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Rival Docs

Knowledge Base

Overview

A knowledge base is a set of documents your agents answer from - manuals, policies, price lists, FAQs. Instead of pasting the same material into every chat, you upload it once and pick the knowledge base in the chat. The agent finds the parts that match each question and answers from them.

A knowledge base isn’t tied to one agent. Any of your agents can read it, and you choose which one a chat uses.

There are two kinds:

  • Standalone knowledge bases - created from My Tools, readable by any of your agents.
  • Agent project knowledge bases - created from an agent’s chat sidebar. Chats that use one are filed under it.

Creating a knowledge base

  1. Go to My Tools, open the Create menu, and pick New Knowledge Base.

  2. Enter a Name and, optionally, a Description and an avatar image (up to 5 MB). Once a name is entered you can let AI draft the description.

  3. Click Create. You land on the knowledge base’s page.

  4. Under Files, click Upload or drop files in. Each file shows Reading… while it’s processed, then its size once it’s ready.

  5. Click Publish to freeze the files into a version (see Drafts and versions).

To create one inside an agent, open the agent’s chat sidebar, find the Knowledge base section, and click New knowledge base.

Your knowledge bases are listed in My Tools - use the Knowledge Base type filter to show only them.

Supported files

Upload files only - there’s no way to add a web page by URL. Each file can be up to 25 MB.

TypeFormats
DocumentsPDF, DOC, DOCX, RTF, ODT
SpreadsheetsXLS, XLSX, ODS, CSV, TSV
PresentationsPPT, PPTX, ODP
Text and dataTXT, MD, RST, LOG, JSON, JSONL, YAML, XML, TOML, INI
ImagesPNG, JPG, WEBP, GIF - read by a vision model

HTML, SVG, archives (such as ZIP), and executable or script files can’t be uploaded.

If a file can’t be read, its row shows the reason (or “Could not be read”). Remove it and upload a fixed copy. Uploading the exact same file twice reuses the first copy.

Drafts and versions

The Files list is a live draft. Adding or removing a file changes the draft straight away.

Publishing freezes the draft’s files into a numbered version - v1, v2, and so on. Removing a file from the draft later never changes a version you’ve already published. The page header shows the latest published version, or Draft - not published.

Every file must have finished reading before you can publish. You need at least one ready file.

The publish dialog asks for an Overview, Strengths, and Limitations (AI can draft each), who can use it, and optional release notes. For Who can subscribe, pick:

  • Private - only you.
  • Organization - anyone in your organization can subscribe.

If your organization requires approval, publishing to your organization is sent to an admin first: “Sent to an admin for approval - it publishes once approved.”

People you share a knowledge base with don’t get a copy. They read your published version, and either follow the latest version or pin one.

Using a knowledge base in chat

  1. Open a chat with an agent.

  2. In the message box, click Select a knowledge base.

  3. Pick one from Your library:

    • This agent’s projects - picking one also files this chat there.
    • Your knowledge bases - choose the Live draft or a published version.
    • Subscribed - knowledge bases someone else published. Your chats read their frozen version.

The control then reads Knowledge base: name. Pick No knowledge base to go back to answering from general knowledge only.

The choice is remembered on the agent, so the next chat starts with the same knowledge base.

How the agent uses it

You don’t need to mention the documents in your message.

  • For every message, the parts of your files that best match it are given to the agent automatically.
  • If that isn’t enough, the agent can search the knowledge base itself - up to three searches per reply - or read a specific page.
  • The agent is told to answer from the knowledge base and to say plainly when the documents don’t cover the question, rather than guess.
  • When the knowledge base was published by someone else, the agent can use what’s in it but won’t hand over the documents themselves.

A knowledge base can also be exposed outside Rival - see the Read knowledge base option on the chat widget and the Knowledge base setting for A2A.

Deleting

  • Files - remove a file from the draft with the delete icon on its row (Remove from the draft). Published versions keep it.
  • Agent project knowledge bases - delete from the row’s menu in the agent’s chat sidebar. This is permanent and also deletes the project’s chats, files, and memories.

Troubleshooting

MessageWhat to do
”… is over 25 MB.”Split the file, or export a smaller copy (for example, a PDF without embedded images)
“Unsupported file type…”Convert it to one of the supported formats
”Files still processing”Wait until every file has finished reading, then publish
”Nothing to publish”Add at least one file that has finished processing
”You already have a knowledge base with this name.”Pick a different name
”This knowledge base doesn’t exist, or it isn’t yours to edit.”You opened a link to someone else’s knowledge base, or it was deleted

Next steps