Inter-Agent Code Review

Orchestrate code reviews by spinning up a dedicated reviewer agent that receives context via inbox messaging, reviews your branch, and sends feedback back to you.

Requirements

This recipe requires the agent-send bundled script (available via {{ agentSend }}) and the /hive-msg skill for inbox messaging. Both are available out of the box with the tmux plugin enabled.

Config

Add these user commands to your ~/.config/hive/config.yaml:

usercommands:
  ReviewRequest:
    sh: "~/.config/hive/scripts/request-review.sh {{ .Name | shq }} {{ agentSend | shq }} {{ agentWindow | shq }}"
    help: "Request code review of current branch"
    silent: false

  CheckInbox:
    sh: "hive msg sub -t agent.{{ .ID }}.inbox --new"
    help: "Check inbox for new messages"
    silent: false

Scripts

request-review.sh

Creates a new hive session with a unique ID, sends review context to its inbox, and instructs your current session to send detailed review instructions via the /hive-msg skill.

Save to ~/.config/hive/scripts/request-review.sh:

#!/bin/bash
# Usage: request-review.sh <session-name> <agent-send-path> <agent-window>
# Requests a code review of the current branch

CURRENT_SESSION_NAME="${1:-}"
AGENT_SEND="${2:-}"
AGENT_WINDOW="${3:-claude}"
CURRENT_REPO=$(git remote get-url origin 2>/dev/null)
CURRENT_BRANCH=$(git branch --show-current)

if [ -z "$CURRENT_BRANCH" ]; then
    echo "Error: Not on a git branch"
    exit 1
fi

if [ -z "$CURRENT_SESSION_NAME" ]; then
    echo "Error: Session name required"
    exit 1
fi

if [ -z "$AGENT_SEND" ]; then
    echo "Error: agent-send path required"
    exit 1
fi

# Sanitize branch name for use in session name (replace / with -)
SAFE_BRANCH=$(echo "$CURRENT_BRANCH" | tr '/' '-')

# Generate unique session ID for reviewer
NEW_SESSION=$(hive msg topic --prefix "")

# Create new review session
BATCH_JSON=$(cat <<EOF
{
  "sessions": [
    {
      "session_id": "$NEW_SESSION",
      "name": "review-$SAFE_BRANCH-$NEW_SESSION",
      "origin": "$CURRENT_REPO",
      "prompt": "You are a code reviewer. Check your inbox (agent.$NEW_SESSION.inbox) for review instructions using: hive msg sub -t agent.$NEW_SESSION.inbox --new. Wait until you receive a message. If no messages are available use hive msg sub -t agent.$NEW_SESSION.inbox --wait to wait for a message."
    }
  ]
}
EOF
)

echo "$BATCH_JSON" | hive batch

echo "✓ Created reviewer session: $NEW_SESSION (review-$SAFE_BRANCH-$NEW_SESSION)"
echo "✓ Reviewer inbox: agent.$NEW_SESSION.inbox"
echo ""

# Instruct current session to send review context via /hive-msg
if [ -x "$AGENT_SEND" ]; then
    "$AGENT_SEND" "$CURRENT_SESSION_NAME:$AGENT_WINDOW" "/hive-msg a reviewer is waiting for a message from you at agent.$NEW_SESSION.inbox. Please send them context on the work you are doing and how they can access your branch and review the code. Wait up to 1 hour for a response"
    echo "✓ Sent instructions to current session"
else
    echo "Note: agent-send not found at: $AGENT_SEND"
    echo "  /hive-msg a reviewer is waiting at agent.$NEW_SESSION.inbox"
fi

Make it executable:

chmod +x ~/.config/hive/scripts/request-review.sh

Usage

1. Request a Review

In the hive TUI, select your active session and press ::

:ReviewRequest

This will: - Create a new reviewer session with a unique ID - Set up the reviewer to listen on their inbox - Trigger your current session to send review context via /hive-msg

2. Send Review Context

Your session will automatically run /hive-msg with instructions to send: - Branch name and repository info - Recent commits and changes - How to checkout and review the code - Your inbox address for feedback

3. Wait for Feedback

Check for the reviewer's response:

:CheckInbox

Or use the messaging skill:

/hive-msg

The reviewer will analyze your code and send feedback to your inbox.

How It Works

Session Creation: hive batch creates a new session with a unique inbox
Inbox Setup: The reviewer session is prompted to listen on agent.{session-id}.inbox
Context Sharing: Your session sends review instructions via hive msg pub
Response Loop: You check your inbox for the reviewer's feedback
Async Communication: Both agents work independently, coordinated via messaging

Requirements

agent-send - Bundled script (via {{ agentSend }} template variable) to send text to tmux windows
/hive-msg skill - Handles inbox messaging and context generation

Customization

Change review prompt: Edit the prompt field in the BATCH_JSON to customize reviewer behavior.

Add review checklist: Modify the /hive-msg instruction to include specific review criteria.

Auto-respond: Add a follow-up command to automatically respond to reviewer feedback.