1<!--
  2  GOLD STANDARD EXAMPLE: Reference Documentation
  3
  4  This example demonstrates documentation for API/reference content like tools,
  5  actions, or other enumerable items.
  6
  7  Key patterns to note:
  8  - Anchor IDs on categories and individual items for deep-linking
  9  - Opening paragraph explains what these are and where they're used
 10  - Organized into logical categories
 11  - Each item has a clear, actionable description
 12  - Links to related configuration docs
 13  - "See Also" section for related topics
 14-->
 15
 16---
 17
 18title: AI Agent Tools - Zed
 19description: Built-in tools for Zed's AI agent including file editing, code search, terminal commands, web search, and diagnostics.
 20
 21---
 22
 23# Tools
 24
 25Zed's built-in agent has access to these tools for reading, searching, and editing your codebase. These tools are used in the [Agent Panel](./agent-panel.md) during conversations with AI agents.
 26
 27You can configure permissions for tool actions, including situations where they are automatically approved, automatically denied, or require your confirmation on a case-by-case basis. See [Tool Permissions](./tool-permissions.md) for the list of permission-gated tools and details.
 28
 29To add custom tools beyond these built-in ones, see [MCP servers](./mcp.md).
 30
 31## Read & Search Tools {#read-search-tools}
 32
 33### `diagnostics` {#diagnostics}
 34
 35Gets errors and warnings for either a specific file or the entire project, useful after making edits to determine if further changes are needed.
 36When a path is provided, shows all diagnostics for that specific file.
 37When no path is provided, shows a summary of error and warning counts for all files in the project.
 38
 39### `fetch` {#fetch}
 40
 41Fetches a URL and returns the content as Markdown. Useful for providing docs as context.
 42
 43### `find_path` {#find-path}
 44
 45Quickly finds files by matching glob patterns (like `**/*.js`), returning matching file paths alphabetically.
 46
 47### `grep` {#grep}
 48
 49Searches file contents across the project using regular expressions, preferred for finding symbols in code without knowing exact file paths.
 50
 51### `list_directory` {#list-directory}
 52
 53Lists files and directories in a given path, providing an overview of filesystem contents.
 54
 55### `now` {#now}
 56
 57Returns the current date and time.
 58
 59### `open` {#open}
 60
 61Opens a file or URL with the default application associated with it on the user's operating system.
 62
 63### `read_file` {#read-file}
 64
 65Reads the content of a specified file in the project, allowing access to file contents.
 66
 67### `thinking` {#thinking}
 68
 69Allows the Agent to work through problems, brainstorm ideas, or plan without executing actions, useful for complex problem-solving.
 70
 71### `web_search` {#web-search}
 72
 73Searches the web for information, providing results with snippets and links from relevant web pages, useful for accessing real-time information.
 74
 75## Edit Tools {#edit-tools}
 76
 77### `copy_path` {#copy-path}
 78
 79Copies a file or directory recursively in the project, more efficient than manually reading and writing files when duplicating content.
 80
 81### `create_directory` {#create-directory}
 82
 83Creates a new directory at the specified path within the project, creating all necessary parent directories (similar to `mkdir -p`).
 84
 85### `delete_path` {#delete-path}
 86
 87Deletes a file or directory (including contents recursively) at the specified path and confirms the deletion.
 88
 89### `edit_file` {#edit-file}
 90
 91Edits files by replacing specific text with new content.
 92
 93### `move_path` {#move-path}
 94
 95Moves or renames a file or directory in the project, performing a rename if only the filename differs.
 96
 97### `restore_file_from_disk` {#restore-file}
 98
 99Discards unsaved changes in open buffers by reloading file contents from disk. Useful for resetting files to their on-disk state before retrying an edit.
100
101### `save_file` {#save-file}
102
103Saves files that have unsaved changes. Used when files need to be saved before further edits can be made.
104
105### `terminal` {#terminal}
106
107Executes shell commands and returns the combined output, creating a new shell process for each invocation.
108
109## Other Tools {#other-tools}
110
111### `subagent` {#subagent}
112
113Spawns a subagent with its own context window to perform a delegated task. Useful for running parallel investigations, completing self-contained tasks, or performing research where only the outcome matters. Each subagent has access to the same tools as the parent agent.
114
115## See Also {#see-also}
116
117- [Agent Panel](./agent-panel.md) — Where you interact with AI agents
118- [Tool Permissions](./tool-permissions.md) — Configure which tools require approval
119- [MCP Servers](./mcp.md) — Add custom tools via Model Context Protocol