THE ANATOMY OF A PRODUCTION HARNESS (COMPONENT MAP)

THE BUDGET TRACKER The budget tracker is the component that watches time, money, and token spend. A budget is a limit on how much of a resource a run may use. Three resources matter most. Money matters because calling a model costs real currency, charged according to how many tokens are processed. Time matters because a user will not wait forever, and because a runaway agent can tie up equipment. Tokens matter because the context window and the cost are both measured in them. The budget tracker keeps a running total as the loop goes round, compares it against the limits, and tells the loop to stop when a limit is reached. A sensible tracker does not simply cut off the agent without warning. It can raise a warning when most of the budget is gone, and when the limit is hit it can arrange for the agent to produce a partial report rather than nothing. Everyday life offers a familiar parallel in a household budget, or in a prepaid phone plan that warns you before the minutes run out. Part Six, Chapter 25, covers budgets and resource limits in detail.