Changelog
Learn about version-specific updates for Bob Shell.
What's New
New Features
Use Bob Shell in your preferred language
You can now use Bob Shell in your preferred language. Set the
locale setting in your Bob Shell configuration to pick your display language independently of your system locale.Control whether Bob fetches external URLs
You can now control whether Bob is allowed to fetch external URLs directly from Bob Shell settings.
Tasks shared between Bob Shell and connected editors
When you run Bob Shell as an ACP agent, your tasks are now shared with connected editors such as Zed, IntelliJ, and Neovim. You can start a task in Bob Shell and pick it up in your editor, or vice versa, without losing context.
Set and remove secrets directly from the command line
You can now run
/manage-secrets set and /manage-secrets rm with arguments directly, without going through an interactive dialog. This makes it faster to add or remove secrets, and works in scripted or automated workflows.Bug Fixes
Ctrl+X open-in-editor works with GUI editors
Pressing Ctrl+X to open a prompt in an external editor now works correctly when
$VISUAL or $EDITOR is set to a GUI editor such as VS Code. Previously, the editor would open but your prompt text was not loaded back into Bob Shell.Tab on slash command autocompletes instead of executing
Pressing Tab on a slash command suggestion now completes the command in the prompt rather than immediately executing it, giving you a chance to review or append arguments first.
File changes in subdirectories now detected
Bob Shell now correctly picks up file changes inside subdirectories, fixing cases where edits to nested files were missed.
Session no longer ends on recoverable errors
Bob Shell no longer exits when a recoverable error occurs. Your session stays open so you can keep working without restarting.
Bug Fixes
Auto-update fix for npm 12
Bob Shell now updates automatically on npm 12. If auto-updates were not working previously, install this release manually to restore automatic update behavior.
New Features
Background processes
You can now ask Bob to run commands in the background. For example, ask Bob to run
npm run build and it will continue running in the background while you keep chatting. Bob also starts longer-running processes in the background automatically.Compaction lifecycle hooks
You can now run hooks before and after context compaction. Use
PreCompact to block compaction when conditions are not met, and PostCompact to act after compaction completes.MCP OAuth authentication
You can now authenticate with OAuth-enabled MCP servers in interactive sessions. Open the MCP dialog, press Ctrl+A, and authorize access for your chosen server. Non-interactive session support is planned for a future release.
HTTPS hook handlers
You can now send hook events to HTTPS endpoints. Configure the endpoint URL in your hook settings to route event payloads to any HTTPS target.
Improvements
Improved shell and prompt queuing and navigation
Shell input queuing and prompt navigation are now more reliable, reducing dropped keystrokes and improving responsiveness under rapid input.
Streaming output for shell commands
You can now view output from your shell commands streaming to the chat view in real time rather than waiting for the command to finish.
Shell commands saved to task history
You can now review or resume a task and see the complete output of previous shell commands, as command inputs and results are saved to task history.
Warnings for invalid skill directory names
Bob now warns you when a skill directory name is invalid, so misconfigured skill directories are easier to identify and fix.
Unified /compact slash command
You can now use
/compact as the primary slash command to compact context across both Bob IDE and Bob Shell while retaining existing aliases.Bug Fixes
MCP server list updates when server status changes
The MCP server list in Bob Shell now refreshes automatically when a server connects or disconnects, keeping the displayed status accurate.
Drafts preserved when selecting skills
Opening the skill picker no longer discards text you have already typed. Your draft prompt is restored when you close the picker.
TUI colors stabilized on non-dark terminals
Terminal UI colors are now consistent across light and non-dark terminal themes, fixing washed-out or invisible text in those environments.
--disable-mcp flag behavior corrected
Passing
--disable-mcp now correctly disables MCP for the runtime session. Previously, a session with session.mcp set to true ignored the flag.Console logs no longer leak in debug mode
Internal console log output is now suppressed correctly when debug mode is inactive, preventing noise in the terminal output.
Git fsmonitor disabled in untrusted folders
Bob Shell now disables git fsmonitor when running git commands in untrusted folders. Git fsmonitor hooks can execute arbitrary code, so this change prevents untrusted repositories from triggering hook execution when you use git mentions such as
@git:commit: or @git:branch:.Various smaller bug fixes
Various smaller bug fixes that improve the user experience and stabilize Bob.
New Features
Read and edit Office files
You can now read and edit
.docx, .xlsx, and .pptx files using two new tools: office_read and office_edit. Use office_read to extract text, view structural outlines, access individual elements, or dump the full file contents. Use office_edit to set values, add or remove content, and run find-and-replace operations. The read_file tool automatically forwards Office files to office_read. This feature is also available in Bob IDE 2.1.0.Agent Client Protocol (ACP)
Run
bob acp to expose Bob Shell as an ACP agent. Any ACP-compatible editor, including Zed, IntelliJ, and Neovim, can connect to Bob Shell as a first-class AI assistant. Bob's full runtime is available through the ACP connection, including modes, MCP servers, skills, tool approvals, and session management. When Bob proposes a file change through the ACP connection, the diff is visible in the approval prompt before you accept or reject the edit.Git and MCP mention pickers
Type
@ in the Bob Shell prompt to open a picker for git commits, branches, working-tree changes, or MCP resources. The selected item is resolved and inserted into your message before it is sent.Edit prompts in an external editor
Press Ctrl+X or run
/editor while typing a prompt to open the current input in your preferred terminal editor ($VISUAL, $EDITOR, or vi as a fallback). When you save and close the editor, the text is loaded back into the prompt.Hooks management
Run
/hooks to open a dialog that lists all configured global and workspace hooks. The dialog shows each hook's event type, matcher, scope, status, and command. You can toggle individual hooks on or off, and the list refreshes automatically when hook settings change on disk. Bob IDE 2.1.0 also adds hooks management via the Hooks tab in Bob Settings.z/OS and Linux on IBM Z support
Bob Shell now runs on z/OS UNIX System Services (os390-s390x) and Linux on IBM Z, enabling AI-assisted terminal workflows directly on Z platforms.
Improvements
Full MCP tool output saved to disk when truncated
When a tool call produces output that exceeds the context limit, the full output is saved to disk and the truncated message includes the file path. You can then use
read_file with a range to inspect any section of the output rather than working with incomplete information.Oversized images resized automatically
PNG, JPEG, and GIF images larger than 768 px are resized before they are added to task messages. This prevents payload size errors when a session includes many screenshots or large images.
Enforce hooks across all users with a policy
Administrators can now use the
EnforcedHooks policy to inject hooks that run before any user-defined hooks. Enforced hooks cannot be overridden or disabled by users, making them suitable for organization-wide requirements such as audit logging.Bug Fixes
Global skill directories excluded from workspace scope
Skills in global skill directories are no longer included in workspace-scoped skill discovery, preventing duplicate or unexpected skill entries.
Saved tool outputs readable in the same session
Bob can now read tool output files that were saved to disk in the same session, so large outputs that exceed the context limit remain accessible rather than being lost.
Team picker exits with Ctrl+C
When Bob Shell starts with an invalid
--team or --instance argument, the mandatory team picker now accepts Ctrl+C to exit cleanly. A footer hint confirms the shortcut. Pressing Esc does not dismiss a mandatory dialog.Improvements
alwaysAllow MCP tools respected in Bob Shell
MCP tools listed in
alwaysAllow inside .bob/mcp.json are now automatically approved on the first tool call of a task in Bob Shell. Previously, this setting was honored only in the IDE extension.Increased task history retention
The default task retention period is now 30 days. Setting
tasks.retentionDays to 0 disables automatic cleanup so that all task history is kept indefinitely.Platform-aware auto-approve keyboard shortcut
The keyboard shortcut to toggle auto-approve is now
Alt+F on Windows, Linux, and WSL. On macOS, the shortcut remains Ctrl+F.New slash command aliases
Four slash commands now accept shorter aliases:
/history for /resume, /compact for /condense, /trust for /permissions, and /info for /status.Bug Fixes
Settings changes always require explicit approval
Writes to
.bob/settings.json and ~/.bob/*/settings.json now always require one-time explicit user approval, even when auto-approve is enabled. Auto-approve cannot be used to bypass approval for changes to Bob settings files.Auto-approve blocked for Bob home directory writes
Tool calls that write to Bob's home directory (for example,
~/.bob/) are no longer automatically approved when auto-approve mode is on. These calls always prompt for explicit approval.Workspace root resolved correctly from subdirectories
Bob Shell now prioritizes
.git over .bob when walking up the directory tree to find the workspace root. Starting Bob Shell from inside a package subdirectory that contains its own .bob/ folder no longer causes workspace-scoped skills, rules, and modes to be silently missed.MCP tool approval respects group-level permission
An MCP tool listed in the per-task allowlist is no longer auto-approved unless the
mcp permission group has also been granted for the task. Previously, the per-tool allowlist could bypass the broader group approval gate.Bob Shell no longer hangs on exit
Fixed an issue where Bob Shell did not exit cleanly after pressing
Ctrl+C. The policy-watcher process is now disposed correctly on shutdown.Deprecated --list-sessions and --limit flags restored
The
--list-sessions and --limit <number> flags that were removed in 2.0.0 are restored as silent aliases for --list-tasks. Existing scripts that use these flags continue to work without modification.Increased MCP tool payload limit
The MCP tool payload limit is increased to 300 KB. This fixes an issue where MCP servers that expose large tool definitions caused Bob Shell to fail.
New Features
Message queue
Queue follow-up messages while Bob is still responding. Press Tab to add a message to the queue; queued messages are sent automatically in order as each turn completes. Reorder or remove items from the queue at any time.
MCP management commands
Manage Model Context Protocol servers directly from the CLI with
bob mcp add, bob mcp add-json, bob mcp remove, and bob mcp list. Supports both global and workspace scopes, and stdio, SSE, and HTTP transports.Skills
Create reusable instruction sets that teach Bob new workflows and specialized tasks. Define custom workflows, add supporting files, and share skills across your team through version control. Skills were not available in Bob Shell 1.0.x.
Improvements
Redesigned settings schema
Settings are now stored at
~/.bob/settings/settings.json. The schema adds a telemetry section, an edit tool group, and clearer per-setting documentation. CLI flags and the /settings slash command override file values for the current session.Agent mode replaces Code and Advanced modes
The previous Code mode and Advanced mode have been consolidated into a single Agent mode. Agent mode takes autonomous action to complete tasks.
Expanded non-interactive output schema
The JSON output from
bob run now includes a stats object with per-session token counts, cache ratios, cost, duration, and tool call totals. Structured event types (message, tool_use, tool_result, error) make it easier to parse results in CI/CD pipelines.New Features
Custom identity provider support
Bob Shell now supports custom identity providers (IdPs), enabling organizations to authenticate using their own IdP configuration.
New Features
Support for additional data centers
Bob Shell is now available in additional data centers, expanding regional availability for your team.
Bug Fixes
Security updates and minor bug fixes
Security improvements and minor bug fixes to enhance the stability and safety of Bob Shell.
Bug Fixes
Authentication token refresh
Fixed an issue where authentication tokens were not refreshed correctly for specific scenarios.
Default authentication method
Fixed an issue where the default authentication method from user settings was not applied correctly. Bob Shell now correctly reads and applies your preferred authentication when needed.
New Features
API key authentication
Authenticate Bob Shell using an API key for programmatic and automated workflows. Use an API key in non-interactive
run mode for CI/CD pipelines and scripting scenarios where interactive IBMid login is not available.Improvements
Minor bug fixes
Various stability improvements and bug fixes to enhance the overall Bob Shell experience.
New Features
Terminal-based AI assistance
Use Bob directly from your command line for AI-assisted terminal workflows, including the same context awareness and reasoning available in the IDE.
Interactive and non-interactive sessions
Run Bob Shell interactively for conversational tasks, or non-interactively for automation and scripting. Use
bob run to invoke Bob programmatically in CI/CD pipelines and automated workflows.Specialized modes
Use purpose-built modes optimized for command-line scenarios: Code mode for generating and refactoring code, Ask mode for answering questions about your codebase, Plan mode for designing implementations, and Advanced mode for extended capabilities including MCP tools.
Command-line tools
Read, write, and manipulate files from the command line, run shell commands with error handling, and monitor running processes — all from within a Bob Shell session.
MCP (Model Context Protocol) integration
Extend Bob Shell with custom tools by connecting MCP servers. Access databases, APIs, and your organization's internal systems directly from the terminal.
Custom modes and slash commands
Define custom modes for specialized workflows and create reusable slash command shortcuts to standardize development processes across your team.
Editor terminal support
Run Bob Shell inside terminal views of supported editors. Seamlessly integrate with your development environment.
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