Bolt for JavaScript Custom Step Template

This is a Bolt for JavaScript template app used to build custom steps for use in Workflow Builder.

Setup

Before getting started, make sure you have a development workspace where you have permissions to install apps. If you don't have one setup, go ahead and create one.

Developer Program

Join the Slack Developer Program for exclusive access to sandbox environments for building and testing your apps, tooling, and resources created to help you build and grow.

Installation

Using Slack CLI

Install the latest version of the Slack CLI for your operating system:

• Slack CLI for macOS & Linux
• Slack CLI for Windows

You'll also need to log in if this is your first time using the Slack CLI.

slack login

Initializing the project

slack create my-bolt-js-custom-step --template slack-samples/bolt-js-custom-step-template
cd my-bolt-js-custom-step

After cloning, you're all set to start developing!

Using Terminal

Create Your Slack App

1. Open https://api.slack.com/apps/new and choose "From an app manifest"
2. Choose the workspace you want to install the application to
3. Copy the contents of manifest.json into the text box that says *Paste your manifest code here* (within the JSON tab) and click Next
4. Review the configuration and click Create
5. Click Install to Workspace and Allow on the screen that follows. You'll then be redirected to the App Configuration dashboard.

Environment Variables

Before you can run the app, you'll need to store some environment variables.

1. Rename .env.sample to .env
2. Open your apps configuration page from this list, click OAuth & Permissions in the left hand menu, then copy the Bot User OAuth Token into your .env file under SLACK_BOT_TOKEN
3. Click Basic Information from the left hand menu and follow the steps in the App-Level Tokens section to create an app-level token with the connections:write scope. Copy that token into your .env as SLACK_APP_TOKEN.

Initializing the project

git clone https://github.com/slack-samples/bolt-js-custom-step-template.git my-bolt-js-custom-step
cd my-bolt-js-custom-step

Install dependencies

npm install

Development

Starting the app

Slack CLI

slack run

Terminal

npm start

Linting

# Run lint for code formatting and linting
npm run lint

Testing

# Run test for unit tests
npm test

Using Steps in Workflow Builder

With your server running, your step is now ready for use in Workflow Builder! Add it as a custom step in a new or existing workflow, then run the workflow while your app is running.

For more information on creating workflows and adding custom steps, read more here.

Project Structure

manifest.json

manifest.json is a configuration for Slack apps. With a manifest, you can create an app with a pre-defined configuration, or adjust the configuration of an existing app.

app.js

app.js is the entry point for the application and is the file you'll run to start the server. This project aims to keep this file as thin as possible, primarily using it as a way to route inbound requests.

/listeners

Every incoming request is routed to a "listener". Inside this directory, we group each listener based on the Slack Platform feature used, so /listeners/shortcuts handles incoming Shortcuts requests, /listeners/views handles View submissions and so on.