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States in Telebof

The States system in Telebof allows bots to manage multi step conversations by keeping track of a user's current step and storing temporary data. This feature is essential for building forms, surveys, and context aware interactions.

Overview

A state represents the current step a user is at in a conversation. Each state can store associated data, enabling the bot to retrieve and use it in subsequent steps. States can exist in:

  • Private chats (per user)
  • Group or supergroup chats (per user in a chat)

BotContext: Managing States

BotContext provides methods to set, clear, and retrieve states and their data.

Set State

  • Private chat:
context.setState(user_id, "state_name");
  • Group/Supergroup chat:
context.setState(chat_id, user_id, "state_name");

Clear State

  • Private chat:
context.clearState(user_id);
  • Group/Supergroup chat:
context.clearState(chat_id, user_id);

Retrieve State Data

  • Private chat:
Map<String, Object> data = 
context.getStateData(user_id);
  • Group/Supergroup chat:
Map<String, Object> data = 
context.getStateData(chat_id, user_id);

Use the returned Map<String, Object> to store and access temporary data associated with the user’s current state.

filter.state

  • Returns true if the user is currently in the given state.
  • Special case: "*" matches any active state.
  • Works for both messages and callback queries.
  • Checks states in private chats and group/supergroup chats.

Usage Example:

bot.onMessage(filter -> filter.state("name"), handler);
bot.onMessage(filter -> filter.commands("cancel") && filter.state("*"), cancelHandler);

Tips for Using States

  1. Use "*" in filter.state("*") to match any active state.
  2. Always clear states after the flow is complete or on cancellation.
  3. Store intermediate data in getStateData() for multi step flows.
  4. Works seamlessly in both private and group chats.

Full example code can be found on StateBot