Publish & lifecycle
A tool must be Published before agents can use it. Publishing is part of a lifecycle that lets you review changes, retire old tools, and keep a version history.
The lifecycle states
| Status | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Draft | Not yet published, only visible in Studio. |
| Ready for Review | Submitted for review before publishing. |
| Published | Active and available for agents to use. |
| Deprecated | Will be removed soon; agents should migrate. |
| Archived | No longer available for use. |
The registry card shows only Draft, Published, and Deprecated. The Ready for Review and Archived states appear in the lifecycle controls on the tool itself.
Allowed transitions
You can only move between states in this order:
| From | To |
|---|---|
| Draft | Ready for Review (if review is required) or Published |
| Ready for Review | Published, or back to Draft |
| Published | Deprecated |
| Deprecated | Published (restore) or Archived |
| Archived | — (terminal) |
The action buttons are labeled by their destination: Publish, Deprecate, Archive, Revert to Draft, and Submit for Review.
Publish a tool
From a Draft tool, click Publish. The Publish Tool dialog opens with an optional Changelog (“Describe what changed in this version…”). Confirm to make the tool available to agents.
Write a changelog entry every time you publish. The Version History panel keeps each version with its status and changelog, so a clear note now saves confusion later.
Deprecate a tool
From a Published tool, click Deprecate. A Deprecation Reason is required — “Explain why this tool is being deprecated and what to use instead.” If agents currently use the tool, the dialog warns you: “This tool is used by {n} agent(s). Deprecating will show warnings to users.”
Deprecated tools still work, but users see migration warnings. When you’re ready, Archive the tool to remove it from use.
Version history
The Version History panel lists every version with its v{'{'}n{'}'} number, status badge, a Current marker, the changelog, and any deprecation reason.
Common issues
- Agents can’t see the tool — it isn’t Published. Publish it from the lifecycle controls.
- “Unsaved Changes” on a published tool — you edited a published tool; publish again to release a new version.
- Can’t archive directly from Published — archive is only reachable from Deprecated. Deprecate first.