PaperClipAI/maps/feature-map/workspaces.md

---
navigation: {"section":"Projects and execution","sectionOrder":40,"order":30}
---

# Workspaces, services, and files

A project or task can use a managed workspace with inspectable files, Git state, services, and runtime controls. Operators can follow its lifecycle through provisioning, use, and closure.

Feature ID: `workspaces`.

Implementation: [workspace list](../../ui/src/pages/Workspaces.tsx), [execution workspace](../../ui/src/pages/ExecutionWorkspaceDetail.tsx), [project workspace](../../ui/src/pages/ProjectWorkspaceDetail.tsx).

Agent access: [companion](../agent-access-map/workspaces.md).

## Sub-features

- `binding`: `workspaces/binding` — identify the workspace actually bound to a task/run.
- `provisioning`: `workspaces/provisioning` — observe readiness and failures instead of inferring readiness from a created record.
- `services`: `workspaces/services` — start/stop supported services and inspect logs and exposed endpoints.
- `files-git`: `workspaces/files-git` — inspect workspace files and repository state used for the deliverable.
- `closure`: `workspaces/closure` — close/reopen or reconcile through permitted controls without losing work.

For a historical failed export whose exact sandbox was destroyed, the task recovery
notice offers **Continue from saved sources** to an authorized board operator.
Select surviving task attachments, record lost work and external action outcomes,
then rebuild through fresh-session admission. The old failed run remains failed.
Bounded bootstrap retries retain this decision and recheck their system wake,
predecessors, saved files and current execution gates before provider startup.
Later cancelled runs require their own confirmed stop and board file repair.
Their evidence is preserved with the reconstruction and rechecked before dispatch.
Stop retains unfinished native files; startup also repairs missing historical
retention without replaying the cancelled turn.
Daytona stop-only cleanup confirms retention and accepts an already archived source.
Cancelled native file recovery can record a verified no-action outcome. Its
confirmation stays optional and resets when the source changes.
Retained sandboxes keep their existing export recovery path. Automated coverage:
[reconstruction](../../server/src/services/native-runtime/native-workspace-reconstruction.test.ts).
Live staging acceptance remains separate from these regression tests.

## How to get to it (user POV)

### `task-workspace`

Use the task’s workspace card or Files panel and follow its workspace link.

Native artifact-copy verification: in an admitted standard-mode task, save a
synthetic API response and call `download_artifact` with its saved identity and a
new workspace-relative filename. Independently inspect the file's complete byte
count and SHA-256 through the admitted filesystem. Retry the identical request;
reject a conflicting destination, symlink, revoked authority and foreign artifact.
The transfer does not change the content's untrusted status. See
[API tools](../../doc/runner-api-tools.md#verified-artifact-installation) for support
and limits. Provider-free regression evidence is not live remote qualification.

### `workspace-management`

Open `/workspaces`, a project workspace, or `/execution-workspaces/:workspaceId` and its Services/Configuration/Runtime logs views.

## Driving it with Playwright and the Paperclip CLI

Preconditions: follow the [baseline](./README.md#before-driving-a-journey). Enable isolated-workspace UI where needed. Use an owned disposable repository and environment; record workspace ID and branch.

### `task-workspace`

Automated: [workspace card](../../ui/src/components/IssueWorkspaceCard.test.tsx) and [task binding](../../server/src/__tests__/issue-runtime-workspace-binding.test.ts) cover host/binding contracts.

Manual: Run a task that writes a small file, follow the bound workspace, and inspect the file and revision. Reload and verify links still refer to the same workspace, not another checkout or a stale run.

For experimental native remote storage, follow the
[deployment prerequisites and explicit local import](../../doc/DEVELOPING.md#experimental-native-remote-workspace-storage).
With durable Postgres, S3, and a stable key configured, a new disposable
Paperclip Runner sandbox task with a supported fresh source enrolls by default.
Verify an explicit `remoteWorkspaceStorageEnabled: false` disables new enrollment,
and an existing host workspace or configured local folder stays on its legacy
path until explicitly imported. An enrolled workspace must keep remote authority
when enrollment is disabled and fail admission if persistence prerequisites are
lost. Write ordinary/binary files and, for Git, staged, unstaged, and unpushed
work. Finish the run and inspect its saved version. Replace the webserver and
verify the next task turn uses the same remote folder without a controller
checkout. Then release the saved allocation and verify a new one restores the
files, Git state, and managed same-project repositories without the old sandbox
or original Git remote. Read-only cross-project referenced folders must fail
admission. Separate workspaces may run concurrently; shared concurrent writers
must be rejected.

Repeat remote capture with enough free space for the archive and normalized Git
metadata, but not another working-tree copy. Verify saved files and Git state
after restore. A concurrent file change must fail capture without publishing a
receipt or retaining a partial archive. The
[portable archive suite](../../server/src/services/remote-workspace-snapshot-archive.test.ts)
checks the space allowance and concurrent-change boundary; its filesystem quota
is controlled test input, not a live sandbox qualification.

Create a child that inherits a saved isolated workspace or operator branch.
Verify it continues the same files after the prior writer saves, including on a
new allocation. Two bound children must not acquire concurrent writer authority.
Start the child while its parent is still writing. Verify it waits with one
scheduled retry and retains its workspace binding without acquiring an allocation.
Stop the waiting task and verify that the retry cannot execute. A stale writer
or a stopped writer with unfinished saves must remain fenced.
Reassign the child during preparation before reservation reports contention;
retry promotion must cancel the former assignee's run without starting it.
The [reservation regression](../../server/src/services/remote-workspace-reservation.test.ts)
and [saved-file lifecycle suite](../../server/src/services/remote-workspaces.integration.test.ts)
exercise inheritance, access checks, and file continuity with real PostgreSQL.
Their filesystem transport is local test execution, not live sandbox/provider proof.

The Files panel must label **Live workspace** or **Saved copy** with its save
time. Confirm browse, preview, and download agree. A missing allocation with
unsaved work must report unavailability rather than show an old save as current.
After a final save clears dirty state and writer authority, Files must read the
current committed saved version even while the old allocation is still recorded
or its read transport is unavailable. Confirm the original bytes and Saved copy
label; a new writer or dirty state must retain the live-read requirement.
Clear the recorded allocation while a saved preview is loading: the pinned copy
must remain readable. Epoch, snapshot, source, writer, dirty-state, and foreign
or reintroduced location changes must still reject the read. Live reads keep
their physical-location fence, and all private saved copies must be removed.
Close must retain dirty/unfinished work and reject custom cleanup/teardown
commands; a clean saved workspace can release compute while retaining files.
Manual runtime commands, jobs, repairs, and service starts must reject remote
workspaces before local filesystem access; agent task execution remains supported.
The archive, storage, migration, retention, and lifecycle regression suites
exercise these contracts separately. This recipe records required deployment
checks; it does not claim a live provider or webserver replacement passed.

For a repository-free isolated task, complete an explicitly fresh retry, save a
marker, then send ordinary new input. It must retain the bound attempt directory
and marker. A later explicitly fresh retry must use a separate clean sibling.
The [production preparation regression](../../server/src/services/heartbeat/workspace-preparation.test.ts)
uses PostgreSQL and real private directories; it also rejects changed bindings.
The [directory boundary suite](../../server/src/services/isolated-task-directory.test.ts)
checks namespace, missing-directory and symlink refusal. Neither suite proves a
hosted provider turn.

For slow source preparation, configure a short PostgreSQL idle-transaction
timeout in a disposable instance. Hold preparation beyond that interval and
verify it retains its source lock, rejects competing preparation, and leaves
ordinary reads available. The [source-lock regression](../../server/src/services/isolated-remote-workspace-source-lock.test.ts)
uses real PostgreSQL; it does not prove provider startup or deployed recovery.

Create an authorized task whose selected checkout is also used by private historical
tasks and many old workspace records. Start and reuse it without a historical-source
permission failure or remote-clone fallback. Verify task-bound file browsing works,
while private historical task content and operation logs remain denied through app
APIs. Root traversal and symlink escapes must remain rejected. The OS and execution
environment own isolation between agents; Paperclip does not classify existing bytes
by the task that wrote them. Existing `workspace_source_restricted` failures remain
inspectable and recoverable, but new preparation does not produce that failure from
filesystem history. Current trust, credential, binding, and publication checks still
apply. The preparation-history benchmark supplies local service measurements, not
provider deployment qualification.

For reconstructable Git expiration, finish a disposable task tree, run the
internal lifecycle sweep after its 24-hour grace, and inspect candidate/reclaimed
bytes. Advance its upstream first; use the ordinary task/workspace reopen control
and verify the original commit, file contents, and subsequent persisted work.
Current runs, previews, recovery, unique files and shared base clones must stay.
The [expiration tests](../../server/src/__tests__/git-workspace-expiration.test.ts)
exercise real local Git and database paths, interruption and concurrent reopening;
cloud credentials and the deployed user journey require separate live evidence.

For task workspace selection, use the authorized task workspace API to choose a
task directory, project source, or existing workspace. Verify that a change
made during a run stays pending until the next normal admission. Submit another
choice using the returned revision, then retry the superseded request; it must
fail without replacing the newer pending choice. A projectless
task must retain its files across resume and reassignment. Use the repository
preparation API to add an authorized repository beneath that workspace;
repeat the request and verify that it reuses the checkout and pinned revision.
See [task binding tests](../../server/src/__tests__/task-workspace-binding.test.ts)
and [repository access tests](../../server/src/__tests__/task-workspace-repositories-trust.test.ts).

For native unfinished work, yield after preparation is staged and verify that
normal admission prepares the repository and continues the same task without
a timer or user message. A staging-only task that finishes must not wake again.
The saved continuation must disappear when the repository is ready or belongs
to another task. Source regressions cover those eligibility checks; a live
provider journey is required to qualify the complete automatic resume.

An existing projectless folder alias of a sandbox-restricted project must be
rejected for a standard local task before its adapter executes. Repeat after
relocating the configured source; retained ownership must still enforce the
boundary. This is separate from ordinary authorized file preview/download.
For a registered worktree selected for a sandbox or SSH environment, configured
and built-in provision scripts must not run on the controller during fresh
creation, reuse, or rebuild, including host runtime provisioning. Repeat with
standard trust and a protected read-only source, then with source write grants;
permissions must not change execution placement. Verify isolated source copying
and selected-environment dispatch still work. Repeat an explicit local isolated
source choice: copying remains available but controller scripts must stay absent,
including after binding or metadata changes and closed-worktree reopening. An
implicit trusted local project default remains a positive provisioning control.
Repeat with a newer configured default overriding an older primary source, then
with a newer primary overriding an older nonprimary source. Both configured and
built-in hooks must run for the implicit local default. Task creation and controller
classification share configured-default, primary, creation-time and ID precedence.
Explicit choices and saved copy-only markers still suppress hooks; changing the
default must not rotate an existing binding or clear its marker.
SSH keeps its explicit remote provision-command path; these checks
do not claim a new sandbox provision transport.
Low-trust closed-worktree reopening, including a board-comment reopen of a projectless task, must also suppress both kinds of host provision script. Returned checkpoints must reject file, symlink or missing parents before host writes, even if a nested file is marked unchanged. The retained host file and recovery evidence must survive rejection. These are automated safety contracts, not new live runtime acceptance.

An unchanged returned snapshot skips the host scan after acquiring the writer lock
and checking authority. Concurrent host edits remain untouched; changed files,
modes, symlinks and deletions still take the conflict path. The
[unchanged restore regression](../../packages/adapter-utils/src/workspace-restore-unchanged.test.ts)
checks both hooks under the lock. This is source-level coverage, not a cloud latency result.

For a child created by an admitted agent with an explicit existing workspace, verify that a matching sandbox boundary permits creation before the child has an ID. A changed child policy, unrelated parent, or forged creator run must fail. See the [child workspace trust regression](../../server/src/__tests__/task-workspace-child-trust.test.ts). This automated contract does not add live acceptance evidence.

### `workspace-management`

Automated: [workspace detail](../../ui/src/pages/ExecutionWorkspaceDetail.test.tsx) and [runtime service](../../server/src/__tests__/workspace-runtime.test.ts) cover UI and runtime contracts separately.

Manual: Provision a disposable workspace, wait for readiness, start an available service, open its endpoint, and inspect a real response and logs. Stop it and verify it actually stops. Exercise close/reopen only after inspecting pending changes and active runs.

## Gotchas

- UI visibility, default isolation policy, the local environment row, a workspace
  record, and a running service are distinct prerequisites. A fresh instance
  still needs an owned cwd/repository and runtime commands; `/workspaces` lists
  existing work. Reopening depends on lifecycle, not a generic detail action.

- A link or running badge does not prove the service is reachable from the user’s browser.
- Workspace IDs, runtime leases, and repository paths are not interchangeable.
- Remote workspace snapshots require external Postgres, S3, and the original
  encryption key. Edits after the last save still depend on the sandbox; there
  is no periodic workspace backup. The experiment does not remove the instance
  volume or establish zero-outage deployment for other data paths.
- Terminal workspace cleanup wakes after committed task/workspace/PR/finalization changes and
  restores cooldown deadlines at startup. Empty lanes stop scanning. Metadata reads
  do not inspect storage. Providers without ancestry inspection use finalized HEAD
  and destination-aware GitHub proof before storage checks. Associated squash PRs
  need not be recorded manually; wrong HEAD/base, unreachable integration commits,
  or unavailable credentials retain the workspace. Compatible records share one advisory Git
  inspection per bounded page, while each record keeps its own delivery check.
  Destructive cleanup starts a separate Git scan even if an older scan is running.
  The [worker tests](../../server/src/__tests__/terminal-workspace-work.test.ts)
  cover quiet lanes and deadlines. The
  [service tests](../../server/src/__tests__/execution-workspaces-service.test.ts)
  cover real PostgreSQL signals and retained worktrees. These tests do not
  qualify an external wake alarm or a live provider deployment.
- Organizational project, source project, task files, personal `AGENT_HOME`, and
  provider home have separate meanings. Private source ownership remains attached
  to copied files after source configuration changes or workspace closure.
- Use [recovery](./recovery.md) for divergence/export repair and [CLI operations](./cli-operations.md) for local worktree tooling.

### Storybook verification

#### `closure`

Capability ID: `workspaces/closure`.

Scope: ui
Storybook: Close-readiness checks, pending changes/active runs, blocked/pending/error close, retry close and eligible reopening.
Production: Confirm owned workspace shutdown, preserved files/Git state and permitted lifecycle transition/reopening; Browser Use session closure is unrelated.
Workspace detail and operation-history reads do not inspect Git or remote storage. Delivery is unknown until explicit close readiness or lifecycle inspection. Verify that these reads work during an inspection outage, while destructive close still refuses unverified data.
Sources: Source: [ExecutionWorkspaceDetail.tsx](../../ui/src/pages/ExecutionWorkspaceDetail.tsx), [ExecutionWorkspaceCloseDialog.tsx](../../ui/src/components/ExecutionWorkspaceCloseDialog.tsx), [execution-workspaces.ts](../../server/src/routes/execution-workspaces.ts). Tests: [execution-workspaces-routes.test.ts](../../server/src/__tests__/execution-workspaces-routes.test.ts), [execution-workspaces-service.test.ts](../../server/src/__tests__/execution-workspaces-service.test.ts), [execution-workspace-reopen.test.ts](../../server/src/__tests__/execution-workspace-reopen.test.ts)