Sources are the public Telegram channels Krabli monitors for new content. When a post appears in a source channel, Krabli processes it through your agents' rules or AI and, if it passes, delivers a proposal to your Backstage channel.
What you can follow
Krabli can follow public Telegram channels — channels that anyone can join without an invite. Private channels, groups, and direct messages cannot be used as sources.
Adding a source channel
- Go to the Sources page.
- Type the channel's username (e.g.
@example_news) or paste a public link (e.g.https://t.me/example_news). - Krabli shows a preview of the channel's recent posts so you can confirm it's the right one.
- Tap Follow.
The join queue
By default, Krabli joins source channels using its own managed Telegram accounts. Telegram limits how quickly accounts can join channels, so Krabli paces joins conservatively: at most 4 per hour, 12 per day.
If you add several channels at once, they queue up and join gradually. A newly queued channel shows its estimated wait time ("Waiting — about 2 hours"). Posts from a channel don't start arriving until Krabli has joined it.
Tip: Add your most important sources first. They'll be joined before the others.
If you've switched to own-reader mode on the Connections page ("Who reads my channels?" → My account), Krabli uses your linked Telegram account for joining and reading instead. The same pace applies, but the rate limits count against your account.
Channel states
| State | What it means |
|---|---|
| Reading | Krabli is joined and actively reading new posts |
| Waiting | In the join queue; posts will arrive after the wait |
| Not checked yet | Krabli hasn't confirmed the channel yet; it will soon |
| Cannot be read | Krabli can't access this channel — see below |
"Cannot be read" — common reasons
The channel requires an invite link
Private channels cannot be used as sources. Only public channels with a @username or t.me/ link work.
The channel was deleted or renamed
If a channel changes its username or is deleted, Krabli can no longer reach it. Remove it and re-add it with the new username if it still exists.
Telegram rate limit
Rarely, Telegram temporarily blocks an account from joining more channels. Krabli will retry automatically. Check the Sources page in a few hours.
Your linked account is no longer connected (own-reader mode only)
If you're using own-reader mode and your linked account has been unlinked or is having trouble, reading stops. Switch back to Krabli's accounts or re-link your account on the Connections page.
Unfollowing a channel
On the Sources page, tap Unfollow next to any channel. Krabli stops reading it immediately. Posts already in your Backstage that came from this channel are not affected.
Unfollowing does not remove the channel from any agents' source lists — you'll need to edit each agent if you want to remove it there too.
How sources connect to agents
Following a channel makes it available in the Sources page and in the agent setup form. To actually process posts from a channel, you need at least one agent that includes it as a source.
The same channel can be a source for multiple agents — useful if you want to process it differently for different audiences (e.g. one agent in Relay mode for speed, another in Editor mode for a curated weekly digest).