# Chats

| Command | Purpose |
|---|---|
| `vatio chat "message" [--env NAME] [--new] [--timeout N]` | Talk as the CLI token holder; default `preview`, timeout 120 seconds. `--new` starts over as a visitor the agent never met |
| `vatio chat show [CHAT_ID] [--env NAME] [--last N] [--json]` | Without an id, the chat you are in; with one, any chat in the workspace — a visitor's on the web, WhatsApp or Instagram too. Messages and tool calls, with the channel, environment and deployment; `--json` for everything |

`show` is the one to reach for when an answer is wrong: it shows which tools
ran, what they returned, and whether the workspace recognized the visitor. A
`[tool limit]` line marks a reply that ran out of tool calls (see
[Tool results](https://vatio.ai/docs/tools#tool-results)): the agent was told to answer with what it
had, and any call after that was refused.

The CLI channel identifies the developer holding the token; it does not
simulate a customer's identity. Test on the real channel when identity or
delivery is what you are checking.

`chat --env live` creates a real live conversation — billed, and visible in the
inbox.

Current chats are remembered per environment in `.vatio-chat.json`, so a second
`vatio chat` continues the first. Add that file to your repository's
`.gitignore`.