:LovelaceCancel

Cancel a running or queued task to free up agent resources.

Command Signature

vim

:LovelaceCancel <task_id>

Alias: :LCancel

Arguments:

task_id (required) - The task identifier to cancel (e.g., task_abc123def456)

Description

The :LovelaceCancel command stops task execution and frees up the assigned agent worker. It works for both queued tasks (before execution starts) and running tasks (during execution).

What it does:

Stops task execution immediately
Frees assigned agent worker
Removes task from queue (if queued)
Marks task as cancelled in task history
Sends cancellation notification

When to use:

Task taking longer than expected
Realized task description was incorrect
Need to free up agent for higher priority work
Task stuck or not progressing
Accidentally submitted duplicate task

Usage

Basic Usage

vim

:LovelaceCancel task_abc123def456

Cancels the specified task and shows confirmation.

Get Task ID

First, find the task ID to cancel:

vim

:LovelaceTasks
" Find task in list
" Example: task_abc123 | "Refactor code" | Running

:LovelaceCancel task_abc123

From Lua

lua

require("lovelace.commands").cancel("task_abc123def456")

Cancellation Flow

Step 1: Identify Task to Cancel

vim

:LovelaceTasks

" Output:
" ## Running Tasks
" - task_abc123 | "Complex refactor" | Agent: 550e8400... | Running

Step 2: Cancel Task

vim

:LovelaceCancel task_abc123

Step 3: Confirmation

Cancellation request sent for task_abc123
Waiting for agent confirmation...

Step 4: Success Notification

✓ Task task_abc123 cancelled successfully
Agent 550e8400... is now idle

Cancellation States

Cancelling Queued Tasks

Behavior: Immediate cancellation (no agent assigned yet)

vim

:LovelaceTasks
" ## Queued Tasks
" - task_abc123 | "Add types" | Agent: (pending) | Queued

:LovelaceCancel task_abc123

" ✓ Task task_abc123 removed from queue

What happens:

Task removed from queue immediately
No agent involvement (not yet assigned)
Instant confirmation
Task marked as cancelled in history

Duration: < 1 second

Cancelling Running Tasks

Behavior: Graceful cancellation with agent acknowledgment

vim

:LovelaceTasks
" ## Running Tasks
" - task_abc123 | "Refactor module" | Agent: 550e8400... | Running

:LovelaceCancel task_abc123

" Cancellation request sent for task_abc123
" Waiting for agent confirmation...
"
" ✓ Task task_abc123 cancelled
" Agent 550e8400-e29b-41d4-a716-446655440000 stopped execution

What happens:

Cancellation request sent to agent
Agent stops current operation
Agent cleans up resources
Agent acknowledges cancellation
Agent returns to idle state
Confirmation shown

Duration: 2-5 seconds (graceful shutdown)

Cancellation Timeout

Behavior: Agent doesn't respond within timeout

vim

:LovelaceCancel task_abc123

" Cancellation request sent...
" Waiting for agent confirmation...
"
" ⚠ Agent did not confirm cancellation within 10 seconds
" Task may still be running. Check agent status with :LovelaceAgents

What it means:

Agent may be unresponsive
Task may still be executing
Agent may be in critical operation

Action: Check agent status, contact administrator if persistent

Common Scenarios

Scenario 1: Cancel Incorrect Task

Realize task description was wrong:

vim

" Submit task with typo
:LovelaceTask
" Description: "Add typos to user module"  ← Meant "types"!

" Task submitted (task_abc123) - Status: queued

" Cancel immediately
:LovelaceCancel task_abc123

" ✓ Task removed from queue

" Resubmit with correct description
:LovelaceTask
" Description: "Add types to user module"

Scenario 2: Task Taking Too Long

Cancel slow-running task:

vim

" Task running for 5 minutes
:LovelaceTaskStatus task_abc123
" Status: Running
" Duration: 5m 30s

" Cancel if taking too long
:LovelaceCancel task_abc123

" ✓ Task cancelled
" Agent now idle

" Resubmit with more specific requirements
:LovelaceTask
" Description: "Add TypeScript types to User interface only (not entire module)"

Scenario 3: Free Agent for Priority Task

Need agent for urgent work:

vim

" Check current tasks
:LovelaceTasks

" ## Running Tasks
" - task_abc123 | "Low priority cleanup" | Agent: 550e8400... | Running

" Cancel to free agent
:LovelaceCancel task_abc123

" ✓ Agent now available

" Submit urgent task
:LovelaceTask
" Description: "Fix critical authentication bug in login flow"

Scenario 4: Cancel Duplicate Task

Accidentally submitted same task twice:

vim

:LovelaceTasks

" ## Queued Tasks
" - task_abc123 | "Add tests" | Queued
" - task_def456 | "Add tests" | Queued  ← Duplicate!

" Cancel duplicate
:LovelaceCancel task_def456

" ✓ Task removed from queue

Cancellation Behavior

What Gets Cancelled

✅ Cancelled:

Task execution stops immediately
Partial work is discarded
Agent resources freed
Task marked as cancelled

❌ Not Cancelled (already completed):

File changes already applied
Results already saved
Agent already returned to idle

Agent State After Cancellation

Before cancellation:

Agent: 550e8400-e29b-41d4-a716-446655440000
Status: busy
Task: task_abc123

After cancellation:

Agent: 550e8400-e29b-41d4-a716-446655440000
Status: idle
Task: (none)

Timeline: Agent returns to idle within 2-5 seconds

Task History

Cancelled tasks remain in history with status:

vim

:LovelaceTasks

" ## Completed Tasks
" - task_abc123 | "Refactor code" | Agent: 550e8400... | Cancelled (2m ago)

Retention: Cancelled tasks retained for 24 hours, then archived

Multiple Cancellations

Cancel multiple tasks in sequence:

vim

" Cancel several queued tasks
:LovelaceCancel task_001
:LovelaceCancel task_002
:LovelaceCancel task_003

" Or use Lua for batch cancellation

Lua batch cancellation:

lua

local tasks_to_cancel = {"task_001", "task_002", "task_003"}

for _, task_id in ipairs(tasks_to_cancel) do
  require("lovelace.commands").cancel(task_id)
  vim.wait(1000)  -- Wait 1 second between cancellations
end

Troubleshooting

"Task not found" Error

Symptom: :LovelaceCancel task_abc123 shows "Task not found"

Solutions:

Verify task ID:
vim
```
:LovelaceTasks
" Check if task exists
```
Check task state:
- Task may have already completed
- Task may have already been cancelled
- Task ID may be incorrect
Check task age:
- Tasks older than 24 hours are archived
- Cannot cancel archived tasks

"Task already completed" Error

Symptom: Cannot cancel task that already finished

✗ Cannot cancel task_abc123: Task already completed

Reason: Task finished before cancellation request processed

Action:

No action needed if task completed successfully
If task produced unwanted changes, revert manually

Cancellation Timeout

Symptom: Cancellation request sent but no confirmation

Cancellation request sent...
⚠ Agent did not confirm within 10 seconds

Solutions:

Check agent status:
vim
```
:LovelaceAgents
" Verify agent is responsive
```
Check task status:
vim
```
:LovelaceTaskStatus task_abc123
" See if task actually stopped
```
Wait and retry:
vim
```
" Wait 30 seconds
:LovelaceCancel task_abc123
```
Contact administrator:
- If agent consistently unresponsive
- May need agent restart

"Cannot cancel system task" Error

Symptom: Some tasks cannot be cancelled

✗ Cannot cancel task_abc123: System task

Reason: Certain internal system tasks cannot be cancelled for safety

Examples:

Health check tasks
Daemon initialization tasks
Critical system operations

Action: Wait for task to complete naturally

Integration Patterns

Cancel and Resubmit Workflow

vim

" 1. Cancel incorrect task
:LovelaceCancel task_abc123

" 2. Wait for confirmation
" ✓ Task cancelled

" 3. Resubmit with corrections
:LovelaceTask
" Corrected description...

" 4. Verify new task
:LovelaceTasks

Cancel All Queued Tasks

lua

-- Cancel all queued tasks (Lua)
local lovelace = require("lovelace")
local tasks = lovelace.get_tasks()

for _, task in ipairs(tasks) do
  if task.status == "queued" then
    require("lovelace.commands").cancel(task.id)
    print("Cancelled: " .. task.id)
  end
end

Timeout-Based Cancellation

lua

-- Auto-cancel tasks running longer than 10 minutes
local lovelace = require("lovelace")
local tasks = lovelace.get_tasks()

local ten_minutes = 10 * 60  -- seconds

for _, task in ipairs(tasks) do
  if task.status == "running" and task.duration_seconds > ten_minutes then
    require("lovelace.commands").cancel(task.id)
    vim.notify("Auto-cancelled long-running task: " .. task.id)
  end
end

When to Cancel vs Wait

Cancel if:

✅ Task description was incorrect ✅ Task taking abnormally long (> 10 minutes) ✅ Need agent for higher priority work ✅ Accidentally submitted duplicate ✅ Task appears stuck (no progress updates)

Wait if:

⏳ Task is large and complex (expected to be slow) ⏳ Progress updates are still appearing ⏳ Task is almost complete (> 90% done) ⏳ Only a few seconds into execution

Rule of thumb:

Queued tasks: Cancel freely (instant)
Running tasks < 1 minute: Wait
Running tasks > 5 minutes with no progress: Cancel

Advanced Usage

Programmatic Cancellation

lua

local lovelace = require("lovelace")
local connection = lovelace.get_connection()

connection:call("task.cancel", {
  task_id = "task_abc123"
}, function(result, error)
  if result and result.success then
    vim.notify("Task cancelled successfully")
  else
    vim.notify("Cancellation failed: " .. (error or "unknown error"))
  end
end)

Conditional Cancellation

lua

-- Cancel task if it matches certain criteria
local function cancel_if_matches(task_id, criteria)
  local lovelace = require("lovelace")
  local status = lovelace.get_task_status(task_id)

  if not status then
    return false
  end

  -- Check criteria
  if criteria.min_duration and status.duration_seconds < criteria.min_duration then
    return false
  end

  if criteria.required_state and status.state ~= criteria.required_state then
    return false
  end

  -- Cancel if criteria match
  require("lovelace.commands").cancel(task_id)
  return true
end

-- Usage
cancel_if_matches("task_abc123", {
  min_duration = 300,  -- At least 5 minutes old
  required_state = "running"
})

Related Commands

Command	Purpose
:LovelaceTaskStatus	Check task status before cancelling
:LovelaceTasks	List all tasks to find task ID
:LovelaceAgents	Check agent availability
:LovelaceTask	Resubmit task after cancelling

Next Steps

:LovelaceTaskStatus - Check task status before cancelling
:LovelaceTasks - Find task IDs to cancel
Task Monitoring Guide - Monitor task execution
Troubleshooting - Common cancellation issues

:LovelaceCancel

Command Signature

Description

Usage

Basic Usage

Get Task ID

From Lua

Cancellation Flow

Step 1: Identify Task to Cancel

Step 2: Cancel Task

Step 3: Confirmation

Step 4: Success Notification

Cancellation States

Cancelling Queued Tasks

Cancelling Running Tasks

Cancellation Timeout

Common Scenarios

Scenario 1: Cancel Incorrect Task

Scenario 2: Task Taking Too Long

Scenario 3: Free Agent for Priority Task

Scenario 4: Cancel Duplicate Task

Cancellation Behavior

What Gets Cancelled

Agent State After Cancellation

Task History

Multiple Cancellations

Troubleshooting

"Task not found" Error

"Task already completed" Error

Cancellation Timeout

"Cannot cancel system task" Error

Integration Patterns

Cancel and Resubmit Workflow

Cancel All Queued Tasks

Timeout-Based Cancellation

When to Cancel vs Wait

Cancel if:

Wait if:

Advanced Usage

Programmatic Cancellation

Conditional Cancellation

Related Commands

Next Steps

Related Documentation