Guide

Dry run before first live place

Before the first live place with a new agent, connector, or strategy, run a dry session — paper, preview, or zero-size rehearsal — and confirm fills in the broker UI. Pair it with paper before live, never skip review before place, and confirm fills in the broker, not chat.

By Agent Lane Editorial · Page dated 27 September 2026

Answer first

Before Cursor or Grok places the first live order, pay, or signature on a new agent, connector, or strategy, run a dry run: one paper, preview, or zero-size rehearsal with review before place on — then confirm the outcome in the broker or wallet UI, not chat. Caps and a funded ceiling do not excuse skipping rehearsal on a new stack. Agent Lane publishes the checklist. We do not place trades, hold wallets, or run your agents.

What this page is

A short operator guide for the novelty gate on the shield — rehearse before the first live place when the agent, connector, or strategy is new. Pair it with paper before live, never skip review before place, confirm fills in the broker, not chat, one connector at a time, fund the session ceiling, review before place, receipt log after the session, and the shared-box checklist.

We are a publisher, not a trading desk. Product screens change; confirm dry-run, preview, paper, or zero-size paths on the official page. We do not invent product rehearsal menus or click-paths.

Why skipping the dry run is the failure mode

• New stack, first call live. A new agent prompt, freshly enabled MCP rail, or new strategy can mis-wire amount, destination, asset, or venue on call one — expensive once cash is live.
• Funded ceiling without rehearsal. Caps bound how much; they do not prove the new path. Learning the miss on live cash is the costly lesson.
• Trusting chat for the rehearsal. Chat can lag, skip a partial, or invent success. Venue UI is the source of truth — see confirm fills in the broker, not chat.

What “dry run before first live place” means

• Novelty is the trigger. New agent, new connector, or new strategy → dry session before first live place on that stack.
• Use official dry paths. Paper book, preview-only, zero-size, or zero-funded rehearsal the product already offers — do not invent UI.
• One connector, review on. One connector at a time; never skip review before place.
• Confirm in the venue UI. After the dry session, open the broker or wallet UI — not chat — and match the rehearsal to what you approved.
• Then first live place. Keep review on; stay small; stay on one connector. Prefer paper before live if the sleeve is not yet proven for cash.

Where it sits in the shield stack

1. Dedicated agent wallet + spend caps — money and limits the bot can reach.
2. Paper before live — dry prove before you fund the sleeve.
3. Fund the session ceiling — cash only up to this run’s max.
4. Dry run before first live place — when agent/connector/strategy is new: rehearse, confirm in broker UI, then first live place.
5. Never skip review before place — human gate on every place.
6. Confirm fills in the broker, not chat — venue truth after place and after dry rehearsal.
7. Revoke before you debug — kill-and-isolate on mismatch.

Healthy first live place on a new stack uses paper (if cash is new) + dry rehearsal + review + venue confirm. Skip the dry run and the first mistake lands live.

How to dry run before first live place

1. Name what is new. Agent, connector, or strategy — write it. Novelty triggers the dry session.
2. Stay on a dry path. Paper, preview, zero-size, or zero-funded rehearsal the product already offers. Do not invent a dry screen. If cash funding is also new, start with paper before live.
3. One connector, review on. Enable only the rail under test — one connector at a time. No standing “just place it / don’t ask / skip the card” — never skip review before place.
4. Run the dry session. One small reviewed rehearsal. Watch preview and tool names; do not treat chat as settlement.
5. Confirm in the broker UI. Open the broker or wallet UI and confirm rehearsal outcome there — confirm fills in the broker, not chat. Write a short receipt log for the dry pass.
6. Only then allow first live place. After a clean dry prove: keep review on, stay on one connector, fund only the session ceiling if needed, then the first live place. Mismatch: stop and revoke before you debug.

Practical checklist

• Novelty check. New agent / connector / strategy → dry session first.
• Official dry paths only. No invented rehearsal UI.
• Review + venue truth. Never skip review; confirm in broker UI, not chat.
• Paper still applies. Unfunded or new cash path → paper before live before this page’s live step.
• Shared-box pass. Connectors and open sessions on a shared computer — see shared-box.

Brokerage path: Shield brokerage spend. On-chain pay: Shield crypto spend.

What Agent Lane does not do here

• We do not place trades, preview your orders, or babysit your agents.
• We do not hold your funds, run a hot wallet, or settle payments.
• We do not invent dry-run UIs, paper modes, or zero-size screens for readers.
• We do not publish “go live on a new connector because the sleeve is capped” as a workflow.

Related guides

• Reject agent place without a fresh quote
• Confirm buying power before place
• Read-only quote before trade connector
• No averaging down without a new thesis
• Journal every override
• Name the strategy before connect
• Cap daily loss before session
• Paper before live
• Never skip review before place
• Confirm fills in the broker, not chat
• Review before place
• One connector at a time
• Fund the session ceiling
• Receipt log after the session
• Agent spend caps
• Dedicated agent wallet
• Connect only what you need
• Whitelist merchants only
• Session time-box
• Revoke before you debug
• Revoke connectors when idle
• Empty the sleeve overnight
• Write invalidation before entry
• Reject duplicate place same thesis
• Confirm symbol before place
• No scale-in without GO
• Flatten all before connector revoke
• One order per idea until fill
• No place while unconfirmed fill
• Write max loss before entry
• Shared-box and connector checklist
• Write GO before scale-up
• Paper before live, same rules
• Stop adding size after a loss day
• Shield brokerage spend
• Shield crypto spend
• Two-person rule for large places
• Log session end checklist
• Separate funding from trading wallet
• Name the strategy before connect
• Cap daily loss before session
• More on Resources

FAQ

What does dry run before first live place mean?

It means: before the first live place with a new agent, connector, or strategy, run one dry session — paper, preview, or zero-size rehearsal — with review before place on, then confirm the rehearsal outcome in the broker or wallet UI. Only after that dry prove do you allow the first live place. Pair with paper before live, never skip review before place, and confirm fills in the broker, not chat.

How is this different from paper before live?

Paper before live is the cash gate: prove the pipe before you fund the sleeve. Dry run before first live place is the novelty gate: when the agent, connector, or strategy is new — even if the sleeve is already capped — rehearse once and confirm in the venue UI before the first live place on that new stack.

Why is skipping the dry run the failure mode?

A new agent prompt, a freshly enabled MCP rail, or a new strategy can mis-wire amount, destination, asset, or venue on the first call. Caps bound how much; review bounds whether a place happens; without a dry rehearsal you still learn the miss on live cash. Confirming in chat alone can lag or invent a fill.

What counts as a dry session here?

Whatever your stack already offers that cannot spend real cash at full size: a paper or practice book if the venue publishes one, a preview-only path, a zero-size or minimum-notional rehearsal the product allows, or a zero-funded sleeve with review on. Do not invent a dry mode a product does not ship.

Does the dry run replace review before place or confirm-fills?

No. Keep never skip review before place on for every place. After the dry session, confirm fills in the broker or wallet UI — not chat — before you allow the first live place. The dry run is rehearsal; review and venue truth still apply.

When may I place live after the dry run?

After one clean dry session on the new agent, connector, or strategy: review showed amount, destination, asset, and venue; venue UI matched the rehearsal; caps and ceiling are set; one connector only. Then the first live place stays reviewed and small.

Where do I apply this next?

Dry prove before cash: paper before live. Human gate: never skip review before place. Venue truth: confirm fills in the broker, not chat. Cash: fund the session ceiling. Reconnect: one connector at a time. Incident: revoke before you debug. Agent Lane publishes the checklist; we do not place trades or hold wallets.

Next steps

Before an agent touches real money, review every order before it is placed, shield your brokerage account, and map the trading-agent options. Or browse all Agent Lane guides.