/ecos-request-approval

Request Approval Command

Request approval from the Assistant Manager (EAMA) for sensitive agent operations. Sends an approval request via AI Maestro messaging and optionally waits for response.

Usage

Send an approval request to EAMA using the agent-messaging skill:

• Recipient: emasoft-assistant-manager-agent (EAMA)
• Subject: [APPROVAL REQUEST] <type>: <agent-name>
• Content: structured approval request with request ID, operation type, agent name, reason, and timestamp
• Priority: high (or urgent if --urgent flag is set)

Verify: confirm the approval request message was delivered to EAMA.

Operations Requiring Approval

Operation Type	Description	Risk Level
spawn	Create a new remote agent	Medium
terminate	Permanently delete an agent	High
hibernate	Put agent into hibernation	Low
wake	Wake a hibernated agent	Low
install	Install plugin on agent	Medium
replace	Replace agent with new instance	High
modify-config	Change agent configuration	Medium

Arguments

Argument	Required	Description
--type <TYPE>	Yes	Operation type (spawn, terminate, hibernate, wake, install, replace)
--agent <NAME>	Yes	Target agent name
--reason <TEXT>	Yes	Justification for the operation
--urgent	No	Mark as urgent priority (default: high)
--timeout <SECONDS>	No	Wait for response (default: 0, no wait)
--metadata <JSON>	No	Additional context as JSON string

Request ID Generation

Each request gets a unique ID for tracking:

REQUEST_ID="ECOS-$(date +%Y%m%d%H%M%S)-$(openssl rand -hex 4)"

Example: ECOS-20250202150000-a1b2c3d4

Examples

# Request approval to spawn a new agent
/ecos-request-approval --type spawn --agent helper-tester \
  --reason "Need additional agent for parallel test execution"

# Request approval to terminate an agent (high risk)
/ecos-request-approval --type terminate --agent old-worker --urgent \
  --reason "Agent has critical bug and cannot recover"

# Request approval to install a plugin
/ecos-request-approval --type install --agent helper-python \
  --reason "Agent needs emasoft-integrator plugin for CI/CD tasks" \
  --metadata '{"plugin": "emasoft-integrator-agent"}'

# Request with wait for response
/ecos-request-approval --type hibernate --agent helper-docs \
  --reason "Pausing documentation work until API is finalized" \
  --timeout 60

Request Message Format

The approval request is sent as a structured AI Maestro message:

Note: Use the agent-messaging skill to send messages. The JSON structure below shows the message content.

{
  "from": "emasoft-chief-of-staff",
  "to": "emasoft-assistant-manager-agent",
  "subject": "[APPROVAL REQUEST] terminate: helper-python",
  "priority": "high",
  "content": {
    "type": "approval_request",
    "request_id": "ECOS-20250202150000-a1b2c3d4",
    "operation_type": "terminate",
    "agent_name": "helper-python",
    "reason": "Agent has critical bug and cannot recover",
    "timestamp": "2025-02-02T15:00:00Z",
    "metadata": {}
  }
}

Response Format

EAMA responds with an approval decision:

{
  "type": "approval_response",
  "request_id": "ECOS-20250202150000-a1b2c3d4",
  "decision": "approved",
  "conditions": [],
  "notes": "Proceed with termination. Ensure work is backed up first.",
  "timestamp": "2025-02-02T15:02:30Z"
}

Decision values: approved, rejected, deferred, needs_more_info

Output Format

=======================================================================
  APPROVAL REQUEST SUBMITTED
=======================================================================

  Request ID:    ECOS-20250202150000-a1b2c3d4
  Operation:     terminate
  Target Agent:  helper-python
  Priority:      high

  Reason: Agent has critical bug and cannot recover

  Status: PENDING - Awaiting EAMA response

=======================================================================
  Use /ecos-check-approval-status --request-id ECOS-20250202150000-a1b2c3d4
  to check the status of this request.
=======================================================================

Tracking Approvals

Approval requests are logged to:

~/.aimaestro/approvals/pending/ECOS-20250202150000-a1b2c3d4.json

Error Handling

Error	Cause	Solution
"AI Maestro not responding"	API unreachable	Check if AI Maestro is running
"EAMA not available"	Manager agent offline	Wait or contact user
"Invalid operation type"	Unknown type	Use valid type from list
"Missing required argument"	Incomplete command	Provide all required args

Pre-Approval Guidelines

Before requesting approval:

1. Verify necessity - Is approval actually required for this operation?
2. Gather context - Include relevant details in reason
3. Check prerequisites - Ensure target agent exists and is accessible
4. Assess urgency - Only use --urgent for time-sensitive situations

Related Commands

• /ecos-check-approval-status - Check status of pending approvals
• /ecos-wait-for-approval - Wait for approval with timeout
• /ecos-notify-manager - Send notification to manager
• /ecos-staff-status - View all agents