<!-- Write all pull request text in Simplified Technical English (ASD-STE100): short sentences, one instruction per sentence, simple approved vocabulary, and the active voice. --> ## Thinking Path > - Paperclip is the open source app people use to manage AI agents for work. > - Legacy local adapters run agents that use the Paperclip skill for the control-plane workflow. > - PR #7029 removed the required-skill fallback and made runtime skill selection depend only on stored preferences. > - No migration or runtime fallback replaced that behavior for existing agents or non-CEO agents. > - PR #12138 added core skills to new CEOs, and PR #12147 added Claude skill discovery. These changes did not mount the operational skill for all legacy agents. > - This pull request makes the operational skill a legacy adapter runtime invariant. It keeps all other skills configurable. > - The native runner stays unchanged because its protocol supplies the control-plane contract. > - The benefit is that new and existing legacy agents can always operate through Paperclip. ## Linked Issues or Issue Description Refs #7029 Refs #12138 Refs #12147 **What happened?** A skill-capable legacy local agent could start without `paperclipai/paperclip/paperclip`. This happened when the agent had no stored skill preference. An explicit empty preference also removed the skill. The agent then reported that the Paperclip skill was not available. **Expected behavior** Every skill-capable legacy local adapter must mount the Paperclip operational skill when the runtime inventory contains it. Optional skills must remain configurable. The native runner must keep its current protocol-based behavior. **Steps to reproduce** 1. Create a non-CEO `codex_local` agent without `paperclipSkillSync` preferences. 2. Start a legacy heartbeat. 3. Inspect the managed `CODEX_HOME/skills` directory. 4. Observe that the Paperclip skill is absent before this change. **Paperclip version or commit** The problem reproduces on `master` before this pull request. PR #7029 introduced the configured-only selection behavior. **Deployment mode** Local development and self-hosted legacy local adapters. ## What Changed - Added a shared legacy skill resolver that always selects the canonical Paperclip operational skill when it is available. - Applied the resolver to direct adapter execution, ACPX execution, skill snapshots, and persistent skill sync. - Added Hermes skill materialization at sync and run boundaries. - Aligned Cursor, Gemini, and OpenCode execution-time injection with the configured child `HOME`. - Made Hermes stop execution when another installation blocks the required operational skill. - Kept optional skills controlled by `paperclipSkillSync.desiredSkills`. - Kept `paperclip_runner` on the configurable-only resolver. - Added regression coverage for missing preferences, empty preferences, each skill-capable legacy adapter, ACPX, Hermes, and native runner isolation. - Documented the legacy runtime invariant. ## Verification - `pnpm -r typecheck` passed on the pushed commit. - `pnpm build` passed on the pushed commit. - The adapter utility regression suites passed: 236 tests. - The changed server adapter suites passed: 48 tests across 12 files. - The OpenCode adapter suite passed: 8 tests. - The Hermes adapter suite passed: 7 tests. - `git diff --check` passed. - `pnpm test:run` is not clean on this macOS host. The command reported failures in unchanged workspace and filesystem suites. An isolated rerun of `company-skills.test.ts` and `company-skills-service.test.ts` reproduced 11 failures because macOS resolved `/var/...` paths as `/private/var/...`. The changed adapter suites pass independently. ## Risks - This change deliberately makes the operational skill non-removable for skill-capable legacy local adapters. - Existing agents receive the skill on their next list, sync, or run boundary. No database migration is required. - The resolver does not create a skill when the runtime inventory does not contain the canonical entry. - Hermes aborts a run if another installation occupies the required operational skill target. - Hermes removes only an undesired Paperclip-owned symlink that still points to the known Paperclip source. - The native runner does not receive the legacy default. > 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 based on GPT-5. The exact serving model ID and context window were not exposed. The agent used reasoning, tool use, and code execution. ## 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>
@paperclipai/adapter-utils
Shared utilities for Paperclip adapters: process spawning, environment injection, sandbox/SSH transport, workspace sync, and the round-trip helpers that move code between the local execution-workspace cwd and wherever the agent actually runs.
For the adapter-author guide see
docs/adapters/creating-an-adapter.md
and the in-repo notes at packages/adapters/AUTHORING.md.
No-remote-git contract
The local execution-workspace cwd is the only persistence boundary across runs. No adapter may depend on a git remote for cross-run state.
Adapters that run the agent on a different host should use the SSH round-trip
helpers in src/ssh.ts:
prepareWorkspaceForSshExecution({ spec, localDir, remoteDir })— bundles the local cwd (tracked files, dirty edits, untracked additions, and the git history needed to reconstruct it) toremoteDirbefore the run starts. Runs with nogit remoteconfigured.restoreWorkspaceFromSshExecution({ spec, localDir, remoteDir, ... })— syncs the remote cwd back intolocalDirafter the run, including any new commits the agent created. Also runs with nogit remoteconfigured.
prepareRemoteManagedRuntime in
src/remote-managed-runtime.ts wraps both
calls for adapters that want a per-run remote workspace and an automatic
restoreWorkspace() finally hook.
The invariant is pinned by the no-remote-git contract case in
src/ssh-fixture.test.ts, which asserts that a
remote-only commit propagates to the local worktree through the
prepare → restore round-trip with no git remote configured at any point. Do
not regress that test.