Workflow Configuration Reference

Complete reference for overlord workflow settings

Ask ChatGPT Ask Claude.ai Open in Cursor

Configure how MUXI decomposes complex tasks, routes work to agents, handles errors, and executes workflows. All workflow settings are under overlord.workflow in your formation.

New to workflows? Read Workflows Concept → to understand task decomposition and routing.

Official Schema: https://github.com/agent-formation/afs-spec

Configuration Location

# In formation.afs
overlord:
  workflow:
    # Workflow settings here

Core Workflow Settings

auto_decomposition

Type: boolean Default: true

Enable automatic task decomposition for complex requests.

overlord:
  workflow:
    auto_decomposition: true  # Enable (default)

When enabled, MUXI automatically breaks complex tasks into subtasks and coordinates their execution across multiple agents.

plan_approval_threshold

Type: integer (1-10) Default: 7

Complexity threshold for requiring plan approval before execution.

overlord:
  workflow:
    plan_approval_threshold: 7  # Require approval for complexity ≥ 7

Requests with complexity scores at or above this threshold will present an execution plan and wait for user approval before proceeding.

See Human-in-the-Loop for details.

Complexity Calculation

complexity_method

Type: string Options: heuristic, llm, custom, hybrid Default: heuristic

Method for calculating request complexity.

overlord:
  workflow:
    complexity_method: "heuristic"  # Default: rule-based scoring

Methods:

heuristic - Rule-based scoring (fast, deterministic)
llm - LLM evaluates complexity (accurate, slower)
custom - Custom complexity function (advanced)
hybrid - Combines multiple methods with weights

complexity_threshold

Type: number (1.0-10.0) Default: 7.0

Complexity threshold for triggering workflow decomposition.

overlord:
  workflow:
    complexity_threshold: 7.0  # Trigger workflows at 7+

Requests scoring at or above this threshold trigger automatic workflow creation.

complexity_weights

Type: object Default: See example

Weights for hybrid complexity calculation (only used when complexity_method: "hybrid").

overlord:
  workflow:
    complexity_method: "hybrid"
    complexity_weights:
      heuristic: 0.4
      llm: 0.4
      custom: 0.2

Weights must sum to 1.0.

Task Routing

routing_strategy

Type: string Options: capability_based, load_balanced, priority_based, custom, round_robin, specialized Default: capability_based

Strategy for routing tasks to agents.

overlord:
  workflow:
    routing_strategy: "capability_based"  # Default: match capabilities

Strategies:

capability_based - Match task to agent capabilities (default)
load_balanced - Distribute evenly across agents
priority_based - Route to highest priority agents
round_robin - Cycle through agents
specialized - Prefer specialist agents
custom - Custom routing logic

enable_agent_affinity

Type: boolean Default: true

Prefer agents that successfully completed similar tasks.

overlord:
  workflow:
    enable_agent_affinity: true  # Learn from past successes

When enabled, MUXI tracks which agents succeeded at specific task types and prefers them for similar future tasks.

Error Handling

error_recovery

Type: string Options: fail_fast, retry_with_backoff, retry_with_alternate, skip_and_continue, compensate, manual_intervention Default: retry_with_backoff

Strategy for recovering from task failures.

overlord:
  workflow:
    error_recovery: "retry_with_backoff"  # Default: retry with delays

Strategies:

fail_fast - Stop immediately on first error
retrywithbackoff - Retry with exponential backoff
retrywithalternate - Try alternate agents/approaches
skipandcontinue - Skip failed task, continue workflow
compensate - Execute compensating actions
manual_intervention - Request user input

retry

Type: object

Retry configuration for failed tasks.

overlord:
  workflow:
    retry:
      max_attempts: 3                     # Max retry attempts (1-10, default: 3)
      initial_delay: 1.0                  # Initial delay in seconds (default: 1.0)
      max_delay: 60.0                     # Max delay in seconds (default: 60.0)
      backoff_factor: 2.0                 # Exponential backoff multiplier (default: 2.0)
      retry_on_errors: ["timeout", "rate_limit", "temporary_failure"]

Fields:

Field	Type	Default	Description
`max_attempts`	integer	3	Maximum retry attempts (1-10)
`initial_delay`	number	1.0	Initial retry delay in seconds
`max_delay`	number	60.0	Maximum retry delay in seconds
`backoff_factor`	number	2.0	Exponential backoff multiplier
`retry_on_errors`	array	-	Error types to retry on

Backoff calculation: delay = min(initial_delay * (backoff_factor ^ attempt), max_delay)

Timeouts

timeouts

Type: object

Timeout configuration for tasks and workflows.

overlord:
  workflow:
    timeouts:
      task_timeout: 300                   # Default per task (seconds, default: 300)
      workflow_timeout: 3600              # Overall workflow (seconds, default: 3600)
      enable_adaptive_timeout: true       # Adjust based on complexity (default: true)

Fields:

Field	Type	Default	Description
`task_timeout`	integer	300	Default timeout per task in seconds
`workflow_timeout`	integer	3600	Overall workflow timeout in seconds
`enable_adaptive_timeout`	boolean	true	Adjust timeouts based on task complexity

max_timeout_seconds

Type: integer Default: 7200

Hard ceiling for entire workflow execution (2 hours).

overlord:
  workflow:
    max_timeout_seconds: 7200  # Absolute maximum: 2 hours

Workflows exceeding this limit will fail with a timeout error. This prevents runaway workflows from consuming resources indefinitely.

Execution Configuration

parallel_execution

Type: boolean Default: true

Execute independent tasks in parallel.

overlord:
  workflow:
    parallel_execution: true  # Enable parallel execution (default)

When enabled, tasks without dependencies run simultaneously, reducing total workflow time.

max_parallel_tasks

Type: integer (1-20) Default: 5

Maximum number of tasks to execute in parallel.

overlord:
  workflow:
    max_parallel_tasks: 5  # Default: 5 concurrent tasks

Limits concurrent task execution to prevent overwhelming the system or hitting rate limits.

partial_results

Type: boolean Default: true

Return partial results if some tasks fail.

overlord:
  workflow:
    partial_results: true  # Return what succeeded (default)

When enabled, workflows return completed task results even if some tasks fail. When disabled, any task failure causes the entire workflow to fail.

Complete Example

overlord:
  workflow:
    # Core settings
    auto_decomposition: true
    plan_approval_threshold: 7

    # Complexity calculation
    complexity_method: "hybrid"
    complexity_threshold: 7.0
    complexity_weights:
      heuristic: 0.5
      llm: 0.5

    # Routing
    routing_strategy: "capability_based"
    enable_agent_affinity: true

    # Error handling
    error_recovery: "retry_with_backoff"
    retry:
      max_attempts: 3
      initial_delay: 1.0
      max_delay: 60.0
      backoff_factor: 2.0
      retry_on_errors: ["timeout", "rate_limit"]

    # Timeouts
    timeouts:
      task_timeout: 300
      workflow_timeout: 3600
      enable_adaptive_timeout: true
    max_timeout_seconds: 7200

    # Execution
    parallel_execution: true
    max_parallel_tasks: 5
    partial_results: true

Common Configurations

Conservative (High Reliability)

overlord:
  workflow:
    error_recovery: "retry_with_alternate"
    retry:
      max_attempts: 5
      initial_delay: 2.0
      max_delay: 120.0
    max_parallel_tasks: 3
    partial_results: false  # All or nothing

Aggressive (Fast Execution)

overlord:
  workflow:
    error_recovery: "skip_and_continue"
    retry:
      max_attempts: 1
    timeouts:
      task_timeout: 60
      workflow_timeout: 300
    max_parallel_tasks: 10
    partial_results: true

Development (Quick Feedback)

overlord:
  workflow:
    auto_decomposition: false  # Single agent only
    plan_approval_threshold: 10  # No approvals
    timeouts:
      task_timeout: 30
      workflow_timeout: 120

Learn More

Agent Formation Schema - Official schema specification
Workflows & Task Decomposition - Concept guide
Human-in-the-Loop - Plan approvals
The Overlord - How orchestration works

We use cookies