Task Orchestration

Native Claude Task tools for tracking and coordinating fix workflows.

Skill: Activate ck:project-management for advanced task orchestration — provides hydration (plan checkboxes → Tasks), sync-back (Tasks → plan checkboxes), cross-session resume, and progress tracking patterns.

Tool Availability: TaskCreate, TaskUpdate, TaskGet, TaskList are CLI-only — disabled in VSCode extension (isTTY check). If these tools error, use TodoWrite for progress tracking instead. Fix workflow remains fully functional — Tasks add visibility and coordination, not core functionality.

When to Use Tasks

Complexity	Use Tasks?	Reason
Simple/Quick	No	< 3 steps, overhead exceeds benefit
Moderate (Standard)	Yes	6 steps, multi-subagent coordination
Complex (Deep)	Yes	9 steps, dependency chains, parallel agents
Parallel	Yes	Multiple independent issue trees

Task Tools

TaskCreate(subject, description, activeForm, metadata) - Create task
TaskUpdate(taskId, status, addBlockedBy, addBlocks) - Update status/deps
TaskGet(taskId) - Get full task details
TaskList() - List all tasks with status

Lifecycle: pending → in_progress → completed

Standard Workflow Tasks (6 phases)

Create all tasks upfront, then work through them:

T1 = TaskCreate(subject="Scout codebase",       activeForm="Scouting codebase",     metadata={step: 1, phase: "investigate"})
T2 = TaskCreate(subject="Diagnose root cause",   activeForm="Diagnosing root cause", metadata={step: 2, phase: "investigate"})
T3 = TaskCreate(subject="Implement fix",         activeForm="Implementing fix",      metadata={step: 3, phase: "implement"},  addBlockedBy=[T1, T2])
T4 = TaskCreate(subject="Verify + prevent",      activeForm="Verifying fix",         metadata={step: 4, phase: "verify"},     addBlockedBy=[T3])
T5 = TaskCreate(subject="Code review",           activeForm="Reviewing code",        metadata={step: 5, phase: "verify"},     addBlockedBy=[T4])
T6 = TaskCreate(subject="Finalize",              activeForm="Finalizing",            metadata={step: 6, phase: "finalize"},   addBlockedBy=[T5])

Update as work progresses:

TaskUpdate(taskId=T1, status="in_progress")
// ... scout codebase ...
TaskUpdate(taskId=T1, status="completed")
// T3 auto-unblocks when T1 + T2 complete

Deep Workflow Tasks (9 phases)

Steps 1+2+3 run in parallel (scout + diagnose + research).

T1 = TaskCreate(subject="Scout codebase",           metadata={step: 1, phase: "investigate"})
T2 = TaskCreate(subject="Diagnose root cause",       metadata={step: 2, phase: "investigate"})
T3 = TaskCreate(subject="Research solutions",         metadata={step: 3, phase: "investigate"})
T4 = TaskCreate(subject="Brainstorm approaches",      metadata={step: 4, phase: "design"},     addBlockedBy=[T1, T2, T3])
T5 = TaskCreate(subject="Create implementation plan", metadata={step: 5, phase: "design"},     addBlockedBy=[T4])
T6 = TaskCreate(subject="Implement fix",              metadata={step: 6, phase: "implement"},  addBlockedBy=[T5])
T7 = TaskCreate(subject="Verify + prevent",           metadata={step: 7, phase: "verify"},     addBlockedBy=[T6])
T8 = TaskCreate(subject="Code review",                metadata={step: 8, phase: "verify"},     addBlockedBy=[T7])
T9 = TaskCreate(subject="Finalize & docs",            metadata={step: 9, phase: "finalize"},   addBlockedBy=[T8])

Note: Steps 1, 2, and 3 run in parallel (scout + diagnose + research simultaneously).

Parallel Issue Coordination

For 2+ independent issues, create separate task trees per issue:

// Issue A tree
TaskCreate(subject="[Issue A] Scout",      metadata={issue: "A", step: 1})
TaskCreate(subject="[Issue A] Diagnose",   metadata={issue: "A", step: 2})
TaskCreate(subject="[Issue A] Fix",        metadata={issue: "A", step: 3}, addBlockedBy=[A-step1, A-step2])
TaskCreate(subject="[Issue A] Verify",     metadata={issue: "A", step: 4}, addBlockedBy=[A-step3])

// Issue B tree
TaskCreate(subject="[Issue B] Scout",      metadata={issue: "B", step: 1})
TaskCreate(subject="[Issue B] Diagnose",   metadata={issue: "B", step: 2})
TaskCreate(subject="[Issue B] Fix",        metadata={issue: "B", step: 3}, addBlockedBy=[B-step1, B-step2])
TaskCreate(subject="[Issue B] Verify",     metadata={issue: "B", step: 4}, addBlockedBy=[B-step3])

// Final shared task
TaskCreate(subject="Integration verify",   addBlockedBy=[A-step4, B-step4])

Spawn fullstack-developer subagents per issue tree. Each agent:

Claims tasks via TaskUpdate(status="in_progress")
Completes tasks via TaskUpdate(status="completed")
Blocked tasks auto-unblock when dependencies resolve

Subagent Task Assignment

Assign tasks to subagents via owner field:

TaskUpdate(taskId=taskA, owner="agent-scout")
TaskUpdate(taskId=taskB, owner="agent-diagnose")

Check available work: TaskList() → filter by status=pending, blockedBy=[], owner=null

Rules

Create tasks BEFORE starting work (upfront planning)
Only 1 task in_progress per agent at a time
Mark complete IMMEDIATELY after finishing (don't batch)
Use metadata for filtering: {step, phase, issue, severity}
If task fails → keep in_progress, create subtask for blocker
Skip Tasks entirely for Quick workflow (< 3 steps)

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