Sending custom parameters with Telegram bot webhook in PHP

[aroberts]

I’m working on a Telegram bot using PHP and webhooks. I want to know if there’s a way to include additional custom parameters when using the sendMessage API method.

Specifically, I need to pass a custom variable like ‘action’ along with the standard message data. Here’s what I’m trying to achieve:

function handleIncomingMessage($data) {
  // handle the received message
  $msg_id = $data['message_id'];
  $task = $data['action'];
  $user_chat = $data['chat']['id'];
  $user_first = isset($data['chat']['first_name']) ? $data['chat']['first_name'] : "";
  $user_last = isset($data['chat']['last_name']) ? $data['chat']['last_name'] : "";

  if (isset($data['text'])) {
    $user_text = $data['text'];
    if (strpos($user_text, "/begin") === 0) {
    sendTelegramRequest("sendMessage", array(
        'chat_id' => $user_chat, 
        "text" => 'Hello '.$user_first.' '.$user_last.' welcome to our bot! What would you like to do ['.$task.']?', 
        'action' => "do something", 
        'reply_markup' => array(
            'keyboard' => array(array('/check', '/help')),
            'one_time_keyboard' => true,
            'resize_keyboard' => true
        )
    ));
    }
  }
}

Is this approach correct or is there another way to pass custom variables through the webhook?

[davidw]

The Telegram Bot API ignores custom parameters like ‘action’ in sendMessage - they just won’t work. You’ll need to store that custom data somewhere else, like a database tied to the chat_id and message_id. When users hit your bot, you can pull that context data to figure out what happens next. For inline keyboards, just encode the action directly in callback_data or stick it in the message text. If you’re dealing with complex workflows, a state machine works great for tracking where users are in the process.

[Sophia63]

unfortunately, telegram’s api doesn’t allow custom params like ‘action’ in sendMessage. i usually store that info in sessions or temp files using chat_id. when the webhook triggers, i just check that data for context. it’s been working fine for my bots!

[olivias]

That won’t work - Telegram’s API just drops any non-standard parameters. Hit this same problem about a year ago building a workflow bot. I ended up using Redis for simple state management, but any database works (even file storage for low traffic). Store your custom data with a key like “chat_{$chat_id}_state” before sending the message, then grab it when processing the webhook. For complex stuff, encode the action right into callback_data for inline keyboards - you get 64 bytes to play with. This approach’s been rock solid for multi-step conversations and tracking user context.