---
title: Running work
description: How work moves from prompt to merged change, and the three ways it starts.
---

Kortix does work inside a [session](/docs/work/sessions): a branch and a sandbox for one
unit of work. A session ends when its [change request](/docs/work/change-requests) (CR)
merges back to the default branch. This page walks through the loop, then shows the
three ways a session can start.

<CardGroup>
  <Card icon="git-branch" title="Sessions" href="/docs/work/sessions">A branch and a sandbox for one unit of work.</Card>
  <Card icon="git-pull-request" title="Change requests" href="/docs/work/change-requests">The reviewed merge back to the default branch.</Card>
  <Card icon="cpu" title="Runtime" href="/docs/work/runtime">Env vars, tokens, and the sandbox image a session runs in.</Card>
</CardGroup>

## What happens when a session starts

1. Kortix creates the session row and cuts a branch from the default branch.
   The branch name is the session id.
2. Kortix resolves a sandbox image: the default image, or your own
   `.kortix/Dockerfile` if the manifest declares one.
3. The sandbox boots. Its daemon, `kortix-agent`, clones the repo to
   `/workspace`. It starts OpenCode REST.
   Session status becomes `running`.
4. The agent works. It uses [secrets](/docs/project/secrets) through the
   environment variables Kortix sets, then commits and pushes to the session
   branch.
5. The agent opens a [change request](/docs/work/change-requests). You review
   it and merge it — the only way work reaches the default branch.

:::info[Git is the only durable record]
Stopping a session pauses the sandbox but keeps its files. Deleting a session
destroys the sandbox for good. Only work committed and pushed to the branch
survives, and only a merged change request makes it permanent.
:::

## Three ways work runs

A session starts one of three ways.

| Mode | How it works |
|---|---|
| On-demand | You ask in chat and get the result now. |
| Human-assisted | The agent works and checks in with you for the calls that matter. |
| Automated | A [trigger](/docs/connect/triggers) — a schedule or webhook — starts the session end to end. |

## Related

<CardGroup>
  <Card icon="box" title="Projects" href="/docs/project">A git repo with a manifest.</Card>
  <Card icon="bot" title="Agents" href="/docs/project/agents">A markdown persona with scoped tools.</Card>
  <Card icon="brain" title="Models" href="/docs/project/models">Which model a session uses, and who pays.</Card>
  <Card icon="alarm-clock" title="Triggers" href="/docs/connect/triggers">Schedules and webhooks that start sessions.</Card>
  <Card icon="cable" title="Connectors" href="/docs/connect/connectors">Scoped reach into external apps.</Card>
  <Card icon="messages-square" title="Slack & channels" href="/docs/connect/slack">Chat surfaces that start sessions.</Card>
  <Card icon="monitor" title="Computers" href="/docs/connect/computers">Machines distinct from session sandboxes.</Card>
  <Card icon="users" title="Accounts" href="/docs/accounts">Principals, roles, and assignments — who can do what.</Card>
</CardGroup>