Dspy Agent Framework Integration

DSPy + Microsoft Agent Framework Integration

A comprehensive guide to the integration patterns between DSPy and Microsoft Agent Framework in AgenticFleet. This skill documents how to leverage DSPy's structured reasoning capabilities with the Agent Framework's orchestration primitives.

Overview

AgenticFleet combines DSPy for intelligent prompt optimization and structured outputs with Microsoft Agent Framework for reliable multi-agent orchestration. This integration enables:

• Typed Signatures: Pydantic-validated DSPy outputs for type-safe orchestration
• DSPy-Enhanced Agents: ChatAgent wrappers with Chain of Thought, ReAct, and Program of Thought reasoning
• Routing Cache: TTL-based caching of routing decisions to reduce latency
• GEPA Optimization: Offline genetic prompt algorithm optimization
• Checkpoint Storage: Workflow resumption via agent-framework storage
• Agent Handoffs: Direct agent-to-agent transfers with context preservation

Architecture

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                    AgenticFleet Integration                      │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│                                                                 │
│  ┌─────────────┐     ┌─────────────┐     ┌─────────────┐       │
│  │ DSPyReasoner│────►│ AgentFactory│────►│  ChatAgent  │       │
│  │ (Signatures)│     │ (YAML Config)     │ (Enhanced)  │       │
│  └──────┬──────┘     └──────┬──────┘     └──────┬──────┘       │
│         │                   │                   │               │
│  ┌──────▼───────────────────▼───────────────────▼──────┐       │
│  │              Microsoft Agent Framework               │       │
│  │  ┌──────────┐  ┌──────────┐  ┌──────────────────┐   │       │
│  │  │ Workflow │  │AgentThread│  │CheckpointStorage │   │       │
│  │  └──────────┘  └──────────┘  └──────────────────┘   │       │
│  └─────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘       │
│                                                                 │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

Typed Signatures with Pydantic

Signature Definition Pattern

All DSPy signatures in AgenticFleet use Pydantic models for structured outputs:

# src/agentic_fleet/dspy_modules/signatures.py
import dspy
from pydantic import BaseModel, Field
from typing import Literal

class TaskAnalysis(dspy.Signature):
    """Analyze a task with structured output."""
    task: str = dspy.InputField(desc="The user's task description")
    analysis: TaskAnalysisOutput = dspy.OutputField(
        desc="Structured analysis of the task"
    )

class TaskAnalysisOutput(BaseModel):
    """Pydantic model for typed signature output."""
    complexity: Literal["low", "medium", "high"] = Field(
        description="Estimated task complexity"
    )
    required_capabilities: list[str] = Field(
        description="List of required capabilities"
    )
    estimated_steps: int = Field(ge=1, le=50)
    preferred_tools: list[str] = Field(default_factory=list)
    needs_web_search: bool = Field(description="Whether web search needed")
    reasoning: str = Field(description="Reasoning behind analysis")

Using TypedPredictor

# src/agentic_fleet/dspy_modules/reasoner.py
from dspy import TypedPredictor

class DSPyReasoner(dspy.Module):
    def __init__(self):
        super().__init__()
        self.analyzer = TypedPredictor(TaskAnalysis)

    def analyze(self, task: str) -> TaskAnalysisOutput:
        result = self.analyzer(task=task)
        return result.analysis

Field Validators

Normalize inputs with Pydantic validators:

class RoutingDecisionOutput(BaseModel):
    assigned_to: list[str] = Field(min_length=1)
    execution_mode: Literal["delegated", "sequential", "parallel"]

    @field_validator("assigned_to", mode="before")
    @classmethod
    def normalize_agents(cls, v: str | list[str]) -> list[str]:
        if isinstance(v, str):
            return [a.strip() for a in v.split(",") if a.strip()]
        return v

    @field_validator("execution_mode", mode="before")
    @classmethod
    def normalize_mode(cls, v: str) -> str:
        mapping = {
            "delegate": "delegated",
            "single": "delegated",
            "sequence": "sequential",
            "concurrent": "parallel",
        }
        return mapping.get(v.strip().lower(), v)

DSPy Assertions for Validation

Hard and Soft Constraints

DSPy 3.x provides two assertion types for routing validation:

# src/agentic_fleet/dspy_modules/assertions.py
import dspy

# Hard constraint: causes backtracking on failure
dspy.Assert(condition, "error message")

# Soft constraint: guides optimization without failure
dspy.Suggest(condition, "guidance message")

Agent Assignment Validation

def validate_agent_exists(
    assigned_agents: list[str],
    available_agents: list[str]
) -> bool:
    """Check all assigned agents exist in available pool."""
    # Hard constraint: must assign at least one agent
    Assert(len(assigned_agents) > 0, "Must assign at least one agent")

    # Soft suggestion: prefer matching case
    for agent in assigned_agents:
        Assert(
            agent.lower() in [a.lower() for a in available_agents],
            f"Agent '{agent}' not in available pool"
        )

    return True

Execution Mode Validation

def validate_execution_mode(
    assigned_agents: list[str],
    execution_mode: str
) -> bool:
    """Ensure execution mode matches agent count."""
    if len(assigned_agents) > 1 and execution_mode == "delegated":
        Suggest(
            len(assigned_agents) == 1,
            "Consider using 'parallel' for multiple agents"
        )
    return True

Usage in Signatures

class TaskRouting(dspy.Signature):
    task: str = dspy.InputField(desc="The task to route")
    team: str = dspy.InputField(desc="Available agents")
    context: str = dspy.InputField(desc="Execution context")
    decision: RoutingDecisionOutput = dspy.OutputField()

    def __call__(self, task, team, context):
        # Extract agent names from team description
        available_agents = extract_agent_names(team)

        # Validate before finalizing
        result = super().__call__(task=task, team=team, context=context)

        # Validate routing decision
        validate_agent_exists(result.decision.assigned_to, available_agents)
        validate_execution_mode(
            result.decision.assigned_to,
            result.decision.execution_mode
        )

        return result

DSPy-Enhanced Agents

Wrapping ChatAgent

# src/agentic_fleet/agents/base.py
from agent_framework._agents import ChatAgent
import dspy

class DSPyEnhancedAgent(ChatAgent):
    def __init__(
        self,
        name: str,
        chat_client,
        instructions: str = "",
        enable_dspy: bool = True,
        reasoning_strategy: str = "chain_of_thought",
        **kwargs
    ):
        super().__init__(
            name=name,
            instructions=instructions,
            chat_client=chat_client,
            **kwargs
        )

        self.enable_dspy = enable_dspy
        self.reasoning_strategy = reasoning_strategy

        # Initialize reasoning modules
        if enable_dspy:
            self._init_reasoning_modules()

    def _init_reasoning_modules(self):
        """Initialize DSPy reasoning strategies."""
        if self.reasoning_strategy == "react":
            self.react_module = dspy.ReAct(
                "question -> answer",
                tools=self.tools
            )
        elif self.reasoning_strategy == "program_of_thought":
            self.pot_module = dspy.ProgramOfThought("question -> answer")
        elif self.reasoning_strategy == "chain_of_thought":
            self.cot_module = dspy.ChainOfThought("question -> answer")

Task Enhancement

class DSPyEnhancedAgent(ChatAgent):
    def _enhance_task_with_dspy(self, task: str, context: str = "") -> str:
        """Enhance task using DSPy reasoning."""
        if not self.enable_dspy:
            return task

        # Use Chain of Thought for complex tasks
        enhancer = dspy.ChainOfThought("task, context -> enhanced_task")
        result = enhancer(
            task=task,
            context=context or "No prior context"
        )

        return result.enhanced_task

    async def run(self, message, **kwargs):
        # Enhance task before execution
        enhanced_message = self._enhance_task_with_dspy(
            message,
            kwargs.get("context", "")
        )

        # Run with enhanced task
        return await super().run(enhanced_message, **kwargs)

Routing Cache

TTL-Based Cache Implementation

# src/agentic_fleet/dspy_modules/reasoner_cache.py
import time
from typing import Any
from collections import OrderedDict

class RoutingCache:
    """TTL-based cache for routing decisions."""

    def __init__(self, ttl_seconds: int = 300, max_size: int = 1024):
        self.ttl = ttl_seconds
        self.max_size = max_size
        self._cache: OrderedDict[str, tuple[Any, float]] = OrderedDict()

    def get(self, key: str) -> Any | None:
        """Get cached value if not expired."""
        if key not in self._cache:
            return None

        value, timestamp = self._cache[key]

        # Check TTL
        if time.time() - timestamp > self.ttl:
            del self._cache[key]
            return None

        # Move to end (LRU)
        self._cache.move_to_end(key)
        return value

    def set(self, key: str, value: Any) -> None:
        """Cache value with current timestamp."""
        # Evict oldest if at capacity
        if len(self._cache) >= self.max_size:
            self._cache.popitem(last=False)

        self._cache[key] = (value, time.time())

    def clear(self) -> None:
        """Clear all cached entries."""
        self._cache.clear()

Integration with DSPyReasoner

# src/agentic_fleet/dspy_modules/reasoner.py
class DSPyReasoner(dspy.Module):
    def __init__(self, enable_routing_cache: bool = True, **kwargs):
        super().__init__()
        self.enable_routing_cache = enable_routing_cache
        self._routing_cache = RoutingCache(
            ttl_seconds=kwargs.get("cache_ttl_seconds", 300),
            max_size=kwargs.get("cache_max_entries", 1024)
        )

    def _generate_cache_key(
        self,
        task: str,
        team: str,
        context: str
    ) -> str:
        """Generate cache key from routing inputs."""
        import hashlib
        content = f"{task}:{team}:{context}"
        return hashlib.md5(content.encode()).hexdigest()

    def route(self, task: str, team: str, context: str) -> RoutingDecisionOutput:
        # Check cache first
        if self.enable_routing_cache:
            cache_key = self._generate_cache_key(task, team, context)
            cached = self._routing_cache.get(cache_key)
            if cached:
                return cached

        # Execute routing
        result = self.router(task=task, team=team, context=context)
        decision = result.decision

        # Cache result
        if self.enable_routing_cache:
            self._routing_cache.set(cache_key, decision)

        return decision

GEPA Optimization

Configuration

# src/agentic_fleet/config/workflow_config.yaml
dspy:
  optimization:
    enabled: true
    examples_path: src/agentic_fleet/data/supervisor_examples.json
    use_gepa: true
    gepa_auto: light # light|medium|heavy
    gepa_reflection_model: gpt-5-mini
    gepa_history_min_quality: 8.0
    gepa_history_limit: 200
    gepa_val_split: 0.2
    gepa_seed: 13
    gepa_log_dir: .var/logs/dspy/gepa

Optimization Command

# Run GEPA optimization
agentic-fleet optimize

# Output: .var/cache/dspy/compiled_reasoner.json

Loading Compiled Modules

# src/agentic_fleet/dspy_modules/reasoner.py
def _load_compiled_module(self) -> None:
    """Load optimized prompt weights from disk."""
    compiled_path = get_configured_compiled_reasoner_path()
    meta_path = Path(f"{compiled_path}.meta")

    if compiled_path.exists():
        # Verify source hash matches
        if meta_path.exists():
            meta = json.loads(meta_path.read_text())
            expected_hash = meta.get("reasoner_source_hash")
            if expected_hash != get_reasoner_source_hash():
                logger.info("Compiled reasoner ignored (source hash mismatch)")
                return

        logger.info(f"Loading compiled reasoner from {compiled_path}")
        self.load(str(compiled_path))

Agent Framework Integration

Creating ChatAgent from YAML

# src/agentic_fleet/agents/coordinator.py
from agent_framework._agents import ChatAgent

class AgentFactory:
    def create_agent(self, name: str, config: dict) -> ChatAgent:
        """Create ChatAgent from YAML configuration."""
        model_id = config.get("model")
        instructions = self._resolve_instructions(config.get("instructions", ""))
        tools = self._resolve_tools(config.get("tools", []))

        return ChatAgent(
            name=name,
            description=config.get("description", ""),
            instructions=instructions,
            chat_client=self._create_chat_client(model_id),
            tools=tools
        )

    def _resolve_instructions(self, instructions_ref: str) -> str:
        """Resolve dynamic prompts or static references."""
        if instructions_ref.startswith("prompts."):
            # Dynamic DSPy prompt generation
            return self._generate_dynamic_prompt(instructions_ref)
        # Static prompt lookup
        return get_static_prompt(instructions_ref)

Dynamic Prompt Generation

# src/agentic_fleet/agents/coordinator.py
from dspy import ChainOfThought
from agentic_fleet.dspy_modules.signatures import PlannerInstructionSignature

class AgentFactory:
    def __init__(self):
        self.instruction_generator = ChainOfThought(PlannerInstructionSignature)

    def _generate_dynamic_prompt(self, ref: str) -> str:
        """Generate prompt using DSPy."""
        if ref == "prompts.planner":
            result = self.instruction_generator(
                available_agents=self._get_agent_descriptions(),
                task_goals="Plan and coordinate multi-agent workflows"
            )
            return result.instructions
        return ""

Workflow with Checkpointing

# src/agentic_fleet/workflows/supervisor.py
from agent_framework._workflows import (
    WorkflowStartedEvent,
    WorkflowStatusEvent,
    WorkflowOutputEvent,
    ExecutorCompletedEvent,
    RequestInfoEvent,  # HITL support
    FileCheckpointStorage
)

class SupervisorWorkflow:
    def __init__(self, context, checkpoint_dir: str = ".var/checkpoints"):
        self.context = context
        self.checkpoint_storage = FileCheckpointStorage(checkpoint_dir)

    async def run_stream(self, task: str, checkpoint_id: str | None = None):
        """Run workflow with optional checkpoint resume."""
        if checkpoint_id:
            # Resume from checkpoint
            await self._resume_from_checkpoint(checkpoint_id)
        else:
            # Start fresh
            async for event in self._execute_pipeline(task):
                yield event

    async def _resume_from_checkpoint(self, checkpoint_id: str):
        """Resume workflow execution from checkpoint."""
        state = self.checkpoint_storage.load(checkpoint_id)

        # Restore workflow state
        self.context.restore_from_state(state)

        # Continue execution
        async for event in self._continue_pipeline():
            yield event

Agent Handoffs

# src/agentic_fleet/workflows/strategies.py
from agent_framework._agents import ChatAgent

class HandoffManager:
    """Manage agent-to-agent transfers with context preservation."""

    def __init__(self):
        self._handoff_history: list[dict] = []

    def prepare_handoff(
        self,
        from_agent: ChatAgent,
        to_agent: ChatAgent,
        context: dict
    ) -> dict:
        """Prepare handoff input with accumulated context."""
        handoff_input = {
            "task": context.get("original_task"),
            "findings": context.get("findings", []),
            "decisions": context.get("decisions", []),
            "remaining_work": context.get("remaining_work", []),
            "from_agent_summary": self._summarize_agent_work(from_agent)
        }

        self._handoff_history.append({
            "from": from_agent.name,
            "to": to_agent.name,
            "input": handoff_input
        })

        return handoff_input

    def execute_sequential_with_handoffs(
        self,
        agents: list[ChatAgent],
        tasks: list[str]
    ) -> list[dict]:
        """Execute tasks with agent handoffs."""
        context = {"original_task": tasks[0], "findings": [], "decisions": []}
        results = []

        for i, (agent, task) in enumerate(zip(agents, tasks)):
            context["remaining_work"] = tasks[i + 1:]

            handoff_input = self.prepare_handoff(
                from_agent=agents[i - 1] if i > 0 else None,
                to_agent=agent,
                context=context
            )

            result = self._run_agent_with_context(agent, task, handoff_input)

            context["findings"].extend(result.get("findings", []))
            context["decisions"].extend(result.get("decisions", []))
            results.append(result)

        return results

Configuration Reference

workflow_config.yaml

# DSPy Configuration
dspy:
  model: gpt-5-mini
  routing_model: gpt-5-mini
  use_typed_signatures: true
  enable_routing_cache: true
  routing_cache_ttl_seconds: 300
  require_compiled: false # true in production

  # Dynamic Prompts
  dynamic_prompts:
    enabled: true
    signatures_path: src/agentic_fleet/dspy_modules/signatures.py

  # GEPA Optimization
  optimization:
    enabled: true
    use_gepa: true
    gepa_auto: light

# Workflow Configuration
workflow:
  supervisor:
    max_rounds: 15
    enable_streaming: true

  checkpointing:
    checkpoint_dir: .var/checkpoints

# Agent Configuration
agents:
  researcher:
    model: gpt-4.1-mini
    tools: [TavilySearchTool]
    reasoning:
      effort: medium
      verbosity: normal

Common Patterns

1. Simple Task (Fast-Path)

# src/agentic_fleet/workflows/helpers.py
def is_simple_task(task: str) -> bool:
    """Check if task qualifies for fast-path processing."""
    simple_patterns = [
        r"^(hi|hello|hey|how are you|what's up)",
        r"^\d+\s*[\+\-\*/]\s*\d+$",  # Simple math
        r"^(what is|who is|where is|when did)\s+\w+",  # Simple facts
    ]
    return any(re.match(p, task.lower()) for p in simple_patterns)

2. Multi-Agent Parallel Execution

# src/agentic_fleet/workflows/strategies.py
async def execute_parallel(
    agents: list[ChatAgent],
    task: str
) -> list[dict]:
    """Execute task across multiple agents concurrently."""
    async def run_agent(agent):
        return {
            "agent": agent.name,
            "result": await agent.run(task)
        }

    results = await asyncio.gather(*[run_agent(a) for a in agents])
    return results

3. Quality-Based Refinement Loop

# src/agentic_fleet/workflows/executors.py
async def run_quality_phase(
    task: str,
    result: str,
    threshold: float = 7.0
) -> tuple[str, bool]:
    """Evaluate quality and refine if needed."""
    assessment = await self.reasoner.assess_quality(task, result)

    if assessment.score < threshold:
        # Refine the result
        refined = await self._refine_result(task, result, assessment.feedback)
        return refined, True

    return result, False

Debugging Tips

1. Routing issues: Check .var/logs/execution_history.jsonl for routing decisions
2. Slow workflows: Reduce gepa_max_metric_calls in config
3. DSPy fallback: If no compiled cache, system uses zero-shot
4. Type errors: Run make type-check before commits

Related Documentation

• DSPy Documentation
• Microsoft Agent Framework
• AgenticFleet: docs/guides/dspy-agent-framework-integration.md

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