A2A Agent

Getting Started

Add the required NuGet package to your project:

dotnet add package Microsoft.Agents.AI.A2A --prerelease

Agent Discovery

Before communicating with a remote A2A agent, you need to discover it and create an AIAgent instance. The A2A protocol defines three discovery strategies, each supported by the Agent Framework.

Well-Known URI

A2A agents can make their Agent Card discoverable at a standardized path: https://{domain}/.well-known/agent-card.json. Use the A2ACardResolver to fetch the card and create an agent in a single call:

using A2A;
using Microsoft.Agents.AI;

// Initialize a resolver pointing at the remote agent's host.
A2ACardResolver resolver = new(new Uri("https://a2a-agent.example.com"));

// Resolve the agent card and create an AIAgent in one step.
AIAgent agent = await resolver.GetAIAgentAsync();

// Use the agent.
Console.WriteLine(await agent.RunAsync("Hello!"));

Catalog-Based Discovery

In enterprise environments or public marketplaces, Agent Cards are often managed by a central registry. If you already have an AgentCard obtained from such a registry, convert it directly to an AIAgent:

using A2A;
using Microsoft.Agents.AI;

// Assume agentCard was retrieved from a registry or catalog.
AgentCard agentCard = await GetAgentCardFromRegistryAsync("travel-planner");

AIAgent agent = agentCard.AsAIAgent();

Console.WriteLine(await agent.RunAsync("Plan a trip to Paris."));

Direct Configuration

For tightly coupled systems or development scenarios where the agent endpoint is known ahead of time, create an A2AClient directly and convert it to an AIAgent:

using A2A;
using Microsoft.Agents.AI;

// Create a client pointing at the known agent endpoint.
A2AClient a2aClient = new(new Uri("https://a2a-agent.example.com"));

AIAgent agent = a2aClient.AsAIAgent(name: "my-agent", description: "A helpful assistant.");

Console.WriteLine(await agent.RunAsync("What can you help me with?"));

Protocol Selection

A2A agents can expose multiple protocol bindings such as HTTP+JSON and JSON-RPC. By default, HTTP+JSON is preferred over JSON-RPC. Use A2AClientOptions.PreferredBindings to explicitly control which protocol binding is used:

using A2A;
using Microsoft.Agents.AI;

A2ACardResolver agentCardResolver = new(new Uri("https://a2a-agent.example.com"));

AgentCard agentCard = await agentCardResolver.GetAgentCardAsync();

// Prefer HTTP+JSON protocol binding. For JSON-RPC, set PreferredBindings = [ProtocolBindingNames.JsonRpc]
A2AClientOptions options = new()
{
    PreferredBindings = [ProtocolBindingNames.HttpJson]
};

AIAgent agent = agentCard.AsAIAgent(options: options);

Console.WriteLine(await agent.RunAsync("Tell me a joke about a pirate."));

Streaming

A2A supports streaming responses via Server-Sent Events. Use RunStreamingAsync to receive updates in real time as the remote agent processes the request:

using A2A;
using Microsoft.Agents.AI;

A2ACardResolver resolver = new(new Uri("https://a2a-agent.example.com"));
AIAgent agent = await resolver.GetAIAgentAsync();

await foreach (var update in agent.RunStreamingAsync("Write a short story about a robot."))
{
    if (!string.IsNullOrEmpty(update.Text))
    {
        Console.Write(update.Text);
    }
}

Background Responses

A2A agents support background responses for handling long-running operations. When a remote A2A agent returns a task instead of an immediate message, the Agent Framework provides a continuation token that you can use to poll for results or reconnect to interrupted streams.

Polling for Task Completion

For non-streaming scenarios, use AllowBackgroundResponses to receive a continuation token and poll until the task completes:

using A2A;
using Microsoft.Agents.AI;

A2ACardResolver resolver = new(new Uri("https://a2a-agent.example.com"));
AIAgent agent = await resolver.GetAIAgentAsync();

AgentSession session = await agent.CreateSessionAsync();

// AllowBackgroundResponses must be true so the server returns immediately with a continuation token
// instead of blocking until the task is complete.
AgentRunOptions options = new() { AllowBackgroundResponses = true };

// Start the initial run with a long-running task.
AgentResponse response = await agent.RunAsync(
    "Conduct a comprehensive analysis of quantum computing applications in cryptography.",
    session,
    options: options);

// Poll until the response is complete.
while (response.ContinuationToken is { } token)
{
    // Wait before polling again.
    await Task.Delay(TimeSpan.FromSeconds(2));

    // Continue with the token.
    response = await agent.RunAsync(session, options: new AgentRunOptions { ContinuationToken = token });
}

Console.WriteLine(response);

Stream Reconnection

In streaming scenarios, each update may include a continuation token. If the stream is interrupted, use the token to reconnect and obtain the response stream from the beginning:

using A2A;
using Microsoft.Agents.AI;
using Microsoft.Extensions.AI;

A2ACardResolver resolver = new(new Uri("https://a2a-agent.example.com"));
AIAgent agent = await resolver.GetAIAgentAsync();

AgentSession session = await agent.CreateSessionAsync();

ResponseContinuationToken? continuationToken = null;

await foreach (var update in agent.RunStreamingAsync(
    "Conduct a comprehensive analysis of quantum computing applications in cryptography.",
    session))
{
    // Save the continuation token to reconnect later if the stream is interrupted.
    // Continuation tokens are only returned for long-running tasks. If the A2A agent
    // returns a message instead of a task, the continuation token will not be initialized.
    if (update.ContinuationToken is { } token)
    {
        continuationToken = token;
    }
}

// If the stream was interrupted and a continuation token was captured,
// reconnect to the response stream using the saved continuation token.
if (continuationToken is not null)
{
    await foreach (var update in agent.RunStreamingAsync(
        session,
        options: new() { ContinuationToken = continuationToken }))
    {
        if (!string.IsNullOrEmpty(update.Text))
        {
            Console.WriteLine(update.Text);
        }
    }
}