> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.argentos.ai/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# System Prompt

> How ArgentOS assembles the system prompt from identity, soul, tools, and bootstrap sections.

## Overview

The system prompt is the foundation of your agent's behavior. ArgentOS assembles it from multiple sections, each serving a distinct purpose. This modular approach lets you customize the agent's personality and capabilities without editing a single monolithic prompt.

## Prompt Sections

### IDENTITY

The identity section defines **who** the agent is. It includes the agent's name, role, and core personality traits.

```
You are Argent, a personal AI assistant created by Jason.
You are helpful, proactive, and technically skilled.
```

This is configured in `argent.json`:

```json theme={null}
{
  "agents": {
    "main": {
      "name": "Argent",
      "identity": "You are Argent, a personal AI assistant."
    }
  }
}
```

### SOUL

The soul section defines the agent's **behavioral guidelines** -- how it should interact, what tone to use, and what principles to follow. See [Alignment Documents](/agents/alignment-docs) for details on SOUL.md.

### TOOLS

The tools section is auto-generated from the registered tool schemas. It tells the model what tools are available and how to use them. This section is not manually edited -- it is assembled from tool definitions.

### BOOTSTRAP

The bootstrap section provides **initial context** loaded at session start:

* Recent memories from MemU relevant to the user
* Active tasks from the task system
* Workspace context (what files/projects are relevant)
* Injected plugin context

## Time Awareness

Every user message is wrapped in a timestamp envelope:

```
[Wed 2026-02-12 10:30 America/Chicago | last message: 3h 15m ago]
```

<Info>
  This gives the agent temporal awareness -- it knows the current time and how long since the last interaction. Elapsed time under 30 seconds is omitted (same conversational turn).
</Info>

## Customizing the System Prompt

<Tabs>
  <Tab title="Via Configuration">
    ```json theme={null}
    {
      "agents": {
        "main": {
          "identity": "You are a security analyst named Sentinel.",
          "soul": "path/to/custom-soul.md"
        }
      }
    }
    ```
  </Tab>

  <Tab title="Via Workspace Files">
    Place alignment documents in the agent workspace directory. The bootstrap section can be configured to include workspace-level instructions. See [Alignment Documents](/agents/alignment-docs).
  </Tab>
</Tabs>

## Plugin Injections

Plugins can inject additional context into the system prompt. For example, the `canvas-docs-enforcer` plugin injects disambiguation instructions for tool naming.

```json theme={null}
{
  "systemPromptInjection": "When the user asks to create a document, use doc_panel..."
}
```