Operator availability status
Set your availability for permitted work and see when capacity or channel controls restrict it.
What it is
Your availability tells INSIDE whether you can receive new work. Status shows your current state. Where omnichannel availability is configured, Availability Status lets you select the types of work you are ready to handle.
Who uses it and why
- Operators set their availability at the start of work and change it as their work changes.
- Supervisors check whether operators are available, winding down or limited by their workload.
Where to find it
Use Status in the desktop toolbar. Where enabled for your channel, opening it shows Availability Status.
Users with the Settings role manage website status definitions in Settings › Account › Omnichannel Statuses and channel configuration in Settings › Channel. Operator capacities are in Settings › Account › Operators, which is also available to the Manager role, subject to permissions.
How it works
- Open Availability Status.
- Select the permitted status rows, or use All to select or clear the selectable rows.
- Choose Confirm to apply your choices. Cancel discards pending changes.
- Read the resulting notification and check your current status.
Green ticks show the current selections. Blue ticks mark pending selections. Disabled rows cannot be selected; a tooltip can explain a missing capacity or role. Clicking outside keeps the panel open while it has pending changes.
On channels using the simpler availability control, Status switches between available and unavailable, with a wind-down reason prompt when configured.
Eligible voice operators with Allow On-Demand Transfers can also see Available for Voice Transfer. This also depends on the selected channel, so it is not shown to every operator.
Configure it
Users with the Settings role set the permitted statuses and channel options. Users with the Settings or Manager role manage permitted operator limits. A status can depend on skills for particular platforms. A zero capacity can make its row unavailable for selection.
To configure separate status choices, a user with the Settings role:
- Opens Settings › Account › Omnichannel Statuses and adds or edits a status.
- Enters Name, checks Enabled and selects Skills to Add and Skills to Remove.
- Saves the status, then opens the relevant channel in Settings › Channel.
- Enables Omnichannel Availability Control, chooses Allowed Statuses and saves the channel.
Omnichannel Availability Control, Salesforce Enable Omni Channel and External Availability Control are mutually exclusive in the channel editor. Enabling one clears the competing controls.
Without an operator override, live-chat and ticket limits use the website defaults, which are five live chats and zero tickets when no website override is set. The live-chat hard limit falls back to the normal live-chat limit. Social/text capacity defaults to zero; with a positive social/text limit and no separate hard limit, the hard limit is one higher.
Live-chat and social hard limits are separate from normal assignment limits. Ask someone with the Settings or Manager role to review both when manual and automatic assignment behave differently.
For a channel with externally controlled availability, use the controlling system's process. Manual changes in INSIDE may be restricted.
Settings
| Setting | Where | Applies to | Default | Who can change it | What it does |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Omnichannel Availability Control | Settings › Channel | channel | Off | Enables separate availability status choices for operators in the selected channel. | |
| Allowed Statuses | Settings › Channel | channel | All statuses selected in the channel editor | Chooses which configured omnichannel statuses operators can use in the selected channel. | |
| External Availability Control | Settings › Channel | channel | Off | Lets an external system control availability for the selected channel and restricts ordinary manual changes. | |
| Salesforce Enable Omni Channel | Settings › Channel | channel | Off | Uses the configured Salesforce availability integration for the selected channel. | |
| Active Live Chat Limit | Settings › Account › Operators | operator | Inherit the website limit; 5 live chats if the website has no override | Settings role, Manager role | Sets your capacity for automatically assigned live chats. |
| Active Live Chat Hard Limit | Settings › Account › Operators | operator | Same as Active Live Chat Limit | Settings role, Manager role | Sets the upper live-chat limit for work you take or receive through supported assignment actions. |
| Active Ticket Limit | Settings › Account › Operators | operator | Inherit the website limit; 0 tickets if the website has no override | Settings role, Manager role | Sets your capacity for active email tickets. |
| Active Social/Text Limit | Settings › Account › Operators | operator | Zero | Settings role, Manager role | Sets your capacity for automatically assigned social and text conversations. |
| Active Social/Text Hard Limit | Settings › Account › Operators | operator | One above Active Social/Text Limit when positive; otherwise zero | Settings role, Manager role | Sets the upper social and text conversation limit for supported manual assignment actions. |
| Enabled | Settings › Account › Omnichannel Statuses | website | On for a new status | Settings role | Makes the configured status available for operators to select. |
| Skills to Add | Settings › Account › Omnichannel Statuses | website | Not set | Settings role | Chooses the skills supplied by this status for routing work. When unset, the status adds no skills. |
| Skills to Remove | Settings › Account › Omnichannel Statuses | website | Not set | Settings role | Chooses the skills removed by this status for routing work. When unset, the status removes no skills. |
Fields
| Field | Where | Required | What it is for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Settings › Account › Omnichannel Statuses | Yes | Names the status operators see; the editor accepts up to 200 characters and requires non-blank text. |
Permissions
| Permission | Lets you |
|---|---|
| Chat | Use chat availability where chat is enabled for the website. |
| Settings | Access Omnichannel Statuses and permitted operator and channel configuration. |
| Manager | Access permitted operator configuration and work in managed channels without being their owner. |
| Voice | Receive voice work when the account, channel and voice settings allow it. |
| Allow On-Demand Transfers | Exposes the voice-transfer-only availability option for eligible voice operators. |
| Can cherry pick conversations from the queue | Allows selecting particular queued conversations, subject to availability, platform and capacity checks. |
Limits and good to know
- Limited is different from a manual break. Capacity-related availability can recover when capacity becomes free.
- Changing status does not guarantee that work will arrive. Routing, skills, queues and capacity still apply.
- Some changes involving voice wait until existing work finishes. Read the notification rather than assuming every requested change has already taken effect.
- An active voice call or participation in a live show can prevent you from becoming available for new work.
- Managed channels can restrict availability to the channel owner and operators with the Manager role.
Depends on and works with
+2 more · this feature uses
- Availability Log for routing investigationsRelated
Availability Log can help explain earlier availability and assignment changes when recording was enabled.
- DepartmentsConfigured by
Channel settings choose omnichannel, external or Salesforce availability control and the statuses offered.
+8 more · used by
- Mobile consoleEnhances
Availability governs which incoming work the operator can receive.
- Voice queue and call offersConfigured by
Operator availability and omnichannel status choices determine eligibility for incoming voice work.
- Browser video and audio callsRequires
The operator must have a suitable available status before starting a browser call.
- Operator productivity reportsEnhances
Operator availability states supply the recorded time measures.
- Service Overview dashboardEnhances
Operator availability and capacity supply live staffing measures.
- Availability Log for routing investigationsEnhances
Recorded operator availability and capacity help explain earlier availability states.
- INSIDE region switching through Powerfront Hub · managed by PowerfrontRequires
Become unavailable before using the desktop Change Region control.
- Operator CLI requests and browser loginRelated
Browser handoff makes a connected CLI operator unavailable before disconnecting its live connection.
View all connections as a list
This feature uses
- Website, channel and subsite accessConfigured by
Your website and channel assignments determine where you can set availability.
- Roles and permissionsConfigured by
Roles and permissions control chat and voice eligibility and configuration access.
- Skillsets and skills-based routingConfigured by
Omnichannel status choices change the skills used to route work.
- Chat limits and wind-downConfigured by
Conversation capacity determines when availability becomes Limited.
- Chat queueRelated
Taking queued work also checks availability, queue permissions and capacity.
- Wind Down for operatorsEnhances
Wind Down stops new automatic work while you finish existing conversations.
- Salesforce connection and operator setupConfigured by
Salesforce availability integration can affect manual availability controls.
- Telephone call transfersRelated
Eligible voice operators can become available specifically to receive voice transfers.
- Availability Log for routing investigationsRelated
Availability Log can help explain earlier availability and assignment changes when recording was enabled.
- DepartmentsConfigured by
Channel settings choose omnichannel, external or Salesforce availability control and the statuses offered.
Used by
- INSIDE consoleEnhances
Availability determines whether you can receive new work in the selected context.
- Wind Down for operatorsRequires
Wind Down is part of operator availability.
- Automatic logout after inactivityRelated
The planned Logout action requires Unavailable status, while inactivity logout changes your status automatically.
- Console connection and recoveryRelated
Check your current availability after reconnecting before expecting new work.
- Floor avatar indicatorsEnhances
Operator availability determines operator state indicators.
- Incoming chats and callsConfigured by
Availability and capacity affect eligibility for incoming work.
- Teams Overview and Manager ModeEnhances
Operator availability, limits and channel state appear in the overview.
- Monitor modeRelated
Set yourself Unavailable before starting monitor mode if you should stop receiving work.
- Mobile consoleEnhances
Availability governs which incoming work the operator can receive.
- Voice queue and call offersConfigured by
Operator availability and omnichannel status choices determine eligibility for incoming voice work.
- Browser video and audio callsRequires
The operator must have a suitable available status before starting a browser call.
- Operator productivity reportsEnhances
Operator availability states supply the recorded time measures.
- Service Overview dashboardEnhances
Operator availability and capacity supply live staffing measures.
- Availability Log for routing investigationsEnhances
Recorded operator availability and capacity help explain earlier availability states.
- INSIDE region switching through Powerfront Hub · managed by PowerfrontRequires
Become unavailable before using the desktop Change Region control.
- Operator CLI requests and browser loginRelated
Browser handoff makes a connected CLI operator unavailable before disconnecting its live connection.
FAQ and troubleshooting
Why is a status greyed out?
Hover over it for an explanation. Your relevant chat, social or ticket limit may be zero, or you may lack the Voice role.
Why did my choices disappear after Cancel?
Cancel restores the current saved selections. Use Confirm to request a change.
Why am I Limited when I have not chosen Wind Down?
Capacity or a call-related restriction can put you in Limited. Check your active work and configured limits.
Why can I not make myself available?
Check for an active call, a live show, managed-channel restrictions or externally controlled availability. Someone with the Settings or Manager role can check permitted channel access and operator capacity.
Why can I not take a queued conversation while available?
Queue permissions, platform eligibility and limits also control taking work. Availability alone does not grant that action.