simplify(agent): drop the unused public Agent.abort(), keep whenIdle()

The public Agent handle exposed abort() (step-only) and cancel() (queue-aware).
No production caller used abort() — ACP maps session/cancel to cancel(), and
lifecycle owners tear down via AgentHandle.dispose(); the loop's own stop paths
abort their per-step AbortController directly. So abort() is latent generality
that keeps a private loop mechanic public.

RFC-premise correction: the public-agent-stop-surface RFC proposed removing
whenIdle() too. Implementation found whenIdle() load-bearing — a real
quiescence primitive with a deliberate loop contract (settle-without-transition,
the replacement-turn race) and ACP test consumers; its proposed replacement
("observe the running->idle transition") is exactly the async-state race
AGENTS.md warns against. So only abort() is removed; whenIdle() stays. The RFC
is amended on the way to implemented/ to record the narrowed scope, and the new
AGENTS.md "RFCs are proposals, not golden truth" principle (PR1) gets its
worked example.

- Remove Agent.abort() from the interface + the ReactLoopAgent impl; the no-arg
  'aborted' default goes with it (cancel() keeps its 'cancelled' default).
- Migrate tests: empty-queue abort() -> cancel(reason); the two review-fixes
  tests whose subject is the in-flight step's AbortController drive that
  controller directly via the private currentAbort field (cancel() would clear
  the inbox and destroy the queued steering one of them proves survives a step
  abort). The no-arg-default test is dropped (cancel()'s default is already
  covered in cancel.spec.ts).
- Resulting public stop surface: cancel() + whenIdle(). Update agent/agent-loop
  READMEs, architecture.md, core.md type-equiv, the extension cookbook, the
  lifecycle RFC (short note), and the proposed ACP RFC.

Implements docs/rfc/implemented/simplification/2026-06-20-public-agent-stop-surface.md
This commit is contained in:
Tianyi Cui
2026-06-21 05:50:39 +08:00
parent d6a2ab30c8
commit f6bd1468f2
15 changed files with 58 additions and 81 deletions

View File

@@ -56,7 +56,7 @@ export function apply(ctx: Context) {
## A client-driver plugin (external protocol bridge)
A *client driver* is a UI plugin whose "user" is another program speaking a wire protocol rather than a human at a terminal. It owns the process's stdio (so it must run with **no stdout logger** — every non-protocol byte corrupts the stream), creates/resumes agents on demand through the `dsh-agent` factory seam, translates harness events (`session/event`, `agent/*`) into outbound protocol messages, and translates inbound requests back into `agent.send()` / `agent.abort()`. Two harness-specific contracts make it correct: resolve each request exactly once off a settle signal (the turn can end without its `agent/turn-end` event firing — fall back through the logged `turn/end` record), and on disposal reach quiescence (`await agent.whenIdle()` after `abort()`), not just request it.
A *client driver* is a UI plugin whose "user" is another program speaking a wire protocol rather than a human at a terminal. It owns the process's stdio (so it must run with **no stdout logger** — every non-protocol byte corrupts the stream), creates/resumes agents on demand through the `dsh-agent` factory seam, translates harness events (`session/event`, `agent/*`) into outbound protocol messages, and translates inbound requests back into `agent.send()` / `agent.cancel()`. Two harness-specific contracts make it correct: resolve each request exactly once off a settle signal (the turn can end without its `agent/turn-end` event firing — fall back through the logged `turn/end` record), and on disposal reach quiescence (handle disposal aborts in-flight work then `await`s `agent.whenIdle()`), not just request it.
`packages/ui/acp` is the worked example: it bridges the agent to the Agent Client Protocol (JSON-RPC over stdio) so Zed and other ACP editors can drive it. See its README for the full method surface and the deferred-permission-gate note.
@@ -77,7 +77,7 @@ export function apply(ctx: Context) {
}
})
// Inbound "prompt": create/resume an agent and feed it; settle on turn end.
// Disposal awaits quiescence: agent.abort() then await agent.whenIdle().
// Disposal awaits quiescence: handle disposal aborts, then await agent.whenIdle().
}
```