# 6 Protocols for Agent Infrastructure — Trust Score, Deployment, SLA, Identity, Compliance

I run about 20 AI agents. They delegate work to each other, deploy code, scan for vulnerabilities, and handle compliance checks. Over time, I kept hitting the same gaps — things that made autonomous workflows fragile in ways that took hours to debug.

Last week I published a [7-layer model for agent infrastructure](https://dev.to/vystartasv/the-agent-osi-model-a-7-layer-framework-for-ai-agent-infrastructure-3aoe). These six protocols fill the gaps I found at each layer. They're what I wired into my own agents to stop the same failures from repeating.

All six have Python reference implementations under CC BY 4.0. Each has a spec any agent can read.


## 2. Deployment Manifest — Declare a Fleet, Deploy With One Command

I got tired of manually tracking which agents run where, how many instances, and what capabilities they have. One YAML file, one command.

```yaml
fleet:
  name: "my-fleet"
  agents:
    - id: "builder"
      capabilities:
        - action: "build"
          target: "spfx"
      count: 3
```

```bash
wwa fleet deploy fleet.yaml
```

[Spec](https://workswithagents.dev/specs/deployment-manifest.md)

---

## 3. SLA Framework — Track Whether Agents Meet Their Promises

Three tiers: Best-Effort (free), Production (99.5% uptime, 90% task accuracy), Regulated (99.9% uptime, 95% accuracy, 7-year audit retention).

Useful when you're running agents that handle customer data or regulated workflows and need to prove they stayed within bounds.

```python
from workswithagents import SLAMetrics

sla = SLAMetrics("my-fleet", tier="production")
sla.report("agent-1", "task-42", duration_seconds=187, success=True)
status = sla.status()  # {breaches: [], status: "ok"}
```

[Spec](https://workswithagents.dev/specs/sla-framework.md)

---

## 4. Identity Protocol — Verifiable Agent Identity

When an agent claims a task result, can you prove it was that agent? Ed25519 keypairs. Signed messages. Verification against registry.

```python
from workswithagents import AgentIdentity

ai = AgentIdentity("my-agent")
ai.register()
sig = ai.sign({"type": "heartbeat"})

# Verify another agent's message
valid = AgentIdentity.verify("other-agent", message, signature)
```

[Spec](https://workswithagents.dev/specs/identity-protocol.md)

---

## 5. Compliance-as-Code — Regulation as Executable Validation

NHS DTAC, FCA, GDS, GDPR — as rules agents can validate against at runtime. Not a checklist. Not documentation. Code that returns pass/fail.

```python
from workswithagents import ComplianceEngine

ce = ComplianceEngine()
dtac = ce.load("dtac-v2.1")

if dtac.validate(action).passed:
    execute(action)
else:
    escalate_to_human()
```

[Spec](https://workswithagents.dev/specs/compliance-as-code.md)

---

## 6. Onboarding Protocol — Systematic Agent Creation

Interview → generate → calibrate → benchmark → register. Instead of writing a prompt file and hoping, run a pipeline that produces a scored agent.

```python
from workswithagents import OnboardingClient

ob = OnboardingClient()
result = ob.full_onboard(
    "nhs-auditor",
    "Audit agent actions for NHS DTAC compliance",
    capabilities=["audit:compliance"],
    skills=["compliance-as-code"]
)
# → {agent_id: "nhs-auditor", trust_score_seed: 0.60}
```

[Spec](https://workswithagents.dev/specs/onboarding-protocol.md)

---

## The Stack

```plaintext
L7 GOVERNANCE    Compliance-as-Code · SLA Framework
L6 VERIFICATION  Agent Test Suite · Pitfall Registry
L5 COORDINATION  Coordination Protocol · Trust Score
L4 SESSION       Handoff Protocol
L3 DISCOVERY     Capability Manifest · Trust Score · Identity
L2 COMMUNICATION Identity Protocol · Credential Proxy
L1 EXECUTION     Blueprint Registry · Onboarding Protocol
```

Plus cross-layer: Deployment Manifest.

---

## Get Started

```bash
pip install workswithagents
```

All specs: [workswithagents.dev/specs/](https://workswithagents.dev/specs/)
All code: CC BY 4.0

---

*I build agent infrastructure inside Microsoft 365. SPFx · TypeScript · autonomous multi-agent systems. Currently open to senior/architect roles (£120K+ remote UK). → [vilius@workswithagents.com](mailto:vilius@workswithagents.com)*