compound-agent 2.7.2 → 2.8.0

package/CHANGELOG.md

@@ -9,6 +9,32 @@ and this project adheres to [Semantic Versioning](https://semver.org/spec/v2.0.0
 
 ## [Unreleased]
 
+## [2.8.0] - 2026-05-17
+
+### Upgrading (action required for the default path)
+
+- `ca loop` / `ca polish` now default to the `claude --bg` backend. The bg
+  backend **fails loud (exit 1) at startup** unless **both** operator
+  prerequisites are met: (1) the `--dangerously-skip-permissions` bypass
+  disclaimer is accepted on the machine, and (2) Claude's
+  `worktree.bgIsolation` setting is `none`. If you cannot set these, pin the
+  legacy behavior with `--backend p` (or `CA_BACKEND=p`) — that path is
+  byte-for-byte unchanged.
+
+### Changed
+
+- **Default loop/polish/review backend is now `claude --bg` (subscription-billed)**: `ca loop` and `ca polish` default to the bg backend (`claude --bg`). The legacy `claude -p` path remains fully supported via `--backend p` or `CA_BACKEND=p`. Precedence: explicit `--backend` flag > `CA_BACKEND` env > default (bg). The bg backend runs sessions as background jobs polled via `state.json`, auto-isolates each session into a git worktree (harvested before cleanup), and uses the existing `EPIC_COMPLETE`/`HUMAN_REQUIRED:`/`EPIC_FAILED` protocol unchanged.
+- **`--backend bg|p` flag added to `ca loop` and `ca polish`**: Explicit backend selection. Default is `bg`. `--backend p` restores the legacy `claude -p` streaming pipeline byte-for-byte.
+- **Bootstrap preflight added to bg-backend scripts**: Generated scripts with `--backend bg` (or default) now run a `bootstrap_preflight` step before the epic loop starts. It enforces two operator prerequisites and fails loud (exit 1, remediation) if either is missing: (1) the `--dangerously-skip-permissions` bypass disclaimer must be accepted on the machine; (2) Claude's `worktree.bgIsolation` setting must be `none` — otherwise `bd` (keyed to the main repo path) is unreachable from the worktree `claude --bg` auto-isolates into, so epics never close and the polish architect's `bd` writes are lost. The `bgIsolation` check tries `claude config get worktree.bgIsolation` first and falls back to the settings-JSON precedence (`.claude/settings.local.json` → project `.claude/settings.json` → `~/.claude/settings.json`); it errs toward failing loud when it cannot confirm `none`. Both checks are skipped entirely for `--backend p`.
+- **Polish architect runs synchronously regardless of backend**: the polish architect (which only runs `bd create --type=epic` / `bd dep add` and makes no code edits) always uses the synchronous `agent_invoke` path even under `CA_BACKEND=bg`, so its `bd` epic writes reach the main-tree Dolt instead of a discarded bg worktree. The reviewer fleet is unaffected and is still bg-dispatched.
+- **Worktree harvest**: with the bg backend, each `claude --bg` session auto-isolates into a git worktree (`worktree-<name>` branch). After terminal state, the loop merges the worktree into the working branch before `claude rm`. `claude rm` runs only when worktree safety is positively verified. On harvest failure (merge conflict, ambiguous worktrees, non-success marker) **or when the pre-dispatch worktree snapshot is missing** (worktree safety unverifiable), the worktree is retained, the epic is marked `HUMAN_REQUIRED`, and `claude rm` is skipped to preserve work — a missing snapshot is treated as unverifiable, never as "safe to remove".
+- **`ca watch` bg data source**: `ca watch` follows the `.latest` symlink updated by the harvest/collect step to a trace file in `.compound-agent/agent_logs/`.
+- **Polish inner-loop backend propagation**: the polish loop now propagates `CA_BACKEND` to the inner infinity loop via `CA_BACKEND="${CA_BACKEND:-bg}" bash "$inner_script"`.
+
+### Removed
+
+- **Improve loop (`ca improve`, `ca loop --improve`, `ca watch --improve`)**: Removed the improve loop command and all associated flags and shell-script plumbing. The feature is superseded; this removal is unrelated to the bg backend migration.
+
 ## [2.7.2] - 2026-04-16
 
 ### Added

package/README.md

@@ -143,53 +143,32 @@ ca loop --reviewers claude-sonnet --review-every 3
 
 `ca loop` generates a bash script that processes your beads epics sequentially, running the full cook-it cycle on each one. No human intervention required between epics.
 
+The default backend is `claude --bg` (subscription-billed; requires accepting the bypass-permissions disclaimer once: `claude --dangerously-skip-permissions`). Use `--backend p` or `CA_BACKEND=p` for the legacy `claude -p` (pay-per-token) path.
+
 ```bash
-# Generate script for all ready epics
+# Generate script for all ready epics (bg backend by default)
 ca loop
 
+# Explicit backend selection
+ca loop --backend bg     # bg (default): subscription-billed
+ca loop --backend p      # p: legacy pay-per-token
+
 # With periodic review every 3 epics
 ca loop --reviewers claude-sonnet --review-every 3
 
 # Target specific epics
 ca loop --epics "beads-abc,beads-def,beads-ghi" --max-retries 2
 
-# Run it
-./.compound-agent/infinity-loop.sh
+# Run it (always use screen for durability)
+screen -dmS compound-loop bash ./.compound-agent/infinity-loop.sh
 ```
 
+**One-time bootstrap (bg backend)**: run `claude --dangerously-skip-permissions` once interactively to accept the bypass-permissions disclaimer. The generated script's bootstrap preflight detects a missing disclaimer and exits with remediation instructions before starting the loop.
+
 The loop respects beads dependency graphs — it only processes epics whose dependencies are complete. If an epic fails after `--max-retries` attempts, it stops and reports before proceeding.
 
 **Current maturity**: the loop works and has been used to ship real projects, including compound-agent itself. Two things still required human involvement: specifications had to be written before the loop started, and a human applied fixes after the first review pass surfaced real problems (missing error handling, a migration gap, insufficient test coverage). Fully unattended long-duration runs across many epics are the current area of hardening.
 
-## The improvement loop
-
-`ca improve` generates a bash script that iterates over `improve/*.md` program files, spawning Claude Code sessions to make focused improvements. Each program file defines what to improve, how to find work, and how to validate changes.
-
-```bash
-# Scaffold an example program file
-ca improve init
-# Creates improve/example.md with a linting template
-
-# Generate the improvement script
-ca improve
-
-# Filter to specific topics
-ca improve --topics lint tests --max-iters 3
-
-# Preview without generating
-ca improve --dry-run
-
-# Run the generated script
-./.compound-agent/improvement-loop.sh
-
-# Preview without executing Claude sessions
-IMPROVE_DRY_RUN=1 ./.compound-agent/improvement-loop.sh
-```
-
-Each iteration makes one focused improvement, commits it, and moves on. If an iteration finds nothing to improve or fails validation, it reverts cleanly and moves to the next topic. The loop tracks consecutive no-improvement results and stops early to avoid diminishing returns.
-
-Monitor progress with `ca watch --improve` to see live trace output from improvement sessions.
-
 ## Automatic hooks
 
 Once installed, seven Claude Code hooks fire without any commands:
@@ -301,7 +280,9 @@ The CLI binary is `ca` (alias: `compound-agent`).
 
 | Command | Description |
 |---------|-------------|
-| `ca loop` | Generate infinity loop script for autonomous epic processing |
+| `ca loop` | Generate infinity loop script (default: `claude --bg`, subscription-billed) |
+| `ca loop --backend bg` | Default bg backend: `claude --bg` (subscription-billed) |
+| `ca loop --backend p` | Legacy p backend: `claude -p` (pay-per-token) |
 | `ca loop --epics "id1,id2,id3"` | Target specific epic IDs (comma-separated) |
 | `ca loop -o <path>` | Custom output path (default: `./.compound-agent/infinity-loop.sh`) |
 | `ca loop --max-retries <n>` | Max retries per epic on failure (default: 1) |
@@ -311,18 +292,12 @@ The CLI binary is `ca` (alias: `compound-agent`).
 | `ca loop --max-review-cycles <n>` | Max review/fix iterations (default: 3) |
 | `ca loop --review-blocking` | Fail loop if review not approved after max cycles |
 | `ca loop --review-model <model>` | Model for implementer fix sessions (default: claude-opus-4-7[1m]) |
-| `ca improve` | Generate improvement loop script from `improve/*.md` programs |
-| `ca improve --topics <names...>` | Run only specific topics |
-| `ca improve --max-iters <n>` | Max iterations per topic (default: 5) |
-| `ca improve --time-budget <seconds>` | Total time budget, 0=unlimited (default: 0) |
-| `ca improve --dry-run` | Validate and print plan without generating |
-| `ca improve --force` | Overwrite existing script |
-| `ca improve init` | Scaffold an example `improve/*.md` program file |
 | `ca watch` | Tail and pretty-print live trace from loop sessions |
 | `ca watch --epic <id>` | Watch a specific epic trace |
-| `ca watch --improve` | Watch improvement loop traces |
 | `ca watch --no-follow` | Print existing trace and exit (no live tail) |
-| `ca polish` | Generate polish loop script for iterative refinement |
+| `ca polish` | Generate polish loop script (default: `claude --bg`, subscription-billed) |
+| `ca polish --backend bg` | Default bg backend: `claude --bg` (subscription-billed) |
+| `ca polish --backend p` | Legacy p backend: `claude -p` (pay-per-token) |
 | `ca polish --spec-file <path>` | Specify the spec file for polish review |
 | `ca polish --reviewers <names>` | Comma-separated reviewer models |
 | `ca polish --cycles <n>` | Number of polish cycles (default: 1) |

package/package.json

@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 {
   "name": "compound-agent",
-  "version": "2.7.2",
+  "version": "2.8.0",
   "type": "module",
   "description": "Learning system for Claude Code — avoids repeating mistakes across sessions",
   "bin": {
@@ -51,12 +51,12 @@
     "knowledge-management"
   ],
   "optionalDependencies": {
-    "@syottos/darwin-arm64": "2.7.2",
-    "@syottos/darwin-x64": "2.7.2",
-    "@syottos/linux-arm64": "2.7.2",
-    "@syottos/linux-x64": "2.7.2",
-    "@syottos/win32-x64": "2.7.2",
-    "@syottos/win32-arm64": "2.7.2"
+    "@syottos/darwin-arm64": "2.8.0",
+    "@syottos/darwin-x64": "2.8.0",
+    "@syottos/linux-arm64": "2.8.0",
+    "@syottos/linux-x64": "2.8.0",
+    "@syottos/win32-x64": "2.8.0",
+    "@syottos/win32-arm64": "2.8.0"
   },
   "author": "Nathan Delacrétaz",
   "license": "MIT",