Rocket.Chat is more than just a communication platform. It's a versatile workspace that you can tailor to your needs. You can even integrate your custom apps using Rocket.Chat's webhooks to funnel data from external services.
This guide is created to assist developers in building upon the Rocket.Chat platform.
1 Set up your Rocket.Chat development environment
Learn about the various deployment options to get Rocket.Chat up and running quickly and efficiently in your environment. The fastest way to get started is by using Gitpod. See the Gitpod Development Environment Setup guide for details.
You can also set up your development environment for the various Rocket.Chat components:
Rocket.Chat core server: This is the heart of the Rocket.Chat application. Learn how to get the source code and install the necessary dependencies for development.
Desktop application: Learn how to set up and customize your development environment to build and run the Rocket.Chat desktop application.
Mobile application: This details setting up your development environment for creating the Rocket.Chat mobile application compatible with both Android and iOS platforms.
2 Make your first code changes
Once your environment is up and running, you can begin tweaking and building. We share two options to help you get started:
Customize the Rocket.Chat UI: Rocket.Chat provides users with different workspace personalization options.
To familiarize yourself with the workspace elements, go to the Layout settings in the workspace settings. With these settings, you can modify the login page and the home page content and define custom scripts.
Additionally, check out the Customizing Colors document to learn how to use the color variables.
Pick up open GitHub issues: If you are interested in contributing to Rocket.Chat, you can refer to the open tasks.
See the open and in-progress tasks here: Rocket.Chat open issues.
See the easy-to-contribute tasks here: Rocket.Chat easy issues.
For further contribution details and guidelines, see the Contribute to Rocket.Chat section.
3 Build and integrate
Take control of your Rocket.Chat workspace by:
Creating and hosting custom apps using the Rocket.Chat Apps-Engine solution. You can integrate workflows with popular tools like GitHub and Jira.
Using the Rocket.Chat API to enhance workspace capabilities and tailor the platform experience to your specific needs.
4 Extend and customize
Enhance your Rocket.Chat experience by:
Setting up and customizing the Omnichannel livechat widget for communications between Rocket.Chat users (agents) and external customers.
Leveraging Fuselage, Rocket.Chat’s design system to create consistent and high-quality user interfaces.
White-labeling or integrating iframe your workspace to suit your brand identity.
5 Contribute
Your expertise matters; regardless of your technical background, you can contribute to Rocket.Chat by creating issues, writing code, implementing new features, or fixing bugs, all in line with the contribution guidelines.
You can also contribute to the documentation by providing feedback according to the feedback guidelines.
6 Connect
Join the open server community and repositories to connect and collaborate. Get assistance from the global community and open channels.
Visit the user guide to learn more about Rocket.Chat. Welcome aboard, and let's build better communication together!