# Frontmcp Channels > Use when pushing real-time notifications or events into Claude Code (or another MCP client) sessions, or building two-way chat bridges. Covers channel source types: incoming webhooks (such as GitHub), app error events, agent-completion and job-completion alerts, service connectors, file watchers, and replay buffers; plus two-way conversational bridges connecting WhatsApp, Telegram, Slack, and Discord to a Claude Code session. Triggers: push notifications, real-time alerts, webhook channel, chat bridge, WhatsApp / Telegram / Slack / Discord, agent completion alert, job status notification, error forwarding, server-to-client messaging. The skill for CHANNELS and NOTIFICATIONS. - Skill: `agentfront/frontmcp-channels` (Agent Skill, multi-file: 11 files) - Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add agentfront/frontmcp-channels` - Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/agentfront/frontmcp-channels/raw - Safety review: pending - Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex - Category: AI & ML - License: Apache-2.0 - Author: agentfront (https://skillmd.com/u/agentfront) - Updated: 2026-09-10 - Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/agentfront/frontmcp-channels --- # FrontMCP Channels Build push-based notification channels that stream real-time events into Claude Code. Channels let your MCP server forward webhooks, application errors, agent completions, job results, and chat messages directly into Claude's context, with optional two-way reply support. ## When to Use This Skill ### Must Use - You need Claude Code to react to external events (CI failures, monitoring alerts, deploy status) - You are building a chat bridge (WhatsApp, Telegram, Slack, Discord) for Claude Code - You want agents or background jobs to notify Claude Code upon completion ### Recommended - You want to forward application errors to Claude for debugging assistance - You need a messaging interface where remote users can interact with Claude via chat platforms ### Skip When - You only need standard MCP resource subscriptions (use `@Resource` with `resources/subscribe`) - Your client is not Claude Code and does not support `experimental['claude/channel']` - You need request-response patterns (use `@Tool` instead) > **Decision:** Use channels when you need server-initiated push notifications into Claude Code. Use resources when the client pulls data on demand. ## Prerequisites - `@frontmcp/sdk` >= 1.0.0 - Basic understanding of `@FrontMcp`, `@App`, and `@Tool` decorators - For webhook sources: HTTP transport (not stdio-only) - For chat bridges: external API credentials (WhatsApp Business API, Telegram Bot Token, etc.) ## Steps 1. Choose your channel source type from the Scenario Routing Table 2. Create a channel class or function 3. Register it in your app 4. Enable channels in `@FrontMcp` config 5. Test with Claude Code using `--dangerously-load-development-channels` ## Scenario Routing Table | Scenario | Reference | Description | | ---------------------------------- | ------------------------------- | ---------------------------------------------- | | Webhook alerts (CI, monitoring) | `references/channel-sources.md` | Forward HTTP webhooks into Claude | | Application error forwarding | `references/channel-sources.md` | Push app errors via event bus | | Agent completion notifications | `references/channel-sources.md` | Notify when agents finish | | Job/workflow completion | `references/channel-sources.md` | Notify when jobs complete | | Service connector (WhatsApp, etc.) | `references/channel-sources.md` | Persistent connection with bidirectional tools | | File/log watcher | `references/channel-sources.md` | File system change monitoring | | Event replay for offline sessions | `references/channel-sources.md` | Buffer events for later delivery | | WhatsApp/Telegram chat bridge | `references/channel-two-way.md` | Two-way messaging with Claude | | Slack/Discord integration | `references/channel-two-way.md` | Chat platform bridges | | Permission relay | `references/channel-two-way.md` | Remote tool approval via chat | ## Common Patterns | Pattern | Correct | Incorrect | Why | | -------------- | --------------------------------------- | -------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------ | | Meta keys | `meta: { env: 'prod' }` | `meta: { 'my-env': 'prod' }` | Meta keys must be valid identifiers (letters, digits, underscores) | | Source naming | `name: 'deploy-alerts'` | `name: 'Deploy Alerts!'` | Channel names should be kebab-case identifiers | | Two-way gating | Check sender identity before emitting | Trust room/group membership | Prevent prompt injection from untrusted group members | | Error channels | Use `app-event` source with event bus | Poll for errors in a loop | Event bus is push-based and efficient | | Manual push | Use `scope.channelNotifications.send()` | Call `pushNotification` on instance directly | Service handles capability filtering | ## Verification Checklist ### Server Setup - [ ] `@FrontMcp({ channels: { enabled: true } })` is set - [ ] Channel classes extend `ChannelContext` with `@Channel()` decorator - [ ] Channels are listed in `@App({ channels: [...] })` - [ ] `onEvent()` returns `{ content: string, meta?: Record }` ### Capability - [ ] Server advertises `experimental: { 'claude/channel': {} }` in capabilities - [ ] Only sessions with matching capability receive notifications - [ ] `instructions` field mentions `` tags when channels are active ### Two-Way - [ ] `twoWay: true` is set on channels that need replies - [ ] `channel-reply` tool appears in tool list - [ ] `onReply()` is implemented and forwards to external system - [ ] Sender authentication is enforced before emitting events ### Sources - [ ] Webhook endpoints return 200 on success - [ ] Event bus subscriptions are cleaned up on scope teardown - [ ] Agent/job completion filters match expected IDs ## Troubleshooting | Problem | Cause | Solution | | ---------------------------- | ------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------ | | No notifications arrive | Client doesn't support channels | Check client capabilities include `experimental['claude/channel']` | | `channel-reply` tool missing | No two-way channels registered | Set `twoWay: true` on at least one channel | | Webhook returns 500 | `onEvent()` throws | Check channel handler error logs | | Duplicate notifications | Multiple sessions subscribed | This is correct behavior -- each session gets its own copy | | Events lost on reconnect | Channels are in-memory | Channel state resets on server restart; use persistent sources | ## Examples Each reference has matching examples under [`examples//`](./examples/): ### `channel-sources` | Example | Level | Description | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------- | ------------ | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | [`webhook-github`](./examples/channel-sources/webhook-github.md) | Basic | Forward GitHub webhook events (PRs, pushes, CI) into Claude Code | | [`app-errors`](./examples/channel-sources/app-errors.md) | Basic | Forward application errors to Claude Code via the in-process event bus | | [`agent-notify`](./examples/channel-sources/agent-notify.md) | Intermediate | Notify Claude Code when AI agents complete their tasks | | [`job-completion`](./examples/channel-sources/job-completion.md) | Intermediate | Notify Claude Code when background jobs and workflows complete | | [`service-connector`](./examples/channel-sources/service-connector.md) | Advanced | Build a persistent service connector that lets Claude send and receive messages through WhatsApp, Telegram, or any messaging API | | [`file-watcher`](./examples/channel-sources/file-watcher.md) | Intermediate | Watch files for changes and notify Claude Code in real-time | | [`replay-buffer`](./examples/channel-sources/replay-buffer.md) | Advanced | Buffer channel events so Claude Code receives them when it connects, even if events occurred while offline | ### `channel-two-way` | Example | Level | Description | | ------------------------------------------------------------------ | -------- | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | [`whatsapp-bridge`](./examples/channel-two-way/whatsapp-bridge.md) | Advanced | Full WhatsApp Business API bridge allowing users to chat with Claude Code via WhatsApp | ## Accessing This Skill Skills are distributed as plain SKILL.md files plus a sibling `references/` and `examples/` tree, so consumers can pick whichever access mode fits: | Mode | How it works | | ------------------ | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | **Filesystem** | Read `libs/skills/catalog/frontmcp-channels/` directly from a clone of the catalog repo, or from a published `@frontmcp/skills` install. SKILL.md is the entry point. | | **`frontmcp` CLI** | `frontmcp skills list`, `frontmcp skills read frontmcp-channels`, `frontmcp skills read frontmcp-channels:references/.md`, `frontmcp skills install frontmcp-channels` — no server required. | | **MCP `skill://`** | When a developer mounts this skill into their own FrontMCP server (`@FrontMcp({ skills: [...] })`), the SDK exposes it via SEP-2640 resources: `skill://frontmcp-channels/SKILL.md`, `skill://frontmcp-channels/references/{file}.md`, etc. The server’s `skill://index.json` returns the SEP-2640 discovery document for everything mounted on it. | The catalog itself is **not** an MCP server. The `skill://` URIs only resolve when a server has been configured to host this skill. ## Reference - [Claude Code Channels Reference](https://code.claude.com/docs/en/channels-reference) - [MCP Specification - Notifications](https://modelcontextprotocol.io/specification/2025-03-26) - Related skills: `frontmcp-development`, `frontmcp-testing`, `frontmcp-deployment`