Skip to main content

Documentation Index

Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs2.openclaw.ai/llms.txt

Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

Production-ready for DMs and channels via Slack app integrations. Default mode is Socket Mode; HTTP Request URLs are also supported.

Pairing

Slack DMs default to pairing mode.

Slash commands

Native command behavior and command catalog.

Channel troubleshooting

Cross-channel diagnostics and repair playbooks.

​
Choosing Socket Mode or HTTP Request URLs

Both transports are production-ready and reach feature parity for messaging, slash commands, App Home, and interactivity. Pick by deployment shape, not features.
ConcernSocket Mode (default)HTTP Request URLs
Public Gateway URLNot requiredRequired (DNS, TLS, reverse proxy or tunnel)
Outbound networkOutbound WSS to wss-primary.slack.com must be reachableNo outbound WS; inbound HTTPS only
Tokens neededBot token + App-Level Token with connections:writeBot token + Signing Secret
Dev laptop / behind firewallWorks as-isNeeds a public tunnel (ngrok, Cloudflare Tunnel, Tailscale Funnel) or staging Gateway
Horizontal scalingOne Socket Mode session per app per host; multiple Gateways need separate Slack appsStateless POST handler; multiple Gateway replicas can share one app behind a load balancer
Multi-account on one GatewaySupported; each account opens its own WSSupported; each account needs a unique webhookPath (default /slack/events) so registrations do not collide
Slash command transportDelivered over the WS connection; slash_commands[].url is ignoredSlack POSTs to slash_commands[].url; field is required for the command to dispatch
Request signingNot used (auth is the App-Level Token)Slack signs every request; OpenClaw verifies with signingSecret
Recovery on connection dropSlack SDK auto-reconnect is enabled; OpenClaw also restarts failed Socket Mode sessions with bounded backoff. Pong-timeout transport tuning applies.No persistent connection to drop; retries are per-request from Slack
Pick Socket Mode for single-Gateway hosts, dev laptops, and on-prem networks that can reach *.slack.com outbound but cannot accept inbound HTTPS.Pick HTTP Request URLs when running multiple Gateway replicas behind a load balancer, when outbound WSS is blocked but inbound HTTPS is allowed, or when you already terminate Slack webhooks at a reverse proxy.

​
Install

Install Slack before configuring the channel: 
openclaw plugins install @openclaw/slack
plugins install registers and enables the plugin. The plugin still does nothing until you configure the Slack app and channel settings below. See Plugins for general plugin behavior and install rules.

​
Quick setup

1

Create a new Slack app

Open api.slack.com/apps → Create New App → From a manifest → select your workspace → paste one of the manifests below → Next → Create.
{
  "display_information": {
    "name": "OpenClaw",
    "description": "Slack connector for OpenClaw"
  },
  "features": {
    "bot_user": { "display_name": "OpenClaw", "always_online": true },
    "app_home": {
      "home_tab_enabled": true,
      "messages_tab_enabled": true,
      "messages_tab_read_only_enabled": false
    },
    "assistant_view": {
      "assistant_description": "OpenClaw connects Slack assistant threads to OpenClaw agents.",
      "suggested_prompts": [
        { "title": "What can you do?", "message": "What can you help me with?" },
        {
          "title": "Summarize this channel",
          "message": "Summarize the recent activity in this channel."
        },
        { "title": "Draft a reply", "message": "Help me draft a reply." }
      ]
    },
    "slash_commands": [
      {
        "command": "/openclaw",
        "description": "Send a message to OpenClaw",
        "should_escape": false
      }
    ]
  },
  "oauth_config": {
    "scopes": {
      "bot": [
        "app_mentions:read",
        "assistant:write",
        "channels:history",
        "channels:read",
        "chat:write",
        "commands",
        "emoji:read",
        "files:read",
        "files:write",
        "groups:history",
        "groups:read",
        "im:history",
        "im:read",
        "im:write",
        "mpim:history",
        "mpim:read",
        "mpim:write",
        "pins:read",
        "pins:write",
        "reactions:read",
        "reactions:write",
        "usergroups:read",
        "users:read"
      ]
    }
  },
  "settings": {
    "socket_mode_enabled": true,
    "event_subscriptions": {
      "bot_events": [
        "app_home_opened",
        "app_mention",
        "assistant_thread_context_changed",
        "assistant_thread_started",
        "channel_rename",
        "member_joined_channel",
        "member_left_channel",
        "message.channels",
        "message.groups",
        "message.im",
        "message.mpim",
        "pin_added",
        "pin_removed",
        "reaction_added",
        "reaction_removed"
      ]
    }
  }
}
Recommended matches the Slack plugin’s full feature set: App Home, slash commands, files, reactions, pins, group DMs, and emoji/usergroup reads. Pick Minimal when workspace policy restricts scopes — it covers DMs, channel/group history, mentions, and slash commands but drops files, reactions, pins, group-DM (mpim:*), emoji:read, and usergroups:read. See Manifest and scope checklist for per-scope rationale and additive options like extra slash commands.
After Slack creates the app:
  • Basic Information -> App-Level Tokens -> Generate Token and Scopes: add connections:write, save, copy the App-Level Token.
  • Install App -> Install to Workspace: copy the Bot User OAuth Token.
2

Configure OpenClaw

Recommended SecretRef setup:
export SLACK_APP_TOKEN=slack-app-token-example
export SLACK_BOT_TOKEN=slack-bot-token-example
cat > slack.socket.patch.json5 <<'JSON5'
{
  channels: {
    slack: {
      enabled: true,
      mode: "socket",
      appToken: { source: "env", provider: "default", id: "SLACK_APP_TOKEN" },
      botToken: { source: "env", provider: "default", id: "SLACK_BOT_TOKEN" },
    },
  },
}
JSON5
openclaw config patch --file ./slack.socket.patch.json5 --dry-run
openclaw config patch --file ./slack.socket.patch.json5
Env fallback (default account only):
SLACK_APP_TOKEN=slack-app-token-example
SLACK_BOT_TOKEN=slack-bot-token-example
3

Start gateway

openclaw gateway

​
Socket Mode transport tuning

OpenClaw sets the Slack SDK client pong timeout to 15 seconds by default for Socket Mode. Override the transport settings only when you need workspace- or host-specific tuning: 
{
  channels: {
    slack: {
      mode: "socket",
      socketMode: {
        clientPingTimeout: 20000,
        serverPingTimeout: 30000,
        pingPongLoggingEnabled: false,
      },
    },
  },
}
Use this only for Socket Mode workspaces that log Slack websocket pong/server-ping timeouts or run on hosts with known event-loop starvation. clientPingTimeout is the pong wait after the SDK sends a client ping; serverPingTimeout is the wait for Slack server pings. App messages and events remain application state, not transport liveness signals. Notes:
  • socketMode is ignored in HTTP Request URL mode.
  • Base channels.slack.socketMode settings apply to all Slack accounts unless overridden. Per-account overrides use channels.slack.accounts.<accountId>.socketMode; because this is an object override, include every socket tuning field you want for that account.
  • Only clientPingTimeout has an OpenClaw default (15000). serverPingTimeout and pingPongLoggingEnabled are passed to the Slack SDK only when configured.
  • Socket Mode restart backoff starts around 2 seconds and caps around 30 seconds. Consecutive recoverable start/start-wait failures stop after 12 attempts; after a successful connection, later recoverable disconnects start a fresh retry cycle. Non-recoverable Slack auth errors such as invalid_auth, revoked tokens, or missing scopes fail fast instead of retrying forever.

​
Manifest and scope checklist

The base Slack app manifest is the same for Socket Mode and HTTP Request URLs. Only the settings block (and the slash command url) differs. Base manifest (Socket Mode default): 
{
  "display_information": {
    "name": "OpenClaw",
    "description": "Slack connector for OpenClaw"
  },
  "features": {
    "bot_user": { "display_name": "OpenClaw", "always_online": true },
    "app_home": {
      "home_tab_enabled": true,
      "messages_tab_enabled": true,
      "messages_tab_read_only_enabled": false
    },
    "assistant_view": {
      "assistant_description": "OpenClaw connects Slack assistant threads to OpenClaw agents.",
      "suggested_prompts": [
        { "title": "What can you do?", "message": "What can you help me with?" },
        {
          "title": "Summarize this channel",
          "message": "Summarize the recent activity in this channel."
        },
        { "title": "Draft a reply", "message": "Help me draft a reply." }
      ]
    },
    "slash_commands": [
      {
        "command": "/openclaw",
        "description": "Send a message to OpenClaw",
        "should_escape": false
      }
    ]
  },
  "oauth_config": {
    "scopes": {
      "bot": [
        "app_mentions:read",
        "assistant:write",
        "channels:history",
        "channels:read",
        "chat:write",
        "commands",
        "emoji:read",
        "files:read",
        "files:write",
        "groups:history",
        "groups:read",
        "im:history",
        "im:read",
        "im:write",
        "mpim:history",
        "mpim:read",
        "mpim:write",
        "pins:read",
        "pins:write",
        "reactions:read",
        "reactions:write",
        "usergroups:read",
        "users:read"
      ]
    }
  },
  "settings": {
    "socket_mode_enabled": true,
    "event_subscriptions": {
      "bot_events": [
        "app_home_opened",
        "app_mention",
        "assistant_thread_context_changed",
        "assistant_thread_started",
        "channel_rename",
        "member_joined_channel",
        "member_left_channel",
        "message.channels",
        "message.groups",
        "message.im",
        "message.mpim",
        "pin_added",
        "pin_removed",
        "reaction_added",
        "reaction_removed"
      ]
    }
  }
}
For HTTP Request URLs mode, replace settings with the HTTP variant and add url to each slash command. Public URL required: 
{
  "features": {
    "slash_commands": [
      {
        "command": "/openclaw",
        "description": "Send a message to OpenClaw",
        "should_escape": false,
        "url": "https://gateway-host.example.com/slack/events"
      }
    ]
  },
  "settings": {
    "event_subscriptions": {
      "request_url": "https://gateway-host.example.com/slack/events",
      "bot_events": [
        "app_home_opened",
        "app_mention",
        "assistant_thread_context_changed",
        "assistant_thread_started",
        "channel_rename",
        "member_joined_channel",
        "member_left_channel",
        "message.channels",
        "message.groups",
        "message.im",
        "message.mpim",
        "pin_added",
        "pin_removed",
        "reaction_added",
        "reaction_removed"
      ]
    },
    "interactivity": {
      "is_enabled": true,
      "request_url": "https://gateway-host.example.com/slack/events",
      "message_menu_options_url": "https://gateway-host.example.com/slack/events"
    }
  }
}

​
Additional manifest settings

Surface different features that extend the above defaults. The default manifest enables the Slack App Home Home tab and subscribes to app_home_opened. When a workspace member opens the Home tab, OpenClaw publishes a safe default Home view with views.publish; no conversation payload or private configuration is included. The Messages tab remains enabled for Slack DMs. The manifest also enables Slack assistant threads with features.assistant_view, assistant:write, assistant_thread_started, and assistant_thread_context_changed; assistant threads route to their own OpenClaw thread sessions and keep Slack-provided thread context available to the agent.
Multiple native slash commands can be used instead of a single configured command with nuance:
  • Use /agentstatus instead of /status because the /status command is reserved.
  • No more than 25 slash commands can be made available at once.
Replace your existing features.slash_commands section with a subset of available commands:
{
  "slash_commands": [
    {
      "command": "/new",
      "description": "Start a new session",
      "usage_hint": "[model]"
    },
    {
      "command": "/reset",
      "description": "Reset the current session"
    },
    {
      "command": "/compact",
      "description": "Compact the session context",
      "usage_hint": "[instructions]"
    },
    {
      "command": "/stop",
      "description": "Stop the current run"
    },
    {
      "command": "/session",
      "description": "Manage thread-binding expiry",
      "usage_hint": "idle <duration|off> or max-age <duration|off>"
    },
    {
      "command": "/think",
      "description": "Set the thinking level",
      "usage_hint": "<level>"
    },
    {
      "command": "/verbose",
      "description": "Toggle verbose output",
      "usage_hint": "on|off|full"
    },
    {
      "command": "/fast",
      "description": "Show or set fast mode",
      "usage_hint": "[status|on|off]"
    },
    {
      "command": "/reasoning",
      "description": "Toggle reasoning visibility",
      "usage_hint": "[on|off|stream]"
    },
    {
      "command": "/elevated",
      "description": "Toggle elevated mode",
      "usage_hint": "[on|off|ask|full]"
    },
    {
      "command": "/exec",
      "description": "Show or set exec defaults",
      "usage_hint": "host=<auto|sandbox|gateway|node> security=<deny|allowlist|full> ask=<off|on-miss|always> node=<id>"
    },
    {
      "command": "/approve",
      "description": "Approve or deny pending approval requests",
      "usage_hint": "<id> <decision>"
    },
    {
      "command": "/model",
      "description": "Show or set the model",
      "usage_hint": "[name|#|status]"
    },
    {
      "command": "/models",
      "description": "List providers/models",
      "usage_hint": "[provider] [page] [limit=<n>|size=<n>|all]"
    },
    {
      "command": "/help",
      "description": "Show the short help summary"
    },
    {
      "command": "/commands",
      "description": "Show the generated command catalog"
    },
    {
      "command": "/tools",
      "description": "Show what the current agent can use right now",
      "usage_hint": "[compact|verbose]"
    },
    {
      "command": "/agentstatus",
      "description": "Show runtime status, including provider usage/quota when available"
    },
    {
      "command": "/tasks",
      "description": "List active/recent background tasks for the current session"
    },
    {
      "command": "/context",
      "description": "Explain how context is assembled",
      "usage_hint": "[list|detail|json]"
    },
    {
      "command": "/whoami",
      "description": "Show your sender identity"
    },
    {
      "command": "/skill",
      "description": "Run a skill by name",
      "usage_hint": "<name> [input]"
    },
    {
      "command": "/btw",
      "description": "Ask a side question without changing session context",
      "usage_hint": "<question>"
    },
    {
      "command": "/side",
      "description": "Ask a side question without changing session context",
      "usage_hint": "<question>"
    },
    {
      "command": "/usage",
      "description": "Control the usage footer or show cost summary",
      "usage_hint": "off|tokens|full|cost"
    }
  ]
}
Add the chat:write.customize bot scope if you want outgoing messages to use the active agent identity (custom username and icon) instead of the default Slack app identity.If you use an emoji icon, Slack expects :emoji_name: syntax.
If you configure channels.slack.userToken, typical read scopes are:
  • channels:history, groups:history, im:history, mpim:history
  • channels:read, groups:read, im:read, mpim:read
  • users:read
  • reactions:read
  • pins:read
  • emoji:read
  • search:read (if you depend on Slack search reads)

​
Token model

  • botToken + appToken are required for Socket Mode.
  • HTTP mode requires botToken + signingSecret.
  • botToken, appToken, signingSecret, and userToken accept plaintext strings or SecretRef objects.
  • Config tokens override env fallback.
  • SLACK_BOT_TOKEN / SLACK_APP_TOKEN env fallback applies only to the default account.
  • userToken is config-only (no env fallback) and defaults to read-only behavior (userTokenReadOnly: true).
Status snapshot behavior:
  • Slack account inspection tracks per-credential *Source and *Status fields (botToken, appToken, signingSecret, userToken).
  • Status is available, configured_unavailable, or missing.
  • configured_unavailable means the account is configured through SecretRef or another non-inline secret source, but the current command/runtime path could not resolve the actual value.
  • In HTTP mode, signingSecretStatus is included; in Socket Mode, the required pair is botTokenStatus + appTokenStatus.
For actions/directory reads, user token can be preferred when configured. For writes, bot token remains preferred; user-token writes are only allowed when userTokenReadOnly: false and bot token is unavailable.

​
Actions and gates

Slack actions are controlled by channels.slack.actions.*. Available action groups in current Slack tooling:
GroupDefault
messagesenabled
reactionsenabled
pinsenabled
memberInfoenabled
emojiListenabled
Current Slack message actions include send, upload-file, download-file, read, edit, delete, pin, unpin, list-pins, member-info, and emoji-list. download-file accepts Slack file IDs shown in inbound file placeholders and returns image previews for images or local file metadata for other file types.

​
Access control and routing

channels.slack.dmPolicy controls DM access. channels.slack.allowFrom is the canonical DM allowlist.
  • pairing (default)
  • allowlist
  • open (requires channels.slack.allowFrom to include "*")
  • disabled
DM flags:
  • dm.enabled (default true)
  • channels.slack.allowFrom
  • dm.allowFrom (legacy)
  • dm.groupEnabled (group DMs default false)
  • dm.groupChannels (optional MPIM allowlist)
Multi-account precedence:
  • channels.slack.accounts.default.allowFrom applies only to the default account.
  • Named accounts inherit channels.slack.allowFrom when their own allowFrom is unset.
  • Named accounts do not inherit channels.slack.accounts.default.allowFrom.
Legacy channels.slack.dm.policy and channels.slack.dm.allowFrom still read for compatibility. openclaw doctor --fix migrates them to dmPolicy and allowFrom when it can do so without changing access.Pairing in DMs uses openclaw pairing approve slack <code>.

​
Threading, sessions, and reply tags

  • DMs route as direct; channels as channel; MPIMs as group.
  • Slack route bindings accept raw peer IDs plus Slack target forms such as channel:C12345678, user:U12345678, and <@U12345678>.
  • With default session.dmScope=main, Slack DMs collapse to agent main session.
  • Channel sessions: agent:<agentId>:slack:channel:<channelId>.
  • Ordinary top-level channel messages stay on the per-channel session, even when replyToMode is non-off.
  • Slack thread replies use the parent Slack thread_ts for session suffixes (:thread:<threadTs>), even when outbound reply threading is disabled with replyToMode="off".
  • OpenClaw seeds an eligible top-level channel root into agent:<agentId>:slack:channel:<channelId>:thread:<rootTs> when that root is expected to start a visible Slack thread, so the root and later thread replies share one OpenClaw session. This applies to app_mention events, explicit bot or configured mention-pattern matches, and requireMention: false channels with non-off replyToMode.
  • channels.slack.thread.historyScope default is thread; thread.inheritParent default is false.
  • channels.slack.thread.initialHistoryLimit controls how many existing thread messages are fetched when a new thread session starts (default 20; set 0 to disable).
  • channels.slack.thread.requireExplicitMention (default false): when true, suppress implicit thread mentions so the bot only responds to explicit @bot mentions inside threads, even when the bot already participated in the thread. Without this, replies in a bot-participated thread bypass requireMention gating.
Reply threading controls:
  • channels.slack.replyToMode: off|first|all|batched (default off)
  • channels.slack.replyToModeByChatType: per direct|group|channel
  • legacy fallback for direct chats: channels.slack.dm.replyToMode
Manual reply tags are supported:
  • [[reply_to_current]]
  • [[reply_to:<id>]]
For explicit Slack thread replies from the message tool, set replyBroadcast: true with action: "send" and threadId or replyTo to ask Slack to also broadcast the thread reply to the parent channel. This maps to Slack’s chat.postMessage reply_broadcast flag and is only supported for text or Block Kit sends, not media uploads. When a message tool call runs inside a Slack thread and targets the same channel, OpenClaw normally inherits the current Slack thread according to replyToMode. Set topLevel: true on action: "send" or action: "upload-file" to force a new parent-channel message instead. threadId: null is accepted as the same top-level opt-out.
replyToMode="off" disables outbound Slack reply threading, including explicit [[reply_to_*]] tags. It does not flatten inbound Slack thread sessions: messages already posted inside a Slack thread still route to the :thread:<threadTs> session. This differs from Telegram, where explicit tags are still honored in "off" mode. Slack threads hide messages from the channel while Telegram replies stay visible inline.

​
Ack reactions

ackReaction sends an acknowledgement emoji while OpenClaw is processing an inbound message. ackReactionScope decides when that emoji is actually sent.

​
Emoji (ackReaction)

Resolution order:
  • channels.slack.accounts.<accountId>.ackReaction
  • channels.slack.ackReaction
  • messages.ackReaction
  • agent identity emoji fallback (agents.list[].identity.emoji, else "eyes" / 👀)
Notes:
  • Slack expects shortcodes (for example "eyes").
  • Use "" to disable the reaction for the Slack account or globally.

​
Scope (messages.ackReactionScope)

The Slack provider reads scope from messages.ackReactionScope (default "group-mentions"). There is no Slack-account or Slack-channel-level override today; the value is global to the gateway. Values:
  • "all": react in DMs and groups.
  • "direct": react in DMs only.
  • "group-all": react on every group message (no DMs).
  • "group-mentions" (default): react in groups, but only when the bot is mentioned (or in group mentionables that opted in). DMs are excluded.
  • "off" / "none": never react.
The default scope ("group-mentions") does not fire ack reactions in direct messages. To see the configured ackReaction (for example "eyes") on inbound Slack DMs, set messages.ackReactionScope to "direct" or "all". messages.ackReactionScope is read at Slack provider startup, so a gateway restart is needed for the change to take effect.
{
  messages: {
    ackReaction: "eyes",
    ackReactionScope: "all", // react in DMs and groups
  },
}

​
Text streaming

channels.slack.streaming controls live preview behavior:
  • off: disable live preview streaming.
  • partial (default): replace preview text with the latest partial output.
  • block: append chunked preview updates.
  • progress: show progress status text while generating, then send final text.
  • streaming.preview.toolProgress: when draft preview is active, route tool/progress updates into the same edited preview message (default: true). Set false to keep separate tool/progress messages.
  • streaming.preview.commandText / streaming.progress.commandText: set to status to keep compact tool-progress lines while hiding raw command/exec text (default: raw).
Hide raw command/exec text while keeping compact progress lines: 
{
  "channels": {
    "slack": {
      "streaming": {
        "mode": "progress",
        "progress": {
          "toolProgress": true,
          "commandText": "status"
        }
      }
    }
  }
}
channels.slack.streaming.nativeTransport controls Slack native text streaming when channels.slack.streaming.mode is partial (default: true).
  • A reply thread must be available for native text streaming and Slack assistant thread status to appear. Thread selection still follows replyToMode.
  • Channel, group-chat, and top-level DM roots can still use the normal draft preview when native streaming is unavailable or no reply thread exists.
  • Top-level Slack DMs stay off-thread by default, so they do not show Slack’s thread-style native stream/status preview; OpenClaw posts and edits a draft preview in the DM instead.
  • Media and non-text payloads fall back to normal delivery.
  • Media/error finals cancel pending preview edits; eligible text/block finals flush only when they can edit the preview in place.
  • If streaming fails mid-reply, OpenClaw falls back to normal delivery for remaining payloads.
Use draft preview instead of Slack native text streaming: 
{
  channels: {
    slack: {
      streaming: {
        mode: "partial",
        nativeTransport: false,
      },
    },
  },
}
Legacy keys:
  • channels.slack.streamMode (replace | status_final | append) is a legacy runtime alias for channels.slack.streaming.mode.
  • boolean channels.slack.streaming is a legacy runtime alias for channels.slack.streaming.mode and channels.slack.streaming.nativeTransport.
  • legacy channels.slack.nativeStreaming is a runtime alias for channels.slack.streaming.nativeTransport.
  • Run openclaw doctor --fix to rewrite persisted Slack streaming config to the canonical keys.

​
Typing reaction fallback

typingReaction adds a temporary reaction to the inbound Slack message while OpenClaw is processing a reply, then removes it when the run finishes. This is most useful outside of thread replies, which use a default “is typing…” status indicator. Resolution order:
  • channels.slack.accounts.<accountId>.typingReaction
  • channels.slack.typingReaction
Notes:
  • Slack expects shortcodes (for example "hourglass_flowing_sand").
  • The reaction is best-effort and cleanup is attempted automatically after the reply or failure path completes.

​
Media, chunking, and delivery

Slack file attachments are downloaded from Slack-hosted private URLs (token-authenticated request flow) and written to the media store when fetch succeeds and size limits permit. File placeholders include the Slack fileId so agents can fetch the original file with download-file.Downloads use bounded idle and total timeouts. If Slack file retrieval stalls or fails, OpenClaw keeps processing the message and falls back to the file placeholder.Runtime inbound size cap defaults to 20MB unless overridden by channels.slack.mediaMaxMb.
  • text chunks use channels.slack.textChunkLimit (default 4000)
  • channels.slack.chunkMode="newline" enables paragraph-first splitting
  • file sends use Slack upload APIs and can include thread replies (thread_ts)
  • outbound media cap follows channels.slack.mediaMaxMb when configured; otherwise channel sends use MIME-kind defaults from media pipeline
Preferred explicit targets:
  • user:<id> for DMs
  • channel:<id> for channels
Text/block-only Slack DMs can post directly to user IDs; file uploads and threaded sends open the DM via Slack conversation APIs first because those paths require a concrete conversation ID.

​
Commands and slash behavior

Slash commands appear in Slack as either a single configured command or multiple native commands. Configure channels.slack.slashCommand to change command defaults:
  • enabled: false
  • name: "openclaw"
  • sessionPrefix: "slack:slash"
  • ephemeral: true
/openclaw /help
Native commands require additional manifest settings in your Slack app and are enabled with channels.slack.commands.native: true or commands.native: true in global configurations instead.
  • Native command auto-mode is off for Slack so commands.native: "auto" does not enable Slack native commands.
/help
Native argument menus use an adaptive rendering strategy that shows a confirmation modal before dispatching a selected option value:
  • up to 5 options: button blocks
  • 6-100 options: static select menu
  • more than 100 options: external select with async option filtering when interactivity options handlers are available
  • exceeded Slack limits: encoded option values fall back to buttons
/think
Slash sessions use isolated keys like agent:<agentId>:slack:slash:<userId> and still route command executions to the target conversation session using CommandTargetSessionKey.

​
Interactive replies

Slack can render agent-authored interactive reply controls, but this feature is disabled by default. For new agent, CLI, and plugin output, prefer the shared presentation buttons or select blocks. They use the same Slack interaction path while also degrading on other channels. Enable it globally: 
{
  channels: {
    slack: {
      capabilities: {
        interactiveReplies: true,
      },
    },
  },
}
Or enable it for one Slack account only: 
{
  channels: {
    slack: {
      accounts: {
        ops: {
          capabilities: {
            interactiveReplies: true,
          },
        },
      },
    },
  },
}
When enabled, agents can still emit deprecated Slack-only reply directives:
  • [[slack_buttons: Approve:approve, Reject:reject]]
  • [[slack_select: Choose a target | Canary:canary, Production:production]]
These directives compile into Slack Block Kit and route clicks or selections back through the existing Slack interaction event path. Keep them for old prompts and Slack-specific escape hatches; use shared presentation for new portable controls. The directive compiler APIs are also deprecated for new producer code:
  • compileSlackInteractiveReplies(...)
  • parseSlackOptionsLine(...)
  • isSlackInteractiveRepliesEnabled(...)
  • buildSlackInteractiveBlocks(...)
Use presentation payloads and buildSlackPresentationBlocks(...) for new Slack-rendered controls. Notes:
  • This is Slack-specific legacy UI. Other channels do not translate Slack Block Kit directives into their own button systems.
  • The interactive callback values are OpenClaw-generated opaque tokens, not raw agent-authored values.
  • If generated interactive blocks would exceed Slack Block Kit limits, OpenClaw falls back to the original text reply instead of sending an invalid blocks payload.

​
Plugin-owned modal submissions

Slack plugins that register an interactive handler can also receive modal view_submission and view_closed lifecycle events before OpenClaw compacts the payload for the agent-visible system event. Use one of these routing patterns when opening a Slack modal:
  • Set callback_id to openclaw:<namespace>:<payload>.
  • Or keep an existing callback_id and put pluginInteractiveData: "<namespace>:<payload>" in the modal private_metadata.
The handler receives ctx.interaction.kind as view_submission or view_closed, normalized inputs, and the full raw stateValues object from Slack. Callback-id-only routing is enough to invoke the plugin handler; include the existing modal private_metadata user/session routing fields when the modal should also produce an agent-visible system event. The agent receives a compact, redacted Slack interaction: ... system event. If the handler returns systemEvent.summary, systemEvent.reference, or systemEvent.data, those fields are included in that compact event so the agent can reference plugin-owned storage without seeing the complete form payload.

​
Native approvals in Slack

Slack can act as a native approval client with interactive buttons and interactions, instead of falling back to the Web UI or terminal.
  • Exec and plugin approvals can render as Slack-native Block Kit prompts.
  • channels.slack.execApprovals.* remains the native exec approval client enablement and DM/channel routing config.
  • Exec approval DMs use channels.slack.execApprovals.approvers or commands.ownerAllowFrom.
  • Plugin approvals use Slack-native buttons when Slack is enabled as a native approval client for the originating session, or when approvals.plugin routes to the originating Slack session or a Slack target.
  • Plugin approval DMs use Slack plugin approvers from channels.slack.allowFrom, named-account allowFrom, or the account default route.
  • Approver authorization is still enforced: exec-only approvers cannot approve plugin requests unless they are also plugin approvers.
This uses the same shared approval button surface as other channels. When interactivity is enabled in your Slack app settings, approval prompts render as Block Kit buttons directly in the conversation. When those buttons are present, they are the primary approval UX; OpenClaw should only include a manual /approve command when the tool result says chat approvals are unavailable or manual approval is the only path. Config path:
  • channels.slack.execApprovals.enabled
  • channels.slack.execApprovals.approvers (optional; falls back to commands.ownerAllowFrom when possible)
  • channels.slack.execApprovals.target (dm | channel | both, default: dm)
  • agentFilter, sessionFilter
Slack auto-enables native exec approvals when enabled is unset or "auto" and at least one exec approver resolves. Slack can also handle native plugin approvals through this native-client path when Slack plugin approvers resolve and the request matches the native-client filters. Set enabled: false to disable Slack as a native approval client explicitly. Set enabled: true to force native approvals on when approvers resolve. Disabling Slack exec approvals does not disable native Slack plugin approval delivery that is enabled through approvals.plugin; plugin approval delivery uses Slack plugin approvers instead. Default behavior with no explicit Slack exec approval config: 
{
  commands: {
    ownerAllowFrom: ["slack:U12345678"],
  },
}
Explicit Slack-native config is only needed when you want to override approvers, add filters, or opt into origin-chat delivery: 
{
  channels: {
    slack: {
      execApprovals: {
        enabled: true,
        approvers: ["U12345678"],
        target: "both",
      },
    },
  },
}
Shared approvals.exec forwarding is separate. Use it only when exec approval prompts must also route to other chats or explicit out-of-band targets. Shared approvals.plugin forwarding is also separate; Slack native delivery suppresses that fallback only when Slack can handle the plugin approval request natively. Same-chat /approve also works in Slack channels and DMs that already support commands. See Exec approvals for the full approval forwarding model.

​
Events and operational behavior

  • Message edits/deletes are mapped into system events.
  • Thread broadcasts (“Also send to channel” thread replies) are processed as normal user messages.
  • Reaction add/remove events are mapped into system events.
  • Member join/leave, channel created/renamed, and pin add/remove events are mapped into system events.
  • channel_id_changed can migrate channel config keys when configWrites is enabled.
  • Channel topic/purpose metadata is treated as untrusted context and can be injected into routing context.
  • Thread starter and initial thread-history context seeding are filtered by configured sender allowlists when applicable.
  • Block actions and modal interactions emit structured Slack interaction: ... system events with rich payload fields:
    • block actions: selected values, labels, picker values, and workflow_* metadata
    • modal view_submission and view_closed events with routed channel metadata and form inputs

​
Configuration reference

Primary reference: Configuration reference - Slack.
  • mode/auth: mode, botToken, appToken, signingSecret, webhookPath, accounts.*
  • DM access: dm.enabled, dmPolicy, allowFrom (legacy: dm.policy, dm.allowFrom), dm.groupEnabled, dm.groupChannels
  • compatibility toggle: dangerouslyAllowNameMatching (break-glass; keep off unless needed)
  • channel access: groupPolicy, channels.*, channels.*.users, channels.*.requireMention
  • threading/history: replyToMode, replyToModeByChatType, thread.*, historyLimit, dmHistoryLimit, dms.*.historyLimit
  • delivery: textChunkLimit, chunkMode, mediaMaxMb, streaming, streaming.nativeTransport, streaming.preview.toolProgress
  • unfurls: unfurlLinks (default: false), unfurlMedia for chat.postMessage link/media preview control; set unfurlLinks: true to opt back into link previews
  • ops/features: configWrites, commands.native, slashCommand.*, actions.*, userToken, userTokenReadOnly

​
Troubleshooting

Check, in order:
  • groupPolicy
  • channel allowlist (channels.slack.channels) — keys must be channel IDs (C12345678), not names (#channel-name). Name-based keys silently fail under groupPolicy: "allowlist" because channel routing is ID-first by default. To find an ID: right-click the channel in Slack → Copy link — the C... value at the end of the URL is the channel ID.
  • requireMention
  • per-channel users allowlist
  • messages.groupChat.visibleReplies: normal group/channel requests default to "automatic". If you opted into "message_tool" and logs show assistant text with no message(action=send) call, the model missed the visible message-tool path. Final text stays private in this mode; inspect the gateway verbose log for suppressed payload metadata, or set it to "automatic" if you want every normal assistant final reply posted through the legacy path.
  • messages.groupChat.unmentionedInbound: if it is "room_event", unmentioned allowed channel chatter is ambient context and stays silent unless the agent calls the message tool. See Ambient room events.
{
  messages: {
    groupChat: {
      visibleReplies: "automatic",
    },
  },
}
Useful commands:
openclaw channels status --probe
openclaw logs --follow
openclaw doctor
Check:
  • channels.slack.dm.enabled
  • channels.slack.dmPolicy (or legacy channels.slack.dm.policy)
  • pairing approvals / allowlist entries (dmPolicy: "open" still requires channels.slack.allowFrom: ["*"])
  • group DMs use MPIM handling; enable channels.slack.dm.groupEnabled and, if configured, include the MPIM in channels.slack.dm.groupChannels
  • Slack Assistant DM events: verbose logs mentioning drop message_changed usually mean Slack sent an edited Assistant-thread event without a recoverable human sender in message metadata
openclaw pairing list slack
Validate bot + app tokens and Socket Mode enablement in Slack app settings. The App-Level Token needs connections:write, and the Bot User OAuth Token bot token must belong to the same Slack app/workspace as the app token.If openclaw channels status --probe --json shows botTokenStatus or appTokenStatus: "configured_unavailable", the Slack account is configured but the current runtime could not resolve the SecretRef-backed value.Logs such as slack socket mode failed to start; retry ... are recoverable start failures. Missing scopes, revoked tokens, and invalid auth fail fast instead. A slack token mismatch ... log means the bot token and app token appear to belong to different Slack apps; fix the Slack app credentials.
Validate:
  • signing secret
  • webhook path
  • Slack Request URLs (Events + Interactivity + Slash Commands)
  • unique webhookPath per HTTP account
  • the public URL terminates TLS and forwards requests to the Gateway path
  • the Slack app request_url path exactly matches channels.slack.webhookPath (default /slack/events)
If signingSecretStatus: "configured_unavailable" appears in account snapshots, the HTTP account is configured but the current runtime could not resolve the SecretRef-backed signing secret.A repeated slack: webhook path ... already registered log means two HTTP accounts are using the same webhookPath; give each account a distinct path.
Verify whether you intended:
  • native command mode (channels.slack.commands.native: true) with matching slash commands registered in Slack
  • or single slash command mode (channels.slack.slashCommand.enabled: true)
Slack does not create or remove slash commands automatically. commands.native: "auto" does not enable Slack native commands; use true and create the matching commands in the Slack app. In HTTP mode, every Slack slash command must include the Gateway URL. In Socket Mode, command payloads arrive over the websocket and Slack ignores slash_commands[].url.Also check commands.useAccessGroups, DM authorization, channel allowlists, and per-channel users allowlists. Slack returns ephemeral errors for blocked slash-command senders, including:
  • This channel is not allowed.
  • You are not authorized to use this command here.

​
Attachment vision reference

Slack can attach downloaded media to the agent turn when Slack file downloads succeed and size limits permit. Image files can be passed through the media understanding path or directly to a vision-capable reply model; other files are retained as downloadable file context rather than treated as image input.

​
Supported media types

Media typeSourceCurrent behaviorNotes
JPEG / PNG / GIF / WebP imagesSlack file URLDownloaded and attached to the turn for vision-capable handlingPer-file cap: channels.slack.mediaMaxMb (default 20 MB)
PDF filesSlack file URLDownloaded and exposed as file context for tools such as download-file or pdfSlack inbound does not convert PDFs into image-vision input automatically
Other filesSlack file URLDownloaded when possible and exposed as file contextBinary files are not treated as image input
Thread repliesThread starter filesRoot-message files can be hydrated as context when the reply has no direct mediaFile-only starters use an attachment placeholder
Multi-image messagesMultiple Slack filesEach file is evaluated independentlySlack processing is capped at eight files per message

​
Inbound pipeline

When a Slack message with file attachments arrives:
  1. OpenClaw downloads the file from Slack’s private URL using the bot token.
  2. The file is written to the media store on success.
  3. Downloaded media paths and content types are added to the inbound context.
  4. Image-capable model/tool paths can use image attachments from that context.
  5. Non-image files remain available as file metadata or media references for tools that can handle them.

​
Thread-root attachment inheritance

When a message arrives in a thread (has a thread_ts parent):
  • If the reply itself has no direct media and the included root message has files, Slack can hydrate the root files as thread-starter context.
  • Direct reply attachments take precedence over root-message attachments.
  • A root message that has only files and no text is represented with an attachment placeholder so the fallback can still include its files.

​
Multi-attachment handling

When a single Slack message contains multiple file attachments:
  • Each attachment is processed independently through the media pipeline.
  • Downloaded media references are aggregated into the message context.
  • Processing order follows Slack’s file order in the event payload.
  • A failure in one attachment’s download does not block others.

​
Size, download, and model limits

  • Size cap: Default 20 MB per file. Configurable via channels.slack.mediaMaxMb.
  • Download failures: Files that Slack cannot serve, expired URLs, inaccessible files, oversize files, and Slack auth/login HTML responses are skipped instead of being reported as unsupported formats.
  • Vision model: Image analysis uses the active reply model when it supports vision, or the image model configured at agents.defaults.imageModel.

​
Known limits

ScenarioCurrent behaviorWorkaround
Expired Slack file URLFile skipped; no error shownRe-upload the file in Slack
Vision model not configuredImage attachments are stored as media references, but not analyzed as imagesConfigure agents.defaults.imageModel or use a vision-capable reply model
Very large images (> 20 MB by default)Skipped per size capIncrease channels.slack.mediaMaxMb if Slack allows
Forwarded/shared attachmentsText and Slack-hosted image/file media are best-effortRe-share directly in the OpenClaw thread
PDF attachmentsStored as file/media context, not automatically routed through image visionUse download-file for file metadata or the pdf tool for PDF analysis

Pairing

Pair a Slack user to the gateway.

Groups

Channel and group DM behavior.

Channel routing

Route inbound messages to agents.

Security

Threat model and hardening.

Configuration

Config layout and precedence.

Slash commands

Command catalog and behavior.