Problem
Execution mode (Plan / Build / Yolo) controls permission flags injected into agent preset commands, but it is poorly discoverable, undocumented, and its interaction with preset configuration is confusing.
Current issues
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Confusing preset editor behavior: The preset editor displays the raw configured command (e.g. claude --dangerously-skip-permissions), but at launch time the permission flags are silently stripped and replaced based on the current execution mode. A user who sets --dangerously-skip-permissions in their preset and is in Build mode will actually get --permission-mode acceptEdits with no indication of the substitution.
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No visual indicator: There is no persistent UI element showing the current execution mode. The only way to discover or change it is through the command palette (Cmd+K), and even there the current mode is not highlighted.
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Undocumented: Execution mode is not mentioned in the README, the mdBook docs, or the arbor.toml reference. Users have no way to learn what it does without reading the source code.
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Silent no-op for most presets: Only Claude, Codex, and Copilot have mode-specific flag mappings. The remaining 11 presets silently ignore the execution mode with no feedback to the user.
Proposed improvements
1. Visual mode indicator and quick toggle
Add a visible mode indicator to the UI — for example in the preset sub-bar or top bar — showing the current mode (Plan/Build/Yolo) with a click-to-cycle or dropdown behavior. A keyboard shortcut for cycling modes would also help.
2. Show the effective command
When hovering over a preset button or in the preset editor, show the actual command that will be executed after mode flags are applied, not just the raw configured template.
3. Documentation
Add a section to the docs explaining execution mode with a table showing the flag mapping per agent:
| Mode |
Claude |
Codex |
Copilot |
| Plan |
--permission-mode plan |
-a on-request -s read-only |
(no flags) |
| Build |
--permission-mode acceptEdits |
--full-auto |
--allow-all-tools |
| Yolo |
--dangerously-skip-permissions |
--dangerously-bypass-approvals-and-sandbox |
--yolo |
Clarify that other presets are unaffected by execution mode.
4. Indicate unsupported presets
For presets that don't support execution mode, either grey out the mode indicator or show a note in the preset editor that mode has no effect on this agent.
Problem
Execution mode (Plan / Build / Yolo) controls permission flags injected into agent preset commands, but it is poorly discoverable, undocumented, and its interaction with preset configuration is confusing.
Current issues
Confusing preset editor behavior: The preset editor displays the raw configured command (e.g.
claude --dangerously-skip-permissions), but at launch time the permission flags are silently stripped and replaced based on the current execution mode. A user who sets--dangerously-skip-permissionsin their preset and is in Build mode will actually get--permission-mode acceptEditswith no indication of the substitution.No visual indicator: There is no persistent UI element showing the current execution mode. The only way to discover or change it is through the command palette (Cmd+K), and even there the current mode is not highlighted.
Undocumented: Execution mode is not mentioned in the README, the mdBook docs, or the
arbor.tomlreference. Users have no way to learn what it does without reading the source code.Silent no-op for most presets: Only Claude, Codex, and Copilot have mode-specific flag mappings. The remaining 11 presets silently ignore the execution mode with no feedback to the user.
Proposed improvements
1. Visual mode indicator and quick toggle
Add a visible mode indicator to the UI — for example in the preset sub-bar or top bar — showing the current mode (Plan/Build/Yolo) with a click-to-cycle or dropdown behavior. A keyboard shortcut for cycling modes would also help.
2. Show the effective command
When hovering over a preset button or in the preset editor, show the actual command that will be executed after mode flags are applied, not just the raw configured template.
3. Documentation
Add a section to the docs explaining execution mode with a table showing the flag mapping per agent:
--permission-mode plan-a on-request -s read-only--permission-mode acceptEdits--full-auto--allow-all-tools--dangerously-skip-permissions--dangerously-bypass-approvals-and-sandbox--yoloClarify that other presets are unaffected by execution mode.
4. Indicate unsupported presets
For presets that don't support execution mode, either grey out the mode indicator or show a note in the preset editor that mode has no effect on this agent.