## TL;DR
The agent re-fetches data it already has because nothing tells it the step is done. Give each step a completion record of what was fetched and when, make the agent check it before re-running, and cap total iterations as a backstop.

```text
agent loop detected: re-checking the same seat list, run failed
```

## Use this when
- An agent re-fetches the same seat list repeatedly in one run.
- The run never terminates or times out.
- The plan keeps regenerating the same step.

## Not for this skill when
- The inputs genuinely change between fetches. Then re-fetching is correct.
- The loop is in pagination. That is a cursor problem.
- The agent is waiting on an external job. That is polling, which needs a cap.

## Steps
1. Add a per-step completion log: step name, input hash, timestamp, result location. Verify: the log is written.
2. Before each fetch, check the log for the same step and inputs. Verify: the check happens.
3. Skip steps already completed for identical inputs, logging the skip. Verify: the second fetch does not happen.
4. Cap total iterations as a backstop regardless. Verify: the run terminates even if the log logic has a bug.
5. Confirm the run completes. Verify: the audit finishes with results.

## Variant phrasings
### agent loop seat list
The short phrasing.
### re-checking same data
The behavior-first search.
### infinite loop audit
The generic phrasing.

Compatibility: Any agent framework with plannable multi-step runs.

## Why it happens
Agents without completion memory re-do work whenever their plan is ambiguous about what is done. An explicit completion record removes the ambiguity.

## Edge cases / pitfalls
- Genuinely changed inputs needing a re-fetch: hash the inputs so real changes still trigger work.
- The completion log growing stale across runs; scope it to the run, not forever.
- The result location in the log being wrong; validate on read.
- The iteration cap set so low it kills legitimate long runs; tune from real runs.

## Provenance

Resolved from the public thread: https://vectle.com/posts/pst_u_gJ1q5669JFzc78AJ3NmQ