YOLO vs Interactive Mode

When to trust the agent to run autonomously and when to stay in the loop with checkpoints

beginner

Two Modes

GSD has two execution styles.

Interactive mode (default): the agent pauses at every checkpoint task and asks for confirmation. You see what was built, verify it works, then signal the agent to continue.

YOLO mode (--yolo): checkpoint tasks of type human-verify and decision are auto-approved. The agent runs continuously from start to finish without pausing. You review the result at the end.

Neither is always correct. The right choice depends on the plan, the domain, and how much you trust the current task.

When to Use YOLO Mode

Good candidates for YOLO:

  • Plans you’ve reviewed and trust — read the PLAN.md first; if the tasks and checkpoints look reasonable, YOLO is safe
  • Pure implementation tasks with no architectural decisions buried in the checkpoint tasks
  • Familiar patterns you’ve seen the agent execute correctly before (e.g., “add another reference page” after you’ve done several)
  • Time-boxed sessions where you want maximum throughput and can review the diff at the end
$ /gsd:execute-phase N --yolo

When to Stay Interactive

Stay interactive when:

  • The plan includes checkpoint:decision tasks — these are architectural choices that shape the long-term direction. Auto-approving picks the first option, which may not be right for your project.
  • You’re working in an unfamiliar domain — you want to see each step before proceeding
  • The plan touches production systems or irreversible operations (database migrations, infrastructure changes)
  • You haven’t reviewed the PLAN.md yet — if you don’t know what the agent is about to do, don’t let it run unsupervised

The Default Recommendation

For most day-to-day work on well-understood tasks: YOLO mode saves time without meaningful risk. A typical guide page addition, reference table update, or component refactor is safe to YOLO.

For anything with checkpoint:decision in the plan: stay interactive. Those decisions shape the architecture and deserve your attention.

The rule of thumb: if you can read the PLAN.md in two minutes and not see anything surprising, YOLO is the right call.