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A runtime environment is the agent’s computer: the CLIs, packages, config and team conventions a person would preinstall on a laptop, such as the AWS CLI with a kubeconfig or kubectl. It is attached per agent, so every conversation of that agent starts on the same computer. A CLI often replaces a skill. An agent with the AWS CLI and a kubeconfig works the account one command at a time, like an engineer.

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Environment, workspace and location

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What goes in

Create one under Platform > Agents > Runtime > Environments > New runtime environment.
Runtime page on the Environments tab with New environment and three environments, two nested under Acme engineering base

Platform > Agents > Runtime > Environments. Shown with sample data.

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Install a CLI

Agent machines do not install brew packages. The agent is told which ones were skipped. Instead, use the CLI’s pip, npm or pnpm package (for example awscli from pip), or download its release binary into $XPANDER_ENV_BIN with a setup script:

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How it reaches the agent

xpander builds the environment once and mounts it read-only into every session. The context is managed only in xpander Chat, so the agent cannot rewrite it. Saved changes reach new sessions within 5 minutes. The environment follows the agent to any location. Secrets are not part of it. A CLI reads its credential from the agent’s Workspace secrets at the moment of a call. Config files name the endpoint and account, never the key.

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Attach it to an agent

Pick it under Agent settings > Advanced > Runtime environment. The next session starts on it. Switching does not touch the agent’s files.

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Next steps

Customize the rest of the agent

Instructions, skills, approvals.

Store the agent's secrets

Credentials for CLIs and skills.