Files
PaperClipAI/packages/skills-catalog/generated
DottaandPaperclip ce1ee9e89f fix: stop prompts from encouraging subtasks (#20362)
## Thinking Path

> - Paperclip is the open source app people use to manage AI agents for
work.
> - Agents read runtime prompts, tool help, skills, and role
instructions.
> - Several of these texts tell agents to create child tasks as a normal
next step.
> - One accepted-plan prompt even forbids work on the current task.
> - Task parentage is useful, but it does not need a prompt that
encourages task creation.
> - This pull request removes those prompts and keeps the task APIs
available.

## Linked Issues or Issue Description

Refs #10642. This change adjusts prompt wording; it does not add
delegation-cycle guards.

**Current behavior**
Prompts tell agents to create children after plan approval, use children
for long work, and create a task just to pass context. Onboarding
requires a child even for a single request.

**Proposed behavior**
Continue work on the current task. Keep explicit assignments, optional
task creation, parentage, dependencies, and approval gates. Use the
separate-task recipes when the user requests that structure or when
continuing existing work.

**Reason and benefit**
Reduce needless task trees without removing subtask support. Keep the
patch limited to wording, existing test expectations, and generated
catalog data.

## What Changed

- Align accepted-plan prompts and remove direct child-creation advice
from runtime and error text.
- Make task tool descriptions neutral. Keep their fields, defaults, and
handlers.
- Update the main skill, onboarding, CEO instructions, company
templates, specialist workflows, and matching guides.
- Keep historical release snapshots intact. Refresh the explicitly
seeded schema fixture's catalog digest; the server still verifies
historical release snapshot hashes.
- Refresh the affected generated catalogs, capability inventory,
semantic contracts, and fixture manifest.

## Verification

- Final tested head: `c6e304d0c105cdbfbe0b2ab0a233307fcd91a04b`.
- All 66 check runs are complete: 60 pass, one is neutral, and five are
skipped by CI conditions. Snyk also passes. No checks fail or remain
pending.
- [PR
CI](https://github.com/paperclipai/paperclip/actions/runs/42846226554)
passes typecheck, build, server/general tests, all eight E2E shards,
Runner support, Runner Rust, and the aggregate verify gate.
[Windows](https://github.com/paperclipai/paperclip/actions/runs/42846226546)
and [Docker
Runner](https://github.com/paperclipai/paperclip/actions/runs/42846226108)
also pass.
-
[Greptile](https://github.com/paperclipai/paperclip/pull/20362#issuecomment-6751419835)
and [Paperclip
review](https://github.com/paperclipai/paperclip/pull/20362#issuecomment-6751454010)
give this exact head 5/5. All six inline threads are resolved. Neither
current summary has findings.
- Merged master `bf0220d34a156c81853755c3d1365ddc527037de`. Resolved
three generated-file conflicts with the canonical generators.
- Local verification passes: 473 focused prompt, continuation, UI,
catalog, runtime and native-execution tests; Runner TypeScript build;
generated metadata; UI token gates; and diff checks.
- The prior head `c22018cb0f` failed three SDK evidence tests because
two source hashes were stale. Reproduced all three failures locally. The
existing generator refreshed only the hashes for the denial-copy file
and its test. All 53 affected evidence/source-pin tests then passed,
including private-value rejection. No scanner logic, assertions, or
runtime dependency pins changed. Current CI confirms the support suite
passes.
- A prior commit failed the Rust process reaping test. Its cause remains
unproven. No Rust code or assertions changed. Later Rust runs pass; this
does not establish the cause of the earlier failure.
- Local preflight built shared/plugin SDK packages, then stopped because
`cargo` is absent. Current-head CI supplies Rust and full build
coverage. `pnpm verify --explain` selects broad required CI; full local
suites were not repeated.

## Risks

- Wording changes guide the model; they do not enforce a ban on
subtasks.
- Existing installed skill versions and saved custom instructions need
their normal refresh process. This PR does not migrate company
configuration.
- Existing approved task assignments and approval gates remain in
effect.

## Model Used

- OpenAI GPT-6, through Codex, with reasoning, tool use, and code
execution. The exact routed 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
#` / `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>
2026-11-10 09:58:54 -06:00
..