---
title: "Kill-switch"
description: "Stop one agent or every agent on a project instantly. The next statement is refused, with no credential rotation."
canonical: "https://pgbeam.com/docs/kill-switch"
last-updated: "2026-10-29T19:01:20.000Z"
---

# Kill-switch

> Stop one agent or every agent on a project instantly. The next statement is refused, with no credential rotation.

URL: https://pgbeam.com/docs/kill-switch

The kill-switch stops an agent now. Trip it on a single credential to cut off one agent, or at the project level to stop every agent at once. The next statement on a killed credential is refused. There is no credential rotation and no change to your database.

## Trip the kill-switch

**CLI**

```bash
# Stop one agent (reversible; re-enable with `pgbeam agents enable`)
pgbeam agents disable agt_xxx

# Stop every agent on the project
pgbeam projects update --agents-disabled true
```

**Dashboard**

On the **Credentials** tab, select a credential and disable it. To stop every
agent at once, engage the project-level kill-switch in the project settings.

**API**

```bash
# Stop one agent: set its credential status to disabled
curl -X PATCH https://api.pgbeam.com/v1/projects/{projectId}/agents/{agentId} \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer pbo_..." \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"status": "disabled"}'

# Stop every agent on the project: engage the project kill-switch
curl -X PATCH https://api.pgbeam.com/v1/projects/{projectId} \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer pbo_..." \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"agents_disabled": true}'
```

Reverse either one by sending `{"status": "active"}` to the credential or
`{"agents_disabled": false}` to the project.

## How it takes effect

The kill state streams to the data planes and applies on the next statement. A killed agent gets a clear error over a connection string, and a `401` over the [hosted MCP endpoint](/docs/mcp).

## Kill-switch vs revoke

| Action      | Effect                                                          | Reversible |
| ----------- | --------------------------------------------------------------- | ---------- |
| Kill-switch | Pauses access immediately. Credential and policy are preserved. | Yes        |
| Revoke      | Removes the credential entirely.                                | No         |

Use the kill-switch when you want to stop an agent now and decide later. Use [revoke](/docs/agent-credentials) when the credential should be gone for good.

> **Org-level safety net**
>
> When an organization-level budget ceiling is breached, the control plane can
> trip the kill-switch automatically. See [Budgets](/docs/budgets).

## Related

* [Agent credentials](/docs/agent-credentials)
* [Budgets](/docs/budgets)
* [Audit log](/docs/audit-log)