# Side chats

> Ask a side question about any message in a hidden copy of the thread, without cluttering the main conversation.

Source: https://www.cloudroom.dev/docs/side-chats

A side chat lets you ask a quick question about a thread without adding noise to it. It is a hidden copy of the thread that opens in a panel next to the main chat.

## When to use it

- You want to ask about one reply, like "Why did you pick this approach?"
- You want to explore an idea without derailing the main agent.
- The main agent is busy, and you have a side question.

## Start a side chat

- **Reply in side chat:** pick it from the actions on any message. Select part of the message first to ask about only that text.
- **Start side chat:** open a new tab in the side panel and pick it. The side chat starts from the thread as it is now.

## What it knows

A side chat copies the main conversation up to the message you picked. It knows everything the main agent knew at that point. If you replied to a message, the agent also gets the quoted text.

```mermaid
sequenceDiagram
  participant Main as Main thread
  participant Side as Side chat
  Main->>Side: Reply in side chat: copy history up to that message
  Note over Side: You ask side questions
  Note over Main: Keeps working, never sees the side chat
  Side-->>Main: Send to main thread: reply joins the queue
```

## How it connects to the main thread

They share a starting point, then go their own ways.

- **Shared:** the history up to that message, the same project folder or Cloud sandbox, and the same harness and model. A side chat can also read and message the main thread's subagents.
- **Separate:** new messages stay in the chat where you sent them. The main agent never sees your side chat.
- **Send back:** click **Send to main thread** on a side-chat reply. It joins the main thread's queue as a new message.

> **Note:** A side chat works in the same folder as the main thread. If it edits files, the main agent sees those changes too.

## Where it works

- **Local threads:** Claude Code, Codex, and Pi Agent.
- **Cloud threads:** Claude Code and Codex. Pi Agent comes later.

## Cleanup

Side chats stay out of your sidebar. Once an hour, Cloudroom archives side chats older than 24 hours that you never sent a message in. Side chats you used are kept.