| --- |
| summary: "Directive syntax for /think + /verbose and how they affect model reasoning" |
| read_when: |
| - Adjusting thinking or verbose directive parsing or defaults |
| --- |
| |
| # Thinking Levels (/think directives) |
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| ## What it does |
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| - Inline directive in any inbound body: `/t <level>`, `/think:<level>`, or `/thinking <level>`. |
| - Levels (aliases): `off | minimal | low | medium | high | xhigh` (GPT-5.2 + Codex models only) |
| - minimal → “think” |
| - low → “think hard” |
| - medium → “think harder” |
| - high → “ultrathink” (max budget) |
| - xhigh → “ultrathink+” (GPT-5.2 + Codex models only) |
| - `highest`, `max` map to `high`. |
| - Provider notes: |
| - Z.AI (`zai/*`) only supports binary thinking (`on`/`off`). Any non-`off` level is treated as `on` (mapped to `low`). |
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| ## Resolution order |
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| 1. Inline directive on the message (applies only to that message). |
| 2. Session override (set by sending a directive-only message). |
| 3. Global default (`agents.defaults.thinkingDefault` in config). |
| 4. Fallback: low for reasoning-capable models; off otherwise. |
|
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| ## Setting a session default |
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| - Send a message that is **only** the directive (whitespace allowed), e.g. `/think:medium` or `/t high`. |
| - That sticks for the current session (per-sender by default); cleared by `/think:off` or session idle reset. |
| - Confirmation reply is sent (`Thinking level set to high.` / `Thinking disabled.`). If the level is invalid (e.g. `/thinking big`), the command is rejected with a hint and the session state is left unchanged. |
| - Send `/think` (or `/think:`) with no argument to see the current thinking level. |
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| ## Application by agent |
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| - **Embedded Pi**: the resolved level is passed to the in-process Pi agent runtime. |
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| ## Verbose directives (/verbose or /v) |
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| - Levels: `on` (minimal) | `full` | `off` (default). |
| - Directive-only message toggles session verbose and replies `Verbose logging enabled.` / `Verbose logging disabled.`; invalid levels return a hint without changing state. |
| - `/verbose off` stores an explicit session override; clear it via the Sessions UI by choosing `inherit`. |
| - Inline directive affects only that message; session/global defaults apply otherwise. |
| - Send `/verbose` (or `/verbose:`) with no argument to see the current verbose level. |
| - When verbose is on, agents that emit structured tool results (Pi, other JSON agents) send each tool call back as its own metadata-only message, prefixed with `<emoji> <tool-name>: <arg>` when available (path/command). These tool summaries are sent as soon as each tool starts (separate bubbles), not as streaming deltas. |
| - When verbose is `full`, tool outputs are also forwarded after completion (separate bubble, truncated to a safe length). If you toggle `/verbose on|full|off` while a run is in-flight, subsequent tool bubbles honor the new setting. |
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| ## Reasoning visibility (/reasoning) |
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| - Levels: `on|off|stream`. |
| - Directive-only message toggles whether thinking blocks are shown in replies. |
| - When enabled, reasoning is sent as a **separate message** prefixed with `Reasoning:`. |
| - `stream` (Telegram only): streams reasoning into the Telegram draft bubble while the reply is generating, then sends the final answer without reasoning. |
| - Alias: `/reason`. |
| - Send `/reasoning` (or `/reasoning:`) with no argument to see the current reasoning level. |
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| ## Related |
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|
| - Elevated mode docs live in [Elevated mode](/tools/elevated). |
|
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| ## Heartbeats |
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| - Heartbeat probe body is the configured heartbeat prompt (default: `Read HEARTBEAT.md if it exists (workspace context). Follow it strictly. Do not infer or repeat old tasks from prior chats. If nothing needs attention, reply HEARTBEAT_OK.`). Inline directives in a heartbeat message apply as usual (but avoid changing session defaults from heartbeats). |
| - Heartbeat delivery defaults to the final payload only. To also send the separate `Reasoning:` message (when available), set `agents.defaults.heartbeat.includeReasoning: true` or per-agent `agents.list[].heartbeat.includeReasoning: true`. |
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| ## Web chat UI |
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| - The web chat thinking selector mirrors the session's stored level from the inbound session store/config when the page loads. |
| - Picking another level applies only to the next message (`thinkingOnce`); after sending, the selector snaps back to the stored session level. |
| - To change the session default, send a `/think:<level>` directive (as before); the selector will reflect it after the next reload. |
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