> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.tabnine.com/main/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.tabnine.com/main/getting-started/tabnine-cli/features/agent-guidelines-cli.md).
# Agent Guidelines (CLI)
Agent guidelines (a.k.a. "coaching guidelines") are managed differently in Tabnine CLI than they are for the Tabnine IDE plugin. Guidelines in Tabnine CLI are applied through Tabnine-provided context and tools.
{% hint style="info" %}
Go to the following hyperlink to manage [Agent Guidelines in the Tabnine IDE plugin](/main/getting-started/tabnine-agent/guidelines.md).
{% endhint %}
Guidelines help Tabnine CLI align its responses with your organization's engineering standards. When guidelines are available for your authenticated account or organization, Tabnine CLI can use them while planning, writing code, reviewing code, and answering questions about coding standards.
### How Agent Guidelines Work in Tabnine CLI
Tabnine CLI supports two guideline flows.
First, organization instructions and service-account instructions are added to the agent's operating context. These instructions are configured outside the CLI by your Tabnine administrator. When Tabnine CLI starts, it fetches the available instructions for your authenticated account and applies them to the session. Service-account instructions only apply when they are configured for the authenticated service account.
Second, coding guidelines are available through the built-in **Tabnine Coaching Guidelines** tool. When the tool is enabled, the agent can fetch language-specific rules before it writes code, reviews code, or answers questions about your team's standards.
These flows are separate. *Organization and service-account instructions* are fetched automatically from your Tabnine account context. The Coaching Guidelines *setting* controls only the built-in Coaching Guidelines MCP server.
### Requirements
You need to be signed in to Tabnine CLI with an account that has access to your organization's Tabnine environment. Your Tabnine server must also support Coaching Guidelines for CLI use if you want the agent to fetch language-specific coding rules during a session.
The built-in Coaching Guidelines tool is enabled by default. If it has been disabled, you can enable it from the `/settings` dialog.
### Enable or Disable Coaching Guidelines
In an interactive Tabnine CLI session, open settings:
```
/settings
```
Find **Enable Tabnine Coaching Guidelines** under the listed tools. This setting controls whether Tabnine CLI loads the built-in Coaching Guidelines MCP server.
{% hint style="warning" %}
This setting *doesn't* control whether organization or service-account instructions are fetched and added to the session context.
{% endhint %}
The setting is stored as:
```json
{
"tools": {
"enableCoaching": true
}
}
```
Changing this setting requires restarting Tabnine CLI.
### Availability and Fallback Behavior
If Tabnine CLI cannot fetch organization or service-account instructions, the session continues without them. If Coaching Guidelines are not supported by your Tabnine server, the built-in Coaching Guidelines tool is not loaded.
If you ask for guideline-based review and no guidelines are available, Tabnine CLI should tell you that it cannot access configured guidelines instead of inventing rules.
### Troubleshooting
If language-specific coding guidelines do not appear to be applied, check that **Enable Tabnine Coaching Guidelines** is turned on in `/settings`, and that you restarted the CLI after changing the setting.
You can also ask Tabnine CLI whether the Coaching Guidelines tool appears to be available in the current session. This is a practical check, not a standalone status command.
***Example: Check availability***
```
Can you check whether Tabnine Coaching Guidelines appear to be available in this session?
```
---
# Agent Instructions
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## Querying This Documentation
If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question.
Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter, and the optional `goal` query parameter:
```
GET https://docs.tabnine.com/main/getting-started/tabnine-cli/features/agent-guidelines-cli.md?ask=&goal=
```
`ask` is the immediate question: it should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language.
`goal` is optional and describes the broader end goal you are ultimately trying to accomplish on behalf of the user. GitBook uses it to tailor the answer towards what is most useful for that goal.
The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation.
Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.