Help

Everything you need to know about using unfurl.

Getting started

unfurl works out of the box. There's nothing to configure.

  1. Invite unfurl to your server.
  2. Someone posts a link from a supported platform.
  3. unfurl replies with a fixed version that actually embeds. Done.

Admins can customize everything with /settings but it's completely optional.

How the bot works

Automatic processing

unfurl watches all channels it can see for links from supported platforms. When it finds one, it posts a fixed URL that shows a proper embed in Discord. It handles up to 5 URLs per message.

No commands needed. No prefixes. Just paste a link and the bot handles the rest.

Embed suppression

After posting the fix, unfurl hides Discord's broken embed on the original message so you don't see two previews. This is on by default but can be turned off with /settings embeds.

Undo and delete

Don't want the bot's reply? There are a few ways to remove it:

  • Undo reaction - When enabled, the bot adds an X reaction to its reply. The person who posted the link can click it to delete the bot's message. The reaction disappears after a timeout (default 2 minutes, configurable).
  • Trash reaction - The link author can react to the bot's reply with a trash emoji at any time to delete it. No timeout.
  • Admins - Anyone with Manage Messages can also use either reaction to remove bot replies.

Self-cleanup

unfurl keeps things tidy on its own:

  • If you edit your message and remove the link, the bot deletes its reply.
  • If you delete your message, the bot deletes its reply too.

DM forwarding

When enabled, anyone can react to a bot reply (with any emoji besides undo/trash) to get the fixed URLs sent to their DMs. Handy for saving links for later. Off by default - admins can enable it with /settings dm-forward.

URL cleaning

Beyond fixing embeds, unfurl cleans up your links in several ways:

  • Tracking removal - Strips 150+ tracking parameters (UTM tags, fbclid, gclid, igshid, and many more) from URLs across all supported platforms.
  • AMP unwrapping - Converts Google AMP pages back to the original article URL.
  • Amazon cleaning - Reduces long Amazon URLs to a clean product link. No referral tags, no session IDs. Works across all Amazon domains.
  • YouTube Shorts - Converts Shorts URLs into regular watch links for better embeds.
  • Paywall bypass - Wraps 130+ paywalled news sites through archive.is so everyone can read the article.
  • Short URL expansion - Automatically expands shortened links (youtu.be, redd.it, vm.tiktok.com, etc.) before processing them.

Each of these can be toggled on or off individually per server.

Commands

For everyone

/help

Shows supported platforms and features. Admins see additional settings info.

/privacy

Displays the privacy policy - what data is collected and how long it's kept.

/invite

Get the invite link to add unfurl to another server.

For admins

These require Administrator permission or an authorized role/user.

/settings view

See all current settings at a glance - platforms, channel filter, modes, and more.

/settings platform <name> <on/off>

Toggle individual platforms or cleaning features on or off.

/settings channels <mode> [channel] [action]

Control where the bot operates. Modes: none (all channels, default), whitelist (only listed channels), or blacklist (everywhere except listed channels).

/settings embeds <on/off>

Toggle whether the bot suppresses Discord's native embed on the original message.

/settings reply-mode <mode>

Choose how the bot responds: new message (default) or reply (threaded under the original).

/settings undo <on/off> [timeout]

Enable/disable the undo reaction. Timeout is configurable from 10 to 600 seconds.

/settings dm-forward <on/off>

Enable/disable DM forwarding when users react to bot replies.

/settings service

Switch between proxy services for platforms that have multiple options.

/settings authorize <role|user>

Grant a role or user permission to manage unfurl settings.

/settings deauthorize <role|user>

Revoke settings access from a role or user.

/stats

View server statistics: total replacements, 7/30-day activity, top platforms, and top users.

Permissions

unfurl needs 6 permissions to work. It does not need Administrator.

Permission Why
View Channels See messages in channels
Send Messages Post fixed links
Embed Links Include embeds in responses
Manage Messages Suppress broken embeds on original messages
Read Message History Handle reactions and edit/delete tracking
Add Reactions Add undo reaction to bot replies

If permissions are missing when the bot joins, it will notify the server owner. If not fixed within 24 hours, the bot leaves automatically.

Common questions

The bot isn't responding to links

Check that the bot has the required permissions in the channel. Also check /settings view to make sure the platform isn't disabled and the channel isn't excluded by a filter.

Can I limit the bot to specific channels?

Yes. Use /settings channels whitelist to only allow specific channels, or /settings channels blacklist to exclude certain channels.

Can regular users delete the bot's replies?

Only the person who posted the original link can delete the bot's reply (via the undo or trash reaction). Admins and users with Manage Messages can also delete them.

Does the bot read my messages?

unfurl only looks at URLs from supported platforms. It does not store message content. See our privacy policy for full details.

How do I remove the bot?

Kick or ban it from your server like any other bot. All data collection stops immediately. For data deletion requests, join our support server.

Something else?

Join our support server and we'll help you out.