How to Keep Slack Active (Full Guide for Mac, Windows & Web)


Quick answer: To keep Slack online all day you have three realistic options—(1) leave the desktop client running and move the mouse every 5 minutes, (2) use a hardware mouse‑jiggler, or (3) automate it with a purpose‑built tool like Presence Scheduler. This guide walks you through every method step‑by‑step for macOS, Windows and the web app.



1. Why Slack Sets You Away

Slack marks you away after roughly 30 minutes of OS‑level inactivity. That timer resets every time it detects one of three signals:

  • Keyboard or mouse input inside any Slack window.
  • A foreground network event (e.g. uploading a file).
  • An API event that changes presence (used by approved apps).

Once you understand the triggers, every workaround below simply fakes one of those three signals.


2. Native “Set Active” Toggle (Desktop)

Works on: macOS, Windows, Linux
Difficulty: ⭐ (easy)
Reliability: ⭕ Only while client is open and machine stays awake

  1. Open Slack desktop > profile picture > Set yourself as active.
  2. Disable “Set yourself to away after 30 mins of inactivity” in Preferences → Status & Availability.
  3. Keep the window focused or move the mouse every 25 minutes to stop Slack overriding the manual toggle.

Downside: The moment your computer sleeps or you close Slack, you go away.


3. Browser Tab Trick (Web)

A background JavaScript snippet can ping the Slack WebSocket every few minutes:

<script>
setInterval(() => fetch('/activities/update'), 1000 * 60 * 4);
</script>

Bookmark this as a Chrome snippet, open app.slack.com, and leave the tab running. It works, but:

  • You must keep the tab in an active browser profile.
  • If Chrome crashes or your laptop sleeps, you still turn away.

4. Hardware Mouse‑Jigglers

USB “jigglers” emulate tiny mouse movements every few seconds. They’re OS‑agnostic and cost <$15 on Amazon, but:

  • No scheduling—manually plug/unplug every day.
  • IT departments may flag them as suspicious USB devices.
  • They keep your whole PC awake, draining battery.

5. Keep Slack Active with Presence Scheduler

Best for: Remote workers who need a set‑and‑forget solution.
Cost: Starts at $3 / month.

  1. Install the Chrome extension – click the button below and follow the Chrome Web Store prompt.

    Install Free →

  2. Authorize the Slack app – Presence Scheduler requests the minimal OAuth scopes (users:read, users:write). You’ll see a green confirmation once connected.
  3. Set your hours – Choose any schedule (e.g. Mon–Fri, 09:00–17:00). The extension injects an invisible activity ping every 5 minutes only during those windows.

Because the activity comes from a whitelisted app token, Slack treats it as real presence, so you stay green even if your local client is closed.


6. Scheduling Online Hours

Managers often need a predictable presence pattern, not 24/7 green dots. Presence Scheduler stores schedules in UTC and respects your device timezone. You can stack multiple rules—for example:

  • Work: Mon–Thu, 09:00–18:00
  • On‑call: Fri, 18:00–22:00
  • Offline: Sat–Sun

Head to Dashboard → Schedules to edit times any time.


FAQ

Will Slack ban my account for using an extension?
No. Presence Scheduler only uses documented API endpoints and complies with Slack’s app policy. Thousands of users have run it for years without action.
Does the extension work if my computer sleeps?
Yes. Presence pings Slack from an external service; your device can be offline.
Can I try it before paying?
Absolutely. You get a 7‑day free trial; no credit card required.

Try it for free