Notifications
Get told when a bot finishes, has a question, needs approval, or hits an error. Turn notifications on or off per bot, set quiet hours, and other ways the app gets your attention.
You don't have to watch a bot work. Send your request, get on with something else, and Machine Desktop tells you when the bot needs you.
When you're notified
| Notification | When |
|---|---|
| Scout finished | A bot finished its reply. The notification shows the start of it. |
| Scout has a question | A bot is waiting for you to answer a question. |
| Scout: Run a command? | A bot is waiting for your approval. The title names the action, like Send email with Gmail?. |
| Scout hit an error | Something went wrong. |
- Click a notification to go straight to that bot and thread.
- Notifications are grouped per bot.
- You aren't notified about the thread you're looking at, while Machine Desktop is in front.
Turn notifications on or off for a bot
- Open the bot's settings (click its name in the chat header).
- Go to Alerts.
- Switch Notifications on or off: "Get notified when this agent finishes or needs input".
This setting is kept on Machine, so it's the same on all your devices.
Quiet hours
To keep your evenings free of pop-ups, open Settings → General → Quiet hours, switch it on, and set the times, for example 22:00 to 08:00.
During quiet hours, bots keep working, but Machine Desktop shows no notification pop-ups. Everything waits in the app: check Active Threads or the Today page when you're back.
Quiet hours apply to this computer only. See General settings.
Make sure notifications can appear
Notifications only arrive while Machine Desktop is running. Closing the window doesn't quit the app on Windows or Mac, so you'll still be notified. Quitting it does stop notifications. See The app window.
Your computer must also allow them:
- Windows: Settings → System → Notifications, and make sure Machine Desktop is allowed. Check Do not disturb is off.
- Mac: System Settings → Notifications → Machine Desktop, and allow notifications. Check Focus isn't hiding them.
Other signals
| Signal | Where |
|---|---|
| Reply sound | A soft pop when a bot finishes. Settings → General → Reply sound. |
| Dock badge (Mac) | A number on the Dock icon for bots and group chats with unread messages. |
| Status dots | Each bot's dot in the sidebar: blue while working, red if the last run failed. See The sidebar. |
| Active Threads | The list at the top of the sidebar: what needs you, then every thread that's working. |
| Automations dot | A red dot on Tools → Automations when a routine's last run failed. Opening the run doesn't clear it; it goes away once that routine runs again without failing. |
On your phone
The mobile apps let you check on bots and answer them from your phone. On a phone, turn notifications on in Settings → General → Notifications to hear when a bot finishes while the app is closed.