Idle shutdown

A workspace that nobody is using does not stay running forever. After a quiet spell it goes to sleep. Its files and installed tools are saved, and it wakes when you or the assistant need it again.

What sleep means#

Programs the assistant started, such as a development server, do not survive sleep. The Coder starts them again when it needs them.

When does it sleep?#

A workspace sleeps after it has been idle for a short while, meaning no task is running in it and no one is using its terminal. A workspace never goes to sleep in the middle of a command, so a long task is not cut off. The exact length of the quiet spell is set by StellarFirm and may change, so these docs do not promise a number.

What wakes it#

• A new task. The assistant wakes its workspace when it has work. You do not need to do anything.
• You open it. Press Wake the computer on the Computer page, or open the Computer panel in a chat.
• A follow-up in the same chat. Sending a message that needs the workspace wakes it.

What you see while it wakes#

The state badge changes from Asleep to Setting up and then to Ready. Waking a saved workspace is much quicker than the first start, because the tools are already installed. The view refreshes by itself, so you do not need to reload.

If a wake does not finish, the badge says Setup stopped. Press Try setup again. Your files are still there.

Tips#

• Expect a short pause at the start of a task after a quiet period. This is normal.
• If you want a long-running job to carry on, leave it running. A running task keeps its workspace awake.
• Do not rely on a program staying up between tasks. Ask the assistant to start it again.
• Save work you care about in your repository, through a pull request, rather than only in the workspace.
• Use Reset only when you want to delete the workspace and its files. Sleep never deletes anything.

Prompts#

Coder, we paused [task] earlier. Check your workspace, tell me what state it is in, start whatever you need, and continue.