General group settings

Tip: change one option at a time and verify the result in the group so false positives are easy to spot.

In short#

This page explains the group-level controls that other features use. The most important setting is the default bot topic for Telegram forum groups.

How it works#

1. Defendy reads the selected Telegram group and shows its ID and forum status.
2. The group timezone becomes the reference for schedules such as night mode.
3. The default bot topic is used whenever a feature has no topic of its own.

Set it up step by step#

1. Open Defendy in Telegram, select the intended group and open General settings.
2. Set the group's UTC offset before configuring night mode or schedules.
3. For a forum group, keep “use global topic” enabled unless a module needs a separate topic.
4. To assign the global bot topic, send /settopic inside the target topic. Use Delete on this page to clear it.

Every setting explained#

Group ID#

Default: Read-only.

Telegram group identifier shown for support and diagnostics.

Topics enabled#

Default: From Telegram.

Read-only flag that shows whether the group uses Telegram forum topics.

Group time zone#

Default: UTC (+0).

Controls local time for night mode and scheduled actions. The picker offers whole-hour offsets from UTC−12 through UTC+12; choose the group's time, not necessarily the administrator's current location.

Default bot topic#

Default: Not set.

Topic where bot messages are sent unless a feature has its own topic.

Set topic command#

Default: /settopic.

Send this command in the target forum topic to bind it as the default bot topic.

Practical example#

A Minsk-based community chooses UTC+3. The administrator sends /settopic in the “Bot messages” topic. Captcha and greetings use that topic until a separate module topic is configured.

Recommendations#

• A feature topic overrides the default bot topic only for that feature.
• If topics are disabled in Telegram, topic controls are hidden in Defendy.

Troubleshooting#

• Check that Defendy is still an administrator in the group.
• Refresh the settings panel and make sure you are editing the correct group.
• If a setting is saved but does not work, check the bot permissions in Telegram.
• If you are not sure what happened, open the moderation log.