Chat states and recovery

While a Mind works on an answer, the chat shows each step it takes. When something goes wrong, it shows what happened and how to recover. To send messages and read answers, start with Ask a Mind; the message box controls are in The message box and its settings.

While the Mind is working

• Detecting PII... appears while your message is checked for personal data, before it reaches the model. The check can take a moment, and nothing is needed from you. See PII checks in chat.
• Short phrases such as Accomplishing or Wrangling rotate while the Mind decides what to do. They are normal, not an error.
• Waiting for Tools appears while the Mind runs tool steps. Icons show the tools in progress: up to five, then a counter for the rest.
• Generating Response appears while the answer text is written.
• Compacting conversation… appears as a pill above the message box while the chat summarises its older turns to free up room. When the summary is ready, a Conversation compacted notice is added to the chat.
• Loading earlier messages appears at the top of the chat while older turns load as you scroll up.

Notices in the chat

Some events are written into the chat as a card or a divider, in place of a normal message.

• Conversation compacted marks where older turns were replaced by a summary. It says how many messages the summary covers, in the form "n messages summarized".
• Context cleared marks where the context was cleared. It says how many earlier messages are hidden from the assistant, and that The next reply starts fresh. Your own messages stay visible. The command is described in Chat commands, shortcuts and privacy.
• Delivered artifacts appears when swarm agents hand finished work back into the chat. See Swarm agents.

Recover a failed answer

1. When an answer fails, the chat shows a card with Failed and the message "There was an error generating response".
2. Click Retry to run the answer again from the start.
3. Click Continue to let the Mind finish an answer that stopped partway. It appears only when part of the answer already arrived.
4. To run the answer again with different settings, open Retry with configuration. Pick the Model, Response Mode and Language, turn Web Search, Auto Compact or Swarm on or off, then click Retry. Each toggle appears only where the Mind includes it.
5. If the retry does not start, the chat shows Retry not started or Continue not started. Read the description and try again.

• If a restart interrupted an answer, the chat shows "The server restarted while this response was being generated. Press Retry to run the turn again or Continue to resume it."
• If a send fails, your text comes back to the message box, where you can edit it and send again.

More messages and their fixes are listed in Minds troubleshooting.

When sending is paused

Sending pauses while the chat finishes another task. A badge, a notice or the question panel tells you why:

• Connection lost. The badge says "Trying to reconnect. Sending is paused until the connection is back; reload the page if this does not clear."
• Approval pending, in builder chats. A proposed change waits for your decision. Approve or reject it on its card, and the message box opens again. See Warehouse Builder and Lake Builder.
• Benchmark in progress. This chat belongs to a benchmark run. The badge says "Benchmark in progress - the composer unlocks when this item finishes." See Test a Mind with benchmarks.
• Someone else is processing. An avatar shows who holds the chat, with the tooltip "name is currently processing a request" and "Please wait for them to finish". When the name is unknown, it reads "A user is currently processing a request".
• A question from the Mind is waiting. Answer it before you send anything else. See Questions from a Mind.

Questions, answered

Why does the chat say "Detecting PII..."?

Your message is checked for personal data before it reaches the model, and this label shows while the check runs. Wait for it to finish; if something in the message needs your decision, the chat shows it. See PII checks in chat.

What do "Waiting for Tools" and "Generating Response" mean?

"Waiting for Tools" means the Mind is running tool steps against your data. "Generating Response" means it is writing the answer. Both are normal progress states.

What does "Compacting conversation…" mean?

Your chat has grown long, so the platform summarises its older turns to free up room. When the summary is ready, a Conversation compacted notice appears in the chat and says how many messages it covers. You can also start a compaction yourself with /compact; see Chat commands, shortcuts and privacy.

What does the "Context cleared" notice mean?

It marks the point where the context was cleared with /clear-context. Your messages stay visible in the chat, but they are hidden from the assistant, and the next reply starts fresh.

An answer failed. What do Retry and Continue do?

Retry runs the answer again from the start. Continue finishes an answer that stopped partway, and it appears only when part of the answer already arrived. If neither starts, the chat shows Retry not started or Continue not started; read the description and try again.

The chat says the server restarted. What happened to my answer?

The restart interrupted the turn, so the answer stopped. Click Retry to run the turn again, or Continue to resume it.

How do I run an answer again with different settings?

Open Retry with configuration and choose a Model, Response Mode and Language, and turn Web Search, Auto Compact or Swarm on or off. Then click Retry.

Why did my message come back to the message box?

A send that was refused or failed returns your text to the message box instead of losing it. Edit it if needed, then send it again.

What does "Connection lost" mean?

The live connection dropped and sending is paused until it returns. The badge says: "Trying to reconnect. Sending is paused until the connection is back; reload the page if this does not clear."

Why does the chat say someone is processing a request?

Someone is sending in this chat right now. The chat works on one turn at a time, so your send waits until their answer finishes.

What does the Private badge mean?

The chat is private: the badge's tooltip reads "Only you can see this conversation in shared lists. Messages stay between you and this mind." To switch the chat to Regular, see Chat commands, shortcuts and privacy.