Professional

Tasks

• Last updated: October 9, 2026

• Read time: 8 Minutes

Burp AT organizes work into tasks. A task is a conversation focused on one area of testing, with its own messages and results. Tasks can split into parallel sub-tasks if needed.

Task data is stored in the Burp project you are working in.

Starting a new task

To start a new task, click the + icon at the top of the Tasks panel.

You can run multiple tasks at once, with each running independently. The Tasks panel shows the current project's tasks, with the most recently-updated at the top. To return to an earlier task, select it in the Tasks panel.

Setting a task's reasoning effort

Reasoning effort controls the depth of analysis Burp AT uses for a task. Higher levels use additional time and credits to reason more thoroughly, and are best for difficult work that may benefit from deeper analysis. Lower levels are best for controlling credit use during routine work.

To set reasoning effort, select an option from the Effort menu in the message box. By default, tasks use High effort. Tasks retain the effort level you select when you close and reopen them.

If you change the level midway through a task, the new level takes effect when you next send a prompt. A response that is already in progress keeps its existing level.

When created, sub-tasks inherit the effort level of their parent task. You can change the sub-task's level independently in the sub-task message box.

Reasoning effort does not change Burp AT's underlying model or set a spending limit.

Managing running tasks

A task is an ongoing conversation, meaning that you can send follow-up prompts to dig into a result, adjust what you asked for, or point Burp AT at something new.

Checking task status

The Tasks panel marks tasks that need your attention, so you can find them without opening each conversation. A task row can show:

• A warning triangle if the task or one of its sub-tasks encountered an error. Open the relevant task or sub-task to inspect the error.

• A circled question mark if the task or one of its sub-tasks is waiting for your approval on an action. Open the relevant task or sub-task to respond.

• A dot if the task has a result you have not yet read.

Queueing messages

You can queue messages while Burp AT is working. Burp AT runs queued messages one at a time, in order.

To manage the queue, you can:

• Press Enter to add a new message and any attached resources to the end of the queue.

• Click Run now to stop the current turn and run the selected queued message next.

• Click the x icon to delete a queued message.

Burp AT pauses the queue while it waits for you to approve an action.

Queued messages are saved when you switch tasks or reload Burp. Reloading Burp does not send queued messages automatically.

Reviewing task activity

Burp AT shows its rationale as it works. To see more information about an action Burp AT took, click Show details in the conversation next to the action. Expanding this drop-down shows the tool and inputs used, and, for actions that send HTTP traffic, the request and response themselves. It also shows how the action was approved: run automatically, approved manually, or handled by Smart mode.

When Burp AT needs your approval for an action, it shows a dialog in the conversation. For more information on how approvals and tool permissions work in Burp AT, see Configuring autonomy.

Stopping a task

To stop Burp AT's current action, click Stop. The task stays open, but any actions that are currently running end. Burp AT does not send any queued messages.

Picking up Burp AT's work in other Burp tools

Burp AT works in the Burp project you have open. This means you can follow what it's doing in many of Burp's tools, and conduct further manual testing at any point.

Where Burp AT's activity appears

As Burp AT works, its activity appears in:

• Logger - every request Burp AT sends, with the accompanying response.

• Dashboard - any scans Burp AT starts. You can pause, resume, and inspect these from the Tasks panel on the Dashboard.

• Target > Site map - the hosts and endpoints it discovers.

• Issues - the vulnerabilities it confirms. For more information on how Burp AT reports issues, see Working with Burp AT's results.

Sending a request to another Burp tool

You can send requests created by Burp AT directly to another Burp tool to use them in your manual testing. To do this:

1. In the conversation, click Show details next to the action that sent the request to display the HTTP exchange panel.

2. Click Send to.

3. Select the tool you want to send the request to.

Managing tasks

To rename a task, right-click it in the Tasks panel and select Rename, or double-click its name.

To remove a task from the list, right-click it in the Tasks panel and select Archive.

To restore an archived task:

1. Go to Settings > Archived tasks.

2. Click Restore on the task you want to bring back.

Attaching resources and files

You can give Burp AT extra context by attaching Burp resources or external files to a task. Attached context saves Burp AT from rediscovering relevant information and usually produces a more focused result.

Attaching Burp resources

You can send resources to Burp AT from:

• Proxy - A message from Proxy > HTTP history.

• Target - A node from your site map.

• Issues - An issue discovered by the scanner.

To share a resource, right-click it in the relevant Burp tool and select Send to Burp AT. You can also press Ctrl+G on Windows or Linux, or Cmd+G on Mac. Alternatively, select Send to Burp AT from the command palette.

Shared resources are available to every task in the open project. Sending more resources adds to this shared pool rather than replacing its contents.

To attach a shared resource to a task, click the + icon in the message box. Select the resource from the Burp Resources menu. Burp AT displays the attached resource above the message box.

Attaching files

To attach a file from your computer, click the paperclip icon in the message box and select the file. You can also drag files into the message box or paste them in.

Burp AT supports text, source code, structured data, common image formats, PDFs, spreadsheets, documents, presentations, and compatible Burp or API files.

The following limits apply:

• Each file can be up to 25 MiB.

• You can attach up to 10 files to each task, with a combined size of 100 MiB.

• You can upload up to three files at the same time.

Burp uploads files as you add them in. You can remove a file before you send your message. If an upload fails, you can retry it or remove the file.

Attached files can be used by Burp AT at any point during a task.

Using goal loops

Goal loops help Burp AT to tackle larger or more complex tasks. When you set a goal, Burp AT continues its work until it achieves the goal or has to stop.

Setting a goal

To set a goal, enter /goal followed by a result that Burp AT can verify. For example:

/goal Test every input to this endpoint for server-side injection. Continue until each input is confirmed, rejected, or marked inconclusive.

After each response, Burp AT checks whether it has achieved the goal. If not, it continues working automatically.

Burp AT does not apply a fixed time or response limit to a goal. If Burp AT sends six responses in a row without using a tool, it stops working on the goal.

While working toward a goal, Burp AT follows the autonomy mode and tool permissions of the task it is running in. If an action needs approval, Burp AT pauses until you respond.

Burp AT cannot create sub-tasks while a goal is active. Clear the goal before you ask Burp AT to create sub-tasks.

Steering or replacing a goal

To steer Burp AT's work without changing its current goal, send a follow-up prompt. Burp AT acts on the new prompt while continuing toward the same goal.

To replace the current goal, start another prompt with /goal. Burp AT stops its current work and starts working toward the new goal.

Stopping or clearing a goal

To stop Burp AT's current action but keep the current goal active, click Stop. To resume work toward the goal, send a new prompt.

To clear the current goal, enter /goal clear. Burp AT stops working toward the goal.

Checking goal status

When there is an active goal, Burp AT displays the goal and its status above the message box. The status shows whether Burp AT is working or waiting for approval. The final status tells you whether Burp AT achieved the goal, stopped, or could not confirm the result.

Sub-tasks

Burp AT can ask for permission to create sub-tasks as it works. These separate processes work on different parts of the task at the same time. Each sub-task has its own conversation window, enabling you to see results and direct the sub-task if required. Splitting work into sub-tasks enables Burp AT to cover larger tasks faster and more accurately than working through everything in one thread.

Sub-tasks do not communicate with each other directly, but each can see the contents of the current Burp project.

Burp AT lists sub-tasks in the Tasks panel. When you select a task, Burp AT displays any related sub-tasks in a drop-down menu. It also shows them in the Sub-tasks list on the main task conversation. Each sub-task shows a name and status indicating whether it needs human intervention, for example to approve a tool call or resolve an error.

A sub-task's status can also appear on its parent task's row in the Tasks panel. The sub-task summary in the main task conversation shows counts for sub-tasks waiting for input, running, and done. It shows a separate count for sub-tasks that ended in an error and counts stopped sub-tasks as done.