Passive Mode — run cobot without LLM #47

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opened 2026-02-20 17:24:27 +00:00 by doxios · 0 comments

doxios commented

2026-02-20 17:24:27 +00:00

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Summary

Allow cobot to run without an LLM provider for use cases like logging, archival, and automation.

Split from #3 (Logbot infrastructure).

Proposal

Add mode: passive to agent config:

agent:
  mode: passive   # or: active (default)

Behavior

Mode	LLM Required	respond()	Plugins	Use Case
`active`	Yes	Works	All	Normal agent
`passive`	No	No-op	All except LLM-dependent	Logbot, automation

Implementation Options

Option A: Loop Plugin Check

In loop/plugin.py:

if self._config.mode == "passive":
    # Skip LLM call, just run hooks
    return ctx

Option B: Graceful Degradation

If no LLM provider registered, respond() returns early:

llm = self._registry.get_by_capability("llm")
if not llm:
    return "(passive mode - no LLM configured)"

Option C: Explicit Config

Require explicit opt-in:

agent:
  mode: passive
  # OR
  require_llm: false

Logbot Example

agent:
  mode: passive

telegram:
  groups:
    - id: -100123456
      name: dev-chat

archive:
  format: jsonl

cron:
  jobs:
    - name: commit
      schedule: "0 */12 * * *"
      mode: direct
      action: git.commit_and_push

git:
  auto_push: true

This cobot:

Receives Telegram messages
Archives them to JSONL
Commits every 12 hours
Never calls an LLM

#3 (original logbot issue)
#44 (archive plugin)
#45 (git plugin)
#46 (cron direct mode)

## Summary Allow cobot to run without an LLM provider for use cases like logging, archival, and automation. Split from #3 (Logbot infrastructure). ## Proposal Add `mode: passive` to agent config: ```yaml agent: mode: passive # or: active (default) ``` ## Behavior | Mode | LLM Required | respond() | Plugins | Use Case | |------|--------------|-----------|---------|----------| | `active` | Yes | Works | All | Normal agent | | `passive` | No | No-op | All except LLM-dependent | Logbot, automation | ## Implementation Options ### Option A: Loop Plugin Check In `loop/plugin.py`: ```python if self._config.mode == "passive": # Skip LLM call, just run hooks return ctx ``` ### Option B: Graceful Degradation If no LLM provider registered, `respond()` returns early: ```python llm = self._registry.get_by_capability("llm") if not llm: return "(passive mode - no LLM configured)" ``` ### Option C: Explicit Config Require explicit opt-in: ```yaml agent: mode: passive # OR require_llm: false ``` ## Logbot Example ```yaml agent: mode: passive telegram: groups: - id: -100123456 name: dev-chat archive: format: jsonl cron: jobs: - name: commit schedule: "0 */12 * * *" mode: direct action: git.commit_and_push git: auto_push: true ``` This cobot: - Receives Telegram messages - Archives them to JSONL - Commits every 12 hours - **Never calls an LLM** ## Related - #3 (original logbot issue) - #44 (archive plugin) - #45 (git plugin) - #46 (cron direct mode)