Slack Notifications

Send LIVCK alerts, incidents, maintenance notifications, and announcements directly to your Slack channels using incoming webhooks.

Overview

Slack notifications allow team members to receive real-time updates in their Slack workspace. Each member configures their own Slack webhook URL to receive notifications in their preferred channel or direct message.

How It Works

LIVCK uses Slack's Incoming Webhooks feature to send notifications. Each team member can configure their own webhook URL to receive notifications in:

  • A specific Slack channel
  • A direct message to themselves
  • A private channel or group

Configuration

Slack notifications are configured at the user level. Each team member sets up their own Slack webhook URL in their profile.

Step 1: Create a Slack Incoming Webhook

  1. Go to your Slack workspace
  2. Navigate to Apps or visit https://api.slack.com/apps
  3. Create a new app or select an existing app
  4. Enable Incoming Webhooks
  5. Click Add New Webhook to Workspace
  6. Select the channel where you want to receive notifications
  7. Copy the webhook URL (looks like: https://hooks.slack.com/services/T00000000/B00000000/XXXXXXXXXXXX)

Alternative Method:

  1. Visit https://my.slack.com/services/new/incoming-webhook
  2. Choose a channel
  3. Click Add Incoming WebHooks integration
  4. Copy the webhook URL

Step 2: Add Webhook URL to Your Profile

  1. Log in to LIVCK
  2. Navigate to /user/profile
  3. Find the Slack Notification URL field
  4. Paste your webhook URL
  5. Click Save

Step 3: Test the Configuration

After saving your webhook URL:

  1. Click the Test all configured Notification-Channels button in your profile
  2. Check your Slack channel for the test notification

If you receive the test message, your Slack notifications are working correctly.

User Setup

Each team member who wants to receive Slack notifications needs to:

  1. Create their own Slack incoming webhook (or use a shared one)
  2. Add the webhook URL to their LIVCK profile at /user/profile
  3. Test the configuration using the test button

Important: Each member configures their own webhook URL independently. There is no system-level Slack configuration required.

Notification Triggers

Members receive Slack notifications for:

  • New Alerts - When new announcements, incidents, or maintenance windows are created (if "Notify Subscribers" is enabled)
  • Alert Updates - When alerts are updated with new information
  • Status Changes - When incident or maintenance status changes
  • Alert Resolution - When incidents are resolved or maintenance is completed

Slack Message Format

Slack notifications include:

  • Alert Type - Announcement, Incident, or Maintenance
  • Alert Title - The name of the alert
  • Status - Current status (for incidents and maintenance)
  • Message - Alert description (formatted as plain text)
  • Timestamp - When the alert was created or updated
  • Link - Direct link to view the alert on your status page

Multiple Webhooks

You can send notifications to multiple channels by:

Option 1: Multiple Team Members

  • Create separate LIVCK member accounts for each channel
  • Configure each account with a different webhook URL

Option 2: Slack Workflow

  • Use Slack's workflow builder to forward messages from one channel to others
  • Set up a single webhook that triggers a workflow

Option 3: Multiple Slack Apps

  • Unfortunately, LIVCK supports only one webhook URL per user profile
  • Consider using a Slack bot that forwards messages to multiple channels

Troubleshooting

Slack Notifications Not Arriving

Check Webhook URL:

  • Ensure the webhook URL is correctly copied (no extra spaces or characters)
  • Webhook URL must start with https://hooks.slack.com/services/
  • Test the webhook manually using curl:
curl -X POST -H 'Content-type: application/json' \
--data '{"text":"Test from LIVCK"}' \
YOUR_WEBHOOK_URL

Check Slack App Permissions:

  • Verify the Slack app is still installed in your workspace
  • Check if the webhook was revoked or expired
  • Ensure the channel still exists

Check LIVCK Configuration:

  • Verify the webhook URL is saved in your profile
  • Run the test notification to see if it works
  • Check application logs: docker-compose logs app | grep -i slack

Webhook URL Invalid

Common Issues:

  • Extra spaces before or after the URL
  • Missing https:// prefix
  • Incomplete URL (only partial URL copied)
  • Webhook was deleted or revoked in Slack

Solution:

  • Recreate the incoming webhook in Slack
  • Copy the entire URL carefully
  • Paste it in your LIVCK profile
  • Test again

Messages Go to Wrong Channel

Cause: The webhook is configured for a different channel.

Solution:

  • Create a new webhook for the correct channel
  • Update the webhook URL in your LIVCK profile
  • Test to verify messages arrive in the correct channel

Webhook Stopped Working

Possible Causes:

  • Slack app was uninstalled from workspace
  • Webhook was manually revoked
  • Channel was deleted
  • Slack workspace changed or migrated

Solution:

  • Recreate the incoming webhook
  • Update your LIVCK profile with the new URL
  • Test the new configuration

Best Practices

Channel Organization

Dedicated Alerts Channel

  • Create a dedicated #status-alerts or #incidents channel
  • Configure webhooks to send all notifications there
  • Keep the channel focused on alerts only

Per-Team Channels

  • Create team-specific channels for relevant alerts
  • Configure team members' webhooks accordingly
  • Reduce noise by filtering alerts to relevant teams

Notification Management

Avoid Notification Fatigue

  • Don't send every minor update to Slack
  • Use announcements for important information only
  • Consider disabling "Notify Subscribers" for minor updates

Use Threading

  • Unfortunately, LIVCK sends each notification as a new message
  • Use Slack's workflow automation to organize messages into threads

Security

Protect Webhook URLs

  • Don't share webhook URLs publicly
  • Each URL grants write access to the configured channel
  • Revoke and recreate webhooks if exposed
  • Use private channels for sensitive alerts

Testing

Test Regularly

  • Test notifications after creating or updating webhooks
  • Verify messages arrive in the correct channel
  • Check formatting and content of notifications
  • Test during incidents to ensure reliability

Use Cases

Team Notification

Configure all team members with the same webhook URL pointing to a shared channel like #team-alerts.

Personal Notification

Set up a webhook that sends direct messages to yourself by selecting your own name when creating the webhook.

Multi-Channel Setup

Different team members can configure different webhook URLs to send notifications to various channels:

  • Engineering team → #engineering-alerts
  • Operations team → #ops-alerts
  • Leadership → #executive-alerts

On-Call Rotation

Update your webhook URL when on-call rotations change to ensure notifications go to the current on-call person's preferred channel.

Additional Resources