Working with agents

Change an agent safely: edit, pause, or delete

Change an agent when its role, access, or workload changes. Edit it when the role is still useful, pause its automations when work should temporarily stop, and delete it when the role is finished. These actions have different effects: editing keeps the agent and its history, pausing stops scheduled work without removing it, and deleting removes the agent rather than merely hiding it.

Before you change an agent

Write down what should happen to work already in progress and to any recurring work. In particular:

  • Check the agent's Automations before changing its role. Pause or retarget recurring work that should not continue under the old instructions.
  • Review connected apps and remove access the new role does not need. App access and approvals are separate controls; changing an agent does not automatically approve external actions.
  • Save files or results that another agent will need. A new agent does not automatically inherit another agent's conversation history or task context.

If you are only changing one instruction, start with an edit rather than creating a second agent. See Build an agent team on one Otto when you are deciding whether a separate role is justified.

Edit an agent's identity or limits

Edit an agent when its responsibility remains the same but its instructions, name, model defaults, or spending limit need adjustment.

  1. Open the navigation menu. On a narrow window or phone, open the menu from chat; on a wider desktop window, use the sidebar.
  2. Select the agent you want to change.
  3. Open the agent's settings, then choose Identity, Models, or Limits.
  4. Make the change and select Save for identity changes. For a limit, use Save limit or Update limit.

Use Identity → Personality for guidance that should apply in every conversation. Use the current Chat for project-specific instructions instead. When changing a limit, remember that it controls spending; it does not grant app access or remove an approval requirement. See Create and configure an agent for the available fields and limit behavior.

Make one meaningful change at a time, then try a small, representative task. If the result is wrong, correct the instruction or source rather than adding more unrelated context.

Pause recurring work

Pause an automation before a vacation, an organizational change, or a period when its inputs are unreliable. Pausing keeps the automation and its previous results available, but prevents new scheduled runs until you resume it. It does not cancel a run that is already executing; check Activity and run logs if you need to see whether a run finished or failed.

To pause or resume a recurring responsibility:

  1. Open the navigation menu and select the agent that owns the work.
  2. Open Automations and select the automation.
  3. Review its schedule, destination, permissions, and limits.
  4. Choose Pause. When the role is ready again, return to the same automation and choose Resume, then review the first run.

If the work should continue but under a different role, update its owner or recreate it with the new agent only after checking that the old automation is paused. Do not leave two agents responsible for the same schedule.

Delete an agent

Delete an agent when its responsibility has ended and you no longer need its settings or conversations. Deletion is more final than pausing: export or copy any result you need first, and make sure another agent owns its automations.

  1. Open the agent's home. From the agent list, select the agent; on desktop, you can also open the agent-name menu in the main header.
  2. Choose Delete agent. On a phone, this action is in the agent context menu; on desktop, it is on the agent home.
  3. Review the confirmation and confirm the deletion.

Otto protects the default agent from deletion. Deleting an agent does not disconnect any app: connections belong to the Otto and stay available to the remaining agents. Review Manage connected app access and disconnect accounts nothing needs any more. Check your remaining agents and automations afterward to make sure work still has one clear owner.

If something does not work

  • You cannot edit or pause anything: bring Otto online and wait for its status to settle. Device-backed settings and automation changes require a connection to Otto.
  • The agent is still producing scheduled results: open the automation and check that its status is paused. Then check Activity and run logs for a run that started before the pause.
  • Delete agent is missing: confirm that you opened the agent home rather than only its settings, and that you are not trying to delete Otto's default agent.
  • A replacement agent cannot use an app: check the app is still connected to this Otto in Settings > Integrations. Connected apps are shared by every agent; what a new agent does not inherit is the old agent's instructions and files.

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