Version: 0.0.2

How to Run Slack MCP Server

This guide explains how to run and configure the Slack MCP Server after installation.

Configuration

Before running the server, you need to set up your Slack API token. The server supports multiple configuration methods with a clear priority order.

Configuration Priority Order

When running the server, configuration values are loaded in this priority order:

.env file (HIGHEST PRIORITY) - Values in your .env file override everything
CLI arguments (--slack-token) - Used as fallback if not set in .env file
Environment variables - Already set environment variables (lowest priority)

This means your .env file values will always take precedence over CLI arguments, making environment management easier and more predictable.

Using a .env File (Recommended)

The recommended approach is to use a .env file for managing your configuration:

Create a .env file in your project directory:

# Copy the example file
cp .env.example .env

# Edit with your values
# .env file content:
SLACK_BOT_TOKEN=xoxb-your-slack-bot-token
SLACK_TEST_CHANNEL=#dev-testing
QUEUE_BACKEND=memory

Run the server (automatically loads from .env):

pip
poetry
uv

# Automatically loads from .env in current directory
slack-mcp-server

# Or specify a custom env file path
slack-mcp-server --env-file .env.production

# Automatically loads from .env in current directory
poetry run slack-mcp-server

# Or specify a custom env file path
poetry run slack-mcp-server --env-file .env.production

# Automatically loads from .env in current directory
uv run slack-mcp-server

# Or specify a custom env file path
uv run slack-mcp-server --env-file .env.production

Using Command-line Arguments (Fallback)

You can provide your API token directly as a command-line argument. This is useful for quick testing or when you want to disable .env file loading:

pip
poetry
uv

# Use CLI argument as fallback (if not in .env file)
slack-mcp-server --slack-token xoxb-your-token

# Disable .env file loading to force CLI argument usage
slack-mcp-server --slack-token xoxb-your-token --no-env-file

# Use CLI argument as fallback (if not in .env file)
poetry run slack-mcp-server --slack-token xoxb-your-token

# Disable .env file loading to force CLI argument usage
poetry run slack-mcp-server --slack-token xoxb-your-token --no-env-file

# Use CLI argument as fallback (if not in .env file)
uv run slack-mcp-server --slack-token xoxb-your-token

# Disable .env file loading to force CLI argument usage
uv run slack-mcp-server --slack-token xoxb-your-token --no-env-file

Using Environment Variables

Set environment variables directly in your shell:

pip
poetry
uv

# Set environment variable
export SLACK_BOT_TOKEN=xoxb-your-token

# Run server (uses environment variable if not in .env)
slack-mcp-server

# Set environment variable
export SLACK_BOT_TOKEN=xoxb-your-token

# Run server (uses environment variable if not in .env)
poetry run slack-mcp-server

# Set environment variable
export SLACK_BOT_TOKEN=xoxb-your-token

# Run server (uses environment variable if not in .env)
uv run slack-mcp-server

Running the Server

Alternative Deployment Options

This section covers running the server with Python. For containerized deployments, see 🐳 Docker Usage section below, which provides multiple server modes and production-ready configurations.

Basic Usage

Start the server with default settings using Python:

pip
poetry
uv

slack-mcp-server

poetry run slack-mcp-server

uv run slack-mcp-server

This will start the server with HTTP streaming transport on port 8000.

Specifying Transport Type

You can choose between HTTP streaming and Server-Sent Events (SSE) transport:

pip
poetry
uv

For HTTP streaming (default)

slack-mcp-server --transport streamable-http

For SSE

slack-mcp-server --transport sse

For HTTP streaming (default)

poetry run slack-mcp-server --transport streamable-http

For SSE

poetry run slack-mcp-server --transport sse

For HTTP streaming (default)

uv run slack-mcp-server --transport streamable-http

For SSE

uv run slack-mcp-server --transport sse

Custom Port

Run the server on a specific port:

pip
poetry
uv

slack-mcp-server --port 8080

poetry run slack-mcp-server --port 8080

uv run slack-mcp-server --port 8080

Full Example

pip
poetry
uv

slack-mcp-server --env /path/to/.env --transport sse --port 8080

poetry run slack-mcp-server --env /path/to/.env --transport sse --port 8080

uv run slack-mcp-server --env /path/to/.env --transport sse --port 8080

🐳 Docker Usage

The Slack MCP Server provides a Docker image for easy deployment and containerized environments. The Docker container supports multiple server modes controlled by environment variables.

Quick Start with Docker

Pull and run the Docker image:

# Pull the latest image
docker pull chisanan232/slack-mcp-server:latest

# Run with minimal configuration (defaults to MCP server)
docker run -d -p 8000:8000 \
  -e SLACK_BOT_TOKEN=xoxb-your-bot-token-here \
  chisanan232/slack-mcp-server

Docker Server Modes

The Docker container uses the SERVICE_TYPE environment variable to determine which server to run:

SERVICE_TYPE	Description	Entry Point
`mcp` (default)	MCP server only	`slack-mcp-server`
`webhook`	Webhook server only	`slack-events-server`
`integrated`	Combined MCP + webhook via MCP entry	`slack-mcp-server --integrated`
`integrated-webhook`	Combined MCP + webhook via webhook entry	`slack-events-server --integrated`

Environment Variables by Mode

🎯 Main Control Variable

Environment Variable	Description	Default
`SERVICE_TYPE`	Server mode: `mcp`, `webhook`, `integrated`, `integrated-webhook`	`mcp`

🤖 MCP Server Variables (SERVICE_TYPE=mcp or integrated)

Core Configuration:

Environment Variable	Description	Default
`SLACK_BOT_TOKEN`	Slack bot token (required) - format: xoxb-...	-
`MCP_TRANSPORT`	Transport mode: `stdio`, `sse`, `streamable-http`	`stdio`
`MCP_HOST`	Host for HTTP transports	-
`MCP_PORT`	Port for HTTP transports	-
`MCP_MOUNT_PATH`	Mount path for HTTP transports	-
`MCP_LOG_LEVEL`	Logging level (case-insensitive): `debug`, `info`, `warning`, `error`, `critical`	`info`
`MCP_LOG_FILE`	Path to log file (enables file logging with auto-rotation)	-
`MCP_LOG_DIR`	Directory for log files	`logs`
`MCP_LOG_FORMAT`	Custom log format string	-
`MCP_ENV_FILE`	Path to custom .env file	-
`MCP_NO_ENV_FILE`	Disable .env file loading (set to `true`)	-
`MCP_INTEGRATED`	Enable integrated mode (set to `true`)	-
`MCP_RETRY`	Number of retry attempts for network operations	-

🪝 Webhook Server Variables (SERVICE_TYPE=webhook or integrated-webhook)

Core Configuration:

Environment Variable	Description	Default
`SLACK_BOT_TOKEN`	Slack bot token (required) - format: xoxb-...	-
`SLACK_WEBHOOK_HOST`	Host to listen on	-
`SLACK_WEBHOOK_PORT`	Port to listen on	-
`SLACK_WEBHOOK_LOG_LEVEL`	Logging level (case-insensitive): `debug`, `info`, `warning`, `error`, `critical`	`info`
`SLACK_WEBHOOK_LOG_FILE`	Path to log file (enables file logging with auto-rotation)	-
`SLACK_WEBHOOK_LOG_DIR`	Directory for log files	`logs`
`SLACK_WEBHOOK_LOG_FORMAT`	Custom log format string	-
`SLACK_WEBHOOK_ENV_FILE`	Path to custom .env file	-
`SLACK_WEBHOOK_NO_ENV_FILE`	Disable .env file loading (set to `true`)	-
`SLACK_WEBHOOK_INTEGRATED`	Enable integrated mode (set to `true`)	-
`SLACK_WEBHOOK_MCP_TRANSPORT`	MCP transport for integrated mode	-
`SLACK_WEBHOOK_MCP_MOUNT_PATH`	MCP mount path for integrated mode	-
`SLACK_WEBHOOK_RETRY`	Number of retry attempts	-

Docker Examples by Mode

🤖 MCP Server Mode

stdio (default)
stdio with logging
SSE
SSE with logging
Streamable HTTP

# MCP server with stdio transport (no HTTP port needed)
docker run -d \
  -e SERVICE_TYPE=mcp \
  -e SLACK_BOT_TOKEN=xoxb-your-token \
  chisanan232/slack-mcp-server

# MCP server with stdio transport and file logging
docker run -d \
  -e SERVICE_TYPE=mcp \
  -e MCP_LOG_LEVEL=debug \
  -e MCP_LOG_FILE=/app/logs/mcp.log \
  -e SLACK_BOT_TOKEN=xoxb-your-token \
  -v $(pwd)/logs:/app/logs \
  chisanan232/slack-mcp-server

# MCP server with SSE transport
docker run -d -p 8000:8000 \
  -e SERVICE_TYPE=mcp \
  -e MCP_TRANSPORT=sse \
  -e MCP_HOST=0.0.0.0 \
  -e MCP_PORT=8000 \
  -e SLACK_BOT_TOKEN=xoxb-your-token \
  chisanan232/slack-mcp-server

# MCP server with SSE transport and comprehensive logging
docker run -d -p 8000:8000 \
  -e SERVICE_TYPE=mcp \
  -e MCP_TRANSPORT=sse \
  -e MCP_HOST=0.0.0.0 \
  -e MCP_PORT=8000 \
  -e MCP_LOG_LEVEL=debug \
  -e MCP_LOG_FILE=/app/logs/mcp-server.log \
  -e MCP_LOG_DIR=/app/logs \
  -e SLACK_BOT_TOKEN=xoxb-your-token \
  -v $(pwd)/logs:/app/logs \
  chisanan232/slack-mcp-server

# MCP server with streamable HTTP transport
docker run -d -p 8000:8000 \
  -e SERVICE_TYPE=mcp \
  -e MCP_TRANSPORT=streamable-http \
  -e MCP_HOST=0.0.0.0 \
  -e MCP_PORT=8000 \
  -e SLACK_BOT_TOKEN=xoxb-your-token \
  chisanan232/slack-mcp-server

🪝 Webhook Server Mode

Basic
With Logging

# Standalone webhook server
docker run -d -p 3000:3000 \
  -e SERVICE_TYPE=webhook \
  -e SLACK_WEBHOOK_HOST=0.0.0.0 \
  -e SLACK_WEBHOOK_PORT=3000 \
  -e SLACK_BOT_TOKEN=xoxb-your-token \
  chisanan232/slack-mcp-server

# Webhook server with file logging
docker run -d -p 3000:3000 \
  -e SERVICE_TYPE=webhook \
  -e SLACK_WEBHOOK_HOST=0.0.0.0 \
  -e SLACK_WEBHOOK_PORT=3000 \
  -e SLACK_WEBHOOK_LOG_LEVEL=debug \
  -e SLACK_WEBHOOK_LOG_FILE=/app/logs/webhook.log \
  -e SLACK_BOT_TOKEN=xoxb-your-token \
  -v $(pwd)/logs:/app/logs \
  chisanan232/slack-mcp-server

🔗 Integrated Server Mode

Via MCP Entry
Via Webhook Entry

# Integrated server via MCP entry point
docker run -d -p 8000:8000 \
  -e SERVICE_TYPE=integrated \
  -e MCP_TRANSPORT=sse \
  -e MCP_HOST=0.0.0.0 \
  -e MCP_PORT=8000 \
  -e SLACK_BOT_TOKEN=xoxb-your-token \
  chisanan232/slack-mcp-server

# Integrated server via webhook entry point
docker run -d -p 3000:3000 \
  -e SERVICE_TYPE=integrated-webhook \
  -e SLACK_WEBHOOK_HOST=0.0.0.0 \
  -e SLACK_WEBHOOK_PORT=3000 \
  -e SLACK_WEBHOOK_MCP_TRANSPORT=sse \
  -e SLACK_BOT_TOKEN=xoxb-your-token \
  chisanan232/slack-mcp-server

📋 Logging Configuration

The server provides comprehensive logging features for both production and development:

Logging Features

✅ Case-Insensitive Log Levels: Use debug, DEBUG, or Debug - all work!
✅ File Logging: Automatic log rotation at 10MB with 5 backup files
✅ Custom Formats: Customize log output format for your needs
✅ Directory Management: Organize logs in custom directories

Log Levels

Level	Description	Use Case
`DEBUG`	Detailed diagnostic information (verbose)	Development and troubleshooting
`INFO`	General informational messages (default)	Production monitoring
`WARNING`	Warning messages for potential issues	Production monitoring
`ERROR`	Error messages for serious problems	Production error tracking
`CRITICAL`	Critical error messages for fatal issues	Production critical alerts

Complete Logging Example

# MCP Server with all logging options
docker run -d -p 8000:8000 \
  -e SERVICE_TYPE=mcp \
  -e MCP_TRANSPORT=sse \
  -e MCP_HOST=0.0.0.0 \
  -e MCP_PORT=8000 \
  -e MCP_LOG_LEVEL=debug \
  -e MCP_LOG_FILE=/app/logs/mcp-server.log \
  -e MCP_LOG_DIR=/app/logs \
  -e MCP_LOG_FORMAT="%(asctime)s [%(levelname)s] %(name)s: %(message)s" \
  -e SLACK_BOT_TOKEN=xoxb-your-token \
  -v $(pwd)/logs:/app/logs \
  chisanan232/slack-mcp-server

Log Rotation Behavior

Automatically rotates when log file reaches 10MB
Keeps 5 backup files (e.g., mcp.log.1, mcp.log.2, ..., mcp.log.5)
Oldest backup is deleted on next rotation
Uses UTF-8 encoding by default

Using Environment Files with Docker

Create a .env file for your configuration:

# Required Slack tokens
SLACK_BOT_TOKEN=xoxb-your-slack-bot-token-here
SLACK_SIGNING_SECRET=your-slack-signing-secret

# Optional Slack configuration
SLACK_BOT_ID=your-slack-bot-id
SLACK_USER_TOKEN=xoxp-your-user-token
SLACK_TEST_CHANNEL=#your-test-channel
SLACK_TEST_CHANNEL_ID=C1234567890

# Message queue backend (memory, redis, kafka)
QUEUE_BACKEND=memory
REDIS_URL=redis://localhost:6379/0
KAFKA_BOOTSTRAP=broker:9092

Mount the .env file when running the container:

docker run -d -p 8000:8000 \
  -v $(pwd)/.env:/app/.env \
  -e SERVICE_TYPE=mcp \
  -e MCP_TRANSPORT=sse \
  -e MCP_HOST=0.0.0.0 \
  -e MCP_PORT=8000 \
  chisanan232/slack-mcp-server

Docker Compose Example

Create a docker-compose.yml file:

version: '3.8'

services:
  slack-mcp-server:
    image: chisanan232/slack-mcp-server:latest
    ports:
      - "8000:8000"
    environment:
      - SERVICE_TYPE=integrated
      - MCP_TRANSPORT=sse
      - MCP_HOST=0.0.0.0
      - MCP_PORT=8000
      - MCP_LOG_LEVEL=info
      - MCP_LOG_FILE=/app/logs/mcp.log
      - SLACK_BOT_TOKEN=${SLACK_BOT_TOKEN}
    volumes:
      - ./logs:/app/logs
    env_file:
      - .env
    restart: unless-stopped
    healthcheck:
      test: ["CMD", "curl", "-f", "http://localhost:8000/health"]
      interval: 30s
      timeout: 10s
      retries: 3

  # Example with Redis backend
  slack-mcp-redis:
    image: chisanan232/slack-mcp-server:latest
    ports:
      - "8001:8000"
    environment:
      - SERVICE_TYPE=integrated
      - MCP_TRANSPORT=sse
      - MCP_HOST=0.0.0.0
      - MCP_PORT=8000
      - SLACK_BOT_TOKEN=${SLACK_BOT_TOKEN}
      - QUEUE_BACKEND=redis
      - REDIS_URL=redis://redis:6379/0
    depends_on:
      - redis
    restart: unless-stopped

  redis:
    image: redis:7-alpine
    ports:
      - "6379:6379"
    restart: unless-stopped

Run with Docker Compose:

# Start services
docker-compose up -d

# View logs
docker-compose logs -f slack-mcp-server

# Stop services
docker-compose down

Production Deployment Tips

🔒 Security Best Practices

Use Docker Secrets for sensitive data:

# Create secret
echo "xoxb-your-token" | docker secret create slack_bot_token -

# Use in container
docker service create \
  --name slack-mcp \
  --secret slack_bot_token \
  -e SLACK_BOT_TOKEN_FILE=/run/secrets/slack_bot_token \
  chisanan232/slack-mcp-server

Use multi-stage builds for smaller images:

FROM chisanan232/slack-mcp-server:latest
# Add your custom configuration

Run as non-root user:

docker run --user 1000:1000 \
  -e SLACK_BOT_TOKEN=xoxb-your-token \
  chisanan232/slack-mcp-server

📊 Monitoring and Logging

Health Check Configuration:

docker run -d \
  --health-cmd="curl -f http://localhost:8000/health || exit 1" \
  --health-interval=30s \
  --health-timeout=10s \
  --health-retries=3 \
  chisanan232/slack-mcp-server

Application Log Management:

# Enable file logging with rotation
docker run -d -p 8000:8000 \
  -e MCP_LOG_LEVEL=info \
  -e MCP_LOG_FILE=/app/logs/mcp.log \
  -e MCP_LOG_DIR=/app/logs \
  -v $(pwd)/logs:/app/logs \
  chisanan232/slack-mcp-server

Docker Log Driver Configuration:

# Configure Docker's log driver for container logs
docker run -d \
  --log-driver=json-file \
  --log-opt max-size=10m \
  --log-opt max-file=3 \
  -e MCP_LOG_LEVEL=warning \
  chisanan232/slack-mcp-server

🚀 Scaling and Load Balancing

For high-availability deployments:

# docker-compose.yml for load balancing
version: '3.8'
services:
  nginx:
    image: nginx:alpine
    ports:
      - "80:80"
    volumes:
      - ./nginx.conf:/etc/nginx/nginx.conf
    depends_on:
      - slack-mcp-1
      - slack-mcp-2

  slack-mcp-1:
    image: chisanan232/slack-mcp-server:latest
    environment:
      - SERVICE_TYPE=integrated
      - MCP_TRANSPORT=sse
      - MCP_HOST=0.0.0.0
      - MCP_PORT=8000

  slack-mcp-2:
    image: chisanan232/slack-mcp-server:latest
    environment:
      - SERVICE_TYPE=integrated
      - MCP_TRANSPORT=sse
      - MCP_HOST=0.0.0.0
      - MCP_PORT=8000

Verifying Server Operation

Once the server is running, you can verify it's working by accessing:

curl http://localhost:8000/health

You should receive a JSON response confirming the server is operational.

Configuration​

Using a .env File (Recommended)​

Using Command-line Arguments (Fallback)​

Using Environment Variables​

Running the Server​

Basic Usage​

Specifying Transport Type​

Custom Port​

Full Example​

🐳 Docker Usage​

Quick Start with Docker​

Docker Server Modes​

Environment Variables by Mode​

🎯 Main Control Variable​

🤖 MCP Server Variables (SERVICE_TYPE=mcp or integrated)​

🪝 Webhook Server Variables (SERVICE_TYPE=webhook or integrated-webhook)​

Docker Examples by Mode​

🤖 MCP Server Mode​

🪝 Webhook Server Mode​

🔗 Integrated Server Mode​

📋 Logging Configuration​

Logging Features​

Log Levels​

Complete Logging Example​

Log Rotation Behavior​

Using Environment Files with Docker​

Docker Compose Example​

Production Deployment Tips​

🔒 Security Best Practices​

📊 Monitoring and Logging​

🚀 Scaling and Load Balancing​

Verifying Server Operation​

Configuration

Using a .env File (Recommended)

Using Command-line Arguments (Fallback)

Using Environment Variables

Running the Server

Basic Usage

Specifying Transport Type

Custom Port

Full Example

🐳 Docker Usage

Quick Start with Docker

Docker Server Modes

Environment Variables by Mode

🎯 Main Control Variable

🤖 MCP Server Variables (SERVICE_TYPE=mcp or integrated)

🪝 Webhook Server Variables (SERVICE_TYPE=webhook or integrated-webhook)

Docker Examples by Mode

🤖 MCP Server Mode

🪝 Webhook Server Mode

🔗 Integrated Server Mode

📋 Logging Configuration

Logging Features

Log Levels

Complete Logging Example

Log Rotation Behavior

Using Environment Files with Docker

Docker Compose Example

Production Deployment Tips

🔒 Security Best Practices

📊 Monitoring and Logging

🚀 Scaling and Load Balancing

Verifying Server Operation