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Ask vs Agent and the run loop1 / 2

1 min lesson

Anatomy of an agent run

Consider this situation. "An agent starts editing files you never named. Which beat do you stop it at?" Start with the decision, then the evidence.

Step 1 of 2

Every agent run moves through the same four beats:

  1. 1Plan restates the goal and sketches the steps.
  2. 2Act edits files and calls tools.
  3. 3Verify runs the tests, linter or build against the change and reports what failed.
  4. 4Hand back summarizes the diff for review.

The beats are useful because they give you places to stop the run. If the plan is vague, fix the prompt. If the action touches unexpected files, pause before the change grows. If verification is missing, run a check or ask for one.

Review it

The hand-back is a diff to review, not a result to accept.

Read the change and run it before you ship.

You watch those beats from the Agents WindowCursor's surface listing your agent runs; open a run to read its diff and search transcripts from the command palette. Press Enter for the full definition.. The figure below walks its three panes and what each one is for.