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clawdbot/docs/multi-agent-sandbox-tools.md
2026-01-08 22:57:18 +01:00

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---
summary: "Per-agent sandbox + tool restrictions, precedence, and examples"
title: Multi-Agent Sandbox & Tools
read_when: "You want per-agent sandboxing or per-agent tool allow/deny policies in a multi-agent gateway."
status: active
---
# Multi-Agent Sandbox & Tools Configuration
## Overview
Each agent in a multi-agent setup can now have its own:
- **Sandbox configuration** (`mode`, `scope`, `workspaceRoot`, `workspaceAccess`, `tools`)
- **Tool restrictions** (`allow`, `deny`)
This allows you to run multiple agents with different security profiles:
- Personal assistant with full access
- Family/work agents with restricted tools
- Public-facing agents in sandboxes
For how sandboxing behaves at runtime, see [Sandboxing](/gateway/sandboxing).
---
## Configuration Examples
### Example 1: Personal + Restricted Family Agent
```json
{
"routing": {
"defaultAgentId": "main",
"agents": {
"main": {
"name": "Personal Assistant",
"workspace": "~/clawd",
"sandbox": {
"mode": "off"
}
// No tool restrictions - all tools available
},
"family": {
"name": "Family Bot",
"workspace": "~/clawd-family",
"sandbox": {
"mode": "all",
"scope": "agent"
},
"tools": {
"allow": ["read"],
"deny": ["bash", "write", "edit", "process", "browser"]
}
}
},
"bindings": [
{
"agentId": "family",
"match": {
"provider": "whatsapp",
"accountId": "*",
"peer": {
"kind": "group",
"id": "120363424282127706@g.us"
}
}
}
]
}
}
```
**Result:**
- `main` agent: Runs on host, full tool access
- `family` agent: Runs in Docker (one container per agent), only `read` tool
---
### Example 2: Work Agent with Shared Sandbox
```json
{
"routing": {
"agents": {
"personal": {
"workspace": "~/clawd-personal",
"sandbox": { "mode": "off" }
},
"work": {
"workspace": "~/clawd-work",
"sandbox": {
"mode": "all",
"scope": "shared",
"workspaceRoot": "/tmp/work-sandboxes"
},
"tools": {
"allow": ["read", "write", "bash"],
"deny": ["browser", "gateway", "discord"]
}
}
}
}
}
```
---
### Example 3: Different Sandbox Modes per Agent
```json
{
"agent": {
"sandbox": {
"mode": "non-main", // Global default
"scope": "session"
}
},
"routing": {
"agents": {
"main": {
"workspace": "~/clawd",
"sandbox": {
"mode": "off" // Override: main never sandboxed
}
},
"public": {
"workspace": "~/clawd-public",
"sandbox": {
"mode": "all", // Override: public always sandboxed
"scope": "agent"
},
"tools": {
"allow": ["read"],
"deny": ["bash", "write", "edit"]
}
}
}
}
}
```
---
## Configuration Precedence
When both global (`agent.*`) and agent-specific (`routing.agents[id].*`) configs exist:
### Sandbox Config
Agent-specific settings override global:
```
routing.agents[id].sandbox.mode > agent.sandbox.mode
routing.agents[id].sandbox.scope > agent.sandbox.scope
routing.agents[id].sandbox.workspaceRoot > agent.sandbox.workspaceRoot
routing.agents[id].sandbox.workspaceAccess > agent.sandbox.workspaceAccess
routing.agents[id].sandbox.docker.* > agent.sandbox.docker.*
routing.agents[id].sandbox.browser.* > agent.sandbox.browser.*
routing.agents[id].sandbox.prune.* > agent.sandbox.prune.*
```
**Notes:**
- `routing.agents[id].sandbox.{docker,browser,prune}.*` overrides `agent.sandbox.{docker,browser,prune}.*` for that agent (ignored when sandbox scope resolves to `"shared"`).
### Tool Restrictions
The filtering order is:
1. **Global tool policy** (`agent.tools`)
2. **Agent-specific tool policy** (`routing.agents[id].tools`)
3. **Sandbox tool policy** (`agent.sandbox.tools` or `routing.agents[id].sandbox.tools`)
4. **Subagent tool policy** (if applicable)
Each level can further restrict tools, but cannot grant back denied tools from earlier levels.
If `routing.agents[id].sandbox.tools` is set, it replaces `agent.sandbox.tools` for that agent.
### Elevated Mode (global)
`agent.elevated` is **global** and **sender-based** (per-provider allowlist). It is **not** configurable per agent.
Mitigation patterns:
- Deny `bash` for untrusted agents (`routing.agents[id].tools.deny: ["bash"]`)
- Avoid allowlisting senders that route to restricted agents
- Disable elevated globally (`agent.elevated.enabled: false`) if you only want sandboxed execution
---
## Migration from Single Agent
**Before (single agent):**
```json
{
"agent": {
"workspace": "~/clawd",
"sandbox": {
"mode": "non-main",
"tools": {
"allow": ["read", "write", "bash"],
"deny": []
}
}
}
}
```
**After (multi-agent with different profiles):**
```json
{
"routing": {
"defaultAgentId": "main",
"agents": {
"main": {
"workspace": "~/clawd",
"sandbox": {
"mode": "off"
}
}
}
}
}
```
The global `agent.workspace` and `agent.sandbox` are still supported for backward compatibility, but we recommend using `routing.agents` for clarity in multi-agent setups.
---
## Tool Restriction Examples
### Read-only Agent
```json
{
"tools": {
"allow": ["read"],
"deny": ["bash", "write", "edit", "process"]
}
}
```
### Safe Execution Agent (no file modifications)
```json
{
"tools": {
"allow": ["read", "bash", "process"],
"deny": ["write", "edit", "browser", "gateway"]
}
}
```
### Communication-only Agent
```json
{
"tools": {
"allow": ["sessions_list", "sessions_send", "sessions_history"],
"deny": ["bash", "write", "edit", "read", "browser"]
}
}
```
---
## Testing
After configuring multi-agent sandbox and tools:
1. **Check agent resolution:**
```bash
clawdbot agents list --bindings
```
2. **Verify sandbox containers:**
```bash
docker ps --filter "label=clawdbot.sandbox=1"
```
3. **Test tool restrictions:**
- Send a message requiring restricted tools
- Verify the agent cannot use denied tools
4. **Monitor logs:**
```bash
tail -f "${CLAWDBOT_STATE_DIR:-$HOME/.clawdbot}/logs/gateway.log" | grep -E "routing|sandbox|tools"
```
---
## Troubleshooting
### Agent not sandboxed despite `mode: "all"`
- Check if there's a global `agent.sandbox.mode` that overrides it
- Agent-specific config takes precedence, so set `routing.agents[id].sandbox.mode: "all"`
### Tools still available despite deny list
- Check tool filtering order: global → agent → sandbox → subagent
- Each level can only further restrict, not grant back
- Verify with logs: `[tools] filtering tools for agent:${agentId}`
### Container not isolated per agent
- Set `scope: "agent"` in agent-specific sandbox config
- Default is `"session"` which creates one container per session
---
## See Also
- [Multi-Agent Routing](/concepts/multi-agent)
- [Sandbox Configuration](/gateway/configuration#agent-sandbox)
- [Session Management](/concepts/session)