What is Slack Do Not Disturb?
Quick Definition
Slack Do Not Disturb (DND) is a feature that pauses notifications without changing your presence status. When DND is active, you won't receive alerts, but teammates can still see you as active and choose to send urgent messages.
Understanding Slack Do Not Disturb
Do Not Disturb in Slack is an independent system that runs parallel to presence, not a replacement for it. Presence controls your green or away dot; DND controls whether notifications reach you. This means four distinct states are possible: active with DND off (available and receiving alerts), active with DND on (online but silenced), away with DND off (inactive but alerts enabled), and away with DND on (both offline and silenced). Understanding this distinction matters because teammates often confuse the two. A colleague with DND enabled may show a green dot but not respond for hours, while someone marked away might reply instantly from their phone. DND schedule configuration allows daily windows that activate automatically, such as 6 PM to 8 AM on weeknights. Newer Slack versions support per-day-of-week schedules and calendar integrations that pause notifications during events. Slack also provides an urgent message override: when someone messages a person with DND enabled, they see a prompt asking 'This person has notifications paused. Send anyway?' This escape hatch preserves the ability to reach people for genuinely urgent matters without removing the protection DND provides for routine messages. For full control over your availability signals, DND and presence scheduling work best together. DND manages when you're interrupted, while presence scheduling manages when teammates see you as reachable. Using both lets you appear available during work hours without constant notification noise during focus blocks.
Key Points
- Pauses notifications without affecting presence status
- Shows a 'Z' icon on your profile when active
- Can be scheduled for automatic activation
- Teammates can override DND for urgent messages
- Different from away status (presence vs. notifications)
Examples
Focus time
You enable DND for 2 hours while writing a proposal. Your green dot stays active (if you're using Slack), but notifications are paused. Teammates see you're online but in focus mode.
After-hours schedule
You set DND from 6pm to 9am daily. Messages sent during those hours don't trigger notifications, but you can still check Slack if you choose.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Do Not Disturb make me appear away?
Can teammates still message me during DND?
How is DND different from setting myself away?
How Idle Pilot Helps
While Slack's DND handles notifications, Idle Pilot handles presence. You can use both together: DND to pause notifications during focus time, and Idle Pilot to maintain your active status during work hours. This gives you control over both interruptions and availability signals.
Try Idle Pilot freeRelated Terms
Slack presence is the indicator (green or yellow dot) next to your name showing whether you're currently active or away in Slack. It's automatically determined by Slack based on your recent activity and connection status.
Slack active status is the presence indicator (solid green dot) that appears next to your name when Slack detects recent activity. It signals to teammates that you're currently available and likely to respond.
Slack away status is the presence indicator (hollow circle or yellow dot) that appears next to your name when Slack detects you're inactive or disconnected. It signals to teammates that you may not respond immediately.