> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.paradime.io/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Starting a Session

Once [setup](/products/dino-ai/slack-agent/setup) is complete, you're ready to wake DinoAI up.

### 1. Add the Paradime Bot to a Channel

Add the DinoAI agent to the Slack channel where you want it to operate. You can do this in two ways:

**Option A - Slash command**

Inside the channel, type:

```
/invite @paradime
```

<Frame>
  <img src="https://mintcdn.com/paradime-docs/vrtvqFryCVgm3kAH/images/image-265.png?fit=max&auto=format&n=vrtvqFryCVgm3kAH&q=85&s=921a58975dabdf9583d2e8a61337ddd2" alt="" width="1138" height="274" data-path="images/image-265.png" />
</Frame>

**Option B - Channel settings**

1. Click the channel name at the top
2. Go to the **Integrations** tab
3. Select **Add an App**
4. Search for and add **Paradime**

***

### 2. Select a Workspace (Optional)

If your Paradime account has multiple workspaces, you can choose which one the agent should run against before starting a task. Use the workspace dropdown in the Paradime Slack App to select the workspace you want DinoAI to operate on.

<Frame>
  <img src="https://mintcdn.com/paradime-docs/vrtvqFryCVgm3kAH/images/image-264.png?fit=max&auto=format&n=vrtvqFryCVgm3kAH&q=85&s=99ace3e3448feb55e1991de5708b5716" alt="" width="1898" height="1006" data-path="images/image-264.png" />
</Frame>

<Info>
  **This matters.** The workspace you select determines the environment DinoAI runs with — including the data warehouse connection, integrations, and configuration set up for that workspace. If no workspace is explicitly selected, DinoAI defaults to your primary workspace.
</Info>

### Step 3 — Check It's Listening

Send a quick message to confirm the agent is connected and ready:

```
@paradime Hey Dino, are you there?
```

<Info>
  **Always use `@paradime`** when sending messages to the agent. Without the mention, DinoAI won't see or respond to your message.
</Info>

If everything is connected, DinoAI will respond and confirm it's ready to take on tasks.

### Step 4 — Send Your First Task

Give DinoAI something real to work on. Here are a few examples to get started:

<Frame>
  <img src="https://mintcdn.com/paradime-docs/vrtvqFryCVgm3kAH/images/image-266.png?fit=max&auto=format&n=vrtvqFryCVgm3kAH&q=85&s=b7262128ae5cd0c455f6fb895b579ee8" alt="" width="1980" height="822" data-path="images/image-266.png" />
</Frame>

```
@paradime Document all models in the marts folder that are missing descriptions.
```

```
@paradime Create a new model that joins orders and customers on customer_id.
```

```
@paradime Run a quick check on our staging models and flag anything that looks off.
```

DinoAI will pick up the task, work in the background, and report back in the channel when it's done.

***

### How Cloning Works

When a session starts, DinoAI clones the repository connected to the selected workspace and uses it as the base for all work in that session.

#### Working across multiple repositories

The agent isn't limited to a single repo. If DinoAI has access to additional repositories via the [GitHub App integration](/integrations/github), it can clone and work in those repos in parallel — without you needing to do anything extra.

This is useful for tasks that span multiple codebases, for example:

* **Looker or Omni updates** — if you ask DinoAI to update a field definition or a derived table, and the relevant repo is accessible via the GitHub App, the agent will clone that repo and open a PR there directly
* **dbt™ Mesh setups** — if your dbt™ project is split across multiple repos (upstream and downstream packages), DinoAI can work across all of them in a single session, opening PRs in each repo as needed

#### What stays scoped to the selected workspace

Even when the agent works across multiple repos, the following are always determined by the workspace selected at the start of the session:

* **Data warehouse connection** — the warehouse credentials and permissions DinoAI uses to run queries
* **Integrations** — Slack, GitHub, and any other connected services
* **Environment configuration** — variables, settings, and DinoAI behaviour defined for that workspace

<Warning>
  Switching workspaces mid-session is not supported. If you need to run a task under a different workspace, start a new session.
</Warning>

### Related

* [Setup](/products/dino-ai/slack-agent/setup) — Configure the GitHub App and warehouse environment
* [.dinorules](/products/dino-ai/dino-rules) — Set rules that guide how DinoAI works across all sessions
* [Tools and Fearures](/products/dino-ai/tools-and-features/index) — Explore tools accessuble by the Slack Agent


## Related topics

- [using-dinoai-in-direct-messages](/products/dino-ai/slack-agent/using-dinoai-in-direct-messages.md)
- [Setup](/products/dino-ai/slack-agent/setup.md)
- [Slack Agent](/products/dino-ai/slack-agent/index.md)
- [2. Self-Healing](/products/bolt/creating-schedules/2.-self-healing.md)
- [Self-Healing](/products/dino-ai/bolt-pipeline-agent/self-healing.md)