Unable to commit connected agents to source control

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Posted on by CU29041745-1

Hi,

I have a multi-agent setup where there is an orchestrator agent and one connected agent added to the orchestrator. Both of these agents exist in their own solution. I have verified that I can commit to source control when both these agents are not linked. But as soon as I add the connected agent to the orchestrator, I get the below error.

Shared components are not supported in source control. The botcomponent_connectionreference object `` is included in multiple solutions that are connected to source control (MeetingNotesSolution, ClientInsightsAssistant). Source control requires each component to belong to a single solution in solution scope. Remove this component from one of the solutions before committing your changes.

I want to remove the reference from the connected agent, but I dont see this reference in either of the solutions.

Any thoughts on how this can be handled?

Thanks,

Nihar Dalai.

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Prasad-MSFT Microsoft Employee on at

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This is a known limitation with Power Platform/Copilot Studio solutions and source control: Shared components (like connection references) cannot exist in multiple solutions that are both connected to source control.

Why This Happens

When you link agents (or other components) across solutions, a shared component (e.g., botcomponent_connectionreference) is created.

Source control in Power Platform requires each component to belong to only one solution in solution scope.

If the same connection reference is present in both solutions, you get this error.

How to Fix

Remove the Shared Component from One Solution

Go to Power Platform Admin Center.

Open one of the solutions (e.g., MeetingNotesSolution or ClientInsightsAssistant).

Look for “Connection References” or “Other” components.

Remove the botcomponent_connectionreference from one solution (keep it only in the solution where it is primarily used).

If You Don’t See the Reference

Sometimes, the reference is hidden or not visible in the UI.

Try exporting both solutions as unmanaged, unzip, and inspect the customizations.xml for the connection reference.

Remove the reference from one solution, re-import, and reconnect to source control.

Best Practice

Shared components (like connection references) should be managed in a single “shared” solution, and other solutions should reference them, not include them directly.

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Valantis 4,793 on at

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Hi @CU29041745-1,

This is a confirmed source control limitation. When you add a connected agent to an orchestrator that lives in a different solution, a `botcomponent_connectionreference` relationship record is created automatically. This record ends up belonging to both solutions simultaneously, and the source control system rejects that.

The reason you can't see it in either solution's UI is that this is a many-to-many relationship record, not a standalone component. It doesn't show up under Connection References or any standard component type in the solution view.

To find and fix it:

1. Export both solutions as unmanaged zips
2. Unzip each and open customizations.xml
3. Search for `botcomponent_connectionreference` in both files
4. The record will appear in one or both. Remove it from one of the solutions by deleting that XML node
5. Re-import the cleaned solution and reconnect to source control

The proper long-term fix is the architecture Prasad mentioned but to be specific for your case: create a third solution called something like `SharedAgentComponents`. Move the connected agent relationship to that solution instead of having it live in either the orchestrator or child agent solution. Both other solutions can then depend on it without owning it.

This is the same pattern required for any shared component across solutions connected to source control connection references, environment variables, etc. Matthew Devaney's source control setup guide confirms this is a hard requirement: each component can only exist in one solution when bound to source control.

Best regards,

Valantis

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CU29041745-1 10 on at

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Thank you both. I will give that a try.

As a follow up, I did try to keep the shared connection reference in a different solution. But the problem is I cant see it in the UI and hence cannot move it between solutions. Any thoughts on how to move this reference to the third solution?

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CU29041745-1 10 on at

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Another thing I noticed was that, as soon as I connect both the agents, I see the connected agent being included in the orchestrator agent solution. Is that expected behavior?

For context, I am trying to keep the solutions separate so that the agents can be deployed independently in the future.

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