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:

SLACK_TOKEN environment variable is set with a valid User OAuth Token (starting with xoxp-)
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

Be Specific with Search Terms: Use precise keywords to get relevant results
Use Date Filters: When looking for recent or historical information, add date filters
Adjust Result Count: If you need more context, increase --count parameter
Check Multiple Sources: Try searching by keyword, then verify in specific channels
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

"SLACK_TOKEN environment variable is not set"
- Set the environment variable: export SLACK_TOKEN=xoxp-your-token
"not_allowed_token_type"
- You're using a Bot Token instead of User Token
- Create a new User Token with search:read scope
"Channel not found"
- Verify the channel name is correct (without #)
- Ensure the bot is invited to private channels
"User not found"
- Use the Slack username, not display name
- Check spelling of username
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

Use Quotes for Phrases: slack-cli search '"exact phrase"'
Combine Keywords: Search for multiple relevant terms together
Filter by Date Range: Narrow down results with after: and before:
Sort by Relevance: Use --sort=score when keyword matching is more important than recency
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

slack-search