unhideGeneralForumTopic

Returns: TrueOfficial docs ↗

Use this method to unhide the 'General' topic in a forum supergroup chat. The bot must be an administrator in the chat for this to work and must have the can_manage_topics administrator rights. Returns True on success.

Parameters

chat_idIntegerStringRequired

Unique identifier for the target chat or username of the target supergroup (in the format @supergroupusername)

Returns

On success, True is returned.

GramIO Usage

Unhide the General topic in a forum supergroup:

await bot.api.unhideGeneralForumTopic({
  chat_id: -1001234567890,
});

Toggle the General topic visibility from a command:

bot.command("showgeneral", async (ctx) => {
  await bot.api.unhideGeneralForumTopic({
    chat_id: ctx.chat.id,
  });

  await ctx.send("The General topic is now visible.");
});

Unhide the General topic in a supergroup by username:

async function showGeneralTopic(supergroupUsername: string) {
  await bot.api.unhideGeneralForumTopic({
    chat_id: `@${supergroupUsername}`,
  });
}

Errors

Code	Error	Cause
400	Bad Request: chat not found	chat_id is invalid or the bot is not a member of the chat
400	Bad Request: method is available only for supergroups	The target chat is not a forum supergroup — only forum-enabled supergroups have the General topic
400	Bad Request: TOPIC_NOT_MODIFIED	The General topic is already visible — no state change needed
403	Forbidden: bot is not an administrator	The bot has no admin status in the chat
403	Forbidden: not enough rights to manage topics	The bot is an admin but lacks can_manage_topics — grant it in admin settings
429	Too Many Requests: retry after N	Rate limit hit — check retry_after, use the auto-retry plugin

Tips & Gotchas

• Forum mode must be enabled. The General topic only exists in supergroups where the "Topics" feature is turned on. This method fails in regular supergroups and all other chat types.
• Requires can_manage_topics. Unlike pinning messages, managing topic visibility needs this specific right rather than can_pin_messages.
• The General topic is permanent. Unlike custom topics, the General topic cannot be deleted — it can only be hidden or shown, and optionally closed/reopened. Use hideGeneralForumTopic to reverse this action.
• Hidden General topic still receives messages. When hidden, new messages cannot be sent to it, but existing messages remain accessible to admins. Unhiding makes it accessible to all members again.
• Check current state first. ChatFullInfo.is_general_forum_topic_hidden indicates whether the General topic is currently hidden — use getChat to read this before calling unhide.

See Also

• hideGeneralForumTopic — Hide the General topic (counterpart to this method)
• editGeneralForumTopic — Rename the General topic
• closeGeneralForumTopic — Prevent new messages in the General topic
• reopenGeneralForumTopic — Allow new messages in the General topic again
• unpinAllGeneralForumTopicMessages — Clear all pinned messages in the General topic
• createForumTopic — Create a new custom forum topic