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The Send to Slack step posts messages from a flow into a Slack channel or DM. Use it to alert ops teams when a flow detects something worth flagging, send daily digests with CSV attachments, or message customers and partners on a per-row basis.
Send to Slack step open on the canvas with message configuration

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Authenticate

The first person to install the Parabola Slack app in your workspace may need admin permissions. Once installed, the rest of the workspace can use it. If your workspace allows app installs, the Parabola app installs during authentication. If not, an admin needs to install it (some workspaces let non-admins submit a request).
1
Drag a Send to Slack step onto your canvas.
2
Click Connect to Slack.If you’re connecting for the first time, select + Add new account. To update an existing account, click Edit Accounts.
3
If you’ve connected before, available accounts appear in the dropdown for quick setup.
4
Review the permissions in the pop-up window and click Allow. If no window appears, check for a pop-up blocker.
5
If you’re already logged in to Slack, the step connects automatically. Otherwise, follow the login prompt.
If you have any issues connecting, contact us at help@parabola.io.

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Configure the message

Message type. Choose between sending one message per run or one message per row of data.
  • Send a single message sends one message with the configured text. Curly-brace references pull from the first row.
  • Send one message per row sends a separate message for each row.
Destination. Pick a channel or direct message.
  • Channel message posts to a workspace channel.
  • Message to user sends a DM. To DM multiple users, duplicate the step, filter rows for each user, and configure each step separately.
Channel messages and DMs both come from the “Parabola app,” not your personal profile. DMs land under the Apps section in the recipient’s Slack sidebar. Message text. Plain text or Slack markdown. Reference column values dynamically by wrapping the column name in curly braces, like {SKU}. Settings (gear icon, all on by default):
  • Include a link to this flow (recipients need flow access to follow the link).
  • Expand URLs and images.
  • Link usernames (@alex) and channels (#general).
  • Send messages when input data has at least 1 row. Switch to “any number of rows (including 0)” if you also want messages on empty input.
Test message. Click Send test message to send the configured message to yourself. Test messages don’t use Parabola credits. Attached file.
  • Do not attach anything — recipients see only the message text and (if enabled) the flow link.
  • Attach entire table as a CSV — name the CSV. Slack’s per-file upload limit is 1 GB.
  • Attach a file by URL — for columns that contain file URLs. Reference the column with {column_name}, or paste a URL directly.

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Finding channel names and IDs

Some versions of the step ask you to type the channel rather than pick from a list.
  • For text-only messages, use the channel name (#general), including the #.
  • For messages with a file attachment, use the channel ID (e.g., C03D28HTD), not the name.
To find the channel ID, right-click the channel in Slack, click Copy link, and take the ID from the end of the URL — for example, C03D28HTD from https://parabolaio.slack.com/archives/C03D28HTD.

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Format messages with markdown

Slack supports a subset of markdown. Wrap text with the matching characters:
  • _italic_ → italic
  • *bold* → bold
  • ~strike~ → strikethrough
  • `code` → inline code
  • ```multi-line code``` → code block
  • > quoted text → block quote (one quote per line)
Line breaks. Type a newline directly in the text, or use \n inline. Lists. Start a line with - followed by the item. Links. Plain URLs auto-link. To customize the visible text, use the angle-bracket form:
  • <http://www.example.com|Visit our site> — text link
  • <mailto:bob@example.com|Email Bob> — email link
Spaces in URLs break the link, so strip them out before sending. Emoji. Type emoji directly (It's Friday 😄) — Slack converts them to colon format on send (It's Friday :smile:). Unicode Unified, Softbank, and Google formats are supported. Reference list: iamcal/emoji-data.

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Tips & limits

  • Send yourself a test DM first to preview formatting before running the full flow.
  • Slack’s per-message character limit is 40,000.
  • A few Slack features (@here, for example) aren’t supported.
  • For channel posts, make sure the Parabola app has been added to the channel — or ask a Channel Manager to add it.
  • Private channels work as long as you have access to them.
  • To send a message even when the flow returns 0 rows, switch the row-count setting in Message Settings.
Last modified on May 18, 2026