Trust system reminders as agent progress notifications. Don't poll.
Pattern
When you launch a background agent, continue working on other tasks. The system will notify you via reminders when:
Agent makes progress: Agent <id> progress: X new tools used, Y new tokens
Agent writes output file (check the path you specified)
DO
1. Task(run_in_background=true, prompt="... Output to: .claude/cache/agents/<type>/output.md")
2. Continue with next task immediately
3. When system reminder shows agent activity, check if output file exists
4. Read output file only when agent signals completion
DON'T
# BAD: Polling wastes tokens and time
Task(run_in_background=true)
Bash("sleep 5 && ls ...") # polling
Bash("tail /tmp/claude/.../tasks/<id>.output") # polling
TaskOutput(task_id="...") # floods context
Why This Matters
Polling burns tokens on repeated checks
TaskOutput floods main context with full agent transcript
System reminders are free - they're pushed to you automatically
Continue productive work while waiting
Source
This session: Realized polling for agent output wasted time when system reminders already provide progress updates
1---2name: background-agent-pings3description: Background Agent Pings4---56# Background Agent Pings78Trust system reminders as agent progress notifications. Don't poll.910## Pattern1112When you launch a background agent, **continue working on other tasks**. The system will notify you via reminders when:13- Agent makes progress: `Agent <id> progress: X new tools used, Y new tokens`14- Agent writes output file (check the path you specified)1516## DO1718```191. Task(run_in_background=true, prompt="... Output to: .claude/cache/agents/<type>/output.md")202. Continue with next task immediately213. When system reminder shows agent activity, check if output file exists224. Read output file only when agent signals completion23```2425## DON'T2627```28# BAD: Polling wastes tokens and time29Task(run_in_background=true)30Bash("sleep 5 && ls ...") # polling31Bash("tail /tmp/claude/.../tasks/<id>.output") # polling32TaskOutput(task_id="...") # floods context33```3435## Why This Matters3637- Polling burns tokens on repeated checks38- `TaskOutput` floods main context with full agent transcript39- System reminders are free - they're pushed to you automatically40- Continue productive work while waiting4142## Source4344- This session: Realized polling for agent output wasted time when system reminders already provide progress updates
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Background Agent Pings It is listed under AI & ML on SkillMD.
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