orchestrator-complete-task

This skill provides the workflow for parent agents to properly complete and integrate work from child/worker tasks.

When to Use This Skill

Load this skill when:

• You spawned a subtask via a2a_spawn_subtask or a2a_spawn_parallel_subtasks
• You receive a completion notification from your child/worker
• The notification says: [SUBTASK UPDATE] Task "task-name" completed successfully
• Your child called a2a_reportCompletion

Applies to:

• Orchestrators managing plan tasks
• Parent agents coordinating child workers
• Any agent that spawned subtasks and needs to integrate their work

Critical Understanding

Child task completion is a MULTI-STEP process that YOU (the parent) control!

When a child worker calls a2a_reportCompletion, this does NOT:

• Automatically integrate their changes into your work
• Mark the task as complete (for orchestrators)
• Deploy dependent tasks

You must: Review, integrate, and explicitly complete the task following the steps below.

Step-by-Step Completion Process

1. Child Reports Completion

What happens:

• Child worker commits their changes to their worktree branch
• Child calls a2a_reportCompletion (NOT orchestrator_completeTask)
• You receive: [SUBTASK UPDATE] Task "implement-core" completed successfully

What this means:

• The child has finished their work
• Changes are committed in their branch
• Work is isolated in their worktree until you integrate it
• For orchestrators: Task is still "running" in the plan until you complete it

2. Review Child's Output

Actions:

• Read the completion message carefully
• Verify the child accomplished the task goals
• Check if there are obvious issues or concerns

Red flags:

• Child mentions failures or partial completion
• Error messages in the completion note
• Child indicates uncertainty about their work
• Output doesn't match what you requested

3. Pull Child's Changes

Use a2a_pull_subtask_changes to fetch the child's changes into your worktree:

{
  "subtaskWorktree": "/path/to/child/worktree"
}

Note: This pulls their branch into your worktree but doesn't merge it yet. You can review the changes before merging.

4. Merge to Main

Decision point: Do dependent tasks need this code?

If merging:

# Switch to main branch
git checkout main

# Merge the worker's branch
git merge <worker-branch-name>

# If conflicts occur:
git status
git checkout --theirs <file>  # Accept worker's version (common pattern)
# OR manually resolve conflicts
git add .
git commit -m "Integrate task: implement-core"

Why merge before completing:

• Workers operate in isolated worktrees from main
• If Task B depends on Task A's code, A MUST be merged before B starts
• Otherwise B works on stale code → conflicts, duplicates, errors

5. Delete the Child's Branch

CRITICAL STEP - Always delete after integrating:

# Delete the child's branch after merging
git branch -d <child-branch-name>

# If branch wasn't merged and you want to force delete:
git branch -D <child-branch-name>

Why this is mandatory:

• Proves you've "folded" the worktree back into your work
• For orchestrators: orchestrator_completeTask will FAIL if branch still exists
• Prevents accumulation of stale branches
• Signals that the child's work is fully integrated

6. Mark Task Complete in Plan (Orchestrators Only)

⚠️ This step only applies if you are an orchestrator managing a plan!

If you're a regular parent agent (not managing an orchestrator plan), skip to step 7.

For orchestrators only - after reviewing, merging, and deleting branch:

{
  "taskId": "implement-core"
}

Tool: orchestrator_completeTask

What this does:

• Marks task as "completed" in the plan
• Removes the worker
• Fires completion event
• Triggers deployment of dependent tasks

Important: This tool verifies the branch was deleted. If you get an error about the branch still existing, go back to step 5.

7. Continue Your Work

For orchestrators:

• The orchestrator service automatically deploys any tasks whose dependencies are now satisfied
• Dependent tasks will start with merged changes from main
• Wait for health monitoring to inject updates about new workers
• Monitor progress of newly deployed tasks
• Continue the cycle for each completion

For regular parent agents:

• You can now use the integrated code in your work
• Continue executing your own task with the child's changes available
• If you spawned multiple children, repeat this process for each completion
• When all your children are integrated, you can complete your own task

Common Mistakes to Avoid

❌ DON'T:

• Assume task is complete when you receive the notification
• Call orchestrator_completeTask before pulling and reviewing changes
• Forget to delete the branch before marking complete
• Skip merging when dependent tasks need the code

✅ DO:

• Follow all 7 steps in order
• Review completion messages carefully
• Merge to main when tasks have dependencies
• Delete branches after merging
• Verify branch deletion before calling orchestrator_completeTask

Quick Reference

Orchestrator Flow:

Child calls a2a_reportCompletion
    ↓
You receive notification
    ↓
Review output
    ↓
Pull changes (a2a_pull_subtask_changes)
    ↓
Merge to main (if needed)
    ↓
Delete branch (git branch -d)
    ↓
Mark complete (orchestrator_completeTask) ← Orchestrator only
    ↓
Dependent tasks auto-deploy

Regular Parent Agent Flow:

Child calls a2a_reportCompletion
    ↓
You receive notification
    ↓
Review output
    ↓
Pull changes (a2a_pull_subtask_changes)
    ↓
Merge to your branch (if needed)
    ↓
Delete child's branch (git branch -d)
    ↓
Continue your work with integrated changes

Error Recovery

If orchestrator_completeTask fails:

Error: "Worker branch still exists"

• Check: git branch --list <branch-name>
• Fix: git branch -d <branch-name>
• Retry: Call orchestrator_completeTask again

If merge conflicts occur:

• Use git status to see conflicted files
• Common pattern: git checkout --theirs <file> (accept worker's version)
• Or manually resolve conflicts in files
• git add . and git commit to complete merge

If child reported partial completion:

• Don't complete the task yet
• Send feedback via a2a_send_message_to_worker with guidance
• For orchestrators: Retry the task with orchestrator_retryTask
• Or spawn a new child to finish remaining work
• Review what was completed vs what's still needed