coder/docs/ai-coder/agents/platform-controls/template-optimization.md

# Template Optimization

Not every chat with Coder Agents requires a workspace. A workspace is only provisioned when the
agent decides it needs compute — to read files, write code, run commands, or
execute builds.

When a workspace is needed, the agent reads the available templates, selects
the appropriate one based on its name and description, and provisions a
workspace automatically. Administrators can restrict which templates the agent
can see using the [template allowlist](#restrict-available-templates).

This guide covers best practices for creating templates that are discoverable
and useful to Coder Agents.

## Restrict available templates

By default, the agent can see and provision any template in the deployment.
Administrators can restrict this to a specific set of templates using the
template allowlist.

To configure the allowlist:

1. Navigate to **Agents** > **Settings** > **Manage Agents** > **Templates**.
2. Select the templates you want agents to be able to use.
3. Click **Save**.

When the allowlist is configured, the agent's `list_templates`,
`read_template`, and `create_workspace` tools are filtered to only include
the selected templates. The agent cannot see or provision templates that are
not on the list.

When no templates are selected, the allowlist is inactive and all templates
are available to agents.

The allowlist only affects agent-created workspaces. Developers can still
manually create workspaces from any template they have access to. This lets
platform teams apply stricter policies to agent workloads without affecting
the manual workspace experience.

## Write discoverable template descriptions

The agent selects templates by reading their names and descriptions — the same
metadata shown on the templates page in the Coder dashboard, sorted by number
of active developers. It does not inspect the template's Terraform to
understand what infrastructure is inside.

This means the template description is the single most important factor in
whether the agent picks the right template for a given task.

### What to include

A good template description tells the agent:

- What language, framework, or stack the template is for.
- Which repository or service it targets, if applicable.
- What type of work it supports (e.g., backend services, frontend apps, data
  pipelines).

### Examples

| Description                                                                                 | Why it works                                                       |
|---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|--------------------------------------------------------------------|
| Python backend services for the payments repo. Includes Poetry, Python 3.12, and PostgreSQL | Specific language, repo, and toolchain                             |
| React frontend development for the customer portal. Node 20, pnpm, Storybook pre-installed  | Clear stack, named project, key tools listed                       |
| General-purpose Go development environment with Go 1.23, Docker, and common CLI tools       | Broad but descriptive — the agent can match it to Go-related tasks |
| Java microservices for the order-processing pipeline. Maven, JDK 21, Kafka client libraries | Names the service domain and build tool                            |

| Description        | Why it fails                                                            |
|--------------------|-------------------------------------------------------------------------|
| Team A template v2 | No information about what the template is for                           |
| Dev environment    | Too generic — the agent cannot distinguish this from any other template |
| k8s-prod-2024      | Internal shorthand that carries no meaning for the agent                |
| Default            | Tells the agent nothing                                                 |

> [!TIP]
> If many developers already use a template, the agent is more likely to
> select it because templates are sorted by active developer count. A
> well-written description on a popular template is the strongest routing
> signal you can provide.

### Template display names

Display names appear in the template selector and in the agent's tool output.
Use readable, descriptive names rather than slugs or internal codes. A display
name like "Python Backend (Payments)" is more useful to both humans and the
agent than `py-be-pay-v3`.

## Create dedicated agent templates

Rather than reusing your standard interactive developer templates for agent
workloads, consider creating dedicated templates with configurations
appropriate for unattended, agent-driven work.

Agent templates differ from developer templates in several ways:

- **No IDE tooling needed.** The agent connects via the workspace daemon's HTTP
  API, not through VS Code or JetBrains. You can omit IDE-specific
  configuration, extensions, and desktop tools.
- **Stricter network policies.** Agent workspaces typically need access to only
  the control plane and your git provider. You can apply tighter egress rules
  than you would for a developer who needs to browse documentation or access
  additional services.
- **Reduced permissions.** Agent workspaces can use scoped credentials with
  fewer permissions than a developer's interactive session.

See [Creating templates](../../../admin/templates/creating-templates.md) for
step-by-step instructions on creating templates via the UI, CLI, or CI/CD.

## Configure network boundaries

The workspace is the network boundary for the agent. If you want to control
what the agent can access, control what the workspace can access.

This is a deliberate architectural advantage of running the agent loop in the
control plane. Because all AI functionality — LLM inference, tool dispatch,
chat state — lives in the control plane, agent workspaces do not need outbound
access to any LLM provider. The workspace only needs to reach:

- **The Coder control plane** — required for the workspace daemon to function.
- **Your git provider** — required for push and pull operations.

Everything else can be blocked at the network level.

### Why network boundaries are more effective than process-level controls

Traditional approaches to restricting agent behavior — such as blocking
specific commands at the process level — are difficult to enforce reliably. An
agent executing arbitrary shell commands can find alternative paths to achieve
the same result (aliasing commands, writing scripts, using different tools).

Network-level boundaries are more robust because they operate below the process
layer. If the workspace cannot reach an external service, it does not matter
what command the agent runs — the connection simply fails. This provides a
firmer security guarantee than trying to restrict individual process behaviors.

See [Architecture](../architecture.md#workspaces-can-be-fully-network-isolated)
for more detail on the security model.

## Scope permissions and credentials

> [!WARNING]
> By default, agent workspaces inherit the same network access and
> permissions as any workspace the user creates manually. If your templates
> do not explicitly restrict outbound network access, the agent has full
> internet access from the workspace. Review the guidance below and in
> [Configure network boundaries](#configure-network-boundaries) to lock
> down agent workloads appropriately.

The agent operates with the same identity and permissions as the user who
submitted the prompt. There is no privilege escalation — if a developer cannot
access a resource through the Coder dashboard, the agent cannot access it
either.

### External service credentials

When agent workspaces need access to external services (git providers, package
registries, artifact stores), configure credentials with the minimum scope
required:

- **Use separate tokens for agent templates.** Rather than sharing the same
  broad-scope token used by developer workspaces, create a dedicated token with
  only the permissions the agent needs (e.g., read/write access to specific
  repositories, no admin access).
- **Configure external auth at the template level.** Use Coder's
  [external authentication](../../../admin/external-auth/index.md) to provide scoped
  git credentials. The agent uses the same external auth flow as any other
  workspace, so credentials are managed centrally.
- **Avoid injecting long-lived secrets.** Prefer short-lived tokens or
  credential helpers over static API keys baked into the template image.

### Git identity

Every git operation the agent performs — commits, pushes, pull requests — is
attributed to the user who submitted the prompt. This happens through the
existing git authentication configured in your Coder deployment. There is no
shared bot account.

Ensure your templates configure git with the appropriate author information so
that commits are properly attributed. The agent does not override git
configuration — it uses whatever is set in the workspace environment.

## Design template parameters for automation

The agent can read template parameters — including their names, descriptions,
and defaults — and fill them in when creating a workspace. Well-designed
parameters help the agent provision the right infrastructure without human
intervention.

### Keep parameters simple

- **Use sensible defaults.** The agent performs best when most parameters have
  reasonable defaults and only a few require explicit selection. A template
  with ten required parameters and no defaults forces the agent to guess.
- **Minimize required parameters.** If a parameter is not essential for the
  agent's use case, give it a default value or make it optional.

### Write descriptive parameter metadata

The agent reads `display_name` and `description` fields to understand what a
parameter controls. Treat these the same way you treat template descriptions —
be specific and use natural language.

```hcl
data "coder_parameter" "region" {
  name         = "region"
  display_name = "Deployment Region"
  type         = "string"
  description  = "AWS region for the workspace. Use us-east-1 for the payments service or eu-west-1 for GDPR-regulated workloads."
  default      = "us-east-1"
}
```

A description like "AWS region" is less useful to the agent than one that
explains when to use each option.

### Avoid opaque identifiers

Parameters with values like `ami-0abcdef1234567890` or `subnet-12345` are
difficult for the agent to reason about. Where possible, use human-readable
option labels or map opaque IDs to descriptive names using Terraform locals.

For full parameter reference — including types, validation, mutability, and
workspace presets — see
[Parameters](../../../admin/templates/extending-templates/parameters.md).
[Dynamic parameters](../../../admin/templates/extending-templates/dynamic-parameters.md)
add conditional form controls and identity-aware defaults for more advanced
use cases.

## Pre-install tools and dependencies

Agent workspaces should be ready to work immediately after provisioning. The
agent does not know how to install your organization's specific toolchain, and
time spent installing dependencies is time not spent on the task.

### What to pre-install

- **Language runtimes and build tools** for the target stack (e.g., Go, Node,
  Python, Maven).
- **Common CLI tools** the agent is likely to use: `git`, `curl`, `jq`, `make`,
  `docker` (if applicable).
- **Project-specific dependencies.** If the template targets a specific
  repository, consider pre-installing the project's dependencies or running the
  setup script as part of workspace startup.
- **Git configuration.** Ensure `git` is configured with credentials and author
  information so the agent can commit and push without additional setup.

For guidance on building and maintaining workspace images, see
[Image management](../../../admin/templates/managing-templates/image-management.md).

### Set a meaningful working directory

If the template targets a specific repository, pre-clone it and set the
working directory so the agent starts in the right place:

```hcl
resource "coder_agent" "main" {
  os   = "linux"
  arch = "amd64"
  dir  = "/home/coder/payments-service"
}
```

This avoids a round trip where the agent needs to figure out where the code
lives before it can begin working.

## Use prebuilt workspaces to reduce provisioning time

Workspace provisioning is the primary source of latency when the agent begins a
task. Templates with complex infrastructure, large images, or lengthy startup
scripts can take minutes to provision — time where the developer is waiting
and the agent is idle.

[Prebuilt workspaces](../../../admin/templates/extending-templates/prebuilt-workspaces.md)
eliminate this delay by maintaining a pool of ready-to-use workspaces for
specific parameter presets. When the agent creates a workspace that matches a
preset, Coder assigns an already-running prebuilt workspace instead of
provisioning from scratch. The agent can begin working immediately.

## Checklist

Use this as a quick reference when creating or updating templates for Coder
Agents:

- Template has a specific, natural-language description that includes
  language, framework, and target project or service.
- Display name is readable and descriptive.
- Network egress is restricted to the control plane and git provider.
- External service credentials use minimal-scope tokens.
- Template parameters have sensible defaults and descriptive metadata.
- Language runtimes, build tools, and git are pre-installed.
- Prebuilt workspaces are configured for high-traffic presets (Premium).
- Working directory is set to the target repository (if applicable).