To get started with A2A in .NET, install the standalone SDK with dotnet add package A2A. Use its ASP.NET Core helpers to expose an agent and publish an Agent Card, or use Microsoft Agent Framework’s separate A2A client or hosting integration if your application already uses that framework. The right path depends on whether you need to call an agent, host one, or do both.
What A2A does in a .NET application
Agent2Agent (A2A) is an open protocol for communication between independent agents, including agents built with different frameworks or vendors. An Agent Card describes an agent and the interfaces it supports so another agent or client can discover how to connect. A2A supports delegation, information exchange, and coordination without requiring the agents to share their internal implementation. See the A2A protocol documentation.
A2A and MCP address different connections: A2A supports communication between agents, while MCP connects an agent to tools, APIs, and data. They can be used together in one system; neither protocol replaces the other. The A2A overview explains the distinction.
Choose your .NET implementation path
| Option | Best fit | Setup | Considerations |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standalone A2A .NET SDK | .NET applications that need direct A2A client or server integration | dotnet add package A2A; ASP.NET Core helpers include AddA2AAgent, MapA2A, and MapWellKnownAgentCard. |
The project repository describes .NET 8+ support and implementation of A2A v1.0. Check the current release details and target-framework requirements before relying on those labels. |
| Microsoft Agent Framework client integration | Framework applications that consume a remote A2A agent | Microsoft.Agents.AI.A2A --prerelease; discover an agent by URI, catalog-supplied card, or configured endpoint. |
Wraps the remote agent as an AIAgent and documents asynchronous and streaming calls. Check prerelease status and protocol compatibility. |
| Microsoft Agent Framework hosting integration | Framework applications that expose an agent over A2A | Microsoft.Agents.AI.Hosting.A2A.AspNetCore --prerelease; register the server and map one or more bindings. |
Hosting guidance documents HTTP+JSON and JSON-RPC. Replace in-memory state stores for production use. |
The standalone SDK’s package name, repository details, and ASP.NET Core integration are documented in the A2A .NET SDK repository and its README. Microsoft’s framework options are covered in its A2A client guide and A2A hosting guide.
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Before choosing, establish whether your application is a client, a server, or both; whether it already uses Microsoft Agent Framework; which binding the remote peer supports; and whether you need streaming, background tasks, or durable state. Also verify package maturity and target-framework requirements for the versions you plan to deploy.
Install the A2A .NET SDK
For direct protocol-level integration, add the standalone package to your project:
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dotnet add package A2AThe project repository describes the SDK as supporting .NET 8+ and A2A v1.0. Those are repository-level descriptions, not a guarantee that every package release or application target has identical requirements; confirm the current package metadata and release notes when setting a target framework.
Host an A2A agent
The standalone SDK’s ASP.NET Core server flow has three essential pieces: register an agent handler and its Agent Card, map an A2A protocol endpoint, and publish the card so clients can discover the agent. The SDK README shows the following shape:
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- Register the handler and card with
builder.Services.AddA2AAgent<EchoAgent>(...). - Build the ASP.NET Core application.
- Map a JSON-RPC endpoint with
app.MapA2A("/echo"). - Publish the Agent Card with
app.MapWellKnownAgentCard(card). - Implement
IAgentHandlerand send replies through the event queue or responder.
The endpoint handles protocol traffic; the Agent Card provides discovery information. A client needs a supported interface URL from the card or another known configuration to connect. Use the SDK’s README examples for the exact overloads and handler details for the package version you install.
Hosting with Microsoft Agent Framework
If your agent is built with Microsoft Agent Framework, its hosting integration uses Microsoft.Agents.AI.Hosting.A2A.AspNetCore --prerelease. The guide’s minimal setup registers the agent, adds an A2A server, maps an HTTP+JSON endpoint, and publishes an Agent Card at /.well-known/agent-card.json. It also documents JSON-RPC mapping; expose both bindings only when your clients and deployment need them. Follow the current framework hosting guide, since package status and APIs can change.
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Connect to a remote A2A agent
With the standalone SDK, the basic client flow is to resolve the remote Agent Card, create an A2AClient from one of its supported interface URLs, and call SendMessageAsync. The SDK’s README illustrates this discovery-and-send pattern.
- Use
A2ACardResolverto retrieve the card from the remote host’s well-known location, or use a card provided by a catalog. - Select an interface URL and binding the remote agent supports.
- Create an
A2AClientfor that interface and send a message withSendMessageAsync. - Handle the returned protocol result: it may be an immediate message or a task, rather than a completed text reply.
When using Microsoft Agent Framework as a client, install the documented prerelease package with dotnet add package Microsoft.Agents.AI.A2A --prerelease. The integration can discover an agent from a well-known URI, accept an Agent Card already retrieved from a catalog, or use a directly configured endpoint. It presents the remote agent as an AIAgent with RunAsync and RunStreamingAsync methods. The client guide also covers protocol binding selection and continuation tokens for background responses. Check the package’s current prerelease status before adopting it.
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Prepare the integration for production
Use durable state for hosted agents
Microsoft’s hosting guidance identifies InMemoryAgentSessionStore and InMemoryTaskStore as development defaults. Their state is lost when the process restarts and is not shared between application instances. Register durable replacements for a production deployment; the hosting guide describes the hosting configuration.
Isolate HTTP cookies in multi-user applications
The standalone SDK says A2AClient, A2AHttpJsonClient, and A2ACardResolver use a shared default HttpClient when one is not supplied. Its README recommends configuring HttpClientHandler.UseCookies = false for multi-user or multi-tenant applications. If cookie-based sessions are required, isolate the handler and cookie container for each user or security context rather than sharing them across users.
Match the protocol binding
Microsoft’s client and hosting guides document HTTP+JSON and JSON-RPC bindings. The binding used by a client must match an interface the remote endpoint supports. An Agent Card can help identify advertised interfaces; when configuring an endpoint directly, confirm its binding with the service owner.
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