Coordinate work without losing its boundaries.

Communication is not execution

LeanCTX separates an agent bus, work ownership and a bounded WorkGraph. Each solves a different coordination problem.

Layer	Purpose	Boundary
Agent bus	Register agents, exchange directives and share selected context	Receiving a message does not launch a worker
Claims and leases	Make ownership and expiry explicit	A claim does not grant source or execution permission
WorkGraph	Run a bounded dependency graph with controlled concurrency and budgets	A transport connection alone is not scheduling

Use explicit identity and scope for each participant. An agent that can read a task description does not thereby gain access to all its sources.

Model a bounded task

Define the work units, dependencies, permitted tools and sources, concurrency limit and shared budget. Assign ownership through leases. Track completion and failure separately, including cancellation and expired ownership.

For example: a research worker assembles evidence, an implementation worker edits within its permitted project, and a reviewer checks the result. The reviewer receives the selected evidence and acceptance criteria, not an unrestricted copy of every worker’s context.

Hand off the useful state

Carry the task, unresolved questions, source references and accepted findings. Use supported workspace/checkpoint formats for portable state; validate format, provenance, recipient scope and freshness when resuming.

A delivered handoff is not an accepted outcome. The receiving worker must confirm that the state can be used and that the assigned task’s acceptance criteria are met.

Keep the host in control

The host authorizes actions and defines success. The Engine executes the allowed graph, enforces its limits and records outcomes. Worker proposals cannot enlarge permissions, remove budget limits or silently retry denied work.

See governed execution, context packages and SDK integration.

Engine contract & references1 reference · Reviewed 19 Sept 2026

• ctx_agent.rsrust/src/tools/ctx_agent.rsReviewed checkout

Engine concepts describe responsibilities and behavior. Exact commands, package versions and platform contracts belong to their versioned references.

Versions & compatibility