BabelBot dashboard setup and settings guide

Use the dashboard to configure BabelBot for your server. Discord slash commands do not add translation target languages or bridges. /language changes the language of BabelBot's own messages. Other commands open the dashboard or give members short translation shortcuts. For how translation behaves in Discord, read How BabelBot Works.

Access the dashboard

Goal: Open settings for a server you manage.

1. Sign in to the dashboard with Discord.
2. Your Discord role must include Manage Server on that server.
3. BabelBot must be Installed on that server. Use Invite on the server list if it is missing.

You can also run /dashboard in Discord. That command requires Manage Server.

Review setting changes

Goal: Check what changed, who made the change, and when it happened.

1. Select a server in the dashboard.
2. Open Audit logs near the bottom of the sidebar.
3. Use Filter by person or Filter by action to narrow the retained history. The person filter lists only accounts with recorded changes.
4. Open an entry to compare the setting before and after the change. Use Clear filters to return to all changes.

The page shows successful setting changes made in the dashboard or by a connected AI assistant. It also shows automatic plan-limit changes and bridge cleanup after a linked Discord channel is deleted. Dashboard changes show the account name and profile picture when available. New assistant changes also show the connected app’s name and a recognized app icon when available. Older assistant entries keep the AI assistant label and a generic icon. Support changes are labeled BabelBot support. Automatic changes are labeled BabelBot.

Collection changes show stable item IDs without exposing custom-word text, bot profile content, or bridge webhook credentials. The page shows up to 500 committed entries from the last 90 days. History starts with this release. Failed and denied attempts stay in internal diagnostics because they did not change the server settings.

Audit logs cover server setting changes. Billing lifecycle events and message translation traces use separate operational records and do not appear on this page.

Turn translation on or off for the server

Goal: Stop or start all automatic translation without removing the bot.

1. Open the server, then open Overview.
2. Toggle Translations.

When Translations is off, bridges and automatic message translation do not run. Context menus and slash commands may still work.

Choose channel types for automatic translation

Goal: Set safe defaults for text channels, voice channel chats, and forum or media posts.

1. Open Automatic translation in the sidebar.
2. Turn automatic translation on or off for Text channels, Voice channel chats, and Forum and media posts.
3. Send a short test message in each channel type you use.

All channels without a channel rule follow these settings, including channels that already exist and channels added later. A channel rule with Translation status on or off overrides the channel-type default for its selected channels. The server-wide Translations switch still stops all automatic translation and bridges.

These controls apply to new messages and message edits. They do not turn off configured bridges, flag reactions, context-menu translations, or live voice chat translation. Manage those features in their own settings.

Fix channel permission warnings

Goal: Restore delivery when Discord blocks BabelBot in a channel.

1. Open the server, then open Overview.
2. If a permission warning lists a channel, open Discord channel permissions for that channel.
3. Grant BabelBot the permissions named in the warning. If it lists Remove Timeout, ask a server moderator to remove BabelBot's timeout, or wait for it to expire.
4. Post a short test message in that channel.

The warning clears after BabelBot successfully delivers a translation there. The dashboard never shows message content or webhook secrets in these warnings.

Set target languages

Goal: Choose which languages automatic translation produces.

1. Go to Target languages in the sidebar.
2. Add the languages your community needs.
3. Stay within your plan's language count. See Billing and Limits.

Each extra target language adds more translated output per message. Start with a small set. Add more when usage is stable.

Languages with an AI only label need AI quota. Languages without this label can use BabelBot's in-house translator after AI quota runs out. The same label appears during onboarding, in channel rules, and in bridge language selection.

Language names show in your dashboard language. You can search for a language by its name in your dashboard language or in English.

Conversation mode

On Pro, Ultra, and Founder Access, BabelBot can translate several text messages from one member together.

1. Open Conversation mode in the sidebar.
2. Choose a wait of 1 to 10 seconds. The first message starts the timer. Follow-up messages do not extend it.
3. Choose Off to return to immediate translation of each message.

Messages join the same group only when they have the same author, channel, and reply target. Messages with embeds, attachments, stickers, polls, or forwarded content translate immediately. Groups are limited to 20 messages and 10,000 characters.

BabelBot joins the messages with spaces before translation. For example, four messages that say hi, im, testing, and this become hi im testing this for the translator. Line breaks inside an individual message stay in place.

Conversation mode uses your existing delivery settings:

• Reply in channel: one combined translation, split when needed to fit Discord.
• Reply in threads: one translation thread attached to the first original. Messages already inside a thread get their translation there.
• Replace the original: BabelBot delivers the combined replacement before deleting the originals. If a source changes before deletion, BabelBot keeps it.
• Bridges: one combined translation in each linked channel. Editing or deleting an original rebuilds the combined copy from the remaining messages. When no originals remain, BabelBot removes the linked copies.

Each original still counts toward usage. Five grouped messages count as five. Bridge usage keeps its existing per-destination counting. Grouping does not change flag reactions, context-menu translations, or live voice chat translation.

Set up custom words

Goal: Control how BabelBot translates specific words. Use this for your server name, game terms (for example "gank" or "nerf"), brand names, slang, or terms that should stay untranslated.

1. Go to Custom words in the sidebar.
2. Add a word: the word, the language, what to translate it as, and an optional note for your team.
3. Choose All Languages when the same custom word should apply to every target language.
4. BabelBot uses your translation when it translates into the selected language, or into any language for All Languages entries.

Matching ignores capitalization and matches whole words or phrases. A rule for cyn matches CYN. A rule for cat does not match catalog. BabelBot keeps the exact spelling and capitalization from Translate it as. It leaves code and web addresses unchanged.

Examples:

• Keep your server tag the same in every language.
• Map a product codename to the official name.
• Set how a game ability should read in Spanish.
• Leave an acronym untranslated.

Custom words work only with AI translation. When a message includes one of your custom words, BabelBot always uses AI for that message. Free servers get 5 custom words, Pro gets 25, and Ultra, Legacy Ultra, and Founder Access get 100. Notes are reminders for your team. The bot does not follow them. See Billing and Limits for the per-plan counts.

Skip automatic translation from source languages

Goal: Stop BabelBot from translating messages that were written in a language your server already understands.

1. Go to Skip languages in the sidebar.
2. Add one or more source languages to skip.
3. Keep those languages in Target languages if you still want other languages translated into them.

For example, add English here when English chat should stay as written, while French, Spanish, or other languages still translate into English. Skips are silent and do not count toward usage. If BabelBot cannot detect the source language with confidence, it translates as usual.

Messages from other bots

BabelBot currently ignores messages from other bots, except for followed announcements. The dashboard option for specific bots is hidden while we fix it.

Choose delivery mode, reply style, and thread retention

Choose where translations appear and whether BabelBot keeps the original message.

1. Open Reply mode in the sidebar.
2. Choose Reply in channel, Reply in threads, or Replace the original.
3. When Reply in channel is selected, choose Reply style: Embed (the default) or Plain text.
4. In thread mode, set Thread retention (days). 0 keeps threads until you delete them yourself. The default auto-deletes old BabelBot translation threads after a set number of days.

Plain text shows only the translated text for one target language. With multiple target languages, each translation starts with a bold language label. If a plain-text reply is too long for Discord, BabelBot creates a translation thread or reuses the current thread, then splits the output into separate messages that stay below Discord's message limit. A channel rule can choose a different reply style for selected channels.

Use threads for busy or multi-language servers. Use reply for quiet channels with one target language. Choose Plain text for a compact reply or Embed when members need the styled BabelBot card.

Replace the original

Choose Replace the original for automatic text translations in a regular server text channel.

• One target language, such as French: replace messages in other languages with French translations. French messages stay as they are.
• Multiple target languages: show the original text first, then the translations.

BabelBot posts the translation as the original speaker: same name, same avatar, in the same channel. Then it deletes their original message. Long replacements use several messages in the same channel. If translation or delivery fails, the original stays.

Selecting this mode does not grant Discord permissions. The dashboard shows a permission note and an Update Discord permissions link in server settings and channel rules. Use the link to grant Manage Webhooks, Manage Messages, View Channel, and Read Message History. Check channel overrides too, then send a test message. The note is guidance, not a live permission check.

Members cannot edit the repost as their own message. The original message's link, timestamp, and reactions do not transfer.

A channel rule can select a different delivery mode. Choose Reply in channel or Reply in threads to stop replacement. Attachments, stickers, polls, forwarded messages, announcements, bridges, and messages already inside threads keep their existing delivery behavior. Flag reactions and context-menu translations keep the original.

In a voice channel's text chat, BabelBot replies in the channel even when Reply in threads is selected.

When a message is already inside a Discord thread, BabelBot replies inside that thread. It does not create another translation thread. Forum and media posts follow the same rule because Discord treats each post as a thread.

Turn flag reaction translation on or off

Goal: Allow or block country-flag emoji shortcuts on messages.

1. Open Flag reactions in the sidebar.
2. Toggle the setting on or off for the whole server.
3. Set Translation visibility to Public or Private DM.

Flag translations use AI and count toward your usage. Channel rules can also allow or block flag reactions. A rule with Translation status off only stops automatic translation when Flag reactions stays on.

With Public visibility, flag reactions inside a Discord thread follow the same rule as automatic translation. BabelBot replies inside the existing thread. It does not create another thread.

With Private DM visibility, BabelBot sends the clean translation result only to the member who added the reaction. The source message and reaction remain visible in the channel. If Discord blocks the DM, BabelBot does not post the translation publicly.

Enable media translation

Goal: Translate supported PDFs, images, videos, and audio files on supported plans.

1. Open Media translation in the sidebar.
2. Turn on Media translation. This requires a paid plan.

The free plan supports unlimited text translation for languages supported by BabelBot's in-house translator. Languages marked AI only need AI quota. Media translation needs Pro, Ultra, or Founder Access.

Enable voice chat translation

Goal: Let members translate live voice calls from Discord.

This needs Ultra or Founder Access, at least one target language in server settings, and the right bot permissions in your voice channels.

1. Open Voice chat in the sidebar.
2. Turn on Allow voice chat translation.
3. Pick Voice message style (clean speaker messages or detailed embeds).

The dashboard controls whether voice chat translation is allowed and how translated messages look. Members start and stop live sessions with /voice start, /voice stop, and /voice status. Each session starts right away and translates eligible speakers into the target languages set for that voice channel. If the only target matches the detected speaker language, BabelBot does not post a message for that speech.

Voice chat translation is separate from audio attachments (voice notes and audio clips in text channels). For the full admin setup, member steps, and limits, see Voice chat translation.

Configure channel rules

Goal: Exclude channels or set different behavior per channel in the dashboard.

1. Open Channel rules in the sidebar.
2. Add a rule, select channels, and override settings. You can turn translation off, set different target languages, change Don't translate from, reply mode, reply style for in-channel replies, flag reactions, or media translation where your plan allows.
3. Drag rules to change priority. The first matching rule wins.
4. Use Preview a channel to check the effective settings before you test a message.

To keep moderation or log channels out of automatic translation, create a rule with Translation status off. You can still leave Flag reactions on in that rule for on-demand translation. Channels in a bridge still relay bridge messages when this setting is off. Remove the bridge if you want to stop traffic between linked channels. To translate English in one channel while the rest of the server skips English, add a rule. Set Don't translate from to an empty list.

Create a channel bridge

Goal: Link two or more language-specific channels.

1. Open Bridges in the sidebar.
2. Create a pair (two channels) or hub (one main channel plus spokes).
3. Assign each channel its language.
4. Post test messages in both directions.

Each two-channel bridge counts as one bridge toward your plan limit. In a hub bridge, each spoke counts as one bridge. A hub can have up to 25 spokes. A channel cannot belong to overlapping bridges.

If you delete a linked Discord channel, BabelBot removes the affected pair or spoke from your bridge settings. Deleting a hub, or the only remaining spoke, removes the whole hub bridge.

Bridge messages that contain only numbers, emoji, timestamps, punctuation, or similar content are mirrored unchanged. Attached images and supported videos use Discord's normal preview. Spoilered images and supported videos stay hidden in linked channels until a member opens them. Other files appear as labeled cards that link to the original Discord attachment. Custom server stickers also cross linked channels. PNG, APNG, and GIF stickers keep their preview. Other formats stay available through an original link. You do not need to enable Media translation for mirroring. BabelBot only uses AI usage when it translates message text or supported attachment content.

New bridge message links have no time limit. Links created before this update keep their original expiry, normally 30 days after creation. Editing a message does not extend that period. Expired links cannot be recovered. While a link exists, source edits update BabelBot's copies in linked channels. Messages that contain text follow the normal translation usage rules. Sticker-only messages and edits without text do not use AI usage.

If you delete an ungrouped original while bridge history is available, BabelBot removes its copies from the linked channels. In Conversation mode, it rebuilds the combined copy from the remaining originals and removes it when none remain. If you delete it while BabelBot is translating, the copies will not appear later. If you delete only one linked copy, the original and the other copies stay in place. BabelBot does not recreate the copy you removed.

Reactions added to any linked copy appear on the copies in the other channels while bridge history is available. Custom and animated emoji keep their image even when they belong to another server. Discord shows BabelBot as the reacting account on those copies. Remove the last matching member reaction to clear BabelBot's copied reactions.

Connect channels across servers

Goal: Relay messages between one channel in each of two Discord servers.

1. Install BabelBot in both servers and make sure you can manage both servers.
2. Turn on Translations in both servers so messages can travel in both directions.
3. Under Extras, open Cross-server connections for the server that will sponsor the connection.
4. Choose one channel and its language in each server.
5. Create the connection, then post a test message in both directions.

Channels that belong to a local bridge or another cross-server connection show Already used and cannot be selected. Remove the existing bridge or connection before you reuse one of its channels.

The sponsor server needs Ultra or Founder Access. When the channel languages differ, translation usage belongs to the sponsor server. When the languages match, BabelBot relays the message without calling a translation provider or using translation quota.

A channel can belong to only one local bridge or cross-server connection. Either server's managers can disconnect the connection from their own dashboard. If the sponsor server loses its eligible plan, BabelBot pauses the connection. It resumes when that server has Ultra or Founder Access again.

Deleting either linked channel or removing BabelBot from either server deletes the connection. After you replace a channel or reinstall BabelBot, create a new connection.

Relayed messages include the source server name with the member context, so members can see where the message came from. Webhook credentials stay private and never appear in dashboard responses.

Manage billing and upgrades

Goal: See usage, change plan, or open the subscription portal.

1. Open Billing near the bottom of the sidebar.
2. Review usage, limits, and checkout options.

For an active paid subscription, only the account that completed checkout can open the customer portal, view invoices, or change the subscription. Other server managers can still manage server settings. If a canceled monthly subscription has ended, any current server manager can start a new checkout.

Run /upgrade in Discord for a quick plan summary and a link to the same billing page.

Transfer Founder Access between servers

Goal: Move Founder Access to another eligible server.

1. Open Founder Access transfer from the dashboard sidebar when your account is eligible.
2. Follow the flow to move access from one installed server to another.

Your first eligible Founder Access transfer is available immediately. Some individually granted access stays with its original server and cannot be transferred. The transfer page shows when a server is unavailable. A verified purchaser can choose an eligible server they manage. For legacy access without a verified purchaser, the person starting the transfer must own the destination server. After a transfer, you must wait 90 days before moving it again.

After the move, BabelBot emails the verified purchaser. The email lists the old server, new server, who started the transfer, and a support link. Transfers apply only to Founder Access and legacy one-time entitlements. They do not apply to monthly subscriptions.

Ignored users

Goal: Skip automatic translation for specific members (for example bots you cannot exclude another way).

BabelBot skips messages from Discord user IDs on the server's ignored users list. Open Ignored users in the sidebar, then add or remove the person's Discord user ID.

Members cannot opt themselves out. A server manager must add their Discord user ID in Settings.

Server overview at a glance

Use Overview for:

• Master translation toggle and suggested next steps
• The Finish setting up checklist for 30 days after guided setup
• Plan, usage, and remaining AI capacity
• 30-day activity (automatic, bridge, flag reaction)
• Shortcuts into settings and billing

Manage settings from an AI assistant

Open Integrations, then AI assistant (MCP) to connect Claude, ChatGPT, Cursor, VS Code, or another app with remote HTTP MCP and OAuth support. Copy the server address there, then follow the AI assistant integrations guide for setup, permissions, and disconnecting an app.

Common dashboard issues

Related pages

• Quick Start: first-time setup
• AI assistant integrations: connect an assistant to view or change settings
• Playbooks: recommended combinations of these settings
• Command Reference: what still works in Discord chat