Telegram Bot API is a server implementation that provides an HTTP API for creating and running Telegram bots locally.
The tool solves the problem of running Telegram bots on your own infrastructure rather than relying on Telegram's hosted API endpoint. It works by accepting HTTP requests and translating them into Telegram Bot API calls, requiring only that you obtain API credentials and run the server with those credentials specified. The server listens on a configurable port, defaulting to 8081, and requires a TLS termination proxy to handle HTTPS requests from clients.
Teams should choose this approach when they need capabilities unavailable in the standard hosted API. The local server mode enables downloading files without size limits, uploading files up to 2000 MB, uploading files via local file paths using the file URI scheme, using HTTP webhooks instead of HTTPS, accepting webhooks on any local IP address and port, setting webhook connection limits up to 100000, and receiving absolute local file paths directly without requiring a separate file download step. This makes it suitable for applications requiring large file transfers, local network integration, or fine-grained control over webhook configuration. The tool requires a C++17-compatible compiler, OpenSSL, zlib, CMake, and gperf to build from source, with a build instructions generator available to simplify setup for different operating systems.
The project maintains active engagement with its user community through dedicated Telegram channels for bot support and news, with issue reports directed to those channels rather than the repository itself. Development activity shows consistent attention to both the core server implementation and the build tooling, with the build instructions generator kept current to reflect platform-specific requirements.
