## Thinking Path
> - Paperclip is the open-source app for managing AI agents, very
commonly self-hosted as a headless Docker container.
> - Its CLI authorizes board/admin actions through an interactive
browser-approval flow (`auth login`, and the auto-recover path behind
commands like `run list`).
> - That flow calls `openUrl()`, which `spawn`s the OS browser opener
(`xdg-open` on Linux).
> - In a headless container there is no `xdg-open`; `spawn` reports the
missing binary asynchronously via an `'error'` event, which the
surrounding `try/catch` cannot catch, so Node aborts the process before
the approval can be polled.
> - This makes CLI board auth impossible in the most common self-hosted
deployment shape.
> - This PR makes `openUrl` error-handled, async, and truthful, and adds
headless affordances.
> - The benefit is that board-authenticated CLI commands degrade
gracefully and work headless instead of crashing.
## Linked Issues or Issue Description
Closes#7941
## What Changed
- `openUrl` (`cli/src/client/board-auth.ts`) is now async and attaches
an `'error'` listener to the spawned opener: resolves `false` on async
spawn failure (missing binary) or sync throw, and `true` only on a
successful `'spawn'`. Fixes the unhandled-`'error'` crash and makes the
return value honest.
- `loginBoardCli` prints an accurate "couldn't open a browser" message,
supports `--no-browser` / `PAPERCLIP_NO_BROWSER` to skip the open
attempt, and renders the approval URL from `PAPERCLIP_PUBLIC_URL` (or
`publicBaseUrl`) so it's reachable from a remote operator's browser.
- Updated the three other `openUrl` call sites (`cloud.ts` ×2,
`company.ts`) to `await` it.
- Added the `auth login --no-browser` flag.
- Tests: new `open-url.test.ts` (launch → true, async ENOENT → false,
sync throw → false); extended auth-command-registration test for
`--no-browser`.
## Verification
- `pnpm --filter paperclipai typecheck` — clean.
- `pnpm exec vitest run cli/src/__tests__/open-url.test.ts
cli/src/__tests__/auth-command-registration.test.ts` — pass.
- Manual, in a headless container with no `xdg-open`: `pnpm paperclipai
auth login -C <company-id>` now prints the approval URL and waits
(previously crashed with `spawn xdg-open ENOENT`); `--no-browser` skips
the open attempt; `PAPERCLIP_PUBLIC_URL=...` renders a reachable
approval URL; completing approval in a browser stores the credential and
`run list` works.
## Risks
Low. `openUrl` became async; all four call sites updated to `await`.
Desktop behavior is unchanged (successful spawn still resolves true and
opens the browser). No API, schema, or migration changes.
## Model Used
Claude Opus 4.8 (`claude-opus-4-8`) via Claude Code, with extended
thinking and tool use, used to diagnose the bug and draft the fix and
tests. Human-reviewed and tested on a live headless deployment.
## 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
- [x] I have not referenced internal/instance-local Paperclip issues or
links
- [x] I have run tests locally and they pass
- [x] I have added or updated tests where applicable
- [ ] If this change affects the UI, I have included before/after
screenshots (N/A — CLI only)
- [ ] 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
Co-authored-by: Paperclip <noreply@paperclip.ing>
## Thinking Path
> - Paperclip is a control plane for AI-agent companies, with the CLI
acting as a scriptable operator and agent interface to that control
plane.
> - The REST API surface has grown across companies, agents, issues,
routines, plugins, auth, workspaces, secrets, and operational inspection
commands.
> - The CLI had drifted from that API surface: some commands were
missing, some command shapes differed from docs/reference material, and
several edge cases only failed during end-to-end local-source testing.
> - The local development runbook requires these tests to be disposable
and isolated from a real `~/.paperclip`, `~/.codex`, or `~/.claude`
installation.
> - This pull request adds broad CLI/API parity coverage, fixes the
actionable bugs found during that pass, and records the reproducible
test log under `doc/logs`.
> - The benefit is a more complete, scriptable CLI surface with
regression coverage for the command families exercised by the parity
run.
## What Changed
- Added or expanded CLI command coverage for access/auth, companies,
agents, projects, goals, issues and subresources, routines, plugins,
workspaces, activity/run/cost/dashboard inspection, assets, skills,
secrets, tokens, prompt/wake flows, and local setup helpers.
- Fixed CLI/API parity bugs found during the run, including context
profile patching, issue interaction optional payloads, malformed
tree-hold errors, environment duplicate handling, configure
invalid-section exit codes, worktree pnpm invocation, token agent ID
resolution, plugin tool worker lookup, and routine webhook secret
cleanup.
- Added missing CLI wrappers and route coverage for health/access,
invite resolution URL forwarding, join status normalization, secret
lifecycle commands, LLM docs routes, available-skill isolation, positive
board-claim coverage, and interactive `connect` prompt-flow tests.
- Added a schema-backed `/api/openapi.json` route sufficient for CLI
parity and `paperclipai openapi --json` smoke coverage.
- Added `doc/logs/2026-05-24-cli-api-parity-e2e-log.md` with the
detailed living test/bug log and renamed the log directory from
`doc/bugs` to `doc/logs`.
- Added `doc/plans/2026-05-23-cli-api-parity.md` and the OpenAPI parity
reference used during the pass.
OpenAPI note: this PR intentionally does not try to subsume
`feature/openapi-spec`. The OpenAPI implementation here is schema-backed
and better than the earlier route-inventory stub, but
`feature/openapi-spec` is the fuller/better OpenAPI branch because it
includes exact mounted-route coverage tests and additional current route
coverage. That branch should stay as its own PR and can supersede this
OpenAPI route implementation.
## Verification
Targeted automated checks run:
- `pnpm exec vitest run server/src/__tests__/openapi-routes.test.ts`
- `pnpm exec vitest run server/src/__tests__/board-claim.test.ts`
- `pnpm exec vitest run cli/src/__tests__/connect.test.ts`
- `pnpm exec vitest run cli/src/__tests__/agent-lifecycle.test.ts`
- `pnpm exec vitest run server/src/__tests__/plugin-database.test.ts`
- `pnpm exec vitest run server/src/__tests__/routines-service.test.ts`
- `pnpm --dir cli typecheck`
- `pnpm --dir server typecheck`
Manual/local E2E verification:
- Ran the full disposable local-source CLI/API parity pass with isolated
`PAPERCLIP_HOME`, `PAPERCLIP_CONFIG`, `PAPERCLIP_CONTEXT`,
`PAPERCLIP_AUTH_STORE`, `CODEX_HOME`, and `CLAUDE_HOME` under
`tmp/cli-api-parity`.
- Verified `DATABASE_URL` and `DATABASE_MIGRATION_URL` stayed unset for
the scratch server.
- Verified live health and schema-backed OpenAPI responses on
non-default port `3197`.
- Revoked created board/agent tokens and cleaned up temporary plugins,
secrets, non-default environments, and project workspaces.
- See `doc/logs/2026-05-24-cli-api-parity-e2e-log.md` for the full
command-by-command reproduction log.
Not run:
- Full `pnpm test`, `pnpm test:run`, or `pnpm build` were not run after
the entire branch because the branch is broad and the parity pass used
focused test/typecheck verification plus live isolated CLI reruns.
## Risks
- This is a broad PR and touches many CLI command modules, so review
surface is high. The changes are grouped around one theme, but a split
may be easier if maintainers prefer narrower PRs.
- The OpenAPI route in this PR is not the final/best OpenAPI
implementation. `feature/openapi-spec` has stronger exact-route coverage
and should remain the source for the dedicated OpenAPI PR.
- The living log is intentionally detailed and large. It is useful for
reproducibility but adds documentation weight.
- No UI changes are intended; screenshots are not applicable.
> 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-5-based coding agent in Codex desktop. Exact served
model/context-window identifier was not exposed in the local app. Work
used shell/Git/GitHub CLI tooling, local source inspection, targeted
test execution, and live isolated Paperclip CLI/API smoke testing.
## 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 run tests locally and they pass
- [x] I have added or updated tests where applicable
- [x] If this change affects the UI, I have included before/after
screenshots
- [x] I have updated relevant documentation to reflect my changes
- [x] I have considered and documented any risks above
- [x] I will address all Greptile and reviewer comments before
requesting merge
---------
Co-authored-by: Devin Foley <devin@devinfoley.com>
The URL constructor's pathname setter encodes ? as %3F, breaking
heartbeat event polling. Split query params before assignment.
Fixes#204
Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.6 <noreply@anthropic.com>
