# Ask Theo

This page tells you how to ask Theo, the VitalSentinel AI assistant, a question. It also explains each part of the Theo chat panel.

## Open the Theo chat [#open-the-theo-chat]

1. Click the round Theo button in the bottom-right corner of the page.
2. Read the chat home, or type your question in the **Ask Theo** box.
3. Press Enter to send the question.

To add a new line without a send, press Shift + Enter. To close the chat, press Esc, click the Theo button again, or click **Close chat with Theo**.

### Chat size [#chat-size]

The Theo chat opens as a small panel above the Theo button. To make it larger, click **Make the chat bigger**. The chat then opens as a tall side panel. Click **Make the chat smaller** to go back. VitalSentinel remembers your choice in this browser.

On a small screen, such as a phone, the Theo chat always fills the full screen.

### Chat settings menu [#chat-settings-menu]

The **Chat settings** button (three dots) in the chat header opens a menu with four items:

- **Your conversations**: your earlier questions to Theo.
- **Your tickets**: your support tickets.
- **Write to the team**: a new support ticket. See [Support Tickets](/theo/support-tickets).
- **Show tips on pages**: turns the tip bubbles on or off. See [Tips from Theo](/theo/tips).

## The chat home [#the-chat-home]

The chat home is the first screen of the Theo chat. From top to bottom, it shows these parts.

### Greeting [#greeting]

The greeting says "Hi [your first name], how can I help?". The line below says "Ask about [your site]. Docs answers show as you type." The site is the domain that you have selected in the app.

### Message about your data [#message-about-your-data]

If Theo finds a problem with your site setup, the chat home shows it in a box. Examples are "RUM Monitoring stopped receiving data" or "Google Search Console needs you to sign in again". The box has a link to the next step, for example **Check the RUM Monitoring connection**. The same message can also show as a tip bubble. See [Tips from Theo](/theo/tips#setup-problem-bubble).

### Questions for this page [#questions-for-this-page]

The section **On [page name]** lists questions for the page that you are on. On a page without its own help, the section is **Popular questions**. The list can have these rows:

- **What does this page show?**: a short description of the page.
- **What needs attention here?**: the open [Site Health Monitoring](/site-health/overview) issues for the page. This row shows only on pages that have issues to list.
- **Tour this page**: starts the page tour. The chat closes so that you can see the page.
- Up to five suggested questions.

### Your conversations and expert help [#your-conversations-and-expert-help]

**Your conversations** shows your three newest questions and support tickets. Click **See all** for the full list.

**Need expert help?** opens the consultations page. The row says "A 60-minute video call on SEO and speed." See [Consultations](/help/consultations).

If the chat home cannot load your conversations, it shows "Couldn't load your recent conversations." Click **Try again**.

## Type a question [#type-a-question]

The **Ask Theo** box takes up to 2,000 characters. Near the limit, a counter shows how many characters you used, for example "1,850 / 2,000".

While you type, a **From the docs** list shows docs pages that match your words. Click a page to open it in a new tab. If a page answers your question, you do not have to send it.

## Suggested questions [#suggested-questions]

Each app page has its own suggested questions. Examples are "How do I install the RUM script?", "What is LCP?", "How often is my site checked?" and "What does my plan include?". When a module has no data, the list can also show "Why is there no data here?".

Theo answers every suggested question with a built-in answer. A built-in answer does not use AI and does not count toward any limit. If you type the exact words of a suggested question, you get the same built-in answer.

### What does this page show? [#what-does-this-page-show]

This row gives the built-in description of the page, with the label **About this page**. If the module of the page has a setup problem, the answer starts with it.

### What needs attention here? [#what-needs-attention-here]

This row lists every open Site Health Monitoring issue and opportunity for the page. Each item has its severity, its weight, one sentence about the fix, and a link. The app builds this list in your browser, without AI. It does not count toward any limit.

If there is no open issue, the answer says:

- "Site Health Monitoring lists no open issue on [page]."

If Site Health Monitoring cannot be read, the answer says:

- "Site Health Monitoring could not be read just now. Try again in a moment, or open it from the sidebar."

### Why is there no data here? [#why-is-there-no-data-here]

Theo checks the setup state of the module on the page that you are on, then the other modules of the site. The answer has the label **From your data**. It names each problem, since when it exists, and the next step. Each problem has a button that opens the correct setup panel or settings page.

## Read Theo's answers [#read-theos-answers]

### While Theo works [#while-theo-works]

When Theo uses AI, a status line shows what Theo does at that moment:

| Status | What Theo does |
|---|---|
| **Checking your setup** | Reads the setup state of your site |
| **Searching the docs** | Searches these docs |
| **Looking at your data** | Reads the summary of your site or of one module |
| **Looking at the page** | Reads what VitalSentinel knows about one page (URL) of your site |
| **Checking your alerts** | Reads the open alerts of your site |
| **Checking your plan** | Reads your plan, its limits and your usage |
| **Checking your tickets** | Reads your support tickets |
| **Working on it** | Another step |

Before a built-in answer, Theo shows **Thinking** for a short time. Then the words of the answer appear.

### Docs cards and buttons [#docs-cards-and-buttons]

Under an answer, Theo can show docs cards. Each card opens a docs page on docs.vitalsentinel.com in a new tab.

Theo can also show buttons that open an app page. Examples are a setup panel, a connection check, a report or a tab, and your settings. Other examples are the billing plans, the members page and the consultations page. Theo never makes the change for you. You make it on the page that the button opens.

## Did this answer it? [#did-this-answer-it]

Under the last answer, Theo asks if the answer helped:

- Click **This solved it** if the answer helped. Theo shows "Glad that helped."
- Click **Still need help** if the answer did not help. The line under the buttons says "Still need help shares this chat with our team."

What happens after **Still need help** depends on the answer:

- For a built-in answer to a question that you typed, Theo asks the AI the same question.
- For the answer to a suggested question, Theo shows **Send to the team**.
- For an AI answer, Theo can show **Try a deeper answer** and **Send to the team**.

### Try a deeper answer [#try-a-deeper-answer]

**Try a deeper answer** asks a stronger AI model the same question. The button shows only under an AI answer, and only a few times in each conversation. When the button does not show, send the question to the team.

### Talk to the team [#talk-to-the-team]

Below the conversation, the **Talk to the team** button shows after an answer. It does not show while Theo writes, or after you send the conversation to the team. It opens the same form as **Send to the team**. See [Support Tickets](/theo/support-tickets).

## Follow-up questions [#follow-up-questions]

To continue the conversation, type in the **Ask a follow-up** box under the answers. Theo writes one answer at a time. While Theo writes, the box is not available.

### Messages that did not send [#messages-that-did-not-send]

If a message did not reach VitalSentinel, it shows "Not sent" and a **Try again** button. Other messages you can see:

- "The answer was interrupted."
- "Something went wrong. Try again."
- "Network error. Check your connection and try again."
- "Your session has ended. Sign in again."
- "This conversation is no longer available."

For the messages about limits, see [Theo Limits](/theo/limits).

## Your earlier conversations [#your-earlier-conversations]

To see your earlier questions, open **Chat settings** > **Your conversations**, or click **See all** on the chat home. The screen has two tabs: **Questions** and **Tickets**.

The **Questions** tab lists your conversations with Theo, newest first, 10 on each page. The title of each row is your first question. Click a row to open the conversation again.

The list shows only your own conversations in the current workspace. Other members cannot see them. A conversation that you started on another device is in the list too.

If you have no conversations, the tab shows "No questions yet" and "Ask anything about your site. Answers from the docs show up as you type."

VitalSentinel deletes old conversations after a time. An old conversation can then show "This conversation is no longer available." See [Theo and Your Privacy](/theo/privacy#how-long-vitalsentinel-keeps-conversations).

## Start a new chat [#start-a-new-chat]

1. In the chat header, click the back arrow until you see the chat home.
2. Type your new question in the **Ask Theo** box.

You can also click **Ask a new question** on the **Your conversations** screen.

A very long conversation stops with "This chat is long. Start a new chat to keep answers fast." Start a new chat to continue.

## Troubleshooting [#troubleshooting]

### Why does Theo not answer my question? [#why-does-theo-not-answer-my-question]

If your question is not about VitalSentinel or your sites, Theo replies that it can only help with VitalSentinel and your sites. Ask about your site or the app instead.

### Why does Theo say it couldn't work this one out? [#why-does-theo-say-it-couldnt-work-this-one-out]

If Theo is not sure of an answer, it says "I couldn't work this one out for sure. The best next step is to send it to the team; your conversation is attached." Click **Send to the team**.

### Why does Theo not see my data? [#why-does-theo-not-see-my-data]

If Theo cannot see your data, select the correct domain in the app first. Theo reads only the domains of the current workspace. See [What Theo Can Read](/theo/what-theo-can-read).

## Related [#related]

- [Theo, the AI Assistant](/theo/introduction) - what Theo is and how it builds answers.
- [What Theo Can Read](/theo/what-theo-can-read) - the data behind the answers.
- [Theo Limits](/theo/limits) - message limits.
- [Support Tickets](/theo/support-tickets) - send a conversation to the team.
- [Troubleshooting](/help/troubleshooting) - fixes for common problems