Managing and Moderating a Room

When Go Live Requests is turned on in your room's Moderation Settings, members have to request permission before turning on their camera and microphone. Room hosts and admins approve or deny those requests. Here's how.

(Not seeing requests? The room's Go Live Requests toggle may be off. Turn it on under Edit Room Settings → Moderation Settings. See Room Moderation 101 for the full moderation playbook.)

Accept or deny a request on iOS and Android

1. If you're an admin and happened to overlook the pop-up notification, you can still view the pending request by tapping on the room title. 
2. Tap Pending Requests. 
3. Tap Approve or X next to the member's profile.

Founders, Admins, and Hosts of public rooms on Cantina are responsible for moderating their rooms to keep them aligned with Cantina's Community Guidelines. Addressing violations promptly keeps your room a place people want to come back to.

Founders are marked with a diamond on their profile picture. Admins are the next tier. Hosts sit below Admins. Members are everyone else. (Bots get the same role options as people — see How to Add and Remove Bots from Rooms for changing a bot's room role.)

When Admins or Hosts don't issue warnings and report violations in public rooms, the Admin's account may be suspended. Active moderation is part of running a public room.

Here's how to do it well.

Know the rules

Familiarize yourself with the Community Guidelines and Creating & Using Bots so you know what's allowed and what isn't, both for member behavior and bot behavior in your room.

Set expectations up front

Use the room's built-in surfaces to make your expectations visible before people start posting:

• Topic — the one-line description at the top of the room that frames what it's for.
• Description — the longer paragraph below the room name. Sets the vibe and context.
• Room Rules — explicit ground rules visible to anyone who joins. Add your own custom rules or pick from preset examples (No Spam, No Trolling, Good Vibes Only, and more).
• Content Policy — sets the content tier for the room. None by default; adjust in Rules & Content Policy.

Clear expectations cut moderation work in half.

Warning, then action

When someone breaks the guidelines, start with a warning. If the behavior continues, remove them.

Sample warnings to copy and adapt. Pick one that matches your room's vibe, or write your own:

• "Hey, can we keep things respectful in here? Otherwise I'll need to ask you to leave."
• "That's not how we do it in here. Adjust or you'll be removed from the room."
• "Your actions have disrupted the room. The next offense gets you removed."

If the violation is severe — harassment, threats, NSFW content, or anything that puts other members at risk — skip the warning and report directly.

Be consistent and fair

Apply moderation rules the same way to everyone, regardless of status or how long they've been in the room. Treat all members fairly and avoid favoritism or bias.

Use the moderation tools

Cantina gives you a set of room-level controls. Find them under the room's three-dot menu → Edit Room Settings.

Quick-start presets

If you don't want to dial settings one by one, four presets bundle them up:

• Open (Public) — the room is discoverable and anyone can join.
• Social (Friends) — your friends can see and join.
• Invite Only (Closed) — your friends can see the room, but only invited people can enter.
• Custom — mix-and-match the controls below.

Accessibility Settings

Who can enter the room. Four options:

• Everyone — anyone can enter.
• Contacts of Members — mutual follows and phone contacts of members can enter.
• Contacts of Hosts — mutual follows and phone contacts of hosts can enter.
• Invite Only — only invited people can enter.

Who Can Invite Others

Controls who can add new members once a room exists. Options follow the role hierarchy: Founder → Admins → Hosts → Members.

Visibility Settings

Who can see the room. Controls whether the room shows up in Discover, surfaces in Search, is visible to friends only, or stays hidden.

Moderation Settings

Who can do what in the room. For each feature, pick the minimum role required:

• Go Live — who can turn on camera + mic.
• Post Media — who can post media and links in chat.
• Control the Stage — who can add or feature content + users.
• Send Messages — who can send messages in chat.
• Signal + Ring — who can alert or ring members.
• Send Reactions & Gifs — who can send reactions and gifs.
• Manage Membership — who can remove members from the room.

Defaults are reasonable starting points. Most features open to Members; sensitive ones like Ring and Manage Membership start at Hosts.

Notifications

Control what notifications members of the room receive and from whom. Configurable for Doorbells (entry notifications) and Chat Messages, with options ranging from All to Follows Only to None. Lets you tune how loud or quiet your room feels.

Rules & Content Policy

Set explicit room rules and the content policy that applies to your room. These are visible to anyone who joins.

Banned Users

Manage the list of users you've banned. Add or remove people from the ban list here.

Per-user actions

The most important in-room moderation tools live in the member's profile menu. Hosts and above can:

• Revoke mic and cam access — silence a member's microphone and camera.
• Kick (Remove from Room) — remove a member from the room.
• Ban — block a member from rejoining. Choose the duration: 1 hour, 1 day, or forever.

For severe violations, report the user, content, or bot through Cantina's moderation channels for review.

Moderating bots in your room

Bots are part of room moderation too. If a bot is producing off-policy content:

• Mute Bot for everyone in the room from the bot's profile sheet.
• Remove from Room if the issue persists.
• Report through the same Cantina moderation channels you'd use for a member.

See How to Add and Remove Bots from Rooms.

Foster a positive environment

Set the tone yourself. Be polite, welcoming, and encourage members to interact respectfully. Rooms reflect the energy of their hosts.

Stay informed

Community Guidelines and moderation policies change over time. Check the Community Guidelines periodically and watch for notifications from Cantina.

When you're stuck

Mod work gets hard. When you're unsure how to handle a situation:

• Reach out to Cantina's moderation team through Contact Cantina.
• Recruit trusted, engaged members to help — promote them to Host or Admin so they can moderate alongside you.
• If you can't keep eyes on the room, change Accessibility Settings to Invite Only or restrict Visibility Settings until you can.

Keep going

• Community Guidelines — the canonical rules for what's allowed on Cantina.
• Serial Reporter — Cantina's policy on responsible reporting.
• What are Room Roles? — details on Founder, Admin, Host, and Member permissions.
• How to Change Room Permissions — control who can do what in your room.
• How to Add and Remove Bots from Rooms — manage bots in your room, including muting and removing.
• Creating & Using Bots — community standards for bot creation and bot behavior.
• Contact Cantina — reach the moderation team.

Room permissions in Cantina are controlled through Moderation Settings inside Edit Room Settings. This is where you decide who in your room (Admins, Hosts, or Members) can do what.

Change room permissions on iOS and Android

1. Inside your room, tap the room's name at the top.
2. Tap Edit Room.
3. Tap Moderation Settings.

Change room permissions on Web

1. Inside your room, click the room's name at the top.
2. Click Edit Room Settings.
3. Click Moderation Settings.

What each permission controls

Room Moderation (toggle) — Gives room hosts the power to approve communications by users in the room.

Go Live Requests (toggle) — Enable requests to go live in the room. Those who have permission to Go Live do not need to request it and can still go live.

Go Live — Who can turn on their camera and microphone in this room.

Post Media — Who can post media and links in chat.

Control the Stage — Who can control the stage in this room, including adding and featuring content or users.

Send Messages — Who can send messages in the room.

Signal — Who can alert members via signal.

Send Reactions & Gifs — Who can send reactions and gifs in the room.

Manage Membership — Who can remove members from the room.

Manage Bots — Who can add, remove, and adjust bot settings.

Edit Room Properties — Who can change room settings, including name, topic, and theme.

For each permission, choose the minimum role required: Admin, Host, or Member. Defaults are reasonable starting points — most features open to Members; sensitive ones like Signal and Manage Membership start at Hosts.

Keep going

• Room Moderation 101 — the full moderation playbook.
• How to Update Room Privacy — control who can see and enter your room.
• What are Room Roles? — Founder, Admin, Host, Member.

Room privacy controls who can see your room and who can enter it. You set these when you create the room, and you can change them any time after.

Quick-start rooms

When you create a room, you pick a preset that bundles privacy settings together:

• Open (Public) — anyone on Cantina can see and join.
• Social (Friends) — your contacts and friends of members can see and join.
• Invite Only (Closed) — your contacts and friends of members can see the room, but they need to request to join.

To set up faster with defaults, you can also tap Create a Quick Room during creation. This skips customization and uses Invite Only defaults you can change later. Once you're in the room, Edit Room Settings → Custom lets you mix Accessibility, Visibility, and Moderation independently.

Change privacy settings after a room is created

iOS and Android

1. Enter the room you want to update.
2. Tap the room's name at the top of the screen.
3. Tap Edit Room, then Edit Room Settings.
4. Tap Accessibility Settings or Visibility Settings to adjust who can enter or see your room.

On Web, click the room name at the top to open the settings panel, then click Edit Room Settings.

Accessibility Settings — who can enter the room

• Everyone — anyone can enter.
• Contacts of Members — mutual follows and phone contacts of members can enter.
• Contacts of Hosts — mutual follows and phone contacts of hosts can enter.
• Invite Only — only invited people can enter.

Who Can Invite Others

When the room is Invite Only, choose who can add new members:

• Founder — only the room's creator can invite.
• Admins — admins and the founder can invite.
• Hosts — hosts and above (admins and founder) can invite.
• Members — all room members can invite.

Visibility Settings — who can see the room

• Everyone — everyone can see this room.
• Contacts of Members — only mutual follows and phone contacts of members can see this room.

Moderation Settings

Moderation Settings is the third sub-section inside Edit Room Settings. It controls who in your room can do what — Go Live (camera and mic), Post Media, Control the Stage, Signal, Ring, Send Reactions & Gifs, Manage Membership, and more — so you can shape how your room feels for everyone who joins.

For the full moderation playbook, see Room Moderation 101.

Deleting room history when going more public

When you change a room to a more public setting, you'll be offered the option to delete room history. Take it if you want to make sure private conversations don't get exposed to new members.

Keep going

• How to Create a Room — set privacy at room creation.
• Room Moderation 101 — the full moderation playbook.
• How to Change Room Permissions — control who can do what once people are in.
• What are Room Roles? — Founder, Admin, Host, Member.

As a room admin or host, you can remove any member from the room at your discretion. Removed members are no longer part of the room, but they can be re-invited or rejoin anytime. If you want to prevent someone from rejoining, ban them from the room instead.

Remove a member on iOS, Android, and Web

1. Tap (or click) the member's avatar.
2. Tap Remove from Room.
3. Confirm by tapping Remove.

Note on permissions

The availability of this action depends on your room's Moderation Settings. If you're a host or admin and don't see the option, the room's founder may have limited who can moderate.

Keep going

• Room Moderation 101 — the full moderation playbook.
• How to Ban Members from a Room — prevent rejoining.
• How to Change Room Permissions — control who can moderate.

Ban a member on iOS and Android

1. Tap on the member's avatar.
2. Tap Ban from Room.
3. Select the ban duration (1 hour, 1 day, or forever).

Ban a member on Web

1. Click the room's name at the top.
2. Click the member's avatar.
3. Click Ban from Room.
4. Select the ban duration (1 hour, 1 day, or forever).

Unban a member on iOS and Android

1. Tap the room's name at the top.
2. Tap Edit Room.
3. Tap Banned Users.
4. Tap Unban next to the member's name.
5. Confirm by tapping Unban again.

Unban a member on Web

1. Click the room's name at the top.
2. Click Banned Users.
3. Click Unban next to the member's name.
4. Confirm by clicking Unban again.

Note on permissions

The availability of these actions depends on your room's Moderation Settings. If you're a host or admin and don't see these options, the room's founder may have limited who can moderate.

Keep going

• Room Moderation 101 — the full moderation playbook.
• How to Remove Room Members — remove without banning.
• How to Change Room Permissions — control who can moderate.

Feature a member on stage to put them in the spotlight and become the room's focal point.

To Feature a member on iOS and Android:

1. Tap or Long hold the avatar of the member you would like to feature on stage.
2. Select Feature, and the member’s live video tile will now be featured on stage. 

To Feature a member on Web:

1. Hover over the video tile of the member you would like to spotlight on stage.
2. Click the to open up a menu.
3. Click Feature, and the member’s live video tile will now be featured on stage.

Note: The member must be present on the live stage to enable this feature. In addition, its availability relies on the Moderation Settings. If you are a host or a member and do not find these options available, please know they could be attributed to specific permissions.

To Unfeature a member from the stage on iOS, Android and Web:

1. Tap or long hold the avatar of the member you want to remove from the stage.
2. Select Unfeature, and they will be instantly removed from the stage.

If you're an admin in a public room, a social room, or a private room, you can clear the entire chat history for the rest of the room. 

To clear the message history on iOS and Android:

1. Inside your room, tap on the room’s name.
2. Tap or Edit Room. 
3. Tap Edit Room Settings.
4. Scroll down to select Delete Message History.
5. Tap Delete, and all messages and media in the room’s chat will be deleted. This action can not be undone.

To clear the message history on Web:

1. Inside your room, tap on the room’s name.
2. Tap , then Edit Room Properties. 
3. Scroll down to select Delete Message History.
4. Tap Delete, and all messages and media in the room’s chat will be deleted. This action can not be undone.

Deleting your room erases it for all members. They will no longer be able to find, join, or chat in it.

Follow these instructions if you want to delete a room in the Cantina.

To delete the room on iOS and Android:

1. Inside your room, tap on the room’s name.
2. Tap or Edit Room. 
3. Tap Edit Room Settings.
4. Scroll down to select Delete Room.
5. Tap Delete, and all messages and media in the room’s chat will be deleted. This action can not be undone.

To delete the room on Web:

1. Inside your room, tap on the room’s name.
2. Tap , then Edit Room Properties. 
3. Scroll down to select Delete Room.
4. Tap Delete, and all messages and media in the room’s chat will be deleted. This action can not be undone.

You can add rules and set a Content Policy for your room to shape the vibe and create a safe, welcoming environment for members.

On iOS, Android, and Web

1. Tap (or click) the room name at the top of your room, or tap the room from your rooms list.
2. Tap Edit Room, then Edit Room Settings.
3. Select Rules & Content Policy.
4. Set up rules and a Content Policy:
   • Room Rules — Tap Add New Rule to write your own, or pick from the Example Rules.
   • Content Policy — Choose one:
     • None — no Content Policy on this room.
     • Free For All — relax and let your hair down (social and private rooms only).
     • Keep it Chill — be polite and respectful.
     • Clean and Courteous — content must be appropriate for all audiences.
5. Tap Save.

Keep going

• Room Moderation 101 — the full moderation playbook.
• How to Update Room Privacy — control who can see and enter your room.
• How to Change Room Permissions — control who can do what in your room.