Connect an AI agent

An agent connects with one project-scoped API key. Cronbolt does not create a separate agent record. The key can manage that project's jobs and runs, but it cannot access another project, account details, or billing.

What the developer does

1. Open Settings and select the project.
2. Under API keys, choose Create API key.
3. Store the copied CRONBOLT_API_KEY in the agent's secret environment.

Cronbolt verifies the new key before showing it. The full key is shown once.

Preferred: connect with MCP

Add https://api.cronbolt.com/mcp as a Streamable HTTP server. Configure the project key as an Authorization: Bearer $CRONBOLT_API_KEY header, outside the prompt and tool arguments. The agent should call get_project_context first, inspect existing jobs, use a unique idempotency key for mutations, and ask before delete_job.

See Connect with MCP for the complete tool list and protocol notes.

Direct API workflow

1. Read the exact CRONBOLT_API_KEY variable from the agent process environment. Never read a key from chat history, source files, logs, or a similarly named variable.
2. If the variable is missing or empty, stop and ask the developer to add a project API key to the agent's secret environment. Do not ask them to paste it into the conversation.
3. Read /agent.md.
4. Call GET /context with the environment key before making changes.
5. Treat the returned project as the authoritative scope. If it is not the intended project, stop and ask the developer to update the environment key.
6. Use GET /jobs to inspect existing state.
7. Send an Idempotency-Key when creating a job, starting a manual run, or retrying a run.
8. Ask before deleting a job.

The agent does not need a project ID. The API key supplies that scope for both MCP and direct API access.

Rotate access

Create a new API key, update the agent's secret environment, confirm GET /context, then revoke the old key in Settings. Revocation takes effect immediately.