Skip to main content

Direct Messages

A Direct Message is a private Chat for messaging a workspace Member or Agent. Use a Member or Agent profile to open a DM, or use the Chats list if your role includes access to that list.

Before you begin​

  • To start or reply to a human-to-human DM, your role needs dm:write.
  • To open an Agent DM from the Agent profile, your role needs dm:read.
  • Browsing the Chats and Archived lists requires chats:read. This is separate from Direct Messages access.

Start a Direct Message with a Member​

  1. Open Members and select the Member's profile.
  2. Choose New chat. The selected Member is already set as the receiver.
  3. Choose Me as the caller, Direct as the chat type, and Browser chat as the channel.
  4. Choose Start chat. Gravity Rail opens the existing DM Chat between you and the Member, or creates it if one does not exist.
  5. Type your message in the composer and send it.

The Member profile action directs the Chat to the Member you selected and opens or creates the active DM as you. It does not let you send as another Member.

Find and Reply to a Direct Message​

  1. To open the active DM without browsing the list, use New chat on the Member's profile and follow the Direct / Browser chat steps above.
  2. If your role has chats:read, open Messaging, then Chats. Choose Direct Messages in the scope selector, then select the Member's Chat. Use search to narrow the list.
  3. Read the exchange, enter your reply in the composer, and send it.

The sent message appears in that Chat. A DM is private to its participants; chats:read lets you browse the list but does not expose another person's private DM. If the reply composer is unavailable, ask your workspace administrator to review your Direct Messages permissions.

Message an Agent​

Open the Agent's profile and choose Direct Message. This opens or creates a DM Chat addressed to that Agent. The Agent profile action is available when your role has dm:read. The Agent's behavior depends on its configuration; review its reply in the Chat before acting on it.

Archive a Direct Message​

  1. Open the Chat in the full Chats view. From the Messaging sidebar, use the open-full-view control. Browsing the list requires chats:read; without it, use the relevant Member or Agent profile to open the DM.
  2. Choose Archive in the Chat header.
  3. To find an archived Chat later, use Archived in the Chats scope selector. This list requires chats:read.

Archiving removes the DM from the active list for its participants. They can find it under Archived if they can browse the Chats list. Archiving does not delete the Chat. You need permission to archive it; if the action is denied, ask your workspace administrator.

See Chats for the broader Chats workspace and Roles & Permissions for workspace access scopes.