v0.8.7

janhq/janv0.8.7Oct 20, 2026by github-actions[bot]

Upgrading?

AI Summary

A minor update focusing on user control over the shell tool, a dedicated setting for image attachment size limits, and various bug fixes including improvements to project handling and proxy support.

Key Highlights

  • Ability to toggle the Shell tool on or off directly in the chat interface.
  • New configuration option to set a custom maximum size for image attachments (1-100 MB).
  • Introduction of built-in subagents (explore, research, review, debug) for the main Jan agent.
  • Fixes for data loss where threads would leave their project when attaching documents.
  • Improved proxy and VPN compatibility for local model chat.

New Features

  • Toggle Shell tool availability in chat input.
  • Max Image Size setting in Attachments.
  • Built-in subagents (explore, research, review, debug) with separate models.
  • Subagent permission prompts and sandbox escape approval flows.
  • Enhanced MCP CLI support for fresh installs.

Full Release Notes

## Jan v0.8.7: shell switch, image size limit, and fixes

A minor update to v0.8.6. Your data and settings carry over; one MCP clean-up runs on first launch (below).

### New
- **Turn the shell tool off in chat.** The chat input's tool menu has a **Shell** switch. Off, the model is not given the shell tool; web search, fetch and your MCP tools keep working. On by default, and shown when the shell can run sandboxed and the model supports tools ([#9222](https://github.com/janhq/jan/issues/9222)).
- **A separate size limit for images.** **Settings > Attachments > Max Image Size (MB)**: default 10, range 1 to 100 ([#9312](https://github.com/janhq/jan/pull/9312)).
- **Built-in subagents for the Jan agent**: explore (read-only by default), research, review and debug, each with its own model ([#9261](https://github.com/janhq/jan/pull/9261)).

### Fixes
- A thread no longer leaves its project when you attach a document ([#9197](https://github.com/janhq/jan/issues/9197), thanks @enkynakamura).
- Pasted code with `@decorators` is sent as typed; only an `@` followed by a real file or folder is a reference ([#9291](https://github.com/janhq/jan/issues/9291)).
- **Stop** ends the whole turn, including a tool that is running or waiting for approval ([#9241](https://github.com/janhq/jan/pull/9241)).
- A web page read by the built-in fetch tool is kept within the model's context window ([#9283](https://github.com/janhq/jan/pull/9283)).
- Chat with a local model no longer fails behind a proxy or VPN: requests to Jan's own engine always go direct ([#9182](https://github.com/janhq/jan/pull/9182)).
- Windows: a `^` in a command name (`cm^d` runs `cmd`) now always asks for approval ([#9315](https://github.com/janhq/jan/issues/9315)).
- macOS explains why Jan asks for Local Network access ([#9318](https://github.com/janhq/jan/pull/9318)).
- The sidebar's Jan label is back on Windows and Linux ([#9242](https://github.com/janhq/jan/pull/9242)).

### Migration
- On first launch, the hosted Exa MCP server that v0.8.3 added to the default list is removed. Servers you added, and an Exa entry you configured with your own key, are kept ([#9010](https://github.com/janhq/jan/issues/9010)).

### Jan agent and CLI
- A sandboxed shell command can ask to run outside the sandbox, with your approval each time ([#9239](https://github.com/janhq/jan/pull/9239)).
- A tool call outside a run's `allowed_tools` is refused ([#9254](https://github.com/janhq/jan/issues/9254)); a subagent's permission prompt is denied when nobody can answer it ([#9259](https://github.com/janhq/jan/pull/9259)).
- Windows: edits match CRLF files, and unusable file names such as `con.txt` are refused ([#9262](https://github.com/janhq/jan/issues/9262), [#9263](https://github.com/janhq/jan/issues/9263)).
- `jan cli mcp add` works on a fresh install ([#9257](https://github.com/janhq/jan/issues/9257)); an MCP server that never answers is given up on ([#9281](https://github.com/janhq/jan/pull/9281)).
- Compaction summaries use your small model when one is set ([#9252](https://github.com/janhq/jan/pull/9252)); the terminal UI gains search and clearer subagent and background-command rows.

### Also
- On NVIDIA GPUs, the engine logs the driver version at start, and a crash caused by a driver too old for the engine says to update the driver.
- A model download stopped by a network error says why in more cases ([#9294](https://github.com/janhq/jan/pull/9294)), and a failed model-list fetch records the address it could not reach in the app log ([#9292](https://github.com/janhq/jan/issues/9292)).

### Known issues
- With **Shell** off, a model that calls the shell anyway ends its reply instead of continuing without it ([#9319](https://github.com/janhq/jan/issues/9319)).
- **Auto compact** needs **Max Context Tokens** set for remote models; Jan does not detect a remote model's context window yet ([#9317](https://github.com/janhq/jan/issues/9317)).
- Local models do not run on Intel Macs, as in v0.8.5.

Full notes: https://github.com/janhq/jan/blob/main/docs/src/pages/changelog/2026-10-20-jan-v0.8.7.mdx

**Full Changelog**: https://github.com/janhq/jan/compare/v0.8.6...v0.8.7

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