Getting started

Frequently Asked Questions

Find answers to common questions about IBM Bob and Bob Shell.

General

Usage

Advanced Features

Security & enterprise

Data privacy & training

Data storage & retention

Infrastructure & data centers

Enterprise administration & controls

AI model security & prompt safety

Compliance & certifications

Network security & endpoint controls

Deployment & integration

Pricing, plans & service levels

Troubleshooting

How is this topic?

Changelog

Learn about version-specific updates for IBM Bob.

Installing

Follow these steps to install IBM Bob. The setup takes about five minutes.

General Usage Advanced Features Security & enterprise Data privacy & training Data storage & retention Infrastructure & data centers Enterprise administration & controls AI model security & prompt safety Compliance & certifications Network security & endpoint controls Deployment & integration Pricing, plans & service levels Troubleshooting

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Bob?

How does Bob work?

What can Bob do?

What are the risks of using Bob?

Can I choose which model Bob uses?

Does IBM use my prompts for training data?

How do I start a new task?

How do I switch between modes?

What are tools and how do I use them?

What are context mentions?

Can Bob run commands in my terminal?

How do I provide feedback to Bob?

Can I customize Bob's behavior?

Does Bob have any auto approval settings?

What is MCP (Model Context Protocol)?

Can I create my own MCP servers?

Does IBM use my code or prompts to train AI models?

Are my chat sessions or code snippets stored by IBM?

What data does IBM collect during a Bob session?

What is the difference between payload data and telemetry data in Bob?

Can I opt out of telemetry data collection?

How does IBM Bob process my personal information?

Who has access to data sent through Bob within IBM?

Is my source code ever stored on IBM servers during normal IDE usage?

Why are prompts temporarily cached, and how long does that cache last?

What billing metadata does IBM retain, and for how long?

What happens to my data when I close a Bob session?

How do I request deletion of my account data?

What data is retained if I cancel my IBM Bob subscription?

Is there a zero-data-retention mode or equivalent?

Which geographic regions does IBM Bob operate in, and where is Bob not available?

Which cloud infrastructure provider underpins Bob's backend?

Does Bob support private connectivity options such as AWS PrivateLink or VPN?

Is data processed outside my selected region at any point?

Can I choose or restrict which data center region my organization uses?

What is the IBM Bob admin dashboard and what can admins configure?

How does the Bobcoin budget model work for enterprise teams?

Can I set spending limits per team or per user?

How do I add or remove users from my organization's Bob instance?

Can I create sub-teams with separate budgets within one enterprise account?

Does Bob provide usage analytics to measure team adoption?

What is Bobalytics and what metrics does it surface?

Where is my organization's data stored?

How do I access IBM support as an enterprise customer?

Can I integrate Bob's usage data with our internal BI or reporting tools?

Does IBM provide an IP output indemnity for IBM Bob?

Can our organization choose or restrict which models Bob routes to?

What approval gates exist before Bob executes file edits or terminal commands?

Can Bob access the internet during a session, and how is that controlled?

Does IBM Bob filter output for certain open source licenses?

What is IBM's position on ownership of content used to prompt IBM Bob and the corresponding outputs?

What security certifications does IBM hold that apply to Bob?

Where can I find compliance documentation such as SOC 2 reports or penetration test summaries?

How does IBM handle security vulnerability disclosures and CVE patching for Bob?

What is IBM's responsible AI policy as it applies to Bob?

Is Bob covered by IBM's AI ethics principles?

How do I initiate a security review or vendor risk assessment for Bob?

How can we prevent employees from using personal Bob accounts on corporate devices?

Can Bob be blocked from accessing internal or sensitive repositories?

What operating systems and IDEs does Bob support?

Does Bob have a CLI or headless mode for server-side or pipeline use?

How does Bob integrate with GitHub, GitLab, or Bitbucket?

How are Bob client updates managed?

Is there a managed or self-hosted deployment option for Bob?

How do I deploy IBM Bob on-premises?

What infrastructure is required for an on-premises deployment?

What plans does IBM Bob offer?

What is a Bobcoin, and how does consumption-based pricing work?

Is there a free trial or evaluation tier available for enterprise assessment?

What is the service level agreement for Bob's uptime?

How do I report a service outage or file a P1 support ticket?

What is the process for upgrading, downgrading, or cancelling a plan?

Does IBM offer a proof-of-concept engagement before commitment?

Help! I'm getting an error.

Bob isn't responding. What should I do?

My Bob panel is in the wrong place. How do I move it?

Bob made changes I didn't want. How do I undo them?

How long does Bob keep my task history?

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