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This is an operator reference for the default gateway configuration. If you only use the desktop app, start with Configuration Overview and change these values only when you need a gateway-level setting.
Most users do not need to read this page end to end. Use it when support, automation, or a deployment guide asks for a specific setting name.

Top-level settings

By default, runtime home is ~/.pioneer. On startup, the gateway creates missing SOUL.md and IDENTITY.md files at the root of runtime home. These files seed the Soul Core and Identity Core prompt sections and may be edited over time.

Install settings

Most users should not change install settings.

Gateway settings

Local-only example:
The desktop app exposes this as Settings > General > Preflight model. Use gateway.preflight_model for new configuration. Legacy memory active-recall model settings are migrated to this general preflight model setting when no explicit preflight model is present.

Task review settings

Example:
Immediate attached subagent tasks use parent-agent review by default. Scheduled or detached work should not depend on a live parent turn and may be finalized automatically according to task policy.

Hook recovery settings

Hook recovery repairs persisted hook/task/turn state after gateway restart or stale runtime activity.

Artifact storage settings

Artifacts are gateway-owned durable files and generated outputs.

Resilience settings

Command execution resilience settings control how long command execution leases can stay active and how long recovery can keep trying to reconcile command execution state. Provider stream item resilience settings do the same for streamed provider items that may need reconciliation after interruption or restart. Provider transport timeouts are configured separately under [gateway.provider]: non_stream_request_timeout_secs, connect_timeout_secs, first_chunk_timeout_secs, and inter_chunk_idle_timeout_secs. These control the provider request itself; the resilience leases above control ownership and recovery of persisted streamed items after interruption.

Agent memory settings

Example:
capsules_dir is resolved under runtime home. Pioneer rejects empty paths, absolute paths, .., and other unsafe runtime-home escapes. The desktop app does not own these settings. It reads and updates gateway-owned runtime settings through the settings API. That is what lets the same desktop app connect to a different gateway and show that gateway’s actual memory configuration.

Thread episodic context settings

Thread episodic context is the searchable conversation-history layer. It is separate from durable memory. Durable memory stores selected facts and project decisions. Thread episodic context indexes visible conversation snippets so Pioneer can recall old discussion fragments when a future turn needs them. Example:
Use the public settings API for user-facing runtime changes. App config is for defaults and operator-managed configuration; gateway-settings.toml is the runtime override file owned by the gateway.

Thread defaults

You can override these if you want new threads to start with a different default model.

Web tool settings

Tool loop limits

These limits help stop runaway loops. Permission modes and sandbox/resource policy control whether sensitive tool actions are allowed immediately, require approval, receive scoped grants, or are rejected.

Execution window limits

Execution windows bound long agent turns in smaller windows and also keep total-turn limits.

Computer-use settings

Skills settings

CLI agent runtime settings

gateway.cli_agent_runtime sets shared defaults for CLI-backed agent runtimes. It is disabled in app config by default, but a new gateway-settings.toml can expose the default Codex runtime through the runtime settings layer. Named instances can be configured under [gateway.cli_agent_runtimes.<id>]:
When gateway.cli_agent_runtimes contains instances, those instances replace the single fallback runtime. User-facing clients should prefer the settings/get and settings/update cli_runtimes section when editing runtime instances after install.

Remote access settings

Remote access is supervised by the gateway through pioneer-tunnel. App config provides operator defaults; runtime enablement and the relay key are managed through settings/update. The remote-access key is never stored in app config or ordinary settings content. settings/update writes it into the gateway keystore and the settings snapshot exposes only has_key.

Provider attachment settings

Provider runtime settings control request timeouts before the provider-specific adapter runs. Provider attachment settings control files, URLs, upload registry behavior, and attachment safety checks.

Database settings

Gateway runtime settings file

Runtime secret values are not configured as ordinary app config keys. The gateway creates gateway-settings.toml under runtime home with:
Only keystore is supported. The old db-keystore backend name is not accepted. This setting selects the secret backend; the storage model itself is described in Secret Storage. The same file also stores gateway-scoped runtime settings that users change through clients, such as memory switches and thread episodic context switches. Clients should change those values with settings/update, not by writing the file directly.

Auth settings

Desktop gateway settings

Further reading