Everything you need to run Orastra
From first login to full autonomy — how to teach it your business, connect it to your tools, and decide what it's allowed to do without you.
Getting started
Four steps, in this order. Most teams finish in an afternoon — the slow part is deciding what Orastra is allowed to do on its own, not the setup.
- 1
Tell it about your business
Name, industry, hours, timezone, and the voice it should speak in. This is the frame every answer is built on — a clinic and a law firm get very different defaults.
Open onboarding - 2
Give it something to know
Paste your prices, policies, and FAQs, or import a doc. Orastra answers from this and nothing else, so ten honest lines beat a hundred vague ones.
Add knowledge - 3
Connect where customers reach you
Email, WhatsApp, or a phone number. Until one is connected, Orastra can answer in the dashboard but can't be reached by an actual customer.
Connect a tool - 4
Watch it work, then loosen the reins
Start with sensitive actions set to approve. Once a week of transcripts looks right, switch the ones you trust to automatic.
Tune behaviour
How Orastra thinks
Four ideas explain almost every behaviour you'll see, including the surprising ones.
- Knowledge
- What Orastra knows about your business — retrieved by meaning, not keywords, so a customer asking "how much to get my teeth cleaned" still finds a price list entry titled "Hygiene appointment".
- Tools
- The actions it can take: check the calendar, book, email, create a task, escalate. Each tool is separately permissioned, so "can read the calendar" and "can book into it" are different grants.
- Escalation
- The exit hatch. When a request is ambiguous, sensitive, or outside its permissions, Orastra stops, hands the thread to a human, and says so to the customer rather than guessing.
- Memory
- Facts it writes back as it works — a customer's preferred appointment slot, a policy it was corrected on. This is what makes month three better than week one.
Teaching it your business
Orastra answers from your knowledge base and refuses to invent the rest. That constraint is the product: it's why it can be trusted with customers, and it's also why a thin knowledge base makes it look evasive.
Write entries the way you'd answer a customer out loud — specific, self-contained, one fact per entry. “A standard hygiene appointment is £75 and takes 30 minutes” is usable. “We offer competitive pricing” is not.
Start with the questions your front desk answers ten times a week: hours, prices, parking, what to bring, cancellation policy, what you don't do. Then let the transcripts tell you what's missing — every escalation is a gap with a name.
Connecting your tools
Orastra works inside the tools you already have — nothing is migrated. Each connector below lists what it unlocks and what you'll need on your side.
EmailRead and send email on your behalf.
Let Orastra read and send email from your business inbox.
What Orastra can do
- Draft and send replies, confirmations, and follow-ups
- Read incoming email to answer questions and take action
- Attach price lists or documents from your knowledge base
You'll need
- A Google Workspace or Gmail account
- Admin access to grant email permissions
Steps
- 1Pick your email provider above (Gmail or Outlook).
- 2Click Connect to open the provider's secure sign-in.
- 3Choose the inbox Orastra should work from.
- 4Approve the requested permissions (send + read).
- 5You'll return here with Email marked Connected.
Supported providers
Calendar & SchedulingBook, move, and cancel appointments.Built in
Orastra books into a calendar. It ships with Cal.diy (open-source, built-in) by default — or connect an external calendar.
What Orastra can do
- Check real availability before offering times
- Create, reschedule, and cancel appointments
- Respect buffers, working hours, and existing events
- Works out of the box with the built-in Cal.diy calendar
You'll need
- Nothing for the built-in Cal.diy calendar — it's ready by default
- For an external calendar: a Google or Outlook account with edit access
Steps
- 1Keep Cal.diy (built-in) selected to use Orastra's own calendar — no setup needed.
- 2Or pick an external provider and sign in.
- 3Approve calendar read + write permissions.
- 4Set your working hours in Settings → AI behavior (optional).
Supported providers
MessagingChat with customers on WhatsApp or SMS.
Let customers chat with Orastra on WhatsApp or SMS.
What Orastra can do
- Answer questions and book appointments over chat
- Send confirmations and reminders
- Hand off to a human when needed
You'll need
- A Twilio account — the same one behind your phone number, if you have one
- To try it right now: nothing else. Twilio's sandbox works in about a minute
- For customers: a WhatsApp sender registered in Twilio (they walk you through it)
Steps
- 1Pick WhatsApp Business above — we set it up through Twilio, so there's no Meta app review.
- 2Choose the sandbox to test today, or your own number for customers.
- 3Paste the webhook URL we show into Twilio's 'When a message comes in'.
- 4Connect. We check the credentials against Twilio before saving them.
- 5Message the number — Orastra replies, and the thread appears in Conversations.
Supported providers
DocumentsReference documents in your knowledge base.
Let Orastra read documents from cloud storage into its knowledge base.
What Orastra can do
- Ingest PDFs, docs, and sheets as knowledge
- Keep answers in sync as documents change
- Reference source files when it answers
You'll need
- An account with your chosen storage provider
- The folder(s) you want Orastra to learn from
Steps
- 1Pick your storage provider above (Google Drive or OneDrive).
- 2Click Connect and sign in.
- 3Pick the folders Orastra may read.
- 4Approve read-only permissions.
- 5Orastra will index those files into your knowledge base.
Supported providers
Team ChatSend escalations to your team's channel.
Send escalations and daily summaries to your team's chat.
What Orastra can do
- Notify a channel when Orastra escalates to a human
- Post daily activity summaries
- Let staff reply and stay in the loop
You'll need
- A workspace on your chosen provider
- Permission to install apps
- A channel for notifications
Steps
- 1Pick your team chat provider above (Slack or Microsoft Teams).
- 2Click Connect to open that provider's app authorization.
- 3Choose the workspace and channel.
- 4Approve the requested scopes.
- 5Orastra will post a test message to confirm.
Supported providers
Notion CRMKeep a contacts database in Notion, updated automatically.
Every customer your AI team talks to lands in a Notion database, kept up to date automatically.
What Orastra can do
- A contacts database, created for you on first use
- New customers added, existing ones updated
- Every conversation logged onto the person's page
You'll need
- A Notion workspace
- One page you're willing to share — the contacts database is created inside it
Steps
- 1Click Connect and authorize Notion.
- 2On Notion's screen, SELECT AT LEAST ONE PAGE to share — the default is none, and without one there's nowhere to put your contacts.
- 3Orastra creates an "Orastra — Contacts" database inside that page.
- 4New customers appear there automatically, with their conversation history on each row.
Supported providers
CRMSync contacts and deals with HubSpot.
Orastra keeps your CRM current — new customers added, conversations logged.
What Orastra can do
- Create and update contacts automatically
- Log call and chat outcomes against the right contact
- Keep customer details current without manual entry
You'll need
- A HubSpot account
- Permission to authorize apps on it
Steps
- 1Pick HubSpot above.
- 2Sign in to HubSpot and approve the requested permissions.
- 3You'll return here with CRM marked Connected.
- 4Orastra will add and update contacts as it talks to customers.
Supported providers
PaymentsTake payments and send invoices.
Let Orastra create invoices and take payments.
What Orastra can do
- Send payment links and invoices
- Confirm payment status before booking
- Reference receipts in follow-ups
You'll need
- An account with your chosen payment provider
- Your business details verified with that provider
Steps
- 1Pick your payment provider above (Stripe or Razorpay).
- 2Click Connect to start that provider's authorization flow.
- 3Sign in to your account.
- 4Approve the requested payment permissions.
- 5Send a test payment link to confirm.
Supported providers
Phone & VoiceAnswer and route incoming calls.
Give Orastra a phone number to answer and place calls.
What Orastra can do
- Answer calls and take messages
- Book appointments over the phone
- Send SMS confirmations and reminders
You'll need
- A Twilio account
- A provisioned phone number
Steps
- 1Click Connect and choose your telephony provider.
- 2Authorize access and select a number.
- 3Point the number's webhook to Orastra (we generate the URL).
- 4Place a test call to confirm Orastra answers.
Supported providers
ZendeskPull open support tickets from Zendesk into your queue.
Let Orastra pull open tickets from Zendesk and reply without you switching tabs.
What Orastra can do
- Read new and open tickets from your Zendesk queue
- Reply to customers directly on the ticket
- Keep ticket status in sync as it works
You'll need
- Your Zendesk subdomain (the part before .zendesk.com)
- A Zendesk agent or admin account to sign in with
Steps
- 1Click Connect — we'll send you to Zendesk to sign in.
- 2Enter your Zendesk subdomain when asked (Zendesk signs you in per-subdomain).
- 3Approve the access request.
- 4Orastra starts pulling open tickets on the next sync.
Supported providers
IntercomPull open conversations from Intercom into your queue.
Let Orastra pull open conversations from Intercom and reply inline.
What Orastra can do
- Read new and open conversations from your Intercom inbox
- Reply to customers directly on the conversation
- Keep conversation state in sync as it works
You'll need
- An Intercom teammate account that can reply to conversations
Steps
- 1Click Connect — we'll send you to Intercom to sign in.
- 2Approve the access request.
- 3Orastra starts pulling open conversations on the next sync.
Supported providers
Calendar & booking
Orastra ships with Cal.diy, its own open-source calendar, connected from your first login. There is nothing to set up: it can offer real times and book them on day one.
Everything it books lands on the Calendar page — the week grid is the live view, and the agenda underneath is the same bookings as a list. Both are always visible, empty or not, so you can see the shape of your week before anything is in it.
Already live in Google Calendar or Outlook? Open Connections → Calendar & Scheduling and choose Replace. The external calendar takes over as the source of truth; Cal.diy steps aside. Nothing already booked is lost.
Permissions & escalation
Every tool is set to one of two modes. Automatic means Orastra acts and tells you after. Approve means it prepares the action and waits for a yes.
The useful default is automatic for reading, approve for anything a customer would notice — sending email, confirming a booking, taking payment. Loosen them one at a time as the transcripts earn it, rather than all at once on day one.
Escalation rules are separate and always on: describe the situations that must reach a human in plain language (“anything about a refund”, “severe pain or emergencies”) and Orastra hands those off immediately instead of attempting them.
Reading the dashboard
- Overview
- The week at a glance, plus which connectors are live. Start here.
- Conversations
- Every thread, with the tools used and sources cited inline — this is where you audit its judgment.
- Calendar
- The week grid and the agenda for everything Orastra has booked.
- Tasks
- Follow-ups it created for a human, including anything it escalated.
- Contacts
- People it has spoken to, and what it remembers about them.
- Knowledge
- What it knows. Edit here and the next answer changes immediately.
- Analytics
- Volume, bookings, and escalation rate over time — the escalation trend is the honest quality signal.
- Connections
- Connect, replace, or disconnect the tools it works inside.
Troubleshooting
It answers, but says it doesn't know things it should
Its knowledge base is thin or written as marketing copy. Orastra answers from your knowledge verbatim, so it needs the actual number, the actual policy. Check the Sources panel under any answer to see what it did retrieve.
It won't book anything
Booking is a permissioned tool. If manage_calendar is set to approve, Orastra offers times and waits for you rather than confirming. Switch it to automatic in Settings once you trust it.
Customers aren't reaching it at all
A connected channel is what makes Orastra reachable. With none connected it only exists inside your dashboard. Connect email, WhatsApp, or a phone number.
Its tone is wrong for our business
Tone, reply length, and custom instructions are all settings, not retraining. Custom instructions are the strongest lever — write them as standing rules ("always offer a consult to new patients").
It escalated something it should have handled
That's the safe failure, and it's usually a knowledge gap rather than a bug. Add the missing fact and the same question resolves on its own next time.
Still stuck? Email hello@orastra.tech — include the conversation link and we'll look at the same transcript you are.
Ready to see it for yourself?
Talk to a live Orastra first — no signup, no card.