# Get Channel History — Slack

> Read the recent message history from a specific channel or direct message (DM). Accepts a channel ID (preferred — resolves instantly) or channel name (resolved by scanning up to 5 pages, ~5,000 channels, of the workspace's channel list — a…

- Key: `slack_v2-get-channel-history`
- Type: Action (Read-only)
- Version: 0.2.5
- App: Slack (`slack_v2`) — https://pipedream.com/apps/slack-v2.md
- This page (HTML): https://pipedream.com/apps/slack-v2/actions/get-channel-history
- Hints: read-only · open-world
- Source: https://github.com/PipedreamHQ/pipedream/blob/master/components/slack_v2/actions/get-channel-history/get-channel-history.mjs

## Description

Read the recent message history from a specific channel or direct message (DM). Accepts a channel ID (preferred — resolves instantly) or channel name (resolved by scanning up to 5 pages, ~5,000 channels, of the workspace's channel list — a name beyond that bound will not be found, so pass the ID when you have it). To read a DM, pass the other person's **user ID** (e.g. `U1234567890`) as the channel — pass your OWN user ID to read your conversation with yourself. Use this when you want to see a channel's or DM's latest messages — unlike **Search** which finds messages by keyword. Returns messages with text, timestamps (ts), reactions, and user IDs. Message timestamps can be used with **Get Thread Replies**, **Edit Message**, and **Add Reaction**. **Pass `fields`** (e.g. `text,ts,user`) unless you need full message objects — raw Slack messages carry blocks, attachments and edit metadata, so a busy channel can run to tens of thousands of characters and be truncated before you see any of it. [See the documentation](https://api.slack.com/methods/conversations.history)

## Props

| Prop | Type | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| `channel` | `string` | Yes | Prefer a channel ID (e.g. C1234567890) — use List Channels to look it up; it resolves instantly. A channel name (e.g. general or #general) is also accepted, but resolving it scans up to 5 pages (~5,000 channels) of the workspace's channel list, which can be slow — and a valid channel beyond that bound will not be found. For a direct message, pass a user ID (e.g. U1234567890) — including your own, to read your self-DM. |
| `limit` | `integer` | No | Maximum number of messages to return. Default: 20. |
| `oldest` | `string` | No | Only return messages posted after this timestamp (inclusive), as a Slack timestamp, e.g. 1610000000.000000 (Unix epoch seconds, optionally with fractional microseconds). |
| `latest` | `string` | No | Only return messages posted before this timestamp. Defaults to now. Same format as Oldest, e.g. 1610000000.000000. |
| `fields` | `string[]` | No | Message properties to return, e.g. text, ts, user, thread_ts, reply_count, reactions. Recommended: ["text", "ts", "user"]. Omit only when you need the full message objects. |

## Run it

**MCP**

```ts
import { Client } from "@modelcontextprotocol/sdk/client/index.js"
import { StreamableHTTPClientTransport } from "@modelcontextprotocol/sdk/client/streamableHttp.js"
import { PipedreamClient } from "@pipedream/sdk"

const pd = new PipedreamClient({
  projectId: process.env.PIPEDREAM_PROJECT_ID!,
  clientId: process.env.PIPEDREAM_CLIENT_ID!,
  clientSecret: process.env.PIPEDREAM_CLIENT_SECRET!,
  projectEnvironment: "production",
})

const accessToken = await pd.rawAccessToken

const transport = new StreamableHTTPClientTransport(
  new URL("https://remote.mcp.pipedream.net/v3"),
  {
    requestInit: {
      headers: {
        Authorization: `Bearer ${accessToken}`,
        "x-pd-project-id": process.env.PIPEDREAM_PROJECT_ID!,
        "x-pd-environment": "production",
        "x-pd-external-user-id": "{external_user_id}", // any stable ID for this user in your system
        "x-pd-app-slug": "slack_v2",
      },
    },
  },
)

const mcp = new Client({ name: "my-agent", version: "1.0.0" })
await mcp.connect(transport)

const { tools } = await mcp.listTools()

// listTools() hands your model this tool's input schema, so it can
// fill the arguments itself:
const result = await mcp.callTool({
  name: "slack_v2-get-channel-history",
  arguments: {
    channel: "Channel",
    limit: 10,
  },
})
```

**TypeScript**

```ts
import { PipedreamClient } from "@pipedream/sdk"

const pd = new PipedreamClient({
  projectId: process.env.PIPEDREAM_PROJECT_ID!,
  clientId: process.env.PIPEDREAM_CLIENT_ID!,
  clientSecret: process.env.PIPEDREAM_CLIENT_SECRET!,
  projectEnvironment: "production",
})

const result = await pd.actions.run({
  id: "slack_v2-get-channel-history",
  externalUserId: "{external_user_id}", // any stable ID for this user in your system
  configuredProps: {
    slack_v2: { authProvisionId: "apn_xxxxxxx" },
    channel: "Channel",
    limit: 10,
  },
})

console.log(result)
```

**cURL**

```bash
curl -X POST https://api.pipedream.com/v1/connect/{project_id}/actions/run \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -H "X-PD-Environment: production" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer {access_token}" \
  -d '{
    "external_user_id": "{external_user_id}",
    "id": "slack_v2-get-channel-history",
    "configured_props": {
      "slack_v2": { "authProvisionId": "apn_xxxxxxx" },
      "channel": "Channel",
      "limit": 10
    }
  }'
```

---

- App: https://pipedream.com/apps/slack-v2.md · All apps: https://pipedream.com/apps