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PaperClipAI/maps/feature-map/agents.md
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DottaandPaperclip 0eb2c964a7 fix(agents): allow runner qualification with agent configuration permission (#17448)
## Thinking Path

> - Paperclip is the open source app people use to manage AI agents for
work.
> - Agent owners configure the harness and computer used for that work.
> - A legacy runner upgrade must first qualify an unverified sandbox.
> - The upgrade called an instance-admin probe, so a company owner with
agent configuration permission received HTTP 403.
> - This pull request qualifies the saved computer through the agent's
existing configuration authorization.
> - Company owners can complete the upgrade while general instance
environment management stays restricted.

## Linked Issues or Issue Description

Refs #17361. Related: #17122.

**What happened?**

Upgrade runner displayed for an existing Claude agent on a Daytona
Paperclip Computer. Clicking it returned “Instance admin access
required” for a cloud company owner. The agent remained on the legacy
runner.

**Expected behavior**

A caller permitted to update the agent can qualify that agent's saved
computer and upgrade. Instance-admin access is not required for this
agent-scoped operation.

**Steps to reproduce**

1. Sign in as a cloud company owner with `agents:configure` and no
instance-admin role.
2. Open an existing legacy Claude agent on an unqualified Daytona
snapshot.
3. Select Upgrade runner.

## What Changed

- Add `POST /api/agents/{id}/qualify-runner` with the existing
`agent_config:update` guard.
- Reuse the server's effective environment resolver. The submitted
environment ID only detects stale state; it cannot select a different
computer.
- Preserve company binding checks, check binding again at lease
acquisition, and record agent-scoped audit activity.
- Return qualification status and the lease receipt without
instance-level provider metadata or raw provider errors.
- Use the new endpoint for the existing-agent upgrade. Keep the generic
environment probe restricted to instance admins.
- Disable Upgrade runner when an unsaved computer change resolves to a
different target, with a save-first explanation. Other draft settings
still accompany an upgrade.
- Add real-database authorization regression tests and update the API
contract and access maps.

## Verification

- Red: the existing UI called the instance-wide probe and failed the new
agent-scoped call assertions in eight upgrade cases.
- Green: 349 related route, provider qualification, runner selection,
and UI tests passed.
- Green: 12 authorization cases passed with real PostgreSQL, real HTTP
routes, real saved role grants, and a simulated provider boot. They
cover the cloud owner, removed grants, foreign agent/computer, inherited
targets, stale target, invalid body, archived/local target, redacted
failure, audit scope, and unchanged agent settings.
- Review regression: two cases first reproduced the enabled upgrade
button after an unsaved computer change; both now pass, along with all
168 related UI tests. Qualified/unqualified computers and restoring the
saved selection are covered.
- All 26 OpenAPI cases passed; the 12 real-database authorization cases
also passed after rebase.
- The host exhausted PostgreSQL semaphores. For the 12 cases, a
temporary local-only setup used disposable PostgreSQL 18 in Docker
instead of the embedded database launcher. The committed tests use the
normal embedded database helper. No authorization decisions were mocked.
- `pnpm -r typecheck`, `pnpm build`, `pnpm check:token-gates`, map
validation, module-boundary validation, and `git diff --check` passed.
- `pnpm test:run` was attempted but did not establish a full local pass:
the host could not start embedded PostgreSQL clusters. All current-head
CI gates passed, including the full suite in CI. The commitperclip
review workflow timed out before reporting any executed steps on its
first attempt and passed on one retry.
- Fresh staging acceptance remains pending deployment. Verify persisted
native configuration and a successful runtime test on the existing
Daytona computer after merge. Earlier live Daytona proof from #17361 is
separate evidence.

## Risks

- Qualification can start a fresh, temporary sandbox. It uses the
existing probe lifecycle and cleanup contract.
- The new path must remain scoped to the saved agent and its company.
Denial and redaction tests cover that boundary. General instance probe
authorization is unchanged.
- No migration, role change, credential change, or automatic agent
upgrade is included.

## Model Used

- OpenAI GPT-6 through Codex, with reasoning, code execution, and
browser tools. The exact deployed model variant and context-window size
were 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 (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
- [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
requesting merge

---------

Co-authored-by: Paperclip <noreply@paperclip.ing>
2026-10-24 10:31:40 -07:00

17 KiB
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section sectionOrder order
Agents and reusable capabilities 30 10

Hiring, configuration, and organization

Operators hire agents, configure their identity and instructions, assign reporting relationships, and manage their lifecycle. Built-in agents have their own setup and lifecycle constraints.

Feature ID: agents.

Implementation: hiring, configuration, organization.

Agent access: companion.

Sub-features

  • hire: agents/hire — choose identity, harness, model, and required account settings; edit reporting relationships through the agent configuration afterward.
  • grok-bot: agents/grok-bot — experimental existing-Bot agent setup through remote OAuth, routine credentials, and an authenticated two-way challenge; current contact, stop and explicit recovery.
  • instructions: agents/instructions — edit agent configuration and instruction files with durable revisions.
  • organization: agents/organization — inspect and change reporting relationships through supported controls.
  • primary-agent: agents/primary-agent — choose a personal primary agent for the company, confirm replacement, and inspect its roster/sidebar and task/chat defaults.
  • lifecycle: agents/lifecycle — pause/resume or retire an agent while preserving history.
  • built-in: agents/built-in — configure required agents without treating them as ordinary removable hires.
  • api-keys: agents/api-keys — create and inspect named agent credentials, copy a new token once, and revoke it without changing agent identity.
  • managed-agent-setup: agents/managed-agent-setup — probe, create, or adopt a qualified Anthropic managed-agent profile with pinned provider resources and retention acknowledgement.

How to get to it (user POV)

hire-agent

Use New agent from the roster or /agents/new.

Submitting the name creates an inactive record before adapter selection or account setup. A name-only draft returns to adapter selection when reopened. Save & exit keeps its configuration; Finish setup on the agent returns to the same record. Final submission requests approval when required, then follows the existing preparation and verification lifecycle.

agent-configuration

Open /agents/:agentId and the configuration/instruction surfaces it exposes.

In /agents/all, select roster checkboxes and choose Edit connection & model. A mixed selection offers one action per harness. Each field is opt-in. The editor previews each changed value and excludes agents already at the target value. Models must be compatible with every selected connection. Failed writes show per-agent errors; Retry touches only the remaining agents. Connection pools and externally managed agents are not editable through this shortcut.

Verify connection-only, model-only, both fields, mixed-harness selection, hidden selections, no-op counts, incompatible models, partial failure and retry. Reload the roster and compare stored settings, including unrelated heartbeat and adapter fields. A concurrent configuration edit must return a conflict. Shared runtime validation, access checks, revisions and audit logging still apply. Live runs retain their existing settings; model changes can reset saved sessions. Connection adoption can require an explicit reset of existing sessions.

organization

Use the roster’s organization view; /org redirects to the roster in the streamlined shell.

personal-primary-agent

Open an agent profile and choose Set as my primary. Inspect its crown on the profile/roster and its position in the Agents sidebar, then open a new task or Chat.

agent-api-keys

Open /agents/:agentId/api-keys → API Keys with an authenticated person who can manage agents. The operator CLI also supports paperclipai token agent create -C <company-id> --agent <agent-id> --name <label>, token agent list -C <company-id> --agent <agent-id>, and token agent revoke <key-id> -C <company-id> --agent <agent-id>.

managed-agent-cli

Use the operator command paperclipai managed-agent setup --company-id <company-id> --profile-key <key> --display-name <name> --api-key-secret-id <company-secret-id> --acknowledge-retention --json. Supply ANTHROPIC_API_KEY through the process environment. Use --agent-id, --agent-version, and --environment-id to adopt resources, or --probe for provider reads without profile persistence. The optional session-list cost ceiling is --max-session-list-cost-usd.

Driving it with Playwright and the Paperclip CLI

Preconditions: follow the baseline. Use a disposable company and supported adapter; hiring may require a formal approval.

hire-agent

Automated: new agent page and configuration form cover mocked UI behavior.

Manual: Hire an agent with a distinct name and role. Complete any required approval, reload the roster, and open its configuration. Confirm manager, adapter, and model persisted; run a small task to prove execution readiness.

For a new Codex hire, choose the Codex harness. Automatic selection uses Paperclip Runner on a qualified selected target; Advanced offers an explicit Legacy runner override. Record the persisted runner and underlying harness, rather than treating the displayed Codex name as execution proof. See runtime selection and validation and target qualification.

Repeat with an explicit Legacy Codex hire. If approval is required, compare its reviewed execution configuration before and after restart and activation; approval must retain the reviewed runner. Test an existing Legacy and native agent through an unrelated edit, reload and restart: neither is automatically upgraded.

Creation defaults also apply to API/CLI hires, built-ins, plugins and new team imports. Exports preserve resolved execution choices; a package without a runner choice uses the new-agent default, while updating an existing same-harness agent preserves its execution. For a native Codex import, edit a model or account binding and verify unchanged runtime settings survive; an explicit clear must stay cleared. Use the portability recipe for package preparation and boundaries.

For Claude Code on qualified macOS or GNU/Linux x64/ARM64, submit without a runner override and inspect saved configuration: paperclip_runner, provider: acpx, acpxAgent: claude, and ordinary model claude-opus-5-5. The Advanced runner selector can explicitly choose Legacy. Keep explicit model/account choices and saved runners on edits. Verify useful output and a follow-up after a controller restart; setup success alone does not establish session continuity. Unsupported architectures/libc and unknown environment qualification retain Legacy. Darwin SSH also defaults to Legacy until automatic matching assets are qualified; explicit matching native assets and saved native configurations remain supported. Linux ARM64 cloud-image production remains deferred.

The current hiring wizard assigns the first hire CEO and subsequent hires General reporting to the CEO. Change manager/role afterward through supported configuration. Process/HTTP agents can be created through API/CLI but are excluded from the hiring picker; API fixture creation does not prove this UI journey.

agent-configuration

Automated: instruction service and instruction revisions cover file/revision contracts.

Manual: Save a harmless instruction edit, reload, and verify its revision and effect in the next eligible run. Pause and resume the disposable agent; confirm pause prevents new work and does not erase previous runs.

For failed setup, use an unavailable model or invalid command on a disposable agent. Confirm the profile names the failed verification step and gives a relevant action. Check that it explains automatic retry and offers Retry now. Fix the configuration, retry, and reload; the failure must disappear only after readiness commits. Provider output and credentials must not appear in the lifecycle message.

An explicit runner change is a configuration change, with normal revisions and session invalidation. Obsolete Claude tuning options (including maxTurnsPerRun) are ignored with a field-specific warning; permission, network, filesystem and command incompatibilities still produce an error. Selecting another runner must not silently discard security settings or change an active run's recorded execution. Keep runner choice in Advanced and verify the next eligible run separately from historical transcripts.

Existing legacy Claude and Codex agents on qualified default environments, or probe-capable Daytona snapshots / immutable sandbox images, show Upgrade runner above their configuration. Verify a company owner with agents:configure and no instance-admin role can qualify the saved computer and upgrade. A caller without configuration permission must be denied before a probe starts. Exercise that action with pending edits and an environment-variable draft. An unsaved change to a different effective computer must disable the action and explain that the computer change must be saved first; restoring the saved target must re-enable it. Reopen the page and compare the saved harness, model, account bindings, instructions, and run policy. Check a saved maxTurnsPerRun: 1000: upgrade must warn and remove it. Test an initially unqualified Daytona Paperclip Computer: click must probe, record qualification, refresh availability, and only then save. A failed probe or changed selection must leave the agent on Legacy. Check a rejected permission setting, repair it, and retry. Verify a real task before and after migration, including its output, preserved history, and fresh session. The notice must stay absent for native agents, other harnesses, and unsupported targets. Discovery failure must not imply that an upgrade is available. Navigate to another agent while an upgrade is pending. Its result must stay with the original agent, without showing success on the new page or redirecting back. Focused coverage: save receipt and configuration form.

Storybook: Runner upgrade mounts the production page and shell with mutable HTTP fixtures for both harnesses, pending, failure/retry, incompatible settings, repair, native/unsupported states, and mobile/light presentation. Fixture success does not establish real migration or provider execution.

organization

Automated: org chart is component evidence. Built-in setup also has configuration modal tests.

Manual: Inspect a manager and report, change the relationship through the offered controls, and reload both views. Exercise a rejected invalid relationship. Configure a built-in agent and verify it retains its required identity and restrictions.

personal-primary-agent

Automated: primary-agent context and primary-agent routes cover selection, company/user scope, and request contracts.

Manual: Select an available agent, reload, and inspect the retained personal choice. Replace it and verify confirmation is required. Leave or terminate the selected agent through permitted controls and inspect the unavailable/cleared state. Switch company/user to check isolation. Open a task and Chat with a valid draft or recent selection; verify those explicit choices take precedence over the primary fallback. Opening Chat must not start execution.

agent-api-keys

Automated: CLI token tests mock create/list/revoke. Cross-tenant routes, agent permissions, and authentication middleware cover company/key ownership, management permission, responsible-user binding, and denial. They do not prove a browser-created key working against a live instance.

Manual: As an authenticated person with agents:create, create a named key for an eligible disposable agent and copy it privately from the once-only display. Make a harmless same-company agent request with that bearer, then reload the Keys tab and verify only metadata remains. Revoke the key through UI or CLI, reload, and retry the exact same bearer: authentication must fail. Inspect key-created/key-revoked activity without token values. Test a board person lacking agent-management permission, an agent caller, another company’s agent, a different agent’s key ID, and a pending-approval/terminated target. A created key without a real responsible-user binding is a failed acceptance prerequisite, not a working credential.

Sources: Keys tab, key routes, key service, authentication, and CLI token commands.

managed-agent-cli

Automated: Managed-agent CLI uses mocked provider/API responses. Profile route authorization and remote profiles cover actor/company checks and qualification. They do not establish provider provisioning or a useful managed task.

Manual: Start with known adopted provider IDs in an authorized disposable provider account. Run --probe and verify only provider reads: no resources are created and no Paperclip profile is written. Reject unsafe tools/network/package configuration, an unsupported model, duplicate profile matches, a missing retention acknowledgement, and a malformed secret UUID. During persistence, reject missing, inactive, or foreign-company secret references. Then create or adopt a locked profile in a disposable company; inspect its pinned version, model, environment, retention attestation, and cost ceiling through the profile API. Repeat setup and verify resource reuse. Reject viewer/agent writes and foreign-company references. Qualify useful task execution separately through the runtime recipe; a successful probe is not execution acceptance.

Sources: Managed-agent CLI, profile routes, profile service, and runtime validation.

Gotchas

  • Managed-agent probing is read-only at the provider and does not persist a Paperclip profile. The explicit retention acknowledgement remains required even for probe.

  • Agent keys, human CLI tokens, and personal assistant OAuth grants are different credentials. Never include a key’s plaintext token in screenshots, logs, or verification artifacts.

  • A roster entry is not proof of an authenticated or invokable adapter.

  • Pending hires may live in approval/task surfaces rather than the active roster.

  • Skill and tool grants are separate: see skills and app permissions.

  • A personal primary agent is a per-user/company preference. It does not change reporting lines, stars, permissions, or another person's primary agent.

connect-grok-bot

Choose Invite an external agent → Grok Bot, identify the Bot by its desktop name, connect its remote MCP plugin, configure a webhook-only routine, and verify delivery plus authenticated reply. Save & exit resumes the same agent. Keep pairing codes in browser authorization and routine credentials in Paperclip’s fields. A working Bot web URL is not required.

Prerequisites: authenticated public HTTPS, Assistant connections (MCP), Paperclip Runner and Grok Bot experimental settings. Cloud uses its normal managed Runner environment. Provider usage is unknown. Routine uncertainty blocks new assignments until explicit inspection and recovery; stopping work revokes Paperclip authority without confirming remote termination.

Evidence: source implementation and focused protocol tests; real provider assigned/proactive workflows and deployed managed acceptance remain release gates.

Documentation scope: Agents, organization, and runtime setup

Per-harness/model/account capabilities, every instruction-file error, and complete built-in-agent lifecycle variants remain separate qualification matrices.