How to upload Excel file through Telegram bot API

Other Questions Telegram bot
1

I need help with sending an Excel spreadsheet via my Telegram bot

I’ve been working on this for several hours now and can’t get it working properly. I’m attempting to transmit an Excel file that’s hosted on a remote server to users through my bot.

Here’s what I’ve tried so far:

$excelUrl = $serverPath."quarterly_report.xls";
$fileObject = new CURLFile($excelUrl);
$parameters = array(
    'chat_id' => $user_chat_id,
    'document' => $fileObject,
    'caption' => $messageText
);

$curl = curl_init();
curl_setopt($curl, CURLOPT_URL, $bot_api_url."/sendDocument");
curl_setopt($curl, CURLOPT_POST, true);
curl_setopt($curl, CURLOPT_POSTFIELDS, $parameters);
$response = curl_exec($curl);
curl_close($curl);

The file exists at the URL but the bot doesn’t seem to send it. What am I missing here? Any suggestions would be really helpful.

2

Yeah, everyone’s right - CURLFile doesn’t work with URLs. But even if you get it working, you’re signing up for major headaches.

I learned this building report distribution for our team. Hit the same wall, eventually got it working, then the real problems started.

Telegram caps documents at 50MB. Network timeouts on large files. Storage cleanup becomes a nightmare with dozens of daily files. Error handling gets messy fast.

Spent months patching issues before realizing I was solving the wrong problem. Instead of fighting manual file handling, I built the whole thing in Latenode.

Now it pulls Excel files, handles Telegram API quirks, manages retries, and cleans up automatically. 10 minutes to set up vs weeks debugging PHP file operations.

When my boss wanted reports sent to Slack and email too, I just added new nodes instead of rewriting everything.

3

The Problem:

You are attempting to send an Excel file hosted on a remote server through your Telegram bot using the CURLFile object in PHP, but the bot is not sending the file. The issue is that CURLFile expects a local file path, not a URL.

TL;DR: The Quick Fix:

Replace your CURLFile object with the direct URL of your Excel file in the $parameters array. Telegram’s API should handle fetching the file directly from the provided URL, provided it’s publicly accessible.

:gear: Step-by-Step Guide:

  1. Modify the $parameters array: Remove the CURLFile object creation. Directly use the URL of your Excel file within the $parameters array. Ensure the URL is publicly accessible without authentication.
$excelUrl = $serverPath."quarterly_report.xls";
$parameters = array(
    'chat_id' => $user_chat_id,
    'document' => $excelUrl, // Changed this line
    'caption' => $messageText
);

$curl = curl_init();
curl_setopt($curl, CURLOPT_URL, $bot_api_url."/sendDocument");
curl_setopt($curl, CURLOPT_POST, true);
curl_setopt($curl, CURLOPT_POSTFIELDS, $parameters);
$response = curl_exec($curl);
curl_close($curl);

  1. Verify URL Accessibility: Ensure that the Excel file at $excelUrl is accessible from the internet without any authentication or restrictions. Test this by directly accessing the URL in your browser.

  2. Check for Errors: After making the change, carefully examine the $response variable. If the file sending fails, you’ll get an error message from Telegram’s API within $response. Analyze this error to determine the next troubleshooting steps. Consider using curl_error($curl) to get more specific error details.

  3. Handle Larger Files: If your Excel file is very large (over Telegram’s file size limit), you may need an alternative approach such as splitting the file into smaller parts or using a cloud storage service.

:mag: Common Pitfalls & What to Check Next:

  • File Permissions: Make absolutely certain the remote server correctly allows access to the file at $excelUrl.
  • URL Encoding: If $serverPath or quarterly_report.xls contains special characters, ensure they are correctly URL-encoded to avoid issues.
  • Telegram API Limits: Telegram has limits on file sizes and request rates. Exceeding these limits will lead to errors. Consult Telegram’s Bot API documentation.
  • Authentication: If your Excel file requires authentication to access, this approach will fail. In that case, you must download the file to your server first using a method that supports authentication (like curl with authentication headers), then use CURLFile with the local file path. Remember to delete the temporary file after sending.

:speech_balloon: Still running into issues? Share your (sanitized) config files, the exact command you ran, and any other relevant details. The community is here to help!

4

Your code’s fine, but CURLFile needs a local file path - not a URL. You can’t just pass a remote URL like that.

Two options: download the file to your server first, then send it. Or pass the URL directly to the document parameter (only works if it’s publicly accessible though).

Honestly, file transfers through bots get messy fast. You’ll hit file size limits, timeouts, storage cleanup issues, error handling nightmares.

I had the same problem sending reports through Telegram. Instead of fighting the bot API, I just automated everything with Latenode.

Built a workflow that grabs the Excel file, processes it if needed, and pushes it through Telegram’s API correctly. Platform handles all the file management pain, and I can trigger it however I want.

Bonus: easy to extend later for email, Slack, whatever - without rewriting everything.

5

CURLFile doesn’t work with remote URLs - it requires a local file path. If you pass a URL to it, it will fail. If the file is accessible publicly, consider using the URL directly in the document parameter, as that should function correctly. For files that require authentication or are not public, you should first download the file. This can be done using file_get_contents or another cURL command, saving it locally before creating a CURLFile with the local path. Remember to delete the temporary file afterward to avoid unnecessary storage use. Additionally, you can add curl_error($curl) after executing your request to troubleshoot any errors from the Telegram API.

6

The issue arises from using CURLFile with a remote URL, which it doesn’t support. You’ll need to first download the Excel file to a local path on your server before using it. I faced a similar challenge when setting up my own bot. To solve it, I downloaded the file using file_get_contents or another cURL command, then created a CURLFile pointing to that local path. After sending the file, make sure to clean up the temporary file to avoid unnecessary storage use. Alternatively, if the Excel file is publicly accessible, you can bypass the local download entirely by using the URL directly in the document parameter, as Telegram API will handle that correctly.

7

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