Skip to main content

SMS & MMS Messaging Suite

Purpose​

SMS & MMS Messaging Suite is an installable application that assembles the Corvus conversation stack and adds notification and composer features. It provides an SMS systray inbox, browser notification controls, sound handling, per-user email notification rules, AI tools in the SMS wizard and audio transcription support. The actual sender routing and inbox behavior come from its dependencies.

Before you start​

The reviewed 19.0 manifest depends on corvus_sms_floating_chat, mail, web and html_editor. Floating Chat brings Chatter Conversations, Workspace, MMS Base, Inbound and SMS Gateway routing. Odoo 17 uses web_editor instead of html_editor. The manifest does not require an Enterprise-only addon. Translation, LoopLookup and Bulk SMS Marketing are optional separate addons, not automatic Suite dependencies.

The reviewed 19.0 dependency stack has unresolved loaded-template issues. Obtain a validated version of the complete stack before using the interface. Conversation permissions and notification-rule scope also require administrator review before deployment. This guide is based on source inspection, not a running installation or a successful provider, AI or email test.

Access and configuration​

An administrator should first configure gateway routing, sender numbers and allowed users through Two-Way SMS & CRM Inbox. Existing record and inbox access still applies. The addon grants Internal Users and Settings administrators full model permissions on email notification rules; this does not establish isolation of each user's rules. Review who can manage them before enabling notifications.

In the administrator's user form, SMS Email Notifications follows the sender-number assignments. Each rule has Active, sequence, optional Sender Number and a required Email Template. An empty sender matches all inbound sender numbers, subject to the number's populated Allowed Users restriction. The template must target sms.inbox; another model causes Email notification template must target sms.inbox.

The notification recipient is the rule user's email, with partner email as a fallback. Missing email or template means no notification is sent. Incoming inbox SMS can send matching emails immediately; keep rules inactive while preparing an unconnected training scenario. Review template contents, recipients and outbound email configuration before activation.

Controls and inactive preparation​

  1. Open the SMS icon in the top bar. Select an unread conversation to open its inbox. The source returns a bounded list and sums its unread values; the badge is not a complete audit of every message in the database.
  2. If wanted, select Enable desktop notifications and respond to the browser's permission prompt. Notifications require the browser's permission and an active supported client session. Sound may be suppressed until browser interaction allows playback.
  3. Read or prepare replies using the inbox or Floating SMS Chat. Check the customer, sender and gateway before any authorised send. The Suite does not replace provider delivery receipts.
  4. Configure AI through SMS Chatter Conversations. The wizard offers Suggest, Summary, Shorter, Longer, Softer, Formal and Friendly tools. Provider and key settings can make tools visible, but the suggestion backend also needs the selected model. Review generated text before sending.
  5. Transcription is unavailable under this guide until the installed message/attachment access path is independently validated. Its source requires a linked audio file, uses Whisper API Key with a ChatGPT API Key fallback, sends audio to the transcription service and appends a returned transcript. This describes data flow, not an instruction to invoke it.

The systray listens for updates and also polls periodically. Initial load does not imply that every existing unread message produces an alert. Email notification rules are triggered by the relevant inbound inbox SMS creation path, not by merely opening a conversation or every arbitrary chatter comment.

Practice scenario​

Use fictional user Morgan and a sample inbox for Birch Repairs in an authorised training database after stack validation. Inspect an inactive notification rule with a sample sms.inbox template, then identify its sender scope and recipient. Draft a text reply locally. Do not activate the rule, request AI/transcription or send the message. This source-derived exercise was not run and requires no provider credentials.

Limits and troubleshooting​

A missing browser permission, blocked autoplay or unloaded assets can explain silent alerts. A missing user email, unmatched sender assignment or unsuitable template can explain absent email. Multiple matching rules can produce multiple notifications; review rule overlap deliberately.

AI rewriting can use Odoo's native editor service, while Corvus suggestions and summaries use the configured Corvus AI provider. They should not be assumed to share credentials or service behavior. The transcription source checks attachment linkage and audio type; those checks alone do not establish validated operator access. An empty transcript or provider failure does not establish a usable recording transcript.

MMS depends on MMS Media & Attachments, whose reviewed public-media serving prerequisite remains unresolved. Installing the Suite alone does not establish working outbound media. No complete 17, 18 or 20 workflow was executed; selected comparisons also change controller/configuration and access APIs.

The catalogue lists Odoo 17.0–20.0. This guide reviews 19.0 source and selected differences in the other versions; it is not a runtime qualification. Choose the exact installed major version in the Corvus app catalogue for purchase and available live-test options. No individual marketplace or running demo was verified for this guide.