# Notifications and sounds

> Choose how Aura's alerts reach you, as popups, sounds or desktop notifications, mute them, and quieten a bot in your own browser.

![Settings, Notifications: each kind of alert with popup, sound and desktop choices](https://aura.oneinfer.ai/docs/images/settings-notifications.webp "Notifications, demo data")

## The kinds of alert

| Alert | Stays on screen | On by default |
|---|---|---|
| Asks for a person | Yes | Popup, sound, desktop |
| Waiting too long for a person | Yes | Popup, sound, desktop |
| Bot couldn't answer | Yes | Popup, sound, desktop |
| Visitor replies | No | Popup, sound, desktop |
| A chat is assigned to you | No | Popup, sound, desktop |
| Stays on a key page | No | Popup, sound, desktop |
| New visitor | No | Off |

Popups appear at the top right, four at most. The ones that stay on screen have an amber border and wait until you close them; the others close after eight seconds, unless you're pointing at them. Click a popup to open that visitor or chat. "A chat is assigned to you" opens the chat in Chats.

What each bot sends at all is set in its [Alerts step](https://aura.oneinfer.ai/docs/bots/alerts).

## Choose how they reach you

Under **How alerts reach you**, tick **Popup**, **Sound** and **Desktop** for each kind. These choices are kept in this browser only, so each person on your team sets their own.

- **Desktop notifications** must be on for the Desktop ticks to work. They show only while Aura is open in a tab you aren't looking at. Your browser asks for permission the first time.
- **Sound**: Chime, Bell, Pop or Knock, with **Play** to hear it, and a volume.
- **Mute** silences sounds and desktop notifications; popups still show. The bell at the top of Aura does the same.

Browsers keep a page silent until you've clicked or typed on it. If sounds are blocked, the bell shows a dot: click anywhere in Aura and they come back.

## Quieten one bot

With two or more bots, **Each bot, in this browser** sets each one to **All alerts**, **Urgent only** or **None**, with its own sound if you like. Urgent means asking for a person, waiting too long, and the bot not knowing the answer. "A chat is assigned to you" always shows.

## Away from Aura

Urgent alerts can also go to a Slack or Microsoft Teams channel, set per bot in its [Alerts step](https://aura.oneinfer.ai/docs/bots/alerts). When nobody from your team is online and a visitor asks for a person, the bot's **Team email** gets an email too.