> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://wiki.latch.bio/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Remote Execution

> It is often desirable to be able to access a shell from within a running task of a workflow, to debug a misbehaving program or inspect some files for example.

When inspecting a running task in the [Console](https://console.latch.bio), simply click
on the node representing the desired task and copy and paste the `latch exec <hash>` subcommand in the right sidebar into your terminal to retrieve a live
shell from within the running task.

<img src="https://mintcdn.com/latchbio/OY3WpKhZ3Sm_DsN1/images/latch-exec.png?fit=max&auto=format&n=OY3WpKhZ3Sm_DsN1&q=85&s=0d44265ea7538fd51526534b83b0501a" alt="latch exec" width="1324" height="883" data-path="images/latch-exec.png" />

The shell session is accessible as long as the task is executing. For short-lived tasks, you can use the **Start**, **Stop** options on the sidebar to pause a task. Alternatively, you can also programmatically sleep a task like so:

```python theme={null}
import time

@task
def very_short_task(a: int, b: int) -> int:
    time.sleep(300) # Sleep the task for 5 minutes
    return a + b
```

The task would run for longer on Latch, giving you more time to `latch exec` into it and debug.