1---
2name: slack
3description: Interact with Slack workspaces using browser automation. Use when the user needs to check unread channels, navigate Slack, send messages, extract data, find information, search conversations, or automate any Slack task. Triggers include "check my Slack", "what channels have unreads", "send a message to", "search Slack for", "extract from Slack", "find who said", or any task requiring programmatic Slack interaction.
4allowed-tools: Bash(agent-browser:*), Bash(npx agent-browser:*)
5---
6 
7# Slack Automation
8 
9Interact with Slack workspaces to check messages, extract data, and automate common tasks.
10 
11## Quick Start
12 
13Connect to an existing Slack browser session or open Slack:
14 
15```bash
16# Connect to existing session on port 9222 (typical for already-open Slack)
17agent-browser connect 9222
18 
19# Or open Slack if not already running
20agent-browser open https://app.slack.com
21```
22 
23Then take a snapshot to see what's available:
24 
25```bash
26agent-browser snapshot -i
27```
28 
29## Core Workflow
30 
311. **Connect/Navigate**: Open or connect to Slack
322. **Snapshot**: Get interactive elements with refs (`@e1`, `@e2`, etc.)
333. **Navigate**: Click tabs, expand sections, or navigate to specific channels
344. **Extract/Interact**: Read data or perform actions
355. **Screenshot**: Capture evidence of findings
36 
37```bash
38# Example: Check unread channels
39agent-browser connect 9222
40agent-browser snapshot -i
41# Look for "More unreads" button
42agent-browser click @e21  # Ref for "More unreads" button
43agent-browser screenshot slack-unreads.png
44```
45 
46## Common Tasks
47 
48### Checking Unread Messages
49 
50```bash
51# Connect to Slack
52agent-browser connect 9222
53 
54# Take snapshot to locate unreads button
55agent-browser snapshot -i
56 
57# Look for:
58# - "More unreads" button (usually near top of sidebar)
59# - "Unreads" toggle in Activity tab (shows unread count)
60# - Channel names with badges/bold text indicating unreads
61 
62# Navigate to Activity tab to see all unreads in one view
63agent-browser click @e14  # Activity tab (ref may vary)
64agent-browser wait 1000
65agent-browser screenshot activity-unreads.png
66 
67# Or check DMs tab
68agent-browser click @e13  # DMs tab
69agent-browser screenshot dms.png
70 
71# Or expand "More unreads" in sidebar
72agent-browser click @e21  # More unreads button
73agent-browser wait 500
74agent-browser screenshot expanded-unreads.png
75```
76 
77### Navigating to a Channel
78 
79```bash
80# Search for channel in sidebar or by name
81agent-browser snapshot -i
82 
83# Look for channel name in the list (e.g., "engineering", "product-design")
84# Click on the channel treeitem ref
85agent-browser click @e94  # Example: engineering channel ref
86agent-browser wait --load networkidle
87agent-browser screenshot channel.png
88```
89 
90### Finding Messages/Threads
91 
92```bash
93# Use Slack search
94agent-browser snapshot -i
95agent-browser click @e5  # Search button (typical ref)
96agent-browser fill @e_search "keyword"
97agent-browser press Enter
98agent-browser wait --load networkidle
99agent-browser screenshot search-results.png
100```
101 
102### Extracting Channel Information
103 
104```bash
105# Get list of all visible channels
106agent-browser snapshot --json > slack-snapshot.json
107 
108# Parse for channel names and metadata
109# Look for treeitem elements with level=2 (sub-channels under sections)
110```
111 
112### Checking Channel Details
113 
114```bash
115# Open a channel
116agent-browser click @e_channel_ref
117agent-browser wait 1000
118 
119# Get channel info (members, description, etc.)
120agent-browser snapshot -i
121agent-browser screenshot channel-details.png
122 
123# Scroll through messages
124agent-browser scroll down 500
125agent-browser screenshot channel-messages.png
126```
127 
128### Taking Notes/Capturing State
129 
130When you need to document findings from Slack:
131 
132```bash
133# Take annotated screenshot (shows element numbers)
134agent-browser screenshot --annotate slack-state.png
135 
136# Take full-page screenshot
137agent-browser screenshot --full slack-full.png
138 
139# Get current URL for reference
140agent-browser get url
141 
142# Get page title
143agent-browser get title
144```
145 
146## Sidebar Structure
147 
148Understanding Slack's sidebar helps you navigate efficiently:
149 
150```
151- Threads
152- Huddles
153- Drafts & sent
154- Directories
155- [Section Headers - External connections, Starred, Channels, etc.]
156  - [Channels listed as treeitems]
157- Direct Messages
158  - [DMs listed]
159- Apps
160  - [App shortcuts]
161- [More unreads] button (toggles unread channels list)
162```
163 
164Key refs to look for:
165- `@e12` - Home tab (usually)
166- `@e13` - DMs tab
167- `@e14` - Activity tab
168- `@e5` - Search button
169- `@e21` - More unreads button (varies by session)
170 
171## Tabs in Slack
172 
173After clicking on a channel, you'll see tabs:
174- **Messages** - Channel conversation
175- **Files** - Shared files
176- **Pins** - Pinned messages
177- **Add canvas** - Collaborative canvas
178- Other tabs depending on workspace setup
179 
180Click tab refs to switch views and get different information.
181 
182## Extracting Data from Slack
183 
184### Get Text Content
185 
186```bash
187# Get a message or element's text
188agent-browser get text @e_message_ref
189```
190 
191### Parse Accessibility Tree
192 
193```bash
194# Full snapshot as JSON for programmatic parsing
195agent-browser snapshot --json > output.json
196 
197# Look for:
198# - Channel names (name field in treeitem)
199# - Message content (in listitem/document elements)
200# - User names (button elements with user info)
201# - Timestamps (link elements with time info)
202```
203 
204### Count Unreads
205 
206```bash
207# After expanding unreads section:
208agent-browser snapshot -i | grep -c "treeitem"
209# Each treeitem with a channel name in the unreads section is one unread
210```
211 
212## Best Practices
213 
214- **Connect to existing sessions**: Use `agent-browser connect 9222` if Slack is already open. This is faster than opening a new browser.
215- **Take snapshots before clicking**: Always `snapshot -i` to identify refs before clicking buttons.
216- **Re-snapshot after navigation**: After navigating to a new channel or section, take a fresh snapshot to find new refs.
217- **Use JSON snapshots for parsing**: When you need to extract structured data, use `snapshot --json` for machine-readable output.
218- **Pace interactions**: Add `sleep 1` between rapid interactions to let the UI update.
219- **Check accessibility tree**: The accessibility tree shows what screen readers (and your automation) can see. If an element isn't in the snapshot, it may be hidden or require scrolling.
220- **Scroll in sidebar**: Use `agent-browser scroll down 300 --selector ".p-sidebar"` to scroll within the Slack sidebar if channel list is long.
221 
222## Limitations
223 
224- **Cannot access Slack API**: This uses browser automation, not the Slack API. No OAuth, webhooks, or bot tokens needed.
225- **Session-specific**: Screenshots and snapshots are tied to the current browser session.
226- **Rate limiting**: Slack may rate-limit rapid interactions. Add delays between commands if needed.
227- **Workspace-specific**: You interact with your own workspace -- no cross-workspace automation.
228 
229## Debugging
230 
231### Check console for errors
232 
233```bash
234agent-browser console
235agent-browser errors
236```
237 
238### Get current page state
239 
240```bash
241agent-browser get url
242agent-browser get title
243agent-browser screenshot page-state.png
244```
245 
246## Example: Full Unread Check
247 
248```bash
249#!/bin/bash
250 
251# Connect to Slack
252agent-browser connect 9222
253 
254# Take initial snapshot
255echo "=== Checking Slack unreads ==="
256agent-browser snapshot -i > snapshot.txt
257 
258# Check Activity tab for unreads
259agent-browser click @e14  # Activity tab
260agent-browser wait 1000
261agent-browser screenshot activity.png
262ACTIVITY_RESULT=$(agent-browser get text @e_main_area)
263echo "Activity: $ACTIVITY_RESULT"
264 
265# Check DMs
266agent-browser click @e13  # DMs tab
267agent-browser wait 1000
268agent-browser screenshot dms.png
269 
270# Check unread channels in sidebar
271agent-browser click @e21  # More unreads button
272agent-browser wait 500
273agent-browser snapshot -i > unreads-expanded.txt
274agent-browser screenshot unreads.png
275 
276# Summary
277echo "=== Summary ==="
278echo "See activity.png, dms.png, and unreads.png for full details"
279```
280 
281## References
282 
283- **Slack docs**: https://slack.com/help
284- **Web experience**: https://app.slack.com
285- **Keyboard shortcuts**: Type `?` in Slack for shortcut list
286