9afedb591e
- Added a `task.prewalk` option (default `false`), removed default task `prewalk` flags, and updated prewalk resolution so bunded generic task execution only prewalks when explicitly enabled. - Enforced strict `--tools` validation in CLI parsing, making unknown tool names fail fast with `CliUsageError` instead of being silently filtered. - Migrated legacy discovery settings (`tools.discoveryMode`, `tools.essentialOverride`, MCP discovery keys) into updated `tools.xdev` handling with preserved explicit override behavior. - Hardened xdev/ACP execution flow by capping `docsAll` payloads with overflow listing and remapping `xd://` dispatches/approval gating for correct execute/read behavior and reduced duplicate prompts.
191 lines
9.5 KiB
Markdown
191 lines
9.5 KiB
Markdown
# Task Agent Discovery and Selection
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This document describes how the task subsystem discovers agent definitions, merges multiple sources, and resolves a requested agent at execution time.
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It covers runtime behavior as implemented today, including precedence, invalid-definition handling, and spawn/depth constraints that can make an agent effectively unavailable.
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## Implementation files
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- [`src/task/discovery.ts`](../packages/coding-agent/src/task/discovery.ts)
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- [`src/task/agents.ts`](../packages/coding-agent/src/task/agents.ts)
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- [`src/task/types.ts`](../packages/coding-agent/src/task/types.ts)
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- [`src/task/index.ts`](../packages/coding-agent/src/task/index.ts)
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- [`src/task/commands.ts`](../packages/coding-agent/src/task/commands.ts)
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- [`src/prompts/agents/task.md`](../packages/coding-agent/src/prompts/agents/task.md)
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- [`src/prompts/tools/task.md`](../packages/coding-agent/src/prompts/tools/task.md)
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- [`src/discovery/helpers.ts`](../packages/coding-agent/src/discovery/helpers.ts)
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- [`src/config.ts`](../packages/coding-agent/src/config.ts)
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- [`src/task/executor.ts`](../packages/coding-agent/src/task/executor.ts)
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---
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## Agent definition shape
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Task agents normalize into `AgentDefinition` (`src/task/types.ts`):
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- `name`, `description`, `systemPrompt` (required for a valid loaded agent)
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- optional `tools`, `spawns`, `model`, `thinkingLevel`, `output`, `blocking`, `autoloadSkills`, `readSummarize`, `prewalk`
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- `source`: `"bundled" | "user" | "project"`
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- optional `filePath`
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Parsing comes from frontmatter via `parseAgentFields()` (`src/discovery/helpers.ts`):
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- missing `name` or `description` => invalid (`null`), caller treats as parse failure
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- `tools` accepts CSV or array; if provided, `yield` is auto-added
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- `spawns` accepts `*`, CSV, or array
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- backward-compat behavior: if `spawns` missing but `tools` includes `task`, `spawns` becomes `*`
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- `output` is passed through as opaque schema data
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- `read-summarize: false` (parsed as `readSummarize`) forces the subagent's `read` tool to return verbatim file content instead of structural summaries — `runSubprocess` applies it as a `read.summarize.enabled: false` override on the subagent's isolated settings (`src/task/executor.ts`). `scout` and `librarian` ship with it disabled. Defaults to enabled when the field is absent.
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- `prewalk: true` starts the subagent on its resolved model and hands off to the default prewalk target (the `smol` role) at its first edit/write, exactly like the session-level `--prewalk`; a string value (e.g. `prewalk: "@smol"` or `prewalk: "openai/gpt-5-mini"`) picks a custom target. The `task.agentPrewalk` settings record (agent name → `"on"` / `"off"` / pattern, toggled per agent from `/agents` with `P`) overrides the frontmatter. Resolution happens in `runSubprocess` (`src/task/executor.ts`); an unresolvable target or a target equal to the starting model skips the hand-off instead of failing the spawn.
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## Bundled agents
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Bundled agents are embedded at build time (`src/task/agents.ts`) using text imports.
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`EMBEDDED_AGENT_DEFS` defines:
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- `scout`, `designer`, `reviewer`, `librarian` from prompt files
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- `task` and `sonic` from shared `task.md` body plus injected frontmatter; no bundled agent sets `prewalk` — the generic `task` agent's hand-off is armed by the `task.prewalk` setting (default off), or per agent via `/agents` / `task.agentPrewalk` / user agent frontmatter
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Loading path:
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1. `loadBundledAgents()` parses embedded markdown with `parseAgent(..., "bundled", "fatal")`
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2. results are cached in-memory (`bundledAgentsCache`)
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3. `clearBundledAgentsCache()` is test-only cache reset
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Because bundled parsing uses `level: "fatal"`, malformed bundled frontmatter throws and can fail discovery entirely.
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## Filesystem and plugin discovery
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`discoverAgents(cwd, home)` (`src/task/discovery.ts`) merges agents from OMP-native roots and Claude plugin roots before appending bundled definitions. Cross-harness roots such as `.claude/agents`, `.codex/agents`, and `.gemini/agents` are intentionally skipped — their frontmatter schema is not the OMP task-agent contract (`TASK_AGENT_CONFIG_SOURCE = ".omp"` filters both dir lists).
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### Discovery inputs
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1. Nearest project `.omp` agents dir from `findAllNearestProjectConfigDirs("agents", cwd)` (filtered to `.omp`; first hit only)
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2. User `.omp` agents dir from `getConfigDirs("agents", { project: false })` (filtered to `.omp`; first hit only)
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3. Claude plugin roots (`listClaudePluginRoots(home, cwd)`) with `agents/` subdirs — only when `isProviderEnabled("claude-plugins")`; project-scope plugins sort before user-scope
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4. Bundled agents (`loadBundledAgents()`)
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### Actual source order
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1. project `.omp/agents`
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2. user `~/.omp/agent/agents`
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3. plugin `agents/` dirs (project-scope first, then user-scope)
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4. bundled agents last
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## Merge and collision rules
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Discovery uses first-wins dedup by exact `agent.name`:
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- A `Set<string>` tracks seen names.
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- Loaded agents are flattened in directory order and kept only if name unseen.
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- Bundled agents are filtered against the same set and only added if still unseen.
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Implications:
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- Project `.omp` overrides user `.omp`.
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- Non-bundled agents override bundled agents with the same name.
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- Name matching is case-sensitive (`Task` and `task` are distinct).
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- Within one directory, markdown files are read in lexicographic filename order before dedup.
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## Invalid/missing agent file behavior
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Per directory (`loadAgentsFromDir`):
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- unreadable/missing directory: treated as empty (`readdir(...).catch(() => [])`)
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- file read or parse failure: warning logged, file skipped
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- parse path uses `parseAgent(..., level: "warn")`
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Frontmatter failure behavior comes from `parseFrontmatter`:
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- parse error at `warn` level logs warning
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- parser falls back to a simple `key: value` line parser
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- if required fields are still missing, `parseAgentFields` fails, then `AgentParsingError` is thrown and caught by caller (file skipped)
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Net effect: one bad custom agent file does not abort discovery of other files.
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## Agent lookup and selection
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Lookup is exact-name linear search:
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- `getAgent(agents, name)` => `agents.find(a => a.name === name)`
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In spawn execution (`TaskTool.#executeSync` → `#runSpawn`):
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1. agents are rediscovered at execution time (`discoverAgents(this.session.cwd)`)
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2. requested `params.agent` is resolved through `getAgent`
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3. missing agent returns immediate tool response:
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- `Unknown agent "...". Available: ...`
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- no subprocess runs
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### Description vs execution-time discovery
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`TaskTool.create()` builds the tool description from discovery results at initialization time. `#executeSync` rediscovers agents, so the runtime set can differ from what was listed in the earlier tool description if agent files changed mid-session. The async entry path still uses the initialization-time list to decide whether an agent is marked `blocking` before scheduling.
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## Structured-output guardrails and schema precedence
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Runtime output schema precedence in `TaskTool.#runSpawn`:
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1. agent frontmatter `output`
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2. parent session `outputSchema`
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(`effectiveOutputSchema = effectiveAgent.output ?? this.session.outputSchema` — the task call itself never carries a schema; ad-hoc structured workflows go through the eval bridge's `agent(prompt, schema)`.)
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The model-facing prompt (`src/prompts/tools/task.md`) no longer carries the old structured-output mismatch warning; it tags read-only agents and warns against offloading reasoning to `explore`/`sonic` instead.
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## Command discovery interaction
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`src/task/commands.ts` is parallel infrastructure for workflow commands (not agent definitions), but it follows the same overall pattern:
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- discover from capability providers first
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- deduplicate by name with first-wins
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- append bundled commands if still unseen
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- exact-name lookup via `getCommand`
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In `src/task/index.ts`, command helpers are re-exported with agent discovery helpers. Agent discovery itself does not depend on command discovery at runtime.
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## Availability constraints beyond discovery
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An agent can be discoverable but still unavailable to run because of execution guardrails.
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### Disabled-agent settings
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`TaskTool.#executeSync` checks `task.disabledAgents` after resolving the agent. If the requested name is disabled, execution returns an immediate error listing enabled alternatives when available.
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### Parent spawn policy
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`TaskTool.#executeSync` checks `session.getSessionSpawns()`:
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- `"*"` => allow any
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- `""` => deny all
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- CSV list => allow only listed names
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If denied: immediate `Cannot spawn '...'. Allowed: ...` response.
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### Blocked self-recursion env guard
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`PI_BLOCKED_AGENT` is read at tool construction. If request matches, execution is rejected with recursion-prevention message.
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### Recursion-depth gating (task tool availability inside child sessions)
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In `runSubprocess` (`src/task/executor.ts`):
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- depth computed from `taskDepth`
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- `task.maxRecursionDepth` controls cutoff
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- when at max depth:
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- `task` tool is removed from child tool list
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- child `spawns` env is set to empty
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So deeper levels cannot spawn further tasks even if the agent definition includes `spawns`.
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## Plan mode behavior
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When parent plan mode is enabled, `TaskTool.#runSpawn` builds an `effectiveAgent` before launching subprocesses:
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- prepends the plan-mode subagent system prompt
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- restricts tools to `read`, `search`, `find`, `lsp`, and `web_search`, plus `ast_grep` when the agent's own tool list declares it (`PLAN_MODE_AGENT_TOOL_ALLOWLIST`)
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- clears child spawns
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- clears `prewalk` (read-only exploration must not receive the prewalk plan/implement nudges)
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The same `effectiveAgent` is used for subprocess launch, model/thinking overrides, and output-schema selection.
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