docs(roadmap): consolidate items #407-#420 from 12 conflicting PRs

Batch-appended ROADMAP entries from PRs #2950, #2951, #2953, #2954, #2955, #2956, #2957, #2959, #2960, #2962, #2963, #2964. All PRs were CI-green but conflicting on ROADMAP.md due to serial appends to the same file.
2026-05-09 14:31:16 +08:00 · 2026-05-06 15:00:34 +09:00 · 2026-05-06 15:00:34 +09:00 · 553d25ee50
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@ -6302,3 +6302,39 @@ Original filing (2026-04-18): the session emitted `SessionStart hook (completed)
 381. **Top-level `cache --help --output-format json` hangs with zero stdout/stderr instead of returning bounded command help JSON** — dogfooded 2026-04-30 for the 03:00 nudge on current `origin/main` / rebuilt `./rust/target/debug/claw` with embedded `git_sha` `d95b230c`. After #358 and #380 landed for the cost/tokens preflight help hangs, a fresh adjacent probe on the cache-control surface showed the same silent failure class: repeated bounded runs of `timeout --kill-after=1s 8s ./rust/target/debug/claw cache --help --output-format json` exited `124` with `stdout=0` and `stderr=0`. In the same rebuilt binary, `version --output-format json` returned promptly with version/build metadata, proving the binary itself and JSON output path are reachable. This is distinct from the separate `/cache` slash-command envelope mismatch class: the affected surface here is top-level `cache` command help, where agents need bounded local discovery before deciding whether to inspect, clear, or summarize cache state. **Required fix shape:** (a) make `cache --help --output-format json` return static/bounded stdout JSON with `kind:"help"` or `kind:"cache"`, `action:"help"`, usage, options, examples, supported output formats, and related slash/direct commands; (b) ensure help rendering does not initialize slow cache/session/provider state; (c) if any dynamic provider is consulted, return a typed JSON timeout/unavailable error instead of hanging; (d) add regression coverage proving cache help in JSON mode returns within a deterministic budget. **Why this matters:** cache inspection and cleanup are recovery/control-plane operations. If cache help hangs silently, claws cannot safely discover cache semantics before attempting cleanup, and automation stalls before it can choose a non-destructive cache action. Source: gaebal-gajae dogfood follow-up for the 03:00 nudge on rebuilt `./rust/target/debug/claw` `d95b230c`.
 422. **`export --output-format json` and `--resume latest` report the same "no managed sessions" scenario using two different `kind` codes — `no_managed_sessions` vs `session_load_failed` — making "no session found" undetectable by a single kind-code check** — dogfooded 2026-04-30 KST (UTC+9) by Jobdori on `e939777f`. Running `claw export --output-format json` with no session present returns (on stderr, exit 1): `{"error":"no managed sessions found in .claw/sessions/<fingerprint>/","hint":"Start \`claw\` to create a session, then rerun with \`--resume latest\`.\nNote: claw partitions sessions per workspace fingerprint; sessions from other CWDs are invisible.","kind":"no_managed_sessions","type":"error"}`. Running `claw --resume latest /status --output-format json` with no session present returns (on stderr, exit 1): `{"error":"failed to restore session: no managed sessions found in .claw/sessions/<fingerprint>/","hint":"Start \`claw\` to create a session, then rerun with \`--resume latest\`.\nNote: claw partitions sessions per workspace fingerprint; sessions from other CWDs are invisible.","kind":"session_load_failed","type":"error"}`. Both describe the same root condition — there are no sessions to operate on — but they expose it via different `kind` discriminants. Automation that checks `kind == "no_managed_sessions"` to detect a cold workspace will miss the `--resume` path's `session_load_failed`, and vice versa. A wrapper that guards "run with --resume only if a session exists" must special-case both codes. The hint text is identical between them, suggesting the messages are logically equivalent. Additionally neither code matches the proposed canonical names `session_not_found` / `session_load_failed` as stable `ErrorKind` discriminants described in ROADMAP #77's fix shape, which explicitly proposes typed error-kind codes for session lifecycle failures. **Required fix shape:** (a) unify "no sessions found for this workspace fingerprint" under a single canonical `kind` code — either `no_managed_sessions` or `session_not_found` — used consistently by every command path that encounters an empty session registry; (b) if `session_load_failed` is a more general category (covering e.g. corrupt session files, IO errors, schema version mismatches), it should nest a concrete `reason:"no_managed_sessions"` or `reason:"session_not_found"` sub-field so callers can distinguish "empty registry" from "found but unreadable"; (c) align with the canonical error-kind contract proposed in #77; (d) add regression coverage proving `export` and `--resume latest` in an empty workspace both return an error with the same top-level `kind` code. **Why this matters:** session guard-rails in orchestration need a single stable `kind` to detect cold workspaces without enumerating all possible no-session synonyms. Two divergent codes for the same condition make defensive automation brittle and contradict the promise of machine-readable error envelopes. Source: Jobdori live dogfood, `e939777f`, 2026-04-30 KST (UTC+9).
 407. **`config --output-format json` returns `files[].loaded:false` with no `load_error`, `not_found`, or `skip_reason` field — automation cannot distinguish "file does not exist", "file exists but parse failed", and "file exists but was skipped by policy" from the same `loaded:false` value; also `loaded_files` and `merged_keys` are bare integers with no per-file attribution** — dogfooded 2026-04-30 by Jobdori on `e939777f`. Running `./claw --output-format json config` on a workspace with 5 discovered config files returns `{"kind":"config","cwd":"...","files":[{"loaded":false,"path":"/Users/yeongyu/.claw.json","source":"user"},{"loaded":true,"path":"/Users/yeongyu/.claw/settings.json","source":"user"},{"loaded":true,"path":"/Users/yeongyu/clawd/claw-code/.claw.json","source":"project"},{"loaded":false,"path":"/Users/yeongyu/clawd/claw-code/.claw/settings.json","source":"project"},{"loaded":false,"path":"/Users/yeongyu/clawd/claw-code/.claw/settings.local.json","source":"local"}],"loaded_files":2,"merged_keys":2}`. Three of five files have `loaded:false` with no accompanying `not_found:true`, `parse_error`, `io_error`, or `skip_reason`; automation must stat each path separately to guess why. Also `loaded_files:2` and `merged_keys:2` are bare counts — ambiguous whether `merged_keys:2` means 2 total top-level JSON keys across all files or 2 unique merged settings. **Required fix shape:** (a) add `not_found: bool` and optional `load_error: string` to each `files[]` entry so callers can distinguish missing, parse-broken, and policy-skipped files without filesystem probing; (b) document or rename `merged_keys` as `merged_setting_count` or `total_merged_keys` to remove the int-semantics ambiguity; (c) optionally add `merged_keys_by_file: [{path, keys}]` for attribution; (d) add regression coverage proving `files[]` entries with `loaded:false` carry at minimum `not_found` distinguishing non-existent paths from load failures. Source: Jobdori live dogfood, `e939777f`, 2026-04-30.
 408. **`status --output-format json` `workspace.changed_files` is ambiguous — on a workspace with 5 untracked files, `changed_files:5`, `staged_files:0`, `unstaged_files:0`, `untracked_files:5`; it is unclear whether `changed_files` is the sum of all four git-status categories or only a subset; automation cannot tell if `changed_files:5` means "5 tracked modified" or "5 total non-clean files including untracked"** — dogfooded 2026-04-30 by Jobdori on `e939777f`. Running `./claw --output-format json status` returns `{"workspace":{"changed_files":5,"staged_files":0,"unstaged_files":0,"untracked_files":5,...}}` — `changed_files==untracked_files==5` with staged and unstaged both zero. The field name `changed_files` implies "modified tracked files" but the value equals the untracked count, not `staged+unstaged`. Without a comment or documented definition, automation must probe whether `changed_files = staged + unstaged` (excludes untracked) or `changed_files = staged + unstaged + untracked + conflicted` (total dirty). Also `git_state:"dirty · 5 files · 5 untracked"` repeats the same data as a prose string alongside the structured integer fields — redundant human-readable string alongside machine-readable integers. **Required fix shape:** (a) document and stabilize `changed_files` as either `tracked_dirty_count` (staged+unstaged only) or `total_non-clean_count` (staged+unstaged+untracked+conflicted) and rename to remove the ambiguity; (b) ensure a machine consumer can compute `is_clean` as a single boolean field without interpreting `git_state` prose; (c) deprecate or remove `git_state` prose string now that all its constituent counts are available as integers; (d) add regression coverage proving `changed_files` semantics against a workspace with staged, unstaged, untracked, and conflicted files. Source: Jobdori live dogfood, `e939777f`, 2026-04-30.
 409. **`init --output-format json` emits redundant parallel artifact schemas — `artifacts[].status` and flat `created[]`/`skipped[]`/`updated[]` arrays carry identical state, and `artifacts[].status:"skipped"` omits `skip_reason`** — dogfooded 2026-04-30 by Jobdori on `e939777f`. Running `claw init --output-format json` on a fresh directory returns a JSON object with two parallel representations of the same artifact set: (1) `artifacts: [{name, status}]` — a structured per-artifact array; and (2) `created: [...]`, `skipped: [...]`, `updated: [...]` — flat string arrays partitioned by status. Both encode the same four artifact names and their outcomes with no additional information between them. On a subsequent run in an already-initialized directory, every artifact has `status:"skipped"`, but no `reason` field is present on any artifact entry — automation cannot distinguish `"already_exists"` (safe to ignore) from `"permission_denied"`, `"dry_run"`, or `"conflicting_contents"` (each requiring a different response). The `message` field also embeds `"skipped (already exists)"` prose that is absent from the structured payload. **Required fix shape:** (a) pick one canonical artifact representation — either `artifacts[{name, status, reason?, path?}]` or the flat status arrays — and deprecate the other; (b) add a `skip_reason` or `reason` field to `artifacts[]` entries with `status:"skipped"` and `status:"error"`, using an enum such as `already_exists`, `permission_denied`, `dry_run`, `conflict`, `unknown`; (c) add optional `path` (absolute) to each artifact entry so automation can act on the real on-disk location without re-joining with `project_path`; (d) add regression coverage proving `init --output-format json` on an existing directory includes machine-classifiable skip reasons for every skipped artifact and does not rely on the prose `message` field for structured state. **Why this matters:** init is the bootstrapping surface automation uses to ensure a project is claw-ready. If skip classification requires parsing human prose and the structured payload has two redundant formats, claws either over-provision re-inits or cannot distinguish safe skips from blocked writes without brittle message scraping. Source: Jobdori live dogfood, `e939777f`, 2026-04-30.
 410. **`agents list`, `skills list`, and `mcp list` use three different count-field names and divergent envelope schemas despite being sibling list commands** — dogfooded 2026-04-30 by Jobdori on `e939777f`. Running all three list commands with `--output-format json` reveals incompatible envelope shapes: `agents list` emits `count:int` at the top level plus `summary:{active,shadowed,total}` and `working_directory`; `skills list` emits no top-level `count`, only `summary:{active,shadowed,total}`, and omits `working_directory`; `mcp list` uses a different count-field name `configured_servers:int`, has no `count`, no `summary`, and instead adds `status:"ok"` and `config_load_error:null` fields absent from the other two. The three sibling commands cannot be polymorphically consumed with the same count-extraction logic, requiring per-command special-casing at the cardinality check level. **Required fix shape:** (a) define one canonical top-level count field name (`count`, `total`, or `item_count`) and use it across `agents`, `skills`, and `mcp` list envelopes; (b) define one canonical `summary` object shape with at minimum `active`, `total`, and optionally `shadowed` and include it on all three; (c) expose `working_directory` consistently on all list commands or omit it from all; (d) add regression coverage proving the three list envelopes share the same count-field name and summary shape before each release. **Why this matters:** orchestration lanes that inventory agents, skills, and servers before delegation need one count-extraction pattern. Three different field names force per-command special-casing of the most basic cardinality check. Source: Jobdori live dogfood, `e939777f`, 2026-04-30.
 411. **`plugins enable/disable --output-format json` always emits `reload_runtime:true` regardless of whether state actually changed, and omits `previous_status`, `changed`, `version`, and `source` fields — automation cannot tell if a reload is necessary or if the mutation was a no-op** — dogfooded 2026-04-30 by Jobdori on `e939777f`. Running `claw plugins enable example-bundled --output-format json` on an already-enabled plugin returns `{"action":"enable","kind":"plugin","message":"…","reload_runtime":true,"target":"example-bundled"}` — `reload_runtime:true` every time, even on a no-op re-enable. The same applies to idempotent `disable`. Structured fields present: `action`, `kind`, `message`, `reload_runtime`, `target`. Structured fields absent: `previous_status`, `status`, `changed`, `version`, `source`. The actual plugin name, version, and new status are embedded only in the prose `message` field (`"Result  enabled example-bundled@bundled\n  Name  example-bundled\n  Version  0.1.0\n  Status  enabled"`), requiring callers to scrape column-aligned text to extract the post-mutation state. A no-op mutation emitting `reload_runtime:true` forces orchestration to trigger an expensive runtime reload even when no config change occurred. **Required fix shape:** (a) add `changed:bool` so callers can skip runtime reload when `changed:false`; (b) add `previous_status` and `status` fields (enums: `enabled`/`disabled`) so pre/post state is machine-readable without parsing `message`; (c) add `version` and `source` fields at the mutation response level, consistent with `plugins list` entry shape; (d) emit `reload_runtime:false` when `changed:false`; (e) add regression coverage proving idempotent enable/disable sets `changed:false` and `reload_runtime:false`. **Why this matters:** plugin lifecycle is a hot path for automation that conditionally enables plugins before running sessions. If every enable emits `reload_runtime:true` and no `changed` field exists, orchestration must reload unconditionally or maintain external state — both brittle patterns. Source: Jobdori live dogfood, `e939777f`, 2026-04-30.
 412. **`bootstrap-plan --output-format json` returns `phases: string[]` of raw Rust enum variant names with no description, steps, duration, or dependency metadata — unusable by automation** — dogfooded 2026-04-30 by Jobdori on `e939777f`. Running `claw bootstrap-plan --output-format json` returns `{"kind":"bootstrap-plan","phases":["CliEntry","FastPathVersion","StartupProfiler","SystemPromptFastPath","ChromeMcpFastPath","DaemonWorkerFastPath","BridgeFastPath","DaemonFastPath","BackgroundSessionFastPath","TemplateFastPath","EnvironmentRunnerFastPath","MainRuntime"]}`. The envelope has only two keys: `kind` and `phases`. The `phases` array contains 12 raw Rust enum variant name strings — opaque identifiers with no `description`, no `label`, no `steps[]`, no `estimated_ms`, no `dependencies[]`, no `optional:bool`, and no `status` (enabled/disabled/skipped). Automation that calls `bootstrap-plan` to understand startup costs or profile initialization paths receives 12 name strings that reveal nothing about what each phase does, how long it takes, whether it depends on credentials/network/MCP, or which ones can be skipped. **Required fix shape:** (a) replace `phases: string[]` with `phases: [{id, label, description, optional, estimated_ms?, dependencies?, status?}]`; (b) add a top-level `total_phases` count; (c) mark network/credential-dependent phases with a `requires_auth:bool` or `deps:["network","credentials","mcp"]` field so automation can plan for unavailability; (d) add regression coverage proving each phase entry has at least `id`, `label`, and `description` fields and that the count matches the phases array length. **Why this matters:** bootstrap-plan is the startup-cost introspection surface. If its JSON output is 12 opaque variant name strings, automation cannot profile startup, identify slow phases, skip optional phases, or present meaningful startup diagnostics — the entire command serves only as a list of internal identifiers. Source: Jobdori live dogfood, `e939777f`, 2026-04-30.
 413. **`acp --output-format json` leaks internal ROADMAP tracking numbers and implementation notes as top-level JSON fields — `discoverability_tracking:"ROADMAP #64a"` and `tracking:"ROADMAP #76"` are internal backlog references that should not appear in the public machine-readable contract** — dogfooded 2026-04-30 by Jobdori on `e939777f`. Running `claw acp --output-format json` returns a ten-key envelope: `aliases`, `discoverability_tracking`, `kind`, `launch_command`, `message`, `recommended_workflows`, `serve_alias_only`, `status`, `supported`, `tracking`. Two fields are verbatim internal backlog cross-references: `"discoverability_tracking":"ROADMAP #64a"` and `"tracking":"ROADMAP #76"`. These were presumably used during initial scaffolding to track which backlog items the stub relates to, but they are now part of the public JSON contract that automation consumes. The `message` field also contains implementation-note prose (`"ACP/Zed editor integration is not implemented in claw-code yet. \`claw acp serve\`..."`) that describes the build state rather than the command's machine-readable status. **Required fix shape:** (a) remove `discoverability_tracking` and `tracking` from the public JSON envelope or move them to an optional `_debug` or `_meta` sub-object gated on a debug flag; (b) replace `message` prose with a structured `reason` enum (`"not_implemented"`, `"discoverability_only"`, `"serve_only"`) plus optional `detail` string; (c) rename `supported:false` + `status:"discoverability_only"` to a single typed `availability` object with `status`, `reason`, and `target_command` fields; (d) add regression coverage proving the public `acp --output-format json` envelope contains no internal tracking/backlog fields and that `message` is not the sole machine-classifiable signal. **Why this matters:** public JSON APIs should not leak internal ticket references. Automation that snapshots or validates the ACP JSON schema will embed these internal identifiers into external contracts and need to change every time backlog numbering shifts. Source: Jobdori live dogfood, `e939777f`, 2026-04-30.
 415. **`config <section> --output-format json` returns `merged_keys:int` (a count) with no actual merged key-value pairs — automation cannot read the resolved configuration values from JSON** — dogfooded 2026-04-30 by Jobdori on `e939777f`. Running `claw config env --output-format json`, `claw config model --output-format json`, or `claw config hooks --output-format json` all return an identical five-key envelope: `{"cwd":"...","files":[...],"kind":"config","loaded_files":2,"merged_keys":1}`. The `merged_keys` field is an integer count of how many keys were merged across the loaded files, not an object or array of the actual key names and resolved values. The `files` array shows which config files were loaded/missing but contains no per-file key-value content. The merged section content — the actual resolved `env`, `model`, or `hooks` configuration — is entirely absent from the JSON output. It only appears in the prose output as a "Merged section: env / <value>" block. **Required fix shape:** (a) add a `merged` or `resolved` object/array field to the JSON envelope containing the actual key-value pairs that resulted from merging the loaded config files for the requested section; (b) rename `merged_keys` from an integer count to either remove it (derivable from `len(merged)`) or keep it as a companion count field; (c) for each entry in `merged`, include `key`, `value`, and optionally `source_file` so automation can attribute which file contributed the value; (d) add regression coverage proving `config env --output-format json` with a non-empty env section populates `merged` (or equivalent) with the actual resolved key-value pairs. **Why this matters:** the entire purpose of `config env/model/hooks --output-format json` is to allow automation to read the resolved runtime configuration without screen-scraping prose. Returning only a count defeats the purpose and forces callers to either re-parse the prose output or re-read and merge the source config files themselves. Source: Jobdori live dogfood, `e939777f`, 2026-04-30.
 416. **`plugins list --output-format json` returns the mutation response shape with a prose `message` table instead of a structured `plugins:[]` array — `name`, `version`, `status`, `source` are embedded in `message` prose only** — dogfooded 2026-04-30 by Jobdori on `e939777f`. Running `claw plugins list --output-format json` returns `{"action":"list","kind":"plugin","message":"Plugins\n  example-bundled      v0.1.0      disabled\n  sample-hooks         v0.1.0      disabled","reload_runtime":false,"target":null}`. This is the same four-key response envelope used by `plugins enable` and `plugins disable` mutation commands, not a list envelope. The `message` field contains the full rendered prose table (plugin name, version, and status as whitespace-aligned columns), but no `plugins` array with structured per-entry objects. `target` is `null` because no specific plugin was targeted. The `reload_runtime:false` field is meaningless for a read-only list operation. **This is distinct from ROADMAP #411** which covers the mutation commands' own missing `changed`/`previous_status`/`version`/`source` fields — #416 targets the list command's structural mismatch: it uses the mutation envelope entirely instead of emitting a dedicated list schema. **Required fix shape:** (a) emit a distinct `{kind:"plugin_list", plugins:[{name, version, status, source, path?, description?}], count}` envelope for the `list` action; (b) omit `action`, `reload_runtime`, and `target` from list responses (mutation-only fields); (c) the `message` field should be absent or optional and must not be the sole machine-readable inventory surface; (d) add regression coverage proving `plugins list --output-format json` populates a `plugins` array with at least `name`, `version`, and `status` fields for each installed plugin. **Why this matters:** automation that calls `plugins list --output-format json` to discover installed plugin inventory receives only a whitespace-aligned prose table in a string field, with `reload_runtime:false` and `target:null` as the only other machine-readable signals — identical noise to what a failed enable command returns. Source: Jobdori live dogfood, `e939777f`, 2026-04-30.
 418. **`system-prompt --output-format json` exposes `"__SYSTEM_PROMPT_DYNAMIC_BOUNDARY__"` as a literal element in the `sections` array — an internal split delimiter leaked into the public structured output** — dogfooded 2026-04-30 by Jobdori on `e939777f`. Running `claw system-prompt --output-format json` returns `{"kind":"system-prompt","message":"<full prose>","sections":["You are an interactive agent...", "# System\n...", "# Doing tasks\n...", "# Executing actions with care\n...", "__SYSTEM_PROMPT_DYNAMIC_BOUNDARY__", "# Environment context\n...", "# Project context\n...", "# Claude instructions\n...", "# Runtime config\n..."]}`. The `sections` array has 9 elements; element index 4 is the raw string `"__SYSTEM_PROMPT_DYNAMIC_BOUNDARY__"`. This internal sentinel marks the boundary between the static and dynamic sections of the compiled system prompt, used during assembly to split the prompt at injection time. It appears in the public JSON output verbatim as a first-class section, indistinguishable from real sections by type alone. Automation that iterates `sections[]` must special-case this sentinel or it will process an internal implementation string as if it were a real system prompt section. **Required fix shape:** (a) strip `"__SYSTEM_PROMPT_DYNAMIC_BOUNDARY__"` and any similar internal delimiters from the `sections` array before serializing to JSON; (b) if the static/dynamic boundary is semantically meaningful for callers, expose it as a structured metadata field such as `boundary_index:4` or as a `section_type:"static"|"dynamic"` field on each section entry, not as a raw sentinel string in the array; (c) rename the `sections` type from `string[]` to `[{id, type, content}]` to enable this without breaking the boundary signal; (d) add regression coverage proving the `system-prompt --output-format json` output's `sections` array contains no elements whose value equals `"__SYSTEM_PROMPT_DYNAMIC_BOUNDARY__"` or matches `/__[A-Z_]+__/`. **Why this matters:** internal sentinel strings in public JSON are a contract liability — they couple the wire format to internal implementation details. Any refactor that renames or removes the sentinel breaks callers that don't special-case it, and automation that doesn't know to filter it will miscount, misparse, or misrender the system prompt. Source: Jobdori live dogfood, `e939777f`, 2026-04-30.
 419. **`mcp <unknown-subcommand> --output-format json` returns `action:"help"` + `unexpected:<arg>` with exit 0 instead of an error envelope — unrecognized MCP subcommands silently succeed** — dogfooded 2026-05-01 by Jobdori on `e939777f`. Running `claw mcp add --output-format json` or `claw mcp remove --output-format json` (subcommands that do not exist) returns exit 0 with stdout JSON `{"action":"help","kind":"mcp","unexpected":"add","usage":{"direct_cli":"claw mcp [list|show <server>|help]","slash_command":"/mcp [list|show <server>|help]","sources":[...]}}`. Exit code is 0. The `action` field is `"help"` — not `"error"` — even though the caller issued a recognized token (`add`/`remove`) that maps to a real but unimplemented feature. The `unexpected` field correctly identifies the unrecognized arg, but automation that checks `exit == 0` or `action != "error"` will treat this as a successful invocation. This is distinct from ROADMAP #108 which covers *unrecognized CLI subcommands* falling through to the LLM prompt path — #419 targets MCP-specific *known-but-unimplemented* subcommands that return `action:"help"` with exit 0 instead of an explicit `action:"error"` envelope. **Required fix shape:** (a) return a non-zero exit code (exit 1 or exit 2) when an unrecognized or unimplemented MCP subcommand is provided; (b) emit `action:"error"` (or `kind:"error"`) with a `code:"unknown_subcommand"` and `unknown:"add"` field instead of `action:"help"`; (c) optionally include the help/usage payload as a sibling field `suggestion:{usage:{...}}` for context; (d) add regression coverage proving `mcp <unknown> --output-format json` returns a non-zero exit code and a non-help action token. **Why this matters:** `add` and `remove` are common MCP lifecycle operations that users will attempt; returning `action:"help"` with exit 0 makes these look like successful no-ops to any automation that doesn't deep-inspect the `unexpected` field. A pipeline that runs `claw mcp add my-server ... && claw mcp show my-server` will silently proceed to the show step even though add silently no-oped. Source: Jobdori live dogfood, `e939777f`, 2026-05-01.
 420. **`plugins help --output-format json` returns the mutation response shape (`message`, `reload_runtime`, `target`) instead of the help envelope (`action:"help"`, `kind`, `unexpected`, `usage`) that `mcp help`, `agents help`, and `skills help` all use — schema drift within the same command family** — dogfooded 2026-05-01 by Jobdori on `e939777f`. Running `claw plugins help --output-format json` returns `{"action":"help","kind":"plugin","message":"Unknown /plugins action 'help'. Use list, install, enable, disable, uninstall, or update.","reload_runtime":false,"target":null}`. By contrast, `claw mcp help --output-format json`, `claw agents help --output-format json`, and `claw skills help --output-format json` all return a help envelope: `{"action":"help","kind":"<surface>","unexpected":null,"usage":{"direct_cli":"...","slash_command":"...","sources":[...]}}`. The `plugins` subgroup has not adopted the help envelope schema used by all sibling subgroups. Instead it uses the mutation response shape (`message`, `reload_runtime`, `target`) with an error string in `message` that calls `help` an "unknown action." Automation that checks `usage.direct_cli` to discover plugin commands gets a `TypeError` (key not found) on the plugins help path while succeeding on all sibling subgroups. **Required fix shape:** (a) make `plugins help` return the same help envelope as `mcp help`/`agents help`/`skills help`: `{action:"help", kind:"plugin", unexpected:null, usage:{direct_cli:"claw plugins [list|enable|disable|install|uninstall|update|help]", slash_command:"/plugins [...]", sources:[...]}`; (b) drop `reload_runtime` and `target` from help responses for all plugin subcommands; (c) add regression coverage proving `plugins help --output-format json` contains a `usage.direct_cli` field matching the same envelope shape as `mcp help`/`agents help`/`skills help`; (d) audit all subgroup `help` handlers for the same mutation-envelope contamination. **Why this matters:** help discovery is the bootstrap surface for automation. If `plugins help --output-format json` returns a mutation envelope with an error message instead of a usage envelope, automated schema discovery fails silently for the entire plugins subgroup while working for every other subgroup. Source: Jobdori live dogfood, `e939777f`, 2026-05-01.