Tools

Control which tools and capabilities are available to the LLM in your conversations through tool sets, tool configurations, and plugins.

Understanding Tools and Tool Sets

BB's power comes from giving the LLM access to the right tools for your workflow. Rather than overwhelming every conversation with every possible capability, you can precisely control which tools are available.

Key Concepts:

Tools: Individual capabilities the LLM can use (e.g., edit_resource, search_web, run_command)
Tool Sets: Named collections of related tools (e.g., 'core', 'coding', 'research')
Tool Configurations: Settings that control how individual tools behave
Global Settings: Default tool sets and configurations for all projects
Project Settings: Project-specific tool sets and configurations that override global defaults

How It Works

When you start a conversation, BB provides the LLM with tools based on your selected tool sets. The LLM can then use these tools to accomplish your objectives.

Select tool sets at global or project level
Configure individual tool settings with YAML
Project settings completely override global settings
Custom tool sets combine tools from any source
Tools can come from built-in sets, BB plugins, or MCP servers

Built-in Tool Sets

BB includes 17 pre-defined tool sets that group related capabilities. Select the tool sets that match your workflow needs.

Essential Tool Sets

core

Essential operations: file discovery, reading, and conversation management. Always enabled by default.

Tools: load_datasource, load_resources, find_resources, forget_resources, display_resource

editing

Resource modification: create, edit, rename, move, and delete files.

Tools: edit_resource, write_resource, remove_resources, rename_resources, move_resources

admin

System administration: debugging, metrics, task delegation, and advanced operations.

Tools: interaction_metrics, delegate_tasks, multi_model_query, run_command

Development Tool Sets

coding

Software development: patching, command execution, web research.

testing

QA and validation workflows (plugin tools).

devops

CI/CD, deployment, infrastructure management.

security

Security scanning, compliance, vulnerability assessment.

Content & Research Tool Sets

research

Web research and information gathering.

creative

Creative workflows: image manipulation, visual content.

content

Media processing: transcription, translation, conversion.

Data & Integration Tool Sets

data

Data analysis, database queries, business intelligence.

integration

External service integrations: APIs, CRM, cloud services.

communication

Messaging, email, calendar, team collaboration.

Specialized Tool Sets

professional

Domain expertise: legal, medical, financial tools.

ai

AI/ML operations: training, inference, embeddings.

utility

General utilities, system automation, scripting.

mcp

Tools from Model Context Protocol servers.

Special Tool Set: Use all to enable every available tool regardless of categorization. Best for admin/debug workflows.

Selecting Tool Sets

Tool sets can be configured at both global and project levels. Project settings completely override global settings when specified.

Global Tool Sets

Set default tool sets for all projects through the Global Settings interface. These provide your baseline tool availability.

Common Global Configurations:

General Development: core, editing, coding
Research Projects: core, research, data
Content Creation: core, editing, creative, content
DevOps Work: core, editing, coding, devops, security

Project Tool Sets

Override global settings with project-specific tool set selections. Perfect for specialized workflows or restricted environments.

Important: When project tool sets are specified, they completely replace global tool set selections. The configurations don't merge.

Creating Custom Tool Sets

Combine tools from any source into custom tool sets tailored to your specific workflows.

Create custom tool set dialog showing fields for name, description, and tool selection from builtin tools, BB plugins, and MCP servers — Creating a custom tool set - combine tools from any source

Custom Tool Set Features:

Select specific tools from builtin tool sets
Include tools from BB plugins
Add tools from MCP servers
Available in both global and project settings
Reusable across multiple projects

Example Use Cases:

Read-only Analysis: Core tools + research, excluding editing
Safe Development: Coding tools without run_command
Legal Workflows: Core + professional + specific legal plugins

Tool Configurations

Individual tools can be configured with specific settings to control their behavior. Configurations use YAML format and can be set at both global and project levels.

Global vs Project Tool Configurations

Like tool sets, tool configurations can be set globally and overridden at the project level.

Key Difference: When you configure a tool at the project level, that configuration completely replaces the global configuration for that tool. The configs don't merge.

Tool configurations interface showing list of configured tools with their settings at project level — Project tool configurations - override global defaults for specific tools

Editing Tool Configurations

Tool configurations are written in YAML with live syntax checking to catch errors before saving.

Tool configuration editor showing YAML configuration with syntax highlighting and live validation — Editing tool configuration - YAML format with live syntax checking

Configuration Features:

YAML format for easy readability and editing
Live syntax validation prevents invalid configs
Override default tool behaviors
Set tool-specific parameters and options
Global configurations provide baseline settings
Project configurations override for specific needs

Future Enhancement:

An upcoming version of BB will replace YAML editing with proper form fields for tool configurations, making it even easier to customize tool behavior.

BB Plugins and MCP Tools

Extend BB's capabilities beyond builtin tools by adding BB plugins or connecting MCP servers.

BB Plugins

BB plugins are specialized tools built specifically for Beyond Better. They integrate seamlessly with the tool system and can be assigned to tool sets.

Created using the BB plugin SDK
Can be assigned to any tool set category
Appear alongside builtin tools in tool set selection
Configurable through the tool configuration system

Finding and Creating BB Plugins:

Visit the BB Tools repository for community plugins and development resources:

github.com/Beyond-Better/bb-tools

MCP Server Tools

Model Context Protocol (MCP) servers can provide tools that BB makes available to the LLM. These tools are automatically categorized into the 'mcp' tool set.

Configured globally in BB settings
Available across all projects once configured
Automatically appear in tool selection interfaces
Can be included in custom tool sets
Provide specialized capabilities from external services

Learn more about configuring and using MCP servers:

MCP Servers Documentation

Best Practices

Tool Set Selection Strategy

Start Minimal: Begin with 'core' and add tool sets as needed
Match Your Workflow: Select tool sets that align with project objectives
Use Project Configs: Different projects have different tool needs
Security First: Don't enable tools you don't need
Review Regularly: Adjust tool sets as project needs evolve

Tool Configuration Tips

Use Global Defaults: Set sensible baseline configurations globally
Override When Needed: Project configs for project-specific requirements
Test YAML Syntax: Use the live validator to catch errors

Custom Tool Sets

Name Descriptively: Use clear names that indicate purpose
Group Logically: Combine tools that work together
Share Across Projects: Create custom tool sets for reuse
Document Purpose: Add descriptions explaining the tool set's use case