Glossary

Scope: both products; product-specific definitions are identified below.

These definitions follow the current configuration, routes, and types in the source tree.

Term	Definition
A2A	Agent-to-agent task protocol using JSON-RPC; the current implementation provides an inbound service.
Agent Loop	Processing loop from inbound event to response.
Approval	Review before a tool call, controlled by permissions.approval.mode.
Channel	Message adapter for endpoints such as Telegram, Discord, and CLI.
Checkpoint	Shadow Git snapshot of workspace files; excludes the database, sessions, memory, and logs, so it is not a full backup.
Clarification	Flow in which the agent asks the user for missing information.
Compression	Compaction of older session messages to control model-context length.
Cron Job	Job triggered by the scheduler.
Dashboard	Web interface using the Gateway API and /ws/dashboard.
Execution Backend	Backend selected by tools.exec.host for execution tools; sandbox copies the working directory but does not provide OS-level isolation.
Gateway	Service exposing HTTP APIs, WebSockets, and Dashboard assets.
Knowledge	Indexed documents for retrieval, stored separately from agent memory.
Memory	Persistent memory organized by type and scope, with retrieval and forgetting policies.
Migration	SQLite schema migration runs automatically during database initialization; echo-agent migrate only updates USER memory ownership and imports legacy MEMORY.*.md shards.
Multi-Agent	Task execution involving multiple collaborating agents.
OpenTelemetry	Optional trace and metric export framework; current code creates spans but not the formerly documented named business metric instruments.
Pairing	Gateway's short-lived code authorization for a platform/user identity; it does not issue an API token.
Plugin	Loadable Python extension that can register tools and lifecycle hooks; separate channel packages are not automatically wired.
Risk Category	Tool risk levels are READ_ONLY, WRITE, EXEC, and DANGEROUS. Names such as MINIMAL_TOOLS identify tool-profile sets, not risk levels.
Security Profile	Deployment profile: personal_cli, daemon, or public_gateway.
Session	Conversation context determined by channel, user, chat, and optional thread.
Skill	Knowledge or workflow described by SKILL.md; some candidate skills require approval.
Spill	Storage for oversized tool output, referenced in conversation and retrievable with read_spill.
Tool	Callable operation exposed to the agent; execution tools include exec, execute_code, and process.
Tools Profile	Tool admission set: minimal, messaging, coding, or full.
Workspace	Directory containing configuration, runtime data, and working files.

Product and workflow terms

Term	Definition
Desktop / Client	Local desktop workspace with an embedded Rust execution engine.
Standalone Runtime	Python Agent service used through terminals, channels, or Gateway.
ACP	Agent Client Protocol; Desktop uses typed in-process channels for host-engine interaction.
Host	The component owning UI, resource management, local services, and engine lifecycle.
Artifact	An actual task output file whose contents and saved location can be verified.
Expert group	Desktop collaboration with persistent members, work, messages, and decisions.
Provenance	The origin and evidence supporting a fact, memory, or result.
Acceptance criteria	Observable conditions used to decide whether a task is complete.