pi-presets-plus

A Pi extension that lets you bundle a model, thinking level, tools, and system prompt into a named preset, then switch between presets with one hotkey.

Why

Pi lets you choose the model, thinking effort, tools, and system prompt separately. That works for one-off changes. It gets tedious when you keep returning to the same setups: a fast, cheap model for boilerplate; a heavier model for tricky design; a "review only" setup with no write tools and a strict prompt; or separate planning and implementation modes.

pi-presets-plus saves those settings together as a named preset. You can switch presets with one keystroke.

Install

pi install npm:@sherif-fanous/pi-presets-plus

Or try it without installing:

pi -e npm:@sherif-fanous/pi-presets-plus

To uninstall:

pi remove npm:@sherif-fanous/pi-presets-plus

Quick start

1. Run /presets in any Pi session to open the preset picker.
2. Press n to create a new preset, or e to edit an existing one.
3. Press Enter on the Prompt row to open the multi-line prompt editor, or press F1 on any row to get help for that row.
4. Save your preset and, optionally, give it a hotkey. From then on, pressing the hotkey switches to the preset. Run /presets clear to go back to Pi's defaults.

The picker can also filter by name, switch scopes, reorder presets, make copies, and delete them. Its footer shows the available keys.

Configuration

Pi Presets Plus reads these files:

Scope	File	Notes
User	<agent-dir>/presets-plus/config.json	Available in every project. It can contain presets, the inactive-status setting, and policy rules.
Project	<repo>/.pi/presets-plus/config.json	Available in that repository. It can contain presets and the inactive-status setting. Policy rules in this file are ignored.

The following table lists the configuration keys. Paths use [] for an item in an array. User files support every key. Project files support showInactiveStatus and presets; a project policy section is ignored and produces a warning.

Key	Explanation
showInactiveStatus	Set to false to hide Preset: none when no preset is active. The project value overrides the user value.
presets	An array of preset objects. Project presets take precedence when both scopes contain the same name.
presets[].name	Required unique name within the file.
presets[].provider	Required provider that hosts the model.
presets[].model	Required model identifier.
presets[].thinkingLevel	Reasoning level to request, such as low, medium, or high.
presets[].tools	Exact tool list. Omit it or leave it empty to keep the active tools.
presets[].instructions	Extra instructions added to Pi's system prompt.
presets[].hotkey	Optional key combination that activates the preset.
presets[].order	Optional ordering value preserved in the file. The array order is used by default.
policy	Contains directory rules. Only the user configuration supports this key.
policy.rules	Array of directory policy rules.
policy.rules[].match	Regular expression tested against the current working directory.
policy.rules[].allow	Matchers that form the allow list. If present, a preset must match one of them.
policy.rules[].prohibit	Matchers that prevent activation. Prohibited matches override allowed matches.
policy.rules[].default	Matcher used to choose a preset in a fresh session.
policy.rules[].allow[].field	Field to test: name, provider, or model. It defaults to name.
policy.rules[].allow[].pattern	Regular expression tested against the selected field.
policy.rules[].prohibit[].field	Field to test: name, provider, or model. It defaults to name.
policy.rules[].prohibit[].pattern	Regular expression tested against the selected field.
policy.rules[].default.field	Field to test: name, provider, or model. It defaults to name.
policy.rules[].default.pattern	Regular expression tested against the selected field.

User presets work across projects. Project presets stay with their repository. Run /reload after editing either configuration file.

Policy rules use raw, unanchored JavaScript regular expressions. Rules whose match fits the current directory combine their allow and prohibit matchers. The default from the rule with the longest matching directory path wins, with file order breaking ties. The --preset flag and a successful session restore take precedence over an automatic default.

When a command, picker action, flag, or hotkey targets a prohibited preset, Pi asks whether to Override or Cancel. Session restore does not run this check. Invalid policy patterns are skipped with a warning, so they do not block activation. Run /presets policy to inspect the effective policy.

When directory defaults apply

• Automatic presets apply only in Pi's interactive terminal interface. They do not apply in print, JSON, or RPC mode.
• If Pi starts with a different provider, model, or thinking level than your saved defaults, the extension leaves them unchanged. This helps prevent a directory preset from replacing a choice supplied on the command line or by another tool. The comparison includes any project overrides you have allowed Pi to load.
• --preset and restoration of an existing preset take precedence over the directory default. These paths remain available in every mode.
• If the extension cannot read your saved defaults or find the saved model, it skips automatic activation without a warning.

Set your Pi defaults

Pi stores your personal defaults in ~/.pi/agent/settings.json, separately from this extension's preset configuration. A directory default requires a saved provider and model.

• In current Pi versions, open /model and press Ctrl+S on the model you want as your startup default.
• Open /thinking and press Ctrl+S to save your startup thinking level.
• You can also edit defaultProvider, defaultModel, and defaultThinkingLevel directly in the settings file.

See Pi's settings documentation for details.

Project defaults

A project's .pi/settings.json can override defaultProvider, defaultModel, and defaultThinkingLevel. Each project value replaces the corresponding personal value; omitted fields keep their personal defaults.

Pi loads these overrides only when you allow it to trust the project and load its local settings. The extension uses that same trust decision when comparing startup values. Without permission, it uses only your personal defaults.

See Pi's project trust documentation for how to grant or change that permission.

Known limitation

If you explicitly select the same provider, model, and thinking level as your saved defaults, the directory preset can still replace that selection. The extension cannot distinguish those matching values from an ordinary startup.

SDK compatibility

Applications that create Pi sessions through its SDK can supply settings in memory without saving them to a file. In an interactive session, this extension still compares startup values against the settings files described above. For example, if an application uses model B while your saved default is model A, automatic preset activation is skipped. Non-interactive sessions always skip it, regardless of where their settings come from.

Commands

Command	What it does
/presets	Opens the picker.
/presets <name>	Activates the named preset.
/presets clear	Clears the active preset and returns to Pi's defaults.
/presets reload	Re-reads your preset files (use after editing them by hand).
/presets status	Shows the active preset's settings compared to Pi's defaults.
/presets policy	Shows allowed and prohibited presets for the current directory.
/presets show-prompt [name]	Shows the active preset's prompt, or the named preset's prompt.