Slack Search Skill

This skill enables you to search and retrieve information from Slack workspace using the slack-cli command-line tool.

Prerequisites

Before using this skill, ensure:

1. SLACK_TOKEN environment variable is set with a valid User OAuth Token (starting with xoxp-)
2. The slack-cli binary is built and available in PATH

Available Commands

1. Search Messages Across All Channels

Search for messages containing specific keywords across all accessible channels:

slack-cli search "<query>"

Options:

• --sort=timestamp or --sort=score: Sort by timestamp (default) or relevance score
• --sort-dir=desc or --sort-dir=asc: Sort direction (desc = newest first, default)
• --count=N: Number of results to retrieve (default: 20)

Date Filters (in query):

• after:YYYY-MM-DD: Messages after specified date
• before:YYYY-MM-DD: Messages before specified date
• on:YYYY-MM-DD: Messages on specific date

Examples:

# Search for error messages
slack-cli search "error"

# Search with date filter
slack-cli search "deployment after:2025-11-01"

# Search with custom sorting and count
slack-cli search "bug" --sort=score --count=50

# Search for multiple terms
slack-cli search "database connection error"

2. Get Channel Messages

Retrieve the latest messages from a specific channel:

slack-cli channel <channel-name>

Example:

# Get messages from #general channel
slack-cli channel general

# Get messages from #engineering channel
slack-cli channel engineering

Note: Use the channel name without the # symbol.

3. Search User Posts

Find all messages posted by a specific user:

slack-cli user <username>

Example:

# Get messages from user "john.doe"
slack-cli user john.doe

Note: Use the Slack username (not display name).

Output Format

All commands output results in the following format:

Found N messages:
================================================================================

[1] username:
Message text content here
Posted: YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM:SS UTC
Channel: #channel-name

[2] username:
Another message text
Posted: YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM:SS UTC
Channel: #another-channel

================================================================================

Usage Guidelines

When to Use This Skill

Use this skill when you need to:

• Find specific information mentioned in Slack conversations
• Track discussions about particular topics or issues
• Retrieve historical messages from channels
• Search for messages from specific team members
• Investigate when something was discussed or decided

Best Practices

1. Be Specific with Search Terms: Use precise keywords to get relevant results
2. Use Date Filters: When looking for recent or historical information, add date filters
3. Adjust Result Count: If you need more context, increase --count parameter
4. Check Multiple Sources: Try searching by keyword, then verify in specific channels
5. Handle Token Issues: If you get "not_allowed_token_type" error, verify you're using a User Token (xoxp-) not a Bot Token (xoxb-)

Common Use Cases

Finding Error Reports:

slack-cli search "error" --sort=timestamp --sort-dir=desc --count=30

Checking Recent Deployments:

slack-cli search "deployed after:2025-11-15"

Getting Team Updates:

slack-cli channel team-updates

Finding Specific User's Contributions:

slack-cli user jane.smith

Investigating Issues:

# First search broadly
slack-cli search "database timeout"

# Then check specific channels
slack-cli channel infrastructure

# Then check who reported it
slack-cli user devops-bot

Error Handling

Common Errors and Solutions

1. "SLACK_TOKEN environment variable is not set"

   • Set the environment variable: export SLACK_TOKEN=xoxp-your-token

2. "not_allowed_token_type"

   • You're using a Bot Token instead of User Token
   • Create a new User Token with search:read scope

3. "Channel not found"

   • Verify the channel name is correct (without #)
   • Ensure the bot is invited to private channels

4. "User not found"

   • Use the Slack username, not display name
   • Check spelling of username

5. No results returned

   • Try broader search terms
   • Check if you have access to the channels containing the messages
   • Verify date filters are correct

Limitations

• Enterprise Grid: Results are limited to the connected workspace, not all workspaces in the organization
• Permissions: Only searches in channels/conversations the User Token has access to
• Rate Limits: Slack API has rate limits; avoid rapid consecutive requests
• Result Limit: Maximum results per query is constrained by the --count parameter

Tips for Effective Searching

1. Use Quotes for Phrases: slack-cli search '"exact phrase"'
2. Combine Keywords: Search for multiple relevant terms together
3. Filter by Date Range: Narrow down results with after: and before:
4. Sort by Relevance: Use --sort=score when keyword matching is more important than recency
5. Iterate Searches: Start broad, then refine based on initial results

Integration with Workflows

This skill works well in combination with other tasks:

• Search Slack → Summarize findings → Create report
• Find error messages → Investigate logs → Propose fixes
• Track feature discussions → Compile requirements → Document decisions
• Monitor team communications → Identify blockers → Suggest actions