Master Go concurrency with goroutines, channels, sync primitives, and context. Use when building concurrent Go applications, implementing worker pools, or debugging race conditions.
View on GitHubFebruary 1, 2026
Select agents to install to:
npx add-skill https://github.com/wshobson/agents/blob/main/plugins/systems-programming/skills/go-concurrency-patterns/SKILL.md -a claude-code --skill go-concurrency-patternsInstallation paths:
.claude/skills/go-concurrency-patterns/# Go Concurrency Patterns
Production patterns for Go concurrency including goroutines, channels, synchronization primitives, and context management.
## When to Use This Skill
- Building concurrent Go applications
- Implementing worker pools and pipelines
- Managing goroutine lifecycles
- Using channels for communication
- Debugging race conditions
- Implementing graceful shutdown
## Core Concepts
### 1. Go Concurrency Primitives
| Primitive | Purpose |
| ----------------- | -------------------------------- |
| `goroutine` | Lightweight concurrent execution |
| `channel` | Communication between goroutines |
| `select` | Multiplex channel operations |
| `sync.Mutex` | Mutual exclusion |
| `sync.WaitGroup` | Wait for goroutines to complete |
| `context.Context` | Cancellation and deadlines |
### 2. Go Concurrency Mantra
```
Don't communicate by sharing memory;
share memory by communicating.
```
## Quick Start
```go
package main
import (
"context"
"fmt"
"sync"
"time"
)
func main() {
ctx, cancel := context.WithTimeout(context.Background(), 5*time.Second)
defer cancel()
results := make(chan string, 10)
var wg sync.WaitGroup
// Spawn workers
for i := 0; i < 3; i++ {
wg.Add(1)
go worker(ctx, i, results, &wg)
}
// Close results when done
go func() {
wg.Wait()
close(results)
}()
// Collect results
for result := range results {
fmt.Println(result)
}
}
func worker(ctx context.Context, id int, results chan<- string, wg *sync.WaitGroup) {
defer wg.Done()
select {
case <-ctx.Done():
return
case results <- fmt.Sprintf("Worker %d done", id):
}
}
```
## Patterns
### Pattern 1: Worker Pool
```go
package main
import (
"context"
"fmt"
"sync"
)
type Job struct {
ID int
Data string
}
type Result struct {
JobID int