---
title: "Configure Assistant rules | Grafana Cloud documentation"
description: "Configure custom rules to guide how Grafana Assistant responds and behaves in every conversation."
---

> For a curated documentation index, see [llms.txt](/llms.txt). For the complete documentation index, see [llms-full.txt](/llms-full.txt).

# Configure Assistant rules

Custom rules guide how Grafana Assistant responds and behaves. Rules are automatically applied to every conversation and can target specific applications. Due to the indeterministic nature of LLMs, there’s no guarantee they are followed exactly as specified, but they strongly influence the Assistant’s output and decision-making.

You can create rules in **Settings > Custom rules** and apply them to specific scopes:

- **Just me**: Rules apply only to your own conversations.
- **Everybody**: Rules apply to everyone in your stack (requires admin permissions).

Change review applies **Everybody** rules for the **Assistant** application to the pull request reviews it posts on GitHub. It never applies **Just me** rules, because a review runs for your whole stack.

## Before you begin

Make sure Grafana Assistant is available and you have permission to create rules for the scope you want to use. For permission details, refer to [Manage Assistant access with RBAC](/docs/grafana-cloud/platform/grafana-assistant/privacy-and-security/rbac).

## Create a rule

Create a rule from your own instructions, or open **About custom rules** and click **Use example** to adapt a starting point.

1. Navigate to **AI > Settings > Custom rules**.
2. Click **Create rule**.
3. Enter a rule **Name** and **Rule Content**.
4. Choose the **Scope**: **Just me** or **Everybody**.
5. Select the **Applications** the rule applies to, for example, **Assistant**, **Pages**, **Investigations**, or **Infrastructure memories**. The **Pages** option appears when Grafana Pages is available in your stack. Grafana Pages is in private preview. For details, refer to [Grafana Pages](/docs/grafana-cloud/platform/grafana-assistant/platform/pages).
6. Click **Create rule**.

The Assistant applies your rule automatically in new conversations. Rules that target **Pages** apply when you create or edit a page, including when you resume a Pages session.

## Manage existing rules

Use the scope filter to narrow the list when you can read both personal and shared rules. Each row shows the rule’s content, scope, and applications.

Click a rule’s name to open it. If you have write permission, you can edit it or use its switch to turn it on or off. Switch changes save immediately. Without write permission, you can open a read-only view.

You need delete permission for the rule’s scope to delete it. Write permission alone doesn’t let you delete a rule.

To remove a rule, click **Delete rule** on its row, then click **Delete rule** in the confirmation dialog. If loading the list fails, click **Retry**.

## Rule examples

Use these examples as starting points for your own rules.

### Grafana Pages guidelines

Guide how the Assistant builds and formats Grafana Pages:

> When creating or editing Grafana Pages, use two-column layouts for dashboard panels, add explanatory markdown callouts above key charts, and ensure all visualization panels define clear units.

### Infra and app hints

Guide the Assistant to use specifics relevant to your environment:

> When discussing CPU metrics, use `container_cpu_usage_seconds_total` instead of generic CPU references. Reference our custom `service_health_score` metric for overall service status. Prefer the `prometheus_prod` datasource when investigating issues in production.

### Communication style

Define how the Assistant formats and structures responses:

> Always be concise and direct in responses. Use bullet points for actionable recommendations. Avoid jargon unless specifically discussing technical implementation.

### Best practices

Encode organizational standards and observability methodologies:

> Use the RED method (Rate, Errors, Duration) wherever possible. Always recommend setting up SLIs before creating SLOs. Suggest using template variables for dynamic dashboards.

### Workflow guidelines

Automate operational recommendations based on specific triggers:

> Suggest declaring an incident if the ecommerce platform response time exceeds 5 seconds. Recommend escalating to the infrastructure team for persistent memory issues. Always ask about recent deployments when troubleshooting performance issues.

## Next steps

While rules provide general behavioral context, other features offer more structured guidance:

- [**Skills**](/docs/grafana-cloud/platform/grafana-assistant/platform/skills): Create step-by-step troubleshooting guides for specific alerts or scenarios. Skills are triggered by specific events, whereas Rules apply generally to conversations.
- [**MCP servers**](/docs/grafana-cloud/platform/grafana-assistant/configure/mcp-servers): Extend the Assistant’s capabilities by connecting to external tools and data sources.