question Re: Virtua agent : vaSystem.switchTopic('Topic name') not returning back to previous topic in Virtual Agent, NLU forum

Virtua agent : vaSystem.switchTopic('Topic name') not returning back to previous topic

Rani11 — Mon, 22 May 2023 19:03:52 GMT

Hi All,

I am facing below issue when switching topic from one to another.

In "Topic 1" based on yes/No question switching topic to "Topic 2". System successfully switching to Topic 2 but once everything completed its not returning back to previous topic. I have tried below code but no luck. Can anyone faced the same issue and is there any way that we can resolve this issue? Kindly provide your suggestion.

Tried : vaSystem.switchTopic('Topic Name 2'); - Not working

Tried :

vaVars.global_search_text = 'Topic Name 2';

vaSystem.topicDiscovery();

Even its not working.

Any clue?

Thanks,

Re: Virtua agent : vaSystem.switchTopic('Topic name') not returning back to previous topic

Amit Gujarathi — Mon, 22 May 2023 19:47:02 GMT

Hi @Rani11 ,
I trust you are doing great.

After successfully switching to "Topic 2," the system is not returning back to the previous topic. I can provide you with some suggestions to resolve this issue.

One possible solution is to use the following code snippet to switch topics:

vaSystem.switchTopic('Topic Name 2');

owever, based on your description, it seems that you have already tried this code without success. Another approach you can attempt is to set the global search text and then trigger the topic discovery. You can use the following code snippet for that:

vaVars.global_search_text = 'Topic Name 2'; vaSystem.topicDiscovery();

Re: Virtua agent : vaSystem.switchTopic('Topic name') not returning back to previous topic

Rani11 — Tue, 23 May 2023 05:39:08 GMT

Hi Amit,

I have tried both but no luck.

Re: Virtua agent : vaSystem.switchTopic('Topic name') not returning back to previous topic

Chris D — Fri, 26 May 2023 19:18:31 GMT

Use vaSystem.switchTopicById(sysid)

You shouldn't use vaSystem.switchTopic() - and vaSystem.topicDiscovery() was a hacky workaround to avoid that which you also shouldn't use to switch topics (if you know what topic you want to switch to).

From Virtual Agent scripts (servicenow.com)

vaSystem.switchTopicById(sysid)

Enables the user to jump from the current conversation topic to the specified topic ID. The X button is available, so that the user can end the conversation. After the topic ends, the user resumes the global topic. When the conversation ends, the user can click to restart.

The optional resumeBehavior parameter specifies how the conversation flow resumes, as follows:

If resumeBehavior=resume, Virtual Agent resumes the calling topic.
If resumeBehavior=skip, Virtual Agent skips the calling topic.

If resumeBehavior is not specified, the default behavior for the instance is used.

resumeBehavior is a new parameter to Tokyo (I actually just learned about it getting you the link to it) - I've never used it and by default, if you omit it (i.e. just do vaSystem.switchTopicById(abc123)) it'll resume the calling topic which is what you want.

Re: Virtua agent : vaSystem.switchTopic('Topic name') not returning back to previous topic

Mark Roethof — Fri, 26 May 2023 19:22:57 GMT

Hi there,

Pre-Quebec to switch between topics, a method used was "vaSystem.switchTopic()". Although this method does perform it's basics, it does bring unexpected side effects on the working of the Virtual Agent client. Starting with the Quebec release, it is recommended to use "vaSystem.switchTopicByName()" or "vaSystem.switchTopicById()" instead.

Replace the usage of "vaSystem.switchTopic()" with "vaSystem.switchTopicByName()" or "vaSystem.switchTopicById()".

Kind regards,
Mark

Re: Virtua agent : vaSystem.switchTopic('Topic name') not returning back to previous topic

Lynda1 — Fri, 26 May 2023 20:35:29 GMT

When I use this vaSystem.switchTopicByName('name of topic')

I make sure this is turned on in both topics

works like a charm every time.

Re: Virtua agent : vaSystem.switchTopic('Topic name') not returning back to previous topic

Bharath38 — Wed, 21 Aug 2024 18:35:22 GMT

Hey Mark,

I'm using vaSystem.switchTopicByName() to switch from one topic Check Ticket status to Escalate IT Ticket however system starts topic from beginning instead of taking the Ticket id from topic one and just escalate, do you know if we can pass input and read it in Escalate IT Ticket and system auto detects and escalate it directly ?

Re: Virtua agent : vaSystem.switchTopic('Topic name') not returning back to previous topic

Chris D — Fri, 23 Aug 2024 22:05:14 GMT

I've not done it before, but I think your best bet would be to use Live agent chat context variables - you can define your own. In theory, I believe these should persist through an entire conversation, so if you set it in one topic, it should still be available in another topic (or, in their primary use case, available to the live agent).

You will probably need to add the context variable in the Properties of both topics. In Topic A, you'll need to set the context variable before switching topics, then in Topic B, you'll need logic at the start of the conversation to read the context variable and bypass the unnecessary parts of the topic flow.

If that doesn't work (I really hope it does), the other -rather hacky - option would be to write the data to a field on the current interaction record in Topic A then read the data in Topic B.

Re: Virtua agent : vaSystem.switchTopic('Topic name') not returning back to previous topic

Bharath38 — Mon, 26 Aug 2024 13:31:09 GMT

Hello Crhis,

This is exactly what I have done and worked, glad that you agree with same approach.

Thanks for the reply!