in this example: sharing different commands, events & systems made in BotWiz!

4. Announcement Channels: these are channels specifically for making announcements. Users with servers can follow these channels; meaning that any messages sent to the announcement channel, will be shared to other servers' channels.

5. Stage Channels: allow members to listen to a group of people. This is usually for game shows, talk about updates, Q&As and more. Members listening can request to speak, giving opportunities for members to ask questions for example.

How to Enable Community

Head to your Server Settings, and Select "Enable Community". Here, you'll be met with this page:

As soon as you click 'Get Started', you'll be met with a 3-step series:

1. Safety Checks:

   • Here, you'll need to set your verification level to "Verified email required," to minimise spam.

   • Additionally, media content must be set to scan all members; including roled members.

2. Setting up the basics:

   • Now, you'll be asked to create or select a channel that is used to display your server's rules.

   • Then, you must select or create a community updates channel for admins and moderators.

3. Finishing touches:

   • Finally, members will be notified for mentions only, instead of all messages sent; and risky permissions (creating emojis, events and mentioning everyone) will be removed from everyone.

   • You'll also need to confirm that your server follows Discord's Community Guidelines.

Once finishing these steps, you'll now have access to more channel types (such as forums).

Other tools such as Onboarding and the page to apply for Discovery are desktop-only features.

To find Server Insights on mobile, you must head over to your Discord Developer Portal.

Editing a Category / Channel

To edit any category or channel, tap and hold on the channel or category for a second.

This will bring up a series of options, such as the following:

When editing a channel, each channel type will have different options, such as the permissions.

In particular, when editing a text channel, you'll be able to modify it's name, topic, slowmode, permissions, invites and intregrations as usual. However, forums for instance, have different customization options: such as introducing post guidelines, tags and default reactions.

However, each channel will always have a permissions, invites and integrations tab.

Permissions

Each channel type will come with its own set of diverse permissions, such as, for voice channels: options to allow a role or user to join the voice chat, to mute or deafen other members, and move members.

Permissions Unique to Stage Channels

Category Permissions

When you set up a category with role and / or user permissions, this means that any channel within that category can sync up. Meaning, each channel within the category will have the same permissions.

Without setting any category permissions, each user will be subject to a channel's permissions, or their role permissions. For instance, if the channel has no overrides and if everyone has the role permissions to see channels and talk in them, they will be able to do so in any channel the category has.

Channel Permissions & Overrides

When creating specific permissions for a user or a role on a channel, this is called a channel override. Channel overrides will ignore any role permissions a user has if the role has a override.

For example, naturally, a member role has the permissions to send files. Though on #general, there's an override saying that the member role can no longer send files. In this example, members can send files elsewhere in channels without this specific override, but in the #general chat, they can no longer send any files.

Invites

Invites can be made to invite a user to a server. Though, invites can be linked to a specific channel: allowing the invited user to see the channel the invite is linked to.

Without linking an invite to a channel, the first channel seen by the new user will either be the first channel.

On a desktop, you will have access to Invite Security Actions, featuring:

1. The ability to pause invites for a set amount of time, such as 2 hours; and

2. The option to pause DMs that are sent between members in the server.

Sadly, this option is not available on mobile.

Integrations

Integrations are similar to connections, whereby you can have your channel follow others in different servers, and you can connect webhooks to a channel.

Channels Followed

As mentioned, you can follow another channel from a different server. This will allow you to keep current with any updates, announcements or messages sent in their announcement channel.

When following a channel, each message sent in the channel you're following, will be sent to yours.

Webhooks

Webhooks is a tool you can use to send messages to text channels without needing a Discord application. This can be used to have automated messages and data updates.

When creating a webhooks, you'll see Captain Hook. You can modify Captain Hook into your own profile.

For more about webhooks, click here.

Moving a Channel or Category

It's important to have multiple categories listing relevant channels to keep your server neat and tidy. Having too many unorganized channels can be confusing and uninviting to new users.

To move a channel or category to your desired position, head to your Server Settings. Here, select "Channels". In this page, at the top right, there'll be an option to reorder your categories and channels.

Use the 6-dotted icon on the right of each category or channel, and drag and drop to its new place.