An agent is stuck, interrupted, or failing

Determine whether an agent needs a decision, has stopped, or has encountered an error.

Before you start

Keep the original conversation and partial files available. A stalled-looking workflow status alone is not enough to diagnose a provider failure.

The workflow menu can still show In progress after a provider returns a review. Read live activity and any decision cards before treating that label as a stalled request.

Step by step

1. Read the latest message and live activity. Distinguish Working or Reviewing from a saved In progress workflow label.

2. Look for a question, plan decision, or permission card. Answer the specific card instead of repeatedly sending Continue.

3. If the provider reports an error, record its wording and check whether it concerns authentication, access, a tool, or the project path.

4. Use Stop when you intentionally need to interrupt active work. Inspect partial changes before starting another agent on the same files.

5. After correcting the cause, resume the saved conversation when that action is available, or send a precise follow-up explaining what should continue.

6. Review the next response and its files. If recovery fails, report the original error and recovery attempt rather than creating repeated duplicate tasks.

What to expect

You either unblock the original work or preserve enough evidence for a useful diagnosis.

Troubleshooting and useful details

Stopping is not a rollback. A completed provider turn can leave manual checks, integration work, or a workflow status unfinished. For delegated work, inspect the lead and assignment separately.