This app brings oft-used GitHub functionality - such as creating new issues - to Slack using functions and workflows.
Guide Outline:
- Supported Workflows
- Setup
- Create a Link Trigger
- Running Your Project Locally
- Deploying Your App
- Project Structure
- Resources
- Create new issue: Create and assign new issues in repositories.
Before getting started, make sure you have a development workspace where you have permissions to install apps. If you don’t have one set up, go ahead and create one. Also, please note that the workspace requires any of the Slack paid plans.
To use this sample, you first need to install and configure the Slack CLI. Step-by-step instructions can be found in our Quickstart Guide.
Start by cloning this repository:
# Clone this project onto your machine
$ slack create my-github-app -t slack-samples/deno-github-functions
# Change into this project directory
$ cd my-github-appWith external authentication you can connect your GitHub account to your Slack app to easily access the GitHub API from a custom function, creating a base for programmatic personalizations!
Connecting your GitHub account with external auth allows your application to perform the API calls used by functions as though it was from this GitHub account. This means all issues created from the Create GitHub issue workflow will appear to have been created by the account used when authenticating.
Begin by creating a new OAuth App from your developer settings on GitHub using any Application name and Homepage URL you'd like, but leaving Enable Device Flow unchecked.
The Authorization callback URL must be set to
https://oauth2.slack.com/external/auth/callback to later exchange tokens and
complete the OAuth2 handshake.
Once you're satisfied with these configurations, go ahead and click Register application!
Start by renaming the .env.example file at the top level of your project to
.env, being sure not to commit this file to version control. This file will
store sensitive, app-specific variables that are determined by the environment
being used.
From your new GitHub app's dashboard, copy the Client ID and paste it as the
value for GITHUB_CLIENT_ID in the .env file. This value will be used in
external_auth/github_provider.ts – the custom OAuth2 provider definition for
this GitHub app.
Once complete, use slack run or slack deploy to update your local or hosted
app!
Note: Unlike environment variables used at runtime, this variable is only used when generating your app manifest. Therefore, you do not need to use the
slack env addcommand to set this value for deployed apps.
Returning to your GitHub app's dashboard, press Generate a new client secret
then run the following command, replacing GITHUB_CLIENT_SECRET with your own
secret:
$ slack external-auth add-secret --provider github --secret GITHUB_CLIENT_SECRETWhen prompted to select an app, choose the (local) app only if you're running
the app locally.
With your GitHub OAuth application created and the Client ID and secret set, you're ready to initate the OAuth flow!
If all the right values are in place, then the following command will prompt you
to choose an app, select a provider (hint: choose the github one), then pick
the GitHub account you want to authenticate with:
$ slack external-auth addNote: when working with repositories that are part of an organization, be sure to grant access to that organization when authorizing your OAuth app.
After you've added your authentication, you'll need to assign it to the
#/workflows/create_new_issue_workflow workflow using the following command:
$ slack external-auth select-authOnce you've successfully connected your account, you're almost ready to create a link into your workflow!
When developing collaboratively on a deployed app, the external authentication tokens used for your app will be shared by all collaborators. For this reason, we recommend creating your GitHub OAuth App using an organization account so all collaborators can access the same account.
Local development does not require a shared account, as each developer will have their own local app and can individually add their own external authentication tokens.
Hosted custom functions must declare which
outgoing domains are used when making
network requests, including Github API calls. api.github.com is already
configured as an outgoing domain in this sample's manifest. If your organization
uses a separate Github Enterprise to make API calls to, add that domain to the
outgoingDomains array in manifest.ts.
Triggers are what cause workflows to run. These triggers can be invoked by a user, or automatically as a response to an event within Slack.
A link trigger is a type of Trigger that generates a Shortcut URL which, when posted in a channel or added as a bookmark, becomes a link. When clicked, the link trigger will run the associated workflow.
Link triggers are unique to each installed version of your app. This means
that Shortcut URLs will be different across each workspace, as well as between
locally run and
deployed apps. When creating a trigger, you must select
the Workspace that you'd like to create the trigger in. Each Workspace has a
development version (denoted by (local)), as well as a deployed version.
To create a link trigger for the "Create New Issue" workflow, run the following command:
$ slack trigger create --trigger-def triggers/create_new_issue_shortcut.tsAfter selecting a Workspace, the output provided will include the link trigger Shortcut URL. Copy and paste this URL into a channel as a message, or add it as a bookmark in a channel of the workspace you selected.
Note: this link won't run the workflow until the app is either running locally or deployed! Read on to learn how to run your app locally and eventually deploy it to Slack hosting.
While building your app, you can see your changes propagated to your workspace
in real-time with slack run. In both the CLI and in Slack, you'll know an app
is the development version if the name has the string (local) appended.
# Run app locally
$ slack run
Connected, awaiting eventsOnce running, click the
previously created Shortcut URL associated with the
(local) version of your app. This should start a workflow that opens a form
used to create a new GitHub issue!
To stop running locally, press <CTRL> + C to end the process.
Once you're done with development, you can deploy the production version of your
app to Slack hosting using slack deploy:
$ slack deployAfter deploying, create a new link trigger for the
production version of your app (not appended with (local)). Once the trigger
is invoked, the workflow should run just as it did in when developing locally.
Activity logs for the production instance of your application can be viewed with
the slack activity command:
$ slack activityThe app manifest contains the app's configuration. This file defines attributes like app name and description.
Used by the CLI to interact with the project's SDK dependencies. It contains script hooks that are executed by the CLI and implemented by the SDK.
Functions are reusable building blocks of automation that accept inputs, perform calculations, and provide outputs. Functions can be used independently or as steps in workflows.
A workflow is a set of steps that are executed in order. Each step in a Workflow is a function.
Workflows can be configured to run without user input or they can collect input by beginning with a form before continuing to the next step.
Triggers determine when workflows are executed. A trigger file describes a scenario in which a workflow should be run, such as a user pressing a button or when a specific event occurs.
To learn more about developing with the CLI, you can visit the following guides:
To view all documentation and guides available, visit the Overview page.