Architect

Architect is Knotic's plan-and-execute surface for larger tasks.

If Sessions is best for direct interaction and Brainstorming is best for choosing a direction, Architect is best for carrying out a multi-step implementation in a controlled way.

What Architect Is For

Use Architect when the work should be broken into steps instead of handled as one long request.

Typical uses:

• cross-file refactors
• features that touch several modules
• tasks that need review between steps
• execution from a previously generated spec

How Architect Works

Architect first builds a plan, then executes the plan step by step.

The flow is:

1. Knotic analyzes the request with read-only tools.
2. Knotic synthesizes a plan.
3. The plan is split into steps and phases.
4. Each step runs in its own linked execution session.
5. Step status is tracked as work progresses.

Each step can be pending, running, paused, completed, cancelled, skipped, or error. If a step pauses, running it again starts a new linked execution session using the saved state.

Architect can also load specs from Brainstorming or from files in .knotic/spec/*.spec.md.

At the moment, starting Architect planning requires a Knotic license key.

How To Use Architect

1. Open Architect with Ctrl+Alt+A.
2. Enter a task prompt or load an existing spec.
3. Review the generated plan before execution.
4. Run one step at a time or run the plan progressively.
5. Inspect messages, tool activity, and diff summaries for each step.
6. Reset or rerun a step if needed.

Architect works best when you treat the plan as a working document, not as a final truth. Review it, adjust it, then execute it.

How To Read The UI

Architect is centered on plan visibility.

• plan input area: where you start from a prompt or spec
• plan view: where phases and steps are listed
• step controls: where you play, cancel, skip, reorder, or reset work
• execution activity: where per-step streaming, tool calls, and messages appear
• file and diff actions: where you inspect changed files and step-level diffs
• history area: where saved plans can be reopened

When To Use Architect

Use Architect when the risk of a one-shot prompt is too high.

• Use Sessions for tactical work that can be handled interactively.
• Use Brainstorming if you still need to choose the right approach.
• Use Architect once the goal is clear and the implementation should be staged.

Good Practices

• Review the plan before running the first step.
• Prefer explicit, well-scoped steps over very broad ones.
• Check the step activity stream, not just the final status.
• Load a Brainstorming spec when you want a cleaner handoff from discovery to execution.