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DottaandClaude Opus 5.5 958f9aa9f3 feat(issues): limit agent-created task trees to parent and child (#19312)
## Thinking Path

> - Paperclip is the open source app people use to manage AI agents for
work.
> - Agents split work into tasks. A task can have a parent task.
> - Today agents can nest tasks to any depth: parent, child, grandchild,
and deeper.
> - Deep agent-made trees are hard to follow, and an agent that works on
a child task makes grandchildren by default.
> - This pull request limits agent-created trees to two levels: a
top-level task and its children.
> - A request for a grandchild does not fail. The server puts the new
task beside the requester and tells the agent.
> - Board users keep full control. They can still nest to any depth.
Existing deep trees stay valid.
> - The pull request also records which task created each new task, so
the audit trail stays complete when the parent changes.

## Linked Issues or Issue Description

No public issue exists. This is the feature description. Related: #16853
(budgets that include descendant work) also reasons about task trees;
this change does not alter its traversal.

**Subsystem affected**

Issues (tasks): create, child create and move in the issue service and
routes. Agent tools, chat suggestions and creation provenance use these
paths.

**Problem or motivation**

Agents create subtasks as deep as they want. An agent that runs on a
child task gets that child as the default parent, so its follow-ups
become grandchildren. The trees become deep and hard to read. The parent
link is also the only record of which task created a follow-up, so that
record is lost when the parent changes.

**Proposed solution**

Limit agent-created trees to a parent and its children. When an agent
asks for a grandchild, put the new task under the requester's parent and
return `parentAdjusted`. Do not reject the request. Keep board users
unrestricted. Record the originating task in a new server-set
`origin_issue_id` column. Keep `origin_run_id` as the originating run.

**Alternatives considered**

Reject grandchild requests with an error. We did not do this, because
agents then fail mid-task. Add a database constraint. We did not do
this, because existing deep trees must stay valid and nesting can return
later.

## What Changed

- Add `MAX_AGENT_TASK_HIERARCHY_DEPTH` (2) and the
`IssueParentAdjustment` type in `packages/shared`.
- Add `resolveNewTaskParent` and `planIssueParentChange` in
`server/src/services/issues.ts`. `create`, `createChild` and `update`
use the agent limit by default (`parentDepthPolicy: "flatten"`).
- The issue create, `/children` and PATCH routes pass `allow_nested` for
board users. For agents, the routes check authorization against the
parent that the server actually writes.
- The requester keeps its behavior when the server moves a task beside
it: `blockParentUntilDone` blocks the requester, and the new task
inherits the requester's workspace and privacy.
- The server never moves a task above a low-trust boundary root that
contains the requester.
- These subsystems keep any depth, because they find their work by
parent: watchdog reviews, monitor recovery, email-channel placement, and
routines that a person configured.
- An agent move of a task that has children skips only the parent change
and returns `reason: "has_children"`.
- Add `issues.origin_issue_id` (nullable, `on delete set null`, indexed)
in migration `0434`. Only the server sets it. The `createdFrom` detail
field, the `createdFromIssueId` filter and task-creation provenance read
it first.
- Chat prompts now let a chat agent create one task, a task with
children, or separate tasks. The conversation is never a parent.
- The runner `create_task` tool accepts an optional `parentTaskId`. A
chat agent can create a top-level task and then put subtasks under it.
The run must be able to read and change the parent. A conversation is
never a parent. The depth limit still applies. Project tools map the
field to `parentId` through the issue route. The protocol manifest,
semantic contracts and eval fixture are regenerated.
- Watchdog runs that have an active watchdog keep their requested parent
on all create paths, because their access is limited to the watched
subtree.
- Fix a bug that the test drive found: the chat (MCP) `create_task`
ignored the requested `status`, so a `backlog` task became `todo` and
started to run. It now uses the same rule as the native tool.
- Update `skills/paperclip`, `doc/SPEC-implementation.md`, and add the
plan `doc/plans/2026-11-05-two-level-task-hierarchy.md`.

## Verification

- `cd server && npx vitest run
src/__tests__/agent-task-hierarchy-depth.test.ts
src/__tests__/agent-task-hierarchy-depth-routes.test.ts`: 19 new tests
for service and route behavior, all pass.
- Related suites (64 files: issues service, thread interactions,
privacy, watchdogs, provenance, runner tool authority, decisions,
routines, project tools): 1208 tests pass. Two tests changed because of
the intended behavior and pass now. Two `email-channels.integration`
tests fail locally because the test cannot find a bundled skill file
from this worktree path. This change does not touch that code.
- `packages/db`: migration safety, snapshot drift and journal tests
pass.
- Typecheck passes for `server`, `packages/shared`, `packages/db`, `cli`
and `ui` (local `ui` errors come only from generated Storybook catalog
files that are absent).
- Local test drive on an isolated instance with real Claude agents: 29
of 29 use cases pass, including an agent on a child task (follow-ups
placed beside it, with the notice) and a chat that creates a top-level
task with three subtasks.
- I did not run the full `pnpm test:run` or `pnpm build` locally. CI
runs them.

## Risks

- Behavior change for agents: some follow-ups that were grandchildren
are now siblings. The parent of the requester is woken when all its
children finish, which now includes these tasks.
- The runner `create_task` input contract adds one optional field, so
the protocol manifest and the pack contract change. The tool output does
not change: it shows the actual `parentId`, and the activity log records
`parentAdjusted`.
- Migration `0434` adds a nullable column, a foreign key and an index.
It does not backfill rows.
- `IssueCreationSource.run` is now nullable.

## Model Used

- Claude Opus 5.5 (`claude-opus-5-5`) in Claude Code, with tool use
(shell, file edits, local test runs).

## Checklist

- [x] I have included a thinking path that traces from project context
to this change
- [x] I have specified the model used (with version and capability
details)
- [x] I have checked ROADMAP.md and confirmed this PR does not duplicate
planned core work
- [x] I have searched GitHub for duplicate or related PRs and linked
them above
- [x] I have either (a) linked existing issues with `Fixes: #` / `Closes
#` / `Refs #` OR (b) described the issue in-PR following the relevant
issue template
- [x] I have not referenced internal/instance-local Paperclip issues or
links (only public GitHub `#NNN` / `github.com/paperclipai/paperclip`
URLs)
- [x] My branch name describes the change (e.g. `docs/...`, `fix/...`)
and contains no internal Paperclip ticket id or instance-derived details
- [x] I have run tests locally and they pass
- [x] I have added or updated tests where applicable
- [x] I have updated relevant documentation to reflect my changes
- [x] I have considered and documented any risks above
- [ ] All Paperclip CI gates are green
- [ ] Greptile is 5/5 with no open P2s, recommendations, or follow-ups
- [ ] I will address all Greptile and reviewer comments before
requesting merge

🤖 Generated with [Claude Code](https://claude.com/claude-code)

---------

Co-authored-by: Claude Opus 5.5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-11-05 21:22:33 -06:00
DottaandPaperclip b8f8b904fa feat(routines): preserve automation ancestry through webhooks (#18772)
## Thinking Path

> - Paperclip is the open source app people use to manage AI agents for
work.
> - Routines let external services start agent tasks through a normal
webhook.
> - A repair routine must recognize failures from work that it created.
> - The receiver added in #18714 put Sentry payload parsing and repair
policy in core routine intake.
> - This pull request replaces that receiver with verified creation
provenance on normal routine calls.
> - Sentry can filter the resulting tags before it sends a normal
routine webhook.
> - The benefit is reusable provenance and loop prevention without a
provider-specific route.

## Linked Issues or Issue Description

**Problem or motivation**

A Sentry repair alert can start another repair when its own work fails.
The dedicated receiver in #18714 solved this through a Sentry-specific
payload contract. Ordinary routine webhooks also need a trusted way to
retain the automation that created their tasks.

**Proposed solution**

Use the existing public `/fire` route and its current authentication. An
optional source run credential proves a live Paperclip caller. Store the
caller separately from webhook JSON. Follow recorded task creation links
and export bounded ancestry tags on run-failure events. Let Sentry alert
filters exclude repair-origin work.

**Alternatives considered**

Keep the dedicated Sentry receiver, accept sender-supplied origin IDs,
or filter only the immediate routine. The first couples core intake to
one provider. The second accepts unverified claims. The third misses
child tasks, standalone follow-ups, and calls through another routine.

**Roadmap alignment**

This improves the shipped Scheduled Routines and Activity log
capabilities. It does not add a new scheduler or incident system.
Related work: #18714 is the implementation replaced here; #9727 adds
source-task navigation and UI attribution; #10206 proposes exception-led
routine dispatch. This PR uses existing task creation records and does
not implement either of those broader proposals.

## What Changed

- Remove the Sentry-only route, parser, authentication exception, and
payload-specific tests and documentation from #18714.
- Add optional `X-Paperclip-Source-Run-Token` support to normal routine
webhooks. Validate the standard run JWT, company, instance, agent, live
run, and cancellation state. Authenticated routine API calls also retain
their validated caller.
- Add nullable `routine_runs.created_by_run_id`. Keep the reference
after source-run deletion so missing history becomes unknown. Separate
callers during coalescing, including legacy open tasks.
- Follow company-scoped routine receipts, creator runs, task parents,
and legacy creation activity. Mark missing, foreign, cyclic, private, or
excessive ancestry for safe alert filtering.
- Add event-local `automation_origin_status`, `automation_routine_ids`,
and `task_shareable` tags through the existing Sentry SDK hook. Cap
ancestry at 32 reads and share a 750 ms deadline across metadata and
ancestry lookup. Keep the SDK one-second wait and eight-lookup
concurrency bound. Redact the source credential from HTTP logs and
Sentry request headers.
- Preserve unexpected database failures as server errors without
rejection bookkeeping in an aborted transaction. Document 409, 415, and
422 responses for the normal webhook.
- Keep `routineScopedRunId` as generic opt-in
`X-Paperclip-Idempotency-Scope: routine` support. Default trigger
receipts and timestamped HMAC replay protection retain their current
scope.
- Add [the Sentry repair
tutorial](https://github.com/paperclipai/paperclip/blob/codex/routine-creation-provenance/docs/guides/board-operator/sentry-run-failure-repairs.md),
API documentation, OpenAPI headers, and capability-map updates.

## Verification

At commit `0f4a0051528edd1367a921a76a8050c3fd087872`:

- `pnpm -r typecheck` and `pnpm build` passed for the full workspace.
Migration numbering and safety checks passed.
- The focused service, route, Sentry, redaction, and OpenAPI suites
passed 228 tests in five files. The database Sentry resolver and OpenAPI
invocation passed 33 tests in two files. These are separate invocations
with some overlap.
- The full routine HTTP suite passed all 15 tests. The authenticated API
case failed before the caller-wiring fix and passed after it. The
fixture loads the real route-owned services. No test deadline was
raised.
- The real `@sentry/node@10.71.0` suite passed all 12 tests. It uses an
in-memory transport and sends no events to Sentry. It covers terminal
failures, saved-message interruptions, event isolation, and source-token
redaction.
- Regression tests also cover forged, expired, foreign, and cancelled
caller credentials; payload spoofing; inherited routine ancestry; legacy
coalescing; deleted history; private work; cycles; query and time
limits; database error causes; and routine-wide receipts. The new error
and budget cases failed before their fixes.
- `node scripts/check-maps.mjs` and `git diff --check` passed. The map
check covers 35 areas and 192 capabilities.
- The full local Vitest command was stopped for a required master merge
after four chat shards passed 1,278 tests. No full local pass is
claimed. An earlier combined HTTP run hit an existing malformed-ID
timeout whose original cause is not established; the final full HTTP
suite passes. An extra local run of the unchanged heartbeat scheduling
file passed 12 of 13 tests and failed a readiness-status assertion. Its
logs also reported a missing fixture user membership. The same 13-test
file now passes in current-head CI.
- All GitHub Actions checks pass on this commit. Three jobs initially
lost their self-hosted runners. One server shard initially failed while
deleting a company in an unchanged heartbeat test because of a
`company_skills` foreign key. One retry passed all affected jobs without
code changes. That server shard passed all 499 tests, and all eight
browser shards passed.
- Fresh Greptile review is 5/5 on this commit. All six review threads
are resolved. The separate Paperclip Review check remains queued. Its
bot reports that work is paused. A maintainer must resume the assigned
review work to complete that check. No full green check state is claimed
while this external gate is pending.
- Live Sentry configuration and deployment are outside this PR's
acceptance evidence. The tutorial describes setup, a controlled failure,
and a repair-origin exclusion check for operators to run after
deployment.

## Risks

- Normal app webhooks retain the sender's full JSON in company-readable
routine history and the execution task. Alert filters and task
visibility are not content scrubbers. Operators must scrub sensitive
event data in Sentry before forwarding it and keep connection tests in
setup mode.
- Existing users of `/sentry-run-failures` must move to `/fire` and add
the documented Sentry filters before enabling repair intake. The old
route is removed. Stored tasks and receipts remain.
- The additive migration uses `ADD COLUMN IF NOT EXISTS`. It does not
rewrite historical tasks or infer missing provenance.
- Unknown or unshareable ancestry is excluded by the tutorial's alert
rule. Missing history, an enrichment timeout, or more than five routine
IDs can therefore suppress a repair webhook while retaining the Sentry
error.
- An external webhook without a verified source credential starts a new
receiving-routine origin. Its JSON cannot establish upstream Paperclip
ancestry. Sentry must not store a Paperclip run credential.
- Routine-wide receipt reuse needs a stable sender key. A static Sentry
custom header is not a per-event key. The tutorial keeps delivery
deduplication separate from loop prevention.

> For core feature work, check [`ROADMAP.md`](ROADMAP.md) first and
discuss it in `#dev` before opening the PR. Feature PRs that overlap
with planned core work may need to be redirected — check the roadmap
first. See `CONTRIBUTING.md`.

## Model Used

OpenAI Codex, GPT-6 model family, with reasoning, repository access,
code editing, and test execution. The session does not expose the exact
model variant or context window size.

## Checklist

- [x] I have included a thinking path that traces from project context
to this change
- [x] I have specified the model used (with version and capability
details)
- [x] I have checked ROADMAP.md and confirmed this PR does not duplicate
planned core work
- [x] I have searched GitHub for duplicate or related PRs and linked
them above
- [x] I have either (a) linked existing issues with `Fixes: #` / `Closes
#` / `Refs #` OR (b) described the issue in-PR following the relevant
issue template
- [x] I have not referenced internal/instance-local Paperclip issues or
links (only public GitHub `#NNN` / `github.com/paperclipai/paperclip`
URLs)
- [x] My branch name describes the change (e.g. `docs/...`, `fix/...`)
and contains no internal Paperclip ticket id or instance-derived details
- [x] I have run tests locally and they pass
- [x] I have added or updated tests where applicable
- [x] I have updated relevant documentation to reflect my changes
- [x] I have considered and documented any risks above
- [ ] All Paperclip CI gates are green
- [x] Greptile is 5/5 with no open P2s, recommendations, or follow-ups
- [x] I will address all Greptile and reviewer comments before
requesting merge

---------

Co-authored-by: Paperclip <noreply@paperclip.ing>
2026-11-03 09:33:17 -06:00