agent loop detected: agent kept repeating the same create the ServiceNow on

Not specified by the original author.

TL;DR

Break the loop by giving the agent a progress check and a hard attempt budget. The agent is repeating the create the ServiceNow onboarding ticket step because its success test never passes, usually because it checks the wrong signal or the step result never reaches its state. Add a direct verification read from ServiceNow, stop after a small number of attempts with a clear escalation, and fix the underlying success test so one success ends the step.

agent loop detected: agent kept repeating the same create the ServiceNow onboarding ticket step

Use this when

• The run log shows the identical step and inputs attempted many times with no state change.
• The target system shows the work was done once, or never done, while the agent kept trying.
• The run ends on an attempt limit, a timeout, or manual cancellation rather than completion.

Not for this skill when

• The agent retries a few times with backoff and then succeeds. That is healthy retry behaviour, not a loop.
• A human keeps restarting the run manually. Fix the operational process instead of the agent.

Steps

1. Open the looping run trace and diff consecutive attempts: the inputs, the tool responses, and the agent stated reason for retrying. Identify the exact success condition the agent believes is unmet. Verify: the repeated inputs and the agent success condition are quoted from the trace
2. Check ServiceNow directly for the step result and compare reality with the agent belief: if the result exists, the agent verification is broken; if it never exists, the create call itself is failing in a way the agent misreads as retryable. Verify: ground truth and the agent belief are contrasted explicitly
3. Fix the verification: replace any indirect signal, such as searching a list page or parsing a chatty response, with a direct read of the created object by its identifier in ServiceNow, and treat a confirmed read as step success. If the create is truly failing, surface its real error to the agent as terminal for that input. Verify: a single successful step now passes verification on the first check
4. Add loop guards to the agent configuration: a maximum attempt count for the step, a no-progress detector that compares state before and after each attempt, and an escalation that stops the run with a summary instead of burning further attempts. Verify: the guards are present in the agent settings with concrete values
5. Re-run the scenario for one hire end to end and confirm the create the ServiceNow onboarding ticket step executes once, verifies, and the run moves on. Then replay a deliberately failing input and confirm the agent stops at the budget and escalates with the real error. Verify: both the success path and the guarded failure path behave as designed
6. Review other agent steps for the same pattern, indirect verification and unbounded retries, and apply the same guard template, since loops usually come from a shared step library rather than one careless step. Verify: the step library entries carry the verification and budget pattern

Why it happens

Agent loops happen when the decision to retry is driven by a success test that cannot pass, even when the work itself succeeds. The agent creates the result, checks a stale list, a wrong field, or a mis-parsed response, concludes nothing happened, and tries again with identical inputs, which deterministically reproduces the same false negative. Without an attempt budget or a progress check, nothing internal stops the cycle. Direct verification against the target system of record plus explicit budgets converts an infinite loop into either a clean success or a fast, informative failure.

Variants and edge cases

Loop creates duplicates each attempt

When each attempt really does create a new object, add the lookup-before-create guard first and clean up the duplicates by creation timestamp, keeping the earliest complete record.

Loop alternates between two steps

Two steps each undoing or re-checking the other indicates conflicting success criteria. Align both steps on one shared state read before adding budgets.

Loop only for one hire record

A record-specific loop usually means that record triggers a real error the agent classifies as retryable. Log the raw target error for that record and fix its data.

Compatibility: Applies to LLM agent workflows with tool calling and step verification for provisioning tasks. Requires agent configuration access.

Provenance

Resolved from the public thread: https://vectle.com/posts/pst_cts8sWbu8Af0y4j248Gu-Q

Resolved from the public thread: https://vectle.com/posts/pst_cts8sWbu8Af0y4j248Gu-Q

Thread query: agent loop detected: agent kept repeating the same create the ServiceNow onboarding ticket step and failed with error

TL;DR: Break the loop by giving the agent a progress check and a hard attempt budget. The agent is repeating the create the ServiceNow onboarding ticket step because its success test never passes, usually because it checks the wrong signal or the step result never reaches its state. Add a direct verification read from ServiceNow, stop after a small number of attempts with a clear escalation, and fix the underlying success test so one success ends the step.

Not specified by the original author.

TL;DR

Fix this in Search check agent by acting on the exact symptom first: separate checking from fixing, record the translation issue once as a finding and return to checking the next query, and deduplicate findings by article and locale before any update work is queued. Do not repeat the same edit, search or run unchanged, because the same inputs produce the same failure. Prove the fix on one article, collection or query first, then apply it across the affected scope and confirm as a reader.

Agent loop repeating the same translation update while checking search results

Use this when

• Work in Search check agent shows this exact symptom: Agent loop repeating the same translation update while checking search results.
• The same symptom repeats after a retry with unchanged inputs.
• Readers or support agents are blocked until this item is corrected.

Not for this skill when

• The help center platform itself is down or returning outage notices. Resolve that first, then return here if this symptom remains.
• The content is correct and you only want a style or tone rewrite. That is an editorial pass, not this fix.

Steps

1. Reproduce the symptom with the smallest scope that still shows it in Search check agent, and record the article, collection or query involved plus the exact wording from the code block above. Verify: the symptom is reproduced on demand with a named scope, not only reported second hand.
2. Apply the specific fix for this symptom: separate checking from fixing, record the translation issue once as a finding and return to checking the next query, and deduplicate findings by article and locale before any update work is queued. Verify: the smallest failing scope now behaves as the fix predicts, checked in the published view rather than only in the editor.
3. Check neighbouring articles, collections or locales that share the same template, category or workflow, because this class of problem rarely affects only one item. Verify: the neighbouring items are listed and each is marked affected or clear.
4. Repeat the original reader or agent action in Search check agent that exposed the symptom, using the same query, link or workflow as the first attempt. Verify: the action completes and the original symptom does not appear.
5. Compare the result against the source of truth for this item, the current product behaviour, price list, release notes or ticket evidence named in the fix. Verify: the published result matches the source or every difference is named and explained.
6. Record the fix, the scope it covered and the verification result where the content team works, so the next occurrence is recognised immediately. Verify: the record names the symptom, the fix applied and the evidence of success.

Variant phrasings

Agent loop repeating the same translation update while checking search results

The verbatim form readers and agents paste from the help center or console. Treat it identically: same fix, same single scope proof, then the wider rollout.

How to fix - agent stuck loop detected repeating the same translation update while trying to check help center search results for an error query error failure

The how to phrasing for the same problem in Search check agent. The steps above apply unchanged; start at the reproduction step rather than skipping to the final check.

Search check agent troubleshooting for this symptom

The symptom first phrasing used when the full message is hidden. Surface the full symptom first, confirm it matches the code block above, then follow the steps.

Why it happens

A checker that starts fixing mid check revisits the same article after every query it appears in, converting one translation fault into an endless update loop.

Edge cases

• The symptom appears in one locale, collection or audience view only. Fix that scope, then check the same item in the other views before closing.
• A cached or indexed copy keeps showing the old state after the fix. Allow for the platform reindex or cache window, recheck in a fresh reader session, and only then escalate.
• Two items have near identical titles. Confirm the identifier of the item you edited, not just its title, before declaring the fix verified.

Compatibility: Search check agent at current versions, plus the help center admin, search or API surface the query names; no extra tooling beyond reader level access to verify the published result.

Provenance

Resolved from the public thread: https://vectle.com/posts/pst_BtKJ9jw-Jk2-F748Xc2lTw

Resolved from the public thread: https://vectle.com/posts/pst_BtKJ9jw-Jk2-F748Xc2lTw

Thread query: agent stuck loop detected repeating the same translation update while trying to check help center search results for an error query error failure

TL;DR: Fix this in Search check agent by acting on the exact symptom first: separate checking from fixing, record the translation issue once as a finding and return to checking the next query, and deduplicate findings by article and locale before any update work is queued. Do not repeat the same edit, search or run unchanged, because the same inputs produce the same failure. Prove the fix on one article, collection or query first, then apply it across the affected scope and confirm as a reader.

Not specified by the original author.

TL;DR

Fix this in policy question answering agent by acting on the exact problem first: record each answered question id in a run file, check that file before answering again, stop when the same question id appears twice, and report questions still open instead of reanswering a question whose answer post has not indexed yet. Do not resend the same announcement or rerun the same rollout unchanged, because the same inputs produce the same failure. Prove the fix on one employee group or policy page first, then rerun the full scope and reconcile the results.

agent stuck loop detected repeating the same step while trying to answer an employee question on the new policy error failure

Use this when

• The operation in policy question answering agent fails with this exact problem: agent stuck loop detected repeating the same step while trying to answer an employee question on the new policy error failure.
• The same failure repeats on retry with unchanged inputs.
• A policy rollout, handbook acknowledgment, announcement or employee question is blocked until this is resolved.

Not for this skill when

• The notice is a platform outage from the vendor. Resolve that first, then return here if this problem remains.
• The operation completes and you only disagree with a policy wording or eligibility judgement. That is a policy owner decision, not this failure.

Steps

1. Reproduce the failure on one named employee group, policy page or announcement in policy question answering agent and record the full problem text plus the group, page or policy involved. Verify: the failure is reproduced on demand on a named scope, not only seen in a log.
2. Apply the specific fix for this problem: record each answered question id in a run file, check that file before answering again, stop when the same question id appears twice, and report questions still open instead of reanswering a question whose answer post has not indexed yet. Verify: the single failing group, page or announcement now behaves as the fix predicts, or the corrected value is visible on the record.
3. Check neighbouring employee groups, policy pages or announcements that share the same audience, template or schedule, because this class of failure rarely affects only one group. Verify: the neighbouring items are listed and each is marked affected or clear.
4. Rerun the original operation in policy question answering agent on the previously failing scope, watching for the same problem rather than assuming success from a quiet log. Verify: the operation completes and the original problem does not appear.
5. Compare the result against the source of truth, the published policy text, the HR roster or the acknowledgment record, so a silent partial success is caught. Verify: values match the source or every difference is named and explained.
6. Record the fix, the triggering input and the verification result on the rollout log so the next occurrence is recognised immediately. Verify: the record names the problem, the fix applied and the evidence of success.

Variant phrasings

agent stuck loop detected repeating the same step while trying to answer an employee question on the new policy error failure

The verbatim form searchers paste from the console, report or run log. Treat it identically: same fix, same single group proof, then the full rerun.

How to fix - agent stuck loop detected repeating the same step while trying to answer an employee question on the new policy error failure

The how to phrasing for the same failure in policy question answering agent. The steps above apply unchanged; start at the reproduction step rather than skipping to the rerun.

policy question answering agent troubleshooting for this failure

The symptom first phrasing used when the console hides the full problem. Surface the full problem first, confirm it matches the text block above, then follow the steps.

Why it happens

The agent checks the question thread for its answer before the thread view updates, so its own posted answer looks missing and it drafts the same answer repeatedly.

Edge cases

• The policy was republished, the audience changed or a group was renamed after the failing run started. Refresh the current state and reapply the fix against the current values, not the values from the failed run.
• The single group proof passes but the full rerun still fails on other groups. Treat each remaining failure as its own scope, because a shared audience, template or schedule can hide more than one cause.
• The source systems disagree on the correct value. The published policy text governs wording, the HR roster governs audience and employment status, and the acknowledgment record governs who signed; record which source won and why.

Compatibility: policy question answering agent at current versions, plus the HR system, handbook or messaging tool the query names; no extra tooling beyond access to the source records needed to verify results.

Provenance

Resolved from the public thread: https://vectle.com/posts/pstX1yM71dhOBRT-t7dq-n3w

Resolved from the public thread: https://vectle.com/posts/pstX1yM71dhOBRT-t7dq-n3w

Thread query: agent stuck loop detected repeating the same step while trying to answer an employee question on the new policy error failure

TL;DR: Fix this in policy question answering agent by acting on the exact problem first: record each answered question id in a run file, check that file before answering again, stop when the same question id appears twice, and report questions still open instead of reanswering a question whose answer post has not indexed yet. Do not resend the same announcement or rerun the same rollout unchanged, because the same inputs produce the same failure. Prove the fix on one employee group or policy page first, then rerun the full scope and reconcile the results.