Building Echo Bot Application for Microsoft Teams

This article walks you through building a Microsoft Teams Echo Bot using the Bot Framework SDK and Azure Bot Service.
The Echo Bot template provides a minimal structure to receive and reply to messages from Teams users — repeating back what the user says.

🧱 Prerequisites

Before starting, ensure you have the following installed:

• Node.js (v10 or higher)
• Yeoman and Bot Builder Generator
• Azure CLI
• ngrok (for tunneling local endpoints)
• Microsoft Teams Developer account

Run these commands to install the required packages globally:

npm install -g yo generator-botbuilder
npm install -g @microsoft/teamsfx-cli

⚙️ Create a New Bot Project

Run the Yeoman generator to create a new bot project:

yo botbuilder

When prompted, provide the following answers:

1. What’s the name of your bot? → teams-echobot
2. Which language do you want to use? → JavaScript
3. Which template would you like to use? → Echo Bot
4. Would you like to add state management? → No

Once created, open the project in Visual Studio Code:

cd teams-echobot
code .

🧪 Run and Test Locally

To start the bot locally, use:

npm start

Then start ngrok to tunnel port 3978:

ngrok http 3978

Copy the HTTPS forwarding URL shown in the ngrok output, such as:

https://abc123.ngrok.io

This URL will be used as your bot messaging endpoint in Azure.

☁️ Create Azure Bot Channel

In the Azure Portal, create a new Bot Channels Registration resource:

1. Search for Bot Channels Registration and select Create
2. Fill in the following details:
   • Name: teams-echobot
   • Messaging endpoint: https://abc123.ngrok.io/api/messages
   • Microsoft App ID and Password: create new values for authentication

Once created, navigate to Settings → Configuration and copy your MicrosoftAppId and MicrosoftAppPassword.

In your local project, open index.js and replace with:

// Create adapter
const { BotFrameworkAdapter } = require('botbuilder');

const adapter = new BotFrameworkAdapter({
  appId: process.env.MicrosoftAppId,
  appPassword: process.env.MicrosoftAppPassword
});

💬 Test the Bot in Bot Framework Emulator

Download and open Bot Framework Emulator.
Connect to your bot using:

https://abc123.ngrok.io/api/messages

You should see the bot respond with the same message you send — confirming that your Echo Bot is working correctly.

💻 Add to Microsoft Teams

1. Open Teams Developer Portal (dev.teams.microsoft.com)
2. Create a new App
3. Add your bot’s endpoint under Bot → Messaging endpoint
4. Download the .zip manifest package
5. Upload it to Microsoft Teams under Apps → Upload a custom app

You can now chat with your Echo Bot inside Microsoft Teams.

📂 GitHub Sample Project

✅ Summary

This simple Echo Bot demonstrates the foundational structure of any Teams bot — receiving, processing, and responding to user input.
You can extend this logic by adding adaptive cards, dialogs, or state persistence for more intelligent bot interactions.