Agent modes

Every task in DataMind Oda runs as an agent set up by a preset: the model it starts on, the tools and skills it may use, and the instructions it follows. Oda shows a preset to you as a mode when you pick one. Pick one when you start a task, and manage the whole list in Settings > Agent presets.

The modes that come with Oda

Five modes come with DataMind Oda. This is what each one is for, in the words of its description:

Standard mode is the default: a task starts in it when nothing else is picked. Presets added for you, or created by you, appear in the same picker and are listed under Custom in Settings (Create and edit agent presets).

A mode decides how Oda works, not what a task may do without asking; the access mode (Read Only, Workspace Write, Full access) is separate (Workspaces, files and permissions).

Pick a mode for a task

1. Start a new chat and leave it blank. The mode chip beside the workspace picker shows the mode the task will start in, for example Standard mode.
2. Click it and pick a mode from the list. Each entry says what that mode is for.
3. Send your first message. The chat runs in that mode for its whole life.

In the VS Code extension there is no chip: choose the mode in the message box menu, under Mode. Choose a mode for a new task covers the picker in detail, including refused switches.

What a chat keeps

• A chat runs under one mode. Once its first turn has started, the mode is fixed, and changing it is refused (This session has already started); start a new chat to run under another one.
• The choice is saved with the chat, so the chat stays on the same mode when you reopen Oda.
• The mode belongs to each chat or scheduled task: one task can work in Minimal mode while another runs in Standard mode. A scheduled task chooses its mode on its own form (Schedule recurring tasks).
• A later edit to a preset reaches chats that start after it; a chat that has already begun keeps the version it started with.
• A chat starts on your default model, the one the model picker shows, unless its preset names its own model.

Run a long task with Relentless

Relentless is for a large task you want finished without checking in. Describe the result you want, the constraints, and how you will check it, then leave it running.

• Oda turns the request into a goal and keeps going in rounds. Progress goes to a progress file and the to-do list rather than the chat, so it does not stop to ask whether to continue.
• It stops at a wall, at a decision only you can make, or when the work is built and verified, and closes with a short report.
• Each goal is capped at 300 rounds and 72 hours.
• Choosing Relentless never changes the chat's access mode; it works best in Full access, where approval prompts do not interrupt it.
• The Ralph autonomous loop works in a Relentless chat without the advanced-features switch, because choosing the mode is the opt-in (Ralph loops). An organisation policy that holds the switch off, or a computer that cannot run it, still keeps it off.

Relentless covers the stopping points and the caps in full.

Open the mode list in Settings

1. Open Settings and choose Agent presets. The section explains: Choose the agent’s tools and how it works. Use Standard mode for everyday tasks, or Creator mode to add capabilities to DataMind.
2. The modes are listed as cards under Built-in and Custom. Each card carries the mode's name, its id, a one-line description, and the model it starts on when it names one.

On the cards:

• The mode set as the default for new tasks shows New task default instead of its group tag.
• A mode whose name is not known yet is listed by its id.
• A group with no modes in it is left out, except Custom, which keeps its entries for creating one.
• A card whose model is no longer offered reads Model <model> is no longer available, so this preset uses the default model., and tasks on that mode start on the default model instead.

The same page also carries the Subagent limits card and the teammate limit under Agent Teams (Subagent settings).

Set the default mode for new tasks

1. Open Settings > Agent presets.
2. If the switch Choose a mode for new tasks is off, turn it on. The row carries a Beta tag, and its description reads: When enabled, each new task can choose a mode and the default is set here. When disabled, new tasks use the application default preset. Existing tasks are unaffected.
3. Click the card you want for new tasks. Its control reads Set as new task default, and the card is then tagged New task default.

• The default is set here, beside the list, rather than in General settings.
• While the switch is off, new tasks use the application default, Standard mode, and a new chat has no mode chip. The default card is tagged Application default, and the other cards read Turn on mode selection for new tasks to choose a default. Your saved default is kept, and it returns when you turn the switch on again.
• The change reaches the next blank task, including one you have open; a chat that has already started keeps its mode.

Read a mode's guide

1. Open Settings > Agent presets and find the mode's card.
2. Open the card's menu, labelled Actions for {name}, and choose Mode details or How to use.
3. The reader opens on two tabs: Mode details and How to use. The second one lists example tasks, each with an Example task tag and a Copy button that reads Copied once used.
4. Press Escape to close the reader. It closes only the reader, and focus returns to the button that opened it.

• Reading a guide changes nothing: it never moves your default or changes a chat.
• The reader covers only the five modes that come with Oda; a preset you create yourself does not get a guide (Create and edit agent presets).

When a mode cannot start

• Failed to load on a card means the mode cannot start a task. It stays in the list, and pointing at the badge, or focusing it with the keyboard, shows the reason.
• While it cannot start, the mode is left out of the picker for new tasks. A copy you made yourself keeps Edit and Delete, so you can fix it or remove it (Create and edit agent presets).

Questions, answered

What is a mode, and how is it different from a preset?

They are the same thing: a preset is the setup a task runs as, and Oda shows it to you as a mode when you pick one. Settings calls the page Agent presets, and the mode picker offers the same list.

Is a mode the same as the access mode?

No. The access mode (Read Only, Workspace Write, Full access) decides what Oda may do without asking, and the mode decides how it works: its instructions, tools, skills and starting model. See Workspaces, files and permissions.

Where can I see all the modes and what each one does?

Open Settings > Agent presets: every mode is a card with a one-line description, and each of the five has a page in this section, linked in the table above. The five also have a short guide behind their card menu (Mode details, How to use).

What can I do from a mode card's menu?

The menu, labelled Actions for {name}, holds the guides for the five modes that come with Oda (Mode details and How to use) and the actions that manage presets: Duplicate starts a copy you can edit, while Edit and Delete appear only for presets you can change yourself. A mode that comes with Oda stays read-only; duplicate it to edit your own copy (Create and edit agent presets).

How do I make a mode the default for new tasks?

Open Settings > Agent presets, turn on Choose a mode for new tasks if it is off, then click the card you want; the card is tagged New task default and new tasks start in it. To pick a mode for one task only, use the mode chip on the new-chat screen (Choose a mode for a new task).

What happens when I turn off "Choose a mode for new tasks"?

New tasks use the application default, Standard mode, the default card is tagged Application default, and a new chat has no mode picker. Tasks that have already started are unaffected, and your saved default comes back when you switch it on again.

Can two tasks run in different modes at the same time?

Yes. The mode belongs to each chat or scheduled task; the default only decides what new tasks start in, so changing it does not touch chats that are already open.

Does the mode decide which model the chat uses?

Not usually. The chat starts on your default model, the one the model picker shows; a mode that names its own model starts there instead. If that model is no longer offered, chats on the mode fall back to the default model, and the card says so.

Can I pick a mode that says "Failed to load"?

No. It cannot start a task, so it is left out of the picker. It stays on the page, with the reason on its badge, so you can fix or delete your own copy.

Do my own modes get the built-in guides?

No. Mode details and How to use exist only for the five modes that come with Oda. Your own presets are still listed and can be picked for tasks; they show the description you wrote for them.

The list of modes is empty. Is something broken?

Not necessarily: a setup can offer no modes at all, and the app treats an empty list as a valid state, not an error. If the list cannot be read at all, the section reports the problem instead of showing an empty list.