diff --git a/src/extension/intents/node/askAgentIntent.ts b/src/extension/intents/node/askAgentIntent.ts
index b6b64c545..98b4f513e 100644
--- a/src/extension/intents/node/askAgentIntent.ts
+++ b/src/extension/intents/node/askAgentIntent.ts
@@ -62,7 +62,7 @@ export class AskAgentIntent implements IIntent {
 
 	private getIntentHandlerOptions(request: vscode.ChatRequest): IDefaultIntentRequestHandlerOptions | undefined {
 		return {
-			maxToolCallIterations: getRequestedToolCallIterationLimit(request) ?? this.configurationService.getNonExtensionConfig('chat.agent.maxRequests') ?? 15,
+			maxToolCallIterations: getRequestedToolCallIterationLimit(request) ?? this.configurationService.getNonExtensionConfig('chat.agent.maxRequests') ?? 200,
 			temperature: this.configurationService.getConfig(ConfigKey.Internal.AgentTemperature) ?? 0,
 			overrideRequestLocation: ChatLocation.EditingSession,
 		};
diff --git a/src/extension/intents/node/editCodeIntent2.ts b/src/extension/intents/node/editCodeIntent2.ts
index 78bb26547..26a038820 100644
--- a/src/extension/intents/node/editCodeIntent2.ts
+++ b/src/extension/intents/node/editCodeIntent2.ts
@@ -77,7 +77,7 @@ export class EditCode2Intent extends EditCodeIntent {
 
 	protected override getIntentHandlerOptions(request: vscode.ChatRequest): IDefaultIntentRequestHandlerOptions | undefined {
 		return {
-			maxToolCallIterations: getRequestedToolCallIterationLimit(request) ?? this.configurationService.getNonExtensionConfig('chat.agent.maxRequests') ?? 15,
+			maxToolCallIterations: getRequestedToolCallIterationLimit(request) ?? this.configurationService.getNonExtensionConfig('chat.agent.maxRequests') ?? 200,
 			temperature: this.configurationService.getConfig(ConfigKey.Internal.AgentTemperature) ?? 0,
 			overrideRequestLocation: ChatLocation.EditingSession,
 		};
diff --git a/src/extension/intents/node/notebookEditorIntent.ts b/src/extension/intents/node/notebookEditorIntent.ts
index 6bac92cf0..150fb0537 100644
--- a/src/extension/intents/node/notebookEditorIntent.ts
+++ b/src/extension/intents/node/notebookEditorIntent.ts
@@ -81,7 +81,7 @@ export class NotebookEditorIntent extends EditCodeIntent {
 
 	protected override getIntentHandlerOptions(request: vscode.ChatRequest): IDefaultIntentRequestHandlerOptions | undefined {
 		return {
-			maxToolCallIterations: getRequestedToolCallIterationLimit(request) ?? this.configurationService.getNonExtensionConfig('chat.agent.maxRequests') ?? 15,
+			maxToolCallIterations: getRequestedToolCallIterationLimit(request) ?? this.configurationService.getNonExtensionConfig('chat.agent.maxRequests') ?? 200,
 			temperature: this.configurationService.getConfig(ConfigKey.Internal.AgentTemperature) ?? 0,
 			overrideRequestLocation: ChatLocation.Notebook,
 		};
diff --git a/src/extension/prompt/node/defaultIntentRequestHandler.ts b/src/extension/prompt/node/defaultIntentRequestHandler.ts
index e0373000a..a422e70b5 100644
--- a/src/extension/prompt/node/defaultIntentRequestHandler.ts
+++ b/src/extension/prompt/node/defaultIntentRequestHandler.ts
@@ -82,7 +82,7 @@ export class DefaultIntentRequestHandler {
 		protected readonly documentContext: IDocumentContext | undefined,
 		private readonly location: ChatLocation,
 		private readonly chatTelemetryBuilder: ChatTelemetryBuilder,
-		private readonly handlerOptions: IDefaultIntentRequestHandlerOptions = { maxToolCallIterations: 15 },
+		private readonly handlerOptions: IDefaultIntentRequestHandlerOptions = { maxToolCallIterations: 200 },
 		private readonly onPaused: Event<boolean>, // todo: use a PauseController instead
 		@IInstantiationService private readonly _instantiationService: IInstantiationService,
 		@IConversationOptions private readonly options: IConversationOptions,
diff --git a/src/extension/prompts/node/agent/agentInstructions.tsx b/src/extension/prompts/node/agent/agentInstructions.tsx
index 49a83e939..9c1e48854 100644
--- a/src/extension/prompts/node/agent/agentInstructions.tsx
+++ b/src/extension/prompts/node/agent/agentInstructions.tsx
@@ -39,6 +39,8 @@ export class DefaultAgentPrompt extends PromptElement<DefaultAgentPromptProps> {
 			<Tag name='instructions'>
 				You are a highly sophisticated automated coding agent with expert-level knowledge across many different programming languages and frameworks.<br />
 				The user will ask a question, or ask you to perform a task, and it may require lots of research to answer correctly. There is a selection of tools that let you perform actions or retrieve helpful context to answer the user's question.<br />
+				You must not only answer the user's question but also generate the minimum and necessary code changes to fix issues in the user's question.<br />
+				Do not ask the user any questions, just answer the user's question and perform the task they asked you to do.<br />
 				{getKeepGoingReminder(this.props.modelFamily)}
 				You will be given some context and attachments along with the user prompt. You can use them if they are relevant to the task, and ignore them if not.{hasReadFileTool && <> Some attachments may be summarized. You can use the {ToolName.ReadFile} tool to read more context, but only do this if the attached file is incomplete.</>}<br />
 				If you can infer the project type (languages, frameworks, and libraries) from the user's query or the context that you have, make sure to keep them in mind when making changes.<br />