docs(product): design record — remove initial_prompt, channel-first-turn delivery - #273
Merged
Conversation
…urn delivery Freezes the design for removing `initial_prompt` from the whole Compass start contract (proto -> server -> runner -> agent SDK -> UI -> e2e harness). Matt has ruled the field out of existence: an agent session **always starts idle**, and its first turn arrives through a channel — never a prompt field the Runner silently drops today (`(*agentHost).Start` reads only the container name; every prompt riding the field is dropped and the agent idles forever). This record is the contract that unblocks SEA-1792 H8 / PR #256 — the dogfood e2e `TestLegTwoRealTurn` is red precisely because its first turn rides the dropped field. ### What it decides (DL-186..189, appended to the product ledger by T7) - **DL-186** — `initial_prompt` removed from the whole contract (three fields, numbers + names reserved), consumers cut over atomically with no fallback; first turn arrives over the SEA-1569 deliver path. - **DL-187** — `@compass` reserved alias frozen as the system-sender mechanism for **any** system-level message; case-1 root-manager boot scoped out to follow-up **SEA-1820**. - **DL-188** — fresh-start barrier-lift: on a fresh start the Runner sends `AgentControl{replay_complete}` as the first control op after Bind (symmetric with the resume path, no agent change). - **DL-189** — the case-2 brief carrier is a **per-pair manager↔peer DM channel** (`ChannelKindDM`), auto-provisioned on the spawn edge — not the coordination broadcast, so siblings never receive briefs they don't need. ### Staging - **PR-A** (additive, lands first) — Runner deliver-lane build (`DeliverControl` dispatch arm, `representable()` admits Deliver/Steer, fresh-start barrier-lift) + spawn-edge DM auto-provision. Greens nothing yet; independently revertable. - **PR-B** (lands after PR-A) — the atomic `initial_prompt` removal + e2e harness re-model; greens leg-2. ### Honest state The server + agent halves of the deliver seam exist; the **Runner middle leg is UNBUILT** at three source-verified points (dispatch has no `DeliverControl` arm; gateway `representable()` rejects Deliver/Steer; no fresh-start `replay_complete` sender + the agent replay barrier strands a pre-`replayComplete` deliver). The record does not claim case-2 is verified end-to-end today — PR-A builds the leg. ### Open for Matt at this gate - **[FORK]** `StartAgentDialog` disposition — removing the prompt empties the dialog, but DL-185 (SEA-1932, Active) explicitly *keeps* it. Delete vs bare-confirm is Matt's call (recommendation: delete). One conditional status-flip on DL-185's "Kept" clause. - **[Minor]** settle-primitive naming (`AwaitTurnSettled`). Every cited file:line grounded against `main@origin`. No code, codegen, or proto changed — design record only. Spec-impact: none. Refs SEA-1681, SEA-1820. Co-authored-by: Matt Wilkinson <matt@sealedsecurity.com>
Review round 1 (sole review-of-record) found 0 high / 2 medium / 3 low, all citation line-number accuracy — no design-judgment findings. The record's file:line were pinned to a superseded base (f8ab68c); the record's actual parent and the ws-first-turn worktree it names as its citation source is main@origin, where SEA-1575 (2ebdf09) restructured dispatch.go and host.go. Re-pinned every drifted citation, ground-verified against main@origin: - dispatch.go execute switch :243 -> :359; default error :320-323 -> :446-449 - host.go Start/container read :264-265 and the wrong :227-228/:227 -> :284-285 - host.go READY status-answer :346,480 -> :405,785 - consumer.go deliverOp :277-281 -> :288-291 (plain miscite, not drift) - runner.pb.go DeliverControl :599,634 -> :618,655 (was pointing at the wrong variant) - mapping.ts agent_end READY :145-146 -> :115-116 Semantics were correct throughout; this is a locational fix only. The Per-site table header already labels citations as ws-first-turn (= main@origin), so the numbers now match the stated base. Additive commit atop the pushed head so the PR shows the interdiff. Refs SEA-1681, SEA-1820 Co-authored-by: Matt Wilkinson <matt@sealedsecurity.com>
At the design-PR gate Matt ruled OQ-1 (the one genuine fork left in the record):
StartAgentDialog is DELETED in T5, not reduced to a bare confirm dialog. Removing
initial_prompt empties the dialog (its only input was the prompt textarea); the
board start affordance invokes the spawn action directly with
{agentAccountId, workstreamId} (spawn is already guarded by the DL-164/168
live-session predicate and idempotent under its request id).
Ground check at ruling time: StartAgentDialog.tsx + .test.tsx still present on
main@origin and no open PR removes them, so the deletion is this design's own,
landed by T5 in PR-B after #267/SEA-1932 merges (so DL-185's "Kept" clause exists
to be amended). This resolves the record's last open fork; the status-flip is now
"one (Matt-ruled)". Settle-primitive naming (AwaitTurnSettled) was already
driver-resolved in-record.
Refs SEA-1681, SEA-1820
Co-authored-by: Matt Wilkinson <matt@sealedsecurity.com>
seal-agent
force-pushed
the
seal-first-turn-design
branch
from
August 10, 2026 20:07
ece968c to
0243e19
Compare
This file contains hidden or bidirectional Unicode text that may be interpreted or compiled differently than what appears below. To review, open the file in an editor that reveals hidden Unicode characters.
Learn more about bidirectional Unicode characters
Sign up for free
to join this conversation on GitHub.
Already have an account?
Sign in to comment
2 participants
Add this suggestion to a batch that can be applied as a single commit.This suggestion is invalid because no changes were made to the code.Suggestions cannot be applied while the pull request is closed.Suggestions cannot be applied while viewing a subset of changes.Only one suggestion per line can be applied in a batch.Add this suggestion to a batch that can be applied as a single commit.Applying suggestions on deleted lines is not supported.You must change the existing code in this line in order to create a valid suggestion.Outdated suggestions cannot be applied.This suggestion has been applied or marked resolved.Suggestions cannot be applied from pending reviews.Suggestions cannot be applied on multi-line comments.Suggestions cannot be applied while the pull request is queued to merge.Suggestion cannot be applied right now. Please check back later.
Freezes the design for removing
initial_promptfrom the whole Compass start contract (proto -> server -> runner -> agent SDK -> UI -> e2e harness). Matt has ruled the field out of existence: an agent session always starts idle, and its first turn arrives through a channel — never a prompt field the Runner silently drops today ((*agentHost).Startreads only the container name; every prompt riding the field is dropped and the agent idles forever).This record is the contract that unblocks SEA-1792 H8 / PR #256 — the dogfood e2e
TestLegTwoRealTurnis red precisely because its first turn rides the dropped field.What it decides (DL-186..189, appended to the product ledger by T7)
initial_promptremoved from the whole contract (three fields, numbers + names reserved), consumers cut over atomically with no fallback; first turn arrives over the SEA-1569 deliver path.@compassreserved alias frozen as the system-sender mechanism for any system-level message; case-1 root-manager boot scoped out to follow-up SEA-1820.AgentControl{replay_complete}as the first control op after Bind (symmetric with the resume path, no agent change).ChannelKindDM), auto-provisioned on the spawn edge — not the coordination broadcast, so siblings never receive briefs they don't need.Staging
DeliverControldispatch arm,representable()admits Deliver/Steer, fresh-start barrier-lift) + spawn-edge DM auto-provision. Greens nothing yet; independently revertable.initial_promptremoval + e2e harness re-model; greens leg-2.Honest state
The server + agent halves of the deliver seam exist; the Runner middle leg is UNBUILT at three source-verified points (dispatch has no
DeliverControlarm; gatewayrepresentable()rejects Deliver/Steer; no fresh-startreplay_completesender + the agent replay barrier strands a pre-replayCompletedeliver). The record does not claim case-2 is verified end-to-end today — PR-A builds the leg.Open for Matt at this gate
StartAgentDialogdisposition — removing the prompt empties the dialog, but DL-185 (SEA-1932, Active) explicitly keeps it. Delete vs bare-confirm is Matt's call (recommendation: delete). One conditional status-flip on DL-185's "Kept" clause.AwaitTurnSettled).Every cited file:line grounded against
main@origin. No code, codegen, or proto changed — design record only.Spec-impact: none. Refs SEA-1681, SEA-1820.
Co-authored-by: Matt Wilkinson matt@sealedsecurity.com