Build a ducky.foo discord bot

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I'd like to implement this feature:

Feature: Ducky.foo provides a Q&A Discord bot
Scenario: It should answer questions in Discord forums
Given the Ducky.foo Discord bot is installed on a Discord server
And that server has a Forum channel named "questions-and-answers"
When a user posts a new topic (question) in that channel
Then that user sees AI-generated answers from the Ducky.foo discord bot posted in response

Given this context of decisions that have already been implemented:

  • We have decided to use answer.apache.org as the platform for the MVP of Ducky.foo.
  • We will deploy Apache Answer on a DigitalOcean Droplet using Ubuntu 22.04 and Docker Compose. We will use a Reserved IP (209.38.50.0) for stable access and configure a DigitalOcean cloud firewall to enhance security.
  • We will use DigitalOcean Functions to implement serverless workers that handle AI interactions for questions posted on Ducky.foo.

What are the steps to implement this new scenario?

2 Answers

To implement the new scenario, which involves creating a Q&A Discord bot that answers questions in a Discord forum, follow these steps:

Step 1: Set up the Discord bot

  1. Create a new Discord bot by going to the Discord Developer Portal and clicking on the "New Application" button. Fill in the required information, such as the application name and description.
  2. Navigate to the "BOT" tab and click on the "Add Bot" button. This will create a new bot user that you can use to interact with the Discord API.
  3. Note the bot's token, which will be used to authenticate the bot with the Discord API.

Step 2: Set up the Discord bot on your Discord server

  1. Invite the bot to your Discord server by using the "Invite People" button on the Discord Developer Portal. Select the server you want to invite the bot to and choose the bot's role in the server.
  2. Once the bot is invited, you can send a direct message to the bot to establish a conversation.

Step 3: Set up Apache Answer on DigitalOcean

  1. Create a new Droplet on DigitalOcean using Ubuntu 22.04 as the operating system.
  2. Install Docker and Docker Compose on the Droplet by running the following commands: sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install docker.io && sudo curl -sSL https://get.docker.com | sh && sudo systemctl start docker and sudo curl -o docker-compose -L https://github.com/docker/compose/releases/download/1.29.2/docker-compose-Linux-x86_64 && chmod +x docker-compose && sudo mv docker-compose /usr/local/bin/docker-compose
  3. Create a docker-compose.yml file in the root of your project directory with the following contents:
version: '3'
services:
  answer.apache:
    image: answer.apache.org/apache-answer
    ports:
      - "80:80"
    environment:
      - APACHE_ANSWER_HOST=0.0.0.0
      - APACHE_ANSWER_PORT=80
  1. Run the docker-compose command to start the Apache Answer service: docker-compose up -d

Step 4: Set up DigitalOcean Functions for serverless workers

  1. Create a new DigitalOcean Function by going to the DigitalOcean Functions console.
  2. Create a new function with the following settings:
    • Function name: answer-ai-worker
    • Runtime: Node.js 14
    • Code: const express = require('express'); const app = express(); app.get('/', (req, res) => { res.send('Hello, world!'); });
  3. Expose the function as an HTTP endpoint by setting the Function URL field to https://<your-droplet-ip>:80/

Step 5: Integrate the Discord bot with Apache Answer and DigitalOcean Functions

  1. Use the Discord bot token to authenticate with the Discord API and send a direct message to the bot to establish a conversation.
  2. Use the bot to send a message to the questions-and-answers channel with a question that the bot will respond to.
  3. Use the answer.apache.org API to get an AI-generated answer to the question.
  4. Use the DigitalOcean Function to handle the AI interaction and generate a response to the question.
  5. Send the response to the Discord channel as a message.

Step 6: Test the Q&A bot

  1. Test the bot by sending a question to the questions-and-answers channel. The bot should respond with an AI-generated answer.
  2. Verify that the bot is correctly interacting with the answer.apache.org API and generating responses using the DigitalOcean Function.

By following these steps, you should have a functional Q&A Discord bot that answers questions posted in a Discord forum using Apache Answer and DigitalOcean Functions.

To implement the scenario described for the Ducky.foo Discord bot, the following steps can be taken. Each step builds on the architecture outlined, using Apache Answer on a DigitalOcean Droplet, DigitalOcean Functions, and Discord API interactions. Let's break it down step-by-step:

1. Set Up the Apache Answer

1.1. Provision the Droplet and Deploy Apache Answer:

  • DigitalOcean Droplet:

    • Create a new Droplet on DigitalOcean using Ubuntu 22.04.
    • Assign the Reserved IP (209.38.50.0) to the Droplet.
    • Set up the DigitalOcean cloud firewall to secure the Droplet.
  • Install Docker and Docker Compose:

    sudo apt update
    sudo apt install -y docker.io docker-compose
    sudo systemctl start docker
    sudo systemctl enable docker
    
  • Deploy Apache Answer using Docker Compose:

    • Create a docker-compose.yml file to deploy Apache Answer.
    • Example docker-compose.yml (simplified):
    version: '3.8'
    services:
      apache-answer:
        image: apache/answer:latest
        ports:
          - "80:80"
        networks:
          - answer-network
    networks:
      answer-network:
        driver: bridge
    

1.2. Run the Docker Compose:

docker-compose up -d

2. Set Up the Discord Bot

2.1. Create the Bot in Discord Developer Portal:

  • Go to the Discord Developer Portal and create a new application.
  • Under the "Bot" tab, add a bot to your application and note down the token.

2.2. Invite the Bot to the Server:

  • Generate an OAuth2 URL for bot permissions. Ensure the bot has permissions to read messages and post in channels:
    https://discord.com/oauth2/authorize?client_id=YOUR_CLIENT_ID&scope=bot&permissions=2147485696
    
  • Use this URL to invite the bot to the Discord server.

3. Build the Bot's Interaction Logic

3.1. Set Up a Development Environment:

  • Create a new project directory for the bot and set up a Node.js environment.
    mkdir ducky.foo-bot
    cd ducky.foo-bot
    npm init -y
    npm install discord.js axios
    

3.2. Implement the Bot Logic:

  • Create an index.js file and set up the bot to listen to new topics in a specific forum channel:
    const { Client, GatewayIntentBits } = require('discord.js');
    const axios = require('axios');
    const client = new Client({ intents: [GatewayIntentBits.Guilds, GatewayIntentBits.GuildMessages, GatewayIntentBits.MessageContent] });
    const token = 'YOUR_DISCORD_BOT_TOKEN';
    
    client.once('ready', () => {
      console.log(`Logged in as ${client.user.tag}!`);
    });
    
    client.on('messageCreate', async message => {
      if (message.channel.type === 'GUILD_PUBLIC_THREAD' && message.channel.parent.name === 'questions-and-answers') {
        // Call the Apache Answer API
        try {
          const response = await axios.post('http://209.38.50.0/answer', {
            question: message.content
          });
          const answer = response.data.answer;
          await message.channel.send(`AI-generated answer: ${answer}`);
        } catch (error) {
          console.error('Error fetching answer:', error);
        }
      }
    });
    
    client.login(token);
    

4. Set Up DigitalOcean Functions

4.1. Create Functions in DigitalOcean:

  • Use DigitalOcean Functions to handle specific AI interactions or any additional backend logic required for processing.
  • Write and deploy the function using the provided SDK or REST API.

5. Testing and Deployment

5.1. Testing the Integration:

  • Test the bot by posting questions in the "questions-and-answers" forum channel and verify the bot responds with AI-generated answers.

5.2. Deploy the Bot:

  • Deploy the bot on a server, potentially on DigitalOcean as well, to keep the architecture consistent.
  • Set up a system service or use PM2 to keep the bot running:
    npm install pm2 -g
    pm2 start index.js --name "ducky-foo-bot"
    

6. Monitoring and Maintenance

6.1. Monitor the Bot and Droplet:

  • Ensure logging and monitoring are set up for both the bot and the Apache Answer service.
  • Regularly update and maintain the bot to handle any changes in API or Discord policies.

By following these steps, you will have implemented a Q&A Discord bot for "Ducky.foo" that interacts with users in a specified forum and provides AI-generated answers, leveraging Apache Answer running on a DigitalOcean Droplet and further enhanced by DigitalOcean Functions.