delegate_task runs inside the parent turn and is cancelled when the parent is interrupted (new user message, /stop, /new). The child status payload (status=interrupted, exit_reason=interrupted) is already honest, but the tool schema and user-facing docs did not set the expectation, so users reasonably assumed delegated subagents would keep running in the background after interrupting the parent.
Updates:
- tools/delegate_tool.py DELEGATE_TASK_SCHEMA description adds a WHEN NOT TO USE bullet pointing at cronjob / terminal(background=True, notify_on_complete=True) for durable long-running work.
- website/docs/user-guide/features/delegation.md gains a Lifetime and Durability callout above Key Properties.
- website/docs/guides/delegation-patterns.md expands the Use something else list and the Constraints section with the same guidance.
Reported by LizLiz (@lizliz404) via Teknium.
Co-authored-by: teknium1 <teknium@users.noreply.github.com>
The 'subagents know nothing' warning and the 'no conversation history'
constraint both said the user provides the goal/context fields. In
practice the LLM parent agent calls delegate_task; the user configures
the feature but doesn't write delegation calls. Rewording to point at
the parent agent matches how the tool actually works.
Adds role='leaf'|'orchestrator' to delegate_task. With max_spawn_depth>=2,
an orchestrator child retains the 'delegation' toolset and can spawn its
own workers; leaf children cannot delegate further (identical to today).
Default posture is flat — max_spawn_depth=1 means a depth-0 parent's
children land at the depth-1 floor and orchestrator role silently
degrades to leaf. Users opt into nested delegation by raising
max_spawn_depth to 2 or 3 in config.yaml.
Also threads acp_command/acp_args through the main agent loop's delegate
dispatch (previously silently dropped in the schema) via a new
_dispatch_delegate_task helper, and adds a DelegateEvent enum with
legacy-string back-compat for gateway/ACP/CLI progress consumers.
Config (hermes_cli/config.py defaults):
delegation.max_concurrent_children: 3 # floor-only, no upper cap
delegation.max_spawn_depth: 1 # 1=flat (default), 2-3 unlock nested
delegation.orchestrator_enabled: true # global kill switch
Salvaged from @pefontana's PR #11215. Overrides vs. the original PR:
concurrency stays at 3 (PR bumped to 5 + cap 8 — we keep the floor only,
no hard ceiling); max_spawn_depth defaults to 1 (PR defaulted to 2 which
silently enabled one level of orchestration for every user).
Co-authored-by: pefontana <fontana.pedro93@gmail.com>
