ward agent: accept both --harness and --agent for the harness pick (retire --driver to deprecated alias)

coilyco-ops commented

2026-07-08 03:40:46 +00:00

Owner

DECIDED (Kai, final): ward agent accepts BOTH --harness and --agent as equal, first-class spellings for the harness pick. --agent is NOT rejected. --driver retires to a deprecated hidden alias for one release cycle.

Correction notice

The first #660 run landed the opposite of this decision - it made --harness canonical and rejected --agent (commit feat(agent): --harness is the canonical harness pick), following this issue's original recommendation before Kai settled it. This body is rewritten to be unambiguous, and the run is re-dispatched to add --agent as an equal accepted spelling.

Do

ward agent accepts all three spellings on every role (engineer, director, advisor, director-consult, and the internal surface): --harness, --agent, and (deprecated, hidden) --driver. All resolve to the same value.
--harness and --agent are both first-class and permanent - neither is preferred over the other in acceptance. Document --harness first in help text only because the concept is already named "the harness" there, but --agent is equally supported and must not be rejected or hidden.
Keep the already-landed pieces: --driver deprecated alias, "explicit spelling wins when set", the invalid-value error naming whichever spelling the caller used, and the broker validator approving every spelling for skew-safety. Extend all of these to also cover --agent.
The --agent / ward agent / roster-noun overlap is accepted - Kai is fine living with it.
Update docs/agent.md, docs/agent-drivers.md, and the warded examples so --agent appears as an accepted spelling, not a rejected one.
Coordinate the eventual --driver retirement with the #539 caller sweep.

Filed from the read-only director surface (she/her).

**DECIDED (Kai, final): `ward agent` accepts BOTH `--harness` and `--agent` as equal, first-class spellings for the harness pick. `--agent` is NOT rejected.** `--driver` retires to a deprecated hidden alias for one release cycle. ## Correction notice The first #660 run landed the **opposite** of this decision - it made `--harness` canonical and **rejected `--agent`** (commit `feat(agent): --harness is the canonical harness pick`), following this issue's original recommendation before Kai settled it. This body is rewritten to be unambiguous, and the run is re-dispatched to add `--agent` as an equal accepted spelling. ## Do * `ward agent` accepts **all three** spellings on every role (engineer, director, advisor, director-consult, and the internal surface): `--harness`, `--agent`, and (deprecated, hidden) `--driver`. All resolve to the same value. * `--harness` and `--agent` are **both first-class and permanent** - neither is preferred over the other in acceptance. Document `--harness` first in help text only because the concept is already named "the harness" there, but `--agent` is equally supported and must not be rejected or hidden. * Keep the already-landed pieces: `--driver` deprecated alias, "explicit spelling wins when set", the invalid-value error naming whichever spelling the caller used, and the broker validator approving every spelling for skew-safety. Extend all of these to also cover `--agent`. * The `--agent` / `ward agent` / roster-noun overlap is **accepted** - Kai is fine living with it. * Update `docs/agent.md`, `docs/agent-drivers.md`, and the `warded` examples so `--agent` appears as an accepted spelling, not a rejected one. * Coordinate the eventual `--driver` retirement with the #539 caller sweep. Filed from the read-only director surface (she/her).

coilyco-ops added the

priority

P1

label

2026-07-08 03:40:46 +00:00

coilyco-ops referenced this issue

2026-07-08 03:40:57 +00:00

[epic] Config-driven ward: one precompiled binary, personal config resolved live from a git ref (supersedes the build-variant matrix) #650

coilyco-ops changed title from ~~ward agent: rename --driver -> --harness (keep --driver as deprecated alias)~~ to ward agent: accept both --harness and --agent for the harness pick (retire --driver to deprecated alias)

2026-07-08 03:45:33 +00:00

coilyco-ops commented

2026-07-08 03:45:33 +00:00

Author

Owner

Decided (Kai): accept both --harness and --agent as equal spellings for the harness pick, not one canonical over the other. --driver retires to a deprecated hidden alias for one cycle.

So ward agent takes any of --harness / --agent / (deprecated) --driver, all resolving to the same value. Document --harness first in the help text since the concept is already named 'the harness' there, but both are first-class and supported permanently. The --agent/ward agent overlap Kai is fine to live with. Filed from the read-only director surface (she/her).

**Decided (Kai):** accept **both** `--harness` and `--agent` as equal spellings for the harness pick, not one canonical over the other. `--driver` retires to a deprecated hidden alias for one cycle. So `ward agent` takes any of `--harness` / `--agent` / (deprecated) `--driver`, all resolving to the same value. Document `--harness` first in the help text since the concept is already named 'the harness' there, but both are first-class and supported permanently. The `--agent`/`ward agent` overlap Kai is fine to live with. Filed from the read-only director surface (she/her).

coilyco-ops added the

autonomy

headless

label

2026-07-08 03:45:52 +00:00

coilyco-ops commented

2026-07-08 03:46:08 +00:00

Author

Owner

🔒 Reserved by ward agent --driver claude — container engineer-claude-ward-660 on host KAI-DESKTOP-TOWER is carrying this issue (reserved 2026-07-08T03:46:01Z). Concurrent ward agent runs are blocked until it finishes or the reservation goes stale (2h0m0s TTL); --force overrides.

Do not comment on or edit this issue to steer the run while it is reserved. The engineer seeded the body once at launch and never re-reads it, so a comment or edit reaches only human readers, never the running engineer. A correction goes to a new issue, dispatched fresh — that is the only channel that reaches a run in flight. Where the forge supports it, ward locks this conversation to make that a road-block rather than a convention (ward#494).

run seed context — what this run is carrying (ward#609)

Resolved: coilyco-flight-deck/ward#660 · branch issue-660 · driver claude · workflow direct-main
Run: engineer-claude-ward-660 · ward v0.439.0 · dispatched 2026-07-08T03:46:01Z
Comment thread: 1 included in the pre-flight read, 0 stripped (ward's own automated comments).
- included: @coilyco-ops (2026-07-08T03:45:33Z)

Issue body as seeded:

Raised by Kai alongside the fleet-config smart-defaults thread (#650 / #659). CLI ergonomics, separable from the config-resolve work.

## The ask

Rename `ward agent`'s `--driver` flag. Kai offered `[ --agent | --harness ]`.

## Recommendation: `--harness`

* `ward agent --help` already says the flag "picks the harness (claude|codex|opencode|goose)" - the concept is **called** the harness in the code and docs, so `--harness` is the exact rename, not a re-coining.
* `--agent` **collides** on two fronts: the fleet.kdl roster noun is `agent <name> { }`, and the command itself is `ward agent`. `ward agent engineer --agent claude` reads as agent-agent and blurs the harness (claude/codex) against the role (engineer/director/advisor) and the roster entry.

## Do

* Add `--harness` as the canonical flag on `ward agent`.
* Keep `--driver` as a **deprecated hidden alias** for one release cycle so infra / ward-kdl callers do not hard-break (coordinate the caller sweep with #539).
* Update `docs/agent.md`, the help text, and the `warded` face examples.

Small and reversible. If Kai prefers `--agent`, or wants both accepted permanently, flip the canonical name - the alias mechanism is the same either way. Filed from the read-only director surface (she/her).

Static container doctrine and seed boilerplate are identical every run and omitted here (they ride ward v0.439.0).

— Claude (she/her), via ward agent

🔒 Reserved by `ward agent --driver claude` — container `engineer-claude-ward-660` on host `KAI-DESKTOP-TOWER` is carrying this issue (reserved 2026-07-08T03:46:01Z). Concurrent `ward agent` runs are blocked until it finishes or the reservation goes stale (2h0m0s TTL); `--force` overrides. **Do not comment on or edit this issue to steer the run while it is reserved.** The engineer seeded the body once at launch and never re-reads it, so a comment or edit reaches only human readers, never the running engineer. A correction goes to a **new issue, dispatched fresh** — that is the only channel that reaches a run in flight. Where the forge supports it, ward locks this conversation to make that a road-block rather than a convention (ward#494). <details><summary>run seed context — what this run is carrying (ward#609)</summary> - **Resolved:** `coilyco-flight-deck/ward#660` · branch `issue-660` · driver `claude` · workflow `direct-main` - **Run:** `engineer-claude-ward-660` · ward `v0.439.0` · dispatched `2026-07-08T03:46:01Z` - **Comment thread:** 1 included in the pre-flight read, 0 stripped (ward's own automated comments). - included: @coilyco-ops (2026-07-08T03:45:33Z) **Issue body as seeded:** ``` Raised by Kai alongside the fleet-config smart-defaults thread (#650 / #659). CLI ergonomics, separable from the config-resolve work. ## The ask Rename `ward agent`'s `--driver` flag. Kai offered `[ --agent | --harness ]`. ## Recommendation: `--harness` * `ward agent --help` already says the flag "picks the harness (claude|codex|opencode|goose)" - the concept is **called** the harness in the code and docs, so `--harness` is the exact rename, not a re-coining. * `--agent` **collides** on two fronts: the fleet.kdl roster noun is `agent <name> { }`, and the command itself is `ward agent`. `ward agent engineer --agent claude` reads as agent-agent and blurs the harness (claude/codex) against the role (engineer/director/advisor) and the roster entry. ## Do * Add `--harness` as the canonical flag on `ward agent`. * Keep `--driver` as a **deprecated hidden alias** for one release cycle so infra / ward-kdl callers do not hard-break (coordinate the caller sweep with #539). * Update `docs/agent.md`, the help text, and the `warded` face examples. Small and reversible. If Kai prefers `--agent`, or wants both accepted permanently, flip the canonical name - the alias mechanism is the same either way. Filed from the read-only director surface (she/her). ``` Static container doctrine and seed boilerplate are identical every run and omitted here (they ride ward v0.439.0). </details>  — Claude (she/her), via `ward agent`

coilyco-ops referenced this issue from a commit

2026-07-08 04:02:05 +00:00

feat(agent): --harness is the canonical harness pick, --driver a deprecated alias

coilyco-ops commented

2026-07-08 04:04:09 +00:00

Author

Owner

⚠️ Reopened: this run's work did not land on `main`

An ephemeral ward container (claude mode) dispatched for this issue finished but its work was not merged to main, so the reaper preserved it on a branch before teardown and reopened the issue (its closes #660 never reached main). Recover from the salvage branch below.

Repo: coilyco-flight-deck/ward
Salvage branch: ward-salvage/ward-9c289e1b
Reason: missing same-repo closing reference
Container uptime at reap: 17m (age of the baked Forgejo PAT snapshot; a long-lived container is likelier to carry a rotated token)

Reap diagnostics

--- reap diagnostics ---
ward version:      v0.439.0
version source:    pinned via WARD_VERSION/--ward-version (v0.439.0)
HEAD:              365468858a2f
origin/main:       8428c38db29f
ancestry:          HEAD is NOT yet on origin/main - residual work remains to land
decision gate:     missing same-repo closing reference
reason:            missing same-repo closing reference
provenance:        present
run-owned landed:  yes
working tree:      1 dirty path(s)
container uptime:  17m (baked Forgejo PAT age proxy)
--- end reap diagnostics ---

Recover

git fetch https://forgejo.coilysiren.me/coilyco-flight-deck/ward.git ward-salvage/ward-9c289e1b
git checkout -b ward-salvage/ward-9c289e1b FETCH_HEAD

Working tree at reap time

?? .ward-run-provenance.json

— Claude (she/her), via ward agent

## ⚠️ Reopened: this run's work did not land on `main` An ephemeral `ward container` (claude mode) dispatched for this issue finished but its work was **not merged to `main`**, so the reaper preserved it on a branch before teardown and reopened the issue (its `closes #660` never reached `main`). Recover from the salvage branch below. - **Repo:** `coilyco-flight-deck/ward` - **Salvage branch:** `ward-salvage/ward-9c289e1b` - **Reason:** missing same-repo closing reference - **Container uptime at reap:** 17m (age of the baked Forgejo PAT snapshot; a long-lived container is likelier to carry a rotated token) ## Reap diagnostics ``` --- reap diagnostics --- ward version: v0.439.0 version source: pinned via WARD_VERSION/--ward-version (v0.439.0) HEAD: 365468858a2f origin/main: 8428c38db29f ancestry: HEAD is NOT yet on origin/main - residual work remains to land decision gate: missing same-repo closing reference reason: missing same-repo closing reference provenance: present run-owned landed: yes working tree: 1 dirty path(s) container uptime: 17m (baked Forgejo PAT age proxy) --- end reap diagnostics --- ``` ## Recover ```bash git fetch https://forgejo.coilysiren.me/coilyco-flight-deck/ward.git ward-salvage/ward-9c289e1b git checkout -b ward-salvage/ward-9c289e1b FETCH_HEAD ``` ## Working tree at reap time ``` ?? .ward-run-provenance.json ```  — Claude (she/her), via `ward agent`

coilyco-ops commented

2026-07-08 04:16:27 +00:00

Author

Owner

Re-opened for correction. The first run landed --agent rejected, which is the opposite of Kai's 'both' decision - it followed this issue's stale original body over the decision comment. Body rewritten above to be unambiguous (--agent is first-class, not rejected), re-dispatching an engineer to add --agent acceptance on top of the already-landed --harness/--driver work. Filed from the read-only director surface (she/her).

Re-opened for correction. The first run landed `--agent` **rejected**, which is the opposite of Kai's 'both' decision - it followed this issue's stale original body over the decision comment. Body rewritten above to be unambiguous (`--agent` is first-class, not rejected), re-dispatching an engineer to add `--agent` acceptance on top of the already-landed `--harness`/`--driver` work. Filed from the read-only director surface (she/her).

coilyco-ops commented

2026-07-08 04:17:24 +00:00

Author

Owner

🔒 Reserved by ward agent --driver claude — container engineer-claude-ward-660 on host KAI-DESKTOP-TOWER is carrying this issue (reserved 2026-07-08T04:17:20Z). Concurrent ward agent runs are blocked until it finishes or the reservation goes stale (2h0m0s TTL); --force overrides.

Do not comment on or edit this issue to steer the run while it is reserved. The engineer seeded the body once at launch and never re-reads it, so a comment or edit reaches only human readers, never the running engineer. A correction goes to a new issue, dispatched fresh — that is the only channel that reaches a run in flight. Where the forge supports it, ward locks this conversation to make that a road-block rather than a convention (ward#494).

run seed context — what this run is carrying (ward#609)

Resolved: coilyco-flight-deck/ward#660 · branch issue-660 · driver claude · workflow direct-main
Run: engineer-claude-ward-660 · ward v0.439.0 · dispatched 2026-07-08T04:17:20Z
Comment thread: 3 included in the pre-flight read, 1 stripped (ward's own automated comments).
- included: @coilyco-ops (2026-07-08T03:45:33Z), @coilyco-ops (2026-07-08T04:04:09Z), @coilyco-ops (2026-07-08T04:16:27Z)
- stripped: @coilyco-ops (2026-07-08T03:46:08Z)

Issue body as seeded:

**DECIDED (Kai, final): `ward agent` accepts BOTH `--harness` and `--agent` as equal, first-class spellings for the harness pick. `--agent` is NOT rejected.** `--driver` retires to a deprecated hidden alias for one release cycle.

## Correction notice

The first #660 run landed the **opposite** of this decision - it made `--harness` canonical and **rejected `--agent`** (commit `feat(agent): --harness is the canonical harness pick`), following this issue's original recommendation before Kai settled it. This body is rewritten to be unambiguous, and the run is re-dispatched to add `--agent` as an equal accepted spelling.

## Do

* `ward agent` accepts **all three** spellings on every role (engineer, director, advisor, director-consult, and the internal surface): `--harness`, `--agent`, and (deprecated, hidden) `--driver`. All resolve to the same value.
* `--harness` and `--agent` are **both first-class and permanent** - neither is preferred over the other in acceptance. Document `--harness` first in help text only because the concept is already named "the harness" there, but `--agent` is equally supported and must not be rejected or hidden.
* Keep the already-landed pieces: `--driver` deprecated alias, "explicit spelling wins when set", the invalid-value error naming whichever spelling the caller used, and the broker validator approving every spelling for skew-safety. Extend all of these to also cover `--agent`.
* The `--agent` / `ward agent` / roster-noun overlap is **accepted** - Kai is fine living with it.
* Update `docs/agent.md`, `docs/agent-drivers.md`, and the `warded` examples so `--agent` appears as an accepted spelling, not a rejected one.
* Coordinate the eventual `--driver` retirement with the #539 caller sweep.

Filed from the read-only director surface (she/her).

Static container doctrine and seed boilerplate are identical every run and omitted here (they ride ward v0.439.0).

— Claude (she/her), via ward agent

🔒 Reserved by `ward agent --driver claude` — container `engineer-claude-ward-660` on host `KAI-DESKTOP-TOWER` is carrying this issue (reserved 2026-07-08T04:17:20Z). Concurrent `ward agent` runs are blocked until it finishes or the reservation goes stale (2h0m0s TTL); `--force` overrides. **Do not comment on or edit this issue to steer the run while it is reserved.** The engineer seeded the body once at launch and never re-reads it, so a comment or edit reaches only human readers, never the running engineer. A correction goes to a **new issue, dispatched fresh** — that is the only channel that reaches a run in flight. Where the forge supports it, ward locks this conversation to make that a road-block rather than a convention (ward#494). <details><summary>run seed context — what this run is carrying (ward#609)</summary> - **Resolved:** `coilyco-flight-deck/ward#660` · branch `issue-660` · driver `claude` · workflow `direct-main` - **Run:** `engineer-claude-ward-660` · ward `v0.439.0` · dispatched `2026-07-08T04:17:20Z` - **Comment thread:** 3 included in the pre-flight read, 1 stripped (ward's own automated comments). - included: @coilyco-ops (2026-07-08T03:45:33Z), @coilyco-ops (2026-07-08T04:04:09Z), @coilyco-ops (2026-07-08T04:16:27Z) - stripped: @coilyco-ops (2026-07-08T03:46:08Z) **Issue body as seeded:** ``` **DECIDED (Kai, final): `ward agent` accepts BOTH `--harness` and `--agent` as equal, first-class spellings for the harness pick. `--agent` is NOT rejected.** `--driver` retires to a deprecated hidden alias for one release cycle. ## Correction notice The first #660 run landed the **opposite** of this decision - it made `--harness` canonical and **rejected `--agent`** (commit `feat(agent): --harness is the canonical harness pick`), following this issue's original recommendation before Kai settled it. This body is rewritten to be unambiguous, and the run is re-dispatched to add `--agent` as an equal accepted spelling. ## Do * `ward agent` accepts **all three** spellings on every role (engineer, director, advisor, director-consult, and the internal surface): `--harness`, `--agent`, and (deprecated, hidden) `--driver`. All resolve to the same value. * `--harness` and `--agent` are **both first-class and permanent** - neither is preferred over the other in acceptance. Document `--harness` first in help text only because the concept is already named "the harness" there, but `--agent` is equally supported and must not be rejected or hidden. * Keep the already-landed pieces: `--driver` deprecated alias, "explicit spelling wins when set", the invalid-value error naming whichever spelling the caller used, and the broker validator approving every spelling for skew-safety. Extend all of these to also cover `--agent`. * The `--agent` / `ward agent` / roster-noun overlap is **accepted** - Kai is fine living with it. * Update `docs/agent.md`, `docs/agent-drivers.md`, and the `warded` examples so `--agent` appears as an accepted spelling, not a rejected one. * Coordinate the eventual `--driver` retirement with the #539 caller sweep. Filed from the read-only director surface (she/her). ``` Static container doctrine and seed boilerplate are identical every run and omitted here (they ride ward v0.439.0). </details>  — Claude (she/her), via `ward agent`

coilyco-ops referenced this issue

2026-07-08 04:23:54 +00:00

Config-driven ward: the fs.FS-at-launch config-resolve seam (#650-1, foundational) #653

coilyco-ops referenced this issue

2026-07-08 04:23:54 +00:00

REGRESSION: reaper salvages + reopens runs whose work already landed (provenance-file residual + gate ignores run-owned-landed) #662

coilyco-ops referenced this issue from a commit

2026-07-08 04:29:22 +00:00

feat(agent): --agent is an equal first-class spelling of --harness

coilyco-ops commented

2026-07-08 04:30:26 +00:00

Author

Owner

⚠️ Reopened: this run's work did not land on `main`

An ephemeral ward container (claude mode) dispatched for this issue finished but its work was not merged to main, so the reaper preserved it on a branch before teardown and reopened the issue (its closes #660 never reached main). Recover from the salvage branch below.

Repo: coilyco-flight-deck/ward
Salvage branch: ward-salvage/ward-11906072
Reason: missing same-repo closing reference
Container uptime at reap: 12m (age of the baked Forgejo PAT snapshot; a long-lived container is likelier to carry a rotated token)

Reap diagnostics

--- reap diagnostics ---
ward version:      v0.439.0
version source:    pinned via WARD_VERSION/--ward-version (v0.439.0)
HEAD:              ef38e785aed6
origin/main:       961d04ef9c78
ancestry:          HEAD is NOT yet on origin/main - residual work remains to land
decision gate:     missing same-repo closing reference
reason:            missing same-repo closing reference
provenance:        present
run-owned landed:  yes
working tree:      1 dirty path(s)
container uptime:  12m (baked Forgejo PAT age proxy)
--- end reap diagnostics ---

Recover

git fetch https://forgejo.coilysiren.me/coilyco-flight-deck/ward.git ward-salvage/ward-11906072
git checkout -b ward-salvage/ward-11906072 FETCH_HEAD

Working tree at reap time

?? .ward-run-provenance.json

— Claude (she/her), via ward agent

## ⚠️ Reopened: this run's work did not land on `main` An ephemeral `ward container` (claude mode) dispatched for this issue finished but its work was **not merged to `main`**, so the reaper preserved it on a branch before teardown and reopened the issue (its `closes #660` never reached `main`). Recover from the salvage branch below. - **Repo:** `coilyco-flight-deck/ward` - **Salvage branch:** `ward-salvage/ward-11906072` - **Reason:** missing same-repo closing reference - **Container uptime at reap:** 12m (age of the baked Forgejo PAT snapshot; a long-lived container is likelier to carry a rotated token) ## Reap diagnostics ``` --- reap diagnostics --- ward version: v0.439.0 version source: pinned via WARD_VERSION/--ward-version (v0.439.0) HEAD: ef38e785aed6 origin/main: 961d04ef9c78 ancestry: HEAD is NOT yet on origin/main - residual work remains to land decision gate: missing same-repo closing reference reason: missing same-repo closing reference provenance: present run-owned landed: yes working tree: 1 dirty path(s) container uptime: 12m (baked Forgejo PAT age proxy) --- end reap diagnostics --- ``` ## Recover ```bash git fetch https://forgejo.coilysiren.me/coilyco-flight-deck/ward.git ward-salvage/ward-11906072 git checkout -b ward-salvage/ward-11906072 FETCH_HEAD ``` ## Working tree at reap time ``` ?? .ward-run-provenance.json ```  — Claude (she/her), via `ward agent`

coilyco-ops commented

2026-07-08 04:45:49 +00:00

Author

Owner

Re-closing: this run's work landed on main (closes #660 commit is present). The reopen was the reaper regression captured in #662 - it committed the untracked .ward-run-provenance.json as a trailing residual and salvaged+reopened despite run-owned landed: yes. The salvage branch holds only that provenance-file residual, no lost work. Closing. Filed from the read-only director surface (she/her).

Re-closing: this run's work landed on `main` (`closes #660` commit is present). The reopen was the reaper regression captured in #662 - it committed the untracked `.ward-run-provenance.json` as a trailing residual and salvaged+reopened despite `run-owned landed: yes`. The salvage branch holds only that provenance-file residual, no lost work. Closing. Filed from the read-only director surface (she/her).

coilyco-ops closed this issue

2026-07-08 04:45:50 +00:00

coilyco-ops referenced this issue

2026-07-08 04:49:15 +00:00

[epic] Config-driven ward: one precompiled binary, personal config resolved live from a git ref (supersedes the build-variant matrix) #650