@opengsd/gsd-core 1.9.1 → 1.11.0

package/gsd-core/bin/lib/audit.cjs

@@ -16,22 +16,237 @@ var __importDefault = (this && this.__importDefault) || function (mod) {
 };
 const node_fs_1 = __importDefault(require("node:fs"));
 const node_path_1 = __importDefault(require("node:path"));
+const node_crypto_1 = __importDefault(require("node:crypto"));
 const shell_command_projection_cjs_1 = require("./shell-command-projection.cjs");
 const markdown_sectionizer_cjs_1 = require("./markdown-sectionizer.cjs");
+const text_lines_cjs_1 = require("./text-lines.cjs");
 // eslint-disable-next-line @typescript-eslint/no-require-imports
 const planningWorkspace = require("./planning-workspace.cjs");
-const { planningDir } = planningWorkspace;
+const { planningDir, quickDirFrom } = planningWorkspace;
 // eslint-disable-next-line @typescript-eslint/no-require-imports
 const frontmatter = require("./frontmatter.cjs");
-const { extractFrontmatter } = frontmatter;
+const { extractFrontmatter, spliceFrontmatter } = frontmatter;
 // eslint-disable-next-line @typescript-eslint/no-require-imports
 const phaseIdMod = require("./phase-id.cjs");
-const { PHASE_NUMBER_TOKEN_SOURCE } = phaseIdMod;
+const { PHASE_NUMBER_TOKEN_SOURCE, scopeToPhase } = phaseIdMod;
+// eslint-disable-next-line @typescript-eslint/no-require-imports
+const phaseLocator = require("./phase-locator.cjs");
+const { getArchivedPhaseDirs } = phaseLocator;
 const security_cjs_1 = require("./security.cjs");
+const shell_command_projection_cjs_2 = require("./shell-command-projection.cjs");
+// eslint-disable-next-line @typescript-eslint/no-require-imports
+const io = require("./io.cjs");
+const { output, error: ioError } = io;
+const command_arg_projection_cjs_1 = require("./command-arg-projection.cjs");
+// The SCOPE BOUNDARY convention's filename (`agents/gsd-executor.md`), shared
+// verbatim with the #2287 phase-boundary reader in `uat.cts`.
+const DEFERRED_ITEMS_FILENAME = 'deferred-items.md';
 // Terminal UAT states: `complete` (legacy) and `resolved` (post-gap-closure
 // per workflows/execute-phase.md). Hoisted outside scanUatGaps so the Set is
 // not recreated on each loop iteration.
 const TERMINAL_UAT_STATUSES = new Set(['complete', 'resolved']);
+// ─── Acknowledgment marker (suppression) ──────────────────────────────────────
+//
+// #3458 follow-up: `query audit-open` now scans archived milestone phase dirs,
+// so an item still unresolved when a milestone closed resurfaces at EVERY
+// later close, forever — `[A] Acknowledge all` documented that decision to
+// STATE.md but never suppressed it. This section is the suppression seam.
+//
+// The marker lives INSIDE the artifact it suppresses, as an
+// `audit_acknowledged` frontmatter map (no ledger, no id minting — see
+// `uat.cts:891-897`'s `deferred-items.md` in-place `status: resolved`
+// convention, which this generalizes):
+//
+//   audit_acknowledged:
+//     milestone: v1.0        # which milestone close acknowledged it
+//     at: 2026-08-15          # ISO date
+//     status: gaps_found      # snapshot of the artifact's state AT acknowledgment
+//                              # (named `gap_snapshot` — status + open-scenario
+//                              # count — for `uat_gaps`, and `questions_digest`
+//                              # — a content hash of the question set, not just
+//                              # its count — for `context_questions`; see
+//                              # `isAuditItemAcknowledged`'s `snapshotKey` param
+//                              # and each category's `deriveXxx` snapshot
+//                              # helper for why a bare status/count was not
+//                              # enough for those two — #3458 follow-up review)
+//
+// It is VERDICT-PRESERVING (this section never writes `status:` itself — see
+// `cmdAuditAcknowledge` below) and SELF-INVALIDATING: it suppresses ONLY while
+// `snapshotKey`'s recorded value still equals the artifact's CURRENT
+// effective value. Edit the artifact after acknowledging it and the item
+// resurfaces automatically — no separate revive/carry-forward state, and a
+// stale acknowledgment can never hide a NEW problem, PROVIDED the category's
+// snapshot actually captures the dimension that changed — `uat_gaps` and
+// `context_questions` snapshot more than their status/count for exactly this
+// reason (see above); every other category's only tracked dimension IS its
+// `status:` (or, for `todos`, presence), so a bare status/presence snapshot
+// is already complete for those.
+//
+// `isAuditItemAcknowledged` is the ONE shared predicate every scanner below
+// routes through — this file has already been through the "hand-rolled the
+// same check nine times" defect family twice this PR; a tenth hand-roll here
+// is exactly that class. `deferred_items` is the deliberate exception: its
+// suppression key lives PER-ENTRY inside `deferred-items.md`'s own
+// `status:` field (see `uat.cts`'s `parseDeferredItemsWithStatus`), not in a
+// file-level `audit_acknowledged` map, because a single deferred-items.md can
+// carry many independently-acknowledgeable entries.
+/**
+ * Parse and validate an artifact's `audit_acknowledged` frontmatter marker,
+ * then decide whether it suppresses the item given the artifact's CURRENT
+ * effective state.
+ *
+ * `snapshotKey` names which sub-field of the marker map carries the snapshot
+ * comparison value (`'status'` for every category except CONTEXT files, which
+ * use `'question_count'`). `presenceOnly: true` (used only for `todos`, which
+ * has no natural status field to snapshot) skips the snapshot comparison
+ * entirely — marker PRESENCE alone suppresses.
+ *
+ * A marker that is not a plain object/map, or is missing a non-empty string
+ * `milestone`/`at`, or — when a snapshot comparison applies — missing a
+ * string at `snapshotKey`, is MALFORMED and treated as ABSENT: this function
+ * returns `false` and the item surfaces. A bad marker must never suppress.
+ */
+function isAuditItemAcknowledged(fm, opts) {
+    const raw = fm.audit_acknowledged;
+    if (!raw || typeof raw !== 'object' || Array.isArray(raw))
+        return false;
+    const marker = raw;
+    if (typeof marker.milestone !== 'string' || !marker.milestone)
+        return false;
+    if (typeof marker.at !== 'string' || !marker.at)
+        return false;
+    if (opts.presenceOnly)
+        return true;
+    const snapshot = marker[opts.snapshotKey];
+    if (typeof snapshot !== 'string')
+        return false;
+    return snapshot === opts.currentValue;
+}
+/**
+ * Derive a THREAD file's effective status: frontmatter `status:` when
+ * present, else the `## Status: OPEN|IN PROGRESS` body fallback — the same
+ * two-step derivation `scanThreads` already performed inline. Extracted so
+ * `cmdAuditAcknowledge` computes the CURRENT snapshot value with the exact
+ * same logic the scanner used to produce the marker's recorded value,
+ * instead of a second hand-derivation that could silently drift from it.
+ */
+function deriveThreadStatus(fm, content) {
+    let status = (fm.status || '').toLowerCase().trim();
+    if (!status) {
+        const bodyStatusMatch = content.match(/##\s*Status:\s*(OPEN|IN PROGRESS|IN_PROGRESS)/i);
+        if (bodyStatusMatch) {
+            status = bodyStatusMatch[1].toLowerCase().replace(/ /g, '_');
+        }
+    }
+    return status;
+}
+/**
+ * Count a UAT file's still-open (`result: pending`/`[pending]`) scenarios.
+ * Extracted from `scanUatGaps`'s inline logic for the same reason as
+ * `deriveThreadStatus` — one derivation, shared by the scanner and
+ * `cmdAuditAcknowledge`'s `deriveUatGapSnapshotValue` below.
+ */
+function deriveUatGapOpenScenarioCount(content) {
+    return (content.match(/result:\s*(?:pending|\[pending\])/gi) || []).length;
+}
+/**
+ * Stable snapshot value for a `uat_gaps` item (WARNING 2, #3458 follow-up
+ * review). `status` alone is COUNT-blind the other direction: a UAT file can
+ * stay in the SAME open status (`gaps_found`) while gaining MORE pending
+ * scenarios (measured: 1→6 pending, status unchanged, item stayed
+ * suppressed under the old status-only scheme). Composing `status` with the
+ * open-scenario count means either dimension changing invalidates the
+ * snapshot.
+ */
+function deriveUatGapSnapshotValue(status, content) {
+    return `${status}::scenarios=${deriveUatGapOpenScenarioCount(content)}`;
+}
+/**
+ * Derive a CONTEXT file's FULL, UNTRUNCATED open-questions list: the
+ * structured `open_questions` frontmatter array when present and
+ * non-empty, else EVERY qualifying line of the `## Open Questions` body
+ * section. Extracted from `scanContextQuestions`'s inline logic for the same
+ * reason as `deriveThreadStatus` — one derivation, shared by the scanner and
+ * `cmdAuditAcknowledge`, so the acknowledged `question_count`/digest snapshot
+ * can never diverge from what the scanner counts.
+ *
+ * F2 (#3458 follow-up review, sibling of the deferred_items span-carrying
+ * fix): this used to `slice(0, 3)` the body-section list AND clamp each
+ * question to 200 chars BEFORE returning — a value meant for DISPLAY reused
+ * for the IDENTITY snapshot `deriveOpenQuestionsDigest` hashes. A 4th+
+ * question, or anything past char 200 of an earlier one, was invisible to
+ * the digest: an attacker could ship 3 innocuous questions first, then add
+ * real blockers afterward with zero effect on the recorded snapshot. Every
+ * caller that wants a bounded list for DISPLAY (`scanContextQuestions`'s
+ * `questions` field) truncates its OWN copy at the call site; this function
+ * always returns the complete, unclamped set.
+ */
+function deriveOpenQuestions(content, fm) {
+    let questions = [];
+    if (fm.open_questions) {
+        if (Array.isArray(fm.open_questions) && fm.open_questions.length > 0) {
+            questions = fm.open_questions.map(q => (0, security_cjs_1.sanitizeForDisplay)(String(q)));
+        }
+    }
+    if (questions.length === 0) {
+        const oqSection = (0, markdown_sectionizer_cjs_1.collectSection)(content, (h) => h.level === 2 && h.text.trim().toLowerCase().startsWith('open questions'), { levelBounded: true });
+        if (oqSection) {
+            const oqBody = oqSection.body.trim();
+            if (oqBody && oqBody.length > 0 && !/^\s*none\s*$/i.test(oqBody)) {
+                const items = oqBody.split('\n')
+                    .map((l) => l.trim())
+                    .filter((l) => l && l !== '-' && l !== '*')
+                    .filter((l) => /^[-*\d]/.test(l) || l.includes('?'));
+                questions = items.map((q) => (0, security_cjs_1.sanitizeForDisplay)(q));
+            }
+        }
+    }
+    return questions;
+}
+/** Bound a question's DISPLAY text (never fed into the identity digest — see `deriveOpenQuestions`'s doc comment). */
+function truncateQuestionForDisplay(question) {
+    return question.slice(0, 200);
+}
+/**
+ * Stable normalized digest of a CONTEXT file's open-questions set (WARNING 2,
+ * #3458 follow-up review). `question_count` alone is COUNT-only: replacing
+ * every question's TEXT with brand-new ones while holding the count steady
+ * left an acknowledged item permanently suppressed (measured: 2 questions
+ * acknowledged, then both replaced with unrelated new blockers — still
+ * `counts:0`). Hashing the full, ordered question text means ANY edit —
+ * add, remove, reword, or reorder — changes the digest and the item
+ * resurfaces. sha256 (not the raw joined string) keeps the marker's stored
+ * value bounded regardless of question length/count.
+ *
+ * `questions` MUST be the untruncated, unclamped set `deriveOpenQuestions`
+ * returns — never a display-sliced/-clamped copy (F2, #3458 follow-up
+ * review); a truncated input reintroduces exactly the blind spot this digest
+ * exists to close.
+ *
+ * Length-prefixed, separator-free encoding (SWEEP finding, #3458 follow-up
+ * review) — NOT a plain join (the prior revision joined on a literal
+ * embedded NUL byte, `questions.join('\\0')` written as a raw control
+ * character in the SOURCE FILE itself — invisible in a normal diff/editor
+ * and still forgeable: attacker-controlled markdown CAN contain a literal
+ * NUL codepoint, since the file is read as UTF-8 text, so that scheme never
+ * actually closed the boundary-collision gap it was reaching for). A bare
+ * separator-joined string has no reliably unambiguous element boundary: two
+ * DIFFERENT question arrays can render the identical joined string and
+ * collide on the same digest — e.g. `['- Is X ready?', '- Y done?']` and
+ * `['- Is X ready? - Y', 'done?']` both join to
+ * `'- Is X ready? - Y done?'` under a space-join, and both could be forced to
+ * collide under a NUL-join too by an attacker who embeds the separator
+ * itself. Prefixing each element with its own CHARACTER LENGTH
+ * (`<len>:<text>`, concatenated with no separator at all) makes the encoding
+ * self-delimiting instead: decoding always consumes exactly `<len>`
+ * characters after each `:` before reading the next length prefix, so no two
+ * distinct arrays can ever encode to the same string — regardless of what
+ * characters the questions themselves contain.
+ */
+function deriveOpenQuestionsDigest(questions) {
+    const encoded = questions.map((q) => `${q.length}:${q}`).join('');
+    return node_crypto_1.default.createHash('sha256').update(encoded).digest('hex');
+}
 // ─── scanDebugSessions ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
 /**
  * Scan .planning/debug/ for open sessions.
@@ -41,14 +256,15 @@ const TERMINAL_UAT_STATUSES = new Set(['complete', 'resolved']);
 function scanDebugSessions(planDir) {
     const debugDir = node_path_1.default.join(planDir, 'debug');
     if (!node_fs_1.default.existsSync(debugDir))
-        return [];
+        return { items: [], acknowledged: 0 };
     const results = [];
+    let acknowledged = 0;
     let files;
     try {
         files = node_fs_1.default.readdirSync(debugDir, { withFileTypes: true });
     }
     catch {
-        return [{ scan_error: true, slug: '', status: '', updated: '', hypothesis: '' }];
+        return { items: [{ scan_error: true, slug: '', status: '', updated: '', hypothesis: '' }], acknowledged: 0 };
     }
     for (const entry of files) {
         if (!entry.isFile())
@@ -70,6 +286,10 @@ function scanDebugSessions(planDir) {
         const status = (fm.status || 'unknown').toLowerCase();
         if (status === 'resolved' || status === 'complete')
             continue;
+        if (isAuditItemAcknowledged(fm, { snapshotKey: 'status', currentValue: status })) {
+            acknowledged++;
+            continue;
+        }
         // Extract hypothesis from "Current Focus" block if parseable
         let hypothesis = '';
         const focusSection = (0, markdown_sectionizer_cjs_1.collectSection)(content, (h) => h.level === 2 && h.text.trim().toLowerCase().startsWith('current focus'), { levelBounded: true });
@@ -79,13 +299,55 @@ function scanDebugSessions(planDir) {
         }
         const slug = node_path_1.default.basename(entry.name, '.md');
         results.push({
-            slug: (0, security_cjs_1.sanitizeForDisplay)(slug),
+            slug: (0, security_cjs_1.sanitizeLabel)(slug),
             status: (0, security_cjs_1.sanitizeForDisplay)(status),
             updated: (0, security_cjs_1.sanitizeForDisplay)(fm.updated || fm.date || ''),
             hypothesis,
         });
     }
-    return results;
+    return { items: results, acknowledged };
+}
+// ─── resolveQuickTaskSummaryFile ───────────────────────────────────────────────
+/**
+ * Resolve a quick task's SUMMARY file, if any exists, under its own
+ * directory (`taskDir`). workflows/quick.md mandates `${quick_id}-SUMMARY.md`;
+ * older flows used bare `SUMMARY.md` — accept either to avoid a
+ * false-positive "missing", preferring the per-task `${dirName}-SUMMARY.md`
+ * form when more than one candidate exists.
+ *
+ * #3183 (ADR-3180 Decision 4(a) — bucket B, out of scope for the
+ * scanPhasePlans migration): this scans a quick task's OWN directory
+ * (`.planning/quick/<task>/`) for THAT task's single completion record —
+ * "does this one quick task have a SUMMARY.md" — not a phase directory's
+ * live-plan/summary counting question. scanPhasePlans is the wrong tool
+ * here; there is no plan/summary PAIRING to derive, only a single filename
+ * presence check local to a non-phase directory.
+ *
+ * Extracted (#3458 follow-up) so `scanQuickTasks` (read) and
+ * `cmdAuditAcknowledge`'s quick_tasks writer share the ONE discovery rule —
+ * previously the writer would have had to hand-roll this exact filter a
+ * second time, which is exactly the re-derivation-drift class
+ * `scripts/lint-plan-count-drift.cjs` exists to catch (see its
+ * `FUNCTION_SCOPED_EXEMPTIONS` entry for this function).
+ *
+ * Returns `null` (never throws) on an unreadable `taskDir` or when no
+ * SUMMARY-shaped file exists.
+ */
+function resolveQuickTaskSummaryFile(taskDir, dirName) {
+    let summaryFiles;
+    try {
+        summaryFiles = node_fs_1.default.readdirSync(taskDir, { withFileTypes: true })
+            .filter(e => e.isFile() && (e.name === 'SUMMARY.md' || e.name.endsWith('-SUMMARY.md')));
+    }
+    catch {
+        return null;
+    }
+    if (summaryFiles.length === 0)
+        return null;
+    const preferred = summaryFiles.find(e => e.name === `${dirName}-SUMMARY.md`)
+        || summaryFiles.find(e => e.name.endsWith('-SUMMARY.md'))
+        || summaryFiles[0];
+    return node_path_1.default.join(taskDir, preferred.name);
 }
 // ─── scanQuickTasks ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
 /**
@@ -93,17 +355,20 @@ function scanDebugSessions(planDir) {
  * Incomplete if SUMMARY.md missing or status !== 'complete'.
  */
 function scanQuickTasks(planDir) {
-    const quickDir = node_path_1.default.join(planDir, 'quick');
+    // #2142: routed through the shared quickDirFrom composer (planning-workspace.cts)
+    // so `.planning/quick` has exactly ONE owner instead of two ad-hoc path.joins.
+    const quickDir = quickDirFrom(planDir);
     if (!node_fs_1.default.existsSync(quickDir))
-        return [];
+        return { items: [], acknowledged: 0 };
     let entries;
     try {
         entries = node_fs_1.default.readdirSync(quickDir, { withFileTypes: true });
     }
     catch {
-        return [{ scan_error: true, slug: '', date: '', status: '', description: '' }];
+        return { items: [{ scan_error: true, slug: '', date: '', status: '', description: '' }], acknowledged: 0 };
     }
     const results = [];
+    let acknowledged = 0;
     for (const entry of entries) {
         if (!entry.isDirectory())
             continue;
@@ -116,25 +381,10 @@ function scanQuickTasks(planDir) {
         catch {
             continue;
         }
-        // workflows/quick.md mandates `${quick_id}-SUMMARY.md`; older flows used
-        // bare `SUMMARY.md`. Accept either to avoid false-positive "missing".
-        let summaryPath = null;
-        try {
-            const summaryFiles = node_fs_1.default.readdirSync(safeTaskDir, { withFileTypes: true })
-                .filter(e => e.isFile() && (e.name === 'SUMMARY.md' || e.name.endsWith('-SUMMARY.md')));
-            if (summaryFiles.length > 0) {
-                // Prefer the per-task `${quick_id}-SUMMARY.md` form when present.
-                const preferred = summaryFiles.find(e => e.name === `${dirName}-SUMMARY.md`)
-                    || summaryFiles.find(e => e.name.endsWith('-SUMMARY.md'))
-                    || summaryFiles[0];
-                summaryPath = node_path_1.default.join(safeTaskDir, preferred.name);
-            }
-        }
-        catch {
-            // fall through with summaryPath = null → status: missing
-        }
+        const summaryPath = resolveQuickTaskSummaryFile(safeTaskDir, dirName);
         let status = 'missing';
         const description = '';
+        let fm = null;
         if (summaryPath && node_fs_1.default.existsSync(summaryPath)) {
             let safeSum;
             try {
@@ -148,19 +398,31 @@ function scanQuickTasks(planDir) {
                 status = 'unreadable';
             }
             else {
-                const fm = extractFrontmatter(content, safeSum);
+                fm = extractFrontmatter(content, safeSum);
                 status = (fm.status || 'unknown').toLowerCase();
             }
         }
         if (status === 'complete')
             continue;
+        // Acknowledgment marker only ever lives in the SUMMARY file's own
+        // frontmatter — a task with no summary (status: 'missing') has nowhere to
+        // carry one, so `fm` is null and this is skipped (never suppressed).
+        if (fm && isAuditItemAcknowledged(fm, { snapshotKey: 'status', currentValue: status })) {
+            acknowledged++;
+            continue;
+        }
         // Parse date and slug from directory name: YYYYMMDD-slug or YYYY-MM-DD-slug
         let date = '';
-        let slug = (0, security_cjs_1.sanitizeForDisplay)(dirName);
+        let slug = (0, security_cjs_1.sanitizeLabel)(dirName);
         const dateMatch = dirName.match(/^(\d{4}-?\d{2}-?\d{2})-(.+)$/);
         if (dateMatch) {
-            date = dateMatch[1];
-            slug = (0, security_cjs_1.sanitizeForDisplay)(dateMatch[2]);
+            // dateMatch[1] is regex-constrained to `\d{4}-?\d{2}-?\d{2}` (digits and
+            // literal hyphens only — the same "constrained at the source" shape as
+            // `archived_milestone`), so it cannot itself carry a control byte.
+            // Still routed through sanitizeLabel as defense-in-depth for
+            // consistency with every other directory-name-derived field here.
+            date = (0, security_cjs_1.sanitizeLabel)(dateMatch[1]);
+            slug = (0, security_cjs_1.sanitizeLabel)(dateMatch[2]);
         }
         results.push({
             slug,
@@ -169,7 +431,7 @@ function scanQuickTasks(planDir) {
             description,
         });
     }
-    return results;
+    return { items: results, acknowledged };
 }
 // ─── scanThreads ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
 /**
@@ -179,16 +441,17 @@ function scanQuickTasks(planDir) {
 function scanThreads(planDir) {
     const threadsDir = node_path_1.default.join(planDir, 'threads');
     if (!node_fs_1.default.existsSync(threadsDir))
-        return [];
+        return { items: [], acknowledged: 0 };
     let files;
     try {
         files = node_fs_1.default.readdirSync(threadsDir, { withFileTypes: true });
     }
     catch {
-        return [{ scan_error: true, slug: '', status: '', updated: '', title: '' }];
+        return { items: [{ scan_error: true, slug: '', status: '', updated: '', title: '' }], acknowledged: 0 };
     }
     const openStatuses = new Set(['open', 'in_progress', 'in progress']);
     const results = [];
+    let acknowledged = 0;
     for (const entry of files) {
         if (!entry.isFile())
             continue;
@@ -206,16 +469,13 @@ function scanThreads(planDir) {
         if (content === null)
             continue;
         const fm = extractFrontmatter(content, safeFilePath);
-        let status = (fm.status || '').toLowerCase().trim();
-        // Fall back to scanning body for ## Status: OPEN / IN PROGRESS
-        if (!status) {
-            const bodyStatusMatch = content.match(/##\s*Status:\s*(OPEN|IN PROGRESS|IN_PROGRESS)/i);
-            if (bodyStatusMatch) {
-                status = bodyStatusMatch[1].toLowerCase().replace(/ /g, '_');
-            }
-        }
+        const status = deriveThreadStatus(fm, content);
         if (!openStatuses.has(status))
             continue;
+        if (isAuditItemAcknowledged(fm, { snapshotKey: 'status', currentValue: status })) {
+            acknowledged++;
+            continue;
+        }
         // Extract title from # Thread: heading or frontmatter title
         let title = (0, security_cjs_1.sanitizeForDisplay)(fm.title || '');
         if (!title) {
@@ -226,13 +486,13 @@ function scanThreads(planDir) {
         }
         const slug = node_path_1.default.basename(entry.name, '.md');
         results.push({
-            slug: (0, security_cjs_1.sanitizeForDisplay)(slug),
+            slug: (0, security_cjs_1.sanitizeLabel)(slug),
             status: (0, security_cjs_1.sanitizeForDisplay)(status),
             updated: (0, security_cjs_1.sanitizeForDisplay)(fm.updated || fm.date || ''),
             title,
         });
     }
-    return results;
+    return { items: results, acknowledged };
 }
 // ─── scanTodos ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
 /**
@@ -243,18 +503,27 @@ function scanThreads(planDir) {
 function scanTodos(planDir) {
     const pendingDir = node_path_1.default.join(planDir, 'todos', 'pending');
     if (!node_fs_1.default.existsSync(pendingDir))
-        return [];
+        return { items: [], acknowledged: 0 };
     let files;
     try {
         files = node_fs_1.default.readdirSync(pendingDir, { withFileTypes: true });
     }
     catch {
-        return [{ scan_error: true, filename: '', priority: '', area: '', summary: '' }];
+        return { items: [{ scan_error: true, filename: '', priority: '', area: '', summary: '' }], acknowledged: 0 };
     }
     const mdFiles = files.filter(e => e.isFile() && e.name.endsWith('.md'));
     const results = [];
-    const displayFiles = mdFiles.slice(0, 5);
-    for (const entry of displayFiles) {
+    let acknowledged = 0;
+    // BLOCKER 2 (#3458 follow-up review): filter acknowledged items BEFORE
+    // the display cap. Capping the RAW file list to 5 first meant an
+    // acknowledge of one of those 5 files simply revealed the 6th on the next
+    // scan — files 6/7/... (never shown, never acknowledgeable via the CLI's
+    // own remedy) permanently vanished from every later scan once 5+ items
+    // existed, because `mdFiles.length` (not the post-filter open count) drove
+    // both the cap and the remainder count. Read every file's acknowledgment
+    // state first, THEN cap the OPEN (unacknowledged) set for display.
+    const openFiles = [];
+    for (const entry of mdFiles) {
         const filePath = node_path_1.default.join(pendingDir, entry.name);
         let safeFilePath;
         try {
@@ -267,21 +536,33 @@ function scanTodos(planDir) {
         if (content === null)
             continue;
         const fm = extractFrontmatter(content, safeFilePath);
+        // Todos carry no natural status field — presence in pending/ IS "open" by
+        // definition (a resolved todo is moved out, not status-flagged). So the
+        // acknowledgment check here is PRESENCE-ONLY: no snapshot to go stale, no
+        // self-invalidation on edit — see `isAuditItemAcknowledged`'s doc comment.
+        if (isAuditItemAcknowledged(fm, { snapshotKey: 'status', currentValue: '', presenceOnly: true })) {
+            acknowledged++;
+            continue;
+        }
+        openFiles.push({ entry, content, fm });
+    }
+    const displayFiles = openFiles.slice(0, 5);
+    for (const { entry, content, fm } of displayFiles) {
         // Extract first line of body after frontmatter
-        const bodyMatch = content.replace(/^---[\s\S]*?---\n?/, '');
-        const firstLine = bodyMatch.trim().split('\n')[0] || '';
+        const bodyMatch = content.replace(/^---[\s\S]*?---\r?\n?/, '');
+        const firstLine = (0, text_lines_cjs_1.splitLines)(bodyMatch.trim())[0] || '';
         const summary = (0, security_cjs_1.sanitizeForDisplay)(firstLine.slice(0, 100));
         results.push({
-            filename: (0, security_cjs_1.sanitizeForDisplay)(entry.name),
+            filename: (0, security_cjs_1.sanitizeLabel)(entry.name),
             priority: (0, security_cjs_1.sanitizeForDisplay)(fm.priority || ''),
             area: (0, security_cjs_1.sanitizeForDisplay)(fm.area || ''),
             summary,
         });
     }
-    if (mdFiles.length > 5) {
-        results.push({ _remainder_count: mdFiles.length - 5, filename: '', priority: '', area: '', summary: '' });
+    if (openFiles.length > 5) {
+        results.push({ _remainder_count: openFiles.length - 5, filename: '', priority: '', area: '', summary: '' });
     }
-    return results;
+    return { items: results, acknowledged };
 }
 // ─── scanSeeds ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
 /**
@@ -291,16 +572,17 @@ function scanTodos(planDir) {
 function scanSeeds(planDir) {
     const seedsDir = node_path_1.default.join(planDir, 'seeds');
     if (!node_fs_1.default.existsSync(seedsDir))
-        return [];
+        return { items: [], acknowledged: 0 };
     let files;
     try {
         files = node_fs_1.default.readdirSync(seedsDir, { withFileTypes: true });
     }
     catch {
-        return [{ scan_error: true, seed_id: '', slug: '', status: '', title: '' }];
+        return { items: [{ scan_error: true, seed_id: '', slug: '', status: '', title: '' }], acknowledged: 0 };
     }
     const unimplementedStatuses = new Set(['dormant', 'active', 'triggered']);
     const results = [];
+    let acknowledged = 0;
     for (const entry of files) {
         if (!entry.isFile())
             continue;
@@ -321,10 +603,20 @@ function scanSeeds(planDir) {
         const status = (fm.status || 'dormant').toLowerCase();
         if (!unimplementedStatuses.has(status))
             continue;
-        // Extract seed_id from filename or frontmatter
+        if (isAuditItemAcknowledged(fm, { snapshotKey: 'status', currentValue: status })) {
+            acknowledged++;
+            continue;
+        }
+        // Extract seed_id from filename or frontmatter. The regex match is
+        // `\w`/hyphen-constrained (safe by construction, like `archived_milestone`)
+        // but the fallback taken when a filename doesn't fully match — e.g. a
+        // `SEED-`-prefixed, `.md`-suffixed name with a control byte SOMEWHERE in
+        // the middle, which still passes the `startsWith`/`endsWith` filter above
+        // — is the raw, unconstrained basename. Both branches are routed through
+        // sanitizeLabel below.
         const seedIdMatch = entry.name.match(/^(SEED-[\w-]+)\.md$/);
         const seed_id = seedIdMatch ? seedIdMatch[1] : node_path_1.default.basename(entry.name, '.md');
-        const slug = (0, security_cjs_1.sanitizeForDisplay)(seed_id.replace(/^SEED-/, ''));
+        const slug = (0, security_cjs_1.sanitizeLabel)(seed_id.replace(/^SEED-/, ''));
         let title = (0, security_cjs_1.sanitizeForDisplay)(fm.title || '');
         if (!title) {
             const headingMatch = content.match(/^#\s*(.+)$/m);
@@ -332,46 +624,123 @@ function scanSeeds(planDir) {
                 title = (0, security_cjs_1.sanitizeForDisplay)(headingMatch[1].trim().slice(0, 100));
         }
         results.push({
-            seed_id: (0, security_cjs_1.sanitizeForDisplay)(seed_id),
+            seed_id: (0, security_cjs_1.sanitizeLabel)(seed_id),
             slug,
             status: (0, security_cjs_1.sanitizeForDisplay)(status),
             title,
         });
     }
-    return results;
+    return { items: results, acknowledged };
 }
-// ─── scanUatGaps ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
 /**
- * Scan .planning/phases for UAT gaps (UAT files with status != 'complete').
+ * Enumerate phase directories across BOTH the active `.planning/phases/` root
+ * and every archived `.planning/milestones/vX.Y-phases/` root. Shared by the
+ * four phase-scoped scanners below (#3458 — epic #3473 B2/F2). Previously each
+ * scanner hand-rolled its own active-only `readdirSync(phasesDir)` walk and
+ * bailed out entirely when the active root was missing, so items still
+ * unresolved when a milestone closed and its phase dirs archived became
+ * permanently invisible to every later audit.
+ *
+ * ACTIVE dirs: raw readdirSync + isDirectory filter + sort. The enumeration
+ * walk itself (readdirSync + isDirectory filter + sort) is UNCHANGED from the
+ * scanners' prior inline behavior; what IS new is that a failed read here no
+ * longer aborts the whole scan the way each scanner's own inline
+ * `if (!fs.existsSync) return []` / try-readdirSync-catch-return-sentinel
+ * pair used to — see `activeUnreadable` below, which is how that signal is
+ * now surfaced to callers instead. Deliberately NOT routed through
+ * listMilestonePhaseDirs: these scanners are deliberately not
+ * milestone-filtered today, and switching would silently add window/sentinel
+ * filtering — a behavior change belonging to #3372, not here.
+ *
+ * A missing/unreadable active root does NOT short-circuit the archive walk —
+ * the old `if (!fs.existsSync(phasesDir)) return []` was the whole bug in a
+ * fully-archived project; it degrades to "skip the active half" only. An
+ * UNREADABLE (as opposed to merely absent) active root is reported back via
+ * `activeUnreadable: true` so each of the four callers can still emit the
+ * `scan_error` sentinel they emitted pre-#3458 for this exact case (a real
+ * I/O failure, not "verified clean") — see each scanner's own use of it.
+ *
+ * ARCHIVED dirs: sourced from `getArchivedPhaseDirs` (phase-locator.cjs), the
+ * canonical archive-enumeration seam `uat.cts`'s `cmdAuditUat` already uses.
+ * Archived dirs are deliberately NOT milestone-filtered either — see the
+ * comment at src/uat.cts:107-111: listMilestonePhaseDirs derives the CURRENT
+ * milestone's phase dirs (window + sentinel filtered) from ROADMAP.md, and
+ * archived phases belong to past milestones by definition, so filtering them
+ * discards every one and silently reinstates the bug this function fixes.
+ *
+ * An unreadable/unresolvable ARCHIVE root does NOT get its own sentinel.
+ * Pre-#3458 there was no archived read at all, so — unlike the active root —
+ * there is no prior `scan_error` contract to preserve here, and no existing
+ * consumer can regress. It also degrades the same way `listArchiveVersionDirs`
+ * (phase-locator.cts) already treats an absent `milestones/` dir: a real
+ * empty, not a failure, matching this function's existing "skip that root"
+ * idiom for the missing-active-dir case above. Adding a second sentinel path
+ * would let a machine consumer conflate "no milestones archived yet" (the
+ * overwhelmingly common case for an active project) with an actual read
+ * failure, which is a worse signal-to-noise trade than the one this
+ * function's own fix removes for the active root.
+ *
+ * Same-named dirs in both roots (e.g. "01-alpha" active AND archived) are
+ * DISTINCT targets — no dedupe.
  */
-function scanUatGaps(planDir) {
+function listAuditPhaseTargets(planDir, cwd) {
+    const targets = [];
+    let activeUnreadable = false;
     const phasesDir = node_path_1.default.join(planDir, 'phases');
-    if (!node_fs_1.default.existsSync(phasesDir))
-        return [];
-    let dirs;
+    if (node_fs_1.default.existsSync(phasesDir)) {
+        try {
+            const dirs = node_fs_1.default.readdirSync(phasesDir, { withFileTypes: true })
+                .filter(e => e.isDirectory())
+                .map(e => e.name)
+                .sort();
+            for (const dir of dirs) {
+                targets.push({ dir, fullPath: node_path_1.default.join(phasesDir, dir) });
+            }
+        }
+        catch {
+            // Unreadable active root: skip it, do not abort the archive walk, but
+            // report it so callers can emit their pre-#3458 scan_error sentinel.
+            activeUnreadable = true;
+        }
+    }
     try {
-        dirs = node_fs_1.default.readdirSync(phasesDir, { withFileTypes: true })
-            .filter(e => e.isDirectory())
-            .map(e => e.name)
-            .sort();
+        for (const archived of getArchivedPhaseDirs(cwd)) {
+            targets.push({ dir: archived.name, fullPath: archived.fullPath, milestone: archived.milestone });
+        }
     }
     catch {
-        return [{ scan_error: true, phase: '', file: '', status: '', open_scenario_count: 0 }];
+        // Unreadable/unresolvable archive root: skip it, keep whatever active
+        // targets were already collected. No sentinel — see docstring above.
     }
+    return { targets, activeUnreadable };
+}
+// ─── scanUatGaps ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+/**
+ * Scan .planning/phases (active) and .planning/milestones/vX.Y-phases (archived)
+ * for UAT gaps (UAT files with status != 'complete'/'resolved').
+ */
+function scanUatGaps(planDir, cwd) {
     const results = [];
-    for (const dir of dirs) {
-        const phaseDir = node_path_1.default.join(phasesDir, dir);
-        const phaseMatch = dir.match(new RegExp(`^(${PHASE_NUMBER_TOKEN_SOURCE})`, 'i'));
-        const phaseNum = phaseMatch ? phaseMatch[1] : dir;
+    let acknowledged = 0;
+    const { targets, activeUnreadable } = listAuditPhaseTargets(planDir, cwd);
+    if (activeUnreadable) {
+        results.push({ scan_error: true, phase: '', file: '', status: '', open_scenario_count: 0 });
+    }
+    for (const target of targets) {
+        const phaseMatch = target.dir.match(new RegExp(`^(${PHASE_NUMBER_TOKEN_SOURCE})`, 'i'));
+        const phaseNum = phaseMatch ? phaseMatch[1] : target.dir;
         let files;
         try {
-            files = node_fs_1.default.readdirSync(phaseDir);
+            files = node_fs_1.default.readdirSync(target.fullPath);
         }
         catch {
             continue;
         }
-        for (const file of files.filter(f => f.includes('-UAT') && f.endsWith('.md'))) {
-            const filePath = node_path_1.default.join(phaseDir, file);
+        // Scoped to THIS phase's own token (#3511) so a stray, cross-phase, or
+        // ad-hoc UAT file cannot surface as this phase's gap — same fix as
+        // scanVerificationGaps below.
+        for (const file of scopeToPhase(files.filter(f => f.includes('-UAT') && f.endsWith('.md')), target.dir)) {
+            const filePath = node_path_1.default.join(target.fullPath, file);
             let safeFilePath;
             try {
                 safeFilePath = (0, security_cjs_1.requireSafePath)(filePath, planDir, 'UAT file', { allowAbsolute: true });
@@ -391,50 +760,52 @@ function scanUatGaps(planDir) {
                 continue;
             if (status === 'unknown' && result === 'all_pass')
                 continue;
-            // Count open scenarios
-            const pendingMatches = (content.match(/result:\s*(?:pending|\[pending\])/gi) || []).length;
-            results.push({
-                phase: (0, security_cjs_1.sanitizeForDisplay)(phaseNum),
-                file: (0, security_cjs_1.sanitizeForDisplay)(file),
+            // Count open scenarios — computed BEFORE the acknowledged check
+            // (WARNING 2) so the snapshot comparison sees it too, not just status.
+            const pendingMatches = deriveUatGapOpenScenarioCount(content);
+            if (isAuditItemAcknowledged(fm, { snapshotKey: 'gap_snapshot', currentValue: deriveUatGapSnapshotValue(status, content) })) {
+                acknowledged++;
+                continue;
+            }
+            const item = {
+                phase: (0, security_cjs_1.sanitizeLabel)(phaseNum),
+                file: (0, security_cjs_1.sanitizeLabel)(file),
                 status: (0, security_cjs_1.sanitizeForDisplay)(status),
                 open_scenario_count: pendingMatches,
-            });
+            };
+            if (target.milestone !== undefined)
+                item.archived_milestone = (0, security_cjs_1.sanitizeLabel)(target.milestone);
+            results.push(item);
         }
     }
-    return results;
+    return { items: results, acknowledged };
 }
 // ─── scanVerificationGaps ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────
 /**
- * Scan .planning/phases for VERIFICATION gaps.
+ * Scan .planning/phases (active) and .planning/milestones/vX.Y-phases (archived)
+ * for VERIFICATION gaps.
  */
-function scanVerificationGaps(planDir) {
-    const phasesDir = node_path_1.default.join(planDir, 'phases');
-    if (!node_fs_1.default.existsSync(phasesDir))
-        return [];
-    let dirs;
-    try {
-        dirs = node_fs_1.default.readdirSync(phasesDir, { withFileTypes: true })
-            .filter(e => e.isDirectory())
-            .map(e => e.name)
-            .sort();
-    }
-    catch {
-        return [{ scan_error: true, phase: '', file: '', status: '' }];
-    }
+function scanVerificationGaps(planDir, cwd) {
     const results = [];
-    for (const dir of dirs) {
-        const phaseDir = node_path_1.default.join(phasesDir, dir);
-        const phaseMatch = dir.match(new RegExp(`^(${PHASE_NUMBER_TOKEN_SOURCE})`, 'i'));
-        const phaseNum = phaseMatch ? phaseMatch[1] : dir;
+    let acknowledged = 0;
+    const { targets, activeUnreadable } = listAuditPhaseTargets(planDir, cwd);
+    if (activeUnreadable) {
+        results.push({ scan_error: true, phase: '', file: '', status: '' });
+    }
+    for (const target of targets) {
+        const phaseMatch = target.dir.match(new RegExp(`^(${PHASE_NUMBER_TOKEN_SOURCE})`, 'i'));
+        const phaseNum = phaseMatch ? phaseMatch[1] : target.dir;
         let files;
         try {
-            files = node_fs_1.default.readdirSync(phaseDir);
+            files = node_fs_1.default.readdirSync(target.fullPath);
         }
         catch {
             continue;
         }
-        for (const file of files.filter(f => f.includes('-VERIFICATION') && f.endsWith('.md'))) {
-            const filePath = node_path_1.default.join(phaseDir, file);
+        // Scoped to THIS phase's own token (#3511) so a stray, cross-phase, or
+        // ad-hoc VERIFICATION file cannot surface as this phase's gap.
+        for (const file of scopeToPhase(files.filter(f => f.includes('-VERIFICATION') && f.endsWith('.md')), target.dir)) {
+            const filePath = node_path_1.default.join(target.fullPath, file);
             let safeFilePath;
             try {
                 safeFilePath = (0, security_cjs_1.requireSafePath)(filePath, planDir, 'VERIFICATION file', { allowAbsolute: true });
@@ -449,47 +820,46 @@ function scanVerificationGaps(planDir) {
             const status = (fm.status || 'unknown').toLowerCase();
             if (status !== 'gaps_found' && status !== 'human_needed')
                 continue;
-            results.push({
-                phase: (0, security_cjs_1.sanitizeForDisplay)(phaseNum),
-                file: (0, security_cjs_1.sanitizeForDisplay)(file),
+            if (isAuditItemAcknowledged(fm, { snapshotKey: 'status', currentValue: status })) {
+                acknowledged++;
+                continue;
+            }
+            const item = {
+                phase: (0, security_cjs_1.sanitizeLabel)(phaseNum),
+                file: (0, security_cjs_1.sanitizeLabel)(file),
                 status: (0, security_cjs_1.sanitizeForDisplay)(status),
-            });
+            };
+            if (target.milestone !== undefined)
+                item.archived_milestone = (0, security_cjs_1.sanitizeLabel)(target.milestone);
+            results.push(item);
         }
     }
-    return results;
+    return { items: results, acknowledged };
 }
 // ─── scanContextQuestions ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────
 /**
- * Scan .planning/phases for CONTEXT files with open_questions.
+ * Scan .planning/phases (active) and .planning/milestones/vX.Y-phases (archived)
+ * for CONTEXT files with open_questions.
  */
-function scanContextQuestions(planDir) {
-    const phasesDir = node_path_1.default.join(planDir, 'phases');
-    if (!node_fs_1.default.existsSync(phasesDir))
-        return [];
-    let dirs;
-    try {
-        dirs = node_fs_1.default.readdirSync(phasesDir, { withFileTypes: true })
-            .filter(e => e.isDirectory())
-            .map(e => e.name)
-            .sort();
-    }
-    catch {
-        return [{ scan_error: true, phase: '', file: '', question_count: 0, questions: [] }];
-    }
+function scanContextQuestions(planDir, cwd) {
     const results = [];
-    for (const dir of dirs) {
-        const phaseDir = node_path_1.default.join(phasesDir, dir);
-        const phaseMatch = dir.match(new RegExp(`^(${PHASE_NUMBER_TOKEN_SOURCE})`, 'i'));
-        const phaseNum = phaseMatch ? phaseMatch[1] : dir;
+    let acknowledged = 0;
+    const { targets, activeUnreadable } = listAuditPhaseTargets(planDir, cwd);
+    if (activeUnreadable) {
+        results.push({ scan_error: true, phase: '', file: '', question_count: 0, questions: [] });
+    }
+    for (const target of targets) {
+        const phaseMatch = target.dir.match(new RegExp(`^(${PHASE_NUMBER_TOKEN_SOURCE})`, 'i'));
+        const phaseNum = phaseMatch ? phaseMatch[1] : target.dir;
         let files;
         try {
-            files = node_fs_1.default.readdirSync(phaseDir);
+            files = node_fs_1.default.readdirSync(target.fullPath);
         }
         catch {
             continue;
         }
         for (const file of files.filter(f => f.includes('-CONTEXT') && f.endsWith('.md'))) {
-            const filePath = node_path_1.default.join(phaseDir, file);
+            const filePath = node_path_1.default.join(target.fullPath, file);
             let safeFilePath;
             try {
                 safeFilePath = (0, security_cjs_1.requireSafePath)(filePath, planDir, 'CONTEXT file', { allowAbsolute: true });
@@ -501,38 +871,104 @@ function scanContextQuestions(planDir) {
             if (content === null)
                 continue;
             const fm = extractFrontmatter(content, safeFilePath);
-            // Check frontmatter open_questions field
-            let questions = [];
-            if (fm.open_questions) {
-                if (Array.isArray(fm.open_questions) && fm.open_questions.length > 0) {
-                    questions = fm.open_questions.map(q => (0, security_cjs_1.sanitizeForDisplay)(String(q).slice(0, 200)));
-                }
-            }
-            // Also check for ## Open Questions section in body
-            if (questions.length === 0) {
-                const oqSection = (0, markdown_sectionizer_cjs_1.collectSection)(content, (h) => h.level === 2 && h.text.trim().toLowerCase().startsWith('open questions'), { levelBounded: true });
-                if (oqSection) {
-                    const oqBody = oqSection.body.trim();
-                    if (oqBody && oqBody.length > 0 && !/^\s*none\s*$/i.test(oqBody)) {
-                        const items = oqBody.split('\n')
-                            .map((l) => l.trim())
-                            .filter((l) => l && l !== '-' && l !== '*')
-                            .filter((l) => /^[-*\d]/.test(l) || l.includes('?'));
-                        questions = items.slice(0, 3).map((q) => (0, security_cjs_1.sanitizeForDisplay)(q.slice(0, 200)));
-                    }
-                }
-            }
+            const questions = deriveOpenQuestions(content, fm);
             if (questions.length === 0)
                 continue;
-            results.push({
-                phase: (0, security_cjs_1.sanitizeForDisplay)(phaseNum),
-                file: (0, security_cjs_1.sanitizeForDisplay)(file),
+            // WARNING 2 (#3458 follow-up review): snapshot the QUESTIONS
+            // THEMSELVES (a content digest), not just their count — a count-only
+            // snapshot cannot see the same-count REPLACEMENT of every question
+            // with brand-new ones (measured: 2 acknowledged, then both swapped for
+            // unrelated new blockers, still suppressed under the old scheme).
+            if (isAuditItemAcknowledged(fm, { snapshotKey: 'questions_digest', currentValue: deriveOpenQuestionsDigest(questions) })) {
+                acknowledged++;
+                continue;
+            }
+            const item = {
+                phase: (0, security_cjs_1.sanitizeLabel)(phaseNum),
+                file: (0, security_cjs_1.sanitizeLabel)(file),
                 question_count: questions.length,
-                questions: questions.slice(0, 3),
-            });
+                questions: questions.slice(0, 3).map(truncateQuestionForDisplay),
+            };
+            if (target.milestone !== undefined)
+                item.archived_milestone = (0, security_cjs_1.sanitizeLabel)(target.milestone);
+            results.push(item);
+        }
+    }
+    return { items: results, acknowledged };
+}
+// ─── scanDeferredItems ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+/**
+ * Scan phase directories for UNRESOLVED entries in `deferred-items.md` (#2646),
+ * across both .planning/phases (active) and .planning/milestones/vX.Y-phases
+ * (archived).
+ *
+ * The SCOPE BOUNDARY convention (`agents/gsd-executor.md`) has a phase agent
+ * log an out-of-scope discovery here rather than fix it. #2287 made that file
+ * readable at the PHASE boundary (`/gsd-progress` check 7, `audit-uat`); this
+ * scanner closes the remaining reader gap one boundary up, so an entry still
+ * unresolved at MILESTONE close surfaces in the pre-close audit alongside the
+ * other eight categories and the existing `[R]/[A]/[C]` prompt applies to it.
+ * Without this, phase directories archive to `milestones/vX.Y-phases/` (#1871)
+ * and the entry leaves the live tree having never been triaged.
+ *
+ * The resolved/unresolved predicate is NOT reimplemented here: `uat.cjs`
+ * already exports `parseDeferredItemsWithStatus`, which owns the parsing rule
+ * (entries under a `## Deferred Items` level-2 heading, else the whole file
+ * fail-safe) and — unlike `parseDeferredItems` — surfaces each entry's raw
+ * `status:` field instead of filtering `resolved` internally, so THIS scanner
+ * can apply the three-way split (#3458 follow-up): `resolved` (fixed for
+ * real — dropped, never counted, matching pre-existing behavior exactly),
+ * `acknowledged` (suppressed AND tallied — the new deferred_items marker;
+ * see the module doc comment above `isAuditItemAcknowledged`), else open.
+ * Duplicating either inequality is how two readers of the same file drift
+ * into disagreeing about what "open" means. The require is deliberately
+ * LAZY, inside the scan, to preserve `audit-command-router.cts`'s property
+ * that a route never loads the module it does not need.
+ */
+function scanDeferredItems(planDir, cwd) {
+    const { targets, activeUnreadable } = listAuditPhaseTargets(planDir, cwd);
+    // eslint-disable-next-line @typescript-eslint/no-require-imports, @typescript-eslint/no-unsafe-assignment
+    const uat = require('./uat.cjs');
+    const results = [];
+    let acknowledged = 0;
+    if (activeUnreadable) {
+        results.push({ scan_error: true, phase: '', file: '', text: '' });
+    }
+    for (const target of targets) {
+        const phaseMatch = target.dir.match(new RegExp(`^(${PHASE_NUMBER_TOKEN_SOURCE})`, 'i'));
+        const phaseNum = phaseMatch ? phaseMatch[1] : target.dir;
+        const filePath = node_path_1.default.join(target.fullPath, DEFERRED_ITEMS_FILENAME);
+        if (!node_fs_1.default.existsSync(filePath))
+            continue;
+        let safeFilePath;
+        try {
+            safeFilePath = (0, security_cjs_1.requireSafePath)(filePath, planDir, 'deferred items file', { allowAbsolute: true });
+        }
+        catch {
+            continue;
+        }
+        const content = (0, shell_command_projection_cjs_1.platformReadSync)(safeFilePath);
+        if (content === null)
+            continue;
+        for (const item of uat.parseDeferredItemsWithStatus(content)) {
+            const rawStatus = (item.status || '').toLowerCase();
+            if (rawStatus === 'resolved')
+                continue; // fixed for real — never counted
+            if (rawStatus === 'acknowledged') {
+                acknowledged++;
+                continue;
+            }
+            const resultItem = {
+                phase: (0, security_cjs_1.sanitizeLabel)(phaseNum),
+                file: (0, security_cjs_1.sanitizeLabel)(DEFERRED_ITEMS_FILENAME),
+                text: (0, security_cjs_1.sanitizeForDisplay)(item.name),
+            };
+            if (target.milestone !== undefined)
+                resultItem.archived_milestone = (0, security_cjs_1.sanitizeLabel)(target.milestone);
+            results.push(resultItem);
         }
     }
-    return results;
+    return { items: results, acknowledged };
 }
 // ─── auditOpenArtifacts ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────
 /**
@@ -548,7 +984,7 @@ function auditOpenArtifacts(cwd) {
             return scanDebugSessions(planDir);
         }
         catch {
-            return [{ scan_error: true, slug: '', status: '', updated: '', hypothesis: '' }];
+            return { items: [{ scan_error: true, slug: '', status: '', updated: '', hypothesis: '' }], acknowledged: 0 };
         }
     })();
     const quickTasks = (() => {
@@ -556,7 +992,7 @@ function auditOpenArtifacts(cwd) {
             return scanQuickTasks(planDir);
         }
         catch {
-            return [{ scan_error: true, slug: '', date: '', status: '', description: '' }];
+            return { items: [{ scan_error: true, slug: '', date: '', status: '', description: '' }], acknowledged: 0 };
         }
     })();
     const threads = (() => {
@@ -564,7 +1000,7 @@ function auditOpenArtifacts(cwd) {
             return scanThreads(planDir);
         }
         catch {
-            return [{ scan_error: true, slug: '', status: '', updated: '', title: '' }];
+            return { items: [{ scan_error: true, slug: '', status: '', updated: '', title: '' }], acknowledged: 0 };
         }
     })();
     const todos = (() => {
@@ -572,7 +1008,7 @@ function auditOpenArtifacts(cwd) {
             return scanTodos(planDir);
         }
         catch {
-            return [{ scan_error: true, filename: '', priority: '', area: '', summary: '' }];
+            return { items: [{ scan_error: true, filename: '', priority: '', area: '', summary: '' }], acknowledged: 0 };
         }
     })();
     const seeds = (() => {
@@ -580,60 +1016,87 @@ function auditOpenArtifacts(cwd) {
             return scanSeeds(planDir);
         }
         catch {
-            return [{ scan_error: true, seed_id: '', slug: '', status: '', title: '' }];
+            return { items: [{ scan_error: true, seed_id: '', slug: '', status: '', title: '' }], acknowledged: 0 };
         }
     })();
     const uatGaps = (() => {
         try {
-            return scanUatGaps(planDir);
+            return scanUatGaps(planDir, cwd);
         }
         catch {
-            return [{ scan_error: true, phase: '', file: '', status: '', open_scenario_count: 0 }];
+            return { items: [{ scan_error: true, phase: '', file: '', status: '', open_scenario_count: 0 }], acknowledged: 0 };
         }
     })();
     const verificationGaps = (() => {
         try {
-            return scanVerificationGaps(planDir);
+            return scanVerificationGaps(planDir, cwd);
         }
         catch {
-            return [{ scan_error: true, phase: '', file: '', status: '' }];
+            return { items: [{ scan_error: true, phase: '', file: '', status: '' }], acknowledged: 0 };
         }
     })();
     const contextQuestions = (() => {
         try {
-            return scanContextQuestions(planDir);
+            return scanContextQuestions(planDir, cwd);
+        }
+        catch {
+            return { items: [{ scan_error: true, phase: '', file: '', question_count: 0, questions: [] }], acknowledged: 0 };
+        }
+    })();
+    const deferredItems = (() => {
+        try {
+            return scanDeferredItems(planDir, cwd);
         }
         catch {
-            return [{ scan_error: true, phase: '', file: '', question_count: 0, questions: [] }];
+            return { items: [{ scan_error: true, phase: '', file: '', text: '' }], acknowledged: 0 };
         }
     })();
     // Count real items (not scan_error sentinels)
     const countReal = (arr) => arr.filter(i => !i.scan_error && !i._remainder_count).length;
     const counts = {
-        debug_sessions: countReal(debugSessions),
-        quick_tasks: countReal(quickTasks),
-        threads: countReal(threads),
-        todos: countReal(todos),
-        seeds: countReal(seeds),
-        uat_gaps: countReal(uatGaps),
-        verification_gaps: countReal(verificationGaps),
-        context_questions: countReal(contextQuestions),
+        debug_sessions: countReal(debugSessions.items),
+        quick_tasks: countReal(quickTasks.items),
+        threads: countReal(threads.items),
+        todos: countReal(todos.items),
+        seeds: countReal(seeds.items),
+        uat_gaps: countReal(uatGaps.items),
+        verification_gaps: countReal(verificationGaps.items),
+        context_questions: countReal(contextQuestions.items),
+        deferred_items: countReal(deferredItems.items),
         total: 0,
     };
-    counts.total = counts.debug_sessions + counts.quick_tasks + counts.threads + counts.todos + counts.seeds + counts.uat_gaps + counts.verification_gaps + counts.context_questions;
+    counts.total = counts.debug_sessions + counts.quick_tasks + counts.threads + counts.todos + counts.seeds + counts.uat_gaps + counts.verification_gaps + counts.context_questions + counts.deferred_items;
+    // #3458 follow-up (A5): mirrors `counts`'s shape exactly, so a reviewer can
+    // tell "clean because fixed" apart from "clean because silenced" without a
+    // second output contract to learn.
+    const acknowledged = {
+        debug_sessions: debugSessions.acknowledged,
+        quick_tasks: quickTasks.acknowledged,
+        threads: threads.acknowledged,
+        todos: todos.acknowledged,
+        seeds: seeds.acknowledged,
+        uat_gaps: uatGaps.acknowledged,
+        verification_gaps: verificationGaps.acknowledged,
+        context_questions: contextQuestions.acknowledged,
+        deferred_items: deferredItems.acknowledged,
+        total: 0,
+    };
+    acknowledged.total = acknowledged.debug_sessions + acknowledged.quick_tasks + acknowledged.threads + acknowledged.todos + acknowledged.seeds + acknowledged.uat_gaps + acknowledged.verification_gaps + acknowledged.context_questions + acknowledged.deferred_items;
     return {
         scanned_at: new Date().toISOString(),
         has_open_items: counts.total > 0,
         counts,
+        acknowledged,
         items: {
-            debug_sessions: debugSessions,
-            quick_tasks: quickTasks,
-            threads,
-            todos,
-            seeds,
-            uat_gaps: uatGaps,
-            verification_gaps: verificationGaps,
-            context_questions: contextQuestions,
+            debug_sessions: debugSessions.items,
+            quick_tasks: quickTasks.items,
+            threads: threads.items,
+            todos: todos.items,
+            seeds: seeds.items,
+            uat_gaps: uatGaps.items,
+            verification_gaps: verificationGaps.items,
+            context_questions: contextQuestions.items,
+            deferred_items: deferredItems.items,
         },
     };
 }
@@ -645,23 +1108,36 @@ function auditOpenArtifacts(cwd) {
  * @returns Formatted report
  */
 function formatAuditReport(auditResult) {
-    const { counts, items, has_open_items } = auditResult;
+    const { counts, items, has_open_items, acknowledged } = auditResult;
     const lines = [];
     const hr = '━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━';
     lines.push(hr);
     lines.push('  Milestone Close: Open Artifact Audit');
     lines.push(hr);
+    // WARNING 3 (#3458 follow-up review): the acknowledged tally previously
+    // existed only in `--json` output — the human report could not tell
+    // "clean because fixed" apart from "clean because silenced", which is the
+    // exact distinction the acknowledged/counts split exists to preserve.
     if (!has_open_items) {
         lines.push('');
-        lines.push('  All artifact types clear. Safe to proceed.');
+        if (acknowledged.total > 0) {
+            lines.push(`  All artifact types clear (${acknowledged.total} previously acknowledged item${acknowledged.total !== 1 ? 's' : ''} still suppressed).`);
+        }
+        else {
+            lines.push('  All artifact types clear. Safe to proceed.');
+        }
         lines.push('');
         lines.push(hr);
         return lines.join('\n');
     }
+    // WARNING 3: per-category "N previously acknowledged" suffix, so the
+    // human report carries the same "clean vs silenced" signal `--json`
+    // already did via `acknowledged`.
+    const ackSuffix = (n) => (n > 0 ? `, ${n} previously acknowledged` : '');
     // Debug sessions (blocking quality — red)
     if (counts.debug_sessions > 0) {
         lines.push('');
-        lines.push(`🔴 Debug Sessions (${counts.debug_sessions} open)`);
+        lines.push(`🔴 Debug Sessions (${counts.debug_sessions} open${ackSuffix(acknowledged.debug_sessions)})`);
         for (const item of items.debug_sessions.filter(i => !i.scan_error)) {
             const hyp = item.hypothesis ? ` — ${item.hypothesis}` : '';
             lines.push(`   • ${item.slug} [${item.status}]${hyp}`);
@@ -670,23 +1146,25 @@ function formatAuditReport(auditResult) {
     // UAT gaps (blocking quality — red)
     if (counts.uat_gaps > 0) {
         lines.push('');
-        lines.push(`🔴 UAT Gaps (${counts.uat_gaps} phases with incomplete UAT)`);
+        lines.push(`🔴 UAT Gaps (${counts.uat_gaps} phases with incomplete UAT${ackSuffix(acknowledged.uat_gaps)})`);
         for (const item of items.uat_gaps.filter(i => !i.scan_error)) {
-            lines.push(`   • Phase ${item.phase}: ${item.file} [${item.status}] — ${item.open_scenario_count} pending scenarios`);
+            const archived = item.archived_milestone ? ` (archived ${item.archived_milestone})` : '';
+            lines.push(`   • Phase ${item.phase}${archived}: ${item.file} [${item.status}] — ${item.open_scenario_count} pending scenarios`);
         }
     }
     // Verification gaps (blocking quality — red)
     if (counts.verification_gaps > 0) {
         lines.push('');
-        lines.push(`🔴 Verification Gaps (${counts.verification_gaps} unresolved)`);
+        lines.push(`🔴 Verification Gaps (${counts.verification_gaps} unresolved${ackSuffix(acknowledged.verification_gaps)})`);
         for (const item of items.verification_gaps.filter(i => !i.scan_error)) {
-            lines.push(`   • Phase ${item.phase}: ${item.file} [${item.status}]`);
+            const archived = item.archived_milestone ? ` (archived ${item.archived_milestone})` : '';
+            lines.push(`   • Phase ${item.phase}${archived}: ${item.file} [${item.status}]`);
         }
     }
     // Quick tasks (incomplete work — yellow)
     if (counts.quick_tasks > 0) {
         lines.push('');
-        lines.push(`🟡 Quick Tasks (${counts.quick_tasks} incomplete)`);
+        lines.push(`🟡 Quick Tasks (${counts.quick_tasks} incomplete${ackSuffix(acknowledged.quick_tasks)})`);
         for (const item of items.quick_tasks.filter(i => !i.scan_error)) {
             const d = item.date ? ` (${item.date})` : '';
             lines.push(`   • ${item.slug}${d} [${item.status}]`);
@@ -697,7 +1175,7 @@ function formatAuditReport(auditResult) {
         const realTodos = items.todos.filter(i => !i.scan_error && !i._remainder_count);
         const remainder = items.todos.find(i => i._remainder_count);
         lines.push('');
-        lines.push(`🟡 Pending Todos (${counts.todos} pending)`);
+        lines.push(`🟡 Pending Todos (${counts.todos} pending${ackSuffix(acknowledged.todos)})`);
         for (const item of realTodos) {
             const area = item.area ? ` [${item.area}]` : '';
             const pri = item.priority ? ` (${item.priority})` : '';
@@ -712,7 +1190,7 @@ function formatAuditReport(auditResult) {
     // Threads (deferred decisions — blue)
     if (counts.threads > 0) {
         lines.push('');
-        lines.push(`🔵 Open Threads (${counts.threads} active)`);
+        lines.push(`🔵 Open Threads (${counts.threads} active${ackSuffix(acknowledged.threads)})`);
         for (const item of items.threads.filter(i => !i.scan_error)) {
             const title = item.title ? ` — ${item.title}` : '';
             lines.push(`   • ${item.slug} [${item.status}]${title}`);
@@ -721,7 +1199,7 @@ function formatAuditReport(auditResult) {
     // Seeds (deferred decisions — blue)
     if (counts.seeds > 0) {
         lines.push('');
-        lines.push(`🔵 Unimplemented Seeds (${counts.seeds} pending)`);
+        lines.push(`🔵 Unimplemented Seeds (${counts.seeds} pending${ackSuffix(acknowledged.seeds)})`);
         for (const item of items.seeds.filter(i => !i.scan_error)) {
             const title = item.title ? ` — ${item.title}` : '';
             lines.push(`   • ${item.seed_id} [${item.status}]${title}`);
@@ -730,18 +1208,264 @@ function formatAuditReport(auditResult) {
     // Context questions (deferred decisions — blue)
     if (counts.context_questions > 0) {
         lines.push('');
-        lines.push(`🔵 CONTEXT Open Questions (${counts.context_questions} phases with open questions)`);
+        lines.push(`🔵 CONTEXT Open Questions (${counts.context_questions} phases with open questions${ackSuffix(acknowledged.context_questions)})`);
         for (const item of items.context_questions.filter(i => !i.scan_error)) {
-            lines.push(`   • Phase ${item.phase}: ${item.file} (${item.question_count} question${item.question_count !== 1 ? 's' : ''})`);
+            const archived = item.archived_milestone ? ` (archived ${item.archived_milestone})` : '';
+            lines.push(`   • Phase ${item.phase}${archived}: ${item.file} (${item.question_count} question${item.question_count !== 1 ? 's' : ''})`);
             for (const q of item.questions) {
                 lines.push(`     - ${q}`);
             }
         }
     }
+    // Deferred items (deferred decisions — blue). Out-of-scope discoveries a
+    // phase agent recorded rather than fixed, still unresolved at close (#2646).
+    if (counts.deferred_items > 0) {
+        lines.push('');
+        lines.push(`🔵 Deferred Items (${counts.deferred_items} unresolved${ackSuffix(acknowledged.deferred_items)})`);
+        for (const item of items.deferred_items.filter(i => !i.scan_error)) {
+            const archived = item.archived_milestone ? ` (archived ${item.archived_milestone})` : '';
+            lines.push(`   • Phase ${item.phase}${archived}: ${item.text}`);
+        }
+    }
     lines.push('');
     lines.push(hr);
     lines.push(`  ${counts.total} item${counts.total !== 1 ? 's' : ''} require decisions before close.`);
+    if (acknowledged.total > 0) {
+        lines.push(`  ${acknowledged.total} previously acknowledged item${acknowledged.total !== 1 ? 's' : ''} also suppressed above the ${counts.total} open item${counts.total !== 1 ? 's' : ''}.`);
+    }
     lines.push(hr);
     return lines.join('\n');
 }
-module.exports = { auditOpenArtifacts, formatAuditReport };
+// ─── resolvePhaseTargetDir ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+/**
+ * Resolve ONE phase directory (active or archived) by its phase token, for
+ * `cmdAuditAcknowledge`'s `--phase [--archived-milestone]` identification of
+ * a uat_gaps/verification_gaps/context_questions/deferred_items item. Built
+ * on `listAuditPhaseTargets` — the same enumeration the four phase-scoped
+ * scanners use — so the writer can never resolve a DIFFERENT directory than
+ * the one the audit actually scanned.
+ *
+ * `archivedMilestone` absent → matches the ACTIVE `.planning/phases/<dir>`
+ * (a target with no `milestone`). Present → matches the archived target
+ * whose `milestone` equals it exactly — the same disambiguator the audit
+ * output's `archived_milestone` field carries.
+ */
+function resolvePhaseTargetDir(planDir, cwd, phase, archivedMilestone) {
+    const { targets } = listAuditPhaseTargets(planDir, cwd);
+    const phaseTokenRe = new RegExp(`^(${PHASE_NUMBER_TOKEN_SOURCE})`, 'i');
+    for (const target of targets) {
+        const phaseMatch = target.dir.match(phaseTokenRe);
+        const phaseNum = phaseMatch ? phaseMatch[1] : target.dir;
+        if (phaseNum !== phase)
+            continue;
+        if (archivedMilestone) {
+            if (target.milestone === archivedMilestone)
+                return target.fullPath;
+        }
+        else if (target.milestone === undefined) {
+            return target.fullPath;
+        }
+    }
+    return null;
+}
+// ─── cmdAuditAcknowledge ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+/**
+ * CLI writer for the #3458 follow-up suppression seam (design point A4). Sets
+ * (or refreshes) the `audit_acknowledged` marker on ONE identified artifact,
+ * snapshotting its CURRENT effective state itself so the marker is never
+ * hand-authored and can never drift from what the scanners actually compute.
+ *
+ * `--category` selects which of the nine audit categories is being
+ * acknowledged, and which OTHER flags are required to identify the artifact —
+ * mirroring the fields the audit's OWN JSON output already carries per
+ * category (phase/file/archived_milestone for the four phase-scoped
+ * categories; slug/seed-id/dir/filename for the five flat ones), the same
+ * convention `frontmatter get/set/merge/validate` uses for `--file`/`--field`.
+ *
+ * VERDICT-PRESERVING: this function never writes to the artifact's own
+ * `status:` field (the audit's real verdict) for the 8 frontmatter-marker
+ * categories — only the sibling `audit_acknowledged` map. `deferred_items` is
+ * the sole, deliberate exception (see `uat.cts`'s `acknowledgeDeferredItem`):
+ * there, the marker IS the entry's own `status:` field, because a
+ * deferred-items.md entry carries no OTHER meaning for that field.
+ *
+ * Every path this function writes is routed through `requireSafePath`, so an
+ * artifact identifier that resolves outside the project is refused before
+ * any read or write is attempted.
+ */
+function cmdAuditAcknowledge(cwd, args, raw) {
+    const { category, milestone, at: atFlag, phase, file, 'archived-milestone': archivedMilestone, slug, 'seed-id': seedId, dir: quickDir, filename, text, } = (0, command_arg_projection_cjs_1.parseNamedArgs)(args, [
+        'category', 'milestone', 'at',
+        'phase', 'file', 'archived-milestone',
+        'slug', 'seed-id', 'dir', 'filename', 'text',
+    ]);
+    if (!category)
+        ioError('--category is required');
+    if (!milestone)
+        ioError('--milestone is required');
+    const at = atFlag || new Date().toISOString().slice(0, 10);
+    const planDir = planningDir(cwd);
+    const markerBase = { milestone: milestone, at };
+    // ── The four phase-scoped categories: --phase --file [--archived-milestone] ──
+    const PHASE_SCOPED = new Set(['uat_gaps', 'verification_gaps', 'context_questions', 'deferred_items']);
+    if (PHASE_SCOPED.has(category)) {
+        if (!phase)
+            ioError('--phase is required for this --category');
+        if (!file)
+            ioError('--file is required for this --category');
+        const targetDir = resolvePhaseTargetDir(planDir, cwd, phase, archivedMilestone);
+        if (!targetDir) {
+            ioError(`no phase directory found for phase "${phase}"${archivedMilestone ? ` (archived-milestone "${archivedMilestone}")` : ''}`);
+        }
+        const filePath = node_path_1.default.join(targetDir, file);
+        const safeFilePath = (0, security_cjs_1.requireSafePath)(filePath, planDir, 'audit acknowledge target', { allowAbsolute: true });
+        if (!node_fs_1.default.existsSync(safeFilePath))
+            ioError(`file not found: ${file}`);
+        if (category === 'deferred_items') {
+            if (!text)
+                ioError('--text is required for --category deferred_items');
+            // eslint-disable-next-line @typescript-eslint/no-require-imports, @typescript-eslint/no-unsafe-assignment
+            const uat = require('./uat.cjs');
+            const content = node_fs_1.default.readFileSync(safeFilePath, 'utf-8');
+            const result = uat.acknowledgeDeferredItem(content, text);
+            if (result.status === 'not_found')
+                ioError(`no deferred item matched --text "${text}"`);
+            if (result.status === 'ambiguous')
+                ioError(`--text "${text}" matches more than one deferred item — text must be unique`);
+            if (result.status === 'already_resolved')
+                ioError(`deferred item is already "status: resolved" — acknowledging a resolved item is a no-op`);
+            if (result.status === 'unsupported_heading_shape') {
+                ioError('this deferred-items.md uses the heading-delimited (#3457) entry shape, which the CLI writer does not yet support — edit the file directly');
+            }
+            if (result.status === 'match_verification_failed') {
+                ioError(`internal error: matched span for --text "${text}" did not re-verify before write — refused rather than risk writing the wrong entry`);
+            }
+            (0, shell_command_projection_cjs_2.platformWriteSync)(safeFilePath, result.content);
+            output({ acknowledged: true, category, phase, file, text }, raw, 'true');
+            return;
+        }
+        const content = node_fs_1.default.readFileSync(safeFilePath, 'utf-8');
+        const fm = extractFrontmatter(content, safeFilePath);
+        let snapshotKey;
+        let currentValue;
+        if (category === 'uat_gaps') {
+            // WARNING 2 (#3458 follow-up review): status alone can't see MORE
+            // pending scenarios added under the same status — snapshot the
+            // composite `deriveUatGapSnapshotValue` instead (see its doc comment).
+            snapshotKey = 'gap_snapshot';
+            currentValue = deriveUatGapSnapshotValue((fm.status || 'unknown').toLowerCase(), content);
+        }
+        else if (category === 'verification_gaps') {
+            snapshotKey = 'status';
+            currentValue = (fm.status || 'unknown').toLowerCase();
+        }
+        else {
+            // context_questions — WARNING 2: snapshot a content digest of the
+            // question set, not just its count (see `deriveOpenQuestionsDigest`'s
+            // doc comment).
+            snapshotKey = 'questions_digest';
+            currentValue = deriveOpenQuestionsDigest(deriveOpenQuestions(content, fm));
+        }
+        fm.audit_acknowledged = { ...markerBase, [snapshotKey]: currentValue };
+        const newContent = spliceFrontmatter(content, fm);
+        (0, shell_command_projection_cjs_2.platformWriteSync)(safeFilePath, newContent);
+        output({ acknowledged: true, category, phase, file, [snapshotKey]: currentValue }, raw, 'true');
+        return;
+    }
+    // ── The five flat categories: category-specific identifier flag ──
+    // `status` for all five per the architecture's per-category table (`todos`
+    // is presence-only and never reads `snapshotKey`, so it stays a constant).
+    const snapshotKey = 'status';
+    let safeFilePath;
+    let currentValue;
+    let createIfMissing = false;
+    // Same value shape `Frontmatter`/`extractFrontmatter` use (frontmatter.cts
+    // does not export the `Frontmatter` type name itself, so it is spelled out
+    // structurally here) — keeps this and `extractFrontmatter`'s return type
+    // unifying to the SAME type below instead of a lossy `Record<string,
+    // unknown>` that `spliceFrontmatter`'s `Frontmatter` parameter would reject.
+    let fmForCreate = {};
+    if (category === 'debug_sessions') {
+        if (!slug)
+            ioError('--slug is required for --category debug_sessions');
+        safeFilePath = (0, security_cjs_1.requireSafePath)(node_path_1.default.join(planDir, 'debug', `${slug}.md`), planDir, 'audit acknowledge target', { allowAbsolute: true });
+        if (!node_fs_1.default.existsSync(safeFilePath))
+            ioError(`file not found: debug/${slug}.md`);
+        const content = node_fs_1.default.readFileSync(safeFilePath, 'utf-8');
+        currentValue = (extractFrontmatter(content, safeFilePath).status || 'unknown').toLowerCase();
+    }
+    else if (category === 'threads') {
+        if (!slug)
+            ioError('--slug is required for --category threads');
+        safeFilePath = (0, security_cjs_1.requireSafePath)(node_path_1.default.join(planDir, 'threads', `${slug}.md`), planDir, 'audit acknowledge target', { allowAbsolute: true });
+        if (!node_fs_1.default.existsSync(safeFilePath))
+            ioError(`file not found: threads/${slug}.md`);
+        const content = node_fs_1.default.readFileSync(safeFilePath, 'utf-8');
+        currentValue = deriveThreadStatus(extractFrontmatter(content, safeFilePath), content);
+    }
+    else if (category === 'seeds') {
+        if (!seedId)
+            ioError('--seed-id is required for --category seeds');
+        safeFilePath = (0, security_cjs_1.requireSafePath)(node_path_1.default.join(planDir, 'seeds', `${seedId}.md`), planDir, 'audit acknowledge target', { allowAbsolute: true });
+        if (!node_fs_1.default.existsSync(safeFilePath))
+            ioError(`file not found: seeds/${seedId}.md`);
+        const content = node_fs_1.default.readFileSync(safeFilePath, 'utf-8');
+        currentValue = (extractFrontmatter(content, safeFilePath).status || 'dormant').toLowerCase();
+    }
+    else if (category === 'todos') {
+        if (!filename)
+            ioError('--filename is required for --category todos');
+        safeFilePath = (0, security_cjs_1.requireSafePath)(node_path_1.default.join(planDir, 'todos', 'pending', filename), planDir, 'audit acknowledge target', { allowAbsolute: true });
+        if (!node_fs_1.default.existsSync(safeFilePath))
+            ioError(`file not found: todos/pending/${filename}`);
+        currentValue = ''; // presence-only — see scanTodos
+    }
+    else if (category === 'quick_tasks') {
+        if (!quickDir)
+            ioError('--dir is required for --category quick_tasks');
+        const taskDir = (0, security_cjs_1.requireSafePath)(node_path_1.default.join(planDir, 'quick', quickDir), planDir, 'audit acknowledge target dir', { allowAbsolute: true });
+        if (!node_fs_1.default.existsSync(taskDir))
+            ioError(`directory not found: quick/${quickDir}`);
+        // Shared with scanQuickTasks (#3458 follow-up) so the reader and this
+        // writer can never disagree about which file is the task's record.
+        const resolvedSummaryPath = resolveQuickTaskSummaryFile(taskDir, quickDir);
+        if (resolvedSummaryPath) {
+            safeFilePath = (0, security_cjs_1.requireSafePath)(resolvedSummaryPath, planDir, 'audit acknowledge target', { allowAbsolute: true });
+            const content = node_fs_1.default.readFileSync(safeFilePath, 'utf-8');
+            currentValue = (extractFrontmatter(content, safeFilePath).status || 'unknown').toLowerCase();
+        }
+        else {
+            // No SUMMARY.md at all — the audit's own observed status is 'missing'.
+            // There is nowhere to carry the marker, so create the canonical
+            // `${dir}-SUMMARY.md` with ONLY `status: missing` + the marker — the
+            // acknowledgment's own snapshot of "no summary exists yet", which
+            // self-invalidates the moment a real SUMMARY.md is written (the
+            // scanner then reads THAT file's own status instead).
+            safeFilePath = (0, security_cjs_1.requireSafePath)(node_path_1.default.join(taskDir, `${quickDir}-SUMMARY.md`), planDir, 'audit acknowledge target', { allowAbsolute: true });
+            currentValue = 'missing';
+            createIfMissing = true;
+            fmForCreate = { status: 'missing' };
+        }
+    }
+    else {
+        ioError(`unknown --category "${category}". Available: debug_sessions, quick_tasks, threads, todos, seeds, uat_gaps, verification_gaps, context_questions, deferred_items`);
+        return; // unreachable — ioError throws — satisfies TS control-flow analysis
+    }
+    const presenceOnly = category === 'todos';
+    const fm = createIfMissing ? fmForCreate : extractFrontmatter(node_fs_1.default.readFileSync(safeFilePath, 'utf-8'), safeFilePath);
+    fm.audit_acknowledged = presenceOnly ? { ...markerBase } : { ...markerBase, [snapshotKey]: currentValue };
+    const newContent = createIfMissing
+        ? spliceFrontmatter('', fm)
+        : spliceFrontmatter(node_fs_1.default.readFileSync(safeFilePath, 'utf-8'), fm);
+    (0, shell_command_projection_cjs_2.platformWriteSync)(safeFilePath, newContent);
+    output({ acknowledged: true, category, ...(presenceOnly ? {} : { [snapshotKey]: currentValue }) }, raw, 'true');
+}
+module.exports = {
+    auditOpenArtifacts,
+    formatAuditReport,
+    listAuditPhaseTargets,
+    cmdAuditAcknowledge,
+    // #2142: exported so src/milestone.cts's archiveQuickTaskDirectories README
+    // index generator shares this ONE discovery rule rather than re-deriving it.
+    resolveQuickTaskSummaryFile,
+};