Domain 5 of 6 · Chapter 1 of 4

Operate and manage multi-agent workflows

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Included in this chapter:

  • Three coordination patterns and what each one hands over
  • Wiring a VS Code coordinator: tools, worker lists, models, and context
  • Choosing workers and tools in a Copilot SDK session
  • Isolating parallel work: what worktrees do and do not separate
  • Cloud sessions: cloud resources instead of local context
  • Sequencing work in VS Code with handoffs
  • Messaging across Agent Host sessions
  • Coordinating agent workers on GitHub
  • Comparing agent plans and findings before acting on them
  • Reconciling overlapping changes when agent branches meet
  • Exam reasoning: recognition cues and tempting wrong answers

Matching the coordination need to the pattern, with GitHub Actions job ordering alongside

DimensionSubagent delegationHandoffParallel sessions (worktree-isolated)GitHub Actions job ordering (needs / workflow_run), not a fourth pattern
Who owns the task afterwardsThe coordinator keeps itThe next specialist continues itEach session owns its own unitEach job or workflow owns its stage
What context each agent getsOnly its assignment, instructions, and configurationThe conversation history and contextIts own working files and branchWhat the producer uploaded or published
What it does not provideFollow-up messaging to the same invocationAutomatic selection of the handoff button (in VS Code, the user selects it)Command, network, or token isolationProtection from simultaneous runs without a concurrency group
Typical trapSending a second message instead of a complete first assignmentChanging a VS Code handoff button's label instead of its target agentAssuming ignored dependencies or uncommitted files are presentTreating a completed workflow_run producer run as a successful one

Decision tree

Ordering GitHub Actions jobs?YesGitHub Actions job orderingneeds / workflow_runnot a fourth patternNoParallel code changes must nottouch the same working files?YesParallel sessions(worktree-isolated)NoNext specialist must continuethe same task?YesHandoffcarries the conversation historyNoSubagent delegationcoordinator keeps ownershipAlways: isolation separates files, not authority or timing
Cheat sheet

Cheat sheet

  • A coordinator delegates focused subtasks and integrates worker results
  • Independent review perspectives can run in parallel before synthesis
  • A coordinator must have the agent tool available to invoke subagents
  • An explicit agents list limits which workers a VS Code coordinator may select
  • A stateless subagent invocation needs its relevant context and expected output up front
  • Recursive delegation requires enabling subagent-to-subagent invocation
  • A custom worker can override the configuration inherited by ordinary subagents
  • An explicit invocation model outranks the custom agent and parent models
  • Subagents receive isolated context rather than the parent's full conversation
  • Use separate worktree-isolated sessions for tasks that must not edit the same working files
  • Worktree isolation separates code changes but does not restrict commands or networking
  • A new worktree starts from committed state rather than unsaved task dependencies
  • Ignored dependencies need explicit inclusion in new VS Code worktrees
  • Independent conversations do not necessarily have independent working files
  • A cloud worker uses cloud-configured resources rather than the local editor environment
  • A handoff continues the task with a different agent configuration and retained context
  • The handoff send property controls whether selecting the handoff immediately submits its prompt
  • A handoff's agent field selects the target agent while label names the button
  • IDE handoff frontmatter does not orchestrate Copilot cloud agent on GitHub.com
  • Dependent agent jobs must wait for the producer before consuming its artifacts
  • Agent Host cross-session messaging requires confirmation and cannot target its own chat
  • Overlapping agent edits can require explicit merge-conflict resolution
  • The three-way merge editor lets a reviewer construct the reconciled result
  • Accept Both Changes retains both conflicting versions rather than deciding their semantics
  • Architectural review can catch duplicated work before implementation
  • Contradictory outputs require comparison rather than an assumed consensus
  • Validate the integrated branch before disposing of a worker session
  • Dispatch parallel work from explicit readiness and ownership records
  • Use workflow completion events to coordinate agents across separate workflows
  • Give competing Actions workers the same resource-specific concurrency group
  • Resolve incompatible agent proposals through validation evidence and accountable review
  • SDK automatic routing matches agent expertise and respects infer: false
  • Exclude execution tools from the default agent without excluding them from workers
  • Separate worker authorization through job-level token permissions

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References

  1. https://docs.github.com/en/actions/writing-workflows/choosing-what-your-workflow-does/control-the-concurrency-of-workflows-and-jobs