Add Manager/Worker orchestration design decision entry#42
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Design/spike output for the coordinated Manager/Worker model: - Gate verdict (verified live, herdr 0.7.0): agent_status is pollable for agent-start tabs (idle|working|blocked|done), hook-integration-based; agent read returns clean TUI text. Resolves the previously-UNVERIFIED agent-status flag. - Cross-agent constraint: workers may be claude/codex/grok; only claude+codex are hook-integrated (status + session UUID), grok is TUI-scrape-only. git/PR state is the one uniform bus; the contract is agent-agnostic. - The .mailbox/ protocol: outbox+inbox (single-writer, single-sequencer), offset-drain, Claude Code hook push (Stop/SessionStart/Notification), herdr idle-wake as the only residual push. - Milestone-defined worker autonomy, deterministic merge sequencer, roadmap-as-derived-view co-equal with the GH board. Spawns 7 implementation task files (local backlog): add-lane-registry, add-lane-mailbox, add-manager-watch-loop, extend-worker-autonomy, add-merge-sequencer, add-roadmap-skill, add-mailbox-statusline. Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
Two design additions (2026-07-19):
- ready-to-close becomes a handoff report {summary, follow_ups, deploy,
updates, learnings} so the worker's fresh context transfers to the
Manager (→ /define, /curate, deploy-from-main-post-merge).
- Mailbox moves to a central ~/.agent_messaging/ store (id = encoded
absolute path): unlocks a broadcast channel + Manager presence registry
for cross-Manager / system-wide coordination, and makes never-commit
automatic. Broadcast ships as a follow-up task (add-agent-broadcast);
aligns with plugin-settings-system's [related_projects] peering.
Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
Prior-art research (2026-07-19): the mailbox is the recognized inbox/outbox pattern; AMQ (avivsinai/agent-message-queue) already implements our design (Maildir delivery, .agent-mail store, swarm/agent-teams, federation, presence). Decisions: - name the store ~/.agent-mail/ (community convention) - fix mechanics: Maildir (atomic rename, lockless, tmp/new/cur) + a CloudEvents-aligned envelope; align concepts with A2A for future interop - add spike-agent-mail-substrate (decide adopt-AMQ-adapter vs build-thin) before add-lane-mailbox; document the protocol in the work-system README Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
`amq swarm`'s self-reported claim/block/complete is NOT adopted as a task-state authority — it fights the derived-from-git/PR lanes model. AMQ owns message transport; herdr-derived lanes own state. Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 <noreply@anthropic.com> Claude-Session: https://claude.ai/code/session_01LTZx9DqrXPXQFoTrCvcJmD
- `amq swarm` explicitly out of scope: it bridges Claude Code's native Agent Teams (~/.claude/tasks/), a competing orchestration substrate — we use only AMQ core messaging (send/inbox-outbox/who/receipts/dlq/wake). - Drop the thin-Maildir fallback: AMQ is a prerequisite (brew install), absent degrades to the git/PR floor + manual relay (already the base). - Envelope is AMQ-native, not CloudEvents; CloudEvents/A2A stay conceptual alignment for a future HTTP bridge. Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 <noreply@anthropic.com> Claude-Session: https://claude.ai/code/session_01LTZx9DqrXPXQFoTrCvcJmD
Answers the obvious reviewer question: CC's native Agent Teams is Claude-only, no worktree isolation, self-reported status, no PR/merge lifecycle — complementary, not competing. Note the shared Maildir envelope and the TeammateIdle / auto-unblock ideas worth reusing. Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 <noreply@anthropic.com> Claude-Session: https://claude.ai/code/session_01LTZx9DqrXPXQFoTrCvcJmD
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Summary
main: one decision knowledge entry (an ADR). The 7 spawned implementation tasks live in the local, untracked backlog (tasks/*.mdby convention) — not in this PR.agent_statusIS pollable for agent-start tabs (idle|working|blocked|done), hook-integration-based;agent readreturns clean TUI text — resolving the previously-UNVERIFIED agent-status flag.Changes
+.claude/knowledge/architecture/manager-worker-orchestration.md— the decision record: the Manager/Worker/Lane model (identity = worktree path), the cross-agent constraint (workers may be claude/codex/grok; only claude+codex are hook-integrated → git/PR is the one uniform bus, contract is agent-agnostic, claude-first), the.mailbox/protocol (outbox+inbox single-writer, offset-drain, Claude Code hook push, herdr idle-wake as the only residual push), milestone-defined worker autonomy, the deterministic merge sequencer, and roadmap-as-derived-view co-equal with the GitHub board.~.claude/knowledge/_index.md— index the new entry.Readiness
scripts/check-structure.py) — 0 errorsmain(da19bee)Test plan
python3 scripts/check-structure.pystays greenskill-composition,idempotent-scaffolding,herdr-kickoff-automation,herdr-tab-glyphs)🤖 Generated with Claude Code