Deprecated: Starts a Real Time Messaging session. Use rtm.connect instead.

Facts

Method access

HTTP
JavaScript
Python
Java
HTTP
GEThttps://slack.com/api/rtm.start
Bolt for Java
app.client().rtmStart
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Bolt for Python
app.client.rtm_start
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Content types

application/x-www-form-urlencoded
  • Rate limits

    Tier 1
  • Arguments

    Required arguments

    Authentication token bearing required scopes. Tokens should be passed as an HTTP Authorization header or alternatively, as a POST parameter.

    Example
    xxxx-xxxxxxxxx-xxxx
    Optional arguments

    Batch presence deliveries via subscription. Enabling changes the shape of presence_change events. See batch presence.

    Default
    false
    Example
    1

    Set this to true to receive the locale for users and channels. Defaults to false

    Example
    true

    Returns MPIMs to the client in the API response.

    Example
    true

    Exclude latest timestamps for channels, groups, mpims, and ims. Automatically sets no_unreads to 1

    Default
    0
    Example
    1

    Skip unread counts for each channel (improves performance).

    Example
    true

    Only deliver presence events when requested by subscription. See presence subscriptions.

    Default
    true
    Example
    true

    Return timestamp only for latest message object of each channel (improves performance).

    Example
    true

    Usage info

    This method began a Real Time Messaging API session and reserved your application a specific URL with which to connect via websocket.

    It's user-centric and team-centric: your app connects as a specific user or bot user on a specific team. Many apps will find the Events API's subscription model more scalable when working against multiple teams.

    Please proactively rtm.connect instead. Existing apps still using rtm.start after September 27, 2022 now get the response from that method instead.

    Consult the RTM API documentation for full details on using the RTM API.

    New Slack apps may not use any Real Time Messaging API method. Create a classic app and use the V1 Oauth flow to use RTM.

    For most applications, Socket Mode is a better way to communicate with Slack.

    See the rtm.connect method documentation for details on this method's response after September 27, 2022.

    Example responses

    Common successful response

    Typical success response

    {
        "ok": true
    }

    Common error response

    Typical error response

    {
        "ok": false,
        "error": "invalid_auth"
    }

    Errors

    This table lists the expected errors that this method could return. However, other errors can be returned in the case where the service is down or other unexpected factors affect processing. Callers should always check the value of the ok params in the response.

    ErrorDescription
    method_deprecated

    The method has been deprecated.

    migration_in_progress

    Workspace is being migrated between servers. See the team_migration_started event documentation for details.

    rtm_connect_required

    rtm.start is deprecated. Please use rtm.connect instead of rtm.start. Read https://api.slack.com/changelog/2021-10-rtm-start-to-stop for more info.

    access_denied

    Access to a resource specified in the request is denied.

    account_inactive

    Authentication token is for a deleted user or workspace when using a bot token.

    deprecated_endpoint

    The endpoint has been deprecated.

    ekm_access_denied

    Administrators have suspended the ability to post a message.

    enterprise_is_restricted

    The method cannot be called from an Enterprise.

    invalid_auth

    Some aspect of authentication cannot be validated. Either the provided token is invalid or the request originates from an IP address disallowed from making the request.

    missing_scope

    The token used is not granted the specific scope permissions required to complete this request.

    not_allowed_token_type

    The token type used in this request is not allowed.

    not_authed

    No authentication token provided.

    no_permission

    The workspace token used in this request does not have the permissions necessary to complete the request. Make sure your app is a member of the conversation it's attempting to post a message to.

    org_login_required

    The workspace is undergoing an enterprise migration and will not be available until migration is complete.

    token_expired

    Authentication token has expired

    token_revoked

    Authentication token is for a deleted user or workspace or the app has been removed when using a user token.

    two_factor_setup_required

    Two factor setup is required.

    accesslimited

    Access to this method is limited on the current network

    fatal_error

    The server could not complete your operation(s) without encountering a catastrophic error. It's possible some aspect of the operation succeeded before the error was raised.

    internal_error

    The server could not complete your operation(s) without encountering an error, likely due to a transient issue on our end. It's possible some aspect of the operation succeeded before the error was raised.

    invalid_arg_name

    The method was passed an argument whose name falls outside the bounds of accepted or expected values. This includes very long names and names with non-alphanumeric characters other than _. If you get this error, it is typically an indication that you have made a very malformed API call.

    invalid_arguments

    The method was either called with invalid arguments or some detail about the arguments passed is invalid, which is more likely when using complex arguments like blocks or attachments.

    invalid_array_arg

    The method was passed an array as an argument. Please only input valid strings.

    invalid_charset

    The method was called via a POST request, but the charset specified in the Content-Type header was invalid. Valid charset names are: utf-8 iso-8859-1.

    invalid_form_data

    The method was called via a POST request with Content-Type application/x-www-form-urlencoded or multipart/form-data, but the form data was either missing or syntactically invalid.

    invalid_post_type

    The method was called via a POST request, but the specified Content-Type was invalid. Valid types are: application/json application/x-www-form-urlencoded multipart/form-data text/plain.

    missing_post_type

    The method was called via a POST request and included a data payload, but the request did not include a Content-Type header.

    ratelimited

    The request has been ratelimited. Refer to the Retry-After header for when to retry the request.

    request_timeout

    The method was called via a POST request, but the POST data was either missing or truncated.

    service_unavailable

    The service is temporarily unavailable

    team_added_to_org

    The workspace associated with your request is currently undergoing migration to an Enterprise Organization. Web API and other platform operations will be intermittently unavailable until the transition is complete.

    Warnings

    This table lists the expected warnings that this method will return. However, other warnings can be returned in the case where the service is experiencing unexpected trouble.

    WarningDescription
    member_list_truncated

    A members array included in a channel object was truncated at 1500 results. Use conversations.members to retrieve all results.

    method_deprecated

    rtm.start is deprecated. Please use rtm.connect instead of rtm.start. Read https://api.slack.com/changelog/2021-10-rtm-start-to-stop for more info.

    missing_charset

    The method was called via a POST request, and recommended practice for the specified Content-Type is to include a charset parameter. However, no charset was present. Specifically, non-form-data content types (e.g. text/plain) are the ones for which charset is recommended.

    superfluous_charset

    The method was called via a POST request, and the specified Content-Type is not defined to understand the charset parameter. However, charset was in fact present. Specifically, form-data content types (e.g. multipart/form-data) are the ones for which charset is superfluous.

    Arguments

    Need a token? Create and install a Slack app to begin.
    This will make a real API request. Beware of using it with live workspaces.

    API response


    Submit your arguments to see the API response