ossrules.md

slack

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.

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npx skills add 'https://github.com/vercel-labs/agent-browser/tree/main/skill-data/slack'
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main · aff6125 ↗Scanned 2026-09-17

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references/slack-tasks.md

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Common Slack Tasks & Patterns

Reference guide for common automations and data extraction patterns when interacting with Slack.

Task: Check All Unread Messages

Goal

Determine which channels and DMs have unread messages.

Steps

  1. Connect to Slack

    agent-browser connect 9222

  2. Check Activity Tab

    • Take snapshot: agent-browser snapshot -i
    • Look for Activity tab ref (usually @e14)
    • Click: agent-browser click @e14
    • Wait: agent-browser wait 1000
    • If you see "You've read all the unreads", you have no unread messages
    • Screenshot: agent-browser screenshot activity.png

  3. Check DMs

    • Click DMs tab ref (usually @e13)
    • Look for "Unreads" toggle/badge
    • Count visible conversations with indicators

  4. Check Channels

    • Look for "More unreads" button (usually in sidebar)
    • Click it to expand list of channels with unreads
    • Screenshot the expanded view
    • Parse channel names from snapshot

  5. Summary

    • Activity + DMs + Channels = complete unread picture

Evidence Capture

  • Screenshot of Activity tab
  • Screenshot of DMs
  • Screenshot of expanded unreads sidebar

Task: Find All Channels in Workspace

Goal

Get a complete list of all channels you have access to.

Steps

  1. Navigate to Channels section

    agent-browser connect 9222
agent-browser snapshot -i

  2. Look for "Channels" treeitem

    • This is usually a collapsed section header
    • Click to expand if collapsed
    • Screenshot: agent-browser screenshot all-channels.png

  3. Scroll through sidebar

    # If the list is long, scroll within the sidebar
agent-browser scroll down 500 --selector ".p-sidebar"
agent-browser screenshot channels-page-2.png

  4. Parse snapshot for channel list

    agent-browser snapshot --json > channels.json
# Search JSON for treeitem elements with level=2 under "Channels" section

Evidence

  • JSON snapshot with all channel refs
  • Screenshots of channel list
  • Count of total channels

Task: Search for Messages Containing Keywords

Goal

Find all messages/threads mentioning specific terms.

Steps

  1. Open search

    agent-browser snapshot -i
# Find Search button ref (usually @e5)
agent-browser click @e5
agent-browser wait 500

  2. Enter search term

    # Identify search input ref from snapshot
agent-browser fill @e_search_input "your keyword"
agent-browser press Enter
# Match the submitted query so a repeated search cannot reuse the old route.
agent-browser wait --fn "location.pathname.includes('/search') && new URL(location.href).searchParams.get('q') === 'your keyword'"

  3. Capture results

    agent-browser screenshot search-results.png
agent-browser snapshot -i > search-snapshot.txt

  4. Parse results

    • Look for result items in snapshot
    • Extract message content, sender, channel, timestamp
    • Follow links to view full context

Filters

Slack search supports filters:

  • in:channel-name - Search in specific channel
  • from:@user - Messages from specific user
  • before:2026-02-25 - Messages before date
  • after:2026-02-20 - Messages after date
  • has:file - Messages with files
  • has:emoji - Messages with reactions

Example search: "bug report" in:engineering from:@alice after:2026-02-20

Task: Monitor a Specific Channel for Activity

Goal

Watch a channel and capture new messages/engagement.

Steps

  1. Navigate to channel

    agent-browser connect 9222
agent-browser snapshot -i
# Find channel ref from sidebar
agent-browser click @e_channel_ref
# Replace `engineering` with the clicked channel's name, or wait for its known URL:
agent-browser wait --fn "document.querySelector('[data-qa=\"channel_header\"]')?.innerText.includes('engineering')"

  2. Check channel info

    • Screenshot channel details: agent-browser screenshot channel-header.png
    • Look for member count, description, topic

  3. View messages

    # Jump to recent/unread
agent-browser press j  # Jump to unread in Slack
agent-browser wait 500
agent-browser screenshot recent-messages.png

  4. Scroll to see more

    agent-browser scroll down 500
agent-browser screenshot more-messages.png

  5. Check threads

    • Click on messages with thread indicators
    • View replies in thread view
    • Screenshot: agent-browser screenshot thread.png

Evidence

  • Channel info screenshot
  • Message history screenshots
  • Thread examples

Task: Extract User Information from a Conversation

Goal

Find who said what, when, and in what context.

Steps

  1. Navigate to relevant channel or DM

    agent-browser click @e_conversation_ref
agent-browser wait 1000

  2. Take snapshot with context

    agent-browser snapshot --json > conversation.json

  3. Find message blocks

    • In JSON, look for document/listitem elements
    • These contain: user name (button), timestamp (link), message text, reactions

  4. Extract structured data

    • User: Found in button element with username
    • Time: Found in link with timestamp
    • Content: Text content of message
    • Reactions: Buttons showing emoji counts

  5. Screenshot key messages

    agent-browser screenshot important-message.png
agent-browser screenshot --annotate annotated-message.png

Task: Track Reactions to a Message

Goal

See who reacted to a message and with what emoji.

Steps

  1. Find message with reactions

    agent-browser snapshot -i
# Look for "N reaction(s)" buttons in messages

  2. Click reaction button to expand

    agent-browser click @e_reaction_button
agent-browser wait 500

  3. Capture reaction details

    agent-browser screenshot reactions.png
# You'll see emoji, count, and list of users who reacted

  4. Extract data

    • Emoji used
    • Number of people who reacted
    • User names (if visible in popup)

Task: Find and Review Pinned Messages

Goal

See messages that have been pinned in a channel.

Steps

  1. Open a channel

    agent-browser click @e_channel_ref
agent-browser wait 1000
agent-browser snapshot -i

  2. Click Pins tab

    • In channel view, look for "Pins" tab ref (usually near Messages, Files tabs)
    • Click it: agent-browser click @e_pins_tab
    • Wait: agent-browser wait 500

  3. View pinned messages

    agent-browser screenshot pins.png
agent-browser snapshot -i > pins-snapshot.txt

  4. Review each pin

    • Click pin to see context
    • Note who pinned it, when, and why
    • Screenshot: agent-browser screenshot pin-detail.png

In Slack snapshot, message timestamps appear as links. Example:

- link "Feb 25th at 10:26:22 AM" [ref=e151]
  - /url: https://vercel.slack.com/archives/C0A5RTN0856/p1772036782543189

The URL contains the timestamp in the fragment (p1772036782543189). This is a Slack message ID that uniquely identifies the message.

Pattern: Understanding Channel/Thread Structure

- treeitem "channel-name" [ref=e94] [level=2]
  - group: (contains channel metadata or sub-items)
  • level=1: Section headers (External connections, Starred, Channels, etc.)
  • level=2: Individual channels/items within sections
  • level=3+: Nested sub-items (rare in sidebar)

Common Ref Patterns (Session-Dependent)

These refs vary per session, but follow patterns:

ElementTypical Ref RangeHow to Find
Home tabe10-e20snapshot -i | grep "Home"
DMs tabe10-e20snapshot -i | grep "DMs"
Activity tabe10-e20snapshot -i | grep "Activity"
Searche5-e10snapshot -i | grep "Search"
More unreadse20-e30snapshot -i | grep "More unreads"
Channel refse30+snapshot -i | grep "treeitem"

Always take a fresh snapshot to find current refs for the current session.

Debugging: Element Not Found

If you can't find an element:

  1. Check it's visible

    # Is the element on screen or off-screen?
agent-browser screenshot current-state.png
# Compare screenshot to what you expected

  2. Try expanding/scrolling

    # Sidebar might need scrolling
agent-browser scroll down 300 --selector ".p-sidebar"
agent-browser snapshot -i

  3. Check current URL

    agent-browser get url
# Verify you're in the right section

  4. Wait for page to load

    agent-browser wait --fn "document.querySelector('[role=main]')"
agent-browser snapshot -i
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