> ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.openclaw.ai/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # BTW side questions `/btw` lets you ask a quick side question about the **current session** without turning that question into normal conversation history. `/side` is an alias. It is modeled after Claude Code's `/btw` behavior, but adapted to OpenClaw's Gateway and multi-channel architecture. ## What it does When you send: ```text theme={"theme":{"light":"min-light","dark":"min-dark"}} /btw what changed? ``` OpenClaw: 1. snapshots the current session context, 2. runs a separate ephemeral side query, 3. answers only the side question, 4. leaves the main run alone, 5. does **not** write the BTW question or answer to session history, 6. emits the answer as a **live side result** rather than a normal assistant message. The important mental model is: * same session context * separate one-shot side query * same native harness transport when the session uses a native harness * no future context pollution * no transcript persistence For Codex harness sessions, BTW stays inside Codex by forking the active app-server thread as an ephemeral side thread. That keeps Codex OAuth and native thread behavior intact while still isolating the side answer from the parent transcript. Like Codex `/side`, the side thread keeps the current Codex permissions and native tool surface, with guardrails that tell the model not to treat inherited parent-thread work as active instructions. Non-Codex runtimes keep the older direct one-shot path. ## What it does not do `/btw` does **not**: * create a new durable session, * continue the unfinished main task, * write BTW question/answer data to transcript history, * appear in `chat.history`, * survive a reload. It is intentionally **ephemeral**. ## How context works BTW uses the current session as **background context only**. If the main run is currently active, OpenClaw snapshots the current message state and includes the in-flight main prompt as background context, while explicitly telling the model: * answer only the side question, * do not resume or complete the unfinished main task, * do not steer the parent conversation. That keeps BTW isolated from the main run while still making it aware of what the session is about. ## Delivery model BTW is **not** delivered as a normal assistant transcript message. At the Gateway protocol level: * normal assistant chat uses the `chat` event * BTW uses the `chat.side_result` event This separation is intentional. If BTW reused the normal `chat` event path, clients would treat it like regular conversation history. Because BTW uses a separate live event and is not replayed from `chat.history`, it disappears after reload. ## Surface behavior ### TUI In TUI, BTW is rendered inline in the current session view, but it remains ephemeral: * visibly distinct from a normal assistant reply * dismissible with `Enter` or `Esc` * not replayed on reload ### External channels On channels like Telegram, WhatsApp, and Discord, BTW is delivered as a clearly labeled one-off reply because those surfaces do not have a local ephemeral overlay concept. The answer is still treated as a side result, not normal session history. ### Control UI / web The Gateway emits BTW correctly as `chat.side_result`, and BTW is not included in `chat.history`, so the persistence contract is already correct for web. The current Control UI still needs a dedicated `chat.side_result` consumer to render BTW live in the browser. Until that client-side support lands, BTW is a Gateway-level feature with full TUI and external-channel behavior, but not yet a complete browser UX. ## When to use BTW Use `/btw` when you want: * a quick clarification about the current work, * a factual side answer while a long run is still in progress, * a temporary answer that should not become part of future session context. Examples: ```text theme={"theme":{"light":"min-light","dark":"min-dark"}} /btw what file are we editing? /side what changed while the main run continued? /btw what does this error mean? /btw summarize the current task in one sentence /btw what is 17 * 19? ``` ## When not to use BTW Do not use `/btw` when you want the answer to become part of the session's future working context. In that case, ask normally in the main session instead of using BTW. ## Related Native command catalog and chat directives. Reasoning effort levels for the side-question model call. Session keys, history, and persistence semantics. Inject a steering message into the active run without ending it.