Send Slack messages using Port's Slack app and automations

This guide demonstrates how to set up automations to send Slack messages to users using Port's Slack app. In this guide, we will use the email addresses from Port integrations (such as GitHub, GitLab, Jira, etc.) to look up the corresponding Slack user IDs and send targeted messages to those users.

Common use cases

Pull request notifications: Notify reviewers when PRs are assigned or merged.
Jira notifications: Notify users when their Jira issues are assigned.
On-call handoffs: Notify the next person on-call when their shift is starting.
Approval requests: Notify approvers when their approval is needed for platform requests.
Deployment notifications: Alert developers when their deployments complete or fail.

Prerequisites

A Port account with admin permissions.
Port's Slack app installed in your workspace.
Access to the Slack app bot token (automatically created as a system secret).

Slack app setup

If you haven't installed Port's Slack app yet, you'll need to apply for access to Port's AI program by filling out this form first.

Set up the automations

This guide creates two automations that work together:

Get Slack user ID by email - Looks up a user's Slack ID using their email address.
Send Slack message to user - Sends a simple message to the user.

Get Slack user ID automation

This automation uses Slack's users.lookupByEmail API to find a user's Slack ID from their email address.

Go to the Automations page of your portal.
Click on + Automation.
Click on the Edit JSON button in the top right corner.

Copy and paste the following JSON schema:

Get Slack user ID automation (Click to expand)

{
  "identifier": "get_slack_user_id",
  "title": "Get Slack user ID by email",
  "icon": "Slack",
  "description": "Looks up a user's Slack ID using their email address",
  "trigger": {
    "type": "automation",
    "event": {
      "type": "event_type",
      // Only one of "blueprintIdentifier" or "actionIdentifier" should be present depending on the trigger type
      "blueprintIdentifier": "blueprint_id",
      // OR
      "actionIdentifier": "action_id"
    },
  },
  "invocationMethod": {
    "type": "WEBHOOK",
    "url": "https://slack.com/api/users.lookupByEmail?email={{ .event.diff.after.properties.email }}",
    "agent": false,
    "synchronized": true,
    "method": "GET",
    "headers": {
      "Content-Type": "application/x-www-form-urlencoded",
      "Authorization": "Bearer {{ .secrets.__SLACK_APP_BOT_TOKEN_T123 }}"
    },
    "body":{}
  },
  "publish": true
}

Click "Save" to create the automation.

Send Slack message automation

This automation sends a simple message to a user's Slack DM using their user ID.

Go to the Automations page of your portal.
Click on + Automation.
Click on the Edit JSON button in the top right corner.

Copy and paste the following JSON schema:

Send Slack message automation (Click to expand)

{
  "identifier": "send_slack_message_to_user",
  "title": "Send Slack message to user",
  "icon": "Slack",
  "description": "Sends a simple Slack message to a user by their email",
  "trigger": {
    "type": "automation",
    "event": {
      "type": "event_type",
      // Only one of "blueprintIdentifier" or "actionIdentifier" should be present depending on the trigger type
      "blueprintIdentifier": "blueprint_id",
      // OR
      "actionIdentifier": "action_id"
    },
  },
  "invocationMethod": {
    "type": "WEBHOOK",
    "url": "https://slack.com/api/chat.postMessage",
    "synchronized": true,
    "method": "POST",
    "headers": {
      "Content-Type": "application/json; charset=utf-8",
      "Authorization": "Bearer {{ .secrets.__SLACK_APP_BOT_TOKEN_T123 }}"
    },
    "body": {
      "channel": "{{ .event.diff.after.response.user.id }}",
      "text": "🔔 New notification: From port automation"
    }
  },
  "publish": true
}

Click "Save" to create the automation.

Replace your Slack bot token

Click on the ... button in the top right corner of your Port application
Select Credentials and then click on the Secrets tab
Look for a secret named __SLACK_APP_BOT_TOKEN_T<team_id> where <team_id> is your Slack workspace ID

Use case examples

Below are specific examples of how to use these automations for different integrations:

GitHub pull request notifications

We can implement a use case where the creator of a pull request is notified when the pull request is merged.
Add the two automations below to your portal to set up the notifications.

Look up the Slack user ID by email

Look up the Slack user ID by email automation (Click to expand)

{
  "identifier": "get_slack_user_id_for_merged_pr",
  "title": "Get Slack user ID for merged PR",
  "icon": "Slack",
  "description": "Looks up a user's Slack ID using their email address when a PR is merged",
  "trigger": {
    "type": "automation",
    "event": {
      "type": "ENTITY_UPDATED",
      "blueprintIdentifier": "githubPullRequest"
    },
    "condition": {
      "type": "JQ",
      "expressions": [
        ".diff.after.properties.status == \"merged\""
      ],
      "combinator": "and"
    }
  },
  "invocationMethod": {
    "type": "WEBHOOK",
    "url": "https://slack.com/api/users.lookupByEmail?email={{ .event.diff.after.relations.creator }}",
    "agent": false,
    "synchronized": true,
    "method": "GET",
    "headers": {
      "Content-Type": "application/x-www-form-urlencoded",
      "Authorization": "Bearer {{ .secrets.__SLACK_APP_BOT_TOKEN_T123 }}"
    },
    "body": {}
  },
  "publish": true
}

Send Slack message to user

Send Slack message to user automation (Click to expand)

{
  "identifier": "notify_user_on_pr_merged",
  "title": "Notify user when PR is merged",
  "icon": "Slack",
  "description": "Sends a Slack message to the PR creator or assignee when the PR is merged",
  "trigger": {
    "type": "automation",
    "event": {
      "type": "RUN_UPDATED",
      "actionIdentifier": "get_slack_user_id_for_merged_pr"
    }
  },
  "invocationMethod": {
    "type": "WEBHOOK",
    "url": "https://slack.com/api/chat.postMessage",
    "synchronized": true,
    "method": "POST",
    "headers": {
      "Content-Type": "application/json; charset=utf-8",
      "Authorization": "Bearer {{ .secrets.__SLACK_APP_BOT_TOKEN_T123 }}"
    },
    "body": {
      "channel": "{{ .event.diff.after.response.user.id }}",
      "blocks": [
        {
          "type": "section",
          "text": {
            "type": "mrkdwn",
            "text": "Hi <@{{ .event.diff.after.response.user.real_name }}>,\n\nYour pull request *{{ .event.context.entity.title }}* has been merged! 🚀"
          }
        },
        {
          "type": "section",
          "fields": [
            {
              "type": "mrkdwn",
              "text": "*Repository:*\n{{ .event.diff.after.properties.relations.repository }}"
            },
            {
              "type": "mrkdwn",
              "text": "*Merged At:*\n{{ .event.diff.after.properties.mergedAt }}"
            }
          ]
        },
        {
          "type": "actions",
          "elements": [
            {
              "type": "button",
              "text": {
                "type": "plain_text",
                "text": "View PR"
              },
              "url": "{{ .event.diff.after.properties.link }}"
            }
          ]
        }
      ]
    }
  },
  "publish": true
}

Jira issue notifications

We can implement a use case where a user is notified when a Jira issue is assigned to them. Add the two automations below to your portal to set up the notifications.

Look up the Slack user ID by email

Look up the Slack user ID by email automation (Click to expand)

{
  "identifier": "get_slack_user_id_for_jira_assignee",
  "title": "Get Slack user ID for Jira assignee",
  "icon": "Slack",
  "description": "Looks up a user's Slack ID using their email address when a Jira issue is created",
  "trigger": {
    "type": "automation",
    "event": {
      "type": "ENTITY_CREATED",
      "blueprintIdentifier": "jiraIssue"
    }
  },
  "invocationMethod": {
    "type": "WEBHOOK",
    "url": "https://slack.com/api/users.lookupByEmail?email={{ .event.diff.after.properties.assignee }}",
    "agent": false,
    "synchronized": true,
    "method": "GET",
    "headers": {
      "Content-Type": "application/x-www-form-urlencoded",
      "Authorization": "Bearer {{ .secrets.__SLACK_APP_BOT_TOKEN_T123 }}"
    },
    "body": {}
  },
  "publish": true
}   

Send Slack message to user

Send Slack message to user automation (Click to expand)

{
  "identifier": "notify_jira_assignee_on_assignment",
  "title": "Notify Jira assignee on assignment",
  "icon": "Slack",
  "description": "Sends a Slack message to the assignee when a Jira issue is assigned to them",
  "trigger": {
    "type": "automation",
    "event": {
      "type": "RUN_UPDATED",
      "actionIdentifier": "get_slack_user_id_for_jira_assignee"
    }
  },
  "invocationMethod": {
    "type": "WEBHOOK",
    "url": "https://slack.com/api/chat.postMessage",
    "synchronized": true,
    "method": "POST",
    "headers": {
      "Content-Type": "application/json; charset=utf-8",
      "Authorization": "Bearer {{ .secrets.__SLACK_APP_BOT_TOKEN_T123 }}"
    },
    "body": {
      "channel": "{{ .event.diff.after.response.user.id }}",
      "text": "🔔 You have been assigned a Jira issue",
      "blocks": [
        {
          "type": "section",
          "text": {
            "type": "mrkdwn",
            "text": "Hi <@{{ .event.diff.after.response.user.real_name }}>,\n\nYou have been assigned to a Jira issue:"
          }
        },
        {
          "type": "section",
          "fields": [
            {
              "type": "mrkdwn",
              "text": "*Issue:*\n{{ .event.diff.after.properties.title }}"
            },
            {
              "type": "mrkdwn",
              "text": "*Status:*\n{{ .event.diff.after.properties.status }}"
            },
            {
              "type": "mrkdwn",
              "text": "*Priority:*\n{{ .event.diff.after.properties.priority }}"
            },
            {
              "type": "mrkdwn",
              "text": "*Assigned At:*\n{{ .event.diff.after.properties.updatedAt }}"
            }
          ]
        },
        {
          "type": "actions",
          "elements": [
            {
              "type": "button",
              "text": {
                "type": "plain_text",
                "text": "View Issue"
              },
              "url": "{{ .event.diff.after.properties.url }}"
            }
          ]
        }
      ]
    }
  },
  "publish": true
}

PagerDuty on-call notifications

We can implement a use case where an on-call user is notified when they are assigned to a PagerDuty incident.
Add the two automations below to your portal to set up the notifications.

Look up the Slack user ID by email

Look up the Slack user ID by email automation (Click to expand)

{
  "identifier": "get_slack_user_id_for_pagerduty_assignee",
  "title": "Get Slack user ID for PagerDuty assignee",
  "icon": "Slack",
  "description": "Looks up a user's Slack ID using their email address when a PagerDuty incident is assigned",
  "trigger": {
    "type": "automation",
    "event": {
      "type": "ENTITY_CREATED",
      "blueprintIdentifier": "pagerdutyIncident"
    }
  },
  "invocationMethod": {
    "type": "WEBHOOK",
    "url": "https://slack.com/api/users.lookupByEmail?email={{ .event.diff.after.properties.assignee }}",
    "agent": false,
    "synchronized": true,
    "method": "GET",
    "headers": {
      "Content-Type": "application/x-www-form-urlencoded",
      "Authorization": "Bearer {{ .secrets.__SLACK_APP_BOT_TOKEN_T123 }}"
    },
    "body": {}
  },
  "publish": true
}

Send Slack message to user

Send Slack message to user automation (Click to expand)

{
  "identifier": "notify_pagerduty_assignee_on_incident",
  "title": "Notify PagerDuty assignee on incident assignment",
  "icon": "Slack",
  "description": "Sends a Slack message to the assignee when a PagerDuty incident is assigned",
  "trigger": {
    "type": "automation",
    "event": {
      "type": "RUN_UPDATED",
      "actionIdentifier": "get_slack_user_id_for_pagerduty_assignee"
    }
  },
  "invocationMethod": {
    "type": "WEBHOOK",
    "url": "https://slack.com/api/chat.postMessage",
    "synchronized": true,
    "method": "POST",
    "headers": {
      "Content-Type": "application/json; charset=utf-8",
      "Authorization": "Bearer {{ .secrets.__SLACK_APP_BOT_TOKEN_T123 }}"
    },
    "body": {
      "channel": "{{ .event.diff.after.response.user.id }}",
      "text": "🚨 You have been assigned a new PagerDuty incident!",
      "blocks": [
        {
          "type": "section",
          "text": {
            "type": "mrkdwn",
            "text": "Hi <@{{ .event.diff.after.response.user.real_name }}>,\n\nYou have been assigned to a new PagerDuty incident:\n*Incident:* {{ .event.diff.after.properties.title }}\n*Priority:* {{ .event.diff.after.properties.priority }}\n*Service:* {{ .event.diff.after.properties.service }}"
          }
        },
        {
          "type": "actions",
          "elements": [
            {
              "type": "button",
              "text": {
                "type": "plain_text",
                "text": "View Incident"
              },
              "url": "https://app.getport.io/pagerdutyIncident/{{ .event.diff.after.identifier }}"
            }
          ]
        }
      ]
    }
  },
  "publish": true
}

Approval requests notifications

We can implement a use case where an approver is notified when a platform request is created. Add the two automations below to your portal to set up the notifications.

Look up the Slack user ID by email

Look up the Slack user ID by email automation (Click to expand)

  {
    "identifier": "get_slack_user_id_for_approver",
    "title": "Get Slack user ID for platform request approver",
    "icon": "Slack",
    "description": "Looks up a user's Slack ID using their email address when a platform request is created",
    "trigger": {
      "type": "automation",
      "event": {
        "type": "ENTITY_CREATED",
        "blueprintIdentifier": "platformRequest"
      }
    },
    "invocationMethod": {
      "type": "WEBHOOK",
      "url": "https://slack.com/api/users.lookupByEmail?email={{ .event.diff.after.properties.approver }}",
      "agent": false,
      "synchronized": true,
      "method": "GET",
      "headers": {
        "Content-Type": "application/x-www-form-urlencoded",
        "Authorization": "Bearer {{ .secrets.__SLACK_APP_BOT_TOKEN_T123 }}"
      },
      "body": {}
    },
    "publish": true
  }

Send Slack message to user

Send Slack message to user automation (Click to expand)

{
  "identifier": "notify_approver_on_platform_request",
  "title": "Notify approver when approval is needed",
  "icon": "Slack",
  "description": "Sends a Slack message to the approver when a platform request requires approval",
  "trigger": {
    "type": "automation",
    "event": {
      "type": "RUN_UPDATED",
      "actionIdentifier": "get_slack_user_id_for_approver"
    }
  },
  "invocationMethod": {
    "type": "WEBHOOK",
    "url": "https://slack.com/api/chat.postMessage",
    "synchronized": true,
    "method": "POST",
    "headers": {
      "Content-Type": "application/json; charset=utf-8",
      "Authorization": "Bearer {{ .secrets.__SLACK_APP_BOT_TOKEN_T123 }}"
    },
    "body": {
      "channel": "{{ .event.diff.after.response.user.id }}",
      "text": "✅ Approval request",
      "blocks": [
        {
          "type": "section",
          "text": {
            "type": "mrkdwn",
            "text": "Hi <@{{ .event.diff.after.response.user.real_name }}>,\n\nA new platform request requires your approval:"
          }
        },
        {
          "type": "section",
          "fields": [
            {
              "type": "mrkdwn",
              "text": "*Request:*\n{{ .event.diff.after.properties.title }}"
            },
            {
              "type": "mrkdwn",
              "text": "*Type:*\n{{ .event.diff.after.properties.requestType }}"
            },
            {
              "type": "mrkdwn",
              "text": "*Requester:*\n{{ .event.diff.after.properties.requester }}"
            },
            {
              "type": "mrkdwn",
              "text": "*Created:*\n{{ .event.diff.after.properties.createdAt }}"
            }
          ]
        },
        {
          "type": "actions",
          "elements": [
            {
              "type": "button",
              "text": {
                "type": "plain_text",
                "text": "Review Request"
              },
              "url": "https://app.getport.io/platformRequest/{{ .event.diff.after.identifier }}"
            }
          ]
        }
      ]
    }
  },
  "publish": true
}

Failed deployment notifications

We can implement a use case where a user is notified when a deployment fails. Add the two automations below to your portal to set up the notifications.

Look up the Slack user ID by email

Look up the Slack user ID by email automation (Click to expand)

{
  "identifier": "get_slack_user_id_for_failed_deployment",
  "title": "Get Slack user ID for failed deployment",
  "icon": "Slack",
  "description": "Looks up a user's Slack ID using their email address when a deployment fails",
  "trigger": {
    "type": "automation",
    "event": {
      "type": "RUN_UPDATED",
      "actionIdentifier": "deploy_an_image"
    },
    "condition": {
      "type": "JQ",
      "expressions": [
        ".diff.before.status == \"IN_PROGRESS\"",
        ".diff.after.status == \"FAILURE\""
      ],
      "combinator": "and"
    }
  },
  "invocationMethod": {
    "type": "WEBHOOK",
    "url": "https://slack.com/api/users.lookupByEmail?email={{ .event.diff.after.properties.triggered_by_email }}",
    "agent": false,
    "synchronized": true,
    "method": "GET",
    "headers": {
      "Content-Type": "application/x-www-form-urlencoded",
      "Authorization": "Bearer {{ .secrets.__SLACK_APP_BOT_TOKEN_T123 }}"
    },
    "body": {}
  },
  "publish": true
}

Send Slack message to user

Send Slack message to user automation (Click to expand)

{
  "identifier": "notify_user_on_failed_deployment",
  "title": "Notify user on failed deployment",
  "icon": "Slack",
  "description": "Sends a Slack message to the user when their deployment fails",
  "trigger": {
    "type": "automation",
    "event": {
      "type": "RUN_UPDATED",
      "actionIdentifier": "get_slack_user_id_for_failed_deployment"
    }
  },
  "invocationMethod": {
    "type": "WEBHOOK",
    "url": "https://slack.com/api/chat.postMessage",
    "synchronized": true,
    "method": "POST",
    "headers": {
      "Content-Type": "application/json; charset=utf-8",
      "Authorization": "Bearer {{ .secrets.__SLACK_APP_BOT_TOKEN_T123 }}"
    },
    "body": {
      "channel": "{{ .event.diff.after.response.user.id }}",
      "text": "🚨 Your deployment has failed.",
      "blocks": [
        {
          "type": "section",
          "text": {
            "type": "mrkdwn",
            "text": "Hi <@{{ .event.diff.after.response.user.real_name }}>,\n\nYour deployment of service *{{ .event.diff.after.properties.identifier }}* (image: {{ .event.diff.after.properties.image }}) to environment *{{ .event.diff.after.properties.environment }}* has failed.\n\n[View run details](https://app.getport.io/organization/run?runId={{ .event.diff.after.id }})"
          }
        }
      ]
    }
  },
  "publish": true
}

Let's test it

To test your automations:

Create a test entity that matches your trigger conditions.
Check the automation execution logs in the Automations page.
Verify that the Slack message was sent to the intended user.
Check for any error messages in the execution logs.

Common use cases​

Prerequisites​

Set up the automations​

Get Slack user ID automation​

Send Slack message automation​

Use case examples​

GitHub pull request notifications​

Jira issue notifications​

PagerDuty on-call notifications​

Approval requests notifications​

Failed deployment notifications​

Let's test it​

Common use cases

Prerequisites

Set up the automations

Get Slack user ID automation

Send Slack message automation

Use case examples

GitHub pull request notifications

Jira issue notifications

PagerDuty on-call notifications

Approval requests notifications

Failed deployment notifications

Let's test it