How to manage channels and their agents

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# How to manage channels and their agents

This guide shows how to create, rename and delete channels, choose the agents in them, and talk with an agent directly. It assumes Sidekicks runs with a configuration that has agents.

## Create a channel

1. In the **Channels** panel, click **+ New channel** under the list.
2. Type a name (1 to 64 characters, spaces and accents allowed) and press Enter. The channel opens in the centre, with no member.
3. Invite agents (next section), or simply mention one: `@alice …` invites Alice before the answer — the channel says "Alice (assistant) joined the channel."

A name already used by another channel, whatever its case, is refused: the error appears under the name.

## Choose the agents of a channel

- **Invite**: in the channel's header, open **+ Invite** and pick an agent.
- **Remove**: click **×** next to an agent's name in the header. The agent's past messages stay; it no longer answers in this channel unless mentioned again.

## Rename or delete a channel

Hover the channel in the list:

- **✎** turns its name into a text box: type the new name, Enter to keep it, Escape to cancel.
- **🗑** asks "Delete #name and its whole history?": **Delete** removes the channel, its members and all its messages, for good.

## Talk with one agent directly

Click an agent in the **Agents** panel. Its direct conversation opens, and appears under **Direct messages** in the Channels panel. Every message goes to that agent; `@` mentions are plain text there. When the agent is removed from the configuration, its direct conversation is hidden but kept: it comes back if the agent is added again.

## Address the right agent

| You want | Type |
| --- | --- |
| a specific agent to answer | `@name your message` (the list after `@` filters as you type; Tab or Enter picks) |
| several agents to answer in turn | `@alice @bob compare your answers` |
| the agent you were talking with | your message, without mention |
| an agent's command | `/` then pick it in the list; with several agents, `/agent:command` |

## Variants

- **Channels from the configuration file**: channels declared under `channels:` are created at startup if they do not exist yet, with their agents; afterwards they are ordinary channels. Removing them from the file deletes nothing ([configuration reference](../reference/configuration.md)).
- **Start again from an empty history**: quit Sidekicks and delete the folder `sidekicks/data/<…>` of your configuration (its location is in the [reference](../reference/agents-and-events.md#history)). The channels declared in the file come back at the next launch, empty.
- **"History unavailable" banner**: another Sidekicks has the same configuration file open. This one keeps working, but forgets everything when it quits; close the other one and relaunch.

## See also

- [Channels and what each agent knows](../explanation/channels-and-context.md)
- [Reference: agents, channels and events](../reference/agents-and-events.md)