Slack MCP Server

A read-only Model Context Protocol (MCP) server for accessing Slack workspace data. This server enables AI assistants like Claude to read channels, messages, threads, and user information from your Slack workspace.

Features

Tool	Description	Auth Required
list_channels	List all accessible public channels with pagination	Bot or User
get_channel_history	Retrieve message history from a specific channel	Bot or User
get_thread_replies	Get all replies in a message thread (including parent)	Bot or User
list_users	List all workspace users with pagination	Bot or User
get_user_profile	Get detailed profile information for a specific user	Bot or User
search_messages	Search messages across all channels	User only
refresh_credentials	Manually trigger credential refresh	User only

All read tools support cursor-based pagination. The refresh_credentials tool enables automatic credential management for user token authentication.

Installation

Prerequisites

• Node.js 20+
• pnpm (or npm/yarn)
• A Slack workspace with appropriate access

Setup

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/your-username/slack-mcp-server.git
cd slack-mcp-server

# Install dependencies
pnpm install

# Build the project
pnpm run build

Authentication

The server supports two authentication methods:

Option 1: Bot Token (Recommended)

Use a standard Slack Bot User OAuth token for most use cases.

1. Create a Slack App at api.slack.com/apps
2. Add the following Bot Token Scopes under OAuth & Permissions:
   • channels:read - List public channels
   • channels:history - Read channel messages
   • users:read - List workspace users
   • users.profile:read - Read user profiles
3. Install the app to your workspace
4. Copy the Bot User OAuth Token (starts with xoxb-)

export SLACK_BOT_TOKEN=xoxb-your-token-here

Option 2: User Token (Unofficial - Required for Search)

Use a user token to enable the search_messages tool. This method uses browser session credentials.

Warning: This authentication method uses unofficial session credentials extracted from your browser. It may violate Slack's Terms of Service. Session tokens expire and require manual re-extraction. Use at your own risk and only with workspaces where you have appropriate authorization.

1. Open your Slack workspace in a browser
2. Open Developer Tools (F12) → Application → Cookies
3. Find and copy the d cookie value (starts with xoxd-)
4. In the Network tab, find any API request and copy the token from the Authorization header (starts with xoxc-)

export SLACK_USER_TOKEN=xoxc-your-token-here
export SLACK_COOKIE_D=xoxd-your-cookie-here

Note: If both bot token and user token are configured, the bot token takes precedence.

Token Auto-Refresh (User Token Only)

User tokens expire periodically. The server can automatically refresh credentials to maintain uninterrupted access.

Required for auto-refresh:

export SLACK_USER_TOKEN=xoxc-your-token-here
export SLACK_COOKIE_D=xoxd-your-cookie-here
export SLACK_WORKSPACE=your-workspace-name  # e.g., "mycompany" from mycompany.slack.com

Optional configuration:

# Credential storage location (default: ~/.slack-mcp-server/credentials.json)
export SLACK_CREDENTIALS_PATH=/custom/path/credentials.json

# Refresh interval in days (default: 7)
export SLACK_REFRESH_INTERVAL_DAYS=7

# Enable/disable auto-refresh (default: true)
export SLACK_REFRESH_ENABLED=true

How it works:

1. On startup, credentials are loaded from storage (if available) or saved from environment variables
2. Every hour, the system checks if refresh is due based on the configured interval
3. When due, both xoxc token and d cookie are refreshed via a request to your workspace
4. New credentials are persisted to the credentials file with secure permissions (0600)
5. If refresh fails, retries occur with exponential backoff (max 3 attempts)
6. You can also manually trigger refresh using the refresh_credentials tool

Usage

Running the Server

# With bot token
SLACK_BOT_TOKEN=xoxb-... pnpm start

# With user token (enables search)
SLACK_USER_TOKEN=xoxc-... SLACK_COOKIE_D=xoxd-... pnpm start

Claude Code Configuration

Add this MCP server to Claude Code:

# With bot token
claude mcp add slack -- node /absolute/path/to/slack-mcp-server/build/index.js \
  -e SLACK_BOT_TOKEN=xoxb-your-token-here

# With user token (enables search)
claude mcp add slack -- node /absolute/path/to/slack-mcp-server/build/index.js \
  -e SLACK_USER_TOKEN=xoxc-your-token-here \
  -e SLACK_COOKIE_D=xoxd-your-cookie-here

To verify the server is configured:

claude mcp list

Tool Reference

list_channels

List all accessible public channels in the workspace.

Parameters:

• limit (optional): Maximum channels to return (1-1000, default: 100)
• cursor (optional): Pagination cursor from previous response
• exclude_archived (optional): Exclude archived channels (default: true)

get_channel_history

Retrieve message history from a specific channel.

Parameters:

• channel_id (required): Channel ID (e.g., C1234567890)
• limit (optional): Maximum messages to return (1-1000, default: 50)
• cursor (optional): Pagination cursor
• oldest (optional): Only messages after this timestamp
• latest (optional): Only messages before this timestamp

get_thread_replies

Retrieve all replies in a message thread.

Parameters:

• channel_id (required): Channel ID containing the thread
• thread_ts (required): Timestamp of the parent message
• limit (optional): Maximum replies to return (1-1000, default: 50)
• cursor (optional): Pagination cursor

list_users

List all users in the workspace.

Parameters:

• limit (optional): Maximum users to return (1-1000, default: 200)
• cursor (optional): Pagination cursor

get_user_profile

Get detailed profile information for a specific user.

Parameters:

• user_id (required): User ID (e.g., U1234567890)

search_messages

Search for messages across all accessible channels. Requires user token authentication.

Parameters:

• query (required): Search query (supports Slack modifiers: from:, in:, before:, after:)
• sort (optional): Sort by score or timestamp (default: score)
• sort_dir (optional): Sort direction asc or desc (default: desc)
• count (optional): Results per page (1-100, default: 20)
• page (optional): Page number (default: 1)

refresh_credentials

Manually trigger a refresh of Slack user credentials. Requires user token authentication with SLACK_WORKSPACE configured.

Parameters: None

Returns:

• On success: { success: true, message, refreshedAt, totalRefreshes }
• On failure: { success: false, error: { code, message, retryable } }

Error codes:

• REFRESH_NOT_AVAILABLE - Bot token auth or workspace not configured
• REFRESH_IN_PROGRESS - Another refresh is already running
• SESSION_REVOKED - Credentials invalidated, manual re-auth required
• NETWORK_ERROR - Connectivity issue (retryable)

Disclaimer

This project is not affiliated with Slack Technologies, LLC.

User token authentication is unofficial and may not comply with Slack's Terms of Service. Bot token authentication is the recommended approach.