Using Agents
Agents in CFactory are specialized personas that tailor the assistant's behavior to your current task. Each agent offers different capabilities, expertise, and access levels to help you accomplish specific goals.
Why Use Different Agents?
- Task specialization: Get precisely the type of assistance you need for your current task
- Safety controls: Prevent unintended file modifications when focusing on planning or learning
- Focused interactions: Receive responses optimized for your current activity
- Workflow optimization: Seamlessly transition between planning, implementing, debugging, and learning
Switching Agents
There are several ways to switch agents:
- Dropdown menu: Click the agent selector in the sidebar to switch between agents.
- Slash commands: Type
/agentsin the chat input to open the agent picker. - Keyboard shortcut: Press
Cmd+.(macOS) orCtrl+.(Windows/Linux) to cycle through available agents. AddShiftto cycle in reverse.
Built-in Agents
code (Default)
| Aspect | Details |
|---|---|
| Description | A skilled software engineer with expertise in programming languages, design patterns, and best practices |
| Tool Access | Full access to all tools: read, edit, glob, grep, bash, task, webfetch, plus tools from MCP servers |
| Ideal For | Writing code, implementing features, debugging, and general development |
| Special Features | No tool restrictions — full flexibility for all coding tasks |
ask
| Aspect | Details |
|---|---|
| Description | A knowledgeable technical assistant focused on answering questions without changing your codebase |
| Tool Access | Read-only tools (read, glob, grep, list), read-only bash commands (cat, grep, git log, git diff, jq, etc.), and MCP tools (with user approval). All write operations are blocked. |
| Ideal For | Code explanation, concept exploration, technical learning, and project investigation |
| Special Features | Can run read-only commands and inspect your project without modifying it. MCP tools require approval for each call. |
plan
| Aspect | Details |
|---|---|
| Description | An experienced technical leader and planner who helps design systems and create implementation plans |
| Tool Access | Read-only tools plus restricted file editing (plan files in .cfactory/plans/ only) |
| Ideal For | System design, high-level planning, and architecture discussions |
| Special Features | Planning-focused approach with read-only exploration by default |
debug
| Aspect | Details |
|---|---|
| Description | An expert problem solver specializing in systematic troubleshooting and diagnostics |
| Tool Access | Full access to all tools |
| Ideal For | Tracking down bugs, diagnosing errors, and resolving complex issues |
| Special Features | Uses a methodical approach of analyzing, narrowing possibilities, and fixing issues |
Keep debugging separate from main tasks: When using Debug mode, ask CFactory to "start a new task in Debug mode with all of the necessary context needed to figure out X" so that the debugging process uses its own context window and doesn't pollute the main task.
Custom Agents
Create your own specialized assistants by defining tool access, file permissions, and behavior instructions. Custom agents help enforce team standards or create purpose-specific assistants. See Custom Modes documentation for setup instructions.