Make the workflow yours

The supplied workflow keeps a notebook in the repository and commits it with the code. You can change where the records live and how agents work with them independently. The CLI continues to check record states and relationships.

Keep project memory private

To keep a notebook in .tmp/xxx without committing it, start in the repository root. Add this line to your local git exclusions file, whose path is printed by git rev-parse --git-path info/exclude:

/.tmp/xxx/

Local exclusions do not change the team’s .gitignore. They prevent untracked files from being added by ordinary git commands; they do not remove files already tracked by git.

Select the notebook before launching your agent from the same terminal:

export ANB_NOTEBOOK="$PWD/.tmp/xxx"
anb status

ANB_NOTEBOOK names the notebook directory itself. Records go directly into .tmp/xxx/tasks/, .tmp/xxx/decisions/ and the other record directories; the tool does not append .agent-notebook/. The first write creates the directory. Reading Status alone does not create it.

Give the agent the corresponding working instruction:

Use the anb skill, with project memory in .tmp/xxx. Keep this notebook private and out of all commits. Use the notebook selected by ANB_NOTEBOOK for every read and write, including Status and graph queries. Keep the rest of the supplied workflow.

Keep this instruction in the agent’s personal instructions or your own skill if you want it to apply in later sessions. Git exclusion controls which files are tracked; the instruction changes the skill’s default practice of committing memory. Both belong in this setup.

Make sure each session uses it

The export applies to this terminal and processes launched from it. Launch the agent there so its commands and session hook inherit the same notebook location. Repeat the export in a new terminal, or configure the variable in the environment that launches your agent. Writing it in a .env file alone does not make anb load it.

An agent launched separately, such as an already-running desktop application, may not inherit that environment. Set the variable through its launch configuration before using the hook. Without the override, a plain anb status reads the default notebook.

This private notebook still holds project Tasks and Questions. Use the global notebook for personal Decisions and Notes that you want across projects.

Choose another location

Use the same environment variable for any notebook directory. From the repository root:

export ANB_NOTEBOOK="$PWD/project-notes"
anb status

An absolute path keeps commands and hooks pointed at the same directory. A relative ANB_NOTEBOOK value is resolved against the project root. For one command only, use a flag:

anb --notebook .tmp/xxx status

A relative --notebook path is resolved against that command’s working directory. The flag overrides ANB_NOTEBOOK for this call; it does not configure later commands or hooks. Notebook location gives the full precedence rules.

Changing the location selects a different notebook. It does not move or import existing records. To relocate an existing notebook, stop agents using it, move the complete notebook directory to the new location, and update their environment. Run anb check against the destination before resuming.

Keep your own version of a skill

Setup installs the workflow in .agents/skills/anb/ and .claude/skills/anb/. Edit the copy your agent reads; if you use both, apply the same changes to both copies.

1. Open SKILL.md and remove its managed-by: anb metadata entry. Keep the skill’s name and description.
2. Change the working instructions. Leave command syntax to the generated references unless you need to change those too.
3. Run anb setup again. It should report the edited file as yours, left alone.

Ownership is per file. Remove the marker from each reference you customize too. Unchanged managed references can still receive updates. For a private skill, exclude its files locally as in the notebook recipe above; commit them when the workflow should be shared with the team.

This protection applies to anb setup, including setup --remove. anb skill <dir> is a generator that writes its output to the named directory, so use a separate directory when comparing a new generated skill with your custom version.

You can apply the same approach to anb-atlas to change how the agent presents or reviews work. You can also replace the supplied skills entirely and use the command reference to define your method.

Require review before closing

Replace the skill’s instruction to close completed work directly with a review rule such as:

When implementation and verification are complete, log the result and submit the Task for human review. Leave it in review until I accept it. If I request changes, start the Task again. After acceptance, close with the report and archive it.

The commands already support this workflow:

anb submit <task-id>
anb start <task-id>
anb close <task-id> --note report.md
anb archive <task-id>

These are alternatives at different points in review: submit requests acceptance, start resumes changes, and close records the accepted result. The CLI checks transitions; your instructions determine who accepts the work.

Change how you organize work

You can keep a flat queue, use the supplied epic pattern, or give each agent a separate active Task. For example, replace the one-Task rule with:

Before starting, read Status and select an unassigned ready Task. Keep each agent on a separate Task and record its assignment in the Task body. Log a handoff before another agent takes over.

The CLI allows multiple active Tasks. Its write lock protects notebook mutations, but does not assign work to agents or prevent them from editing the same source file. Your coordination rules need to cover that.

Tags can express your own categories. Automatic epic progress still follows the hub relationships: a hub depends on work created from it. A different tag alone does not change that calculation. You can change the convention agents follow while retaining those relationships when you want the built-in epic summary.