Problems Setting Up a Telegram Bot Menu with python-telegram-bot Library

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1

I’m developing a Telegram bot menu using python-telegram-bot. Although the bot initializes without errors, it remains silent. See revised sample code below.

from telegram import ReplyKeyboardMarkup, KeyboardButton
from telegram.ext import Updater, CommandHandler
from functools import wraps

BOT_TOKEN = '#####'
VALID_USERS = ['userA', 'userB']
ADMIN_USERS = ['adminA']

def admin_required(func):
    @wraps(func)
    def wrapper(update, context, *args, **kwargs):
        if update.effective_user.username not in ADMIN_USERS:
            update.message.reply_text('Admin access required.')
            return
        return func(update, context, *args, **kwargs)
    return wrapper

def user_required(func):
    @wraps(func)
    def wrapper(update, context, *args, **kwargs):
        if update.effective_user.username not in VALID_USERS:
            update.message.reply_text('Access denied.')
            return
        return func(update, context, *args, **kwargs)
    return wrapper

@user_required
def initiate(update, context):
    update.message.reply_text(display_menu(), reply_markup=generate_menu())

def generate_menu():
    buttons = [
        [KeyboardButton('Start Option', callback_data='opt1')],
        [KeyboardButton('Refresh', callback_data='opt2')],
        [KeyboardButton('Activate', callback_data='opt3')]
    ]
    return ReplyKeyboardMarkup(buttons)

def display_menu():
    return 'Select an option from the menu:'

updater = Updater(BOT_TOKEN, use_context=True)
updater.dispatcher.add_handler(CommandHandler('initiate', initiate))
updater.start_polling()
updater.idle()
2

I went through a similar experience when working with python-telegram-bot on a project. My bot remained unresponsive initially even though no errors were thrown. After careful debugging, I realized that the way I was combining command handlers with the custom decorators was not ideal, which prevented some updates from being processed properly. I had added logging statements to track user access and noticed that the issue stemmed from an unexpected flow in the wrapper functions. Adjusting the order of operations in the decorators and refining the conditional checks resolved the issue. It might be helpful to add more detailed logging and verify user access before processing the commands.

3

I encountered a similar hiccup during a project with python-telegram-bot. In my case, the problem was twofold. First, I recognized that attaching callback data to KeyboardButton isn’t supported; InlineKeyboardButton should be used if you intend to work with callback queries. My second observation was that the decorators might require a careful ordering to ensure proper flow. I added extensive logging and temporarily bypassed the decorators to isolate the issue. This approach helped me pinpoint whether the problem originated in user verification or in the handler registration process.

4

hey, i had a simmilar issue when the decorators got in the way. try remove them temporarily to see if the command triggers. also, note keyboardbutton may not hook into callback_data as expected. give it a shot and simplify the flow to see if that helps