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Zoho Discussions - How Tos

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General

What is Zoho Discussions?

Zoho Discussions is a hosted solution that helps you to create internal (intranets for your employees) and external communities (support forums and idea boards). Using Zoho Discussions, end users can talk about problems, propose and vote on new ideas, ask and answer questions and of course, just bring up a topic for discussion.

What browser do you recommend?

Zoho Discussions is a web based application and it works on any browser like Internet Explorer 7.0+, Firefox 2.0+, Chrome, etc.

What are your customer service hours? Do you provide a phone support?

Our customer service team works 24 hours a day from Monday through Friday. You may reach our toll free number: 1 888 900 9646 (US Timings) to speak to a support representative.

Can I migrate my business from Phpbb forums to Zoho Discussions?

 Yes. We do have experience in migrtaing our ZohoForums from PhpBB to Zoho Discussions. However, you must contact support@zohodiscussions.com to migrate your business to Zoho Discussions.

Is it possible to integrate my discussions portal into my website?

Yes. You can embed your discussions portal into your website as an br widget using any of the links below:
  • discussions.zoho.com/tpwHome.do?forumGroupURL=portalurl&tps=me&limit=10&aj=false&widget=true&ph=true
  • discussions.zoho.com/forumSimpleHome.do?forumGroupURL=portalurl&limit=6&changeportal=false
  • discussions.zoho.com/portalurl?tp=true

User Guide

Why can't I see the New Topic button after signing into Zoho Discussions ?

This problem will occur due to one of the reasons below:
  • The forum in which the topic is posted might not have "Post" permission (or)
  • The forums associated to the corresponding portal might be locked.
Please contact your administrator to post topics.

Why can't I post an announcement ?

Announcements can be posted only by the Administrators of the Portal. Please contact your administrator to proceed further.

How do I insert a video into the topic content?

 You can insert a video using the "Insert Object" option in WYSIWYG Editor.

To insert a video:
  1. Go to the WYSIWYG editor.
  2. Select Insert Object option.
  3. Specify the "HTML content" in the text-box.
  4. Click on OK.
    The corresponding video is now embedded in the topic.
How do I insert a screenshot into the topic content / response?

 You can insert a screenshot using the "Insert Image" option WYSIWYG Editor.

To insert a screenshot:
  1. Go to the WYSIWIG editor.
  2. Select Insert Image option.
  3. Browse the required image from your local machine.
  4. Specify the Image Caption and Image Title in the corresponding text-boxes.
  5. Click on OK.
    The screenshot is now inserted in the topic/response.
Can I have my own topic type?

 Currently there is no option to create your own topic type. However, it will be implemented in near future.

Can't find my draft, where do I go wrong?

 There is a chance that you might have not logged into Zoho Discussions or the particular draft might be published. Please login and check your topic list view for the corresponding topic.

I am unable to reply to a topic, what must I do?

 This problem will occur due to one of the reasons below:
  • The forum in which the topic is posted might not have the permission to "Respond" (or)
  • The specific topic, forum or the sub forum might be locked.
Please contact the topic author or the portal administrator to proceed further.

Is it possible to add a comment to a comment?

 Comment can be used only to post your views/suggestions on a specific reply. In short, you can only add your comment to a specific response, not to a comment. To learn more, refer Content Operations

I am unable to vote, what can I do?

 This problem will occur due to one of the reasons below:
  • The specific topic, forum or the sub forum might be locked
  • The corresponding topic might be linked to another type (or)
  • The topic might be an announcement.
Can I undo my vote?

 Currently, there is no option to undo your vote made for a specific topic. However, you can undo the response vote.

Why am I unable to see the "Mark Inappropriate" link?

 Mark Inappropriate link will not be available for Topic Authors, Moderators and Administrators of the Portal. Also, you cannot see this link when the moderator or administrator declares the specific post as an appropriate topic.

Can I change the topic type?

 Yes. You can change the topic type before receiving responses for the specific topic.

To change topic type:
  1. Select the corresponding topic from List View.
  2. In the Post Actions section, click on Change Topic Type (right-side menu).
  3. In the Change Topic type dialog, select the required Topic Type.
    The topic gets changed according to the     selected topic type.
 Why can't I change the topic type of an earlier topic?

 There is a chance that the specific topic would have received responses from your community.

Can I recover the deleted topic?

 Yes. However, you need to contact your portal administrator - who can recover it from the trash bin present in the moderation panel.

Why do I get a message "the content was detected as spam" when I try to post a topic/response?

 A post will be marked as spam due to the following reasons:
  • The specific post might contain words that are considered as spam by our spam engine (or)
  • The webpage corresponding to the link added in your post might contain spam words.
Please check your content or contact your administrator to post the corresponding topic.

Is it possible to see who has voted for an idea / problem / question?

 Currently, it is not possible to see who has voted for your post. However, we have added this feature in our road map list and will be implemented soon.

When I post a topic or a response, will it get auto saved?

 Currently, autosave option is not available in Zoho Discussions. But, we do have plans to implement this in near future.

How do I close a thread?

You can close a thread using the Lock Topic Feature. Zoho Discussions allows you to lock a specific topic, so that users will not be able to post any responses, comments or do any further actions in the corresponding topic. Learn more

Is it possible to freeze the forum topic at the top of the of the screen?

Currently, Zoho Discussions allow you to post announcements, so that you can freeze the particular topic permanently in the widgets section. Also, please note that announcement widget is specific to the forums, in which they are posted. Hence it will be placed at the top of your side-panel (widget area) only in the corresponding forum page.

Zoho Discussions also allows you to freeze significant topics in the widget area, using the Sticky Post feature. With this feature, you can mark a specific topic as sticky, so that it will be displayed in both Portal and Forum widgets permanently.

Can I reply to my watch list email and get the response posted?

 No. It is not possible to post your response by replying to the watch list mail. You must go to the corresponding topic to post your response. However, we have added this feature in our road map list and will be implemented in near future.

How do I increase the number of posts shown per page?

 You can set a maximum of 25 or 50 posts per page.

To increase the number of posts per page:
  • Go to My Area > Preferences section.
  • Set the Posts per page option to 25 or 50, as per your requirement.
  • Click on Save
How do I to set my defautl view mode to "quick view"?

 Please follow the below steps to set your default view:
  • Goto My Area > Preferences section.
  • Set the Default topic view to Quick View.
  • Click on Save
    Your topic view is now changed to quick view.

Admin Guide

How to better SEO value for your Discussion topics? 

SEO Settings allow you to optimize your portal URL with the Meta tags to generate meaningful content. This turn help your content be more visible to search engines and helping users reach your website.
In addition to Meta tags, Zoho Discussions offers various techniques, with which you can increase the SEO value for your discussions topics:

  • Search Engine-friendly descriptive URLS - no additional configuration / plug-ins to install.
  • Topic title is setup meaningfully as a page title, therefore improving relevancy
  • Starting even from the Basic plan, you can configure multiple domains for your forums area. Zoho Discussions will automatically channel all these domains to a single chosen "primary domain" so that your users retain context while you also get good search engine mileage.
  • Embeddable forums - you can also embed an entire portal inside your website - either to simplify visual integration or to provide contextual widgets with recent discussions.

Can I change my portal URL?

It is not possible to change your portal URL, once created. However, you can point it to the required URL using the Domain Mapping feature so that your users can access your community using your own domain. To learn more about Domain Mapping, refer this link

What is Domain Mapping?

Domain Mapping is a process of mapping your own URLs with your discussions portal, so that your users will be able to access your community using the configured domain, instead of discussions.zoho.com/<portal domain>. Learn More.

Why can't I access my portal after configuring a portal domain?

You might not have mapped the particular domain’s CNAME entry to to this IP address: 74.201.154.141. So, please make sure that you have completed this setup to access your portal using the configured domain.

Is it possible to place ads in my discussions board?

Yes. With the help of HTML Widgets, you can embed the HTML code of any objects, Images, Videos etc. in your portal to promote / advertise your product.

To add a HTML widget:

  • Go to Settings section.
  • Select the Widgets tab under Portal settings from the left side menu.
  • Click on Add HTML Widget button from the right-side menu.
  • Enter the Widget Name, Description and the HTML Code in the corresponding text-boxes. See image below
  • Click on Save.

What is the difference between a portal and forum widget?

Portal widgets are displayed across your portal. It can be viewed from the recent topics and All Forums page. However, forum widgets can be viewed only when the corresponding forum page is accessed. You can create individual widgets for every forum in your portal.

 How do notifications work?

Notifications are the alerts, which help you to keep updated on the items that you follow. Zoho Discussions sends notifications through Email and Chat feed. You can choose the required notification type according to your need. For Example: If you follow a forum, you will receive notifications for all topics, responses and commented posted on the specific forum via Email & Chat feed.

How do I stop receiving notification emails?

To unsubscribe from email notifications, please follow the steps below:

  • Go to My Area > Watchlist
  • Select the appropriate tab (Topics, Users, Forums, Sub Forums) to see the list of items that you follow.
  • Click on Stop Following next to the watchlist item to unsubscribe.

Alternatively, you can simply click on the "unwatch" link available in the corresponding notification email (footer section) to stop further receiving notifications.

How do I set up an idea board?

Creating an idea board with Zoho Discussions is fast and easy. All you need is to set "Idea" as your portal's default topic type and then you can allow users to post/share only ideas.

To set default topic type:

  • Go to Settings section.
  • Click on Preferences tab under Portal settings from the left side menu.
  • Scroll down to the Customize Topic Types section.
  • Choose the required topic type(s) and click on Make it default button. See image below.

What is private messaging?

Private messaging allows users to send messages privately to other users in your online community, without revealing their personal information. As an administrator, you can enable the private messaging preference for your user profiles so that they can use this specific feature.

How do I set up a public forum?

A public forum can be accessed by all website visitors. Please follow the below steps to a create public forum:

    1. Go to Settings section.
    2. Select the Forums tab and click on New link from the left side menu.
      This opens the New Forum Details page.
    3. Update Basic Details:
      • Name: Enter your forum name.
      • Description: Provide a short description about your forum.
      • Forum Type: Choose your forum type to be Public.
    4. Assign Forum Moderators:
      • Forum Moderators: Enter the Email ID(s) or Name(s) of the portal member whom you want to nominate as a moderator of this forum.
      • Moderator Groups: Select a required group from the drop-down list, if you wish to assign moderators from a particular group.
    5. Configure Forum Permissions:
      • Enable the View permission to Everyone.
      • Enable the Post permission to Everyone.
      • Enable the Response permission to Everyone.
      • Enable the Attach files permission to Everyone.
      • Enable the Moderate Users permission for None, Guest or Everyone.
    6. Click on Create.
      The public forum gets created and available for your community

What happens if I lock a forum?

Locking a forum allows you to end all active discussions. When a forum is locked, it stops your forum members from adding topics, posting responses, comments in the corresponding forum.

To lock a forum:

  1. Go to Settings > Forums.
  2. Choose the Forum that you want to lock from the left side menu.
    This opens the General settings page.
  3. Scroll down to Permissions Levels section and go to Security Levels:
  4. Enable the Lock check-box.
  5. Click on Save Changes.
    The selected forum is now locked from posting. You can unlock the forum whenever required.

How many users can be invited at a time?

Zoho Discussions allows you to invite a maximum of 100 users at a time. You can specify multiple Email IDs separated by comma in the Invite Users text-box.

In addition, you can enable the Membership Subscription or SSO technique and allow your users to join your community directly, without having to send them portal invitations.

How do I change a user's role i.e., from member to a moderator?

Please follow the below to change a user role:

  1. Go to Settings
  2. Click on Users > Members tab from the left side menu
    This shows the list of your portal members.
  3. Select the user for whom you want to change the role and click on Manage.
  4. Click on Permissions tab and assign the following permission levels:
    • Portal Permission: Choose to assign the user with Member or Admin permission from the drop-down list.
    • Forum Permission: Choose to assign the user with Member or Moderator permission from the drop-down list.
      The user role gets updated.

Can I create new groups directly from my discussions portal?

Yes. You can create user groups directly from within your discussions portal. For more information on Groups, click

Related searches:
portal specific please domain change
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