Orchestrator Mode

Make a BB thread delegate every unit of work. Your orchestrator reads, plans, asks, delegates and reports; child worker threads carry out its briefs in the same environment.

Long-running threads can start out delegating correctly, then drift into editing files, running commands or fixing worker output themselves. In guard and block, the watchdog keeps checking new timeline work as the conversation continues, so detected direct work can be recorded, corrected or stopped.

In the composer

Use the delegation icon or the Orchestrator mode row in the + menu to toggle one thread. The strip above the input shows the enforcement level, recent direct work and a Turn off button. The draft gains a left-edge accent. BB may group the icon under More plugin actions.

In the root new-thread composer, the switch controls the new-thread default. It applies only to qualifying root threads created while the default is on, at a user-initiated dispatch. Existing threads, child workers and side chats are left alone.

Delegation and enforcement

Enabled provider sessions receive a delegation contract and the orchestrator_delegate tool. Give the worker a self-contained brief: it does not see the parent's conversation. You can wait for its result, delegate without waiting, or request a hidden worker. Waiting defaults to 900 seconds; a timeout leaves the worker running.

• instruct: contract only.
• guard (default): watch the timeline, record direct work and send corrective messages up to the configured cap.
• block: also stop the offending turn after detection.

Direct image generation counts as work and must be delegated. Recognised read-only shell commands are allowed by default. You can treat all commands as work instead. Corrective messages default to three per enablement; recording and block-mode stops continue after the cap.

Timing and limits

Instructions apply when the provider session is next constructed. A live session keeps its existing instructions. The watchdog skips historical work and grants grace turns during the transition: one when enabled while idle, or the active turn and the next one when enabled mid-turn.

BB exposes no pre-tool-call veto. Block mode detects and stops; a fast write can complete before that stop. Classification uses timeline row kinds and tool names, so this is a coordination aid, not a security boundary. Workers share your environment and use ordinary provider resources.

CLI and settings

bb orchestrator-mode provides status, on, off, violations (including --clear) and default. Thread commands accept --thread; every command supports --json. Settings control the new-thread default, enforcement, read-only command handling and the corrective-message cap.

Requires bb 0.44+ and Plugin SDK 0.5.29+. Licensed under MIT.