zeroclaw-labs/zeroclaw · error · anyhow::Error

Missing [channels.telegram.{}] section. Run `zeroclaw config

Error message

Missing [channels.telegram.{}] section. Run `zeroclaw config set channels.telegram.<alias>.bot_token <token>` to configure.

What it means

persist_identity() takes a write lock on the live config and requires the [channels.telegram.<alias>] table to already exist before attaching the paired identity group. If the running channel's alias has no matching TOML section (no bot_token ever configured under that exact key), the write aborts and tells you the command to run.

Source

Thrown at crates/zeroclaw-channels/src/telegram.rs:1114

                WARN,
                ::zeroclaw_log::Event::new(module_path!(), ::zeroclaw_log::Action::Note)
                    .with_outcome(::zeroclaw_log::EventOutcome::Unknown)
                    .with_attrs(::serde_json::json!({"identity": identity})),
                "paired identity not persisted (no persistence handle wired)"
            );
            return Ok(());
        };
        let normalized = Self::normalize_identity(identity);
        if normalized.is_empty() {
            anyhow::bail!("Cannot persist empty Telegram identity");
        }
        let group_name = format!("telegram_{}", self.alias);
        let channel_ref: zeroclaw_config::providers::ChannelRef =
            format!("telegram.{}", self.alias).into();
        let snapshot = {
            let mut cfg = config.write();
            if !cfg.channels.telegram.contains_key(&self.alias) {
                anyhow::bail!(
                    "Missing [channels.telegram.{}] section. Run `zeroclaw config set channels.telegram.<alias>.bot_token <token>` to configure.",
                    self.alias
                );
            }
            let group = cfg
                .peer_groups
                .entry(group_name)
                .or_insert_with(|| PeerGroupConfig {
                    channel: channel_ref,
                    ..PeerGroupConfig::default()
                });
            if group
                .external_peers
                .iter()
                .any(|p| Self::normalize_identity(p.as_str()) == normalized)
            {
                return Ok(());
            }

View on GitHub (pinned to 88bb9c8533)

Solutions

1. Run `zeroclaw config set channels.telegram.<alias>.bot_token <token>` for the exact alias named in the error, then re-run pairing.
2. Diff the alias in the error against the keys under [channels.telegram.*] in the config — they must match exactly, including case.
3. If the section exists under a different alias, point the channel at that alias instead of duplicating config.
4. Restart the runtime after fixing config so the in-memory channel and the file agree.

Example fix

# before
[channels.telegram.default]
bot_token = "..."
# bot runs as alias "work" -> no [channels.telegram.work]

# after
[channels.telegram.default]
bot_token = "..."

[channels.telegram.work]
bot_token = "..."

let alias = channel.alias();
{
    let cfg = config.read();
    if !cfg.channels.telegram.contains_key(alias) {
        anyhow::bail!("run first: zeroclaw config set channels.telegram.{alias}.bot_token <token>");
    }
}
channel.persist_identity(identity).await?;

match channel.persist_identity(identity).await {
    Err(e) if e.to_string().contains("Missing [channels.telegram") => {
        eprintln!("configure the alias section, then re-run pairing");
    }
    other => other?,
}

When it happens

Trigger: Runtime handling a telegram alias supplied via env/CLI that was never materialized into the config file; alias key mismatch (lookup is an exact, case-sensitive contains_key) such as 'Default' vs 'default'; config file deleted or rotated after startup while the in-memory channel keeps running under the old alias.

Common situations: Fresh installs where bot_token was set for one alias but the bot runs under a second alias; renaming an alias in one place only; pairing before completing first-run configuration; hand-edited TOML with the table under a different name.

Related errors

• Cannot persist empty Telegram identity
• Telegram sendMessage (approval) failed ({status}): {err}
• google_workspace.allowed_operations[{i}].resource must not b
• google_workspace.allowed_operations[{i}].service '{service}'
• notion.database_id must not be empty when notion.enabled = t

AI-assisted analysis of zeroclaw-labs/zeroclaw@88bb9c8533 (2026-08-23). Data as JSON: /api/errors/796bb9c5e07e6190. Report an issue: GitHub.