task_cancel
Cancel a task Use when native TodoWrite is wrong because you need cross-session task persistence, agent assignment, dependency tracking, or completion analytics in the .swarm/memory.db. For in-session checklists native TodoWrite is simpler and faster.
This record as markdown: /tools/ruflo/task-cancel.md
What task_cancel does on Ruflo
AI agents call task_cancel to permanently remove resources in Ruflo, typically in cleanup and lifecycle workflows. It does its job in a single call, and there is no undo.
Why task_cancel is rated Critical
Cancelling a task in a persistent multi-agent swarm system is effectively irreversible: once cancelled, the task's state, dependencies, and any in-progress agent work are terminated and cannot be undone without re-creating the task. This affects cross-session state stored in .swarm/memory.db and can disrupt dependent tasks and agent assignments, giving it a high blast radius in a multi-agent orchestration context.
From the tool's definition Cancel a task — cancellation of a task with cross-session persistence in .swarm/memory.db implies an irreversible state change that terminates task execution and removes it from the active workflow
Attacks that exploit this kind of access
The rule that runs task_cancel safely
PolicyLayer is an MCP gateway: it sits between your AI agents and Ruflo, and checks every tool call against a rule you set before the call runs. Nothing changes on the server itself. For task_cancel, this is the rule to start with:
task_cancel is removed from the agent's tool list entirely, so the agent never calls it. The rest of the server keeps working.
The button opens the PolicyLayer dashboard: create your workspace, connect Ruflo, apply this rule, and every task_cancel call is checked against it from then on.
Questions about task_cancel
Cancel a task Use when native TodoWrite is wrong because you need cross-session task persistence, agent assignment, dependency tracking, or completion analytics in the .swarm/memory.db. For in-session checklists native TodoWrite is simpler and faster. It is categorised as a Destructive tool in the Ruflo MCP Server, which means it can permanently delete or destroy data. Block by default and require explicit approval.
Register the Ruflo MCP server in PolicyLayer and add a rule for task_cancel: allow, deny, rate-limit, or require approval. Point your MCP client at the PolicyLayer proxy URL and the rule is enforced on every call, before it reaches Ruflo. Nothing to install.
task_cancel is a Destructive tool with critical risk. Critical-risk tools should be blocked by default and only enabled with explicit human approval.
Yes. Add a rate_limit block to the task_cancel rule in your PolicyLayer policy. For example, setting max: 10 and window: 60 limits the tool to 10 calls per minute. Rate limits are tracked per agent session and reset automatically.
Set action: deny in the PolicyLayer policy for task_cancel. The AI agent will receive a policy violation error and cannot call the tool. You can also include a reason field to explain why the tool is blocked.
task_cancel is provided by the Ruflo MCP server (ruvnet/ruflo). PolicyLayer sits as a proxy in front of this server to enforce policies before tool calls reach the server.
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