# YAML Configuration File

> Customize DAIV for your repository using a .daiv.yml YAML configuration file in the default branch and repository root directory.

- Skill: `tools-only/yaml-configuration-file-2` (Agent Skill, multi-file: 3 files)
- Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add tools-only/yaml-configuration-file-2`
- Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/tools-only/yaml-configuration-file-2/raw
- Safety review: pending (external: skill-scanner PASS, skillspector PASS)
- Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex
- Category: Coding & Dev Tools
- Author: tools-only (https://skillmd.com/u/tools-only)
- Updated: 2026-09-29
- Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/tools-only/yaml-configuration-file-2

---

# YAML Configuration File

Customize DAIV for your repository using a `.daiv.yml` YAML configuration file in the default branch and repository root directory.

This file lets you control features, code formatting, and more.

## Example Configuration

Below is a complete example of a `.daiv.yml` YAML configuration file.

You can copy and modify this template for your repository.

```yaml
# Repository settings
default_branch: main
context_file_name: "AGENTS.md"

# File access
omit_content_patterns:
  - "*.min.js"
  - "*.svg"
  - "*.sql"
  - "*.lock"

# Features
issue_addressing:
  enabled: true

code_review:
  enabled: true

slash_commands:
  enabled: true

# Sandbox
sandbox:
  base_image: "python:3.12-alpine"
  ephemeral: false
  network_enabled: false
  cpu: null
  memory: null

# Model configuration
models:
  plan_and_execute:
    planning_model: "openrouter:anthropic/claude-sonnet-4.5"
    planning_fallback_model: "openrouter:openai/gpt-5.2"
    planning_thinking_level: "medium"
    execution_model: "openrouter:anthropic/claude-sonnet-4.5"
    execution_fallback_model: "openrouter:openai/gpt-5.2"
    execution_thinking_level: null
    code_review_model: "openrouter:openai/gpt-5.1-codex-mini"
```

## Configure Repository Settings

Repository settings control the default branch and context file configuration.

| Option                   | Type           | Default                | Description                                                                 |
|--------------------------|----------------|------------------------|-----------------------------------------------------------------------------|
| `default_branch`         | `str \| null`  | Repository default branch | The branch DAIV uses by default to load the `.daiv.yml` YAML configuration file.            |
| `context_file_name`      | `str \| null`  | `"AGENTS.md"`         | File name to load the repository context in the format of https://agents.md/. |

!!! tip
    - The context file helps agents understand your repository structure and conventions. You can use the [AGENTS.md](https://agents.md/) format to define your repository context.
    - If not specified, DAIV will look for an "AGENTS.md" file by default.

## Enable or Disable Features

Control which DAIV features are active in your repository.

Configure the following feature sections in your `.daiv.yml` YAML configuration file:

### Issue Addressing
| Option    | Type   | Default | Description                                 |
|-----------|--------|---------|---------------------------------------------|
| `enabled` | `bool` | `true`  | Enable the [issue addressor feature](../features/issue-addressor.md). |

**Enable automated issue resolution:**

```yaml
# Minimal configuration for automated issue resolution
issue_addressing:
  enabled: true
```

### Code Review
| Option    | Type   | Default | Description                                 |
|-----------|--------|---------|---------------------------------------------|
| `enabled` | `bool` | `true`  | Enable the [code review addressor feature](../features/review-addressor.md). |

### Slash Commands
| Option    | Type   | Default | Description                                 |
|-----------|--------|---------|---------------------------------------------|
| `enabled` | `bool` | `true`  | Enable [slash commands feature](../features/slash-commands.md).              |

!!! tip
    Disable features you do not need to reduce noise and speed up processing.

## Branch Naming and Commit Message Conventions

DAIV automatically generates branch names and commit messages for pull requests based on repository conventions. You can define these conventions in your `AGENTS.md` context file.

**Example AGENTS.md conventions:**

```markdown
# Repo conventions

## Branch naming
Use: pr/<issue-id>-<kebab-summary>
- <issue-id> must be lowercase (e.g., abc-123)

## Commit messages
Use: (<ISSUE-ID>) <type>: <summary>
- <ISSUE-ID> must preserve original casing from the ticket (e.g., ABC-123)
- <type> ∈ feat|fix|chore|docs|refactor|test
```

If no conventions are defined in AGENTS.md, DAIV uses sensible defaults:
- **Branch naming**: `<type>/<short-kebab-summary>` where type ∈ {feat, fix, chore, docs, refactor, test}
- **Commit messages**: Conventional Commits style `<type>: <short summary>`

!!! tip
    - The PR describer agent reads your `AGENTS.md` file to understand your repository's conventions
    - If multiple conventions exist, the agent chooses the one that best matches the change type
    - Keep conventions clear and simple to ensure consistent results

## Control File Access

Control which files DAIV can see and read.

!!! warning
    Files excluded from being seen and/or read will not be available to DAIV's AI agents.

| Option                    | Type           | Default                | Description                                                                 |
|---------------------------|----------------|------------------------|-----------------------------------------------------------------------------|
| `extend_exclude_patterns` | `list[str]`    | `[]`                   | Add patterns to exclude more files from being seen.                          |
| `exclude_patterns`        | `tuple[str]`   | `["*.pyc", "*.log", "*.zip", "*.coverage", "**/.git/**", "**/.mypy_cache/**", "**/.tox/**", "**/vendor/**", "**/venv/**", "**/.venv/**", "**/.env/**", "**/node_modules/**", "**/dist/**", "**/__pycache__/**", "**/data/**", "**/.idea/**", "**/.pytest_cache/**", "**/.ruff_cache/**"]` | Override the default exclude patterns.                                      |
| `omit_content_patterns`   | `tuple[str]`   | `["*package-lock.json", "*pnpm-lock.yaml", "*.lock", "*.svg", "*.sql"]` | Files that DAIV can see exist but won't read their content.               |

!!! tip
    - Exclude sensitive files and build artifacts.
    - Prefer using `extend_exclude_patterns` to add more patterns.
    - Use `omit_content_patterns` for large files that shouldn't be read but need to be seen.

## Set Up Sandbox

To take advantage of the sandbox to execute commands, you must have a `daiv-sandbox` instance running (see the [daiv-sandbox](https://github.com/srtab/daiv-sandbox) repository for more information), and **the `base_image` option must be set** to enable sandbox functionality.

Under your `.daiv.yml` YAML configuration file's `sandbox:` section, configure the following keys:

| Option            | Type             | Default | Description |
|------------------|------------------|---------|-------------|
| `base_image`      | `str \| null`    | `null`  | Docker image for the sandbox session. |
| `ephemeral`       | `bool`           | `false` | Whether sandbox sessions should be ephemeral. |
| `network_enabled` | `bool`           | `false` | Whether to enable networking in the sandbox session. |
| `cpu`             | `float \| null`  | `null`  | CPU limit for the sandbox session (CPUs). |
| `memory`          | `int \| null`    | `null`  | Memory limit for the sandbox session (bytes). |

**Here's how it works:**

When an agent needs to run shell commands, DAIV will call `daiv-sandbox` to:

  - Create a container from the `base_image`.

**Example configuration:**
```yaml
sandbox:
  base_image: "python:3.12-alpine"
  ephemeral: false
  network_enabled: false
  cpu: 1.0
  memory: 1073741824  # 1 GiB
```

!!! tip
    - Use specific image versions for reproducibility.
    - The sandbox is only enabled when `base_image` is specified and `daiv-sandbox` is running.

## Configure Model Settings

Override the default model configurations for agents on a per-repository basis. This allows you to use smaller models for simple projects or larger models for complex ones.

Configuration priority (highest to lowest):
1. **Issue labels** (e.g., `daiv-max`) - highest priority
2. **`.daiv.yml` `models` section** - per-repository overrides
3. **Environment variables** - global defaults (lowest priority)

### Plan and Execute Agent

Configure models for the plan and execute agent used in issue addressing.

| Option                        | Type                                                      | Default | Description                                                                 |
|-------------------------------|-----------------------------------------------------------|---------|-----------------------------------------------------------------------------|
| `planning_model`              | `str \| null`                                             | `null`  | Model name for planning tasks. Overrides `PLAN_AND_EXECUTE_PLANNING_MODEL_NAME` environment variable. |
| `planning_fallback_model`     | `str \| null`                                             | `null`  | Fallback model name for planning tasks. Overrides `PLAN_AND_EXECUTE_PLANNING_FALLBACK_MODEL_NAME` environment variable. |
| `planning_thinking_level`      | `"minimal" \| "low" \| "medium" \| "high" \| null`        | `null`  | Thinking level for planning tasks. Overrides `PLAN_AND_EXECUTE_PLANNING_THINKING_LEVEL` environment variable. |
| `execution_model`             | `str \| null`                                             | `null`  | Model name for execution tasks. Overrides `PLAN_AND_EXECUTE_EXECUTION_MODEL_NAME` environment variable. |
| `execution_fallback_model`     | `str \| null`                                             | `null`  | Fallback model name for execution tasks. Overrides `PLAN_AND_EXECUTE_EXECUTION_FALLBACK_MODEL_NAME` environment variable. |
| `execution_thinking_level`     | `"minimal" \| "low" \| "medium" \| "high" \| null`        | `null`  | Thinking level for execution tasks. Overrides `PLAN_AND_EXECUTE_EXECUTION_THINKING_LEVEL` environment variable. |
| `code_review_model`           | `str \| null`                                             | `null`  | Model name for code review tasks. Overrides `PLAN_AND_EXECUTE_CODE_REVIEW_MODEL_NAME` environment variable. |
| `code_review_thinking_level`  | `"minimal" \| "low" \| "medium" \| "high" \| null`        | `null`  | Thinking level for code review tasks. Overrides `PLAN_AND_EXECUTE_CODE_REVIEW_THINKING_LEVEL` environment variable. |

**Example configuration:**
```yaml
models:
  plan_and_execute:
    planning_model: "openrouter:anthropic/claude-haiku-4.5"  # Use smaller model for simple projects
    execution_model: "openrouter:anthropic/claude-haiku-4.5"
    planning_thinking_level: "low"  # Reduce thinking for faster responses
```

### Review Addressor Agent

Configure models for the review addressor agent used in code review.

| Option                | Type           | Default | Description                                                                 |
|-----------------------|----------------|---------|-----------------------------------------------------------------------------|
| `review_comment_model` | `str \| null`  | `null`  | Model name for routing review comments. Overrides `REVIEW_ADDRESSOR_REVIEW_COMMENT_MODEL_NAME` environment variable. |
| `reply_model`         | `str \| null`  | `null`  | Model name for replying to review comments. Overrides `REVIEW_ADDRESSOR_REPLY_MODEL_NAME` environment variable. |
| `reply_temperature`   | `float \| null` | `null`  | Temperature for the reply model. Overrides `REVIEW_ADDRESSOR_REPLY_TEMPERATURE` environment variable. |

**Example configuration:**
```yaml
models:
  review_addressor:
    review_comment_model: "openrouter:openai/gpt-4.1-mini"
    reply_model: "openrouter:anthropic/claude-haiku-4.5"
    reply_temperature: 0.2
```

!!! note
    The review addressor agent calls the plan and execute agent to address the review comments.
    Therefore, the review addressor agent uses the same model configuration defined for the plan and execute agent to address the review comments.

### Codebase Chat Agent

Configure models for the codebase chat agent.

| Option        | Type           | Default | Description                                                                 |
|---------------|----------------|---------|-----------------------------------------------------------------------------|
| `model`       | `str \| null`  | `null`  | Model name for codebase chat. Overrides `CODEBASE_CHAT_MODEL_NAME` environment variable. |
| `temperature` | `float \| null` | `null`  | Temperature for codebase chat. Overrides `CODEBASE_CHAT_TEMPERATURE` environment variable. |

### Diff to Metadata Agent

Configure models for the diff to metadata agent.

| Option            | Type                                                      | Default | Description                                                                 |
|-------------------|-----------------------------------------------------------|---------|-----------------------------------------------------------------------------|
| `model`           | `str \| null`                                             | `null`  | Model name to transform a diff into metadata for a pull request/commit message. Overrides `DIFF_TO_METADATA_MODEL_NAME` environment variable. |
| `fallback_model`  | `str \| null`                                             | `null`  | Fallback model name for diff to metadata. Overrides `DIFF_TO_METADATA_FALLBACK_MODEL_NAME` environment variable. |

**Example configuration:**
```yaml
models:
  diff_to_metadata:
    model: "openrouter:openai/gpt-4.1-mini"
```

!!! note
    The diff to metadata agent automatically reads your `AGENTS.md` context file to understand branch naming and commit message conventions. See [Branch Naming and Commit Message Conventions](#branch-naming-and-commit-message-conventions) for details.