manifest.json Reference

The manifest.json file is how a resolver registers itself with the Resolve platform. When you run amplifier-resolve resolver add ./my-resolver, the platform validates this file against a JSON Schema and writes an entry into the resolver catalog. No manifest, no registration.

---

Minimal manifest

{
  "name": "my-resolver",
  "version": "0.1.0",
  "description": "Builds REST endpoints from a natural-language spec",
  "command": ["python", "-m", "my_resolver"]
}

These four fields are the only required ones for a resolver that runs directly (no container setup). Everything else is optional.

---

Required fields

name — string (kebab-case)

Unique resolver identifier. Must be lowercase kebab-case. Used as the resolver name in POST /instances, GET /resolvers, event prefixes, and the catalog key.

"name": "dot-graph"

Names are permanent

Changing a resolver’s name after instances have been created breaks those instances’ event history. Choose a name you can live with.

version — string (semver)

Semver version string. Used in GET /resolvers and resolver event payloads. Must match the version property returned by the resolver’s Python class.

"version": "1.2.0"

description — string

Human-readable description shown in GET /resolvers and the platform UI. One sentence, no trailing period.

"description": "Autonomous implementation via a DOT-format attractor pipeline"

command — array of strings

The command used to launch the resolver process outside a container (local dev, testing). Must be a runnable command on the host.

"command": ["python", "-m", "my_resolver"]

container.command overrides in production

When running inside a worker container, the platform uses container.command if present. command is used as a fallback and for local development only.

---

Optional top-level fields

supports_resume — boolean (default: false)

Set true if the resolver’s run() can restart from a checkpoint after POST /instances/{id}/resume. Exposes the resume endpoint in the platform UI.

"supports_resume": false

capabilities_required — array of strings

Declares which platform capabilities this resolver needs provisioned before run() is called. The platform provisions these and passes them via config.capabilities.

"capabilities_required": ["gitea"]

Capability	What the platform provides
"gitea"	A Gitea sidecar container with a local git server, accessible from the worker

viewport_bundle — string (git URL)

Git URL of the viewport ESM bundle repo. If present, amplifier-resolve resolver add fetches the bundle and registers it for the frontend to load dynamically.

"viewport_bundle": "git+https://github.com/myorg/my-viewport@main"

viewport_path — string

Path within the viewport_bundle repo to the compiled viewport.js ESM module.

"viewport_path": "src/my_resolver_viewport/dist/viewport.js"

---

The container section

The container object controls everything about how the resolver runs inside a worker container. All container fields are optional. If container is absent, the resolver runs directly using command.

{
  "name": "my-resolver",
  "version": "0.1.0",
  "description": "...",
  "command": ["python", "-m", "my_resolver"],
  "container": {
    "command": ["/opt/uv-tools/amplifier/bin/python", "-m", "my_resolver"],
    "setup_commands": [
      "uv pip install --python /opt/uv-tools/amplifier/bin/python 'my-resolver @ git+https://github.com/myorg/my-resolver@main'"
    ],
    "bundles": [
      "git+https://github.com/obra/superpowers@main"
    ],
    "volume_mounts": [],
    "dev_source_overrides": ["my-resolver"]
  }
}

container.command — array of strings

Command to launch the resolver inside the container. Overrides the top-level command when running in a worker container. Typically points to the container’s Python environment.

"command": ["/opt/uv-tools/amplifier/bin/python", "-m", "my_resolver"]

container.setup_commands — array of strings

Shell commands executed sequentially during container setup, before the resolver process starts. Run as root inside the worker container.

"setup_commands": [
  "test -n \"${GH_TOKEN:-}\" && git config --global url.\"https://x-access-token:${GH_TOKEN}@github.com/\".insteadOf \"https://github.com/\" || true",
  "uv pip install --python /opt/uv-tools/amplifier/bin/python 'amplifier-resolver-sdk @ git+https://github.com/microsoft/amplifier-resolver-sdk@main'",
  "uv pip install --python /opt/uv-tools/amplifier/bin/python 'my-resolver @ git+https://github.com/myorg/my-resolver@main'"
]

Cached fast path

The worker image (amplifier-cache:python) pre-bakes common dependencies. Setup commands that re-install already-cached packages complete in ~15 seconds. Without the cache image, setup takes ~5 minutes for a full dependency install.

Conditional SDK install pattern

Use this pattern to support both local dev (where a local SDK copy may be mounted) and production (where you install from GitHub):

if [ -d /opt/amplifier-resolver-sdk ]; then
  uv pip install --reinstall --no-cache ... /opt/amplifier-resolver-sdk
else
  uv pip install ... 'amplifier-resolver-sdk @ git+https://github.com/microsoft/amplifier-resolver-sdk@main'
fi

container.bundles — array of strings

Amplifier bundle URLs to activate inside the container. These are loaded into the Amplifier session used by the resolver for LLM work.

"bundles": [
  "git+https://github.com/obra/superpowers@main"
]

container.volume_mounts — array

Extra volumes to mount into the container. Rarely needed — most resolvers use the platform’s workspace and data directories.

"volume_mounts": []

container.dev_source_overrides — array of strings

When present, enables local development overrides. The platform looks for /opt/<name> directories inside the container and installs from them instead of fetching from GitHub. Used to test local changes without pushing to GitHub.

"dev_source_overrides": ["sdk", "my-resolver"]

---

Complete real-world example

The understudy resolver’s full manifest:

{
  "name": "understudy",
  "version": "0.2.0",
  "description": "Understudy resolver — upfront intent alignment, theory-of-success commitments, agentic worker orchestration, independent verifier session, human approval gates.",
  "command": ["python", "-m", "amplifier_resolver_understudy"],
  "supports_resume": false,
  "capabilities_required": ["gitea"],
  "container": {
    "command": ["/opt/uv-tools/amplifier/bin/python", "-m", "amplifier_resolver_understudy"],
    "setup_commands": [
      "test -n \"${GH_TOKEN:-}\" && git config --global url.\"https://x-access-token:${GH_TOKEN:-}@github.com/\".insteadOf \"https://github.com/\" || true",
      "if [ -d /opt/amplifier-resolver-sdk ]; then uv pip install --reinstall --no-cache --python /opt/uv-tools/amplifier/bin/python /opt/amplifier-resolver-sdk; else GIT_TERMINAL_PROMPT=0 uv pip install --python /opt/uv-tools/amplifier/bin/python 'amplifier-resolver-sdk @ git+https://github.com/microsoft/amplifier-resolver-sdk@main'; fi && chmod -R a+rwX /opt/uv-tools",
      "if [ -d /opt/amplifier-resolver-understudy ]; then uv pip install --reinstall --no-cache --python /opt/uv-tools/amplifier/bin/python /opt/amplifier-resolver-understudy; else GIT_TERMINAL_PROMPT=0 uv pip install --python /opt/uv-tools/amplifier/bin/python 'amplifier-resolver-understudy @ git+https://github.com/microsoft/amplifier-resolver-understudy@main'; fi && chmod -R a+rwX /opt/uv-tools"
    ],
    "dev_source_overrides": ["sdk", "understudy"],
    "volume_mounts": [],
    "bundles": ["git+https://github.com/obra/superpowers"]
  },
  "viewport_bundle": "git+https://github.com/microsoft/amplifier-resolver-understudy-viewport@main",
  "viewport_path": "src/amplifier_resolver_understudy_viewport/dist/viewport.js"
}

---

Minimal TypeScript resolver example

{
  "name": "ts-hello-world",
  "version": "0.1.0",
  "description": "TypeScript hello-world resolver — demonstrates polyglot support",
  "command": ["node", "dist/hello-resolver.js"],
  "supports_resume": false,
  "container": {
    "setup_commands": [
      "cd /project && npm install && npm run build"
    ]
  }
}

---

Field reference summary

Field	Required	Type	Description
name	✓	string	Kebab-case resolver identifier
version	✓	string	Semver version
description	✓	string	Human-readable summary
command	✓	string[]	Launch command (host / fallback)
supports_resume		boolean	Enables POST /resume (default: false)
capabilities_required		string[]	Platform capabilities to provision
container.command		string[]	Launch command inside container
container.setup_commands		string[]	Setup commands run before run()
container.bundles		string[]	Amplifier bundles to activate
container.volume_mounts		array	Extra volume mounts
container.dev_source_overrides		string[]	Names for local dev overrides
viewport_bundle		string	Git URL of viewport ESM bundle repo
viewport_path		string	Path to viewport.js within bundle repo

Registration

# Register from a local directory (development)
amplifier-resolve resolver add ./my-resolver

# Register from a git URL (production)
amplifier-resolve resolver add 'git+https://github.com/myorg/my-resolver@main'

# Verify registration
amplifier-resolve resolver list
curl -s "$RESOLVE_URL/api/resolvers" | jq '.[].name'

The backend live-reloads the resolver catalog — no restart required after resolver add.