Viber Node.JS Bot API

Use this library to develop a bot for the Viber platform. The library is available on GitHub as well as a package on npm.

License

This library is released under the terms of the Apache 2.0 license. See License for more information.

Library Prerequisites

1. Node >= 5.0.0
2. An Active Viber account on a platform which supports Public Accounts/ bots (iOS/Android). This account will automatically be set as the account administrator during the account creation process.
3. Active Public Account/ bot - Create an account here.
4. Account authentication token - unique account identifier used to validate your account in all API requests. Once your account is created your authentication token will appear in the account’s “edit info” screen (for admins only). Each request posted to Viber by the account will need to contain the token.
5. Webhook - Please use a server endpoint URL that supports HTTPS. If you deploy on your own custom server, you'll need a trusted (ca.pem) certificate, not self-signed. Read our blog post on how to test your bot locally.

Installation

This library is released on npm.

npm

Install with npm install viber-bot --save

Express

If you are already using express or equivalent, you can do the following:

app.use("/viber/webhook", bot.middleware());

Please revisit app.use() documentation. For more information see ViberBot.middleware().

Let's get started!

Creating a basic Viber bot is simple:

1. Import viber-bot library to your project
2. Create a Public Account or bot and use the API key from https://developers.viber.com
3. Configure your bot as described in the documentation below
4. Add the bot as middleware to your server with bot.middleware()
5. Start your web server
6. Call setWebhook(url) with your web server url

Creating an echo Bot

Firstly, let's import and configure our bot:

'use strict';

const ViberBot = require('viber-bot').Bot;
const BotEvents = require('viber-bot').Events;

const bot = new ViberBot({
	authToken: YOUR_AUTH_TOKEN_HERE,
	name: "EchoBot",
	avatar: "http://viber.com/avatar.jpg" // It is recommended to be 720x720, and no more than 100kb.
});

// Perfect! Now here's the key part:
bot.on(BotEvents.MESSAGE_RECEIVED, (message, response) => {
	// Echo's back the message to the client. Your bot logic should sit here.
	response.send(message);
});

// Wasn't that easy? Let's create HTTPS server and set the webhook:
const https = require('https');
const port = process.env.PORT || 8080;

// Viber will push messages sent to this URL. Web server should be internet-facing.
const webhookUrl = process.env.WEBHOOK_URL;

const httpsOptions = {
	key: ...,
	cert: ...,
	ca: ...
}; // Trusted SSL certification (not self-signed).
https.createServer(httpsOptions, bot.middleware()).listen(port, () => bot.setWebhook(webhookUrl));

Using Winston logger

We provide an option to use Winston logger with our library. The only requirement is that you use Winston >= 2.0.0.

'use strict';

const ViberBot = require('viber-bot').Bot;
const winston = require('winston');
const toYAML = require('winston-console-formatter'); // makes the output more friendly

function createLogger() {
	const logger = new winston.Logger({
		level: "debug"
	}); // We recommend DEBUG for development
	logger.add(winston.transports.Console, toYAML.config());
	return logger;
}

const logger = createLogger();
const bot = new ViberBot({
	logger: logger,
	authToken: ...,
	...
});

Do you supply a basic router for text messages?

Well funny you ask. Yes we do. But a word of warning - messages sent to your router callback will also be emitted to the BotEvents.MESSAGE_RECEIVED event.

const TextMessage = require('viber-bot').Message.Text;

// A simple regular expression to answer messages in the form of 'hi' and 'hello'.
bot.onTextMessage(/^hi|hello$/i, (message, response) =>
    response.send(new TextMessage(`Hi there ${response.userProfile.name}. I am ${bot.name}`)));

Have you noticed how we created the TextMessage instance? There's a all bunch of message types you should get familiar with.

• Text Message
• Url Message
• Contact Message
• Picture Message
• Video Message
• Location Message
• Sticker Message
• File Message
• Rich Media Message
• Keyboard Message

Creating them is easy! Every message object has its own unique constructor corresponding to its API implementation. Click on each type in the list to find out more. Check out the full API documentation for more advanced uses.

API

Viber Bot

require('viber-bot').Bot

An event emitter, emitting events described here.

• ViberBot
  • new ViberBot()
  • .getBotProfile() ⇒ promise.JSON
  • .getUserDetails(userProfile) ⇒ promise.JSON
  • .getOnlineStatus(viberUserIds) ⇒ promise.JSON
  • .setWebhook(url) ⇒ promise.JSON
  • .sendMessage(userProfile, messages, [optionalTrackingData]) ⇒ promise.ARRAY
  • .postToPublicChat(userProfile, messages) ⇒ promise.ARRAY
  • .on(handler)
  • .onTextMessage(regex, handler) : handler = TextMessageHandlerCallback
  • .onError(handler) : handler = ErrorHandlerCallback
  • .onConversationStarted(userProfile, isSubscribed, context, onFinish) : onFinish = ConversationStartedOnFinishCallback
  • .onSubscribe(handler) : handler = SubscribeResponseHandlerCallback
  • .onUnsubscribe(handler) : handler = UnsubscribeResponseHandlerCallback
  • .middleware()

New ViberBot()

Param	Type	Description
options.logger	object	Winston logger
options.authToken	string	Viber Auth Token
options.name	string	Your BOT Name
options.avatar	string	Avatar URL. No more than 100kb.
options.registerToEvents	array	example: ["message", "delivered"]

bot.on(handler)

require('viber-bot').Events

Param	Type
handler	EventHandlerCallback
message	Message Object
response	Response Object
err	Error Object

Subscribe to events:

• MESSAGE_RECEIVED (Callback: function (message, response) {})
• MESSAGE_SENT (Callback: function (message, userProfile) {})
• SUBSCRIBED (Callback: function (response) {})
• UNSUBSCRIBED (Callback: function (response) {})
• CONVERSATION_STARTED (Callback: function (userProfile, isSubscribed, context, onFinish) {})
• ERROR (Callback: function (err) {})

Example

bot.on(BotEvents.MESSAGE_RECEIVED, (message, response) => ... );
bot.on(BotEvents.MESSAGE_SENT, (message, userProfile) => ... );
bot.on(BotEvents.CONVERSATION_STARTED, (userProfile, isSubscribed, context, onFinish) => ... );
bot.on(BotEvents.ERROR, err => ... );
bot.on(BotEvents.UNSUBSCRIBED, response => ... );
bot.on(BotEvents.SUBSCRIBED, response =>
    response.send(`Thanks for subscribing, ${response.userProfile.name}`));

bot.getBotProfile()

Returns a promise.JSON with the following JSON.

bot.getBotProfile().then(response => console.log(`Public Account Named: ${response.name}`));

bot.getUserDetails(userProfile)

Param	Type	Description
userProfile	UserProfile	UserProfile object

The getUserDetails function will fetch the details of a specific Viber user based on his unique user ID. The user ID can be obtained from the callbacks sent to the account regarding user's actions. This request can be sent twice during a 12 hours period for each user ID.

Returns a promise.JSON.

bot.onSubscribe(response => bot.getUserDetails(response.userProfile)
        .then(userDetails => console.log(userDetails)));

bot.getOnlineStatus(viberUserIds)

Param	Type	Description
viberUserIds	array of strings	Collection of Viber user ids

Returns a promise.JSON.

bot.getOnlineStatus(["a1, "a2"]).then(onlineStatus => console.log(onlineStatus));

bot.setWebhook(url)

Param	Type	Description
url	string	Trusted SSL Certificate

Returns a promise.JSON.

bot.setWebhook("https://my.bot/incoming").then(() => yourBot.doSomething()).catch(err => console.log(err));

bot.sendMessage(userProfile, messages, [optionalTrackingData])

Param	Type	Description
userProfile	UserProfile	UserProfile object
messages	object or array	Can be Message object or array of Message objects
[optionalTrackingData]	JSON	Optional. JSON Object. Returned on every message sent by the client

Note: When passing array of messages to sendMessage, messages will be sent by explicit order (the order which they were given to the sendMessage method). The library will also cancel all custom keyboards except the last one, sending only the last message keyboard.

Returns a promise.ARRAY array of message tokens.

// Single message
const TextMessage = require('viber-bot').Message.Text;
bot.sendMessage(userProfile, new TextMessage("Thanks for shopping with us"));

// Multiple messages
const UrlMessage = require('viber-bot').Message.Url;
bot.sendMessage(userProfile, [
	new TextMessage("Here's the product you've requested:"),
	new UrlMessage("http://my.ecommerce.site/product1"),
	new TextMessage("Shipping time: 1-3 business days")
]);

bot.postToPublicChat(userProfile, messages)

The Viber post API allows the Public Account owner to post a message in the Public Account’s public chat.

Param	Type	Description
userProfile	UserProfile	UserProfile object
messages	object or array	Can be Message object or array of Message objects

Note: When passing array of messages to postToPublicChat, messages will be sent by explicit order (the order which they were given to the postToPublicChat method).

Note: This method does not support keyboard attachment.

Returns a promise.ARRAY array of message tokens.

// Single message
const TextMessage = require('viber-bot').Message.Text;
bot.postToPublicChat(userProfile, new TextMessage("Thanks for shopping with us"));

// Multiple messages
const UrlMessage = require('viber-bot').Message.Url;
bot.postToPublicChat(userProfile, [
	new TextMessage("Here's the product you've requested:"),
	new UrlMessage("http://my.ecommerce.site/product1"),
	new TextMessage("Shipping time: 1-3 business days")
]);

bot.middleware()

Returns a middleware implementation to use with http/https.

const https = require('https');
https.createServer({
	key: ...,
	cert: ...,
	ca: ...
}, bot.middleware()).listen(8080);

bot.onTextMessage(regex, handler)

Param	Type
regex	regular expression
handler	TextMessageHandlerCallback

TextMessageHandlerCallback: function (message, response) {}

bot.onTextMessage(/^hi|hello$/i, (message, response) =>
    response.send(new TextMessage(`Hi there ${response.userProfile.name}. I am ${bot.name}`)));

bot.onError(handler)

Param	Type
handler	ErrorHandlerCallback

ErrorHandlerCallback: function (err) {}

bot.onError(err => logger.error(err));

bot.onConversationStarted(userProfile, isSubscribed, context, onFinish)

| Param | Type | Description | | --- | --- | | userProfile | UserProfile | UserProfile object | | isSubscribed | boolean | Indicates whether a user is already subscribed | | context | String | Any additional parameters added to the deep link used to access the conversation passed as a string | | onFinish | ConversationStartedOnFinishCallback | When called, a Message will be sent to the client |

Conversation started event fires when a user opens a conversation with the Public Account/ bot using the “message” button (found on the account’s info screen) or using a deep link.

This event is not considered a subscribe event and doesn't allow the account to send messages to the user; however, it will allow sending one "welcome message" to the user. See sending a welcome message below for more information.

ConversationStartedOnFinishCallback: function (responseMessage, optionalTrackingData) {}

The ConversationStartedOnFinishCallback accepts null and MessageObject only. Otherwise, an exception is thrown.

bot.onConversationStarted((userProfile, isSubscribed, context, onFinish) =>
	onFinish(new TextMessage(`Hi, ${userProfile.name}! Nice to meet you.`)));

bot.onConversationStarted((userProfile, isSubscribed, context, onFinish) =>
	onFinish(new TextMessage(`Thanks`), {
		saidThanks: true
	}));

bot.onSubscribe(handler)

Param	Type
handler	SubscribeResponseHandlerCallback

SubscribeResponseHandlerCallback: function (response) {}

bot.onSubscribe(response => console.log(`Subscribed: ${response.userProfile.name}`));

bot.onUnsubscribe(handler)

Param	Type
handler	UnsubscribeResponseHandlerCallback

UnsubscribeResponseHandlerCallback: function (userId) {}

bot.onUnsubscribe(userId => console.log(`Unsubscribed: ${userId}`));

Response object

Members:

Param	Type	Notes
userProfile	UserProfile	---

• Response
  • .send(messages, [optionalTrackingData]) ⇒ promise.JSON

UserProfile object

Members:

Param	Type	Notes
id	string	---
name	string	---
avatar	string	Optional Avatar URL
country	string	currently set in CONVERSATION_STARTED event only
language	string	currently set in CONVERSATION_STARTED event only

Message Object

const TextMessage = require('viber-bot').Message.Text;
const UrlMessage = require('viber-bot').Message.Url;
const ContactMessage = require('viber-bot').Message.Contact;
const PictureMessage = require('viber-bot').Message.Picture;
const VideoMessage = require('viber-bot').Message.Video;
const LocationMessage = require('viber-bot').Message.Location;
const StickerMessage = require('viber-bot').Message.Sticker;
const RichMediaMessage = require('viber-bot').Message.RichMedia;
const KeyboardMessage = require('viber-bot').Message.Keyboard;

Common Members for Message interface:

Param	Type	Description
timestamp	string	Epoch time
token	string	Sequential message token
trackingData	JSON	JSON Tracking Data from Viber Client

Common Constructor Arguments Message interface:

Param	Type	Description
optionalKeyboard	JSON	Writing Custom Keyboards
optionalTrackingData	JSON	Data to be saved on Viber Client device, and sent back each time message is received

TextMessage object

Member	Type
text	string

const message = new TextMessage(text, [optionalKeyboard], [optionalTrackingData]);
console.log(message.text);

UrlMessage object

Member	Type
url	string

const message = new UrlMessage(url, [optionalKeyboard], [optionalTrackingData]);
console.log(message.url);

ContactMessage object

Member	Type
contactName	string
contactPhoneNumber	string

const message = new ContactMessage(contactName, contactPhoneNumber, [optionalAvatar], [optionalKeyboard], [optionalTrackingData]);
console.log(`${message.contactName}, ${message.contactPhoneNumber}`);

PictureMessage object

Member	Type
url	string
text	string
thumbnail	string

const message = new PictureMessage(url, [optionalText], [optionalThumbnail], [optionalKeyboard], [optionalTrackingData]);
console.log(`${message.url}, ${message.text}, ${message.thumbnail}`);

VideoMessage object

Member	Type
url	string
size	int
thumbnail	string
duration	int

const message = new VideoMessage(url, size, [optionalText], [optionalThumbnail], [optionalDuration], [optionalKeyboard], [optionalTrackingData]);
console.log(`${message.url}, ${message.size}, ${message.thumbnail}, ${message.duration}`);

LocationMessage object

Member	Type
latitude	float
longitude	float

const message = new LocationMessage(latitude, longitude, [optionalKeyboard], [optionalTrackingData]);
console.log(`${message.latitude}, ${message.longitude}`);

StickerMessage object

Member	Type
stickerId	int

const message = new StickerMessage(stickerId, [optionalKeyboard], [optionalTrackingData]);
console.log(message.stickerId);

FileMessage object

Member	Type
url	string
sizeInBytes	int
filename	string

const message = new FileMessage(url, sizeInBytes, filename, [optionalKeyboard], [optionalTrackingData]);
console.log(`${message.url}, ${message.sizeInBytes}, ${message.filename}`);

RichMediaMessage object

Member	Type
richMedia	Object

const SAMPLE_RICH_MEDIA = {
	"ButtonsGroupColumns": 6,
	"ButtonsGroupRows": 2,
	"BgColor": "#FFFFFF",
	"Buttons": [{
		"ActionBody": "http://www.website.com/go_here",
		"ActionType": "open-url",
		"BgMediaType": "picture",
		"Image": "http://www.images.com/img.jpg",
		"BgColor": "#000000",
		"TextOpacity": 60,
		"Rows": 4,
		"Columns": 6
	}, {
		"ActionBody": "http://www.website.com/go_here",
		"ActionType": "open-url",
		"BgColor": "#85bb65",
		"Text": "Buy",
		"TextOpacity": 60,
		"Rows": 1,
		"Columns": 6
	}]
};

const message = new RichMedia(SAMPLE_RICH_MEDIA, [optionalKeyboard], [optionalTrackingData]);

KeyboardMessage object

Member	Type
keyboard	JSON

const SAMPLE_KEYBOARD = {
	"Type": "keyboard",
	"Revision": 1,
	"Buttons": [
		{
			"Columns": 3,
			"Rows": 2,
			"BgColor": "#e6f5ff",
			"BgMedia": "http://www.jqueryscript.net/images/Simplest-Responsive-jQuery-Image-Lightbox-Plugin-simple-lightbox.jpg",
			"BgMediaType": "picture",
			"BgLoop": true,
			"ActionType": "reply",
			"ActionBody": "Yes"
		}
	]
};

const message = new KeyboardMessage(SAMPLE_KEYBOARD, [optionalTrackingData]);

Sample project

We've created the Is It Up sample project to help you get started.

Community

Join the conversation on Gitter.