Technical Track FAQ

Technical questions and answers for the Technical Learning Track.

Architecture & Design

Q: How does UUID swizzling work?

A: UUID swizzling enables "Memory Isolation" while allowing cross-agent communication. Each agent has its own memory space but can still communicate with other agents when needed.

Q: What's the plugin loading order?

A: Plugin loading order is critical. Core infrastructure and AI providers load first, followed by actions, evaluators, and providers. This ensures dependencies are available when needed.

Q: What are the different component types?

A: Components serve distinct roles:

Actions: Handle user interactions and responses
Providers: Supply data and context to agents
Evaluators: Make decisions about agent behavior
Services: Handle background processing

Development Best Practices

Q: Should I use monorepo or standalone development?

A: Use monorepo for core development and plugin creation when contributing to ElizaOS. Use standalone projects for custom applications and specific use cases.

Q: How do I handle async errors in plugins?

A: Implement proper async error handling in plugins:

try {
  await someAsyncOperation();
} catch (error) {
  console.error("Plugin error:", error);
  // Handle gracefully
}

Q: How do I extend database schemas?

A: Extend database schemas using migration files. Create migration files in the migrations directory and run them during startup.

Q: How do I create custom model providers?

A: Create custom model providers by implementing the IModelProvider interface:

export class MyModelProvider implements IModelProvider {
  async generateText(params: GenerateTextParams): Promise<string> {
    // Implementation
  }
}

Performance Optimization

Q: How do I optimize memory searches?

A: Use embedding caches and pagination for memory searches:

Cache frequently accessed embeddings
Implement pagination for large memory sets
Use similarity thresholds to limit results

Q: How do I handle rate limiting?

A: Implement exponential backoff with jitter for rate limiting:

const delay = Math.min(1000 * Math.pow(2, attempt), 30000);
const jitter = Math.random() * 1000;
await new Promise((resolve) => setTimeout(resolve, delay + jitter));

Q: How do I monitor performance?

A: Enable performance monitoring with:

Sampling and custom metrics
Response time tracking
Memory usage monitoring
Error rate tracking

Security

Q: How do I handle sensitive data?

A: Follow security best practices:

Never store sensitive data in character files
Use environment variables for secrets
Encrypt data at rest using secure storage techniques
Implement proper authentication and authorization

Q: What are the security considerations for plugins?

A: Plugin security considerations:

Validate all input data
Sanitize user-generated content
Use secure communication protocols
Implement proper access controls

Testing

Q: What testing strategies should I use?

A: Implement comprehensive testing:

Unit tests: Test individual components
Integration tests: Test plugin interactions
End-to-end tests: Test complete agent workflows
Performance tests: Test under load

Q: How do I test plugins?

A: Test plugins with:

describe("MyPlugin", () => {
  it("should handle actions correctly", async () => {
    const plugin = new MyPlugin();
    const result = await plugin.execute(mockContext);
    expect(result).toBeDefined();
  });
});

Deployment

Q: How do I deploy agents at scale?

A: For production deployment:

Use containerization (Docker)
Implement horizontal scaling
Set up monitoring and alerting
Use load balancers for high availability

Q: What are the infrastructure requirements?

A: Production infrastructure needs:

Node.js runtime environment
Database (PostgreSQL recommended)
Redis for caching
Monitoring and logging systems

Troubleshooting

Q: My agent isn't responding - what should I check?

A: Common debugging steps:

Check API key configuration
Verify plugin loading order
Review error logs
Test individual components
Check network connectivity

Q: How do I debug plugin issues?

A: Plugin debugging techniques:

Use console.log for development
Implement proper error handling
Test plugins in isolation
Use debugging tools and IDE features