How to Configure the Customer Portal Knowledge Base Self-Service Portal in BoldDesk
The Customer Portal Knowledge Base is your self-service hub—where customers search for help articles, browse categories, and resolve issues on their own. BoldDesk provides several KB settings that let you control both access (who can view articles) and experience (how the KB home page and article pages look and behave).
In this guide, you’ll configure KB settings for a specific brand, including:
- Enable the KB by toggling on or off for the Customer portal settings.
- Customizing banner content, branding, and featured sections on the KB home page
- Managing portal visibility and article visibility behavior
- Enabling or disabling article components like TOC, tags, sharing, and navigation
- Improving indexing and sharing previews using Sitemap and Robots.txt
- Enabling AI Assistance in KB search and collecting customer feedback
Check out this video for more details.
1) Open Knowledge Base settings (Admin)
- In the left navigation, select Admin Module.
- Go to Settings → Customer Portal → Knowledge Base.
- From the Brand dropdown, select the brand you want to configure.
2) Enable Knowledge Base
Use Enable KB to control whether the Knowledge Base appears in the self-service Customer Portal.
If the Knowledge Base is disabled, customers won’t be able to access KB content in the Customer Portal.
3) Customize the KB Home Page
The KB Home Configuration section controls what users see on the KB landing page (banner text, branding, and featured content).
KB Home Configuration options
| Item | Description |
|---|---|
| Banner Heading | The main title or message displayed prominently at the top of the KB homepage that serves as a welcoming or guiding statement for users visiting the portal. |
| Banner Description | The text that appears just below the banner heading on the KB homepage that provides additional context to users visiting your support portal. |
| Banner Background | Refers to the visual background behind the banner heading and description on the KB homepage that helps set the branding of your support portal. |
| Background Color | Refers to the color setting used for the KB homepage’s banner section as part of the visual customization options that help you align the look and feel of your support portal with your brand. |
| Background Image | Visual image displayed behind the banner heading and description on the KB homepage as part of the customization options to personalise the look and feel of your support portal. When you click ‘Upload Image’, your device’s file browser or gallery will open, allowing you to select an image to use as the banner for your helpdesk knowledgebase. |
| Popular Articles | Highlights the most frequently viewed or accessed articles by users helping visitors to quickly find helpful content that others have found useful. |
| Portal Visibility | A setting that determines who can view a specific article or category within your customer portal. |
| SEO | Search Engine Optimisation settings that help your KB articles rank better on search engines like Google, Bing, or DuckDuckGo, making your support content more discoverable. |
| Meta Title | SEO-friendly title that appears in search engine results when someone searches for a topic covered in your KB article |
| Meta Description | A short summary that describes the content of a KB article for search engines helping improve its visibility in search results. |
| Open Graph Title | A metadata setting used to define how your KB article appears when shared on social media platforms like Facebook, LinkedIn, or X (formerly Twitter). |
| Open Graph Description | A short summary that appears when a KB article is shared on social media platforms. |
| OG Image | The image that appears in link previews when a KB article is shared on social media platforms. |
Customer portal preview (where changes appear)
The changes will be reflected in the areas highlighted below.
Portal Visibility (who can access KB)
User visibility in the customer portal is managed through the Portal Visibility option.
The available visibility settings are:
- All Users - Everyone can access the customer portal
- Logged-in Users - Only users who are logged into the customer portal can access it
When creating or editing articles, you can control the visibility of your Knowledge Base article to either; Any Users, All Users or Logged in Users. However, you can also control category visibility for articles. Learn more on Managing Knowledge Base Categories Visibility in BoldDesk.
Article visibility values
| Visibility | Description |
|---|---|
| Any Users | Any user with the portal link can view the Knowledge Base Article. |
| Any Agents | The article is only accessible internally to agents. |
| Logged in Users | Only logged-in users can access the Knowledge Base Article. |
4) Configure the Article Page Experience
Use Article Configuration to control which elements appear on the KB article page—such as author details, TOC, tags, sharing, and navigation.
Article Configuration options
| Configuration | Description |
|---|---|
| Author Name | The name of the agent who created the article that can be displayed publicly in the customer portal depending on your configuration settings. |
| Published Date | The timestamp that indicates when an article was made publicly available in the customer portal. |
| Last Update Date | Shows the date and time of the latest update to the article, allowing users to assess how current the information is. |
| Table of Contents (TOC) | In BoldDesk, the Table of Contents (TOC) is an automatically generated panel that appears on the right side of the screen when a published article is opened in the Customer Portal. It helps users navigate long articles efficiently by listing eligible headings as clickable links, which automatically scroll the article to the corresponding section when clicked. The following rules apply to how the TOC is generated: - The TOC is generated only if the article contains at least two headings formatted as H2 or H3. - Headings formatted as H4, H5, or H6, as well as any text that is not styled as a heading, are excluded from the TOC. - The TOC can be enabled or disabled from the Customer Portal settings under Admin > Customer Portal > Knowledge Base. |
| Related Articles | Links to other articles that are contextually relevant to the one currently being viewed that help users discover additional information that might solve their issue or deepen their understanding. |
| Recent Articles | Refers to a section or feature that displays the most newly created or updated articles that helps users quickly find the latest information added to the knowledge base. |
| Articles in the same category or section | Refers to articles that are grouped together under a shared organizational structure. |
| Exclude Agent View count on Article | Means that when agents view a KB article, those views will not be counted in the article’s total view statistics. |
| Article Tags | Keywords or phrases that you assign to articles to help categorize and improve searchability. |
| Status Indicator | A visual or textual label that shows the current state of an article. |
| Share Option | Share Option allows users to easily distribute articles to others via various channels. |
| Estimated Read Time | The approximate amount of time it would take a user to read a particular article. |
| Comments | This is a feature that allows users to leave feedback, ask questions, or engage in discussions directly on a KB article. |
| Previous/Next Navigation | A feature that allows users to move between articles that are listed sequentially within the same section or category. |
The changes will be reflected in the areas highlighted below.
5) Enable AI Assistance in KB Search
This is a feature that enhances the search experience within your knowledge base by using artificial intelligence to deliver natural language answers. To enable this, please follow the steps below:
-
Go to Admin > Customer Portal > Knowledge Base.
-
Enable AI Assistance: Toggle the option ‘Enable AI assistance in KB search’.
Once enabled, users can type natural language questions in the search bar. The first result will be AI-generated, and AI answers can also appear in the dropdown suggestions. Learn more on How to Enable AI Assistance in Knowledge Base Search.
6) Collect Satisfaction Feedback on Articles
When the Satisfaction Feedback option is enabled, you can gather feedback from customers regarding an article.
When users provide feedback, the details collected depend on the configured options.
7) SEO Settings (Sitemap + Robots.txt)
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) comprises Sitemap and Robots.txt.
Sitemap
In the Sitemap section, you can view your self-service portal’s Sitemap URL and configure the Change Frequency.
Robots.txt
In the Robots.txt section, you can see your self-service portal’s Robots.txt URL and edit the Robots.txt content. Learn more on Knowledge Base Self-Service Portal Overview.
Sitemap and robots.txt generation are only available for custom domain mapped portals.
How to Find the Knowledge Base URL for Your Customer Portal
The Knowledge Base (KB) customer portal URL is a public link customers use to access self-service articles in the Customer Portal. If you need to share the KB link, add it to your website, or confirm the correct URL for a specific brand, you can obtain it in two quick ways: copy it directly from the Customer Portal or derive it from the Portal URL configured in Admin settings. This section also includes common related portal URLs (Tickets and Agent Portal) for reference.
Method 1: Copy the Knowledge Base (KB) customer portal URL directly from the Customer Portal (fastest)
- Open your Customer Portal in a browser.
- Click the Knowledge Base tab.
- Copy the URL from the address bar.
Example (Knowledge Base home): https://yoursubdomain.bolddesk.com/kb.
Method 2: Build the Knowledge Base (KB) customer portal URL from the Portal URL in Admin settings
- In the Agent Portal, go to Admin > Customer Portal > General Settings.
- Select a Brand (if you have multiple brands).
- Under Portal URL, copy the domain shown (this is your Customer Portal base URL).
- Add
/kbto the end of that Portal URL to get the Knowledge Base customer URL.
Example:
- Portal URL:
https://yoursubdomain.bolddesk.com. - Knowledge Base customer URL:
https://yoursubdomain.bolddesk.com/kb.
Related URLs (for reference)
- Tickets tab in the Customer Portal typically uses a path like:
https://yoursubdomain.bolddesk.com/support/tickets. - Agent Portal URL is your Portal URL with
/agentappended.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
1) What is the Customer Portal Knowledge Base in BoldDesk?
The Customer Portal Knowledge Base (KB) is a self-service portal where customers can search articles, browse categories, and resolve issues without contacting support.
2) Are Knowledge Base settings configured per brand in BoldDesk?
Yes. KB settings are applied per brand. You must choose a brand from the Brand dropdown before making changes.
3) How do I enable or disable the Knowledge Base in the Customer Portal?
Use the Enable KB toggle in:
Admin → Settings → Customer Portal → Knowledge Base.
- Enabled: KB appears in the Customer Portal
- Disabled: Customers cannot access KB content in the portal
4) How does the Table of Contents (TOC) work in BoldDesk?
The TOC is automatically generated and appears on the right side of published articles in the Customer Portal when enabled.
TOC rules:
- Appears only if the article has at least two headings
- Only H2 and H3 headings are included
- H4–H6 (and normal text) are excluded
- Can be enabled/disabled from Customer Portal KB settings
5) What are Sitemap and Robots.txt used for in KB SEO?
They help search engines crawl and index your KB:
- Sitemap: Provides a structured list of KB pages for indexing
- Robots.txt: Controls which pages search engines can or cannot crawl
6) Are Sitemap and Robots.txt available for all portals?
No. Sitemap and Robots.txt generation are only available for portals mapped to a custom domain.
