feat(slack): add strict_mention mode to prevent agent-to-agent loops#14117
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hhhonzik wants to merge 1 commit into
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feat(slack): add strict_mention mode to prevent agent-to-agent loops#14117hhhonzik wants to merge 1 commit into
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When `strict_mention=true` (or env SLACK_STRICT_MENTION=true), the bot only replies to messages that explicitly @-tag it. All thread auto- engagement paths are disabled: bot-started threads, previously- mentioned threads, and active sessions are all ignored. Default is False so existing bots are unaffected. Motivation: when two Hermes agents share a thread, the previously- mentioned thread auto-trigger (slack.py:1107-1109) causes infinite acknowledgement loops — one bot acks, the other sees the ack as a thread reply, replies, and so on. Strict mode breaks the loop by requiring a fresh @mention for every response.
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teknium1
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…is on Extends the strict_mention feature so an @mention in strict mode no longer persistently tags the thread as 'mentioned'. Without this, the thread's first mention would permanently auto-trigger the bot on every subsequent message — which is exactly what strict_mention is designed to prevent. Closes the agent-to-agent ack loop hole hhhonzik identified in #14117. Co-authored-by: hhhonzik <me@janstepanovsky.cz>
teknium1
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…is on Extends the strict_mention feature so an @mention in strict mode no longer persistently tags the thread as 'mentioned'. Without this, the thread's first mention would permanently auto-trigger the bot on every subsequent message — which is exactly what strict_mention is designed to prevent. Closes the agent-to-agent ack loop hole hhhonzik identified in #14117. Co-authored-by: hhhonzik <me@janstepanovsky.cz>
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Merged via #16193 — the _mentioned_threads skip you caught is included as commit 34e3763 with your authorship preserved. @ching-kaching's #12258 landed as the base (it had the helper + config bridge + test suite); your diagnosis of the agent-to-agent ack loop hole and the |
ulasbilgen
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…is on Extends the strict_mention feature so an @mention in strict mode no longer persistently tags the thread as 'mentioned'. Without this, the thread's first mention would permanently auto-trigger the bot on every subsequent message — which is exactly what strict_mention is designed to prevent. Closes the agent-to-agent ack loop hole hhhonzik identified in NousResearch#14117. Co-authored-by: hhhonzik <me@janstepanovsky.cz>
donald131
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…is on Extends the strict_mention feature so an @mention in strict mode no longer persistently tags the thread as 'mentioned'. Without this, the thread's first mention would permanently auto-trigger the bot on every subsequent message — which is exactly what strict_mention is designed to prevent. Closes the agent-to-agent ack loop hole hhhonzik identified in NousResearch#14117. Co-authored-by: hhhonzik <me@janstepanovsky.cz>
02356abc
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…is on Extends the strict_mention feature so an @mention in strict mode no longer persistently tags the thread as 'mentioned'. Without this, the thread's first mention would permanently auto-trigger the bot on every subsequent message — which is exactly what strict_mention is designed to prevent. Closes the agent-to-agent ack loop hole hhhonzik identified in NousResearch#14117. Co-authored-by: hhhonzik <me@janstepanovsky.cz>
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…is on Extends the strict_mention feature so an @mention in strict mode no longer persistently tags the thread as 'mentioned'. Without this, the thread's first mention would permanently auto-trigger the bot on every subsequent message — which is exactly what strict_mention is designed to prevent. Closes the agent-to-agent ack loop hole hhhonzik identified in NousResearch#14117. Co-authored-by: hhhonzik <me@janstepanovsky.cz>
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…is on Extends the strict_mention feature so an @mention in strict mode no longer persistently tags the thread as 'mentioned'. Without this, the thread's first mention would permanently auto-trigger the bot on every subsequent message — which is exactly what strict_mention is designed to prevent. Closes the agent-to-agent ack loop hole hhhonzik identified in NousResearch#14117. Co-authored-by: hhhonzik <me@janstepanovsky.cz>
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…is on Extends the strict_mention feature so an @mention in strict mode no longer persistently tags the thread as 'mentioned'. Without this, the thread's first mention would permanently auto-trigger the bot on every subsequent message — which is exactly what strict_mention is designed to prevent. Closes the agent-to-agent ack loop hole hhhonzik identified in NousResearch#14117. Co-authored-by: hhhonzik <me@janstepanovsky.cz>
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Summary
Adds a new
strict_mentionSlack config flag. When enabled, the bot only replies to messages that explicitly@-tag it — all forms of thread auto-engagement are disabled.Why
Currently, once a bot is
@-mentioned in a thread, slack.py:1125-1131 registers the thread in_mentioned_threadsand the bot replies to every subsequent message in that thread (regardless of mention).When two Hermes agents share a thread (e.g. one agent delegating tasks to another via Slack), this causes infinite acknowledgement loops:
@-tags Agent B with a task_bot_message_ts)✓)_mentioned_threads)✓)require_mention=truedoesn't help because it only gates the first mention — the auto-engagement paths bypass it entirely.Behavior
strict_mention=false(default)strict_mention=true@-mentions in the current message trigger a reply. Thread continuity, bot-started threads, and active sessions are all ignored. Mentions also do not register the thread in_mentioned_threads.Config
Or via env:
SLACK_STRICT_MENTION=true.Test Plan
strict_mention=false(default): existing thread auto-engagement still works (regression check)strict_mention=true: bot replies only to messages containing<@bot_uid>strict_mention=true: thread is NOT added to_mentioned_threadseven after a mention (verified by re-replying without mention → no response)free_response_channelsstill take precedence over strict modeRelated
Discovered via Planepoints agent-to-agent loop where a tester agent (
Ringo) and the primary Hermes agent ack-looped each other dozens of times in a single thread before manual intervention.