Core Docs - Engagement - Configure Rock Chat

Rock Version: v20.0
Last Modified: 2026-05-01 1:39 PM

To start configuring Chat, you will need an API Key. You can sign-up for Rock Chat through the Rock Mobile Chat add-on. Our Mobile team will send you your chat key and API Secret. Once you have these, navigate to Admin Tools > Settings > Chat Configuration.

Once you click Save with a proper API key, you are ready to configure your chat channels. Your chat channel types will sync with our chat provider (Getstream) immediately.

To make chat channels, start with enabling chat at the Group Type level. Navigate to Admin Tools > Settings > Group Types and select the group type you want to configure. You will notice a new Chat tab.

Choose how notifications are sent for chat channels of this type:

Cap on Group Types
You can only configure 50 group types to be chat channels.

With a Group Type enabled for chat, we will move to configuring individual groups.

Navigate to People > Group Viewer and select a group to specify the settings for its chat channel. You will notice the settings look similar to the Group Type settings.

For most chat-enabled groups, you'll want to inherit settings from the Group Type. But there are times when going custom makes sense:

Picking a fitting Channel Avatar is crucial. Find an image that is recognizable at all sizes and makes sense for the chat theme. For example, your organization's logo makes sense on a "General" chat, but you may want a dollar sign emoji for the Finance team channel. For the best results, keep your image to 120 x 120 pixels. Don't fret though, you can have a group without an avatar.

There is a different kind of chat channel we haven't explored yet that is created for large, generally "organization-wide" groups. That group is called a Shared Channel, and it was made specifically for large groups. To configure a Shared Channel, go to People > Group Viewer.

Sometimes you need to get the word out to everyone, like announcing that the big event is next week or the annual BBQ is this Sunday. That’s where a central, all-church chat shines. Think of it as your digital mountaintop, something like a “General” or “Org-Wide” channel where live announcements reach the masses.

These Chat Shared Channels are a special Group Type designed for broad communication. You can configure them just like any other group type.