Configuring the context panel in the Zendesk Agent Workspace

Fastpath: Admin Center > Workspaces > Agent tools > Context panel

The Zendesk context panel provides valuable information you can use to get a better understanding of your customer and solve tickets quickly. This article describes how admins can configure the context panel in the Zendesk Agent Workspace. For more information about how agents use the context panel, see Using the context panel in the Zendesk Agent Workspace.

This article includes these sections:

• About configuring the context panel
• Enabling or disabling Knowledge in the context panel
• Configuring Knowledge in the context panel
• Configuring default search filters for Knowledge in the context panel
• Activating and deactivating side conversations in the context panel

Related articles

• Viewing customer context in a ticket
• Searching, linking, and quoting content in tickets using Knowledge panel

About configuring the context panel

The features included in the context panel vary depending on the features available in your account. For example:

• Your account must have the Zendesk Agent Workspace enabled to see the context panel. See Activating and deactivating the Zendesk Agent Workspace.
• Knowledge in the context panel automatically searches your multiple knowledge bases for answers related to the current conversation. To use Knowledge, your account must have Zendesk Guide or Zendesk Suite. Admins can enable or disable Knowledge in the context panel and configure which knowledge sources are searched.
• Customer context for a ticket requester can include additional user profiles and events from third-party applications that are integrated with Zendesk. See Adding Sunshine user profiles and events to customer context in a ticket.

Enabling or disabling Knowledge in the context panel

Knowledge is enabled by default and appears in the context panel for accounts that have access to Zendesk Guide or Zendesk Suite.

To enable or disable Knowledge in the context panel

1. In Admin Center, click Workspaces in the sidebar, then select Agent tools > Context panel..

   The configuration settings for the context panel appear.

   

2. In the Knowledge section:
   • Select Enable Knowledge to enable Knowledge in the context panel. When you enable Knowledge, you can configure which knowledge sources are searched. See Configuring Knowledge in the context panel.
   • Deselect Enable Knowledge to disable Knowledge in the context panel. When you disable Knowledge, the Knowledge icon () is removed from the context panel and your knowledge bases aren't searched.
3. Save your changes.

Configuring Knowledge in the context panel

You can configure which knowledge base sources are searched to determine the answers that appear in the context panel and you can specify whether team members only use existing templates to create articles.

To configure Knowledge

1. In Admin Center, click Workspaces in the sidebar, then select Agent tools > Context panel.

   The configuration settings for the context panel appear.

   

2. Ensure Enable Knowledge is selected.
3. When Knowledge is enabled, select the content sources you want to include in Knowledge searches:
   • Knowledge articles: Articles included in your help center.
   • Community posts: Information posted in your help center community, including questions, answers, and shared ideas.
   • External content: Content that is external to your help center, but that can be configured to appear in your help center's search results. This option only appears when federated search is configured. See Setting up Zendesk Federated Search in your help center.
4. If you want to restrict Agents and Admins to only create articles from existing templates (and not create new blank articles), then Under Configure knowledge, select the Require articles templates checkbox.
   Note: You must be an Admin to create a template. If no templates have been created, then this option will not appear in Knowledge.
5. When you’ve finished selecting content sources, Save your changes.

Configuring default search filters for Knowledge in the context panel

You can configure the default search filters that are available for agents searching for content in Knowledge in the context panel.

Default search filters are automatically applied to agent search queries unless they are manually changed or removed by agents. Configuring the filters that agents use the most reduces the time they spend customizing default search filters before searching for content.

Note: You must have Guide Professional or Enterprise, or Suite Growth and higher to use this feature.

To configure default search filters

1. In Admin Center, click Workspaces in the sidebar, then select Agent tools > Context panel.

   The configuration settings for the context panel appear.

   

2. In the Default filters section, configure the default filters that you want to use. If you want to:
   • Remove the selected filters, click X to remove the filters displayed in the Default filters list.
   • Add new filters, use the dropdown menu to select the filters that you want to add. You can click the > icon to display the filters grouped under a filter type (for example, Brand or Language). Select up to five filters within each filter type that you want to use as default search filters.

     

3. When you’ve finished selecting filters, Save your changes.

Activating and deactivating side conversations in the context panel

Note: Side conversations in the context panel is currently in an Early Access Program (EAP). You can sign up for the EAP here.

You can use the context panel to manage side conversations. To use this feature, you must have already:

• Activated the Zendesk Agent Workspace
• Enabled side conversations

To activate side conversations in the context panel

1. In Admin Center, click Workspaces in the sidebar, then select Agent tools > Context panel.

   The configuration settings for the context panel appears.

2. In the Side conversations section, select Enable side conversations to activate side conversations in the context panel.

   When you activate side conversations, the side conversations icon () is added to the context panel and you can manage your side conversations from there. See About side conversations.

3. Save your changes.

To deactivate side conversations in the context panel

1. In Admin Center, click Workspaces in the sidebar, then select Agent tools > Context panel.

   The configuration settings for the context panel appears.

2. In the Side conversations section, deselect Enable side conversations to deactivate side conversations in the context panel.
3. Save your changes.

   When you use this setting to disable side conversations, side conversations are still available in your account, they just don’t appear in the context panel. To completely deactivate side conversations, see Enabling and disabling side conversations.