Goals and routines
Let a squad member work on a long task without you, run work on a schedule and continue a chat later.
Goals, routines and wake-ups need Desktop 0.16.0 or later. They are on by default. To turn them off, refer to Turn it off.
A squad member can do work when you are not in the chat:
- A goal is a long task. The squad member works on it turn after turn until the HQ finds that the task is done, or until a limit stops it.
- A routine starts work on a schedule, for example each weekday at 09:00.
- A wake-up continues a chat one time, at a later time.
The HQ counts this work against a daily limit for each squad member. Items that wait for you show in Needs you.
Goals
Start a goal
In a chat, type /goal and the task. For example:
/goal Find the three slowest pages of the website and make each one load in less than 2 secondsThe squad member starts the work. After each turn, the HQ starts the next turn by itself.
An independent check compares the evidence with the task. Tool results prove that something happened. The reply of the squad member proves only what it wrote, so a reply "tests passed" is not proof. When the check finds that the task is done, the goal is complete. One chat can have one goal that is not finished.
A squad member can also start a goal for a long task that you give it. You see this goal in the chat, and you can pause or clear it. A squad member cannot resume a goal that you paused.
The goal band in Desktop
When a chat has a goal, Desktop shows a goal band above the message box. The band shows the state of the goal and the progress. Click Pause to pause the goal, and Resume to continue it. When the goal waits at the daily limit, the band shows Raise limit instead of Resume. Raise limit opens Edit limit on the Work tab.
Open the band to see the details: Checks, Latest evidence, Next action, Limits and, for a stopped goal, Why. You can also edit the goal. When you save a change, the goal pauses, so that you can resume it. To cancel the goal, click Clear.
Goal commands
| Command | What it does |
|---|---|
/goal <task> | Starts a goal |
/goal set [limits] -- <task> | Starts a goal with your limits. Example: /goal set --max-duration 2h -- finish the release and verify it |
/goal status | Shows the current goal |
/goal pause | Pauses the work |
/goal resume | Continues work that is paused, blocked or stopped at a limit |
/goal edit <task> | Replaces the task and pauses the goal |
/goal limits <limits> | Changes the limits. Stop the work first. |
/goal clear | Cancels the current goal |
/goal help | Shows the commands |
Goal limits
Each goal stops at its own limits. A goal at its own limits does not continue by itself. To continue it, change the limits and resume the goal.
| Flag | Default | Range |
|---|---|---|
--max-iterations (turns) | 20 | 1 to 10,000 |
--max-duration (for example 30m, 2h or 1d) | 2 hours | 1 minute to 30 days |
--max-tokens | No limit | 1 to 1,000,000,000 |
A goal that a squad member starts has a maximum of 40 turns and 8 hours.
A goal can also stop when it makes no progress, or when the provider or the credential fails. The band then shows Blocked.
If the provider fails for a short time, for example because of a network problem, the goal waits and tries again. It tries a maximum of 3 times, after 5, 15 and 45 seconds. In Desktop and the web app, the band shows Waiting · retrying at and the time, or Waiting to retry. To stop the retries, click Pause in Desktop, or type /goal pause. If the last retry fails, the goal is blocked.
If the HQ stops while a goal turn runs, the goal is blocked when the HQ starts again. Type /goal resume to continue it.
Routines
A routine starts a turn on a schedule, with the same instructions each time. To make a routine, click New routine on the Work tab, or ask your squad member. For example: "Each weekday at 09:00, read the new support tickets and send me a summary."
| Schedule | Example |
|---|---|
| Daily | Each day at 09:00 |
| Weekdays | Monday to Friday at 09:00 |
| Weekly | Each Monday and Thursday at 17:00 |
| Interval | Every 90 minutes |
| Once | One time, on 1 November at 10:00 |
| Cron | A cron expression and a time zone |
- A routine that a squad member makes must have a minimum of 60 minutes between runs. A routine that you make must have a minimum of 15 minutes.
- A squad member can have a maximum of 20 active routines. An HQ can have a maximum of 100.
- By default, the runs go to the most recent chat of the squad member. A routine can also start a new chat for each run.
- If you select Only when there is an update, the squad member replies No update. when nothing changed. The HQ then records a quiet run and does not tell you.
- After 3 failed runs in a row, the HQ pauses the routine. The routine then shows in Needs you.
- If the HQ is off at the time of a run, the HQ does not do that run later. It records the run as missed.
- A squad member can change, pause and delete its own routines. On a routine that you made, a squad member can only pause it. Only you can resume a routine that you paused.
- A routine that a squad member makes ends after 14 days. The squad member can set 1 to 90 days. A routine that you make does not end.
To see and change routines, use the Work tab in Desktop. You can also ask your squad member.
Wake-ups
A squad member can continue a chat later, one time. For example, it can check a deployment again after 10 minutes. At that time, the HQ starts a turn in the same chat and shows the note of the squad member. A wake-up must be a minimum of 5 minutes and a maximum of 7 days later. A squad member can have a maximum of 10 wake-ups that wait, and can make a maximum of 24 wake-ups in one day. For regular checks, use a routine.
Daily limit
Work without you has a daily limit for each squad member. This work includes goals, routines, wake-ups and squad messages. The default limit is USD 5 for each day, from the prices of the models. For models without a price, for example local models, the limit is 3,000,000 tokens.
- When a squad member reaches the limit, the HQ starts no more work without you for that squad member on that day. A turn that runs continues until it is done.
- A turn that you start is never blocked.
- Sub-agents that this work starts count against the same limit. Sub-agents that you start in your own chat are not blocked.
- A goal at the daily limit waits. It continues by itself when you raise the limit, or at the daily reset. The daily limit resets at 00:00 in the local time of the HQ.
The Work tab in Desktop
The agent page in Desktop has a Work tab. To open it, click Manage next to Agents in the sidebar, open the squad member and click Work. The tab shows all the work without you for that squad member:
- Today: the part of the daily limit that the squad member used today. To change the limit, click Edit limit.
- Goals: the current goal and the recent goals.
- Routines: each routine with its schedule and the next run. Use the switch on a routine to pause or resume it. Open the menu of a routine for Edit, Run now and Delete.
- Wake-ups: the wake-ups that wait. To stop one, click Cancel.
Make a routine
- On the Work tab, click New routine.
- Type a Name and the Instructions.
- In When, select Every day, Weekdays, Weekly, Every N hours or Once. Then set the time. For a cron schedule, ask your squad member.
- In Results go to, select Main chat or A new chat each run.
- In Tell me, select Every run or Only when there is an update.
- Click Create routine.
Turn it off
- To stop squad messages for a squad member, open the squad member, click Configuration, clear its Messages options and click Save. Do this for each squad member.
- To pause one routine, use its switch on the Work tab.
- If you start the HQ yourself from the command line, start it with
DASHSQUAD_LONG_HORIZON=0. This turns off squad messages, goals, routines and wake-ups.
Needs you
Desktop shows a Needs you row at the top of the sidebar, with the number of items. Click it, or press ⌘J, to open the Needs you page. It shows the items that wait for you:
| Item | What you can do |
|---|---|
| A question from a squad member | Answer the question on the card, or click Open chat |
| A goal that is blocked, stopped at its own limits or waits for your answer | Click Open chat. Answer the squad member, or click Resume on the goal band, or type /goal resume. For a goal at its own limits, first change the limits with /goal limits. A goal that waits at the daily limit shows as the daily-limit item of the squad member. |
| A goal check that failed two times in a row | Click Open chat. Check the model of the squad member, or pause the goal. The work continues, but the HQ cannot verify it. |
| A squad member at its daily limit | Click Raise to to double the limit, or Wait until the reset time |
| A paused squad message thread | Click Resume or Close thread. A resumed thread can have 12 more messages and 6 more replies. |
| A routine that stopped | Click Resume routine |
With an older HQ, Desktop does not show Needs you. The iOS app 0.7.0 or later shows the goal band, the Work screen of each squad member and Needs you. Refer to iOS app. The web app shows the goal band and squad message threads, but you cannot change them there. Refer to Web app. The Android app does not show goals, routines, wake-ups or squad messages.