> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://cortex-docs.paloaltonetworks.com/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://cortex-docs.paloaltonetworks.com/cortex-cloud-runtime-security/onboard-and-configure/post-deployment-steps/configure-the-cortex-agentic-assistant/agentic-assistant-components-and-concepts.md).

# Agentic Assistant components and concepts

The Cortex Agentic Assistant uses the following components and concepts:

| Name         | Description                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                |
| ------------ | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Actions      | Actions wrap diverse capabilities (such as playbooks, scripts, and commands) to make them accessible and executable by an agent. You can use out-of-the-box system actions or register new actions.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        |
| Agent        | <p>An agent is a virtual persona that creates and executes domain-specific plans, at your request, to assist in your day-to-day SOC operations. An agent has roles and permissions that provide guardrails. Each agent is assigned a collection of actions that it can use as part of plans.</p><p>The agent chooses the most relevant actions to fulfill a user's request. Agents process user requests, create plans, and orchestrate actions based on their goals and permissions (RBAC and SBAC).</p><p>You can use the following types of agents:</p><ul><li>System agents that are provided for specific use cases.</li><li>Custom agents that users have created.</li></ul><p>Some agents provide relevant chat conversation starters under the chat prompt. For examples of conversation starters, see Agentic Assistant use cases.</p><div data-gb-custom-block data-tag="hint" data-style="info" class="hint hint-info"><p><strong>Note</strong></p><p>Agents are bound by the same rules and robust permissions as a human user. In addition, you can mark actions that make real-world changes in production systems as sensitive, requiring a quick manual review and confirmation, ensuring peace of mind before critical system changes are made.</p></div> |
| Plan         | A sequence of actions that run in parallel or sequentially to satisfy a user request. The agent dynamically chooses relevant actions to resolve the prompt.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                |
| Conversation | A sequence of user requests that maintains context across interactions.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    |
| Knowledge    | In the **Knowledge Center**, you can ground AI agents in your organization's business-specific source of truth by managing internal knowledge sources. You can also leverage built-in Cortex (system) knowledge to provide agents with deep product expertise and technical platform logic. This enables agents to act as context-aware extensions of your team that understand both your internal workflows and the underlying platform.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  |
| Request      | A user request from the agent with an end goal, triggering a plan.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         |


---

# Agent Instructions
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## Querying This Documentation
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