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

# Customize and Settings

> Teach your agent with skills and MCP servers, and configure how it runs with settings.

Agent Canvas separates **Customize** from **Settings**.

* **Customize** — teach the agent new things. **Skills** give it domain knowledge and specific instructions. **MCP Servers** connect it to external tools and data sources.
* **Settings** — configure how the agent runs. Choose your LLM, store secrets, tune context handling, and set agent behavior. Settings are saved per backend.

## Customize

Open the top-level `Customize` area to manage:

* [Skills](/overview/skills)
* [MCP Servers](/openhands/usage/settings/mcp-settings)
* [Plugins](/openhands/usage/agent-canvas/plugins)

Use the section navigation inside `Customize` to switch between these pages.

<Note>
  MCP Server configuration lives under `Customize > MCP Servers`, not under `Settings`.
</Note>

When using an OpenHands Cloud backend, **Skills** becomes **Skills and Plugins** and opens the Cloud settings in a new tab. The local `Plugins` page is hidden, while `MCP Servers` remains in Agent Canvas. In Settings, **Cloud** becomes **All Cloud Settings** and an **Integrations** link opens the Cloud integrations page. Switching back to a local backend restores the local navigation.

### Install Skills From Chat

You can install a skill from a conversation with `/add-skill <github-url>`. Because skills load when a conversation starts, Agent Canvas shows a banner after installation with **Start new conversation with this skill**. You will need to select it to start a conversation that includes the new skill.

You can dismiss the banner. It appears again when you install another skill in the same session.

### Check MCP Server Health

Installed MCP server cards check their connection and retain the resulting status:

| Status                    | Meaning                                                                                         | Available action                                           |
| ------------------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ---------------------------------------------------------- |
| `Checking`                | Agent Canvas is testing the server connection.                                                  | Wait for the check to finish.                              |
| `Reachable`               | The server responded. For a public or no-auth server, this means credentials were not verified. | Retry the check or view the server documentation.          |
| `Credential check failed` | The server responded but rejected its credentials.                                              | Update credentials, then retry.                            |
| `Connection failure`      | Agent Canvas could not connect to the server.                                                   | Retry, check the configuration, or view its documentation. |

Server URLs and errors redact embedded secrets. Select **Update credentials** to edit a server; saving a corrected configuration refreshes its health status without reloading the page.

## Settings

The `Settings` area currently includes the following sections:

| Section        | Purpose                                                        |
| -------------- | -------------------------------------------------------------- |
| `Agent`        | Agent Profile library and agent-specific capabilities          |
| `LLM`          | Provider, model, API key, and profile configuration            |
| `Condenser`    | Context compression and summarization behavior                 |
| `Verification` | Approval, critic evaluation, and verification-related behavior |
| `Application`  | UI-level preferences and app behavior                          |
| `Secrets`      | Stored secrets used by the active backend                      |

On local backends, the `LLM` page also includes an `Available Profiles` area for saved profiles.

In `Settings > Application`, the **Conversation titles** setting selects the LLM profile used to generate conversation titles. **Automatic** uses the active local LLM profile; you can choose another saved profile, like a small, cheap LLM, when you want titles generated independently from the model selected for agent work. The same page shows the installed Agent Canvas version, update availability, and a **Check for updates** button.

Use `Settings > Agent` to choose the active Agent Profile for new conversations. OpenHands profiles reference LLM profiles from `Settings > LLM`; ACP profiles use the external agent's own model configuration.

## Configuration Is Per Backend

Both Customize and Settings are tied to the **active backend**. That means:

* Changing backends changes which configuration you are editing
* Skills, MCP servers, secrets, and other settings saved for one backend do not automatically apply to every other backend
* The available options can differ depending on backend capabilities

## Practical Example

You might use this split like this:

* Add a GitHub review skill in `Customize > Skills`
* Add a Slack or fetch MCP server in `Customize > MCP Servers`
* Save your preferred model in `Settings > LLM`
* Store tokens in `Settings > Secrets`

## Related Guides

* [Connect and Manage Backends](/openhands/usage/agent-canvas/backends)
* [Agent Profiles](/openhands/usage/agent-canvas/agent-profiles)
* [Plugins in Agent Canvas](/openhands/usage/agent-canvas/plugins)
* [Configure the Critic](/openhands/usage/agent-canvas/critic)
* [Setup a Pre-built Automation](/openhands/usage/agent-canvas/prebuilt-automations)