## Thinking Path > - Paperclip is the open source app people use to manage AI agents for work. > - Low-trust agents may read only the projects in their allowed scope. > - Workspace setup correctly stops a task outside that scope. > - The task previously showed a generic failure, and agent settings did not offer an additive repair. > - This pull request explains the denial and lets authorized operators add projects while preserving other restrictions. > - The saved task then offers an explicit retry. Saving access does not start work. ## Linked Issues or Issue Description **What happened?** A project access denial appeared as an ordinary failed attempt. Operators could not add a second allowed project from agent settings. **Expected behavior** The task should explain the denied access and link to a working permission editor. The editor should preserve existing scope and restrictions, enforce operator authority, and retain drafts after a failed save. **Steps to reproduce** 1. Assign a low-trust agent to a task whose project is outside its allowed projects. 2. Let workspace setup deny project access. 3. Open the task, follow Manage project access, add the project, save, reload, and return to the task. 4. Confirm that the saved message remains and Retry task is a separate action. ## What Changed - Record a typed, non-retryable project denial before provider dispatch. Project denials do not enter automatic continuation or provider comment policy. - Project current and historical setup denials into a safe task notice. Keep unrelated failures, prior assignees, and approval/pause/budget gates separate. Recheck current project authority, including standard trust and root-issue grants. Accepted retries keep their working state. - Add board-only project-access reads and additive saves under the agent row lock. Enforce company scope, agent-management authority, pending-approval restrictions, and an audit record for new additions. - Add the production notice and searchable multi-project editor, including read-only, saving, cancellation, and failed-save states. Preserve the return-to-task query through canonical agent redirects. - Register board-only project-access routes in OpenAPI with a strict request schema. - Add production Storybook examples and API/persistence/concurrency regressions. Retain the approved design snapshot and update the behavior maps and implementation contract. ## Verification - Passed: `pnpm -r typecheck`, `pnpm build`, `pnpm build-storybook`, `pnpm check:token-gates`, `node scripts/check-maps.mjs`, and `node scripts/storybook-catalog.mjs`. - Passed: 11 permission/projection tests and 30 run-completion tests against an isolated PostgreSQL database. These cover historical failures, concurrent additions, idempotent audit, preserved restrictions, foreign projects, read-only users, agent self-grants, and no automatic wakeup. - Passed: all 27 OpenAPI route tests, including route coverage and the new board-only request/response contract. - Browser: the real app displayed a historical denial; Manage project access opened the editor; saving retained the original project and survived reload; Return to task showed the ready notice. Saving created one audit event and zero runs. Explicit Retry returned 202 and reached the separate sandbox requirement, which remained enforced. No external provider was used. - All five production Storybook interaction checks pass: blocked task, save, cancellation, failed-save recovery, and read-only settings. These use fixture callbacks; durable authorization is covered separately above. - `pnpm test:run` was attempted locally but stopped after repeated embedded PostgreSQL startup failures caused by macOS semaphore exhaustion. Full-suite CI is required before merge. The separate UI suite passed all 9,095 tests. The 41 focused server regressions also passed after rebasing onto the latest master. A further 26 recovery-classification tests pass, including a red-to-green regression for automatic continuation after a project denial. ## Risks - No schema migration. The new endpoint only adds same-company project IDs and preserves the rest of the stored policy. - The historical notice recognizes one exact setup denial message. It does not display arbitrary run errors or disclose a different source project's identity. - The retry still passes all current admission and isolation checks. The notice does not promise that other execution requirements are satisfied. - Related open work: #13309 covers inherited secret restrictions; #11234 covers the broader repository catalog. This change does not replace either policy surface. ## Model Used OpenAI Codex (GPT-6), with code execution and browser tools. The precise runtime model ID 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 #` 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 (focused server and full UI suites; full-suite infrastructure limit above) - [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>
20 KiB
Hiring, agent configuration, and organization — agent access
Product map: Hiring, agent configuration, and organization.
Feature ID: agents.
Review date: 2026-10-12. Source commit: 58e16dbddfc9c8d0cf60867f9d9847f0feda055b.
Native REST transport reconciled in this change; see the
shared transport contract.
This is a source-reviewed baseline of representative operations and known gaps. Each capability needs operation-level review before its entire scope can be qualified. No live agent execution is claimed. Follow the map contract for format, permission checks, evidence and maintenance.
Scoped runner-default source review: 2026-10-12 at
eee0534154eaf5d0d3f2bbc97c1e24d86f34a5a5, limited to creation/configuration,
approval activation, built-in provisioning and import preservation described
below. The original baseline commit above still governs unrelated entries; this
update does not claim operation-complete review or live agent verification.
hire
Capability ID: agents/hire.
Review: baseline.
API: present — representative operation IDs:
POST /api/companies/{companyId}/agent-hires.POST /api/companies/{companyId}/agents.
Agent access: partial — Native hire_agent; REST / CLI agent; runtime inheritance for
native hires.
Creation requests can use runner: auto | paperclip | legacy; the server resolves
and persists execution configuration. Claude Auto selects the native ACPX profile
on qualified macOS and GNU/Linux x64/ARM64 targets; unknown environment
qualification remains Legacy. Darwin SSH defaults to Legacy while preserving
explicit native assets and saved execution. Saved runner/model/provider overrides survive edits
and approval activation. This selection does not grant connection access or
bypass hiring authorization. Source: runner resolver.
Policy: Agent creation/configuration uses action grants, resource policies and change consent; some controls require a board actor.
The early wizard record (setupId on create) and completion of that record
(setupAgentId on hire) require a board actor and company-scoped creation
permission. Its creator can finish their own inactive setup with that permission;
changing another person's setup requires configuration permission.
Creation retries reuse only records owned by the caller. Returning a completed
record also requires the normal agent-read and configuration-read checks.
An unfinished record stays paused with a
setup hold and cannot receive API keys or authenticate with keys or JWTs.
Its standard grants apply at hire. Authorized completion retries recover the
same record and approval without changing the submitted configuration.
Normal agent-authored hiring keeps its existing approval policy.
The creation boundary resolves the request-level runner before adapter validation
and credential normalization. Omitted/automatic new Codex selection uses the
qualified target's default; explicit Legacy is retained. Disabled adapters and
external overrides affect new selection, while missing credentials/runtime or
incompatible settings remain errors. Existing agents and reviewed pending hires
retain their recorded execution. Native hire_agent explicitly inherits its
caller's runtime and remains subject to permission and credential restrictions;
it is not an arbitrary host-configuration or login tool. REST/CLI creation and
hire runner options use the shared request contract.
Evidence: source-only — implementation at
the reviewed commit above.
Scoped Evidence: source-only — creation policy,
runner resolution,
native hire binding,
frozen approval activation
and same-harness import preservation
at the scoped commit. No permitted-agent journey was executed for this map update.
Verification: not-run — exercise a listed permitted operation with actual agent
credentials/run context; inspect its result and applicable persistence/attribution.
Assert the relevant denied actor, owner, company or mode from Policy. Review the
remaining operations before qualifying the whole capability.
For this scope, compare automatic and explicit Legacy creation, assert foreign company/environment and missing-grant denials, then compare pending approval configuration across restart and activation. An unrelated edit/import update must not change existing execution; a new package without a runner choice receives creation defaults. Do not count a board call or component test as agent evidence.
Gaps: Identity/persona hiring works. Operator account login and sensitive adapter/environment configuration are separate guarded actions.
The runner request does not grant new account, environment-probe or native API fallback authority; see validation access and environment administration. Full access qualification remains not run.
instructions
Capability ID: agents/instructions.
Review: baseline.
API: present — representative operation IDs:
GET /api/agents/{id}/instructions-bundle/file.GET /api/agents/{id}/project-accessandPOST /api/agents/{id}/project-accessare board-only. The POST requiresagents:create, checks selected projects in the same company, and adds IDs under an agent row lock. It preserves existing containment, audits new grants and rejects pending-approval agents. Agent keys cannot use this route to grant themselves access; a read-only board viewer receivescanManage: false. Saving never creates a run or wakeup.PUT /api/agents/{id}/instructions-bundle/file.PATCH /api/agents/{id}with an explicitrunner: "paperclip"upgrade.POST /api/agents/{id}/qualify-runnerto qualify the saved effective sandbox before upgrading.PATCH /api/agents/{id}withruntimeSettings: { harness, model?, aiConnection?, expected: { model, aiConnection } }for a narrow roster edit. Each request handles one agent; the UI batches at most four writes and collects per-agent outcomes.
Agent access: available — Native read/update/history/restore instruction tools; REST /
CLI.
Policy: Agent creation/configuration uses action grants, resource policies and change consent; some controls require a board actor.
The roster intent preserves unrelated settings, rejects stale model/connection previews and harness changes, and checks the full execution configuration under the lifecycle write lock. It uses the same configuration, company, credential, environment, and consent checks as other edits. It adds no agent permission or credential fallback. Pool and externally managed agents use their existing configuration surfaces. Board browser verification does not qualify agent access.
The existing-agent upgrade notice uses this configuration PATCH. It does not
grant configuration, account, or environment access. The server resolves the
saved settings under normal company/configuration authorization. Obsolete Claude
tuning fields are removed with configurationWarnings; security incompatibilities
remain errors. Unqualified sandbox upgrades first use the agent-scoped
POST /api/agents/{id}/qualify-runner under the same agent_config:update
authorization as saving the upgrade. The server resolves the saved computer;
expectedEnvironmentId rejects stale state and cannot select another computer.
Qualification checks company binding, returns only its receipt, and audits within
the agent's company. General instance environment probes still require instance
admin. No probe runs merely on page load. Operator browser evidence does not
qualify the agent permission paths for this operation.
Evidence: source-only — implementation at
the reviewed commit above.
Verification: not-run — exercise a listed permitted operation with actual agent
credentials/run context; inspect its result and applicable persistence/attribution.
Assert the relevant denied actor, owner, company or mode from Policy. Review the
remaining operations before qualifying the whole capability.
Gaps: Canonical entry file, revision guard, company boundary, and protected-change policy apply.
organization
Capability ID: agents/organization.
Review: baseline.
API: present — representative operation IDs:
GET /api/companies/{companyId}/org.PATCH /api/agents/{id}.
Agent access: available — list_agents/get_agent; native call_api for permitted
configuration fields; REST / CLI.
Policy: Agent creation/configuration uses action grants, resource policies and change consent; some controls require a board actor.
Evidence: source-only — implementation at
the reviewed commit above.
Verification: not-run — exercise a listed permitted operation with actual agent
credentials/run context; inspect its result and applicable persistence/attribution.
Assert the relevant denied actor, owner, company or mode from Policy. Review the
remaining operations before qualifying the whole capability.
Gaps: Reporting-line changes need configuration authorization; a title alone gives no authority.
lifecycle
Capability ID: agents/lifecycle.
Review: baseline.
API: present — representative operation IDs:
POST /api/agents/{id}/pause.POST /api/agents/{id}/resume.POST /api/agents/{id}/terminate.DELETE /api/agents/{id}permanently purges an eligible terminated/rejected agent.POST /api/agents/{id}/lifecycle/retry.GET /api/agents/{id}returns the safe failed phase/step and action inlifecycleError.
Agent access: partial — REST / native call_api resume under agent_config:update
change-grant authorization; pause and termination remain board-only.
Policy: Agent creation/configuration uses action grants, resource policies and change
consent; some controls require a board actor.
Permanent deletion is board-only. Retained case handoff references return
409 agent_case_history_retained before dependency cleanup; keep the agent terminated.
Evidence: source-only — implementation at
the reviewed commit above.
Verification: not-run — exercise a listed permitted operation with actual agent
credentials/run context; inspect its result and applicable persistence/attribution.
Assert the relevant denied actor, owner, company or mode from Policy. Review the
remaining operations before qualifying the whole capability.
Gaps: Resume has a generic native REST path. Pause and termination remain enforced actor restrictions.
built-in
Capability ID: agents/built-in.
Review: baseline.
API: present — representative operation IDs:
POST /api/companies/{companyId}/built-in-agents/{key}/provision.
Agent access: partial — REST / native fallback for eligible provisioning; built-in
routine controls require board.
Policy: Agent creation/configuration uses action grants, resource policies and change consent; some controls require a board actor.
Evidence: source-only — implementation at
the reviewed commit above.
Verification: not-run — exercise a listed permitted operation with actual agent
credentials/run context; inspect its result and applicable persistence/attribution.
Assert the relevant denied actor, owner, company or mode from Policy. Review the
remaining operations before qualifying the whole capability.
Gaps: Provisioning checks agents:create. Enabling/running its built-in routine is not the same permission path.
Scoped source review: built-in provisioning recognizes the underlying Codex harness of a native company agent. New configured provisioning resolves the runner, while unrelated reconciliation and same-harness edits retain existing execution. Verify explicit runner changes preserve compatible saved settings; the general creation/access policy above still applies. This is source-only evidence at the scoped commit, not a live provisioning result.
primary-agent
Capability ID: agents/primary-agent.
Review: baseline.
API: present — GET and PUT /api/companies/{companyId}/primary-agent/me.
Agent access: restricted — this is the authenticated human's personal
preference. Agent keys and native call_api use agent identity and are denied by
the board gate; no dedicated agent selection tool is present.
Policy: Requires board user identity, company access and active membership, except implicit-local board or instance administrator. Viewers may choose their own primary. Selection requires a same-company readable, available agent and is scoped to actor user ID; the request cannot select another user's preference. Explicit null selection is rejected; leave/termination can clear an unavailable choice. Initialization stays recorded so clearing does not silently replace it.
Evidence: source-only — reviewed on 2026-10-13 at
60bc0d5fee9a6e48db08fc016521fee3d9f57d67:
routes,
service,
provider, and
route tests.
Verification: not-run — select and read the preference as two company users;
assert isolation, wrong-company/unreadable targets, pending/terminated agent
rejection and agent-key denial. Verify replacement confirmation and fallback
precedence in the UI; inspect the cleared state after permitted leave/termination.
Gaps: No agent mutation path for another person's preference. Live human/agent access is unverified; UI fixture callbacks do not establish persistence or task and Chat default resolution.
grok-bot
Capability ID: agents/grok-bot.
Review: baseline.
API: present — POST /api/companies/{companyId}/grok-invitations, operator-owned Grok invitations and agent-scoped /grok-binding setup, routine, verify, stop, recover and disconnect endpoints. Direct HTTPS /mcp/runner uses fixed named-agent OAuth. Grok tools expose durable assignment operations and task-bound upload/download grants.
Agent access: available — paperclip_grok_* through the dedicated agent grant. First-party Paperclip operations execute through the shared Rust Runner. The Bot retains its own apps; Paperclip workspace and third-party app tools are unavailable.
Policy: company/agent/client/resource/authorizer binding; current manage-agent permission for consent and subsequent calls; normal task ownership, controller lease, governance, pause, revocation and recorded budget checks. Execution and file transfers require current task-bound sessions. Secret credentials remain in encrypted secret storage and are redacted from HTTP logs.
Evidence: source-only — routes, shared authority, routine receipts and Runner broker. Temporary actual-client OAuth and an outbound routine wake are qualified separately; they do not prove this candidate’s acceptance.
Verification: not-run — deployed acceptance pending; focused protocol/authorization and actual Rust backend tests; run fresh/saved setup, assigned and proactive tasks, duplicate calls, stale sessions, restart, ambiguous delivery, stop and recovery through the real client on the serving managed candidate.
Gaps: deployed two-way work and unattended first-time onboarding remain unqualified; remote termination, provider transcript streaming and usage accounting are unavailable.
api-keys
Capability ID: agents/api-keys.
Review: baseline.
API: present — GET /api/agents/{id}/keys; POST /api/agents/{id}/keys; DELETE /api/agents/{id}/keys/{keyId}.
Agent access: restricted — key listing and mutations require board identity and agent-management authority. The CLI token agent commands use authorized board context. Ordinary agent REST/native call_api and public assistant capabilities do not grant key-management authority.
Policy: getAccessibleAgent checks company access and agents:create through the shared access evaluator for reads as well as mutations. Creation rejects pending_approval and terminated agents. Keys retain the creating person’s responsibleUserId; only a hash is stored and token plaintext is returned on creation. Revocation checks that the key belongs to the selected agent. Authentication separately applies agent state, revocation, scope, and responsible-user membership intersections.
Evidence: source-only — reviewed at 9ef434fe79c57d976b8b03b14c5242db270b8320. Keys tab, key routes, key service, authentication, and CLI token commands.
Verification: not-run — Create a disposable key as a permitted authenticated board person, prove one harmless agent read, revoke, and retry the same bearer. Assert metadata persistence, once-only token display, activity, missing management permission, agent identity denial, cross-company/cross-agent IDs, ineligible targets, and missing responsible-user binding.
Gaps: Local implicit key creation does not by itself prove a usable responsible-user binding. No ordinary-agent self-management or assistant delegation path is established; browser creation and actual bearer use need live evidence.
managed-agent-setup
Capability ID: agents/managed-agent-setup.
Review: baseline.
API: present — GET and POST /api/companies/{companyId}/managed-agent-profiles. Provisioning separately calls Anthropic /v1/environments, /v1/agents, and /v1/agents/{id}/versions with operator provider credentials; --probe does not resolve a Paperclip client context or call the profile API.
Agent access: operator-only — provider qualification/provisioning uses the explicit operator CLI. Persisted profile reads/writes require board/company identity; viewer writes are denied. This does not authorize a company agent to provision external provider resources.
Policy: A profile uses an active same-company, company-scoped secret reference. Qualification requires the source-supported pinned model/version, no tools/MCP/skills/multiagent capability, and a locked no-network/no-packages environment with retention acknowledgement. Qualified configuration revisions are immutable; changed qualified configuration requires a new profile key. Provider API credentials and Paperclip profile authority are separate checks.
Evidence: source-only — reviewed at 9ef434fe79c57d976b8b03b14c5242db270b8320. Managed-agent CLI, profile routes, profile service, and runtime validation.
Verification: not-run — Compare provider and Paperclip state before/after probe, then inspect a permitted create/adopt and repeated resource reuse. Reject missing acknowledgement, unsafe resources, invalid model/version/secret/company, and viewer/agent mutations. Separately run a bounded useful task with the saved qualified profile before claiming runtime readiness.
Gaps: This is a provider-specific setup path, not qualification of every managed service or deployed environment. Mocked setup and source validation do not prove live retention, remote execution, or provider availability.