Using the Slack CLI with Bolt frameworks
You can use the Slack CLI to streamline development of apps using Bolt for JavaScript and Bolt for Python.
To create a Bolt app using features currently under development, refer to the experiments page.
Getting started
Creating a Bolt app via the Slack CLI is similar to creating other apps with the Slack CLI. Run the following command to begin:
slack create
Select an option from the following list. For this example, choose Starter app:
> Starter app - Getting started Slack app
Automation app - Custom steps and workflows
AI app - Slack agents & assistants
View more samples
You will then be prompted to choose between Bolt for JavaScript or Bolt for Python. Choose your favorite flavor.
Your app will be cloned from the respective JavaScript or Python project template on our Slack Platform Sample Code repository, and its project dependencies will be installed. Then, cd into your project folder.
For Bolt for Python projects, automatic project dependency installation is currently unsupported, and will need to be done manually. For more information, refer to Getting started with Bolt for Python.
To run your new app, use the slack run command with the experiment flag as follows:
slack run
You'll be prompted to choose your team/workspace, and then your app should let you know that it's up and running. 🎉
App manifest
The Slack app manifest is the configuration of the app. The manifest.json file included with selected templates and samples reflects the features and permissions of your app. When you create an app with the CLI, the corresponding app and matching manifest can be found on app settings.
For Bolt apps created through the CLI, by default, the manifest source set in the config.json file is remote. This means that the manifest in your app settings is the source of truth. To modify the manifest (add new features, scopes, etc.), do so in the app settings. If you change the config.json to reflect a local manifest source and modify the local manifest.json file, the CLI will ask for confirmation before overriding the settings upstream on reinstall (run). This prompt appears if the app manifest on app settings differs from a known state saved in .slack/cache. There is not currently a dedicated manifest update command.
In contrast, Deno apps created with the CLI have the manifest source configuration of local because those apps are not managed in the app settings page.