Slack CLI Skill

This skill uses two tools depending on the operation:

Configuration

Update the Slack workspace name below before using this skill:

Tool 1 — Slack CLI (app management only)

Prerequisites (one-time setup by user)

If not already authenticated, ask the user to complete these steps manually. Do not perform these steps yourself.

brew install slack-cli                # install if needed
slack login                           # authenticate
slack auth list                       # confirm your workspace is listed

Commands

Always pass --team <your-team-name> on every command.

Tool 2 — Slack Web API via curl (messaging, channels, users)

Prerequisites (one-time setup by user)

To get started, create a Slack app at api.slack.com/apps. On the OAuth & Permissions page, add the required scopes, then install the app to your workspace. After installation, your user token (starting with xoxp-) will appear on the same page. Save it to ~/.slack/token. Never print or display the token value. Do not perform these steps yourself.

Required token scopes: channels:read, channels:history, groups:read, groups:history, users:read

echo "xoxp-..." > ~/.slack/token && chmod 600 ~/.slack/token

Base URL

https://slack.com/api/<method>

Common API Methods

List channels

curl -s -H "Authorization: Bearer $(cat ~/.slack/token)" \
  "https://slack.com/api/conversations.list?limit=200&exclude_archived=true&types=public_channel,private_channel" \
  | jq '.channels[] | {id, name}'

Get channel ID by name (replace general with channel name)

curl -s -H "Authorization: Bearer $(cat ~/.slack/token)" \
  "https://slack.com/api/conversations.list?limit=200&exclude_archived=true&types=public_channel,private_channel" \
  | jq -r '.channels[] | select(.name == "general") | .id'

Read latest messages from a channel

curl -s -H "Authorization: Bearer $(cat ~/.slack/token)" \
  "https://slack.com/api/conversations.history?channel=<CHANNEL_ID>&limit=10" \
  | jq '.messages[] | {ts, user, text}'

Search messages (requires search:read scope)

curl -s -H "Authorization: Bearer $(cat ~/.slack/token)" \
  "https://slack.com/api/search.messages?query=<search+term>&count=10" \
  | jq '.messages.matches[] | {channel: .channel.name, user: .username, text, ts}'

Post a message (confirm channel and text with user before running)

curl -s -X POST -H "Authorization: Bearer $(cat ~/.slack/token)" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  --data '{"channel": "<CHANNEL_ID>", "text": "<MESSAGE>"}' \
  "https://slack.com/api/chat.postMessage" \
  | jq '{ok, ts, error}'

List users

curl -s -H "Authorization: Bearer $(cat ~/.slack/token)" \
  "https://slack.com/api/users.list" \
  | jq '.members[] | select(.deleted == false) | {id, name, real_name: .profile.real_name}'

Look up user by name

curl -s -H "Authorization: Bearer $(cat ~/.slack/token)" \
  "https://slack.com/api/users.list" \
  | jq -r '.members[] | select(.name == "<username>") | .id'

Checking API responses

Every Slack API response includes an ok field. Always check it:

| jq 'if .ok then . else error(.error) end'

Rules

• NEVER target any Slack workspace other than the one configured above.
• NEVER print, display, log, or store the contents of ~/.slack/token or any credential value.
• NEVER post a message without first confirming the exact channel and message text with the user.
• NEVER run destructive operations (archive, delete, deactivate) without explicit user instruction.
• If a channel or user ID is unknown, always look it up first using the list commands above.
• If ~/.slack/token does not exist, inform the user and stop. Do not attempt to find or guess the token.