Every knowledge base has one privacy setting, shown with the same badge everywhere: the knowledge bases page, chats, the agent builder, projects and teams. Click the badge to change it, or use Settings › On this device only on the knowledge base page.
| Setting | What it means |
|---|---|
| Cloud OK | Passages may be sent to the cloud model that answers. |
| Device only | Only on-device models see it. Cloud chats skip it and say so. |
What happens with Device only
Section titled “What happens with Device only”- In a chat, agent, project or team: when the answer comes from a cloud model, the knowledge base is skipped and the steps above the reply say Skipped · on this device only, with Answer this one on-device when an on-device model is ready.
- In a workflow: the RAG, Q&A and Tools Agent nodes never send it to a cloud model. By default the node stops with an error; you can set it to answer without it and log a warning instead. See RAG Agent.
Indexing always happens on this device for knowledge bases built with an on-device model, whatever the privacy setting.
Which to choose
Section titled “Which to choose”- Device only for anything you wouldn’t paste into a cloud chat: contracts, health notes, client files. Pair it with an on-device model.
- Cloud OK for public or low-risk material (product docs, saved articles), when you want the best cloud model to answer.