announce_work · Mcp Coordinator MCP: Risk & Policy

WHAT IT DOES

What announce_work does on Mcp Coordinator

AI agents use announce_work to create or update resources in Mcp Coordinator — usually the action step of a workflow, after the agent has gathered context. Every call changes real data in your Mcp Coordinator environment.

WHY IT NEEDS A POLICY

Why announce_work needs a policy

This tool creates a new consultation thread in the coordination system, which is a reversible write operation. It doesn't execute code or delete data, but it does create/modify coordination state. Misuse could disrupt multi-agent coordination by opening spurious threads, hence medium severity.

From the tool's definition Open a consultation thread before starting work

Attacks that exploit this kind of access

Recommended rule Ready

Verdict

announce_work Rate-limited

announce_work stays usable, but capped — an agent stuck in a loop can't make hundreds of changes a minute. Everything else on the server is denied unless you say otherwise.

View as policy code

policy.json

{
  "version": "1",
  "default": "deny",
  "tools": {
    "announce_work": {
      "limits": [
        {
          "counter": "announce_work_rate",
          "window": "minute",
          "max": 30,
          "scope": "grant"
        }
      ]
    }
  }
}

LIMIT THIS TOOL →

Instant setup, no code required.

PolicyLayer is an MCP gateway: every tool call is checked against your rule before it reaches Mcp Coordinator, so you can run agents against it safely.

FAQ

Questions about announce_work

What does the announce_work tool do? +

Open a consultation thread before starting work. It is categorised as a Write tool in the Mcp Coordinator MCP Server, which means it can create or modify data. Consider rate limits to prevent runaway writes.

How do I enforce a policy on announce_work? +

Register the Mcp Coordinator MCP server in PolicyLayer and add a rule for announce_work: 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 Mcp Coordinator. Nothing to install.

What risk level is announce_work? +

announce_work is a Write tool with medium risk. Write tools should be rate-limited to prevent accidental bulk modifications.

Can I rate-limit announce_work? +

Yes. Add a rate_limit block to the announce_work 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.

How do I block announce_work completely? +

Set action: deny in the PolicyLayer policy for announce_work. 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.

What MCP server provides announce_work? +

announce_work is provided by the Mcp Coordinator MCP server (swoofer/mcp-coordinator). PolicyLayer sits as a proxy in front of this server to enforce policies before tool calls reach the server.