Conflicts

Detecting and resolving disagreements between sources.

A conflict is recorded whenever information about the same key disagrees within the same scope. Conflicts stop agents acting on contradictory facts.

Try it: is this a conflict?Values are normalised before they are compared, so formatting never creates a false conflict.

Source ASource B

Normalised50,00050,000Same value, no conflict

What is detected#

Kind	Example
Value disagreement	Claim amount $48,200 in one source, $41,750 in another
Constraint violation	A requested payment exceeds a recorded limit
Missing prerequisite	An approval is required but not recorded

Severity#

Critical conflicts block actions that depend on the state involved. Warning conflicts are flagged for review but do not block. Severity follows the type of the state and the nature of the disagreement.

Resolving a conflict#

01
Open the conflict
See both values side by side with their sources.
02
Choose a resolution
Keep the existing value, accept the new one, adjust the constraint, mark it outdated, or defer until you know more. Some conflicts resolve automatically by recency or by source authority, and say so.
03
Record why
Add a note. Who resolved it, how and when is kept in the trail.
04
Actions re-evaluate
Dependent actions are checked again against the resolved state.

Conflict statuses are open, resolving (briefly, while one resolution is applied), resolved, superseded and dismissed.

Last reviewed October 2026Suggest a change