Improve CheckStaleness error handling

## Problem

CheckStaleness returns 'false' (not stale) for multiple error conditions instead of returning errors. This masks problems.

**Location:** internal/autoimport/autoimport.go:253-285

## Edge Cases That Return False

1. **Invalid last_import_time format** (line 259-262)
2. **No JSONL file found** (line 267-277)
3. **JSONL stat fails** (line 279-282)

## Fix

Return errors for abnormal conditions:

```go
lastImportTime, err := time.Parse(time.RFC3339, lastImportStr)
if err != nil {
    return false, fmt.Errorf("corrupted last_import_time: %w", err)
}

if jsonlPath == "" {
    return false, fmt.Errorf("no JSONL file found")
}

stat, err := os.Stat(jsonlPath)
if err != nil {
    return false, fmt.Errorf("cannot stat JSONL: %w", err)
}
```

## Impact
Medium - edge cases are rare but should be handled

## Effort
30 minutes - requires updating callers in RPC server


Fix FindBeadsDir to prioritize main repo .beads for worktrees

The FindBeadsDir function should prioritize finding .beads in the main repository root when accessed from a worktree, rather than finding worktree-local .beads directories. This ensures proper sharing of the database across all worktrees.


bd blocked shows empty (GH#545)

bd blocked only shows dependency-blocked issues, not status=blocked issues.

Either:
- Include status=blocked issues, OR
- Document/rename to clarify behavior

Fix in: cmd/bd/blocked.go


Don't search parent directories for .beads databases

bd currently walks up the directory tree looking for .beads directories, which can find unrelated databases (e.g., ~/.beads). This causes confusing warnings and potential data pollution.

Should either:
1. Stop at git root (don't search above it)
2. Only use explicit BEADS_DB env var or local .beads
3. At minimum, don't search in home directory


RPC fast-fail: stat socket before dial, cap timeouts to 200ms

Eliminate 5s delay when daemon socket is missing by:
1. Add os.Stat(socketPath) check before dialing in TryConnect
2. Return (nil, nil) immediately if socket doesn't exist
3. Set default dial timeout to 200ms in TryConnect
4. Keep TryConnectWithTimeout for explicit health/status checks (1-2s)

This prevents clients from waiting through full timeout when no daemon is running.


Add comprehensive tests for sync branch daemon logic

The daemon sync branch functionality (bd-6545) was implemented but needs proper end-to-end testing.

Current implementation:
- daemon_sync_branch.go has syncBranchCommitAndPush() and syncBranchPull()
- daemon_sync.go has been updated to use these functions when sync.branch is configured
- All daemon tests pass, but no specific tests for sync branch behavior

Testing needed:
- Test that daemon commits to sync branch when sync.branch is configured
- Test that daemon commits to current branch when sync.branch is NOT configured (backward compatibility)
- Test that daemon pulls from sync branch and syncs JSONL back to main repo
- Test worktree creation and health checks during daemon operations
- Test error handling (missing branch, worktree corruption, etc.)

Key challenge: Tests need to run in the context of the git repo (getGitRoot() uses current working directory), so test setup needs to properly change directory or mock the git root detection.

Reference existing daemon tests in daemon_test.go and daemon_autoimport_test.go for patterns.


Parent: bd-imj

Ensure deletions.jsonl is tracked in git (not ignored).

Update bd init and gitignore upgrade logic to:
1. NOT add deletions.jsonl to .gitignore
2. Ensure it is committed alongside beads.jsonl

The file must be in git for cross-clone propagation to work.

Acceptance criteria:
- bd init does not ignore deletions.jsonl
- Existing .gitignore files are not broken
- File appears in git status when modified


Export deduplication breaks when JSONL and export_hashes table diverge

## Problem

The export deduplication feature (timestamp-only skipping) breaks when the JSONL file and export_hashes table get out of sync, causing exports to skip issues that aren't actually in the file.

## Symptoms

- `bd export` reports "Skipped 128 issue(s) with timestamp-only changes"
- JSONL file only has 38 lines but DB has 149 issues
- export_hashes table has 149 entries
- Auto-import doesn't trigger (hash matches despite missing data)
- Two repos on same commit show different issue counts

## Root Cause

shouldSkipExport() in autoflush.go compares current issue hash with stored export_hashes entry. If they match, it skips export assuming the issue is already in the JSONL.

This assumption fails when:
1. Git operations (pull, reset, checkout) change JSONL without clearing export_hashes
2. Manual JSONL edits or corruption
3. Import operations that modify DB but don't update export_hashes
4. Partial exports that update export_hashes but don't complete

## Impact

- **Critical data loss risk**: Issues appear to be tracked but aren't persisted to git
- Breaks multi-repo sync (root cause of today's debugging session)
- Auto-import fails to detect staleness (hash matches despite missing data)
- Silent data corruption (no error messages, just missing issues)

## Reproduction

1. Have DB with 149 issues, all in export_hashes table
2. Truncate JSONL to 38 lines (simulate git reset or corruption)
3. Run `bd export` - it skips 128 issues
4. JSONL still has only 38 lines but export thinks it succeeded

## Current Workaround

```bash
sqlite3 .beads/beads.db "DELETE FROM export_hashes"
bd export -o .beads/beads.jsonl
```

## Proposed Solutions

**Option 1: Verify JSONL integrity before skipping**
- Count lines in JSONL, compare with export_hashes count
- If mismatch, clear export_hashes and force full export
- Safe but adds I/O overhead

**Option 2: Hash-based JSONL validation**
- Store hash of entire JSONL file in metadata
- Before export, check if JSONL hash matches
- If mismatch, clear export_hashes
- More efficient, detects any JSONL corruption

**Option 3: Disable timestamp-only deduplication**
- Remove the feature entirely
- Always export all issues
- Simplest and safest, but creates larger git commits

**Option 4: Clear export_hashes on git operations**
- Add post-merge hook to clear export_hashes
- Clear on any import operation
- Defensive approach but may over-clear

## Recommended Fix

Combination of Options 2 + 4:
1. Store JSONL file hash in metadata after export
2. Check hash before export, clear export_hashes if mismatch
3. Clear export_hashes on import operations
4. Add `bd validate` check for JSONL/export_hashes sync

## Files Involved

- cmd/bd/autoflush.go (shouldSkipExport)
- cmd/bd/export.go (export with deduplication)
- internal/storage/sqlite/metadata.go (export_hashes table)

## Recovery Session (2025-10-29 21:30)

### What Happened
- Created 14 new hash ID issues (bd-f8b764c9 through bd-f8b764c9.1)
- bd sync appeared to succeed
- Canonical repo (~/src/beads): 162 issues in DB + JSONL ✓
- Secondary repo (fred/beads): Only 145 issues vs 162 in canonical ✗
- Both repos on same git commit but different issue counts!

### Bug Manifestation During Recovery

1. **Initial state**: fred/beads had 145 issues, 145 lines in JSONL, 145 export_hashes entries

2. **After git reset --hard origin/main**:
   - JSONL: 162 lines (from git)
   - DB: 150 issues (auto-import partially worked)
   - Auto-import failed with UNIQUE constraint error

3. **After manual import --resolve-collisions**:
   - DB: 160 issues
   - JSONL: Still 162 lines
   - export_hashes: 159 entries

4. **After bd export**:
   - **JSONL reduced to 17 lines!** ← The bug in action
   - export_hashes: 159 entries (skipped exporting 142 issues)
   - Silent data loss - no error message

5. **After clearing export_hashes and re-export**:
   - JSONL: 159 lines (missing 3 issues still)
   - DB: 159 issues
   - Still diverged from canonical

### The Bug Loop
Once export_hashes and JSONL diverge:
- Export skips issues already in export_hashes
- But those issues aren't actually in JSONL
- This creates corrupt JSONL with missing issues
- Auto-import can't detect the problem (file hash matches what was exported)
- Data is lost with no error messages

### Recovery Solution
Couldn't break the loop with export alone. Had to:
1. Copy .beads/beads.db from canonical repo
2. Clear export_hashes
3. Full re-export
4. Finally converged to 162 issues

### Key Learnings

1. **The bug is worse than we thought**: It can create corrupt exports (17 lines instead of 162!)

2. **Auto-import can't save you**: Once export is corrupt, auto-import just imports the corrupt data

3. **Silent failure**: No warnings, no errors, just missing issues

4. **Git operations trigger it**: git reset, git pull, etc. change JSONL without clearing export_hashes

5. **Import operations populate export_hashes**: Even manual imports update export_hashes, setting up future export failures

### Immediate Action Required

**DISABLE EXPORT DEDUPLICATION NOW**

This feature is fundamentally broken and causes data loss. Should be disabled until properly fixed.

Quick fix options:
- Set environment variable to disable feature
- Comment out shouldSkipExport check
- Always clear export_hashes before export
- Add validation that DB count == JSONL line count before allowing export

### Long-term Fix

Need Option 2 + 4 from proposed solutions:
1. Store JSONL file hash after every successful export
2. Before export, verify JSONL hash matches expected
3. If mismatch, log WARNING and clear export_hashes
4. Clear export_hashes on every import operation
5. Add git post-merge hook to clear export_hashes
6. Add `bd validate` command to detect divergence


Test numeric 1


Platform tests: Linux, macOS, Windows

Test event-driven mode on all platforms. Verify inotify (Linux), FSEvents (macOS), ReadDirectoryChangesW (Windows). Test fallback behavior on each.


Invert control for compact: provide tools for agent-driven compaction

Currently compact requires Anthropic API key because bd calls the AI directly. This is backwards - we should provide tools (like all other bd commands) that let an AI agent perform the compaction. The agent decides what to keep/merge, not bd. Related to GH #243 complaint about API key requirement.


DetectCycles SQL query has bug preventing cycle detection

The DetectCycles function's SQL query has a bug in the LIKE filter that prevents it from detecting cycles.

Current code (line 571):
```sql
AND p.path NOT LIKE '%' || d.depends_on_id || '→%'
```

This prevents ANY revisit to nodes, including returning to the start node to complete a cycle.

Fix:
```sql
AND (d.depends_on_id = p.start_id OR p.path NOT LIKE '%' || d.depends_on_id || '→%')
```

This allows revisiting the start node (to detect the cycle) while still preventing intermediate node revisits.

Impact: Currently DetectCycles cannot detect any cycles, but this hasn't been noticed because AddDependency prevents cycles from being created. The function would only matter if cycles were manually inserted into the database.


MCP server loses workspace context after Amp restart - causes silent failures

**CRITICAL BUG**: The beads MCP server loses workspace context when Amp restarts, leading to silent failures and potential data corruption.

## Reproduction
1. Start Amp with beads MCP server configured
2. Call `mcp__beads__set_context(workspace_root="/path/to/project")`
3. Use MCP tools successfully (e.g., `mcp__beads__show`, `mcp__beads__list`)
4. Restart Amp (new thread/session)
5. Try to use MCP tools without calling `set_context` again
6. **Result**: "Not connected" or "No workspace set" errors

## Impact
- Amp agents silently fail when trying to read/update beads issues
- May attempt to create duplicate issues because they can't see existing ones
- Potential for data corruption if operating on wrong database
- Breaks multi-session workflows
- Creates confusion: CLI works (`./bd`) but MCP tools don't

## Current Workaround
Manually call `mcp__beads__set_context()` at start of every Amp session.

## Root Cause
MCP server is stateful and doesn't persist workspace context across restarts.

## Proposed Fix
**Option 1 (Best)**: Auto-detect workspace from current working directory
- Match behavior of CLI `./bd` commands
- Check for `.beads/` directory in current dir or parents
- No manual context setting needed

**Option 2**: Persist context in MCP server state file
- Save last workspace_root to `~/.config/beads/mcp_context.json`
- Restore on server startup

**Option 3**: Require explicit context in every MCP call
- Add optional `workspace_root` parameter to all MCP tools
- Fall back to saved context if not provided

Acceptance:
- MCP tools work across Amp restarts without manual set_context()
- Auto-detection matches CLI behavior (walks up from CWD)
- Clear error message when no workspace found
- set_context() still works for explicit override
- BEADS_WORKING_DIR env var support
- Integration test validates restart behavior


Fix goroutine leak in daemon restart

Fire-and-forget goroutine in daemon restart leaks on every restart.

Location: cmd/bd/daemons.go:251

Problem:
go func() { _ = daemonCmd.Wait() }()

- Spawns goroutine without timeout or cancellation
- If daemon command never completes, goroutine leaks forever
- Each daemon restart leaks one more goroutine

Solution: Add timeout and cleanup:
go func() {
    done := make(chan struct{})
    go func() {
        _ = daemonCmd.Wait()
        close(done)
    }()

    select {
    case <-done:
        // Exited normally
    case <-time.After(10 * time.Second):
        // Timeout - daemon should have forked by now
        _ = daemonCmd.Process.Kill()
    }
}()

Impact: Goroutine leak on every daemon restart

Effort: 2 hours


Beads commands operate on stale database without warning

All beads read operations should validate database is in sync with JSONL before proceeding.

**Current Behavior:**
- Commands can query/read from stale database
- Only mutation operations (like 'bd sync') check if JSONL is newer
- User gets incorrect results without realizing database is out of sync

**Expected Behavior:**
- All beads commands should have pre-flight check for database freshness
- If JSONL is newer than database, refuse to operate with error: "Database out of sync. Run 'bd import' first."
- Same safety check that exists for 'bd sync' should apply to ALL operations

**Impact:**
- Users make decisions based on incomplete/outdated data
- Silent failures lead to confusion (e.g., thinking issues don't exist when they do)
- Similar to running git commands on stale repo without being warned to pull

**Example:**
- Searched for bd-g9eu issue file: not found
- Issue exists in .beads/issues.jsonl (in git)
- Database was stale, but no warning was given
- Led to incorrect conclusion that issue was already closed/deleted

## Implementation Complete

**Phase 1: Created staleness check (cmd/bd/staleness.go)**
- ensureDatabaseFresh() function checks JSONL mtime vs last_import_time
- Returns error with helpful message when database is stale
- Auto-skips in daemon mode (daemon has auto-import)

**Phase 2: Added to all read commands**
- list, show, ready, status, stale, info, duplicates, validate
- Check runs before database queries in direct mode
- Daemon mode already protected via checkAndAutoImportIfStale()

**Phase 3: Code Review Findings**
See follow-up issues:
- bd-XXXX: Add warning when staleness check errors
- bd-YYYY: Improve CheckStaleness error handling
- bd-ZZZZ: Refactor redundant daemon checks (low priority)

**Testing:**
- Build successful: go build ./cmd/bd
- Binary works: ./bd --version
- Ready for manual testing

**Next Steps:**
1. Test with stale database scenario
2. Implement review improvements
3. Close issue when tests pass


Pre-sync integrity check (bd sync --check)

Add bd sync --check flag that detects problematic states before attempting sync: forced pushes on sync branch (via git reflog), prefix mismatches in JSONL, orphaned children with missing parents. Output combined diagnostic without modifying state.


Channel isolation test - beads

Resetting stale in_progress status from old executor run (13 days old)


Document deletions manifest in AGENTS.md and README

Parent: bd-imj

## Task
Add documentation about the deletions manifest feature.

## Locations to Update

### AGENTS.md
- Explain that deletions.jsonl is tracked in git
- Document that `bd delete` records to the manifest
- Explain cross-clone propagation mechanism

### README.md
- Brief mention in .beads directory structure section
- Link to detailed docs if needed

### docs/deletions.md (new file)
- Full technical documentation
- Format specification
- Pruning policy
- Git history fallback
- Troubleshooting

## Acceptance Criteria
- AGENTS.md updated with deletion workflow
- README.md mentions deletions.jsonl purpose
- New docs/deletions.md with complete reference


Multi-repo hydration layer

Build core infrastructure to hydrate database from N repos (N≥1), with smart caching via file mtime tracking and routing writes to correct JSONL based on source_repo metadata.


bd-hv01: Refactor snapshot management into dedicated module

Problem: Snapshot logic is scattered across deletion_tracking.go. Would benefit from abstraction with SnapshotManager type.

Benefits: cleaner separation of concerns, easier to test in isolation, better encapsulation, could add observability/metrics.

Suggested improvements: add magic constants, track merge statistics, better error messages.

Files: cmd/bd/deletion_tracking.go (refactor into new snapshot_manager.go)


Update daemon commit logic for separate branch

Modify daemon to use worktree for commits when sync.branch configured.

Tasks:
- Update internal/daemon/server_export_import_auto.go
- Detect sync.branch configuration
- Ensure worktree exists before commit
- Sync JSONL to worktree
- Commit in worktree context
- Push to configured branch
- Fallback to current behavior if sync.branch not set
- Handle git errors (network, permissions, conflicts)

Estimated effort: 3-4 days


bd cleanup should also prune expired tombstones

## Problem

`bd cleanup` deletes closed issues (converting them to tombstones) but does NOT prune expired tombstones. Users expect 'cleanup' to do comprehensive cleanup.

## Current Behavior

1. `bd cleanup --force` → converts closed issues to tombstones
2. Expired tombstones (>30 days) remain in issues.jsonl
3. User must separately run `bd compact` to prune tombstones
4. `bd doctor` warns about expired tombstones: 'Run bd compact to prune'

## Expected Behavior

`bd cleanup` should also prune expired tombstones from issues.jsonl.

## Impact

With v0.30.0 making tombstones the default migration path, this UX gap becomes more visible. Users cleaning up their database shouldn't need to know about a separate `bd compact` command.

## Proposed Solution

Call `pruneExpiredTombstones()` at the end of the cleanup command (same function used by compact). Report results:

```
✓ Deleted 15 closed issue(s)
✓ Pruned 3 expired tombstone(s) (older than 30 days)
```

## Files to Modify

- `cmd/bd/cleanup.go` - Add call to pruneExpiredTombstones after deleteBatch
- May need to move pruneExpiredTombstones to shared location if not already accessible

## Acceptance Criteria

- [ ] `bd cleanup --force` prunes expired tombstones after deleting closed issues
- [ ] `bd cleanup --dry-run` shows what tombstones would be pruned
- [ ] JSON output includes tombstone prune results


Extract migration functions to migrations.go

Move migrateDirtyIssuesTable, migrateExternalRefColumn, migrateCompositeIndexes, migrateClosedAtConstraint, migrateCompactionColumns, migrateSnapshotsTable, migrateCompactionConfig, migrateCompactedAtCommitColumn, migrateExportHashesTable, migrateContentHashColumn to a separate migrations.go file


cmd/bd test suite is absurdly slow - 279 tests taking 8+ minutes

# Problem

The cmd/bd test suite is painfully slow:
- **279 tests** in cmd/bd alone
- Full suite takes **8+ minutes** to run
- Even with the 16 slowest integration tests now tagged with `integration` build tag, the remaining tests still take forever

This makes the development loop unusable. We can't wait 8+ minutes every time we want to run tests.

# Root Cause Analysis

## 1. Sheer Volume
279 tests is too many for a single package. Even at 0.1s per test, that's 28 seconds minimum just for cmd/bd.

## 2. Each Test Creates Full Database + Temp Directories
Every test does heavy setup:
- Creates temp directory (`t.TempDir()` or `os.MkdirTemp`)
- Initializes SQLite database
- Sets up git repo in many cases
- Creates full storage layer

Example from the tests:
```go
func setupCLITestDB(t *testing.T) string {
    tmpDir := createTempDirWithCleanup(t)
    runBDInProcess(t, tmpDir, "init", "--prefix", "test", "--quiet")
    return tmpDir
}
```

This happens 279 times!

## 3. Tests Are Not Properly Categorized
We have three types of tests mixed together:
- **Unit tests** - should be fast, test single functions
- **Integration tests** - test full workflows, need DB/git
- **End-to-end tests** - test entire CLI commands

They're all lumped together in cmd/bd, all running every time.

# What We've Already Fixed

Added `integration` build tags to 16 obviously-slow test files:
- import_profile_test.go (performance benchmarking tests)
- export_mtime_test.go (tests with time.Sleep calls)
- cli_fast_test.go (full CLI integration tests)
- delete_test.go, import_uncommitted_test.go, sync_local_only_test.go (git integration)
- And 10 more in internal/ packages

These are now excluded from the default `go test ./...` run.

# Proposed Solutions

## Option 1: Shared Test Fixtures (Quick Win)
Create a shared test database that multiple tests can use:
```go
var testDB *sqlite.SQLiteStorage
var testDBOnce sync.Once

func getSharedTestDB(t *testing.T) storage.Storage {
    testDBOnce.Do(func() {
        // Create one DB for all tests
    })
    return testDB
}
```

**Pros**: Easy to implement, immediate speedup
**Cons**: Tests become less isolated, harder to debug failures

## Option 2: Table-Driven Tests (Medium Win)
Collapse similar tests into table-driven tests:
```go
func TestCreate(t *testing.T) {
    tests := []struct{
        name string
        args []string
        want string
    }{
        {"basic issue", []string{"create", "Test"}, "created"},
        {"with description", []string{"create", "Test", "-d", "desc"}, "created"},
        // ... 50 more cases
    }

    db := setupOnce(t) // Setup once, not 50 times
    for _, tt := range tests {
        t.Run(tt.name, func(t *testing.T) {
            // test using shared db
        })
    }
}
```

**Pros**: Dramatically reduces setup overhead, tests run in parallel
**Cons**: Requires refactoring, tests share more state

## Option 3: Split cmd/bd Tests Into Packages (Big Win)
Move tests into focused packages:
- `cmd/bd/internal/clitests` - CLI integration tests (mark with integration tag)
- `cmd/bd/internal/unittests` - Fast unit tests
- Keep only essential tests in cmd/bd

**Pros**: Clean separation, easy to run just fast tests
**Cons**: Requires significant refactoring

## Option 4: Parallel Execution (Quick Win)
Add `t.Parallel()` to independent tests:
```go
func TestSomething(t *testing.T) {
    t.Parallel() // Run this test concurrently with others
    // ...
}
```

**Pros**: Easy to add, can cut time in half on multi-core machines
**Cons**: Doesn't reduce actual test work, just parallelizes it

## Option 5: In-Memory Databases (Medium Win)
Use `:memory:` SQLite databases instead of file-based:
```go
store, err := sqlite.New(ctx, ":memory:")
```

**Pros**: Faster than disk I/O, easier cleanup
**Cons**: Some tests need actual file-based DBs (export/import tests)

# Recommended Approach

**Short-term (this week)**:
1. Add `t.Parallel()` to all independent tests in cmd/bd
2. Use `:memory:` databases where possible
3. Create table-driven tests for similar test cases

**Medium-term (next sprint)**:
4. Split cmd/bd tests into focused packages
5. Mark more integration tests appropriately

**Long-term (backlog)**:
6. Consider shared test fixtures with proper isolation

# Current Status

We've tagged 16 files with `integration` build tag, but the remaining 279 tests in cmd/bd still take 8+ minutes. This issue tracks fixing the cmd/bd test performance specifically.

# Target

Get `go test ./...` (without `-short` or `-tags=integration`) down to **under 30 seconds**.

# THE REAL ROOT CAUSE (Updated Analysis)

After examining the actual test code, the problem is clear:

## Every Test Creates Its Own Database From Scratch

Look at `create_test.go`:
```go
func TestCreate_BasicIssue(t *testing.T) {
    tmpDir := t.TempDir()                          // ← Creates temp dir
    testDB := filepath.Join(tmpDir, ".beads", "beads.db")
    s := newTestStore(t, testDB)                   // ← Opens NEW SQLite connection
                                                    // ← Runs migrations
                                                    // ← Sets config
    // ... actual test (3 lines)
}

func TestCreate_WithDescription(t *testing.T) {
    tmpDir := t.TempDir()                          // ← Creates ANOTHER temp dir
    testDB := filepath.Join(tmpDir, ".beads", "beads.db")
    s := newTestStore(t, testDB)                   // ← Opens ANOTHER SQLite connection
    // ... actual test (3 lines)
}
```

**This happens 279 times!**

## These Tests Don't Need Isolation!

Most tests are just checking:
- "Can I create an issue with a title?"
- "Can I create an issue with a description?"
- "Can I add labels?"

They don't conflict with each other. They could all share ONE database!

## The Fix: Test Suites with Shared Setup

Instead of:
```go
func TestCreate_BasicIssue(t *testing.T) {
    s := newTestStore(t, t.TempDir()+"/db")  // ← Expensive!
    // test
}

func TestCreate_WithDesc(t *testing.T) {
    s := newTestStore(t, t.TempDir()+"/db")  // ← Expensive!
    // test
}
```

Do this:
```go
func TestCreate(t *testing.T) {
    // ONE setup for all subtests
    s := newTestStore(t, t.TempDir()+"/db")

    t.Run("basic_issue", func(t *testing.T) {
        t.Parallel()  // Can run concurrently - tests don't conflict
        // test using shared `s`
    })

    t.Run("with_description", func(t *testing.T) {
        t.Parallel()
        // test using shared `s`
    })

    // ... 50 more subtests, all using same DB
}
```

**Result**: 50 tests → 1 database setup instead of 50!

## Why This Works

SQLite is fine with concurrent reads and isolated transactions. These tests:
- ✅ Create different issues (no ID conflicts)
- ✅ Just read back what they created
- ✅ Don't depend on database state from other tests

They SHOULD share a database!

## Real Numbers

Current:
- 279 tests × (create dir + init SQLite + migrations) = **8 minutes**

After fix:
- 10 test suites × (create dir + init SQLite + migrations) = **30 seconds**
- 279 subtests running in parallel using those 10 DBs = **5 seconds**

**Total: ~35 seconds instead of 8 minutes!**

## Implementation Plan

1. **Group related tests** into suites (Create, List, Update, Delete, etc.)
2. **One setup per suite** instead of per test
3. **Use t.Run() for subtests** with t.Parallel()
4. **Keep tests that actually need isolation** separate (export/import tests, git operations)

This is way better than shuffling tests into folders!

## Progress Update (2025-11-21)

✅ **Completed**:
- Audited all 280 tests, created TEST_SUITE_AUDIT.md ([deleted:bd-c49])
- Refactored create_test.go to shared DB pattern ([deleted:bd-y6d])
- Proven the pattern works: 11 tests now run in 0.04s with 1 DB instead of 11

❌ **Current Reality**:
- Overall test suite: Still 8+ minutes (no meaningful change)
- Only 1 of 76 test files refactored
- Saved ~10 DB initializations out of 280

## Acceptance Criteria (REALISTIC)

This task is NOT complete until:
- [ ] All P1 files refactored (create ✅, dep, stale, comments, list, ready)
- [ ] Test suite runs in < 2 minutes
- [ ] Measured and verified actual speedup

## Next Steps

1. Refactor remaining 5 P1 files: dep_test.go, stale_test.go, comments_test.go, list_test.go, ready_test.go
2. Measure actual time improvement after each file
3. Continue with P2 files if needed to hit <2min target


Add transaction + retry logic for N-way collision resolution

## Problem
Current N-way collision resolution fails on UNIQUE constraint violations during convergence rounds when 5+ clones sync. The RemapCollisions function is non-atomic and performs operations sequentially:
1. Delete old issues (CASCADE deletes dependencies)
2. Create remapped issues (can fail with UNIQUE constraint)
3. Recreate dependencies
4. Update text references

Failure at step 2 leaves database in inconsistent state.

## Solution
Wrap collision resolution in database transaction with retry logic:
- Make entire RemapCollisions operation atomic
- Retry up to 3 times on UNIQUE constraint failures
- Re-sync counters between retries
- Add better error messages for debugging

## Implementation
Location: internal/storage/sqlite/collision.go:342 (RemapCollisions function)

```go
// Retry up to 3 times on UNIQUE constraint failures
for attempt := 0; attempt < 3; attempt++ {
    err := s.db.ExecInTransaction(func(tx *sql.Tx) error {
        // All collision resolution operations
    })
    if !isUniqueConstraintError(err) {
        return err
    }
    s.SyncAllCounters(ctx)
}
```

## Success Criteria
- 5-clone collision test passes reliably
- No partial state on UNIQUE constraint errors
- Automatic recovery from transient ID conflicts

## References
- See beads_nway_test.go:124 for the KNOWN LIMITATION comment
- Related to-7c5915ae (transaction support)

## Progress Made

1. Added `ExecInTransaction` helper to SQLiteStorage for atomic database operations
2. Added `IsUniqueConstraintError` function to detect UNIQUE constraint violations
3. Wrapped `RemapCollisions` with retry logic (up to 3 attempts) with counter sync between retries
4. Enhanced `handleRename` to detect and handle race conditions where target ID already exists
5. Added defensive checks for when old ID has been deleted by another clone

## Test Results

The changes improve N-way collision handling but don't fully solve the problem:
- Original error: `UNIQUE constraint failed: issues.id` during first convergence round
- With changes: Test proceeds further but encounters different collision scenarios
- New error: `target ID already exists with different content` in later convergence rounds

## Root Cause Analysis

The issue is more complex than initially thought. In N-way scenarios:
1. Clone A remaps bd-1c63eb84 → test-2 → test-4
2. Clone B remaps bd-1c63eb84 → test-3 → test-4
3. Both try to create test-4, but with different intermediate states
4. This creates legitimate content collisions that require additional resolution

## Next Steps

The full solution requires:
1. Making remapping fully deterministic across clones (same input → same remapped ID)
2. OR making `handleRename` more tolerant of mid-flight collisions
3. OR implementing full transaction support for multi-step collision resolution -7c5915ae)

The retry logic added here provides a foundation but isn't sufficient for complex N-way scenarios.


Add circular dependency detection to bd doctor

Added cycle detection as Check #10 in bd doctor command. Uses same recursive CTE query as DetectCycles() to find circular dependencies. Reports error status with count and fix suggestion if cycles found.


Prefix detection treats embedded hyphens as prefix delimiters

The prefix detection logic in bd import incorrectly identifies issues like 'vc-baseline-test' and 'vc-92cl-gate-test' as having different prefixes ('vc-baseline-' and 'vc-92cl-gate-') instead of recognizing them as having the standard 'vc-' prefix with hyphenated suffixes.

This breaks import with error: 'prefix mismatch detected: database uses vc- but found issues with prefixes: [vc-92cl-gate- (1 issues) vc-baseline- (1 issues)]'

The prefix should be determined by the pattern: prefix is everything up to and including the first hyphen. The suffix can contain hyphens without being treated as part of the prefix.

Example problematic IDs:
- vc-baseline-test (detected as prefix: vc-baseline-)
- vc-92cl-gate-test (detected as prefix: vc-92cl-gate-)
- vc-test (correctly detected as prefix: vc-)

Impact: Users cannot use descriptive multi-part IDs without triggering false prefix mismatch errors.


Refactor sqlite.go into focused modules

Split sqlite.go (2,298 lines) into focused modules: migrations.go, ids.go, issues.go, events.go, dirty.go, db.go. This will improve maintainability and reduce cognitive load.


Export doesn't update last_import_hash metadata causing perpetual 'JSONL content has changed' errors

After a successful export, the daemon doesn't update last_import_hash or last_import_mtime metadata. This causes hasJSONLChanged to return true on the next export attempt, blocking with 'refusing to export: JSONL content has changed since last import'.

Related to GH #334.

Scenario:
1. Daemon exports successfully → JSONL updated, hash changes
2. Metadata NOT updated (last_import_hash still points to old hash)
3. Next mutation triggers export
4. validatePreExport calls hasJSONLChanged
5. hasJSONLChanged sees current JSONL hash != last_import_hash
6. Export blocked with 'JSONL content has changed since last import'
7. Issue stuck: can't export, can't make progress

This creates a catch-22 where the system thinks JSONL changed externally when it was the daemon itself that changed it.

Current behavior:
- Import updates metadata (import.go:310-336)
- Export does NOT update metadata (daemon_sync.go:307)
- Result: metadata becomes stale after every export


Test P1 priority


Graph Link: relates_to for knowledge graph

Implement relates_to link type for loose associations.

New command:
- bd relate <id1> <id2> - creates bidirectional relates_to link

Query support:
- bd show <id> --related shows related issues
- bd list --related-to <id>

Storage:
- relates_to stored as JSON array of issue IDs
- Consider: separate junction table for efficiency at scale?

This enables 'see also' connections without blocking or hierarchy.


Test child issue


Fix unparam unused parameter in cmd/bd/doctor.go:1879

Linting issue: checkGitHooks - path is unused (unparam) at cmd/bd/doctor.go:1879:20. Error: func checkGitHooks(path string) doctorCheck {


Post-merge hook silently fails on JSONL conflicts, poor UX

When git pull results in merge conflicts in .beads/issues.jsonl, the post-merge hook runs 'bd sync --import-only' which fails, but stderr was redirected to /dev/null. User only saw generic warning.

Fixed by capturing and displaying the actual error output, so users see 'Git conflict markers detected' message immediately.


Issue 2 to reopen


Add UNIQUE constraint on external_ref column

The external_ref column should have a UNIQUE constraint to prevent multiple issues from having the same external reference. This ensures data integrity when syncing from external systems (Jira, GitHub, Linear).

Current behavior:
- Multiple issues can have the same external_ref
- GetIssueByExternalRef returns first match (non-deterministic with duplicates)

Proposed solution:
- Add UNIQUE constraint to external_ref column
- Add migration to check for and resolve existing duplicates
- Update tests to verify constraint enforcement

Related: bd-1022


Document BEADS_DIR pattern for multi-agent workspaces (Gas Town)

Gas Town and similar multi-agent systems need to configure separate beads databases per workspace/rig, distinct from any project-level beads.

## Use Case

In Gas Town:
- Each 'rig' (managed project) has multiple agents (polecats, refinery, witness)
- All agents in a rig should share a single beads database at the rig level
- This should be separate from any .beads/ the project itself uses
- The BEADS_DIR env var enables this

## Documentation Needed

1. Add a section to docs explaining BEADS_DIR for multi-agent setups
2. Example: setting BEADS_DIR in agent startup scripts/hooks
3. Clarify interaction with project-level .beads/ (BEADS_DIR takes precedence)

## Current Support

Already implemented in internal/beads/beads.go:FindDatabasePath():
- BEADS_DIR env var is checked first (preferred)
- BEADS_DB env var still supported (deprecated)
- Falls back to .beads/ search in tree

Just needs documentation for the multi-agent workspace pattern.


Extract duplicated metadata update code in daemon_sync.go

## Problem
The same 22-line metadata update block appears identically in both:
- createExportFunc (lines 309-328)
- createSyncFunc (lines 520-539)

This violates DRY principle and makes maintenance harder.

## Solution
Extract to helper function:

```go
// updateExportMetadata updates last_import_hash and related metadata after a successful export.
// This prevents "JSONL content has changed since last import" errors on subsequent exports (bd-ymj fix).
func updateExportMetadata(ctx context.Context, store storage.Storage, jsonlPath string, log daemonLogger) {
    currentHash, err := computeJSONLHash(jsonlPath)
    if err != nil {
        log.log("Warning: failed to compute JSONL hash for metadata update: %v", err)
        return
    }

    if err := store.SetMetadata(ctx, "last_import_hash", currentHash); err != nil {
        log.log("Warning: failed to update last_import_hash: %v", err)
    }

    exportTime := time.Now().Format(time.RFC3339)
    if err := store.SetMetadata(ctx, "last_import_time", exportTime); err != nil {
        log.log("Warning: failed to update last_import_time: %v", err)
    }

    // Store mtime for fast-path optimization
    if jsonlInfo, statErr := os.Stat(jsonlPath); statErr == nil {
        mtimeStr := fmt.Sprintf("%d", jsonlInfo.ModTime().Unix())
        if err := store.SetMetadata(ctx, "last_import_mtime", mtimeStr); err != nil {
            log.log("Warning: failed to update last_import_mtime: %v", err)
        }
    }
}
```

## Files
- cmd/bd/daemon_sync.go

## Benefits
- Easier maintenance
- Single source of truth
- Consistent behavior


Issue 1


Improve internal/daemon test coverage (currently 22.5%)

Daemon functionality needs better coverage:
- Auto-start behavior
- Lock file management
- Discovery mechanisms
- Connection handling
- Error recovery

Current coverage: 58.3% (improved from 22.5% as of Nov 2025)


bd status "Recent Activity" is misleading - should use git history

## Problem

`bd status` shows "Recent Activity (last 7 days)" but the numbers are wrong. It only looks at database timestamps, not git history. Says "141 issues closed in last 7 days" when thousands have actually come and go.

## Issues

1. Only queries database timestamps, not git history
2. 7 days is too long a window
3. Numbers don't reflect actual activity in JSONL git history

## Proposed Fix

Either:
- Query git history of `.beads/beads.jsonl` to get actual activity (last 24-48 hours)
- Remove "Recent Activity" section entirely if not useful
- Make time window configurable and default to 24h

## Example Output (Current)
```
Recent Activity (last 7 days):
Issues Created:    174
Issues Closed:     141
Issues Updated:    37
```
This is misleading when thousands of issues have actually cycled through.


bd sync --squash: batch multiple syncs into single commit

For solo developers who don't need real-time multi-agent coordination, add a --squash option to bd sync that accumulates changes and commits them in a single commit rather than one commit per sync.

This addresses the git history pollution concern (many 'bd sync: timestamp' commits) while preserving the default behavior needed for orchestration.

**Proposed behavior:**
- `bd sync --squash` accumulates pending exports without committing
- Commits accumulated changes on session end or explicit `bd sync` (without --squash)
- Default behavior unchanged (immediate commits for orchestration)

**Use case:** Solo developers who want cleaner git history but don't need real-time coordination between agents.

**Related:** PR #411 (docs: reduce bd sync commit pollution)
**See also:** Multi-repo support as alternative solution (docs/MULTI_REPO_AGENTS.md)


Add "bd daemons" command for multi-daemon management

Add a new "bd daemons" command with subcommands to manage daemon processes across all beads repositories/worktrees. Should show all running daemons with metadata (version, workspace, uptime, last sync), allow stopping/restarting individual daemons, auto-clean stale processes, view logs, and show exclusive lock status.


Update docs for import bug fix

Update AGENTS.md, README.md, TROUBLESHOOTING.md with import.orphan_handling config documentation. Document resurrection behavior, tombstones, config modes. Add troubleshooting section for import failures with deleted parents.


Code Review: PR #551 - Persist close_reason to issues table

Code review of PR #551 which fixes close_reason persistence bug.

## Summary
The PR correctly fixes a bug where close_reason was only stored in the events table, not in the issues.close_reason column. This caused `bd show --json` to return empty close_reason.

## What Was Fixed
- ✅ CloseIssue now updates both close_reason and closed_at
- ✅ ReOpenIssue clears both close_reason and closed_at
- ✅ Comprehensive tests added for both storage and CLI layers
- ✅ Clear documentation in queries.go about dual storage strategy

## Quality Assessment
✅ Tests cover both storage layer and CLI JSON output
✅ Handles reopen case (clearing close_reason)
✅ Good comments explaining dual-storage design
✅ No known issues

## Potential Followups
See linked issues for suggestions.


Add import.orphan_handling config option

Add configuration option to control orphan handling behavior: 'strict' (fail on missing parent, current behavior), 'resurrect' (auto-resurrect from JSONL, recommended default), 'skip' (skip orphaned issues with warning), 'allow' (import orphans without validation). Update CONFIG.md documentation.


bd sync should not stage gitignored snapshot files

## Problem

`gitCommitBeadsDir` in `cmd/bd/sync.go` runs `git add .beads/` which stages all files in the directory, including snapshot files that are listed in `.beads/.gitignore`.

If a snapshot file (e.g., `beads.left.meta.json`) was ever committed before being added to `.gitignore`, git continues to track it. This causes merge conflicts when multiple polecats run `bd sync` concurrently, since each one modifies and commits these temporary files.

## Root Cause

Line ~568 in sync.go:
```go
addCmd := exec.CommandContext(ctx, "git", "add", beadsDir)
```

This stages everything in `.beads/`, but `.gitignore` only prevents *untracked* files from being added - it doesn't affect already-tracked files.

## Suggested Fix

Option A: After `git add .beads/`, run `git reset` on snapshot files:
```go
exec.Command("git", "reset", "HEAD", ".beads/beads.*.jsonl", ".beads/*.meta.json")
```

Option B: Stage only specific files instead of the whole directory:
```go
exec.Command("git", "add", ".beads/issues.jsonl", ".beads/deletions.jsonl", ".beads/metadata.json")
```

Option C: Detect and untrack snapshot files if they're tracked:
```go
// Check if file is tracked: git ls-files --error-unmatch <file>
// If tracked, run: git rm --cached <file>
```

Option B is probably cleanest - explicitly add only the files that should be committed.


bd-hv01: Three full JSONL reads on every sync (performance)

Problem: computeAcceptedDeletions reads three JSONL files completely into memory (base, left, merged). For 1000 issues at 1KB each, this is 3MB read and 3000 JSON parse operations.

Impact: Acceptable now (~20-35ms overhead) but will be slow for large repos (10k+ issues).

Possible optimizations: single-pass streaming, memory-mapped files, binary format, incremental snapshots.

Files: cmd/bd/deletion_tracking.go:101-208


Extract database search logic into helper function

The logic for finding a database in a beads directory is duplicated:
- FindDatabasePath() BEADS_DIR section (beads.go:141-169)
- findDatabaseInTree() (beads.go:248-280)

Both implement the same search order:
1. Check config.json first (single source of truth)
2. Fall back to canonical beads.db
3. Search for *.db files, filtering backups and vc.db

Refactoring suggestion:
Extract to a helper function like:
  func findDatabaseInBeadsDir(beadsDir string) string

Benefits:
- Single source of truth for database search logic
- Easier to maintain and update search order
- Reduces code duplication

Related to [deleted:bd-e16b] implementation.


Optimize Memory backend GetIssueByExternalRef with index

Currently GetIssueByExternalRef in Memory storage uses O(n) linear search through all issues.

Current code (memory.go:282-308):
for _, issue := range m.issues {
    if issue.ExternalRef != nil && *issue.ExternalRef == externalRef {
        return &issueCopy, nil
    }
}

Proposed optimization:
- Add externalRefToID map[string]string to MemoryStorage
- Maintain it in CreateIssue, UpdateIssue, DeleteIssue
- Achieve O(1) lookup like SQLite's index

Impact: Low (--no-db mode typically has smaller datasets)
Related: bd-1022


Fix TestListCommand duplicate dependency constraint violation


GH#483: Pre-commit hook should not fail when .beads exists but bd sync fails

Pre-commit hook exit 1 on bd sync --flush-only failure blocks commits even when user removed beads but .beads dir reappears. Should warn not fail. See: https://github.com/steveyegge/beads/issues/483


Modify CreateIssue to support parent resurrection

Update internal/storage/sqlite/sqlite.go:182-196 to call TryResurrectParent before failing on missing parent. Coordinate with EnsureIDs changes for consistent behavior. Handle edge case where parent never existed in JSONL (fail gracefully).


Add path normalization to getMultiRepoJSONLPaths()

From bd-xo6b code review: getMultiRepoJSONLPaths() does not handle non-standard paths correctly.

Problems:
- No tilde expansion: ~/repos/foo treated as literal path
- No absolute path conversion: ../other-repo breaks if working directory changes
- No duplicate detection: If Primary=. and Additional=[.], same JSONL processed twice
- No empty string handling: Empty paths create invalid /.beads/issues.jsonl

Impact:
Config with tilde or relative paths will fail

Fix needed:
1. Use filepath.Abs() for all paths
2. Add tilde expansion via os.UserHomeDir()
3. Deduplicate paths (use map to track seen paths)
4. Filter out empty strings
5. Validate paths exist and are readable

Files:
- cmd/bd/deletion_tracking.go:333-358 (getMultiRepoJSONLPaths function)


Add template support for issue creation

Support creating issues from predefined templates to streamline common workflows like epics, bug reports, or feature proposals.

Example usage:
  bd create --from-template epic "Phase 3 Features"
  bd create --from-template bug "Login failure"
  bd template list
  bd template create epic

Templates should include:
- Pre-filled description structure
- Suggested priority and type
- Common labels
- Design/acceptance criteria sections

Implementation notes:
- Store templates in .beads/templates/ directory
- Support YAML or JSON format
- Ship with built-in templates (epic, bug, feature)
- Allow custom project-specific templates


Manual task


Fix default .beads/.gitignore to ignore merge artifacts (GH #274)

Updated the default .gitignore template created by `bd init` to properly ignore merge artifacts and fix overly broad patterns.

Changes:
- Added `*.db?*` pattern for database files with query strings
- Added explicit patterns for merge artifacts: beads.{base,left,right}.{jsonl,meta.json}
- Changed `!*.jsonl` to `!issues.jsonl` to avoid including merge artifact JSONL files

This fixes GitHub issue #274 reported by rscorer.


Investigate database pollution - unexpected issue count increases

Two repositories showing unexpected issue counts:
- ~/src/beads: 280 issues (expected ~209-220)
- ~/src/dave/beads: 895 issues (675 open, 149 closed)

This suggests database pollution - issues from one repository leaking into another. Need to investigate:
1. Run bd detect-pollution on both repos
2. Check for cross-repo contamination
3. Identify source of pollution (daemon? multi-repo config? import issues?)
4. Clean up polluted databases
5. Prevent future pollution


Create Python adapter library

Create beads_mail_adapter.py library that wraps Agent Mail HTTP calls with health checks and graceful degradation.

Acceptance Criteria:
- AgentMailAdapter class with health check on init
- enabled flag auto-disables if server unreachable
- All methods wrapped in try/catch (non-blocking failures)
- Methods: reserve_issue(), release_issue(), notify(), check_inbox()
- Environment-based configuration (AGENT_MAIL_URL, AGENT_MAIL_TOKEN)
- Unit tests for enabled/disabled modes

File: lib/beads_mail_adapter.py


Update AGENTS.md with Agent Mail workflow

Update agent workflow section to include Agent Mail coordination as optional step.

Acceptance Criteria:
- Add Agent Mail to recommended workflow
- Show both with/without examples
- Update "Multi-Agent Patterns" section
- Cross-reference to AGENT_MAIL.md

File: AGENTS.md (lines 468-475)


Centralize BD_DEBUG logging into debug package

The codebase has 43 scattered instances of `if os.Getenv("BD_DEBUG") != ""` debug checks across 6 files. Centralize into a debug logging package.

Current locations:
- `cmd/bd/main.go` - 15 checks
- `cmd/bd/autoflush.go` - 6 checks
- `cmd/bd/nodb.go` - 4 checks
- `internal/rpc/server.go` - 2 checks
- `internal/rpc/client.go` - 5 checks
- `cmd/bd/daemon_autostart.go` - 11 checks

Target structure:
```
internal/debug/
└── debug.go
```

Benefits:
- Centralized debug logging
- Easier to add structured logging later
- Testable (can mock debug output)
- Consistent debug message format

Impact: Removes 43 scattered checks, improves code clarity


Refactor: Move staleness check inside daemon branch

## Problem

Currently ensureDatabaseFresh() is called before the daemon mode check, but it checks daemonClient != nil internally and returns early. This is redundant.

**Location:** All read commands (list.go:196, show.go:27, ready.go:102, status.go:80, etc.)

## Current Pattern

Call happens before daemon check, function checks daemonClient internally.

## Better Pattern

Move staleness check to direct mode branch only, after daemon check.

## Impact
Low - minor performance improvement (avoids one function call per command in daemon mode)

## Effort
Medium - requires refactoring 8 command files

## Priority
Low - can defer to future cleanup PR


Document Claude Code for Web SessionStart hook

Create documentation for using bd in Claude Code for Web:

## Documentation locations
- README.md - Add Claude Code for Web section
- Create docs/CLAUDE_CODE_WEB.md with detailed instructions

## SessionStart hook example
```json
{
  "sessionStart": {
    "script": "npm install -g @beads/bd && bd init --quiet --prefix bd || true"
  }
}
```

## Documentation should cover
- How to configure SessionStart hook in .claude/settings.json
- Verification: Check bd is installed (bd --version)
- Basic workflow in Claude Code for Web
- Troubleshooting common issues
- Note about network restrictions and why npm approach works

## Examples
- Creating issues in web sandbox
- Syncing with git in web environment
- Using MCP server (if applicable)


Test child daemon mode


bd ready taking 5 seconds with 132 issues (89 closed)

User reports bd ready is annoyingly slow on M2 Mac - 5 seconds for 132 issues (89 closed). Started noticing after hash-based IDs update. Need to investigate performance regression. Reported in GH #243.

Root cause identified: Not a query performance issue, but stale daemon locks causing 5s timeout delays.

Fixed in bd-ndyz (closed) via 5 sub-issues:
- bd-expt: Fast-fail socket checks (200ms timeout)
- bd-wgu4: Lock probe before RPC attempts
- bd-1mzt: Self-heal stale artifacts
- bd-vcg5: Panic recovery + socket cleanup
- bd-j7e2: RPC diagnostics (BD_RPC_DEBUG)

All fixes merged. Ready for v0.22.2 release.


Multi-repo contributor workflow support

Implement separate repository support for OSS contributors to prevent PR pollution while maintaining git ledger and multi-clone sync. Based on contributor-workflow-analysis.md Solution #4.


Complete remaining sync branch daemon tests

4 remaining test scenarios in daemon_sync_branch_test.go need completion:

⚠ MINOR FIXES (apply same pattern as TestSyncBranchCommitAndPush_Success):
1. TestSyncBranchCommitAndPush_NoChanges
   - Reorder: call initMainBranch() BEFORE creating JSONL
   - Pattern: init branch → create issue → export JSONL → test

2. TestSyncBranchCommitAndPush_WorktreeHealthCheck
   - Same reordering needed
   - Verify worktree corruption detection and auto-repair

🔧 MORE WORK NEEDED (remote branch setup):
3. TestSyncBranchPull_Success
   - Issue: remote doesn't have sync branch after push
   - Need to verify branch is pushed to remote correctly
   - Then test pull from clone2

4. TestSyncBranchIntegration_EndToEnd
   - Full workflow: Agent A commits → Agent B pulls → Agent B commits → Agent A pulls
   - Same remote branch issue

Pattern to apply (from TestSyncBranchCommitAndPush_Success):
- Call initMainBranch(t, dir) BEFORE creating issues/JSONL
- This ensures sync branch worktree has changes to commit

Acceptance:
- All 7 tests pass
- go test -v -run TestSyncBranch ./cmd/bd/ succeeds


Improve sync error messages

When bd sync fails, immediately surface the actual root cause (prefix mismatch, orphaned children, forced push detected, etc.) instead of requiring multiple retries to discover it. Make errors actionable with specific recovery steps.


Investigate performance issues in VS Code Copilot (Windows)

Beads unusable in Windows 11 VS Code Copilot chat with Sonnet 4.5.
Summary event happens every 3-4 turns, taking 3 minutes.
Copilot summarizes after ~125k tokens despite model supporting 1M.
Large context size of beads might be triggering aggressive summarization.
Need workaround or optimization for context size.


Add database maintenance commands section to QUICKSTART.md

**Problem:**
Users don't discover `bd compact` or `bd cleanup` commands until their database grows large. These maintenance commands aren't mentioned in quickstart documentation.

Related to issue #349 item #4.

**Current state:**
docs/QUICKSTART.md ends at line 217 with "See README.md for full documentation" but has no mention of maintenance operations.

**Proposed addition:**
Add a "Database Maintenance" section after line 140 (before "Advanced: Agent Mail" section) covering:
- When database grows (many closed issues)
- How to view compaction statistics
- How to compact old issues
- How to delete closed issues
- Warning about permanence

**Example content:**
```markdown
## Database Maintenance

As your project accumulates closed issues, the database grows. Use these commands to manage size:

```bash
# View compaction statistics
bd compact --stats

# Preview compaction candidates (30+ days closed)
bd compact --analyze --json

# Apply agent-generated summary
bd compact --apply --id bd-42 --summary summary.txt

# Immediately delete closed issues (use with caution!)
bd cleanup --force
```

**When to compact:**
- Database file > 10MB with many old closed issues
- After major project milestones
- Before archiving a project phase
```

**Files to modify:**
- docs/QUICKSTART.md (add section after line 140)


Deletions not propagated across multi-workspace sync

## Problem

When working with multiple beads workspaces (clones) sharing the same git remote, deleted issues keep coming back.

## Reproduction

1. Clone A deletes issue `bd-xyz` via `bd delete bd-xyz --force`
2. Clone A daemon syncs and pushes to GitHub
3. Clone B still has `bd-xyz` in its database
4. Clone B daemon exports and pushes its JSONL
5. Clone A pulls and imports → `bd-xyz` comes back!

## Root Cause

**No deletion tracking mechanism.** The system has no way to distinguish between:
- "Issue doesn't exist in JSONL because it was deleted"
- "Issue doesn't exist in JSONL because the export is stale"

Import treats missing issues as "not in this export" rather than "explicitly deleted."

## Solution Options

1. **Tombstone records** - Keep deleted issues in JSONL with `"status":"deleted"` or `"deleted_at"` field
2. **Deletion log** - Separate `.beads/deletions.jsonl` file tracking all deleted IDs
3. **Three-way merge** - Import compares: DB state, old JSONL, new JSONL
4. **Manual conflict resolution** - Detect resurrection and prompt user

## Related

- Similar to resurrection logic for orphaned children (bd-cc4f)
- beads-merge tool handles this better with 3-way merge


Implement content-hash based collision resolution for deterministic convergence

The current collision resolution uses creation timestamps to decide which issue to keep vs. remap. This is non-deterministic when two clones create issues at nearly the same time.

Root cause of bd-71107098:
- Clone A creates test-1="Issue from clone A" at T0
- Clone B creates test-1="Issue from clone B" at T0+30ms
- Clone B syncs first, remaps Clone A's to test-2
- Clone A syncs second, sees collision, remaps Clone B's to test-2
- Result: titles are swapped between clones

Solution:
- Use content-based hashing (title + description + priority + type)
- Deterministic winner: always keep issue with lower hash
- Same collision on different clones produces same result (idempotent)

Implementation:
- Modify ScoreCollisions in internal/storage/sqlite/collision.go
- Replace timestamp-based scoring with content hash comparison
- Ensure hash function is stable across platforms

Rename detection successfully implemented and tested!

**What was implemented:**
1. Content-hash based rename detection in DetectCollisions
2. When importing JSONL, if an issue has different ID but same content as DB issue, treat as rename
3. Delete old ID and accept new ID from JSONL
4. Added post-import re-export in sync command to flush rename changes
5. Added post-import commit to capture rename changes

**Test results:**
TestTwoCloneCollision now shows full convergence:
- Clone A: test-2="Issue from clone A", test-1="Issue from clone B"
- Clone B: test-1="Issue from clone B", test-2="Issue from clone A"

Both clones have **identical content** (titles match IDs correctly). Only timestamps differ (expected).

**What remains:**
- Test still expects exact JSON match including timestamps
- Could normalize timestamp comparison, but content convergence is the critical success metric
- The two-clone collision workflow now works without data corruption!


CLI tests (cli_fast_test.go) are slow and should be integration tests

The TestCLI_* tests in cmd/bd/cli_fast_test.go are taking 4-5 seconds each (40+ seconds total), making them the slowest part of the fast test suite.

Current timings:
- TestCLI_Import: 4.73s
- TestCLI_Blocked: 4.33s
- TestCLI_DepTree: 4.15s
- TestCLI_Close: 3.59s
- TestCLI_DepAdd: 3.50s
- etc.

These tests compile the bd binary once in init(), but then execute it multiple times per test with filesystem operations. Despite being named "fast", they're actually end-to-end CLI integration tests.

Options:
1. Tag with //go:build integration (move to integration suite)
2. Optimize: Use in-memory databases, reduce exec calls, better parallelization
3. Keep as-is but understand they're the baseline for "fast" tests

Total test suite currently: 13.8s (cmd/bd alone is 12.8s, and most of that is these CLI tests)

Fixed by reusing existing bd binary from repo root instead of rebuilding.

Before: 15+ minutes (rebuilding binary for every test package)
After: ~12 seconds (reuses pre-built binary)

The init() function now checks for ../../bd first before falling back to building. This means `go build && go test` is now fast.


Cache getMultiRepoJSONLPaths() result during sync to avoid redundant calls

From bd-xo6b code review: getMultiRepoJSONLPaths() is called 3x per sync cycle.

**Current behavior:**
daemon_sync.go calls getMultiRepoJSONLPaths() three times per sync:
- Line 505: Snapshot capture before pull
- Line 575: Merge/prune after pull
- Line 613: Base snapshot update after import

**Cost per call:**
- Config lookup (likely cached, but still overhead)
- Path construction: O(N) where N = number of repos
- String allocations: (N + 1) × filepath.Join() calls

**Total per sync:** 3N path constructions + 3 config lookups + 3 slice allocations

**Impact:**
- For N=3 repos: Negligible (< 1ms)
- For N=10 repos: Still minimal
- For N=100+ repos: Wasteful

**Solution:**
Call once at sync start, reuse result:

```go
func createSyncFunc(...) func() {
    return func() {
        // ... existing setup ...

        // Call once at start
        multiRepoPaths := getMultiRepoJSONLPaths()

        // Snapshot capture
        if multiRepoPaths != nil {
            for _, path := range multiRepoPaths {
                if err := captureLeftSnapshot(path); err != nil { ... }
            }
        }

        // ... later ...

        // Merge/prune - reuse same paths
        if multiRepoPaths != nil {
            for _, path := range multiRepoPaths { ... }
        }

        // ... later ...

        // Base snapshot update - reuse same paths
        if multiRepoPaths != nil {
            for _, path := range multiRepoPaths { ... }
        }
    }
}
```

**Files:**
- cmd/bd/daemon_sync.go:449-636 (createSyncFunc)

**Note:** This is a performance optimization, not a correctness fix. Low priority unless multi-repo usage scales significantly.


Review PR #514: fix plugin install docs

Review and merge PR #514 from aspiers. This PR fixes incorrect docs for installing Claude Code plugin from source in docs/PLUGIN.md. Clarifies shell vs Claude Code commands and fixes the . vs ./beads argument issue. URL: https://github.com/anthropics/beads/pull/514


Add bd doctor --fix flag to automatically repair issues

Implement a --fix flag for bd doctor that can automatically repair detected issues.

Requirements:
- Add --fix flag to bd doctor command
- Show all fixable issues and prompt for confirmation before applying fixes
- Organize fix implementations under doctor/fix/<type_of_fix>.go
- Each fix type should have its own file (e.g., doctor/fix/hooks.go, doctor/fix/sync.go)
- Display what will be fixed and ask user to confirm (Y/n) before proceeding
- Support fixing issues like:
  - Missing or broken git hooks
  - Sync problems with remote
  - File permission issues
  - Any other auto-repairable issues doctor detects

Implementation notes:
- Maintain separation between detection (existing doctor code) and repair (new fix code)
- Each fix should be idempotent and safe to run multiple times
- Provide clear output about what was fixed
- Log any fixes that fail with actionable error messages


bd export should verify JSONL line count matches database count

After export completes, bd should verify that the JSONL file line count matches the number of issues exported. This would catch silent failures where the export appears to succeed but doesn't actually write all issues.

Real-world scenario from VC project:
- Ran direct SQL DELETE to remove 240 issues
- Ran 'bd export -o .beads/issues.jsonl'
- No error shown, appeared to succeed
- But JSONL file was not updated (still had old line count)
- Later session found all 240 issues still in JSONL
- Had to repeat the cleanup

If export had verified line count, it would have immediately shown:
  Error: Export verification failed
    Expected: 276 issues
    JSONL file: 516 lines
    Mismatch indicates export failed to write all issues

This is especially important because:
1. JSONL is source of truth in git
2. Silent export failures cause data inconsistency
3. Users assume export succeeded if no error shown
4. The verification is cheap (just count lines)

Implementation:
- After writing JSONL, count lines in file
- Compare to len(exportedIDs)
- If mismatch, remove temp file and return error
- Show clear error message with both counts


Add git operations for --hard reset

Implement git integration for hard reset mode.

## Operations Needed
1. `git rm -rf .beads/*.jsonl` - remove data files from index
2. `git commit -m 'beads: reset to clean state'` - commit removal
3. After re-init: `git add .beads/` and commit fresh state

## Edge Cases to Handle
- Uncommitted changes in .beads/ - warn or error
- Detached HEAD state - warn, maybe block
- Git not initialized - skip git ops, warn
- Git operations fail mid-way - clear error messaging

## Interface
```go
type GitState struct {
    IsRepo       bool
    IsDirty      bool   // uncommitted changes in .beads/
    IsDetached   bool   // detached HEAD
    Branch       string // current branch name
}

func CheckGitState(beadsDir string) (*GitState, error)
func GitRemoveBeads(beadsDir string) error
func GitCommitReset(message string) error
func GitAddAndCommit(beadsDir, message string) error
```

## Location
`internal/reset/git.go` - keep with reset package for now

Note: Codebase has no central git package. internal/compact/git.go is compact-specific.
Future refactoring could extract shared git utilities, but YAGNI for now.


deletions.jsonl recreated locally after tombstone migration

After running bd migrate-tombstones and removing deletions.jsonl from git, the file gets recreated locally on subsequent bd commands.

**Steps to reproduce:**
1. Run bd migrate-tombstones (converts to inline tombstones)
2. Remove deletions.jsonl from git and filesystem
3. Run bd sync or bd stats
4. deletions.jsonl reappears

**Expected behavior:**
After migration, deletions.jsonl should not be recreated. All tombstone data should come from inline tombstones in issues.jsonl.

**Workaround:** Add deletions.jsonl to .gitignore to prevent re-tracking. File still gets created but won't pollute the repo.


Integration test: mutation to export latency

Measure time from bd create to JSONL update. Verify <500ms latency. Test with multiple rapid mutations to verify batching.

Test added to daemon_test.go as TestMutationToExportLatency().

Currently skipped with note that it should be enabled once bd-146 (event-driven daemon) is fully implemented and enabled by default.

The test structure is complete:
1. Sets up test environment with fast debounce (500ms)
2. SingleMutationLatency: measures latency from mutation to JSONL update
3. RapidMutationBatching: verifies multiple mutations batch into single export

Once event-driven mode is default, remove the t.Skip() line and the test will validate <500ms latency.


bd doctor --fix should auto-fix prefix mismatch errors

When bd doctor --fix encounters a prefix mismatch during DB-JSONL sync fix, it fails without offering to use --rename-on-import.

**Current behavior:**
```
Fixing DB-JSONL Sync...
→ Importing from JSONL...
Error importing: import failed: exit status 1
Import failed: prefix mismatch detected: database uses 'bd-' but found issues with prefixes: [beads- (2 issues) test- (10 issues)]
```

**Expected behavior:**
- Detect that the mismatched prefixes are all tombstones
- Auto-apply --rename-on-import since tombstones with wrong prefixes are pollution
- Or prompt: 'Found 21 issues with wrong prefixes (all tombstones). Remove them? [Y/n]'

**Context:** Prefix pollution typically comes from contributor PRs that used different test prefixes. These are always safe to remove when they're tombstones.


Debug test 2


Add mermaid output format for bd dep tree

Add visual dependency graph output using Mermaid format for better visualization of issue relationships.

Example usage:
  bd dep tree --format mermaid <issue-id>
  bd dep tree --format mermaid bd-42 > graph.md

This would output Mermaid syntax that can be rendered in GitHub, documentation sites, or Mermaid live editor.

Implementation notes:
- Add --format flag to dep tree command
- Support 'text' (default) and 'mermaid' formats
- Mermaid graph should show issue IDs, titles, and dependency types
- Consider using flowchart LR or graph TD syntax


Git merge driver uses invalid placeholders (%L, %R instead of %A, %B)

## Problem

The beads git merge driver is configured with invalid Git placeholders:

```
git config merge.beads.driver "bd merge %A %O %L %R"
```

Git doesn't recognize `%L` or `%R` as valid merge driver placeholders. The valid placeholders are:
- `%O` = base (common ancestor)
- `%A` = current version (ours)
- `%B` = other version (theirs)

## Impact

- Affects ALL users when they have `.beads/beads.jsonl` merge conflicts
- Automatic JSONL merge fails with error: "error reading left file: failed to open file: open 7: no such file or directory"
- Users must manually resolve conflicts instead of getting automatic merge

## Root Cause

The `bd init` command (or wherever the merge driver is configured) is using non-standard placeholders. When Git encounters `%L` and `%R`, it either passes them literally or interprets them incorrectly.

## Fix

Update the merge driver configuration to:
```
git config merge.beads.driver "bd merge %A %O %A %B"
```

Where:
- 1st `%A` = output file (current file, will be overwritten)
- `%O` = base (common ancestor)
- 2nd `%A` = left/current version
- `%B` = right/other version

## Action Items

1. Fix `bd init` (or equivalent setup command) to use correct placeholders
2. Add migration/warning for existing users with misconfigured merge driver
3. Update documentation with correct merge driver setup
4. Consider adding validation when `bd init` is run


Update LINTING.md with current baseline

After cleanup, document the remaining acceptable baseline in LINTING.md so we can track regression.


GH#505: Add bd reset command to wipe database

Users struggle to fully reset beads (local + remote). Need bd reset command with safety confirmation. Currently requires manual hook/dir removal. See: https://github.com/steveyegge/beads/issues/505


Add fallback to polling on watcher failure

Detect fsnotify.NewWatcher() errors and log warning. Auto-switch to polling mode with 5s ticker. Add BEADS_WATCHER_FALLBACK env var to control behavior.


Build Node.js CLI wrapper for WASM

Create npm package that wraps bd.wasm. Child of epic bd-44d0.

## Tasks
- [ ] Set up npm package structure (package.json)
- [ ] Implement CLI argument parsing
- [ ] Load and execute WASM module
- [ ] Handle stdout/stderr correctly
- [ ] Support --json flag for all commands
- [ ] Add bd-wasm bin script

## Success Criteria
- bd-wasm ready --json works identically to bd
- All core commands supported


Fix :memory: database connection pool issue causing "no such table" errors

Critical bug in v0.21.6 where :memory: databases with cache=shared create multiple connections in the pool, causing intermittent "no such table" errors. SQLite's shared cache for in-memory databases only works reliably with a single connection.

Root cause: Missing db.SetMaxOpenConns(1) after sql.Open() for :memory: databases.

Impact: 37 test failures in VC project, affects all consumers using :memory: for testing.


File change test issue


Daemon crashes silently when multiple .db files exist in .beads/

When daemon detects multiple .db files (after filtering out .backup and vc.db files), it writes error details to .beads/daemon-error file before exiting.

The error file is checked when:
1. Daemon discovery fails to connect (internal/daemon/discovery.go)
2. Auto-start fails to yield a running daemon (cmd/bd/main.go)
3. Daemon list shows 'daemon not responding' error

This makes the error immediately visible to users without requiring them to check daemon logs.

File created:  cmd/bd/daemon.go (writes daemon-error on multiple .db detection)
Files modified:
- internal/daemon/discovery.go (reads daemon-error and surfaces in DaemonInfo.Error)
- cmd/bd/main.go (displays daemon-error when auto-start fails)

Testing: Create multiple .db files in .beads/, start daemon, verify error file created and shown in bd daemons list

Root cause: Daemon exits with os.Exit(1) when multiple .db files detected (daemon.go:1381), but error only goes to daemon log file. User sees 'daemon not responding' without knowing why.

Current detection:
- daemon.go filters out .backup and vc.db files
- bd doctor detects multiple databases
- Error message tells user to run 'bd init' or manually remove

Problem: Error is not user-visible unless they check daemon logs.

Proposed fix options:
1. Surface the error in 'bd info' and 'bd daemons list' output
2. Add a hint in error messages to run 'bd doctor' when daemon fails
3. Make daemon write error to a .beads/daemon-error file that gets checked
4. Improve 'bd doctor' to run automatically when daemon is unhealthy


Improve sync branch divergence recovery UX

When the sync branch diverges significantly from remote (e.g., 89 local vs 36 remote commits), bd sync fails with a confusing rebase conflict error.

**Current behavior:**
```
Error committing to sync branch: failed to push from worktree: push failed and recovery rebase also failed
error: could not apply 8712f35... bd sync: 2025-12-13 07:30:04
CONFLICT (content): Merge conflict in .beads/issues.jsonl
```

User is left in a broken state with no clear recovery path.

**Expected behavior:**
1. Detect significant divergence before attempting sync
2. Offer options: 'Sync branch diverged. Choose: (1) Reset to remote (2) Force push local (3) Manual merge'
3. Provide clear recovery commands if automatic recovery fails

**Context:** This happened after multiple clones synced different states. The workaround was manually resetting the sync branch worktree to remote.


Auto-recovery mode (bd sync --auto-recover)

Add bd sync --auto-recover flag that: detects problematic sync state, backs up .beads/issues.db with timestamp, rebuilds DB from JSONL atomically, verifies consistency, reports what was fixed. Provides safety valve when sync integrity fails.


Add tests for daemon vs non-daemon parity in list filters

After bd-o43 RPC integration, we need tests to verify daemon mode behaves identically to direct mode for all new filter flags.

Test coverage needed:
- Pattern matching: --title-contains, --desc-contains, --notes-contains
- Date ranges: all 6 date filter flags (created/updated/closed after/before)
- Empty/null checks: --empty-description, --no-assignee, --no-labels
- Priority ranges: --priority-min, --priority-max
- Status normalization: --status all vs no status flag
- Date parsing: YYYY-MM-DD, RFC3339, and error cases
- Backward compat: deprecated --label flag still works

Oracle review findings (bd-o43):
- Date parsing should support multiple formats
- Status 'all' should be treated as unset
- NoLabels field was missing from RPC protocol
- Error messages should be clear and actionable

Test approach:
- Create RPC integration tests in internal/rpc/server_issues_epics_test.go
- Compare daemon client.List() vs direct store.SearchIssues() for same filters
- Verify error messages match between modes
- Test with real daemon instance, not just unit tests


Sync validation false positive: legitimate deletions trigger 'data loss detected'

## Problem
`bd sync` fails with false positive data loss detection when legitimate deletions occur:
```
Post-import validation failed: import reduced issue count: 26 → 25 (data loss detected!)
```

## Root Cause
The validation in `sync.go:329-340` counts DB issues BEFORE import, but `purgeDeletedIssues()` in `importer.go:159` legitimately removes issues DURING import. The validation doesn't account for expected deletions.

**The Flow:**
```
sync.go:293     → beforeCount = countDBIssues() = 26
sync.go:310-319 → sanitizeJSONL removes deleted issues from JSONL (RemovedCount=N)
sync.go:323     → importFromJSONL() runs subprocess
                  └→ importer.go:159 purgeDeletedIssues() removes issues from DB
sync.go:331     → afterCount = countDBIssues() = 25
sync.go:335     → validatePostImport(26, 25) → ERROR
```

## Fix
Pass `sanitizeResult.RemovedCount` to validation and account for expected deletions:

```go
// sync.go around line 335
expectedDecrease := 0
if sanitizeResult != nil {
    expectedDecrease = sanitizeResult.RemovedCount
}
if err := validatePostImportWithDeletions(beforeCount, afterCount, expectedDecrease); err != nil {
    // ...
}
```

```go
// integrity.go - new or modified function
func validatePostImportWithDeletions(before, after, expectedDeletions int) error {
    if after < before - expectedDeletions {
        return fmt.Errorf("unexpected data loss: %d → %d (expected max decrease: %d)",
            before, after, expectedDeletions)
    }
    // ...
}
```

## Files
- cmd/bd/sync.go:329-340
- cmd/bd/integrity.go:289-301


Use -short flag in CI for PR checks

Update CI configuration to use -short flag for PR checks, run full tests nightly.

The slow tests already support testing.Short() and will be skipped.

Expected savings: ~20 seconds for PR checks (fast tests only)

Implementation:
- Update .github/workflows/ci.yml to add -short flag for PR tests
- Create/update nightly workflow for full test runs
- Update README/docs about test strategy

File: .github/workflows/ci.yml:30


bd doctor should check for multiple DBs, multiple JSONLs, daemon health


bd ready includes blocked issues (GH#544)

Issues with 'blocks' dependencies still appear in bd ready. The ready query should exclude issues that have unresolved blockers.

Fix in: cmd/bd/ready.go or internal query logic.


Split test suites: fast vs. integration

Reorganize tests into separate packages/files for fast unit tests vs slow integration tests.

Benefits:
- Clear separation of concerns
- Easier to run just fast tests during development
- Can parallelize CI jobs better

Files to organize:
- beads_hash_multiclone_test.go (slow integration tests)
- beads_integration_test.go (medium-speed integration tests)
- Other test files (fast unit tests)


Extract validation functions to validators.go

Move validatePriority, validateStatus, validateIssueType, validateTitle, validateEstimatedMinutes, validateFieldUpdate to validators.go


bd-hv01: Missing cleanup of .merged temp file on failure

Problem: deletion_tracking.go:49 creates tmpMerged file but does not clean up on failure, causing disk space leak and potential interference with subsequent syncs.

Fix: Add defer os.Remove(tmpMerged) after creating temp file path.

Files: cmd/bd/deletion_tracking.go:38-89


Daemon crashes silently on RPC query after startup

The daemon fails to handle 'show' RPC commands when:
1) JSONL is newer than database (needs import)
2) git pull fails due to uncommitted changes

Symptoms:
- Daemon appears to run (ps shows process)
- 'bd list' and other commands work fine
- 'bd show <id>' returns "failed to read response: EOF"
- No panic or error logged in daemon.log

Root cause likely: auto-import deadlock or state corruption when import is blocked by git conflicts.

Workaround:
- Restart daemon after syncing git state (commit/push changes)
- OR use --no-daemon flag for all commands

The panic recovery added in server_lifecycle_conn.go:183 didn't catch any panics, confirming this isn't a panic-based crash.

Root cause found and fixed: Two bugs - (1) nil pointer check missing in handleShow causing panic, (2) double JSON encoding in show.go ID resolution. Both fixed. bd show now works with daemon.


Rapid 4