Node.js Discord bot conditional message deletion not working properly

Other Questions Discord bot
1

I’m trying to create a Discord bot that automatically removes messages after 2 minutes, but I want it to skip messages that contain a specific pattern like #SAVE. My current code isn’t working and I’m getting errors.

Here’s my attempt at checking for the pattern:

const Discord = require('discord.js');
const client = new Discord.Client();

client.on('message', (msg) => {
  const messageText = msg.content.toLowerCase();
  if(messageText.includes('#save')) {
    if (flag === true) {
      setTimeout(() => {
        msg.delete();
      }, 120000);
    }
  }
});

This is my basic message deletion code that works:

client.on('message', (msg) => {
  setTimeout(() => {
    msg.delete();
  }, 120000);
});

But when I try to add the conditional check, I get a ReferenceError: flag is not defined error. How can I properly implement this so messages with #SAVE don’t get deleted while others do?

2

Your code’s backwards - you’re checking for #save then deleting anyway. Plus that undefined flag variable is throwing the reference error.

You want to delete messages that DON’T have the save pattern. Here’s the fix:

client.on('message', (msg) => {
  const messageText = msg.content.toLowerCase();
  if (!messageText.includes('#save')) {
    setTimeout(() => {
      msg.delete().catch(err => console.log('Message already deleted or error:', err));
    }, 120000);
  }
});

See the ! operator? That flips the condition. I threw in error handling too since messages might get manually deleted before the timeout hits. Also add if (msg.author.bot) return; at the start so your bot doesn’t try deleting its own messages or system stuff.

3

yeah, you’ve got the logic backwards like finn mentioned. plus that flag variable doesn’t exist - that’s your reference error right there. here’s a cleaner approach:

client.on('message', (msg) => {
  if (!msg.content.toLowerCase().includes('#save')) {
    setTimeout(() => msg.delete(), 120000);
  }
});

if the message doesn’t have #save, it gets deleted after 2 mins. way simpler.

4

Your conditional logic is backwards and you’re using an undefined flag variable. You want to delete messages that DON’T have the save pattern, not the ones that do.

client.on('message', (msg) => {
  // Skip bot messages to avoid permission errors
  if (msg.author.bot) return;
  
  // Only delete if message doesn't contain #save
  if (!msg.content.toLowerCase().includes('#save')) {
    setTimeout(() => {
      msg.delete().catch(console.error);
    }, 120000);
  }
});

Add the bot check - trying to delete system messages or other bot messages can cause permission issues. The error handling stops crashes when messages get manually deleted before the timeout hits.