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PaperClipAI/doc/run-log-events.md
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a6c4e7a8d1 fix(heartbeat): cancel obsolete execution continuations before dispatch (#13761)
## Thinking Path

> - Paperclip is the open source app people use to manage AI agents for
work.
> - A comment can queue execution before the task changes state.
> - The task may be completed, cancelled, deleted, or reassigned before
setup checks ownership.
> - The ownership guard must prevent that obsolete execution from
starting.
> - This pull request records that guard outcome as cancellation and
settles the wake request.
> - Missing history and authorization errors remain failures that
operators can investigate.

## Linked Issues or Issue Description

**What happened?**

A comment can queue a run just before a user marks its task Done. The
ownership guard stops setup before adapter dispatch, but the run becomes
a setup failure and can put the agent into an error state.

**Expected behavior**

Cancel obsolete work when the typed task ownership guard rejects it.
Keep genuine setup errors visible. Do not change the task's terminal
state or current owner.

**Steps to reproduce**

Queue a task continuation, then mark the task Done or Cancelled before
continuation setup. The run should settle as cancelled without invoking
the adapter. Deleting or reassigning the task must also prevent
dispatch. Missing source history or explicit user authorization must
still fail.

**Paperclip version or commit**

Refreshed against master `b2e9e82f053af14777fd68e8834fff6bb64c84c4`.
Related: #13546 covers lost issue-lock claims, and #13888 covers
persisted continuation decisions and retry budgets. This change handles
the final continuation ownership guard during setup.

Thanks to @MrBlackTongue for the original typed cancellation
implementation and regression coverage. This update preserves the
contributor's commits, resolves the master conflict, and narrows
cancellation to task ownership invalidation.

## What Changed

- Add a typed `StaleExecutionContinuationError` for
`continuation_task_ownership_changed`.
- Use existing cancellation settlement for that typed guard, including
the run, wake request, issue execution ownership, and agent state.
Suppress immediate recovery of obsolete work.
- Preserve failure classification for missing source context, missing
user authorization, and untyped errors, including an untyped error with
identical text.
- Cover Done and Cancelled tasks with real database checks. Retain
company and assignment guard coverage. Verify cancellation performs no
adapter dispatch or automatic replay.
- Document the cancellation event and its error classification in the
run-log guide.

## Verification

Current head: `b875486e81`.

- `pnpm -r typecheck`: passed.
- `pnpm build`: passed.
- `pnpm exec vitest run
server/src/__tests__/heartbeat-process-recovery.test.ts
server/src/services/execution-continuation.test.ts --maxWorkers=1
--no-file-parallelism -t 'authorized continuation context|obsolete
continuation setup|untyped continuation setup failures'`: 17 passed; 316
unrelated tests excluded by the name filter.
- `pnpm test:run`: local full run is still finishing. It is not a clean
pass: the observed failures are three company-skills cache checks
(`EACCES` while renaming read-only cache directories on macOS), one
tool-access assertion, and one comment-wake timeout. The three cache
failures reproduce in isolation in unchanged code. The tool-access check
passes in isolation, and the entire comment-wake file passes (29 tests),
including explicit feedback after completion. Final full-run totals will
be added when available.
-
[CI](https://github.com/paperclipai/paperclip/actions/runs/36282532652):
all gates green on this head. An unchanged Runner workspace-diff test
initially returned no diff; an isolated check passed, and the failed job
plus its dependent gate passed on retry with no code change. Original
failed job: 108517010989.
- Greptile: 5/5 on the full current head, with no unresolved review
threads. Branch is current with master and conflict-free.
- Diff check and local secret/PII scan passed. No customer data or
private deployment identifiers are included.

## Risks

The classification change is limited to the typed ownership guard. A
task with missing history remains a failure rather than being treated as
an expected cancellation. Existing company, task-owner, terminal-state,
and authorization checks still prevent dispatch. Cancellation retains
its specific reason in the run log and does not grant a retry. No
schema, dependency, or API changes; no migration is required.

## Model Used

OpenAI GPT-6 via Codex assisted investigation, implementation, code
review, and test execution. The exact serving model identifier and
context-window size are not exposed in this session.

## Checklist

- [x] I have included a thinking path that traces from project context
to this change
- [x] I have specified the model used
- [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 described the issue in-PR following the bug issue template
- [x] I have not referenced internal/instance-local Paperclip issues or
links
- [x] My branch name describes the change and contains no internal
ticket id
- [x] I have run the focused regression tests locally and they pass;
full-suite results are tracked above
- [x] I have added or updated tests where applicable
- [x] I have updated relevant documentation
- [x] I have considered and documented the risks
- [x] 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 merge

Co-authored-by: Paperclip <noreply@paperclip.ing>
Co-authored-by: Devin Foley <devin@paperclip.ing>
2026-09-26 17:43:33 -07:00

13 KiB
Raw Blame History

Run-Log Events

Run-log events write to the heartbeat_run_events table (packages/db/src/schema/heartbeat_run_events.ts:6-20). They are not Paperclip Telemetry events, and they are not OpenTelemetry exports. A run-log event needs no operator endpoint.

Native PRP Run-Log Events

The hidden native coordinator writes each validated PRP event to the bound run's existing event stream before it acknowledges the runner. The row keeps the PRP eventType, source instance, source event ID, source sequence, protocol schema version, and a SHA-256 digest of the canonical source envelope. Its payload is { "prpEvent": <canonical PRP event> }.

PostgreSQL JSONB cannot represent NUL (U+0000), which can occur in command output such as Vite virtual-module paths. The run-event payload column uses a lossless storage codec for these events: the JSONB projection renders NUL as the literal \u0000, and the reserved $paperclipRunEventJsonV1 field contains the original serialized JSON as a doubly escaped string. Ordinary payloads retain their existing representation. Drizzle reads restore the exact original payload before replay, hash validation, redaction, or API presentation. SQL queries can still inspect ordinary routing fields in the projection; raw SQL readers of the whole payload must apply decodeRunEventPayload. The column remains JSONB and requires no schema migration.

The writer locks the native heartbeat_runs row and allocates the existing per-run seq cursor. A byte-equivalent retry reuses the first row; a changed retry or source-sequence gap is rejected. Company, issue, agent, run, session, and runner-source bindings must match the persisted native run. Bootstrap tickets, reconnect leases, authentication proofs, encryption keys, and raw credential material are never written to the run log.

These records remain run-log events. They do not create an OpenTelemetry or Paperclip Telemetry export, and legacy adapters do not use this writer.

Native Restart Recovery Run-Log Event

Paperclip writes a native.recovery.transition event for every native restart classification and for graceful restart suspension. This immutable run-log record lets operators reconstruct recovery decisions without exporting data to Paperclip Telemetry or OpenTelemetry.

The payload contains the restart kind, recovery request id when one exists, runner disposition, and the controller generation and provider attempt for a claimed recovery. Live-runner adoption also records the runner PID, process group, and process-start fingerprint. A non-claim disposition records a bounded reason instead. Graceful suspension records the signal and confirms that it did not create a retry run.

The event never includes bootstrap tickets, reconnect leases, authentication proofs, encryption keys, environment variables, provider credentials, command arguments, or an unsanitized stderr stream. Detailed failed-attempt diagnostics remain in the bounded native_run_finalizations.recovery_history ledger.

Native Local Process Stop Evidence

The server writes native.local_process_stopped in the same transaction that clears a local run's process identity, after it verifies that its PID and process group are absent. The payload contains only those process IDs. Remote process IDs are never checked against the control-plane host.

The server writes native.process_start_requested before a backend can spawn, and native.process_identity_recorded when it stores a new native process identity. Either invalidates an earlier local stop receipt, including a crash before the new PID callback. Continuation admission accepts only the latest server-authored event among these three types; provider source events cannot supply stop authority. These records stay in the local run log and do not add Telemetry or OpenTelemetry data.

Verified Local Codex Replacement Evidence

The server writes native.stopped_text_turn_verified in the same transaction that schedules a fresh successor for a stopped local Codex run. It records the runner and provider process identities, retained-state digests, provider thread and turn IDs, and IDs of exactly receipted task-completion calls. The server first checks the complete turn inventory, process-stop receipt, and execution binding. Unknown actions or changed retained state prevent this event and replacement.

The record documents why the old execution can be retired. It does not make the old session resumable, rewrite provider files, or authorize replay on its own. It remains in the local run log and adds no Telemetry or OpenTelemetry export.

Sandbox Startup Run-Log Event

Paperclip writes one run.startup.step event to the run log for each bring-up step. This event is a run-log record, not a first-party telemetry event. The generated telemetry contract does not cover it, so this section is its canonical contract.

The event payload carries only three fields.

Field Type Meaning
step string The bring-up step name, for example stage.sync.
durationMs number The wall time of the step. A skipped step reports 0.
outcome string The step outcome (ok, skipped, or failed).

The event no longer carries the per-step round-trip count or the provider duration fields. It dropped roundTrips, providerExecMs, providerGetMs, createRuntimeMs, and ensureSessionMs. The startup spans in doc/observability.md carry that detail now. The sandbox.exec child spans hold the round-trip and provider durations. The acp.handshake step span holds the create-runtime and ensure-session sub-times.

To read the detailed timing, use the startup spans. The spans need an OTLP endpoint. A run with no endpoint keeps only the three run-log fields above.

Run Phase Timing Run-Log Event

Paperclip writes one run.phase.timing event to the run log for each run-lifecycle phase. This event is a run-log record, not a first-party telemetry event. The generated telemetry contract does not cover it, so this section is its canonical contract. The producer is emitRunPhaseTiming in packages/adapter-utils/src/acpx-engine/startup-timing.ts.

The event payload carries only three fields.

Field Type Meaning
phase string The run-lifecycle phase name from the closed allowlist below.
durationMs number The wall time of the phase. A negative or a non-finite value clamps to 0.
outcome string The phase outcome (ok or failed).

The phase field is one member of a closed, low-cardinality allowlist. The producer drops any event whose phase name is outside this allowlist, so a free-form label never reaches the run log. The allowlist has twelve phase names.

Phase Meaning
place_workspace Place the run workspace.
start_transport Start the agent transport.
create_runtime Create the agent runtime.
ensure_session Ensure the agent session exists.
configure_session Configure the agent session.
prepare_turn Prepare the turn.
turn Run the turn.
end_session End the agent session.
settle_reuse Settle the session for reuse.
stop_transport Stop the agent transport.
sync_back Sync the workspace back.
release_staging_lease Release the staging lease.

The payload never carries a command, an argument, a path, an environment value, or a raw identifier. The event rides the ctx.onEvent run-event bridge and is run-log-only. It needs no OTLP endpoint.

The sandbox duplex transport also writes one run-log event as one of its three sinks. See the Sandbox Duplex Transport Instrumentation section in the Observability contract.

Execution recovery

Provider identity diagnostics remain in the local run log. They record the notification method, expected and received thread/turn identifiers, and the classification (root, verified descendant, stale, unrelated informational, or invalid authoritative). They omit the original provider payload and credentials. Repeated informational notices are bounded.

Recovery lifecycle events retain the original structured failure code, retry attempt, next retry time, and predecessor/successor identifiers. Durable status delivery uses an idempotency marker; delivery grants no provider authority. Failed publication is retried without repeating provider work. These records are not first-party Telemetry.

If execution-continuation setup finds that a task no longer exists, is closed, or its owner changed, the existing cancellation settlement records continuation_task_ownership_changed. The run and wake request become cancelled before adapter dispatch, with the run-log message stale execution continuation cancelled before dispatch. Immediate recovery is suppressed. Missing source context, authorization failures, and other setup errors retain their failure classification. An untyped error with the same message is also still a failure; cancellation requires the typed ownership guard.

Bounded retry exhaustion writes one lifecycle receipt per run, retry reason, scheduled attempt, and retry limit. Repeated or concurrent recovery checks reuse that receipt, including receipts from earlier builds, without advancing the event sequence or publishing another live event. Attention reads select the latest matching receipt in PostgreSQL and project only the run's issue/task identifiers from its context, so historical duplicate receipts cannot multiply run contexts in server memory. Existing duplicate events do not require deletion or migration.

Workspace restore failures

Legacy adapter results can carry workspaceRestoreFailure with the code restore_permission_denied, restore_lock_timeout, restore_unsafe_archive, or restore_failed. The heartbeat records workspace_restore_failed and keeps the run failed and the workspace-finalization barrier closed. Available output, usage, session metadata, and the previous execution outcome survive settlement. executionBeforeRestore retains the earlier error code, exit code, signal, and timeout flag. The ordinary redacted error field retains an earlier error message.

The chat reports the restore phase separately from a missing final response. A saved-plan link requires a stored document and its run-bound revision or a matching run-bound review record. Older unclassified failures use neutral wording. Diagnostics show only a validated relative member path, never an archive link target or host path.

An unsafe archive or an outbound confinement refusal keeps the existing execution recovery hold, including across conversation resets. It cannot start another model turn until an operator uses the existing recovery action to record executionReconciliation with workspaceRepairEvidence (20–12000 characters). This evidence must describe verified safe staging or repair for the referenced failed run. It does not grant plan approval. Saved comments, document revisions, and confirmation IDs and states stay unchanged. Recovery uses the existing delivery identity and links the successor to the original failed run. Repair does not reset the automatic retry budget. Transient failures retain the existing bounded retry policy. Archive confinement remains required.

Sandbox restore tasks also write a Workspace restore diagnostic line to the run log on failure. phase is workspace or asset, so a failed staged-asset copy-back (such as credentials) can be distinguished from workspace restoration. The line contains only an allowlisted OS/transport errorCode (otherwise unknown), an optional numeric HTTP error status, and an optional bounded process exit code. Up to four nested causes are inspected. Messages, URLs, filesystem paths, asset names, credentials, and response bodies are excluded. Every failed outbound task emits its own diagnostic; nested repository failures are logged once by the enclosing workspace task. The original error and restore safety policy are unchanged. These lines stay in the instance run log and its configured durable storage, and are not new first-party telemetry events.

Codex resume usage snapshot

The native runner retains a bounded local harness.diagnostic event with code codex_resume_usage_snapshot. It identifies thread/tokenUsage/updated as resume_usage_snapshot, retains the reported thread and completed-turn IDs, and records cumulative usage counters. It does not include provider credentials or message content. The event establishes the accounting baseline; it is not a new billable usage receipt or a user-facing provider warning. Other provider identity checks remain in force.

AI subscription contention

A fresh task execution cannot enter this wait. A run that already entered this wait writes an informational lifecycle event to the local run log. Its payload contains only retryScheduled, a boolean that reports whether the scheduler created a retry. The message distinguishes an automatic retry from work that is no longer eligible. This pre-provider wait records ai_connection_busy on the cancelled run and does not consume the provider-failure retry allowance. The event contains no credentials and creates no Telemetry or OpenTelemetry export.