High Risk →

focus_window

Bring a window to the foreground by title or PID.

How to control focus_window ↓

What focus_window does on OODA Computer Control

AI agents invoke focus_window to trigger actions in OODA Computer Control. What it does depends on the arguments the agent supplies, and its effects often reach beyond the immediate call — builds kicked off, notifications sent, workflows started.

High Risk

Why focus_window needs a policy

This tool triggers an external UI operation (changing window focus/foreground state) that affects the desktop environment. It doesn't read, write, or delete data, but it does execute a system-level action. Misuse could redirect user attention or interfere with active workflows, but blast radius is generally low.

From the tool's definition Bring a window to the foreground by title or PID

Documented attack patterns abuse exactly the kind of access focus_window gives an agent:

How to control focus_window

PolicyLayer is an MCP gateway — it sits between your AI agents and OODA Computer Control, and nothing reaches the server without passing your rules. This is the rule we recommend for focus_window:

policy.json
{
  "version": "1",
  "default": "deny",
  "tools": {
    "focus_window": {
      "limits": [
        {
          "counter": "focus_window_rate",
          "window": "minute",
          "max": 10,
          "scope": "grant"
        }
      ]
    }
  }
}

focus_window stays usable, but rate-capped — a runaway agent can't fire it dozens of times a minute. Everything else on the server is denied unless you say otherwise.

  1. Create a free account and register OODA Computer Control — nothing to install.
  2. Add this policy — paste it, or build it visually.
  3. Point your MCP client (Claude, Cursor, anything) at your gateway URL.
RATE-LIMIT THIS TOOL →

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Related tools and policies

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Questions about focus_window

What does the focus_window tool do? +

Bring a window to the foreground by title or PID. It is categorised as a Execute tool in the OODA Computer Control MCP Server, which means it can trigger actions or run processes. Use rate limits and argument validation.

How do I enforce a policy on focus_window? +

Register the OODA Computer Control MCP server in PolicyLayer and add a rule for focus_window: allow, deny, rate-limit, or require approval. Point your MCP client at the PolicyLayer proxy URL and the rule is enforced on every call, before it reaches OODA Computer Control. Nothing to install.

What risk level is focus_window? +

focus_window is a Execute tool with high risk. Execute tools should be rate-limited and have argument validation enabled.

Can I rate-limit focus_window? +

Yes. Add a rate_limit block to the focus_window rule in your PolicyLayer policy. For example, setting max: 10 and window: 60 limits the tool to 10 calls per minute. Rate limits are tracked per agent session and reset automatically.

How do I block focus_window completely? +

Set action: deny in the PolicyLayer policy for focus_window. The AI agent will receive a policy violation error and cannot call the tool. You can also include a reason field to explain why the tool is blocked.

What MCP server provides focus_window? +

focus_window is provided by the OODA Computer Control MCP server (mnehmos/mnehmos.ooda.mcp). PolicyLayer sits as a proxy in front of this server to enforce policies before tool calls reach the server.

Enforce policy on every OODA Computer Control tool call.

Start from OODA Computer Control, add the rest of your stack, and see everything your agents can call. Then put policy on all of it.

Free to start. No card required.

99 OODA Computer Control tools catalogued and risk-classified — across an index of 43,000+ MCP servers.

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