Zide Assist
Zide Assist is an AI agent built into Zide. Zide Assist can read your repository, edit files, and run scripts without leaving Zide.
Navigate the Zide Assist tab
To open a Zide Assist tab, click Assist > New Session Tab. You can open multiple Zide Assist sessions.
The Zide Assist toolbar includes the title of the Zide Assist session, security settings, and the model picker.
Click the Security Settings icon to view and change the safety settings of the session. Click the Radar icon to view who is viewing the current Zide Assist session. Click the model dropdown to select an AI model to use with Zide.
Click More actions to perform the following actions in the Zide Assist session.
| Action | Description |
|---|---|
| New Session | In an active Zide Assist session, open a new session in the same Zide Assist tab. |
| Rename Session | Rename the Zide Assist session. |
| Session stats | View stats for the current Zide Assist session. |
| Compact session | Summarize and compact a long Zide Assist session. |
| Prompt library | View and use prompts available in the repository. |
| Attach files | Attach files to your message to Zide Assist. |
| Add context | Add files, issues, tabs, pull requests to your message to Zide Assist. |
| MCP Connections | View MCP connections. Click the Manage in Settings icon to add an MCP connection. |
| Background Process | View background processes in Zide. |
| Plan Mode | Turn On or Off the Plan mode for the Zide Assist session. |
| Crosscheck | Turn On or Off automatic second-model review of commits, and choose the reviewer model. |
| Relay | View who is monitoring the session. |
| Zide Assist settings | Open the Zide Assist section in Settings. |
Model picker
You can quickly select which model to use with Zide Assist with the model picker. Use the Search model field to look for a model by name. Click the Filter model icon to sort models by source and provider. Click Configure current model parameters to view and adjust the parameters of the model in use.
Click All models and connections to view the complete Zide model catalog. Models that are not included with your account remain visible with a lock. Choosing a locked model opens the access-recovery and plan-upgrade flow instead of selecting the model.
Select a model. Click Details to see its limits and cost. Cost shows typical task estimates and base input and output rates. It also shows conditions that change the price, such as peak hours or scheduled rate changes. Click All rates and conditions to see detailed rates in credits. These include cache rates and rates for different prompt sizes, modes, and scheduled periods. The section also shows scheduled changes, Zide adjustments, prompt cache behavior, and the cost of switching models. Zide remembers whether this section is open or closed when you next open the picker.
With Zide Standard or higher, click Add API key in the Select Model dialog to connect a supported cloud model provider with your own key. Click Add local model to connect Ollama, LM Studio, or another OpenAI-compatible endpoint. These connection actions are locked on Free, Zide Solo, and a perpetual license without an active subscription.
Which model a conversation uses
A new Zide Assist conversation follows the default model set in Settings > Zide Assist > Conversations. If you change that default, every conversation that has not chosen a model yet moves to the new one, including the tabs you already have open.
Once a conversation has a model of its own, it keeps it. It gets one when you pick a model in the model picker, and when it sends its first message. Changing the default in Settings after that does not move an existing conversation to another model.
Saved conversations are resumed on the model they were saved with. Continue Session and Continue as New Session make the transcript writable again without reapplying the current default. If the saved model is no longer available, Zide Assist asks you to choose another one instead of substituting a different model. Conversations saved by an older version of Zide did not record a model, so those follow the current default on their next message.
Zide Assist conversation
The conversation view displays the conversation topic, your messages, and responses from Zide Assist.
Enter a message into the Zide Assist tab message box and click Send to send a request to Zide. Click Cancel to stop the request to Zide.
Automatic context
Each turn includes a short description of the project and the Zide surfaces you are currently viewing, such as visible content tabs and the selected Activity item. This description does not include file contents; attach a file or selection when you want its contents included directly.
You can also send a voice message to Zide. Click the Dictate icon in the message box. Speak and then click the Recording icon to stop recording. Your voice recording transcribes into the message box before you click Send.
While Zide opens your microphone, the button shows Starting…. Click the button again or press Esc to cancel the request. If the microphone still has not responded after about 20 seconds, Zide stops waiting and shows checks for system privacy access, input-device availability, and another app holding the microphone.
Your messages
Your messages to Zide Assist appear on the right side of the Zide Assist tab. In your message, click the Message options icon to open the following actions for the message.
| Action | Description |
|---|---|
| Copy | Copy the message. |
| Edit & Resend | Put the message back in the message box to edit and send again. The message, its response, and everything after it are removed from the conversation first. |
| Save as command | Save the message as a command. |
| Fork from here | Create a new Zide Assist tab that continues a copy of the conversation up to and including the selected message and its complete response. The original conversation is unchanged. |
| Fork to worktree | Create the same copy in a new worktree branched at the last commit Zide Assist made through the selected message. |
| Cut conversation here | Messages before the selected message will be saved and removed from the conversation. |
| Rollback to here | Return the conversation to the state immediately before you sent the selected message. The selected message, its response and tool activity, and every later message are removed. |
| Delete Message | Remove the selected message together with its response and tool activity. Later messages are kept. |
Rollback to here and Delete Message change the conversation only. They do not restore files, reset Git, reverse commands, or remove commits. To undo repository work, use Zide’s Git surfaces.
Attachments appear above the message box. Click an attachment to view its details and available actions, or remove it. After you send a message, Zide clears its file attachments from above the message box. The sent message lists those files.
You can send multiple messages to Zide Assist while Zide is responding to a message. Zide responds to the messages in the order you sent them.
To ask Zide a question without redirecting the current response, use the /sidebar command.
To queue a message while Zide is responding, type the message in the message box, click the More send options icon, and click Queue for next turn. Queue messages appear as a list and can be edited before the message is sent to Zide Assist.
Zide responses
Zide Assist messages appear on the left side of the Zide Assist tab. Click the Message actions icon to copy the Zide Assist response, copy the response as Markdown, or review the turn details.
Each response displays the thought process of Zide Assist and the tools it used during the turn.
When a turn ends with an active task list, a Task list banner is recorded in the scrollback showing each task and the state it had when that turn finished.
Plan mode
In Plan Mode, Zide Assist can only investigate and propose plans based on your request. Zide Assist cannot edit files or run commands while in Plan Mode. To turn on plan mode, click the More actions icon, click Plan mode, and then click On.
Crosscheck
Crosscheck automatically reviews every commit made by Zide Assist using a second model. To turn on Crosscheck, click the More actions icon, click Crosscheck, and then click On. You can select which model to use for the review.
When Zide Assist authors a commit, Crosscheck automatically starts a review. Click Cancel to stop the Crosscheck. The review findings are posted into the conversation and are grouped by severity.
The review header displays how many findings fall into each level and the review’s credit cost.
Click Submit on a review to send its findings to Zide Assist as a new request, so it can address the feedback.
MCP Connections
Zide Assist can use tools from Model Context Protocol (MCP) servers. To add an MCP connection, open Settings > Zide Assist > MCP Connections and click Add Connection. Zide supports the stdio and Streamable HTTP transports.
When a session starts, Zide connects to each enabled MCP server and discovers the tools the server provides. A banner for each connected server displays the number of tools the server provides. If a server fails to connect, or connects but provides no tools, a warning banner names the server and the error instead.
MCP connections are loaded when a Zide Assist session starts. If you add, remove, or change a connection while a session is open, the change applies to the next Zide Assist session.
Plan Mode and Tool access: Locked make MCP tools unavailable because an MCP server can run commands, use the network, or cause other side effects. Connected servers remain visible, and their tools become available on the first turn after the restriction is lifted.
Generate a session title
In Rename Session, use Generate in the dialog header to suggest a title from your first few messages. The label stays visible when the title contains text. Review the suggestion before replacing an existing title; applied results offer Undo. Confirm the rename when the title is ready. Send a message first if generation is unavailable.