Dex

Agent Coordination with dex

Command Invocation

Use dex directly for all commands. If not on PATH, use npx @zeeg/dex instead.

command -v dex &>/dev/null && echo "use: dex" || echo "use: npx @zeeg/dex"

Core Principle: Tickets, Not Todos

Dex tasks are tickets - structured artifacts with comprehensive context:

• Name: One-line summary (issue title)
• Description: Full background, requirements, approach (issue body)
• Result: Implementation details, decisions, outcomes (PR description)

Think: "Would someone understand the what, why, and how from this task alone?"

Dex Tasks are Ephemeral

Never reference dex task IDs in external artifacts (commits, PRs, docs). Task IDs like abc123 become meaningless once tasks are completed. Describe the work itself, not the task that tracked it.

When to Use dex

Use dex when:

• Breaking down complexity into subtasks
• Work spans multiple sessions
• Context needs to persist for handoffs
• Recording decisions for future reference

Skip dex when:

• Work is a single atomic action
• Everything fits in one session with no follow-up
• Overhead exceeds value

dex vs Built-in Task Tools

Some AI agents (like Claude Code) have built-in task tools. These are session-only and not the same as dex.

Use dex for persistent work. Use built-in task tools for ephemeral in-session tracking only.

Basic Workflow

Create a Task

dex create "Short name" --description "Full implementation context"

Description should include: what needs to be done, why, implementation approach, and acceptance criteria. See examples.md for good/bad examples.

List and View Tasks

dex list                  # Pending tasks
dex list --ready          # Unblocked tasks
dex show <id>             # Full details

Complete a Task

dex complete <id> --result "What was accomplished" --commit <sha>

GitHub/Shortcut-linked tasks require either --commit <sha> or --no-commit:

• Use --commit <sha> when you have code changes (issue closes when merged)
• Use --no-commit for non-code tasks like planning or design (issue stays open)

Always verify before completing. Results must include evidence: test counts, build status, manual testing outcomes. See verification.md for the full checklist.

Edit and Delete

dex edit <id> --description "Updated description"
dex delete <id>

For full CLI reference including blockers, see cli-reference.md.

Understanding Task Fields

Tasks have two text fields:

• Name: Brief one-line summary (shown in dex list)
• Description: Full details - requirements, approach, acceptance criteria (shown with --full)

When you run dex show <id>, the description may be truncated. The CLI will hint at --full if there's more content.

Gathering Context

When picking up a task, gather all relevant context:

dex show <id> --full              # Full task details
dex show <parent-id> --full       # Parent context (if applicable)
dex show <blocker-id> --full      # What blockers accomplished

Before starting, verify you can answer:

• What needs to be done specifically?
• Why is this needed?
• How should it be implemented?
• When is it done (acceptance criteria)?

If any answer is unclear:

1. Check parent task or completed blockers for more details
2. Suggest entering plan mode to flesh out requirements before starting

Proceed without full context when:

• Task is trivial/atomic (e.g., "Add .gitignore entry")
• Conversation already provides the missing context
• Description itself is sufficiently detailed