Built-in Tools - OpenAnalyst CLI Docs

Tool Overview

Tools are capabilities the AI agent can invoke during a conversation. Each tool has a required permission level — if the current mode doesn't allow it, a permission dialog appears for approval.

Tool	Permission	Description
`bash`	Full Access	Execute shell commands with sandboxing
`read_file`	Read Only	Read file contents with line numbers
`write_file`	Workspace	Create or overwrite files
`edit_file`	Workspace	Modify files with exact string replacement patches
`glob_search`	Read Only	Find files by glob patterns (e.g., `*/.py`)
`grep_search`	Read Only	Search file contents with regex patterns
`web_search`	Read Only	Search the internet for information
`web_fetch`	Read Only	Fetch and parse URL content
`agent`	Varies	Spawn sub-agents for parallel tasks
`todo_write`	Workspace	Create and manage task lists
`notebook_edit`	Workspace	Edit Jupyter notebook cells
`skill`	Varies	Invoke custom skills
`tool_search`	Read Only	Discover available tools by keyword
`config`	Read Only	Read configuration and settings
`repl`	Varies	Run code in Python or Node REPL
`structured_output`	Read Only	Validate output against a JSON schema
`sleep`	Read Only	Pause execution for a duration
`send_user_message`	Read Only	Send a notification to the user
`powershell`	Varies	Execute PowerShell commands (Windows)

File Tools

read_file

Reads a file from the filesystem. Supports offset and limit for large files, PDF page ranges, and image viewing.

file_path string Required Absolute path to the file

offset number Optional Line number to start reading from

limit number Optional Number of lines to read (default: 2000)

write_file

Creates or overwrites a file. The agent must read the file first before overwriting.

file_path string Required Absolute path to the file

content string Required Content to write

edit_file

Performs exact string replacement in files. More efficient than rewriting — only sends the diff.

file_path string Required Absolute path to the file

old_string string Required Exact text to replace (must be unique in file)

new_string string Required Replacement text

Search Tools

glob_search

Find files by glob pattern. Returns matching paths sorted by modification time.

// Example: find all Python source files
glob_search { pattern: "**/*.py" }

grep_search

Search file contents with regex. Supports context lines, file type filters, and multiple output modes.

// Example: find all function definitions
grep_search { pattern: "fn\\s+\\w+", type: "python" }

Web Tools

web_search

Search the internet and return results. Useful for looking up documentation, error messages, or recent information.

web_fetch

Fetch and parse content from a URL. Supports HTML pages (converted to readable text), JSON APIs, and raw content.

Execution Tools

bash

Execute shell commands. Working directory persists between calls. Supports timeout, background execution, and sandboxing.

Security

Requires danger-full-access permission mode. Commands run in a sandbox by default.

powershell

Execute PowerShell commands on Windows. Same capabilities and safety model as the bash tool.

MCP Tools

In addition to the 19 built-in tools, you can register unlimited additional tools via MCP servers. These appear alongside built-in tools and are invoked the same way.