Markdown formats in custom channels that use Direct Line
In Omnichannel for Customer Service, you can send and receive messages formatted with Markdown in custom messaging channels using Direct Line API 3.0. As a developer, understanding how the Markdown format is passed through the channel and knowing the details of the format will help you update the HTML styling and tags in your own user interface.
In the Direct Line channel, when an agent sends (outbound) a message formatted with Markdown to a Direct Line bot, the bot receives the message in a certain format. Now, if a bot receives (inbound) a formatted message from a customer, it must be able to correctly interpret the message that's formatted with Markdown. As a developer, you'll need to use Markdown appropriately so that the message is formatted correctly for your agents and customers.
Markdown formats
The following table lists the Markdown formats used in inbound messages sent by the customer and outbound messages sent by the agent to the customer.
| Style | Inbound | Outbound | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| bold | **bold** | **bold** | text |
| italics | _italics_ | _italics_ | text |
| strikethrough | ~strikethrough~ | ~strikethrough~ | |
| blockquote | > blockquote | > blockquote | > text |
| header (levels 1–4) | ### header3 | ### header3 | Text |
| hyperlink | https://www.microsoft.com | https://www.microsoft.com | https://www.microsoft.com |
| hyperlink with text | [text](https://www.microsoft.com) | [text](https://www.microsoft.com) | Microsoft website |
| monospace | ``` text ``` |
``` text ``` |
text |
| numbered list | <number> item one | <number> item one | 1. item one 2. item two |
| unordered list | * item one or - item one |
`* item one or - item one |
* item one * item two |
| new line | Paragraph 1 <br> Paragraph 2 </br> | Paragraph 1 Paragraph 2 |
Note
Currently, we don't support the <Shift + Enter> key combination to add multiple line breaks.
For inbound messages, set the Markdown text to the Activity object's text property.
For outbound messages, the Markdown text will be received in the Activity object's text property (similar to a normal message).
Next steps
Bring your own custom messaging channel using Direct Line
Sample code to bring your own channel
Configure custom messaging channel
Related information
Support for live chat and asynchronous channels
Enable formatted messages
Markdown formats for agents
Key concepts in Direct Line API 3.0