SMIB (So Make It Bot)

Introduction

SMIB is the So Make It Bot. The architecture is a set of docker containers configured to work together, that can run on a pi4 or similar and provide slack bot interactivity with a maker space (or any space).

Features

• A socket mode slack bot server that requires no port forwarding or firewall config to get going on your network.
• Web server with plugin architecture providing a REST API with swagger API documentation, so you can write your own plugins that can be called by REST API and executed by the slack bot - allows creating web pages or local devices (such as SMIBHID) that drive the slack bot without the need for leaving the local network.
• Stateful database storage for storing information like space state for coordination among multiple bots/endpoints.
• SMIBHID (SMIB Human Interface Device) - A Pi Pico based interface device that provides buttons, displays and any other human interface to the slack bot via the REST API. See the SMIBHID docs for more information.

Docker deployment

Supported Python Version

Python 3.12.3

Installation

• Clone the repository to your target server host
• Install docker if not already present
  • If installing on a Raspberry Pi (recommend a pi4), ensure you use a 64 bit OS and follow the Debian install instructions from Docker.
• Set the environment variables (minimum of the slack tokens) using either method below. See template.env for all possible environment variables.
  • docker-compose File - Highest Precedence
    • Set the variables in your docker-compose file
  • .env File
    • Create a file called .env alongside the docker-compose.yml file (see template.env in the repo)
• Issue one of the following commands:
  • Local Build: docker compose up -d --build
  • Branch Build (default master): docker compose -f docker-compose-branch.yml up -d --build
    • To specify the branch, do one of the following:
      • Prefix the command with SMIB_BRANCH=<branch>
        • e.g SMIB_BRANCH=master docker compose -f docker-compose-branch.yml up -d --build
      • Set environment variable in a .env file thats alongside the docker-compose-branch.yml file

SMIB Slack/Webserver Configuration

Network Ports

The host ports mapped for the slack server and webserver should be configured in the docker compose file, however it is also possible to override the ports in the server configs directly if you are not using docker.

External Config Files

Current files:

• logging.json (located at smib/logging.json in the repo)
• .env

This is mapped to /app/config in the container

Important

If you map /app/config to a host directory, then you MUST add the 2 external files to this location.

You can make this location accessible by Mapping the internal directory to a volume or bind mount in the docker compose file.

Linux:

volumes:
  - /etc/smib/:/app/config/

Windows:

volumes:
  - C:/smib/config:/app/config/

Local Development:

• Set the _EXTERNAL_CONFIG_LOCATION environment variable to the directory containing the External Config Files

Logging

Map the internal /app/logs directory to a volume or bind mount in the docker compose to store the logs outside the containers

Linux:

volumes:
  - /var/log/smib/slack/:/app/logs/

Windows:

volumes:
  - C:/smib/slack/logs:/app/logs/

Database and Database Web UI Configuration

To set environment varaibles for the smib-db and smib-db-ui containers, you must do one of the following:

• docker-compose File - Highest Precedence
  • Set the variables in your docker-compose file
• .env File
  • Create a file called .env alongside the docker-compose.yml file. See links below for possible values
    • Database Web UI Configuration
    • Database Configuration

SMIBHID

SMIBHID is the So Make It Bot Human Interface Device and definitely not a mispronunciation of any insults from a popular 90s documentary detailing the activites of the Jupiter Mining Core.

This device runs on a Raspberry Pi Pico W and provides physical input and output to humans for the SMIB project; Buttons, LEDs, that sort of thing.

Further documentation can be found in the smibhid folder.

Legacy SMIB Commands

Currently, the old SMIB Commands do not work with the new SMIB.

The old SMIB worked using the Slack RTM API. This API has been replaced with the Events API.

Previously, SMIB Commands were created as the only way to interact with SMIB.

I think some form of backwards compatibility or similar functionality would be good. Work on a ShellPluginLoader was started but parked as it was not the main focus of the new amped up SMIB MVP

An issue has been created to track the progress and gather ideas.

Version

When bumping the poetry version (in pyproject.toml), the HID class (part of SMIBHID) version attribute also needs manually updating.

Important

This version needs to match the release when it goes into the master branch.