Built-in Telegram bot does not respond to /start

[t9500159632-sudo]

Hi everyone,

I'm trying to set up the built-in Telegram bot in Hiddify Manager, but the bot doesn't respond to /start.

What I did:

Created a bot via @Botfather and got the token.

Inserted the token into the panel: Settings → Advanced Settings → Telegram Bot Token.

Clicked Register, then Apply changes.

Restarted the panel via systemctl restart hiddify-panel.

What I checked:

hiddify-panel.service is active (running for 3 weeks).

There is no hiddify-telegram-bot.service on the server.

journalctl -u hiddify-panel | grep -i telegram returns nothing — no errors, no logs about the bot at all.

The panel itself works fine, clients connect and get traffic.

Question:
Why doesn't the panel even try to initialize the bot? Is the built-in Telegram bot supported in my version? How can I check if the bot component is present in my installation?

Any help would be appreciated.
Hi. I set up the built-in Telegram bot in Hiddify Manager (inserted token in Settings → Advanced Settings → Register → Apply changes, restarted panel). The bot doesn't respond to /start.

Checked:

• hiddify-panel.service is active
• no hiddify-telegram-bot.service exists
• journalctl shows no telegram/token errors at all

Why doesn't the panel initialize the bot? Any help appreciated.

[t9500159632-sudo]

[POST]
[2026-09-27 17:55:27,653] ERROR in app: Exception on /EyITJAqMYDBCfpN/7a559929-e2f5-4960-af72-8c2872cacf7c/api/v1/tgbot/ [POST]
[2026-09-27 17:56:52,673] ERROR in app: Exception on /EyITJAqMYDBCfpN/7a559929-e2f5-4960-af72-8c2872cacf7c/api/v1/tgbot/ [POST]
[2026-09-27 17:56:52,685] ERROR in app: Exception on /EyITJAqMYDBCfpN/7a559929-e2f5-4960-af72-8c2872cacf7c/api/v1/tgbot/ [POST]
[2026-09-27 17:56:52,698] ERROR in app: Exception on /EyITJAqMYDBCfpN/7a559929-e2f5-4960-af72-8c2872cacf7c/api/v1/tgbot/ [POST]
[2026-09-27 17:56:52,710] ERROR in app: Exception on /EyITJAqMYDBCfpN/7a559929-e2f5-4960-af72-8c2872cacf7c/api/v1/tgbot/ [POST]

Update: I checked the logs and found this repeating error every ~2 minutes:

[2026-09-27 17:24:44,701] ERROR in app: Exception on /EyITJAqMYDBCfpN/7a559929-e2f5-4960-af72-8c2872cacf7c/api/v1/tgbot/ [POST]

The bot receives requests from Telegram but fails to process them with an exception. What could cause this?

[t9500159632-sudo]

Built-in Telegram bot and Redis session backend are broken in Hiddify Manager 13.0.3

Environment:

Hiddify Manager version: 13.0.3

OS: Ubuntu, systemd

Redis: hiddify-redis.service — active (running), listening on 127.0.0.1:6379

Telegram bot: created via @Botfather, token inserted into panel, webhook set to https://vpn.sltomsk.ru/.../api/v1/tgbot/

Symptoms:

Telegram bot does not respond to /start.

getWebhookInfo shows:

pending_update_count: 83

last_error_message: "Wrong response from the webhook: 500 Internal Server Error"

Panel log (hiddify_panel.err.log) is flooded with:

text
redis.exceptions.ConnectionError: Error 111 connecting to 127.0.0.1:6379. Connection refused.
Critical detail: the traceback shows this happens on any request, not just /api/v1/tgbot/. For example:

text
RequestContext 'https://vpn.sltomsk.ru/.../static/webfonts/fa-brands-400.ttf' [GET]
→ flask_session.redis.redis.RedisSessionInterface._retrieve_session_data
→ self.client.get(store_id)
→ redis.exceptions.ConnectionError: Error 111 ...
The panel cannot even serve static files, because Flask-Session tries to read the session from Redis and fails.

What I verified (all checks pass, panel still fails):

redis-cli -a "" ping → PONG

sudo -u hiddify-panel redis-cli -a "" ping → PONG (panel's own user can connect)

redis-cli CONFIG GET requirepass → matches the password in app.cfg

grep REDIS_URI_MAIN /opt/hiddify-manager/data/hiddify-panel/app.cfg → redis://:@127.0.0.1:6379/0

cat /opt/hiddify-manager/data/redis/redis_pass → same password

systemctl status hiddify-redis → active (running), Ready to accept connections

ss -ltnp 'sport = :6379' → redis-server listening on 127.0.0.1:6379

curl -s https://api.telegram.org → 302 (server can reach Telegram)

getMe → "ok":true (token valid, bot exists)

What I tried (none of it helped):

Removing password from Redis and from app.cfg → same error.

Restoring password everywhere → same error.

systemctl stop + pkill + systemctl start → same error.

redis-cli FLUSHALL → same error.

Disabling and removing the system redis-server service → same error.

Expected behavior:
The panel should connect to hiddify-redis using the URI from app.cfg and serve sessions normally. The built-in Telegram bot should process /api/v1/tgbot/ requests without returning 500.

Actual behavior:
The panel cannot read sessions from Redis, returns 500 on every request, and the Telegram bot is dead.

To the developers:

You are shipping features that do not work. The built-in Telegram bot in 13.0.3 is broken out of the box. The Redis session backend fails even when Redis is running, the password is correct, and the panel's own user can connect manually. This is not a user misconfiguration — this is a bug in your release.

Stop advertising working Telegram bot support when it does not work. Either fix the Redis/Flask-Session integration, or remove the feature from the release notes until it actually functions.

Users are wasting hours on this because your documentation and your release claims do not match reality. That is on you.

[t9500159632-sudo]

============================================================
DIAGNOSTIC REPORT: BUILT-IN TELEGRAM BOT
Hiddify Manager 13.0.3

Date: September 27, 2026
Server: pknetherlands (Ubuntu, systemd)
Domain: vpn.sltomsk.ru
Panel version: 13.0.3

---

PROBLEM

The built-in Telegram bot does not respond to /start.

getWebhookInfo output:
url: https://vpn.sltomsk.ru/.../api/v1/tgbot/
pending_update_count: 83
last_error_message: "Wrong response from the webhook:
500 Internal Server Error"

getMe output:
{"ok":true,"result":{"id":7663024467,"is_bot":true,...}}
→ token is valid, bot exists

Server-to-Telegram connectivity:
curl https://api.telegram.org → 302
→ server can reach Telegram

---

WHAT WE TRIED AND WHAT WE GOT

1. Checked Redis:

   • hiddify-redis.service: active (running)
   • Port 6379 is listening
   • redis-cli -a "" ping → PONG
   • sudo -u hiddify-panel redis-cli -a "" ping → PONG

2. Checked configs:

   • app.cfg: REDIS_URI_MAIN = redis://:@127.0.0.1:6379/0
   • redis_pass: same password
   • redis.conf: same password
   • All match character-for-character.

3. Removed password from Redis and from app.cfg → same error

4. Restored password everywhere → same error

5. systemctl stop + pkill + start → same error

6. redis-cli FLUSHALL → same error

7. Disabled and removed system redis-server → same error

8. Restarted hiddify-redis and hiddify-panel → same error

---

WHAT WE FOUND IN THE LOGS

hiddify_panel.err.log is continuously flooded with:

redis.exceptions.ConnectionError:
Error 111 connecting to 127.0.0.1:6379. Connection refused.

CRITICAL DETAIL — the traceback shows the failure happens
NOT on /api/v1/tgbot/, but on ANY request, including
serving static files:

RequestContext '.../static/webfonts/fa-brands-400.ttf' [GET]
→ flask_session.redis.redis.RedisSessionInterface
._retrieve_session_data
→ self.client.get(store_id)
→ redis.exceptions.ConnectionError: Error 111 ...

The Flask-Session backend inside the panel CANNOT read
the session from Redis on EVERY request. The panel returns
500 on every request, including static files.

---

ADDITIONAL CHECKS

Checked API v2 separately:

curl -H "Hiddify-API-Key: <ADMIN_UUID>"
"https://vpn.sltomsk.ru/.../api/v2/admin/me/"

→ {"uuid":"...","name":"Owner","mode":"super_admin",...}

API WORKS. It does not depend on Flask-Session and responds
normally. This confirms the problem is specifically in the
web interface and the built-in bot, not in the panel itself.

Tried to install an external bot (ShapArt/vpn-bot-stars-hiddify):

• installed, launched, uvicorn started without errors
• but the webhook needs a public HTTPS endpoint
• port 443 is held by rpxy-l4 (Hiddify component),
  port 80 by haproxy and caddy. Nginx is not used.
• adding a route for the webhook without risking the panel
  is not possible.

External bot had to be removed as well.

---

CONCLUSION

All external checks pass:
✅ Redis is running
✅ Password is correct
✅ hiddify-panel user connects manually
✅ Server can reach Telegram
✅ Token is valid
✅ API v2 works

But Flask-Session inside the panel STILL gets
Connection refused on every request.

This is NOT a user misconfiguration.
This is a bug in Hiddify Manager 13.0.3 —
a broken Redis session backend that causes:

• the panel returns 500 on every request
• the Telegram bot does not work
• the logs are flooded with ConnectionError

---

DEMAND

FIX THE BOT!!!

The built-in Telegram bot is advertised as a working feature.
In 13.0.3 it does not work out of the box. We spent hours on
this, tried everything possible, and hit a wall — a bug in
your panel.

Either fix the Redis/Flask-Session integration in 13.0.3,
or remove the claim about a working Telegram bot from the
release notes.

---

LINK TO DISCUSSION

#5559