About channel switching logic in the ticket composer

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<p id="docs-hc-snippet" style="display: none;">In theZendesk Agent Workspace, agents can work acrossmultiple channelsall within the same ticket. Because of this flexibility, the ticket composer includes some rules (logic) for channel switching within a ticket. This logic controls which channels are available to you when you send a reply.</p>
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<p class="p" dir="ltr">In the <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4408821259930" target="_blank">Zendesk Agent Workspace</a>, agents can work across <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4408824097050" target="_blank">multiple channels</a> all within the same ticket. Because of this
flexibility, the ticket composer includes some rules (logic) for channel switching within a
ticket. This logic controls which channels are available to you when you send a reply. </p>
<div class="p">This article contains the following topics: <ul class="ul" id="topic-1__ul_pgz_zxs_dyb">
<li class="li"><a class="xref" href="#topic_fdp_5xs_dyb">Channel switching options in the composer</a></li>
<li class="li"><a class="xref" href="#topic_o3q_h1t_dyb">Channel switching logic for voice tickets</a></li>
<li class="li"><a class="xref" href="#topic_xjf_xct_dyb">Channel switching logic for chat tickets</a></li>
<li class="li"><a class="xref" href="#topic_nwd_hgt_dyb">Channel switching logic for messaging tickets</a></li>
<li class="li"><a class="xref" href="#topic_w2f_rvh_ljc">Channel switching logic for SMS tickets</a></li>
<li class="li"><a class="xref" href="#topic_nzv_kgt_dyb">Channel switching logic for any ticket, light agents</a></li>
<li class="li"><a class="xref" href="#topic_ks3_sgt_dyb">Channel switching logic for email and other ticket types</a></li>
</ul>
</div>
<div class="p">
<strong class="ph b">Related articles</strong><ul class="ul" id="topic-1__ul_l1f_fcm_tkb">
<li class="li"><a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4408831849882" target="_blank">Composing messages in the Zendesk Agent Workspace</a></li>
</ul>
</div>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title2" class="topic nested1" id="topic_fdp_5xs_dyb">
<h2 class="title topictitle2" id="ariaid-title2">Channel switching options in the composer</h2>
<div class="body">
<p class="p" dir="ltr">The following simplified diagram shows which channel switching options are
available for agents, based on the ticket type.</p>
<p class="p"><img class="image img-screenshot" id="topic_fdp_5xs_dyb__image_qgk_2ct_dyb" src="https://zen-marketing-documentation.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/en/aw_available_channels.png" width="400"></p>
<p class="p">Some examples include:</p>
<ul class="ul" id="topic_fdp_5xs_dyb__ul_d1l_f4y_dyb">
<li class="li">After you end a chat with a customer, you can switch to the email channel to send a
follow-up email.</li>
<li class="li">After you receive an email ticket from a customer who needs a detailed, personalized
reply for an urgent matter, you can switch to the voice channel and call the
customer.</li>
<li class="li">If you have an email ticket paired with <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4408822560410#topic_k3f_q1f_hlb" target="_blank">private by default settings</a> in Admin Center,
Internal note automatically shows in the composer when you open the ticket. </li>
</ul>
<p class="p">You can use the channel menu to switch channels manually in the composer. See <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4408831849882#topic_gtw_j1h_rmb" target="_blank">Switching channels in the composer</a>. You can also
rely on automatic channel switching logic to help out. When you open a ticket, channel
switching logic can automatically present the best channel option, reducing the time it
takes to reply to customers.</p>
<p class="p">Channel switching logic varies depending on which channels were used to create the ticket.
It also depends on which default privacy settings are set in Admin Center. See below for
details. The default privacy settings in Admin Center apply to email, voice, and other
channels, but not to messaging and chat. See <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4408822560410" target="_blank">Changing the default privacy of ticket comments</a>.</p>
</div>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title3" class="topic nested1" id="topic_o3q_h1t_dyb">
<h2 class="title topictitle2" id="ariaid-title3">Channel switching logic for voice tickets</h2>
<div class="body">
<p class="p">When you open a voice ticket with the call ended, here are the results. The behavior
changes depending on which <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4408822560410" target="_blank">privacy defaults</a> for ticket comments are set in Admin Center. </p>
<div class="tablenoborder">
<table border="1" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0" class="table" frame="border" id="topic_o3q_h1t_dyb__table_qmm_j1t_dyb" rules="all" summary="">
<colgroup>
<col>
<col>
<col>
<col>
</colgroup>
<thead class="thead" style="text-align:left;">
<tr class="row">
<th class="entry nocellnorowborder" id="d52e169" style="vertical-align:top;"><strong class="ph b">Situation</strong></th>
<th class="entry nocellnorowborder" id="d52e173" style="vertical-align:top;"><strong class="ph b">Condition 1</strong></th>
<th class="entry nocellnorowborder" id="d52e177" style="vertical-align:top;"><strong class="ph b">Condition 2</strong></th>
<th class="entry cell-norowborder" id="d52e181" style="vertical-align:top;"><strong class="ph b">Result</strong></th>
</tr>
</thead>
<tbody class="tbody">
<tr class="row">
<td class="entry nocellnorowborder" headers="d52e169" rowspan="2" style="vertical-align:top;">Agent opens a voice ticket</td>
<td class="entry nocellnorowborder" headers="d52e173" rowspan="2" style="vertical-align:top;">The call has ended.</td>
<td class="entry nocellnorowborder" headers="d52e177" style="vertical-align:top;">The Set the composer channel to public setting is selected in Admin
Center.</td>
<td class="entry cell-norowborder" headers="d52e181" style="vertical-align:top;">Composer shows Public reply.</td>
</tr>
<tr class="row">
<td class="entry row-nocellborder" headers="d52e177" style="vertical-align:top;">The Set the composer channel to public setting is not selected in Admin
Center.</td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e181" style="vertical-align:top;">Composer shows Internal note.</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
</div>
<p class="p">There’s one exception to the privacy defaults for ticket comments. Tickets that only have
internal notes and no public comments will always default to internal notes, even if the
Public by default setting is turned on. </p>
</div>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title4" class="topic nested1" id="topic_xjf_xct_dyb">
<h2 class="title topictitle2" id="ariaid-title4">Channel switching logic for chat tickets</h2>
<div class="body">
<p class="p">When you open a chat ticket, here are the results. Because chat is considered a <em class="ph i">live</em>
channel, the <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4408822560410" target="_blank">privacy defaults</a> for ticket comments that are set in
Admin Center don’t apply. </p>
<div class="tablenoborder">
<table border="1" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0" class="table" frame="border" id="topic_xjf_xct_dyb__table_ugx_dgt_dyb" rules="all" summary="">
<colgroup>
<col>
<col>
<col>
<col>
</colgroup>
<thead class="thead" style="text-align:left;">
<tr class="row">
<th class="entry nocellnorowborder" id="d52e255" style="vertical-align:top;"><strong class="ph b">Situation</strong></th>
<th class="entry nocellnorowborder" id="d52e259" style="vertical-align:top;"><strong class="ph b">Condition 1</strong></th>
<th class="entry nocellnorowborder" id="d52e263" style="vertical-align:top;"><strong class="ph b">Condition 2</strong></th>
<th class="entry cell-norowborder" id="d52e267" style="vertical-align:top;"><strong class="ph b">Result</strong></th>
</tr>
</thead>
<tbody class="tbody">
<tr class="row">
<td class="entry nocellnorowborder" headers="d52e255" rowspan="3" style="vertical-align:top;">
<p class="p">Agent opens a chat ticket</p>
<p class="p"><strong class="ph b">Note</strong>: The default privacy settings in Admin Center don’t apply.</p>
</td>
<td class="entry nocellnorowborder" colspan="2" headers="d52e259 d52e263" style="vertical-align:top;">The chat is active</td>
<td class="entry cell-norowborder" headers="d52e267" style="vertical-align:top;">Composer shows the Chat channel.</td>
</tr>
<tr class="row">
<td class="entry nocellnorowborder" headers="d52e259" style="vertical-align:top;">The chat is inactive</td>
<td class="entry nocellnorowborder" headers="d52e263" style="vertical-align:top;">The chat user has a known email address</td>
<td class="entry cell-norowborder" headers="d52e267" style="vertical-align:top;">Composer shows the Email channel.</td>
</tr>
<tr class="row">
<td class="entry row-nocellborder" headers="d52e259" style="vertical-align:top;">The chat is inactive</td>
<td class="entry row-nocellborder" headers="d52e263" style="vertical-align:top;">The chat user doesn’t have a known email address</td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e267" style="vertical-align:top;">Composer shows Internal note.</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title5" class="topic nested1" id="topic_nwd_hgt_dyb">
<h2 class="title topictitle2" id="ariaid-title5">Channel switching logic for messaging tickets</h2>
<div class="body">
<p class="p">When you open a messaging ticket, here are the results. Because messaging is considered a
<em class="ph i">live</em> channel, the <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4408822560410" target="_blank">privacy defaults</a> for ticket comments that are set in Admin Center
don’t apply to <em class="ph i">active</em> messages. </p>
<div class="tablenoborder">
<table border="1" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0" class="table" frame="border" id="topic_nwd_hgt_dyb__table_u4r_3gt_dyb" rules="all" summary="">
<colgroup>
<col>
<col>
<col>
</colgroup>
<thead class="thead" style="text-align:left;">
<tr class="row">
<th class="entry nocellnorowborder" id="d52e360" style="vertical-align:top;"><strong class="ph b">Situation</strong></th>
<th class="entry nocellnorowborder" id="d52e364" style="vertical-align:top;"><strong class="ph b">Condition</strong></th>
<th class="entry cell-norowborder" id="d52e368" style="vertical-align:top;"><strong class="ph b">Result</strong></th>
</tr>
</thead>
<tbody class="tbody">
<tr class="row">
<td class="entry nocellnorowborder" headers="d52e360" style="vertical-align:top;">
<p class="p">Agent opens a messaging ticket</p>
<p class="p"><strong class="ph b">Note</strong>: For active messages, the default privacy settings in Admin Center
<em class="ph i">don’t</em> apply.</p>
</td>
<td class="entry nocellnorowborder" headers="d52e364" style="vertical-align:top;">The messaging channel has not timed out. It is still available. Timeouts vary
from 24 hours to 7 days, depending on the type of messaging channel.</td>
<td class="entry cell-norowborder" headers="d52e368" style="vertical-align:top;">Composer shows the applicable messaging channel. For example, WhatsApp,
Facebook, WeChat, Messaging, and so on. </td>
</tr>
<tr class="row">
<td class="entry nocellnorowborder" headers="d52e360" rowspan="2" style="vertical-align:top;">
<p class="p">Agent opens a messaging ticket</p>
<p class="p"><strong class="ph b">Note</strong>: For inactive messages or email replies, the default privacy settings
in Admin Center <em class="ph i">do</em> apply.</p>
</td>
<td class="entry nocellnorowborder" headers="d52e364" style="vertical-align:top;">The applicable messaging channel has timed out.</td>
<td class="entry cell-norowborder" headers="d52e368" style="vertical-align:top;">The default privacy settings in Admin Center do apply. The Composer shows
Internal note.</td>
</tr>
<tr class="row">
<td class="entry row-nocellborder" headers="d52e364" style="vertical-align:top;">The customer’s last reply was by email, regardless of channel timeout. </td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e368" style="vertical-align:top;">The default privacy settings in Admin Center do apply. The Composer shows
Internal
note.</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title6" class="topic nested1" id="topic_w2f_rvh_ljc">
<h2 class="title topictitle2" id="ariaid-title6">Channel switching logic for SMS tickets</h2>
<div class="body">
<p class="p">When you open an SMS ticket, here are the results. The behavior changes depending on which
<a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4408822560410" target="_blank">privacy defaults</a> for ticket comments are set in Admin Center. </p>
<div class="tablenoborder">
<table border="1" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0" class="table" frame="border" id="topic_w2f_rvh_ljc__table_bsm_dyh_ljc" rules="all" summary="">
<colgroup>
<col>
<col>
<col>
<col>
</colgroup>
<thead class="thead" style="text-align:left;">
<tr class="row">
<th class="entry nocellnorowborder" id="d52e466" style="vertical-align:top;"><strong class="ph b">Situation</strong></th>
<th class="entry nocellnorowborder" id="d52e470" style="vertical-align:top;"><strong class="ph b">Condition 1</strong></th>
<th class="entry nocellnorowborder" id="d52e474" style="vertical-align:top;"><strong class="ph b">Condition 2</strong></th>
<th class="entry cell-norowborder" id="d52e478" style="vertical-align:top;"><strong class="ph b">Result</strong></th>
</tr>
</thead>
<tbody class="tbody">
<tr class="row">
<td class="entry nocellnorowborder" headers="d52e466" rowspan="2" style="vertical-align:top;">Agent opens an SMS ticket</td>
<td class="entry nocellnorowborder" headers="d52e470" rowspan="2" style="vertical-align:top;">The SMS has been received.</td>
<td class="entry nocellnorowborder" headers="d52e474" style="vertical-align:top;">The Set the composer channel to public setting is selected in Admin
Center.</td>
<td class="entry cell-norowborder" headers="d52e478" style="vertical-align:top;">Composer shows SMS.</td>
</tr>
<tr class="row">
<td class="entry row-nocellborder" headers="d52e474" style="vertical-align:top;">The Set the composer channel to public setting is not selected in Admin
Center.</td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e478" style="vertical-align:top;">Composer shows Internal note.</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
</div>
<p class="p">There’s one exception to the privacy defaults for ticket comments. Tickets that only have
internal notes and no public comments will always default to internal notes, even if the
Public by default setting is turned on.</p>
</div>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title7" class="topic nested1" id="topic_nzv_kgt_dyb">
<h2 class="title topictitle2" id="ariaid-title7">Channel switching logic for any ticket, light agents</h2>
<div class="body">
<p class="p">When a light agent opens any ticket, the composer shows Internal note. Light agents can
only add internal notes, not public replies. See <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4408846501402#topic_vwz_qm1_blb" target="_blank">Understanding what light agents can do</a>.</p>
</div>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title8" class="topic nested1" id="topic_ks3_sgt_dyb">
<h2 class="title topictitle2" id="ariaid-title8">Channel switching logic for email and other ticket types</h2>
<div class="body">
<p class="p">For email and other types of tickets, channel switching logic is applied based on the <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4408822560410" target="_blank">privacy defaults</a> for ticket comments that are set in Admin
Center.</p>
<p class="p">There’s one exception to the privacy defaults for ticket comments. Tickets that only have
internal notes and no public comments will always default to internal notes, even if the
Public by default setting is turned on.</p>
</div>
</div>
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