Using link unfurling in Virtual Agent

  • Release version: Xanadu
  • Updated November 14, 2024
  • 2 minutes to read
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    Summary of Using link unfurling in Virtual Agent

    Link unfurling in the Virtual Agent enhances user interactions by generating rich previews of shared links within chat conversations across various platforms, including the chat widget and mobile devices. This feature provides users with a visual representation that can include images, videos, and text, improving the overall user experience.

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    Key Features

    • Link unfurling supports content previews for links shared in conversations with users, virtual agents, or text-based bot responses.
    • Only links that meet specific criteria, such as being on the Hostname allow list and utilizing compliant Open Graph (OG) tags, will be unfurled.
    • Admins can add OG tags to ServiceNow UI pages to enhance link previews.
    • The ServiceNow interface supports various OG tags, prioritizing video previews over image previews when both are available.
    • Link unfurling is enabled by default but can be disabled by adjusting the system property.

    Key Outcomes

    When link unfurling is successfully implemented, users can expect to see automatically generated previews that enhance content engagement. However, performance issues related to link availability or security may affect the unfurling process without disrupting conversation flow.

    For administrators, managing unfurling settings and supported links is straightforward, allowing for tailored user experiences based on organizational needs.

    Virtual Agent supports link unfurling on the chat widget, mobile devices, and various channels. Link unfurling generates a content-rich preview when a supported link is shared in a conversation with a user, a virtual agent, or in a text-based bot response.

    If the link is supported on the chat widget or channel, the generated content-rich previews can include text, images, and videos.
    Note:
    Factors such as website availability, security policies, or response time of the link you want to unfurl are unpredictable. As a result, link unfurling may be delayed or unavailable. However, these performance-related issues don’t impact the user and don't affect the conversation flow.

    How to determine if a link is supported

    The ServiceNow user interface currently supports link unfurling for OG tags only. A link is supported only if all the following conditions are met:
    • The host or domain is included in the Hostname allow list table.
    • The link uses standard, compliant Open Graph (OG) tags in the page header as metadata. For example, og:image.
    • The link was shared in a conversation with a user, a virtual agent, or in a text-based bot response.
      Note:
      These conditions apply only to the chat widget and mobile devices on the ServiceNow® platform. Support requirements and conditions for clients on other platforms can vary. For client-specific support and requirement conditions, see the documentation for the client you're using.
    Tip:
    Admins can add OG tags to ServiceNow UI pages by following the instructions in the Adding meta tags to ServiceNow UI Pages Knowledge Base article.
    When a link meets the specified criteria, the ServiceNow software does the following:
    • Asynchronously fetches, if available, the OG tag at the provided link.
    • Attaches a card-based, content-rich preview of the link based on the OG tag.

    The time required to complete these and any other required tasks can vary, depending on your network configuration and system performance.

    Supported OG tags

    The ServiceNow user interface supports image, video, and text-based OG tags. When both an image OG tag and a video OG tag are fetched, the video is used instead of the image in the card-based, content-rich preview.

    Note:
    The specific OG tags supported on channels can vary. For example, the OG tags supported on Slack may be different from the OG tags supported on Microsoft Teams, or Workplace from Facebook. For details about the OG tags supported on channels, see the documentation for the channel you're using.

    Disabling link unfurling

    Link unfurling is automatically enabled by default. To turn it off, Maint users change the com.glide.cs.enable_link_unfurling system property to False.