Run tasks in parallel in Test Companion

Run up to five Test Companion tasks in parallel in Visual Studio Code, or up to three in JetBrains IDEs. Switch between tasks without stopping any of them.

In Test Companion, a task is a prompt together with the chat that follows it. You can start a new task while another task still runs. The first task keeps working in the background. You do not have to pause it or resume it later.

Each workspace runs its own tasks. Progress in one workspace never blocks a task in another.

Separate pieces of work that do not depend on each other can run side by side. The following examples show work that suits parallel tasks:

• Generate test cases for one feature while another task automates tests for a different feature.
• Fix a failed test while a long exploratory task runs on a mobile device.
• Ask a quick question about your code without interrupting a task that is halfway done.

A new task also starts with an empty context. So Test Companion answers the new request without details from your other chats. To learn why an empty context matters in long chats, see Context usage in long chats.

Start a new task while another runs

You do not need to wait for the current task to finish. To start a new task, follow these steps:

1. At the top of the Test Companion panel, click New Task. In a narrow panel, the button label shortens to New, or the button shows only a + icon.

2. Type your prompt, then send it.

   

The new task opens in its own chat, with its own browser. The previous task keeps running in the background.

Switch between tasks

To open another task, follow these steps:

1. In the Test Companion toolbar, click the History icon, which looks like a clock. The Tasks panel opens over the chat.

   

   

2. Select the task you want to open.

   

The Tasks panel lists tasks that need your input at the top. Running tasks come next, then your five most recent tasks. To see every past task, click View full history at the bottom of the panel. To close the panel without switching, press Esc.

The task opens exactly where it is. A task that kept running shows the progress it made while you were away. A task that stopped for your input still waits for that input. Switching between tasks never stops or restarts a task.

Track task status

While you work in one task, a background task can finish. It can also stop and wait for your input. The Tasks panel and the History icon show the following indicators, so you know which task to open next:

The green dot clears when you open the finished task.

You can also hear an alert when a background task needs input or finishes. In Feature settings, turn on Sound notifications for background activity. This setting is off by default.

Task limit

In Visual Studio Code, up to five tasks stay open in a workspace. When five tasks are open and you start another task, Test Companion closes the oldest task that is not running. A task that finished, or that waits for your input, closes without a prompt.

When all five tasks are running and you start another task, the Start a new session? dialog opens. In this dialog, a session means a task. The dialog names the task that Test Companion will close.

Choose one of these options:

• Click Start & close oldest to close the named task and start the new one.
• Click Cancel to keep all five tasks. Your prompt stays in the chat box.

In JetBrains IDEs, up to three tasks stay open in a workspace. When you start a fourth task, Test Companion closes the oldest task that is not running. If every other task is running, it closes the oldest running task. No dialog opens.

A closed task stays in your history. To open its chat, click View full history in the Tasks panel.

Work with shared resources

Tasks in the same workspace share the following resources:

• All tasks in a workspace edit the same project files. Two tasks can edit the same file. When they change the same lines, a later restore in either task stops with a conflict. Assign each task changes in different files, or in different parts of a file.
• Only one task generates test cases at a time. When a second task starts to generate test cases, it shows a waiting message. It starts on its own after the first task finishes generating test cases.

Restore and undo in parallel tasks

When you restore a checkpoint or undo a change, Test Companion reverts only the edits of the current task. Edits from other tasks stay, even in the same file.

This applies to the following actions:

• Restore Files and Restore Files & Conversation on a message.
• Editing a message and sending it again.
• Undo on a changed file, and undo for all changed files.

A restore is all or nothing. If another task changed the same lines of a file, Test Companion restores nothing. The conversation stays as it is. The chat shows Couldn't restore: <file> was changed by another session on the same lines. No files were changed. In this message, a session means a task.

A file that the task created is deleted on restore only if it still holds exactly what the task wrote. If another task changed the file, Test Companion treats the restore as a conflict.

A task that started before you updated to a required version uses the earlier restore, which reverts the whole workspace. Test Companion blocks that restore while another task is open. Close the other tasks, or click Restore Conversation Only.

Changes made by terminal commands are not restored.

Next steps

• Feature settings: Turn on sound alerts for background tasks and manage checkpoints.
• Plan and usage: Track how much of your usage allowance your tasks consume.