Bot to bot integration:START_CONVERSATION works but TopicPicker shows no topics

FemyM
Tera Contributor

yesterday

Hi Community,

I am testing bot-to-bot integration for Virtual Agent using REST Explorer.

What works:

  • The REST call with action: START_CONVERSATION works successfully.

  • A conversation session (nowSessionId) is created.

  • The response returns a TopicPickerControl.

Issue:

  • The TopicPickerControl response does not list any topics.

  • options and promotedTopics arrays are empty.

  • totalResultsCount is always 0.
    Is there any additional configuration required for topics to appear when using REST Explorer?

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Matthew_13
Mega Sage

yesterday

Hi Buddy,

Yes, this is a pretty common thing when testing Virtual Agent bot-to-bot calls through REST Explorer, and it usually isn’t a bug.

Whats happening is that the Topic Picker is working, but it can’t find any topics that are eligible for the user and context you’re calling with. When that happens, it still returns a TopicPickerControl, but the options and promotedTopics arrays are empty and totalResultsCount stays at 0.

A few thinngs  I would check:

  • User context
    REST Explorer runs as the user executing the call (often an admin or an integration user). Topic Picker only returns topics the user is allowed to see. Make sure that user can actually see topics in the normal Virtual Agent UI and has the required VA roles.

  • Topic state and availability
    Topics must be active/published. Draft topics won’t appear. Also check that the topics aren’t restricted to a different channel or experience than the one your REST call is effectively using.

  • Bot / assistant targeting
    In bot-to-bot scenarios, the Topic Picker is tied to the specific Virtual Agent (bot/profile). If your topics are assigned to a different bot than the one being used by START_CONVERSATION, you’ll get zero results.

  • Missing channel / context in REST Explorer
    In the UI, VA automatically knows the channel, locale, and experience. In REST Explorer, that context may be missing, and Topic Picker can return nothing because it doesn’t know which experience to filter on.

The easiest way to isolate this is:

  • Open Virtual Agent in the UI as the same user you’re using in REST Explorer.

  • If topics show there, then the REST call is missing context (bot/channel).

  • If topics don’t show there either, it’s a roles, publish state, or availability issue.

Bottom line: there’s no extra “enable topics for REST Explorer” switch. When Topic Picker returns zero topics, it’s almost always due to user access, topic availability, bot selection, or missing context in the REST call.

 

@FemyM - Please mark Accepted Solution and Thumbs Up if you found Helpful 🙂

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