Settings
A map of every Settings section in Vato Desktop and what each one controls.
Settings gathers everything you can configure in Vato Desktop, from the theme to your AI accounts.
Open Settings
- Click the gear icon in the main navigation bar.
- Or press ⌘, on macOS or Ctrl+, on Windows.
- Or open the command palette and choose Settings.
The sections are listed on the left. Type a word such as "theme" in Search settings to filter them by name and description. Click Back to return to your work.
Application
| Section | What it controls |
|---|---|
| General | How Vato starts, how agents behave and which local permissions they have. |
| Appearance | The theme, the navigation and the surfaces visible in your workspace. |
| Notifications | The events Vato tells you about, and on which devices. |
| Shortcuts | The keyboard shortcuts. You can review and change each one. |
In General you will find, among others:
- Interface language, for the Vato interface.
- AI response language, for the answers of Claude, Codex and OpenRouter.
- Default agent execution mode: Plan, Default permissions, Approve for me or Full access for new conversations.
- Messages during a turn: whether Enter sends a follow-up to the Queue or uses it to Steer the running turn.
- Agent collaboration and Question answer window, which control how often agents ask you questions and how long you have to answer.
- Commit attribution, the signature added to commits and pull requests created by agents.
- Index projects automatically, the private local index that helps agents find code.
- Final answer, the length and presentation of agents' final answers.
- Voice activation, to listen for "Hey Vato".
- Vato's general guide, to open the welcome guide again.
In Appearance, choose the Theme (Dark or Light), pick which surfaces appear in Header tabs, and turn the Desktop mascot on or off.
Workspace tools
| Section | What it controls |
|---|---|
| Tools | Audit and clean up development resources used by Vato. |
| Plugins | The browser, desktop control and API keys. |
| Vato Design | Vato Design and its local design tools. |
| AppSnap | Screen capture, and how captures join active conversations. |
| Worktrees | Isolated Git checkouts linked to your conversations, and their setup script. See Review changes. |
| Skills | Reusable procedures available to your agents. |
Data and connections
| Section | What it controls |
|---|---|
| Providers | Your AI provider accounts: connect, order and update them. See Start your first conversation. |
| Integrations | Apps you connect for your agents and Bots, on all your devices. |
| Vault | Logins, keys and server details your agents can use without ever seeing the secrets. |
| Storage | Local data, backups and space you can reclaim. |
| Archives | Conversations removed from your current activity. Find and restore them here. |
Usage
| Section | What it controls |
|---|---|
| Dashboard | Costs, tokens and their breakdown. |
| Usage & quotas | Your provider accounts, their quotas and reset credits. |
Account
| Section | What it controls |
|---|---|
| Profile | Your Vato identity and the information tied to this session. |
| Team | Your team, its members and access to shared conversations. |
| Vato Cloud | A hosted machine that runs your agents and Bots, even when your computer is off. |