Slack integration

Spectra sends alerts to Slack using Incoming Webhooks. Connect your Slack workspace and Spectra creates a webhook for the channel you choose during sign-in, or paste an existing webhook URL directly. Either way, Spectra stores only the webhook URL — there’s no bot token and no access to read your messages.

For an overview — including the permissions it requests — see the Spectra for Slack page.

Option 1 — Connect with Slack (recommended)

Spectra creates an Incoming Webhook for the channel you pick — no bot token, no message-read access.

1. In Spectra, open Alert channels and choose Connect with Slack (or use the Add to Slack button above).
2. You’re redirected to Slack to sign in and pick a channel. Slack generates an Incoming Webhook for just that channel.
3. Spectra stores the webhook URL and shows the channel under Connected channels.
4. Attach the channel to the monitors it should alert.

Each channel connection has its own webhook, so to post to another channel just Connect with Slack again and pick it. Channel names are stored without the # prefix.

Post uptime alerts to a private channel

Private channels work the same way — just pick the private channel in Slack’s channel selector during the connect step (you must be a member of it). Spectra receives a webhook scoped to that one channel. No /invite and no bot — Incoming Webhooks don’t require adding an app to the channel.

Option 2 — Paste an incoming webhook URL

Handy if you’d rather create the webhook yourself, or already have one.

1. In Slack, create an Incoming Webhook for the target channel and copy the URL — it looks like https://hooks.slack.com/services/....
2. In Spectra, choose Add Slack webhook and paste the URL.
3. Name the channel and save.

A webhook posts only to the single channel it was created for.

Which should I use?

	Connect with Slack	Paste webhook URL
Guided channel picker in Slack	✅	❌ (you create it)
Spectra creates the webhook for you	✅	❌
Works for public and private channels	✅	✅
Central list & one-click delete in Spectra	✅	✅

Both use the same Incoming Webhook mechanism — Connect with Slack is just the guided path.

Attach Slack to your monitors

A Slack channel is a reusable destination. After adding it, attach it to the monitors you want it to alert for. When an incident opens or resolves, Spectra posts to that channel automatically — with the monitor name, status, affected regions, and a link to the incident.

Managing channels

• Add multiple Slack channels (for example team-spectrabolt and team-ops) — each is its own webhook — and route different monitors to each.
• Mute a channel to pause its alerts, or delete it to remove the connection entirely.
• Test a channel to send a sample alert and confirm delivery.

What triggers a Slack alert

Spectra posts to Slack when a monitor changes state:

• Down — a monitor goes from UP to DOWN (confirmed from multiple regions first).
• Recovery — a monitor returns to UP; Spectra posts an automatic all-clear.
• SSL / domain expiry — a certificate or domain nears expiry at your chosen lead times.
• Missed heartbeat — a scheduled job or cron doesn’t check in on time.
• Latency — response time crosses the threshold you set.

Each message includes the monitor name, status, affected regions, and a link to the incident.

Test your setup

After adding a Slack channel, use Test on the channel to send a sample alert and confirm it lands in the right place. You can also review everything that has actually been delivered in Alert activity.

Privacy & data handling

Spectra uses a Slack Incoming Webhook, which can only post to the channel you chose. Spectra stores only the webhook URL — no bot token, and no access to read your messages, files, or DMs. Data is encrypted in transit and at rest. See the privacy policy for what’s collected and how to request deletion.

Remove or revoke access

• In Spectra — mute or delete the Slack channel to stop alerts through it.
• In Slack — revoke Spectra under Settings & administration → Manage apps. This invalidates the webhook immediately.

Troubleshooting

• No messages arriving? Confirm the channel is attached to the monitor and isn’t muted or deleted.
• Need a private channel? Re-run Connect with Slack and pick the private channel in Slack’s selector (you must be a member) — no bot invite is required.
• Webhook stopped working? A webhook can be revoked in Slack. Reconnect the channel, or recreate the webhook and paste the new URL.

Next steps

• Tune delivery with quiet hours and severity.
• See all alert channels — email is also live, with more coming soon.