fix: address review feedback (星月)

1. trySendSync: wrap child.send in try/catch — IPC race between connected check and send
2. gracefulStop: same try/catch for shutdown send
3. Remove crashTimestamps reset on ready — crash window detection was being bypassed

.gitignore

@@ -3,3 +3,4 @@ dist
 .turbo
 *.tsbuildinfo
 *.tgz
+knowledge.db

.knowledge/adapter-isolation.md

@@ -0,0 +1,171 @@
+# Adapter Process Isolation
+
+Describes sandboxing, process isolation, resource limits, and timeout enforcement for adapter invocations in the Nerve workflow system.
+
+## Process Isolation Model
+
+Adapters run in a **two-tier isolation** model:
+
+1. **Workflow Worker Process** — Each workflow runs in a dedicated Node.js worker process (`workflow-worker.ts`) forked from the main daemon
+2. **Adapter Child Process** — Each adapter spawns CLI tools as child processes via `spawnSafe()` with `shell: false`
+
+## Resource Limits & Timeouts
+
+### Adapter-Level Timeouts
+
+- **Default timeout**: 300 seconds (300,000ms) for both cursor and hermes adapters
+- **Configurable** via `AgentConfig.timeout` in adapter factory functions
+- **Wall-clock enforcement** using `setTimeout()` — kills child process with `SIGTERM` on timeout
+- **AbortSignal support** — external cancellation triggers immediate `SIGTERM`
+
+### Timeout Behavior
+
+```ts
+// Timeout resolution priority (packages/core/src/spawn-safe.ts):
+// 1. Explicit timeoutMs value
+// 2. AbortSignal presence → no internal timer (relies on external abort)
+// 3. DEFAULT_TIMEOUT_MS (300_000) fallback
+```
+
+- Child process terminated with `SIGTERM` on timeout/abort
+- Returns `{ kind: "timeout", stdout, stderr }` error result
+- **No grace period** — immediate kill
+- **No SIGKILL escalation** — relies entirely on `SIGTERM` effectiveness
+
+#### SIGTERM Limitations
+
+If a child process **ignores or blocks `SIGTERM`** (e.g., signal handlers, blocked delivery):
+
+- **No fallback to `SIGKILL`** — process may remain alive indefinitely
+- **No escalation timer** — spawnSafe() does not implement progressive signal escalation
+- **Potential zombie/orphan risk** — unresponsive processes continue consuming resources
+- **OS-level cleanup only** — relies on parent process death or OS reaping mechanisms
+
+## Sandboxing Characteristics
+
+### What's Isolated
+
+- **File system**: Child process runs in specified `cwd` (workflow working directory)
+- **Environment**: Controlled env vars via `nerveCommandEnv()` + optional overrides
+- **Network**: No explicit restrictions (inherits parent process network access)
+- **Process tree**: Child processes are direct children, not containerized
+
+### What's NOT Sandboxed
+
+- **No resource quotas** (CPU, memory, disk I/O limits)
+- **No filesystem chroot/containers** — full filesystem access within user permissions
+- **No network isolation** — can make arbitrary network calls
+- **No syscall filtering** — no seccomp or similar restrictions
+
+#### Runtime Resource Enforcement
+
+**No active resource monitoring or constraints**:
+
+- **No cgroups** (Linux) — no CPU, memory, or I/O limits enforced
+- **No job objects** (Windows) — no resource quotas or process tree limits
+- **No worker_threads resource tracking** — Node.js worker processes run unrestricted
+- **Pure timeout-based enforcement** — only wall-clock time limits via `setTimeout()`
+- **OS-scheduled resource sharing** — relies entirely on operating system process scheduling
+
+Adapters can consume unlimited:
+- **CPU time** (until timeout)
+- **Memory** (until OOM)
+- **Disk I/O** (no quotas)
+- **Network bandwidth** (no throttling)
+- **File descriptors** (until ulimit)
+
+#### Environment Variable Security
+
+The `nerveCommandEnv()` function provides **minimal sanitization**:
+
+```ts
+// spawn-safe.ts lines 47-55
+export function nerveCommandEnv(): SpawnEnv {
+  const home = homedir();
+  const pnpmHome = join(home, ".local/share/pnpm");
+  return {
+    ...process.env,           // ← Full parent environment inherited
+    PNPM_HOME: pnpmHome,
+    PATH: `${pnpmHome}:${process.env.PATH ?? ""}`,
+  };
+}
+```
+
+- **No filtering of sensitive keys** — `NODE_OPTIONS`, `LD_PRELOAD`, `PYTHONPATH` passed through unchanged
+- **Full environment inheritance** — all parent process environment variables copied
+- **Injection risk** — malicious env vars (e.g., `NODE_OPTIONS=--require=evil.js`) affect Node.js child processes
+- **Path manipulation** — sensitive PATH entries remain accessible to adapters
+
+## Security Model
+
+### Execution Context
+
+- Uses `shell: false` to prevent shell injection attacks
+- Arguments passed as separate array elements (not shell-parsed)
+- PATH includes `~/.local/share/pnpm` for tool discovery
+- Inherits parent process user/group permissions
+
+#### File Descriptor Management
+
+```ts
+// spawn-safe.ts line 122
+stdio: ["ignore", "pipe", "pipe"]
+```
+
+- **stdin closed**: Child receives no input (`stdio[0]: "ignore"`)
+- **stdout/stderr captured**: Piped to parent for collection (`stdio[1,2]: "pipe"`)
+- **No explicit fd closing**: Node.js default behavior — inherits other file descriptors
+- **Parent sockets/pipes accessible**: Child can access parent's open network connections, database handles, etc.
+- **Security risk**: Adapter processes may access unintended parent file descriptors
+
+### Attack Surface
+
+- CLI tools have **full user-level filesystem access**
+- Can spawn additional processes (not tracked/limited)
+- Network requests unrestricted
+- Resource consumption relies on OS-level limits
+
+## Worker Process Management
+
+### Workflow Isolation
+
+- Each workflow type gets dedicated worker process
+- Worker processes handle multiple concurrent threads (runIds)
+- Kill flags enable per-thread cancellation without killing worker
+- Graceful shutdown waits up to 10 seconds for in-flight operations
+
+#### Cross-RunId Contamination Risks
+
+**Shared mutable state** poses contamination risks between concurrent runIds:
+
+- **`process.env` mutations**: Environment changes affect all subsequent runIds in same worker
+- **`require.cache` pollution**: Module cache shared across all runIds — side effects persist
+- **Global variables**: Any global state mutations from one runId visible to others
+- **`process.cwd()` changes**: Working directory changes affect entire worker process
+- **File descriptors**: Open files/sockets shared between runId executions
+
+**No runId-specific scoping** implemented:
+- Worker reuses single Node.js process for efficiency
+- Each role execution sees cumulative environment from previous runIds
+- **Mitigation relies on adapter discipline** — clean implementations avoid global mutations
+
+### Error Handling
+
+- Adapter failures don't crash the worker process
+- Timeout/abort errors are isolated to specific role execution
+- Worker process survives adapter failures and continues serving other threads
+
+## Configuration
+
+```yaml
+# Example nerve.yaml configuration for timeout overrides
+workflows:
+  my-workflow:
+    roles:
+      coder:
+        adapter:
+          type: cursor
+          timeout: 600000  # 10 minutes in milliseconds
+```
+
+Timeout configuration happens at the adapter creation level, not as a system-wide sandbox policy.

.knowledge/adapter.md

@@ -5,13 +5,23 @@ Adapter = capability. Role = scenario. Workflows declare adapters directly via i
 ## AgentFn Protocol
 
 ```ts
-type AgentFn = (prompt: string, context: WorkflowContext) => Promise<string>
+type AgentFn = (ctx: ThreadContext, systemPrompt: string) => Promise<string>
 ```
 
-- Input: prompt + context (start frame, messages, workdir, AbortSignal)
-- Output: raw string — structured extraction is separate
+- Input: thread context (`{ threadId, start, steps }`) + system prompt (role identity)
+- Output: **single-shot `Promise<string>`** — no streaming support
 - Adapter handles tool-specific details internally
 
+### Streaming Limitations
+
+The `AgentFn` protocol does **not** support streaming responses (`AsyncIterable<string>` or `ReadableStream`). It's strictly limited to single-shot `Promise<string>` returns.
+
+For long-running or incremental agent outputs:
+- CLI tools buffer full output until completion
+- Timeout enforcement via `timeoutMs` (default 300s)
+- No intermediate results exposed to workflow logic
+- Progress indication happens at the CLI tool level only
+
 ## Available Adapters
 
 | Package | Adapter | Tool |
@@ -45,3 +55,14 @@ extract:
 ```
 
 Two-level merge: global → role override. Retry once on parse failure (feeds error back to LLM), then throw `ExtractError`.
+
+## Error Handling
+
+When adapters' underlying CLI tools (e.g., `cursor-agent` or `hermes`) fail, errors are surfaced **synchronously via rejection** with no fallback/retry logic:
+
+- **Missing/unavailable tool**: `spawn_failed` error when CLI binary not found in `$PATH`
+- **Non-zero exit code**: `non_zero_exit` error with captured stdout/stderr
+- **Timeout**: `timeout` error when execution exceeds configured `timeoutMs`
+- **Abort signal**: `aborted` error when `AbortSignal` triggers cancellation
+
+All errors are immediately thrown as `Error` instances with descriptive messages (e.g., `"cursor-agent: exitCode=7 stdout=... stderr=..."`). No automatic retries or fallback adapters.

.knowledge/architecture.md

@@ -5,20 +5,22 @@ Observation engine for autonomous agents — sense the world, react to changes,
 ## Core Pipeline
 
 ```
-External World → Sense → Signal → Reflex → Workflow → Log
+External World → Sense → Signal → Workflow → Log
+                           ↑
+                     compute() returns
+                     { signal, workflow }
 ```
 
-Causality is **one-directional**. Logs are the end of the chain — they cannot trigger Reflexes (prevents feedback loops).
+Causality is **one-directional**. Logs are the end of the chain — they cannot trigger further Senses (prevents feedback loops).
 
-## Three Orthogonal Extension Points
+## Two Extension Points
 
 | Extension | Question | Nature |
 |-----------|----------|--------|
-| **Sense** | What to compute | `compute()` function |
-| **Reflex** | When to compute | Declarative YAML (interval / on) |
+| **Sense** | What to observe & when to react | `compute()` pure function + YAML config (interval / on) |
 | **Workflow** | What to do | Roles + Moderator |
 
-Each is independent. Reflex doesn't know compute internals, Sense doesn't know when it's triggered, Workflow doesn't know why it was started.
+Senses own both the "what" (compute logic) and the "when" (config-driven scheduling). A Sense can trigger a Workflow directly by returning `{ signal, workflow: { name, prompt } }`.
 
 ## Two Event Types
 
@@ -31,3 +33,14 @@ Each is independent. Reflex doesn't know compute internals, Sense doesn't know w
 - One worker per Workflow type (on-demand)
 - Workers never talk to each other
 - All user code runs in isolated Workers; kernel never loads user code directly
+
+## Storage Systems
+
+- **Log Store** — SQLite with WAL mode for audit trails and workflow state
+- **Sense Databases** — Isolated SQLite per sense group for private data
+- **Knowledge Store** — Vector search index for project context
+- **Blob Store** — Content-addressable storage for large artifacts
+
+## Signal Flow
+
+Sense compute outputs are routed through signal routing logic that determines whether to emit a signal or trigger a workflow—never both simultaneously.

.knowledge/cli.md

@@ -6,6 +6,8 @@
 
 ```bash
 nerve init                    # scaffold a new workspace (nerve.yaml, senses/, workflows/)
+nerve init --force            # reinitialize workspace even if ~/.uncaged-nerve/ exists (preserves data/)
+nerve init --from <git-url>   # clone existing workspace from git repository
 nerve validate                # validate nerve.yaml config
 nerve dev                     # run kernel foreground (development, Ctrl+C to stop)
 nerve start                   # start daemon (background)
@@ -14,6 +16,14 @@ nerve status                  # check daemon health (uptime, senses, workflows)
 nerve daemon                  # restart daemon (stop + start)
 ```
 
+### Init Behavior
+
+**Default `nerve init`**: Creates workspace at `~/.uncaged-nerve/`. If this directory already exists and is non-empty, **exits with error** requiring `--force` flag. No merge/overwrite logic — prevents accidental workspace destruction.
+
+**Force mode `nerve init --force`**: Reinitializes workspace even if `~/.uncaged-nerve/` exists. **Preserves `data/` directory** (containing sense SQLite databases and logs) but overwrites all config files (`nerve.yaml`, `package.json`, etc.) and example senses.
+
+**Git clone `nerve init --from <url>`**: Clones existing repository to `~/.uncaged-nerve/`. Requires empty target directory — fails if workspace already exists and is non-empty.
+
 ## Sense Management
 
 ```bash

.knowledge/coding-conventions.md

@@ -24,6 +24,21 @@ type Config = { throttle?: string }
 - `throw` only for programmer errors (bugs)
 - No try-catch for flow control
 
+### Result<T, E> Type
+
+Defined in `@uncaged/nerve-core` (`packages/core/src/result.ts`):
+
+```ts
+export type Result<T, E = Error> = { ok: true; value: T } | { ok: false; error: E };
+```
+
+**Discriminated union** with tagged `ok` field. Helper functions:
+- `ok(value)` → `{ ok: true, value }`
+- `err(error)` → `{ ok: false, error }`
+
+**Exhaustive handling**: Pattern is `if (!result.ok) { handle error }` then access `result.value`. 
+No compiler enforcement - relies on manual discipline and TypeScript's flow control analysis.
+
 ## Naming
 
 | Type | Style |
@@ -38,9 +53,25 @@ type Config = { throttle?: string }
 - Always named exports, never default
 - One module = one responsibility
 
+### Module Naming Conventions
+
+**Primary exports** use descriptive, unambiguous names:
+- Functions: `createXxx()`, `parseXxx()`, `xxxAgent()` (e.g., `createCursorAdapter`, `cursorAgent`)
+- Types: Domain-specific prefixes (e.g., `CursorAgentOptions`, `SenseComputeFn`, `ThreadContext`)
+- Constants: `UPPER_SNAKE_CASE` with context (e.g., `DEFAULT_SENSE_SIGNAL_RETENTION`, `CURSOR_ADAPTER_DEFAULT_MS`)
+
+**Avoiding ambiguity**:
+- Package-scoped naming: `@uncaged/nerve-adapter-cursor` exports `cursorAgent`, `createCursorAdapter`
+- Factory pattern: `createXxxAdapter()` for configurable instances, `xxxAdapter` for defaults
+- Descriptive type prefixes prevent collision (e.g., `CursorAgentOptions` vs `HermesAgentOptions`)
+
 ## Async
 
 - Always `async/await`, never `.then()` chains
+- Use `AbortSignal` for cancellation: `AbortController` to create signals, pass to long-running operations
+- `spawn-safe.ts` and adapter functions accept `abortSignal: AbortSignal | null` parameter
+- On abort: child processes receive `SIGTERM`, async operations should check `signal.aborted`
+- No enforced Biome/Vitest rules for AbortSignal usage (manual discipline required)
 
 ## No Dynamic Import
 

.knowledge/knowledge-layer.md

@@ -19,10 +19,20 @@ nerve knowledge query --repo /path "query"  # search specific repo
 
 ## Embedding
 
-- Remote service: configured via `EMBED_SERVICE_URL` env var (self-hosted Cloudflare Worker + KV cache)
-- Model: Dashscope text-embedding-v3 (1024 dims)
-- Cache: content-addressable (sha256 of model+text), never expires
-- Fallback: word-overlap scoring when embed service not configured
+- **Default model**: Dashscope text-embedding-v3 (1024 dimensions)
+- **Remote service**: configured via `EMBED_SERVICE_URL` env var (self-hosted Cloudflare Worker + KV cache)
+- **Model configuration**: No mechanism to specify alternate models — hardcoded to text-embedding-v3 in remote service
+- **Vector dimensions**: Fixed at 1024 (Float32Array, stored as 4096-byte Buffer blobs in SQLite)
+- **Cache**: content-addressable (sha256 of model+text), never expires
+- **Fallback**: word-overlap scoring when embed service not configured
+
+### Configuration
+
+The embedding model is **not configurable** through `knowledge.yaml` or other config files. The remote service at `embed.shazhou.workers.dev` uses Dashscope text-embedding-v3 exclusively. To use different models, you would need to:
+
+1. Deploy your own embedding service compatible with the same API
+2. Point `EMBED_SERVICE_URL` to your service
+3. Ensure vector dimensions match (1024) or modify knowledge database schema
 
 ## Chunking
 

.knowledge/sense.md

@@ -2,18 +2,39 @@
 
 A `compute()` function that samples or derives external data. The only first-class citizen in nerve.
 
-## Behavior
+## Contract
 
-- Returns `T | null` — non-null emits a Signal, null is silent (no storage write, no signal, no downstream trigger)
-- Each Sense has its own **independent SQLite database**
-- Cross-sense reads are read-only via `peers` parameter
-- Schema defined with Drizzle ORM (`schema.ts` is single source of truth)
+Each sense module (`src/index.ts`) must export:
 
-## Sense → Workflow
+```ts
+export { snapshots as table } from "./schema.ts";  // drizzle table for runtime to insert into
 
-If `compute()` returns an object with `workflow: "name|maxRounds|prompt"`, the engine starts that workflow and does **not** emit a Signal. `workflow: null` or `""` means emit signal normally.
+export async function compute(): Promise<ComputeResult<T>> { ... }  // pure, no args
+```
 
-See `routeSenseComputeOutput` / `parseSenseWorkflowDirective` in `@uncaged/nerve-core`.
+**Function Signature & Input Schema:**
+- `compute()` is **parameterless** — no direct inputs, environment variables available
+- No database access within compute — runtime provides isolated execution context 
+- Must be pure function (no side effects, no external API calls)
+
+**Return Value Contract:**
+- `ComputeResult<T>` = `null | { signal: T; workflow: WorkflowTrigger | null }`
+  - `null` → silent, no storage, no signal  
+  - `{ signal: data, workflow: null }` → persist + emit signal
+  - `{ signal, workflow: WorkflowTrigger }` → persist + emit signal + trigger workflow
+  - Any other value → treated as `{ signal: value, workflow: null }`
+
+**Error Handling & Serialization:**
+- Exceptions caught by worker, logged as errors (no signal emitted)
+- Signal payload must be JSON-serializable (passed via IPC)
+- Invalid workflow triggers silently dropped (signal still emitted)
+
+**Timeout & Scheduling Semantics:**
+- Timeout priority: explicit config → AbortSignal → DEFAULT_TIMEOUT_MS (30s)
+- Enforced via `Promise.race()` with timeout promise
+- Grace period can trigger `process.exit(1)` after timeout (kills worker group)
+- Interval translation: YAML config values used directly as milliseconds in `setInterval()`
+- Jitter control: throttle mechanism prevents rapid-fire, single deferred trigger per throttle window
 
 ## Config (nerve.yaml)
 
@@ -27,3 +48,14 @@ senses:
     interval: 30s        # periodic trigger (optional)
     on: [disk-pressure]  # trigger on signals from other senses (optional)
 ```
+
+## Manual Trigger Context
+
+**`nerve sense trigger <name>`** sends IPC message to running daemon. The compute context is initialized as follows:
+
+- **SQLite Database**: Opened in **read-write mode** at `data/senses/<name>.db`
+- **Migrations**: All `*.sql` files in `senses/<name>/migrations/` applied in lexicographic order
+- **Environment**: Inherits daemon process environment (no special secrets injection)
+- **Arguments**: No runtime arguments or mock inputs supported — `compute()` is always pure function with no parameters
+- **Isolation**: Runs in forked child process (worker) with full filesystem access within user permissions
+- **Persistence**: Runtime automatically calls `db.insert(table).values(result.signal)` if compute returns non-null signal

.knowledge/signal-routing.md

@@ -0,0 +1,91 @@
+# Signal Routing
+
+Signal routing is the core mechanism that determines how Sense outputs flow through the Nerve system.
+
+## Routing Logic
+
+When a Sense `compute()` function returns non-null, the output goes through `routeSenseComputeOutput()` in `packages/core/src/sense-workflow-directive.ts`:
+
+```
+Sense compute() → non-null → routeSenseComputeOutput() → { signal, workflow }
+                           ↓
+          kernel.ts → signal ALWAYS emitted + optional workflow start
+```
+
+## Two Output Formats
+
+### 1. Explicit Format
+```typescript
+{
+  signal: any,           // emitted as signal
+  workflow: {           // optional workflow trigger
+    name: string,
+    maxRounds: number,
+    prompt: string,
+    dryRun: boolean
+  } | null
+}
+```
+
+### 2. Shorthand Format
+Any other value is treated as:
+```typescript
+{ signal: payload, workflow: null }
+```
+
+## Workflow Directive Parsing
+
+## Concrete Routing Predicates
+
+The routing decision is implemented in `routeSenseComputeOutput()` using these exact matching criteria:
+
+### 1. Explicit Format Detection
+```typescript
+if (isPlainRecord(payload) && Object.hasOwn(payload, "signal"))
+```
+- Payload must be a plain object
+- Must have `signal` property (any value)
+- Workflow extracted from `workflow` property or defaults to null
+
+### 2. Workflow Validation
+When workflow is non-null, it's validated via `parseWorkflowTrigger()`:
+- `name`: non-empty string (trimmed)  
+- `maxRounds`: positive integer >= 1
+- `prompt`: string
+- `dryRun`: boolean
+
+**Critical behavior**: Invalid workflows are silently dropped (become null) but signal emission continues. This prevents malformed workflow config from blocking signals.
+
+### 3. Fallback to Shorthand
+Any value that doesn't match explicit format becomes:
+```typescript
+{ signal: payload, workflow: null }
+```
+
+## Processing Flow
+
+```typescript
+// In kernel.ts handleSenseWorkerSignal()
+const { signal: signalPayload, workflow } = routeResult.value;
+
+// Signal is ALWAYS emitted when compute returns non-null
+bus.emit({ id, senseId, payload: signalPayload, timestamp });
+
+// Workflow is started ONLY if workflow is non-null
+if (workflow !== null) {
+  workflowManager.startWorkflow(workflow.name, { ... });
+}
+```
+
+## Legacy String Format (Deprecated)
+
+The old `"name|maxRounds|prompt"` string format is converted to the structured format internally but should not be used in new code.
+
+## Key Behaviors
+
+1. **Signal priority**: Every non-null compute result emits a signal, regardless of workflow
+2. **Additive behavior**: Valid workflow triggers are executed in addition to signal emission
+3. **Failure tolerance**: Invalid workflow directives are silently ignored, signal still emits
+4. **Structure-based routing**: No complex predicates - simply checks object structure and property existence
+
+This routing mechanism ensures clean separation between perception (signals) and action (workflows) while maintaining backward compatibility.

.knowledge/storage-layer.md

@@ -0,0 +1,132 @@
+# Storage Layer
+
+Nerve uses multiple storage systems designed for different data types and access patterns.
+
+## Core Storage Components
+
+### 1. Log Store (`logs.db`)
+Append-only audit trail implemented in SQLite with WAL mode.
+
+**Schema:**
+- `logs` — all system events (signals, workflow transitions, sense outputs)
+- `meta` — key-value store for system metadata
+- `workflow_runs` — materialized view of workflow execution state
+
+**Key Features:**
+- Atomic workflow state updates via transactions
+- Thread message persistence for crash recovery
+- Configurable log archival to JSONL files
+- Full-text search across log entries
+
+### 2. Sense Databases
+Each sense group gets its own SQLite database for private state.
+
+**Characteristics:**
+- Isolated per sense group (e.g., `system-senses.db`)
+- Managed by individual sense compute functions
+- Drizzle ORM integration for schema management
+- No cross-sense data sharing
+
+### 3. Knowledge Store (`knowledge.db`)
+Vector-enabled search index for project context.
+
+**Contents:**
+- Chunked source files with embeddings
+- Curated knowledge cards from `.knowledge/`
+- Semantic search capabilities
+- Global vs. repo-scoped search modes
+
+### 4. Blob Store (CAS)
+Content-addressable storage for large artifacts.
+
+**Design:**
+- SHA-256 based file naming
+- Automatic deduplication
+- Used for workflow artifacts and large payloads
+
+## Consistency & Isolation Mechanisms
+
+### SQLite WAL Mode
+All SQLite databases use `PRAGMA journal_mode=WAL` for:
+- **Writer-reader concurrency** — readers don't block writers
+- **Atomic writes** — each transaction is fully applied or rolled back
+- **Crash recovery** — WAL provides consistent state after crashes
+
+### Transaction Management
+
+#### Log Store Transactions
+Uses `BEGIN IMMEDIATE` transactions (`packages/store/src/log-store.ts`):
+```typescript
+function runInTransaction<T>(db: DatabaseSync, fn: () => T): T {
+  db.exec("BEGIN IMMEDIATE");  // Exclusive write lock
+  try {
+    const result = fn();
+    db.exec("COMMIT");
+    return result;
+  } catch (e) {
+    db.exec("ROLLBACK");
+    throw e;
+  }
+}
+```
+
+**Key Operations:**
+- `upsertWorkflowRun()` — atomically writes log entry + workflow state
+- `archiveLogs()` — transactional export + delete + watermark update
+
+#### Sense Database Isolation
+- Each sense group has its own SQLite file (e.g., `system-senses.db`)
+- No cross-sense transactions or coordination required
+- Independent schema migrations per sense
+- Private `_signals` table for signal history retention
+
+### Process-Level Isolation
+
+#### Worker Process Architecture
+- **One worker per sense group** — prevents data races within group
+- **One worker per workflow type** — isolated execution contexts  
+- **No shared memory** — all communication via IPC messages
+
+#### Concurrency Control
+Workflow manager enforces limits per workflow:
+```yaml
+workflows:
+  my-workflow:
+    concurrency: 2        # Max parallel threads
+    overflow: "queue"     # or "drop" 
+    maxQueue: 10         # Queue depth limit
+```
+
+### Consistency Guarantees & Failure Modes
+
+**Strong Consistency (Single Database)**:
+1. **Within Log Store** — ACID transactions with immediate consistency
+2. **Within Sense DB** — WAL mode ensures atomic commits per database
+3. **Workflow State** — `upsertWorkflowRun()` atomically updates log + materialized view
+
+**No Cross-Database Consistency**:
+- No distributed transactions across multiple SQLite files
+- Log Store and Sense Databases can temporarily diverge during failures
+- Signal emission and workflow triggering are separate, non-atomic operations
+
+**Failure Recovery Mechanisms**:
+- **Sense worker crash**: State rebuilt from sense SQLite database on respawn
+- **Workflow worker crash**: Thread state recovered from log store message history
+- **Kernel crash**: All workers respawned, state recovered from persistent stores
+- **Log Store corruption**: WAL recovery on database open
+- **Sense DB corruption**: Migrations re-run, `_signals` table rebuilt if needed
+
+**Rollback Scenarios**:
+- **Log write failure**: Transaction rolled back, no state changes persisted
+- **Sense compute failure**: Error logged, no signal/workflow emitted
+- **Workflow failure**: Thread marked as failed in materialized view
+- **IPC failure**: Worker respawned, pending operations lost (not rolled back)
+
+## Archive Strategy
+
+Logs older than retention window (default 30 days) are:
+1. Exported to `data/archive/logs/YYYY-MM-DD.jsonl`
+2. Deleted from active database
+3. Watermark updated to prevent re-processing
+
+This keeps the active database size bounded while preserving audit trails.

.knowledge/worker-isolation.md

@@ -0,0 +1,152 @@
+# Worker Isolation
+
+Nerve's worker architecture ensures complete isolation between different types of user code while maintaining system stability.
+
+## Process Architecture
+
+```
+Kernel (Main Process)
+├── Sense Worker (Group A) ── sense-1, sense-2
+├── Sense Worker (Group B) ── sense-3, sense-4
+├── Workflow Worker (cleanup) ── cleanup workflow instances
+└── Workflow Worker (review) ── review workflow instances
+```
+
+## Isolation Boundaries
+
+### 1. Sense Workers
+- **One worker per sense group** (configured in `nerve.yaml`)
+- Groups share a child process but have isolated execution contexts
+- Crash in one sense doesn't affect other groups
+- Each group has its own SQLite database
+
+### 2. Workflow Workers  
+- **One worker per workflow type** (spawned on-demand)
+- Multiple threads of the same workflow share a worker process
+- Concurrency limits enforced at the workflow level
+- Workers terminate when no active threads remain
+
+### 3. Kernel Protection
+- **User code never runs in kernel process**
+- All `compute()` and workflow role functions run in workers
+- Kernel only handles IPC, scheduling, and coordination
+- System remains stable even with infinite loops or crashes in user code
+
+## Worker Lifecycle
+
+### Sense Workers
+```
+nerve daemon start → spawn worker per group → long-lived process
+                   → hot reload on file changes
+                   → respawn on crash
+```
+
+### Workflow Workers
+```
+workflow trigger → check existing worker → reuse or spawn
+                                       → execute thread
+                                       → terminate when idle
+```
+
+## Communication Patterns
+
+### Kernel ↔ Sense Worker
+- IPC via child process stdio
+- JSON-formatted messages
+- Worker reports signals back to kernel
+- Bidirectional: kernel can request immediate computes
+
+### Kernel ↔ Workflow Worker  
+- Similar IPC protocol
+- Workflow definition loaded in worker
+- Role execution results streamed back
+- Thread state managed in kernel
+
+## Resource Limits & Control
+
+### Timeout Enforcement
+Configurable timeouts per sense (in `nerve.yaml`):
+```yaml
+senses:
+  my-sense:
+    timeout: 30000      # Execution timeout (ms)
+    gracePeriod: 5000   # Grace period before hard kill
+```
+
+**Timeout Implementation:**
+- `AbortController` for async operations 
+- `Promise.race()` between compute and timeout
+- Grace period triggers `process.exit(1)` to kill entire worker group
+
+### Memory & CPU Limits
+**No Application-Level Resource Quotas**:
+- No memory caps, CPU throttling, or disk I/O limits enforced by Nerve
+- Workers can consume arbitrary system resources until OS limits
+- No cgroup/container isolation — full filesystem access within user permissions
+- No syscall filtering (no seccomp restrictions)
+
+**OS-Level Constraints Only**:
+- Process memory limited by system `ulimit -m` 
+- CPU usage bounded by scheduler only
+- Network requests unrestricted
+- Can spawn additional processes (not tracked by Nerve)
+
+### Concurrency Control
+
+#### Sense Workers
+- One active compute per sense at a time (serialized via promise chains)
+- No memory sharing between sense groups
+- Crash isolation: one sense crash doesn't affect other groups
+
+#### Workflow Workers
+Per-workflow limits configured in `nerve.yaml`:
+```yaml
+workflows:
+  my-workflow:
+    concurrency: 2        # Max parallel threads
+    overflow: "drop"      # or "queue"
+    maxQueue: 10         # Queue size limit
+```
+
+### Process Management
+
+#### Signal Handling
+Workers ignore session broadcast signals (SIGINT/SIGTERM):
+```typescript
+// Workers ignore terminal signals; kernel coordinates shutdown
+process.on("SIGINT", () => {}); 
+process.on("SIGTERM", () => {});
+```
+
+#### Graceful Shutdown & State Handoff
+**Sense Workers**:
+- IPC `shutdown` message → `process.exit(0)` (immediate)
+- No graceful termination period for senses
+- State rebuilt from SQLite on respawn (no handoff needed)
+
+**Workflow Workers**:
+- IPC `shutdown` → wait for in-flight threads to complete
+- Drain timeout: `WORKER_SHUTDOWN_TIMEOUT_MS` (10s)
+- If threads don't complete → `SIGKILL` force termination
+- Thread state preserved in log store for crash recovery
+
+**State Handoff Mechanism**:
+- No explicit state transfer between old/new workers
+- Sense workers: SQLite database contains full state
+- Workflow workers: Log store contains thread message history
+- Kernel coordinates recovery via `recoverThreadsForWorker()`
+
+## Failure Handling
+
+### Worker Crashes
+- **Sense workers**: Automatic respawn after 1s delay, state rebuilt from DB
+- **Workflow workers**: Crash recovery from log store thread messages  
+- **Kernel protection**: Main process continues, marks affected runs as crashed
+- **Crash limits**: Max 5 crashes per workflow in 60s window (prevents infinite respawn)
+
+### Resource Exhaustion
+- **Memory**: Worker process killed by OS, kernel respawns automatically
+- **Compute timeout**: Grace period → hard kill → respawn
+- **Infinite loops**: Timeout enforcement prevents hanging indefinitely
+
+This architecture allows Nerve to run untrusted or experimental code safely while maintaining system availability.

.knowledge/workflow.md

@@ -6,8 +6,8 @@ Stateful multi-step execution driven by Roles and a Moderator.
 
 - **Workflow** — definition with concurrency strategy
 - **Thread** — one execution instance, unique `runId`
-- **Role** — executes actions (has side effects). `(start, messages) → { content, meta }`
-- **Moderator** — pure routing function. `(context) → next role | END`
+- **Role** — executes actions (has side effects). `(ctx: ThreadContext) → Promise<RoleResult<M>>`
+- **Moderator** — pure routing function. `(ctx: ThreadContext) → next role | END`
 
 ## Thread Lifecycle
 
@@ -54,6 +54,69 @@ const workflow: WorkflowDefinition<MyMeta> = {
 ```
 
 - `adapter: AgentFn` — direct function reference
-- `prompt: string | ((start, messages) => Promise<string>)` — static or dynamic
+- `prompt: string | ((ctx: ThreadContext) => Promise<string>)` — static or dynamic
 - `meta: z.ZodType<M>` — Zod schema, directly (no wrapper needed)
 - `extract: LlmExtractorConfig` — provider for structured extraction
+
+## Runtime Enforcement Mechanisms
+
+### Role Authority & Validation
+
+**Role Function Lookup**:
+- Roles accessed via `def.roles[nextRole]` dictionary lookup
+- Unknown roles trigger immediate workflow error (`Unknown role: ${nextRole}`)
+- No dynamic role registration during execution
+
+**Result Validation** (`validateRoleResult()`):
+```typescript
+// Required return shape from every role function
+{ content: string, meta: Record<string, unknown> }
+```
+- `content` must be string (non-string → workflow error)
+- `meta` must be plain object (array/null/primitive → workflow error)
+- Validation failure terminates thread immediately
+
+### Moderator Authority & Routing Control
+
+**Next Role Selection**:
+- Moderator must return role name from `roles` keys OR `END` symbol
+- Called after every role completion (receives full context)
+- No validation of role name until execution attempt
+- Pure function constraint: cannot perform side effects
+
+**Causal Chain Integrity**:
+- Moderator receives immutable **ThreadContext**: `{ threadId, start, steps }`
+- Steps array contains ALL role outputs in chronological order
+- No role can modify prior steps or start metadata
+- Thread context built from log store on crash recovery
+
+### Unauthorized Command Event Prevention
+
+**Message Flow Control**:
+- Role functions have NO direct access to kernel IPC
+- All outputs flow through `sendWorkflowMessage()` wrapper
+- Worker process validates messages before kernel transmission
+- No direct log store database access from roles
+
+**Process Isolation**:
+- Roles execute in forked worker processes (not kernel)
+- File system access limited to user permissions
+- No network isolation (roles can make arbitrary HTTP calls)
+- Worker has read/write access to workflow workspace only
+
+### Concurrent Thread Management
+
+**Kill Flag Implementation**:
+```typescript
+type KillFlag = { value: boolean };
+// Checked before role execution and after completion
+if (killFlag.value) {
+  sendThreadEvent(runId, "killed", { exitCode: 137 });
+  return;
+}
+```
+
+**Concurrency Enforcement**:
+- Workflow manager enforces per-workflow limits in kernel
+- Excess threads queued/dropped per overflow policy
+- No role can spawn additional threads (no access to workflow manager)

CLAUDE.md

@@ -3,7 +3,7 @@
 ## Core Concepts
 
 ```
-External World → Sense → Signal → Reflex → Workflow → Log
+External World → Sense → Signal → Workflow → Log
                   ↑                                     ↑
               "what to observe"                  "what to do"
 ```
@@ -14,19 +14,18 @@ External World → Sense → Signal → Reflex → Workflow → Log
 
 | Concept | What it is |
 |---------|-----------|
-| **Sense** | A `compute()` function that samples or derives data. Returns `T \| null` — non-null emits a Signal, null is silent. Each Sense has its own SQLite database. |
+| **Sense** | A `compute()` function that samples or derives data. Returns `ComputeResult<T>` — non-null emits a Signal (and optionally triggers a Workflow), null is silent. Each Sense has its own SQLite database. Scheduling (interval, on) is configured in nerve.yaml. |
 | **Signal** | A notification emitted when a Sense returns non-null. Pure fact, no intent. Distributed via an in-memory Signal Bus. Not persisted. |
-| **Reflex** | A declarative trigger (YAML) connecting Senses to actions. Trigger types: `interval` (periodic), `on` (react to Signals). Action types: trigger a Sense, or start a Workflow. |
 | **Workflow** | A stateful multi-step execution. Contains **Roles** (actors with side effects) and a **Moderator** (pure router). Each instance is a **Thread** with a unique `runId`. |
-| **Log** | Immutable audit trail. Records executions, state transitions, errors. **Cannot trigger Reflexes** — prevents feedback loops. |
-| **Engine** | The kernel orchestrating everything. Holds Signal Bus, Reflex Scheduler, Process Manager, Workflow Manager. Never loads user code directly — all user code runs in isolated Workers. |
+| **Log** | Immutable audit trail. Records executions, state transitions, errors. Cannot trigger Senses — prevents feedback loops. |
+| **Engine** | The kernel orchestrating everything. Holds Signal Bus, Process Manager, Workflow Manager. Never loads user code directly — all user code runs in isolated Workers. |
 | **Daemon** | The `nerve-daemon` package — engine runtime. Runs as a background process. |
 
 ### Architecture Rules
 
-- **Three orthogonal extension points**: Sense (what to compute), Reflex (when to compute), Workflow (what to do)
+- **Two extension points**: Sense (what to observe + when), Workflow (what to do)
 - **Process isolation**: One worker per Sense group (long-lived), one per Workflow type (on-demand). Workers never talk to each other.
-- **Causality is one-directional**: External world → Sense → Signal → Reflex → Action + Log. Logs are the end of the chain.
+- **Causality is one-directional**: External world → Sense → Signal → Workflow + Log. Logs are the end of the chain.
 
 
 
@@ -94,9 +93,34 @@ For mutually exclusive fields, use discriminated unions:
 
 ```typescript
 // ✅ Good
-type ReflexConfig =
-  | { kind: "sense"; sense: string; interval: string | null; on: string[] | null }
-  | { kind: "workflow"; workflow: string; on: string[] | null };
+type ComputeResult<T> =
+  | null
+  | { signal: T; workflow: WorkflowTrigger | null };
+```
+
+### Workflow authoring (user modules)
+
+Roles and moderators take **ThreadContext** (`threadId`, `start`, `steps`) — not separate `StartStep` / message arrays.
+
+```typescript
+import type { RoleResult, ThreadContext, WorkflowDefinition } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
+import { END } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
+
+type MyMeta = { round: number };
+
+async function planner(ctx: ThreadContext): Promise<RoleResult<MyMeta>> {
+  void ctx.start;
+  void ctx.steps;
+  return { content: "plan", meta: { round: ctx.steps.length } };
+}
+
+const workflow: WorkflowDefinition<Record<"planner", MyMeta>> = {
+  name: "example",
+  roles: { planner },
+  moderator(ctx: ThreadContext<Record<"planner", MyMeta>>) {
+    return ctx.steps.length === 0 ? "planner" : END;
+  },
+};
 ```
 
 ## Modules & Exports

packages/adapter-cursor/src/index.ts

@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-import type { AgentConfig, AgentFn, WorkflowContext } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
+import type { AgentConfig, AgentFn, ThreadContext } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
 import { type Result, type SpawnEnv, type SpawnError, ok, spawnSafe } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
 
 export type CursorAgentMode = "plan" | "ask" | "default";
@@ -96,16 +96,16 @@ export function createCursorAdapter(config: CursorAdapterConfig): AgentFn {
   const timeoutMs = config.timeout;
   const mode = config.mode ?? "default";
 
-  return async (prompt: string, context: WorkflowContext): Promise<string> => {
+  return async (_ctx: ThreadContext, prompt: string): Promise<string> => {
     const run = await cursorAgent({
       prompt,
       mode,
       model: config.model,
-      cwd: context.workdir,
+      cwd: process.cwd(),
       env: null,
       timeoutMs,
-      dryRun: context.start.meta.dryRun,
-      abortSignal: context.signal,
+      dryRun: false,
+      abortSignal: null,
     });
     if (!run.ok) {
       throwCursorSpawnError(run.error);

packages/adapter-hermes/src/index.ts

@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-import type { AgentConfig, AgentFn, WorkflowContext } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
+import type { AgentConfig, AgentFn, ThreadContext } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
 import { type Result, type SpawnEnv, type SpawnError, ok, spawnSafe } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
 
 /**
@@ -96,7 +96,7 @@ export function createHermesAdapter(config: AgentConfig): AgentFn {
   const modelFromConfig = config.model === "auto" ? null : config.model;
   const timeoutMs = config.timeout;
 
-  return async (prompt: string, context: WorkflowContext): Promise<string> => {
+  return async (_ctx: ThreadContext, prompt: string): Promise<string> => {
     const run = await hermesAgent({
       prompt,
       model: modelFromConfig,
@@ -106,8 +106,8 @@ export function createHermesAdapter(config: AgentConfig): AgentFn {
       maxTurns: HERMES_ADAPTER_DEFAULT_MAX_TURNS,
       env: null,
       timeoutMs,
-      dryRun: context.start.meta.dryRun,
-      abortSignal: context.signal,
+      dryRun: false,
+      abortSignal: null,
     });
     if (!run.ok) {
       throwHermesSpawnError(run.error);

packages/cli/package.json

@@ -17,6 +17,7 @@
   "scripts": {
     "prepublishOnly": "bash ../../scripts/prepublish-check.sh",
     "build": "rslib build",
+    "pretest": "pnpm --filter @uncaged/nerve-core run build && pnpm --filter @uncaged/nerve-daemon run build",
     "test": "vitest run"
   },
   "dependencies": {

packages/cli/src/__tests__/create-sense.test.ts

@@ -7,7 +7,6 @@ import { describe, expect, it } from "vitest";
 import {
   buildSenseIndexTs,
   buildSenseMigrationSql,
-  buildSensePackageJson,
   buildSenseSchemaTs,
   validateResourceName,
 } from "../commands/create.js";
@@ -46,20 +45,11 @@ describe("buildSenseMigrationSql", () => {
   });
 });
 
-describe("buildSensePackageJson", () => {
-  it("includes esbuild script and sense name", () => {
-    const pkg = JSON.parse(buildSensePackageJson("my-sense"));
-    expect(pkg.name).toBe("nerve-sense-my-sense");
-    expect(pkg.scripts.build).toContain("esbuild");
-    expect(pkg.scripts.build).toContain("src/index.ts");
-    expect(pkg.devDependencies.esbuild).toBeTruthy();
-  });
-});
-
 describe("buildSenseIndexTs", () => {
   it("embeds sense id in stub with TypeScript types", () => {
     const ts = buildSenseIndexTs("my-sense");
     expect(ts).toContain("my-sense");
+    expect(ts).toContain("export { mySense as table }");
     expect(ts).toContain("export async function compute");
     expect(ts).toContain("LibSQLDatabase");
     expect(ts).toContain("Promise<SenseResult>");

packages/cli/src/__tests__/create-workflow.test.ts

@@ -9,7 +9,7 @@ import { mkdirSync, mkdtempSync, readFileSync, rmSync, writeFileSync } from "nod
 import { tmpdir } from "node:os";
 import { join } from "node:path";
 import { afterEach, beforeEach, describe, expect, it } from "vitest";
-import { buildWorkflowPackageJson, buildWorkflowScaffold } from "../commands/create.js";
+import { buildWorkflowScaffold } from "../commands/create.js";
 
 let tmpDir: string;
 
@@ -33,9 +33,11 @@ describe("buildWorkflowScaffold", () => {
     expect(indexTs).toContain("@uncaged/nerve-core");
   });
 
-  it("root index wires moderator and END", () => {
+  it("root index wires moderator with ThreadContext and END", () => {
     const { indexTs } = buildWorkflowScaffold("test");
     expect(indexTs).toContain("moderator");
+    expect(indexTs).toContain("ThreadContext");
+    expect(indexTs).toContain("ctx.steps.length");
     expect(indexTs).toContain("END");
   });
 
@@ -46,9 +48,13 @@ describe("buildWorkflowScaffold", () => {
     expect(indexTs).toContain("./roles/main/index.js");
   });
 
-  it("main role module exports mainRole function", () => {
+  it("main role module exports mainRole with ThreadContext", () => {
     const { roleMainIndexTs } = buildWorkflowScaffold("test");
     expect(roleMainIndexTs).toContain("export async function mainRole");
+    expect(roleMainIndexTs).toContain("ThreadContext");
+    expect(roleMainIndexTs).toContain("RoleResult");
+    expect(roleMainIndexTs).not.toContain("StartStep");
+    expect(roleMainIndexTs).not.toContain("WorkflowMessage");
   });
 
   it("uses different names per call", () => {
@@ -75,21 +81,6 @@ describe("buildWorkflowScaffold", () => {
     const { roleMainPromptMd } = buildWorkflowScaffold("my-flow");
     expect(roleMainPromptMd).toContain("# my-flow — main role");
   });
-
-  it("package.json defines esbuild bundling to dist/", () => {
-    const pkg = JSON.parse(buildWorkflowPackageJson("my-flow")) as {
-      scripts: { build: string };
-      devDependencies: { esbuild: string };
-    };
-    expect(pkg.scripts.build).toContain("esbuild");
-    expect(pkg.scripts.build).toContain("--outdir=dist");
-    expect(pkg.devDependencies.esbuild).toBeTruthy();
-  });
-
-  it("buildWorkflowScaffold includes package.json body", () => {
-    const { packageJson } = buildWorkflowScaffold("wf");
-    expect(JSON.parse(packageJson).scripts.build).toContain("esbuild");
-  });
 });
 
 describe("workflow scaffold file writing (simulated)", () => {

packages/cli/src/__tests__/e2e-create.test.ts

@@ -122,54 +122,49 @@ describe("e2e create", () => {
   });
 
   it(
-    "create workflow scaffolds sources and package.json with esbuild build",
-    { timeout: 10_000 },
+    "create workflow scaffolds sources and root build emits dist/workflows/<name>/index.js",
+    { timeout: 120_000 },
     async () => {
       fakeHome = mkdtempSync(join(tmpdir(), "nerve-create-e2e-"));
       const nerveRoot = join(fakeHome, ".uncaged-nerve");
 
-      await runTestCli(fakeHome, ["init", "--force", "--skip-install"]);
+      await runTestCli(fakeHome, ["init", "--force"]);
 
       const wf = await runTestCli(fakeHome, ["create", "workflow", "e2e-flow"]);
       expect(wf.exitCode).toBe(0);
       expect(wf.stdout).toContain("✅");
 
-      const pkgPath = join(nerveRoot, "workflows", "e2e-flow", "package.json");
-      const indexPath = join(nerveRoot, "workflows", "e2e-flow", "index.ts");
-      const mainRolePath = join(nerveRoot, "workflows", "e2e-flow", "roles", "main", "index.ts");
-      expect(existsSync(pkgPath)).toBe(true);
-      expect(JSON.parse(readFileSync(pkgPath, "utf8")).scripts.build).toContain("esbuild");
+      const wfDir = join(nerveRoot, "workflows", "e2e-flow");
+      const indexPath = join(wfDir, "index.ts");
+      const mainRolePath = join(wfDir, "roles", "main", "index.ts");
+      expect(existsSync(join(wfDir, "package.json"))).toBe(false);
       expect(existsSync(indexPath)).toBe(true);
       expect(existsSync(mainRolePath)).toBe(true);
       expect(readFileSync(indexPath, "utf8")).toContain('name: "e2e-flow"');
       expect(readFileSync(mainRolePath, "utf8")).toContain("e2e-flow started");
+      expect(existsSync(join(nerveRoot, "dist", "workflows", "e2e-flow", "index.js"))).toBe(true);
     },
   );
 
   it(
-    "create sense scaffolds src/index.ts, src/schema.ts, package.json and migration",
-    { timeout: 60_000 },
+    "create sense scaffolds src/, migration, and root build emits dist/senses/<name>/index.js",
+    { timeout: 120_000 },
     async () => {
       fakeHome = mkdtempSync(join(tmpdir(), "nerve-create-e2e-"));
       const nerveRoot = join(fakeHome, ".uncaged-nerve");
 
-      await runTestCli(fakeHome, ["init", "--force", "--skip-install"]);
+      await runTestCli(fakeHome, ["init", "--force"]);
 
       const sense = await runTestCli(fakeHome, ["create", "sense", "e2e-sense"]);
       expect(sense.exitCode).toBe(0);
       expect(sense.stdout).toContain("✅");
 
       const base = join(nerveRoot, "senses", "e2e-sense");
-      expect(existsSync(join(base, "package.json"))).toBe(true);
+      expect(existsSync(join(base, "package.json"))).toBe(false);
       expect(existsSync(join(base, "src", "index.ts"))).toBe(true);
       expect(existsSync(join(base, "src", "schema.ts"))).toBe(true);
       expect(existsSync(join(base, "migrations", "0001_init.sql"))).toBe(true);
-
-      const pkg = JSON.parse(readFileSync(join(base, "package.json"), "utf8"));
-      expect(pkg.scripts.build).toContain("esbuild");
-
-      // pnpm install + build should produce index.js
-      expect(existsSync(join(base, "index.js"))).toBe(true);
+      expect(existsSync(join(nerveRoot, "dist", "senses", "e2e-sense", "index.js"))).toBe(true);
     },
   );
 

packages/cli/src/__tests__/e2e-harness.ts

@@ -37,7 +37,15 @@
  * ```
  */
 
-import { existsSync, mkdirSync, mkdtempSync, rmSync, symlinkSync, writeFileSync } from "node:fs";
+import {
+  existsSync,
+  mkdirSync,
+  mkdtempSync,
+  readFileSync,
+  rmSync,
+  symlinkSync,
+  writeFileSync,
+} from "node:fs";
 import { createRequire } from "node:module";
 import { tmpdir } from "node:os";
 import { dirname, join } from "node:path";
@@ -61,6 +69,27 @@ const nerveDaemonRoot = dirname(require.resolve("@uncaged/nerve-daemon/package.j
 const senseWorkerScript = join(nerveDaemonRoot, "dist", "sense-worker.js");
 const workflowWorkerScript = join(nerveDaemonRoot, "dist", "workflow-worker.js");
 
+function resolveDrizzleOrmPackageRoot(): string {
+  const requireFromDaemon = createRequire(join(nerveDaemonRoot, "package.json"));
+  const entry = requireFromDaemon.resolve("drizzle-orm");
+  let dir = dirname(entry);
+  for (let i = 0; i < 12; i += 1) {
+    const pkgPath = join(dir, "package.json");
+    if (existsSync(pkgPath)) {
+      try {
+        const name = (JSON.parse(readFileSync(pkgPath, "utf8")) as { name: string }).name;
+        if (name === "drizzle-orm") return dir;
+      } catch {
+        // keep walking
+      }
+    }
+    const parent = dirname(dir);
+    if (parent === dir) break;
+    dir = parent;
+  }
+  throw new Error("Could not resolve drizzle-orm package root for e2e harness");
+}
+
 const nerveYamlTemplate = `senses:
   counter:
     group: e2e
@@ -88,9 +117,9 @@ const echoWorkflowIndexJs = `const END = "__end__";
 export default {
   name: "echo",
   roles: {
-    echo: async (start, _messages) => {
+    echo: async (ctx) => {
       await new Promise((r) => setTimeout(r, 350));
-      const p = typeof start.content === "string" ? start.content : "";
+      const p = typeof ctx.start.content === "string" ? ctx.start.content : "";
       return {
         content: p.length > 0 ? "echo:" + p : "echo:empty",
         meta: {},
@@ -121,17 +150,30 @@ api:
   host: 127.0.0.1
 `;
 
-/** Empty migration — counter sense uses only `_signals` (auto-created by daemon). */
-const counterMigration = `-- no-op migration for e2e counter sense
-SELECT 1;
+/** Schema for sense signal rows persisted via \`db.insert(table)\` (see sense-runtime). */
+const counterMigration = `CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS counter_signals (
+  id INTEGER PRIMARY KEY AUTOINCREMENT,
+  count INTEGER,
+  launched INTEGER,
+  idle INTEGER
+);
 `;
 
 /**
  * Minimal counter sense — each compute returns an incrementing count.
- * Does NOT touch the DB directly; signal persistence is handled by the daemon
- * (`runtime.persistSignal`) which writes to `_signals` automatically.
+ * Does NOT touch the DB directly in compute(); the daemon inserts into \`table\`
+ * and persistSignal handles \`_signals\`.
  */
-const counterIndexJs = `let _count = 0;
+const counterIndexJs = `import { integer, sqliteTable } from "drizzle-orm/sqlite-core";
+
+export const table = sqliteTable("counter_signals", {
+  id: integer("id").primaryKey({ autoIncrement: true }),
+  count: integer("count"),
+  launched: integer("launched"),
+  idle: integer("idle"),
+});
+
+let _count = 0;
 export async function compute(_db, _peers, _options) {
   _count += 1;
   return { signal: { count: _count }, workflow: null };
@@ -139,12 +181,21 @@ export async function compute(_db, _peers, _options) {
 `;
 
 /** First trigger launches local noop workflow; later triggers emit a plain signal. */
-const counterIndexJsWithNoopWorkflow = `let _launched = false;
+const counterIndexJsWithNoopWorkflow = `import { integer, sqliteTable } from "drizzle-orm/sqlite-core";
+
+export const table = sqliteTable("counter_signals", {
+  id: integer("id").primaryKey({ autoIncrement: true }),
+  count: integer("count"),
+  launched: integer("launched"),
+  idle: integer("idle"),
+});
+
+let _launched = false;
 export async function compute(_db, _peers, _options) {
   if (!_launched) {
     _launched = true;
     return {
-      signal: { launched: true },
+      signal: { launched: 1 },
       workflow: {
         name: "noop",
         maxRounds: 3,
@@ -153,7 +204,7 @@ export async function compute(_db, _peers, _options) {
       },
     };
   }
-  return { signal: { idle: true }, workflow: null };
+  return { signal: { idle: 1 }, workflow: null };
 }
 `;
 
@@ -209,7 +260,8 @@ function writeWorkspaceLayout(nerveRoot: string, withNoopWorkflow: boolean): voi
   mkdirSync(join(nerveRoot, "data", "senses"), { recursive: true });
   mkdirSync(join(nerveRoot, "data", "blobs"), { recursive: true });
   mkdirSync(join(nerveRoot, "senses", "counter", "migrations"), { recursive: true });
-  mkdirSync(join(nerveRoot, "workflows", "echo", "dist"), { recursive: true });
+  mkdirSync(join(nerveRoot, "dist", "senses", "counter"), { recursive: true });
+  mkdirSync(join(nerveRoot, "dist", "workflows", "echo"), { recursive: true });
   writeFileSync(
     join(nerveRoot, "nerve.yaml"),
     withNoopWorkflow ? nerveYamlWithNoopWorkflow : nerveYamlTemplate,
@@ -221,20 +273,19 @@ function writeWorkspaceLayout(nerveRoot: string, withNoopWorkflow: boolean): voi
     "utf8",
   );
   writeFileSync(
-    join(nerveRoot, "senses", "counter", "index.js"),
+    join(nerveRoot, "dist", "senses", "counter", "index.js"),
     withNoopWorkflow ? counterIndexJsWithNoopWorkflow : counterIndexJs,
     "utf8",
   );
   writeFileSync(
-    join(nerveRoot, "workflows", "echo", "dist", "index.js"),
+    join(nerveRoot, "dist", "workflows", "echo", "index.js"),
     echoWorkflowIndexJs,
     "utf8",
   );
   if (withNoopWorkflow) {
-    mkdirSync(join(nerveRoot, "workflows", "noop", "dist"), { recursive: true });
-    mkdirSync(join(nerveRoot, "workflows", "noop", "migrations"), { recursive: true });
+    mkdirSync(join(nerveRoot, "dist", "workflows", "noop"), { recursive: true });
     writeFileSync(
-      join(nerveRoot, "workflows", "noop", "dist", "index.js"),
+      join(nerveRoot, "dist", "workflows", "noop", "index.js"),
       noopWorkflowIndexJs,
       "utf8",
     );
@@ -267,11 +318,17 @@ function useNoopWorkflow(opts: StartTestDaemonOpts): boolean {
  */
 export function linkWorkspaceDaemonIntoNerveRoot(nerveRoot: string): void {
   const daemonPkgRoot = dirname(require.resolve("@uncaged/nerve-daemon/package.json"));
-  const linkDir = join(nerveRoot, "node_modules", "@uncaged");
-  const linkPath = join(linkDir, "nerve-daemon");
+  const nm = join(nerveRoot, "node_modules");
+  mkdirSync(nm, { recursive: true });
+
+  const linkDir = join(nm, "@uncaged");
   mkdirSync(linkDir, { recursive: true });
-  if (existsSync(linkPath)) return;
-  symlinkSync(daemonPkgRoot, linkPath);
+  const linkPath = join(linkDir, "nerve-daemon");
+  if (!existsSync(linkPath)) symlinkSync(daemonPkgRoot, linkPath);
+
+  const drizzlePkgRoot = resolveDrizzleOrmPackageRoot();
+  const drizzleLink = join(nm, "drizzle-orm");
+  if (!existsSync(drizzleLink)) symlinkSync(drizzlePkgRoot, drizzleLink);
 }
 
 /**

packages/cli/src/__tests__/e2e-validate-init.test.ts

@@ -202,10 +202,9 @@ describe("e2e init", () => {
     // Verify key files exist
     expect(existsSync(join(nerveRoot, "nerve.yaml"))).toBe(true);
     expect(existsSync(join(nerveRoot, "package.json"))).toBe(true);
-    expect(existsSync(join(nerveRoot, "pnpm-workspace.yaml"))).toBe(true);
+    expect(existsSync(join(nerveRoot, "scripts", "build.mjs"))).toBe(true);
     expect(existsSync(join(nerveRoot, "biome.json"))).toBe(true);
     expect(existsSync(join(nerveRoot, ".gitignore"))).toBe(true);
-    expect(existsSync(join(nerveRoot, "senses", "cpu-usage", "package.json"))).toBe(true);
     expect(existsSync(join(nerveRoot, "senses", "cpu-usage", "src", "index.ts"))).toBe(true);
     expect(existsSync(join(nerveRoot, "senses", "cpu-usage", "src", "schema.ts"))).toBe(true);
     expect(existsSync(join(nerveRoot, "senses", "cpu-usage", "migrations", "0001_init.sql"))).toBe(
@@ -214,19 +213,14 @@ describe("e2e init", () => {
     expect(existsSync(join(nerveRoot, ".cursor", "rules", "nerve-skills.mdc"))).toBe(true);
 
     const pkgJson = readFileSync(join(nerveRoot, "package.json"), "utf8");
-    expect(pkgJson).toContain('"@uncaged/nerve-skills": "latest"');
-    expect(pkgJson).toContain('"build": "pnpm -r build"');
+    expect(pkgJson).not.toContain("nerve-skills");
+    expect(pkgJson).toContain('"build": "node scripts/build.mjs"');
+    expect(pkgJson).toContain('"esbuild": "^0.27.0"');
 
-    const workspaceYaml = readFileSync(join(nerveRoot, "pnpm-workspace.yaml"), "utf8");
-    expect(workspaceYaml).toContain("workflows/*");
-    expect(workspaceYaml).toContain("senses/*");
-
-    const sensePkgJson = readFileSync(
-      join(nerveRoot, "senses", "cpu-usage", "package.json"),
-      "utf8",
-    );
-    expect(sensePkgJson).toContain("nerve-sense-cpu-usage");
-    expect(sensePkgJson).toContain("esbuild");
+    const buildScript = readFileSync(join(nerveRoot, "scripts", "build.mjs"), "utf8");
+    expect(buildScript).toContain('path.join(root, "senses")');
+    expect(buildScript).toContain('path.join(root, "workflows")');
+    expect(buildScript).toContain("dist");
   });
 
   it("generated nerve.yaml passes validate", { timeout: 10_000 }, async () => {

packages/cli/src/commands/create.ts

@@ -20,39 +20,18 @@ export type WorkflowScaffoldFiles = {
   indexTs: string;
   roleMainIndexTs: string;
   roleMainPromptMd: string;
-  packageJson: string;
 };
 
-export function buildWorkflowPackageJson(name: string): string {
-  return `${JSON.stringify(
-    {
-      name: `nerve-workflow-${name}`,
-      private: true,
-      type: "module",
-      scripts: {
-        build:
-          "esbuild index.ts --bundle --platform=node --format=esm --outdir=dist --packages=external",
-      },
-      devDependencies: {
-        esbuild: "^0.27.0",
-      },
-    },
-    null,
-    2,
-  )}\n`;
-}
-
 export function buildWorkflowScaffold(name: string): WorkflowScaffoldFiles {
   return {
     indexTs: buildWorkflowIndexTs(name),
     roleMainIndexTs: buildWorkflowMainRoleIndexTs(name),
     roleMainPromptMd: buildWorkflowMainRolePromptMd(name),
-    packageJson: buildWorkflowPackageJson(name),
   };
 }
 
 function buildWorkflowIndexTs(name: string): string {
-  return `import type { WorkflowDefinition } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
+  return `import type { ThreadContext, WorkflowDefinition } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
 import { END } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
 
 import { mainRole } from "./roles/main/index.js";
@@ -64,8 +43,8 @@ const workflow: WorkflowDefinition<Record<"main", MainMeta>> = {
   roles: {
     main: mainRole,
   },
-  moderator({ steps }) {
-    if (steps.length === 0) {
+  moderator(ctx: ThreadContext<Record<"main", MainMeta>>) {
+    if (ctx.steps.length === 0) {
       return "main";
     }
     return END;
@@ -77,18 +56,16 @@ export default workflow;
 }
 
 function buildWorkflowMainRoleIndexTs(name: string): string {
-  return `import type { RoleResult, StartStep, WorkflowMessage } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
+  return `import type { RoleResult, ThreadContext } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
 
 /**
  * Main role — implement LLM calls, scripts, HTTP, etc.
  * Optional: align behavior with \`prompt.md\` in this directory.
  */
 export async function mainRole(
-  start: StartStep,
-  messages: WorkflowMessage[],
+  ctx: ThreadContext,
 ): Promise<RoleResult<Record<string, unknown>>> {
-  void start;
-  void messages;
+  void ctx;
   // TODO: implement your role logic here
   return {
     content: "${name} started",
@@ -134,32 +111,14 @@ export const ${exportName} = sqliteTable("${table}", {
 `;
 }
 
-export function buildSensePackageJson(name: string): string {
-  return `${JSON.stringify(
-    {
-      name: `nerve-sense-${name}`,
-      private: true,
-      type: "module",
-      scripts: {
-        build:
-          "esbuild src/index.ts --bundle --platform=node --format=esm --outdir=. --out-extension:.js=.js --packages=external",
-      },
-      devDependencies: {
-        esbuild: "^0.27.0",
-        "drizzle-orm": "*",
-      },
-    },
-    null,
-    2,
-  )}\n`;
-}
-
 export function buildSenseIndexTs(senseId: string): string {
   const exportName = senseIdToSchemaExportName(senseId);
   return `import type { LibSQLDatabase } from "drizzle-orm/libsql";
 
 import { ${exportName} } from "./schema.js";
 
+export { ${exportName} as table } from "./schema.js";
+
 type SenseResult = {
   signal: { label: string; ts: number };
   workflow: null;
@@ -247,30 +206,39 @@ const createWorkflowCommand = defineCommand({
 
     mkdirSync(workflowDir, { recursive: true });
     const scaffold = buildWorkflowScaffold(args.name);
-    writeFile(join(workflowDir, "package.json"), scaffold.packageJson);
     writeFile(join(workflowDir, "index.ts"), scaffold.indexTs);
     writeFile(join(workflowDir, "roles", "main", "index.ts"), scaffold.roleMainIndexTs);
     writeFile(join(workflowDir, "roles", "main", "prompt.md"), scaffold.roleMainPromptMd);
 
     process.stdout.write("✅ Workflow scaffolded:\n");
-    process.stdout.write(`   ${join(workflowDir, "package.json")}\n`);
     process.stdout.write(`   ${join(workflowDir, "index.ts")}\n`);
     process.stdout.write(`   ${join(workflowDir, "roles", "main", "index.ts")}\n`);
     process.stdout.write(`   ${join(workflowDir, "roles", "main", "prompt.md")}\n`);
+
+    process.stdout.write("\nBuilding workspace (workflows + senses)…\n");
+    try {
+      await spawnAsync("pnpm", ["run", "build"], nerveRoot);
+      process.stdout.write(
+        `✅ Build complete — ${join("dist", "workflows", args.name, "index.js")} ready.\n`,
+      );
+    } catch {
+      process.stdout.write(`⚠️ Build failed. Run manually:\n   cd ${nerveRoot} && pnpm run build\n`);
+    }
+
     process.stdout.write("\n💡 Next steps:\n");
-    process.stdout.write(
-      `   1. In ${workflowDir}, run \`npm install\` then \`npm run build\` (bundles to dist/index.js).\n`,
-    );
-    process.stdout.write("   2. Add to nerve.yaml:\n");
+    process.stdout.write("   1. Add to nerve.yaml:\n");
     process.stdout.write("         workflows:\n");
     process.stdout.write(`           ${args.name}:\n`);
     process.stdout.write("             concurrency: 1\n");
     process.stdout.write("             overflow: drop\n");
     process.stdout.write(
-      `   3. Edit ${join(workflowDir, "roles", "main", "index.ts")} (and optional prompt.md).\n`,
+      `   2. Edit ${join(workflowDir, "roles", "main", "index.ts")} (and optional prompt.md).\n`,
     );
     process.stdout.write(
-      `   4. Adjust moderator routing in ${join(workflowDir, "index.ts")} if you add roles.\n`,
+      `   3. Adjust moderator routing in ${join(workflowDir, "index.ts")} if you add roles.\n`,
+    );
+    process.stdout.write(
+      `   4. After edits, run \`pnpm run build\` from the workspace root (${nerveRoot}); output is dist/workflows/<name>/index.js.\n`,
     );
     process.stdout.write("   5. Run `nerve start` to launch the daemon.\n");
   },
@@ -311,26 +279,23 @@ const createSenseCommand = defineCommand({
 
     mkdirSync(join(senseDir, "src"), { recursive: true });
     mkdirSync(join(senseDir, "migrations"), { recursive: true });
-    writeFile(join(senseDir, "package.json"), buildSensePackageJson(args.name));
     writeFile(join(senseDir, "src", "index.ts"), buildSenseIndexTs(args.name));
     writeFile(join(senseDir, "src", "schema.ts"), buildSenseSchemaTs(args.name));
     writeFile(join(senseDir, "migrations", "0001_init.sql"), buildSenseMigrationSql(args.name));
 
     process.stdout.write("✅ Sense scaffolded:\n");
-    process.stdout.write(`   ${join(senseDir, "package.json")}\n`);
     process.stdout.write(`   ${join(senseDir, "src", "index.ts")}\n`);
     process.stdout.write(`   ${join(senseDir, "src", "schema.ts")}\n`);
     process.stdout.write(`   ${join(senseDir, "migrations", "0001_init.sql")}\n`);
 
-    process.stdout.write("\nInstalling sense dependencies and building…\n");
+    process.stdout.write("\nBuilding workspace (senses + workflows)…\n");
     try {
-      await spawnAsync("pnpm", ["install", "--no-cache", "--ignore-workspace"], senseDir);
-      await spawnAsync("pnpm", ["run", "build"], senseDir);
-      process.stdout.write("✅ Build complete — index.js ready.\n");
-    } catch {
+      await spawnAsync("pnpm", ["run", "build"], nerveRoot);
       process.stdout.write(
-        `⚠️ Build failed. Run manually:\n   cd ${senseDir} && pnpm install --no-cache --ignore-workspace && pnpm run build\n`,
+        `✅ Build complete — ${join("dist", "senses", args.name, "index.js")} ready.\n`,
       );
+    } catch {
+      process.stdout.write(`⚠️ Build failed. Run manually:\n   cd ${nerveRoot} && pnpm run build\n`);
     }
 
     process.stdout.write("\n💡 Next steps:\n");
@@ -343,7 +308,9 @@ const createSenseCommand = defineCommand({
     process.stdout.write(
       `   2. Edit ${join(senseDir, "src", "index.ts")} to implement ${args.name}.\n`,
     );
-    process.stdout.write(`   3. Re-run \`pnpm run build\` in ${senseDir} after edits.\n`);
+    process.stdout.write(
+      `   3. Re-run \`pnpm run build\` from the workspace root (${nerveRoot}) after edits.\n`,
+    );
     process.stdout.write("   4. Run `nerve start` to launch the daemon.\n");
   },
 });

packages/cli/src/commands/init.ts

@@ -17,11 +17,6 @@ senses:
     interval: 10s
 `;
 
-const PNPM_WORKSPACE_YAML = `packages:
-  - 'workflows/*'
-  - 'senses/*'
-`;
-
 const BIOME_JSON = `{
   "$schema": "https://biomejs.dev/schemas/1.9.0/schema.json",
   "formatter": {
@@ -54,17 +49,20 @@ const PACKAGE_JSON = `${JSON.stringify(
     private: true,
     type: "module",
     scripts: {
-      build: "pnpm -r build",
+      build: "node scripts/build.mjs",
     },
     dependencies: {
       "@uncaged/nerve-core": "latest",
       "@uncaged/nerve-daemon": "latest",
-      "@uncaged/nerve-skills": "latest",
       "drizzle-orm": "latest",
+      zod: "^4.3.6",
     },
     devDependencies: {
       "@biomejs/biome": "latest",
+      "@types/node": "^22.0.0",
       "drizzle-kit": "latest",
+      esbuild: "^0.27.0",
+      typescript: "^5.7.0",
     },
     pnpm: {
       onlyBuiltDependencies: ["esbuild"],
@@ -74,6 +72,54 @@ const PACKAGE_JSON = `${JSON.stringify(
   2,
 )}\n`;
 
+const BUILD_MJS = `import * as esbuild from "esbuild";
+import fs from "node:fs";
+import path from "node:path";
+import { fileURLToPath } from "node:url";
+
+const root = path.join(path.dirname(fileURLToPath(import.meta.url)), "..");
+const dist = path.join(root, "dist");
+
+const opts = {
+  bundle: true,
+  platform: "node",
+  format: "esm",
+  packages: "external",
+};
+
+function listDirs(dir) {
+  if (!fs.existsSync(dir)) return [];
+  return fs
+    .readdirSync(dir)
+    .filter((name) => !name.startsWith(".") && !name.startsWith("_"))
+    .map((name) => ({ name, full: path.join(dir, name) }))
+    .filter(({ full }) => fs.statSync(full).isDirectory());
+}
+
+async function main() {
+  // Clean dist/
+  fs.rmSync(dist, { recursive: true, force: true });
+
+  for (const { name, full } of listDirs(path.join(root, "senses"))) {
+    const entry = path.join(full, "src", "index.ts");
+    if (!fs.existsSync(entry)) continue;
+    const outfile = path.join(dist, "senses", name, "index.js");
+    fs.mkdirSync(path.dirname(outfile), { recursive: true });
+    await esbuild.build({ ...opts, entryPoints: [entry], outfile });
+  }
+
+  for (const { name, full } of listDirs(path.join(root, "workflows"))) {
+    const entry = path.join(full, "index.ts");
+    if (!fs.existsSync(entry)) continue;
+    const outfile = path.join(dist, "workflows", name, "index.js");
+    fs.mkdirSync(path.dirname(outfile), { recursive: true });
+    await esbuild.build({ ...opts, entryPoints: [entry], outfile });
+  }
+}
+
+await main();
+`;
+
 const GITIGNORE = `data/
 logs/
 nerve.pid
@@ -83,31 +129,26 @@ knowledge.db
 
 const NERVE_SKILLS_MDC = `---
 description: >-
-  Nerve skills package — where bundled Agent Skills live in this workspace and how to use them
+  Where Agent Skills live in this Nerve workspace and how to use them with Cursor
 alwaysApply: true
 ---
 
-# Nerve skills (\`@uncaged/nerve-skills\`)
+# Nerve Agent Skills
 
-This workspace lists **@uncaged/nerve-skills** in \`package.json\`. It ships **Agent Skills** (one directory per skill, each with a \`SKILL.md\`) for Nerve development and related tasks.
+**Agent Skills** are directories that contain a \`SKILL.md\` (with YAML frontmatter). Cursor loads them from **Project Skills** paths (for example \`.cursor/skills/\` or your global skills directory).
 
-## After install
+## Getting Nerve-oriented skills
 
-Run your package manager in this workspace (e.g. \`pnpm install\`, \`npm install\` — whatever \`nerve init\` used). Then skills are on disk at:
+There is no separate npm package for skills in the default workspace. To align with Nerve CLI, daemon, and monorepo conventions:
 
-- \`node_modules/@uncaged/nerve-skills/<skill-id>/SKILL.md\`
-
-Example (current catalog):
-
-- **nerve-dev** — Nerve architecture, CLI, sense/workflow patterns, \`nerve.yaml\`, and conventions: read \`node_modules/@uncaged/nerve-skills/nerve-dev/SKILL.md\`.
+1. Copy or symlink skill folders from the **Nerve** repository (e.g. \`packages/skills/*/\`) into \`.cursor/skills/\`, **or**
+2. Follow project documentation and \`CLAUDE.md\` / \`.cursor/rules/\` in this repo.
 
 ## How to use in an agent
 
-1. For tasks that match a skill’s **description** (in the \`SKILL.md\` frontmatter), open that \`SKILL.md\` and follow its structure and checklists.
-2. Prefer the skill as the **source of truth** for Nerve-specific conventions over generic assumptions.
-3. If the catalog grows, new skills appear as new sibling directories under \`node_modules/@uncaged/nerve-skills/\`.
-
-Do not commit \`node_modules\`; the dependency is the supported way to get and update skills to match \`@uncaged/nerve-skills\` on npm.
+1. When a task matches a skill’s **description** (in \`SKILL.md\` frontmatter), open that file and follow its steps.
+2. Prefer those conventions for sense/workflow layout, \`nerve.yaml\`, and tooling over generic guesses.
+3. Keep skills versioned with your dotfiles or project; update them when you upgrade Nerve.
 `;
 
 const execFileAsync = promisify(execFile);
@@ -124,6 +165,8 @@ export const cpuUsage = sqliteTable("cpu_usage", {
 
 const CPU_INDEX_TS = `import { cpus } from "node:os";
 
+export { cpuUsage as table } from "./schema.js";
+
 type SenseResult = {
   signal: { model: string; loadPercent: number; ts: number };
   workflow: null;
@@ -154,24 +197,6 @@ export async function compute(): Promise<SenseResult> {
 }
 `;
 
-const CPU_SENSE_PACKAGE_JSON = `${JSON.stringify(
-  {
-    name: "nerve-sense-cpu-usage",
-    private: true,
-    type: "module",
-    scripts: {
-      build:
-        "esbuild src/index.ts --bundle --platform=node --format=esm --outdir=. --out-extension:.js=.js --packages=external",
-    },
-    devDependencies: {
-      esbuild: "^0.27.0",
-      "drizzle-orm": "*",
-    },
-  },
-  null,
-  2,
-)}\n`;
-
 const CPU_MIGRATION_SQL = `CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS cpu_usage (
   id          INTEGER PRIMARY KEY AUTOINCREMENT,
   ts          INTEGER NOT NULL,
@@ -334,10 +359,9 @@ async function runInitWorkspace(force: boolean, skipInstall = false): Promise<vo
 
   writeFile(join(nerveRoot, "nerve.yaml"), NERVE_YAML);
   writeFile(join(nerveRoot, "package.json"), PACKAGE_JSON);
-  writeFile(join(nerveRoot, "pnpm-workspace.yaml"), PNPM_WORKSPACE_YAML);
+  writeFile(join(nerveRoot, "scripts", "build.mjs"), BUILD_MJS);
   writeFile(join(nerveRoot, "biome.json"), BIOME_JSON);
   writeFile(join(nerveRoot, ".gitignore"), GITIGNORE);
-  writeFile(join(nerveRoot, "senses", "cpu-usage", "package.json"), CPU_SENSE_PACKAGE_JSON);
   writeFile(join(nerveRoot, "senses", "cpu-usage", "src", "index.ts"), CPU_INDEX_TS);
   writeFile(join(nerveRoot, "senses", "cpu-usage", "src", "schema.ts"), CPU_SCHEMA_TS);
   writeFile(

packages/core/src/__tests__/config.test.ts

@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 import { describe, expect, it } from "vitest";
 
-import { parseNerveConfig } from "../parse-nerve-config.js";
+import { parseNerveConfig } from "../config.js";
 
 const VALID_CONFIG = `
 senses:

packages/core/src/__tests__/daemon-ipc-protocol.test.ts

@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 import { describe, expect, it } from "vitest";
 
-import { parseDaemonIpcRequest } from "../daemon-ipc-protocol.js";
+import { parseDaemonIpcRequest } from "../daemon.js";
 
 describe("parseDaemonIpcRequest", () => {
   it("parses trigger-workflow", () => {

packages/core/src/__tests__/knowledge-config.test.ts

@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 import { describe, expect, it } from "vitest";
 
-import { parseKnowledgeYaml } from "../knowledge-config.js";
+import { parseKnowledgeYaml } from "../config.js";
 
 describe("parseKnowledgeYaml", () => {
   it("parses include and exclude glob lists", () => {

packages/core/src/__tests__/sense-workflow-directive.test.ts

@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 import { describe, expect, it } from "vitest";
 
-import { parseWorkflowTrigger, routeSenseComputeOutput } from "../sense-workflow-directive.js";
+import { parseWorkflowTrigger, routeSenseComputeOutput } from "../sense.js";
 
 describe("parseWorkflowTrigger", () => {
   it("accepts a valid trigger object", () => {

packages/core/src/__tests__/spawn-safe.test.ts

@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 import { describe, expect, it } from "vitest";
 
-import { spawnSafe } from "../spawn-safe.js";
+import { spawnSafe } from "../util.js";
 
 describe("spawnSafe", () => {
   it("passes argv literally without shell interpretation (injection-safe)", async () => {

packages/core/src/agent-adapter-ids.ts

@@ -1,5 +0,0 @@
-/**
- * Agent adapter ids referenced by tooling / docs (RFC-003).
- * Workflows import adapter packages directly; echo may be used in tests via a small factory.
- */
-export const KNOWN_AGENT_ADAPTER_IDS = ["echo", "cursor", "hermes", "codex"] as const;

packages/core/src/agent.ts

@@ -21,3 +21,9 @@ export class ExtractError extends Error {
     Object.setPrototypeOf(this, new.target.prototype);
   }
 }
+
+/**
+ * Agent adapter ids referenced by tooling / docs (RFC-003).
+ * Workflows import adapter packages directly; echo may be used in tests via a small factory.
+ */
+export const KNOWN_AGENT_ADAPTER_IDS = ["echo", "cursor", "hermes", "codex"] as const;

packages/core/src/config.ts

@@ -1,5 +1,7 @@
-/** Default max rows kept in each sense's `_signals` SQLite table (see `retention` on `SenseConfig`). */
-export const DEFAULT_SENSE_SIGNAL_RETENTION = 10_000;
+import { parse } from "yaml";
+
+import { type Result, err, isPlainRecord, ok, parseDurationStringToMs } from "./util.js";
+import { DEFAULT_ENGINE_MAX_ROUNDS } from "./workflow.js";
 
 export type SenseConfig = {
   group: string;
@@ -75,3 +77,398 @@ export type NerveConfig = {
   /** Global extract defaults; `null` when the section is omitted. */
   extract: ExtractConfig | null;
 };
+
+export type KnowledgeConfig = {
+  include: ReadonlyArray<string>;
+  exclude: ReadonlyArray<string>;
+};
+
+/** Default max rows kept in each sense's `_signals` SQLite table (see `retention` on `SenseConfig`). */
+export const DEFAULT_SENSE_SIGNAL_RETENTION = 10_000;
+
+function isValidGroupName(value: string): boolean {
+  return /^[a-zA-Z0-9_-]+$/.test(value);
+}
+
+function parseRetentionField(name: string, field: unknown): Result<number> {
+  if (field === undefined || field === null) {
+    return ok(DEFAULT_SENSE_SIGNAL_RETENTION);
+  }
+  if (typeof field !== "number" || !Number.isInteger(field) || field < 1) {
+    return err(new Error(`senses.${name}.retention: must be a positive integer`));
+  }
+  return ok(field);
+}
+
+function parseDurationField(field: unknown, label: string): Result<number | null> {
+  if (field === undefined || field === null) return ok(null);
+  if (typeof field !== "string") {
+    return err(
+      new Error(`${label}: invalid duration "${field}" (expected e.g. "5s", "10m", "1h")`),
+    );
+  }
+  const msResult = parseDurationStringToMs(field);
+  if (!msResult.ok) {
+    return err(new Error(`${label}: ${msResult.error.message}`));
+  }
+  return ok(msResult.value);
+}
+
+function validateSenseConfig(name: string, raw: unknown): Result<SenseConfig> {
+  if (!isPlainRecord(raw)) {
+    return err(new Error(`senses.${name}: must be an object`));
+  }
+
+  const obj = raw;
+
+  if (typeof obj.group !== "string" || obj.group.trim() === "") {
+    return err(new Error(`senses.${name}.group: required string`));
+  }
+
+  if (!isValidGroupName(obj.group)) {
+    return err(
+      new Error(
+        `senses.${name}.group: invalid name "${obj.group}" (only alphanumeric, underscore, hyphen allowed)`,
+      ),
+    );
+  }
+
+  const throttleResult = parseDurationField(obj.throttle, `senses.${name}.throttle`);
+  if (!throttleResult.ok) return throttleResult;
+
+  const timeoutResult = parseDurationField(obj.timeout, `senses.${name}.timeout`);
+  if (!timeoutResult.ok) return timeoutResult;
+
+  const graceResult = parseDurationField(obj.grace_period, `senses.${name}.grace_period`);
+  if (!graceResult.ok) return graceResult;
+
+  const retentionResult = parseRetentionField(name, obj.retention);
+  if (!retentionResult.ok) return retentionResult;
+
+  const intervalResult = parseDurationField(obj.interval, `senses.${name}.interval`);
+  if (!intervalResult.ok) return intervalResult;
+
+  let on: string[] = [];
+  if (obj.on !== undefined && obj.on !== null) {
+    if (
+      !Array.isArray(obj.on) ||
+      !obj.on.every((item: unknown): item is string => typeof item === "string")
+    ) {
+      return err(new Error(`senses.${name}.on: must be an array of strings`));
+    }
+    on = obj.on;
+  }
+
+  return ok({
+    group: obj.group,
+    throttle: throttleResult.value,
+    timeout: timeoutResult.value,
+    gracePeriod: graceResult.value,
+    retention: retentionResult.value,
+    interval: intervalResult.value,
+    on,
+  });
+}
+
+function parseEngineMaxRounds(obj: Record<string, unknown>): Result<number> {
+  if (obj.max_rounds === undefined || obj.max_rounds === null) {
+    return ok(DEFAULT_ENGINE_MAX_ROUNDS);
+  }
+  if (
+    typeof obj.max_rounds !== "number" ||
+    !Number.isInteger(obj.max_rounds) ||
+    obj.max_rounds < 1
+  ) {
+    return err(new Error("max_rounds: must be a positive integer"));
+  }
+  return ok(obj.max_rounds);
+}
+
+function validateWorkflowConfig(name: string, raw: unknown): Result<WorkflowConfig> {
+  if (!isPlainRecord(raw)) {
+    return err(new Error(`workflows.${name}: must be an object`));
+  }
+
+  const obj = raw;
+
+  if (
+    typeof obj.concurrency !== "number" ||
+    !Number.isInteger(obj.concurrency) ||
+    obj.concurrency < 1
+  ) {
+    return err(new Error(`workflows.${name}.concurrency: must be a positive integer`));
+  }
+
+  if (obj.overflow !== "drop" && obj.overflow !== "queue") {
+    return err(new Error(`workflows.${name}.overflow: must be "drop" or "queue"`));
+  }
+
+  if (obj.overflow === "drop") {
+    if (obj.max_queue !== undefined && obj.max_queue !== null) {
+      return err(new Error(`workflows.${name}: max_queue is not allowed with overflow "drop"`));
+    }
+    return ok({
+      concurrency: obj.concurrency,
+      overflow: "drop" as const,
+    });
+  }
+
+  // overflow: "queue"
+  let maxQueue = 100; // default
+  if (obj.max_queue !== undefined && obj.max_queue !== null) {
+    if (
+      typeof obj.max_queue !== "number" ||
+      !Number.isInteger(obj.max_queue) ||
+      obj.max_queue < 1
+    ) {
+      return err(new Error(`workflows.${name}.max_queue: must be a positive integer`));
+    }
+    maxQueue = obj.max_queue;
+  }
+
+  return ok({
+    concurrency: obj.concurrency,
+    overflow: "queue" as const,
+    maxQueue,
+  });
+}
+
+function parseSenses(
+  obj: Record<string, unknown>,
+): Result<{ senses: Record<string, SenseConfig> }> {
+  if (!isPlainRecord(obj.senses)) {
+    return err(new Error("senses: required object"));
+  }
+
+  const sensesRaw = obj.senses;
+  const senses: Record<string, SenseConfig> = {};
+
+  for (const [name, senseRaw] of Object.entries(sensesRaw)) {
+    const result = validateSenseConfig(name, senseRaw);
+    if (!result.ok) return result;
+    senses[name] = result.value;
+  }
+
+  return ok({ senses });
+}
+
+const DEFAULT_API_BIND_HOST = "127.0.0.1";
+
+/** Hosts that may bind the HTTP API without `api.token` (loopback-only). */
+function isLoopbackOnlyApiHost(host: string): boolean {
+  const h = host.trim();
+  return h === "127.0.0.1" || h.toLowerCase() === "localhost";
+}
+
+function parseApiTokenField(api: Record<string, unknown>): Result<string | null> {
+  if (api.token === undefined || api.token === null) {
+    return ok(null);
+  }
+  if (typeof api.token !== "string") {
+    return err(new Error("api.token: must be a string when provided"));
+  }
+  if (api.token.length === 0) {
+    return err(new Error("api.token: must not be empty when provided"));
+  }
+  return ok(api.token);
+}
+
+function parseApiHostField(api: Record<string, unknown>): Result<string> {
+  if (api.host === undefined || api.host === null) {
+    return ok(DEFAULT_API_BIND_HOST);
+  }
+  if (typeof api.host !== "string") {
+    return err(new Error("api.host: must be a string when provided"));
+  }
+  if (api.host.length === 0) {
+    return err(new Error("api.host: must not be empty when provided"));
+  }
+  return ok(api.host);
+}
+
+function parseApiConfig(obj: Record<string, unknown>): Result<NerveApiConfig> {
+  if (obj.api === undefined || obj.api === null) {
+    return ok({ port: null, token: null, host: DEFAULT_API_BIND_HOST });
+  }
+  if (!isPlainRecord(obj.api)) {
+    return err(new Error("api: must be an object if provided"));
+  }
+  const api = obj.api;
+  if (api.port === undefined || api.port === null) {
+    return ok({ port: null, token: null, host: DEFAULT_API_BIND_HOST });
+  }
+  if (
+    typeof api.port !== "number" ||
+    !Number.isInteger(api.port) ||
+    api.port < 1 ||
+    api.port > 65_535
+  ) {
+    return err(new Error("api.port: must be an integer between 1 and 65535 if provided"));
+  }
+
+  const tokenResult = parseApiTokenField(api);
+  if (!tokenResult.ok) return tokenResult;
+  const hostResult = parseApiHostField(api);
+  if (!hostResult.ok) return hostResult;
+
+  if (!isLoopbackOnlyApiHost(hostResult.value) && tokenResult.value === null) {
+    return err(
+      new Error("api.host binds to non-loopback address, api.token is required for security"),
+    );
+  }
+
+  return ok({ port: api.port, token: tokenResult.value, host: hostResult.value });
+}
+
+function parseWorkflows(obj: Record<string, unknown>): Result<Record<string, WorkflowConfig>> {
+  if (obj.workflows === undefined || obj.workflows === null) return ok({});
+
+  if (!isPlainRecord(obj.workflows)) {
+    return err(new Error("workflows: must be an object if provided"));
+  }
+
+  const workflowsRaw = obj.workflows;
+  const workflows: Record<string, WorkflowConfig> = {};
+
+  for (const [name, wfRaw] of Object.entries(workflowsRaw)) {
+    const result = validateWorkflowConfig(name, wfRaw);
+    if (!result.ok) return result;
+    workflows[name] = result.value;
+  }
+
+  return ok(workflows);
+}
+
+function parseExtract(obj: Record<string, unknown>): Result<ExtractConfig | null> {
+  if (obj.extract === undefined || obj.extract === null) {
+    return ok(null);
+  }
+
+  if (!isPlainRecord(obj.extract)) {
+    return err(new Error("extract: must be an object if provided"));
+  }
+
+  const ext = obj.extract;
+
+  if (typeof ext.provider !== "string" || ext.provider.trim() === "") {
+    return err(new Error("extract.provider: required non-empty string"));
+  }
+
+  if (typeof ext.model !== "string" || ext.model.trim() === "") {
+    return err(new Error("extract.model: required non-empty string"));
+  }
+
+  return ok({ provider: ext.provider, model: ext.model });
+}
+
+export function parseNerveConfig(raw: string): Result<NerveConfig> {
+  let parsed: unknown;
+
+  try {
+    parsed = parse(raw);
+  } catch (e) {
+    const message = e instanceof Error ? e.message : String(e);
+    return err(new Error(`YAML parse error: ${message}`));
+  }
+
+  if (!isPlainRecord(parsed)) {
+    return err(new Error("Config must be a YAML object"));
+  }
+
+  const obj = parsed;
+
+  const sensesResult = parseSenses(obj);
+  if (!sensesResult.ok) return sensesResult;
+  const { senses } = sensesResult.value;
+
+  // Legacy top-level `reflexes` is rejected; each sense carries `interval` / `on` for the sense scheduler.
+  if (Object.hasOwn(obj, "reflexes")) {
+    return err(
+      new Error(
+        "reflexes: top-level key is no longer supported; set `interval` and `on` on each sense under `senses.<name>`",
+      ),
+    );
+  }
+
+  const workflowsResult = parseWorkflows(obj);
+  if (!workflowsResult.ok) return workflowsResult;
+
+  const maxRoundsResult = parseEngineMaxRounds(obj);
+  if (!maxRoundsResult.ok) return maxRoundsResult;
+
+  const apiResult = parseApiConfig(obj);
+  if (!apiResult.ok) return apiResult;
+
+  if (Object.hasOwn(obj, "agents")) {
+    return err(
+      new Error(
+        "agents: key is no longer supported — declare adapters on workflow roles (RFC-003)",
+      ),
+    );
+  }
+
+  const extractResult = parseExtract(obj);
+  if (!extractResult.ok) return extractResult;
+
+  return ok({
+    maxRounds: maxRoundsResult.value,
+    senses,
+    workflows: workflowsResult.value,
+    api: apiResult.value,
+    extract: extractResult.value,
+  });
+}
+
+function parseStringList(field: unknown, label: string): Result<ReadonlyArray<string>> {
+  if (field === undefined || field === null) {
+    return ok([]);
+  }
+  if (!Array.isArray(field)) {
+    return err(new Error(`${label}: must be an array of strings`));
+  }
+  const out: string[] = [];
+  for (let i = 0; i < field.length; i++) {
+    const item = field[i];
+    if (typeof item !== "string" || item.length === 0) {
+      return err(new Error(`${label}[${String(i)}]: must be a non-empty string`));
+    }
+    out.push(item);
+  }
+  return ok(out);
+}
+
+/**
+ * Parse `knowledge.yaml` at the repo root (RFC-003 Knowledge Layer).
+ * `include` / `exclude` entries are glob patterns resolved against the repo root.
+ */
+export function parseKnowledgeYaml(raw: string): Result<KnowledgeConfig> {
+  let parsed: unknown;
+  try {
+    parsed = parse(raw);
+  } catch (e) {
+    const message = e instanceof Error ? e.message : String(e);
+    return err(new Error(`YAML parse error: ${message}`));
+  }
+
+  if (parsed === undefined || parsed === null) {
+    return ok({ include: [], exclude: [] });
+  }
+
+  if (!isPlainRecord(parsed)) {
+    return err(new Error("knowledge.yaml: root must be a mapping"));
+  }
+
+  const includeResult = parseStringList(parsed.include, "include");
+  if (!includeResult.ok) {
+    return includeResult;
+  }
+  const excludeResult = parseStringList(parsed.exclude, "exclude");
+  if (!excludeResult.ok) {
+    return excludeResult;
+  }
+
+  return ok({
+    include: includeResult.value,
+    exclude: excludeResult.value,
+  });
+}

packages/core/src/daemon-payload-guards.ts

@@ -1,33 +0,0 @@
-import type { WorkflowStatus } from "./daemon-ipc-protocol.js";
-import { isPlainRecord } from "./is-plain-record.js";
-import type { SenseInfo } from "./sense.js";
-
-/** Type guard for JSON {@link SenseInfo} payloads from daemon HTTP/IPC. */
-export function isSenseInfo(value: unknown): value is SenseInfo {
-  if (!isPlainRecord(value)) return false;
-  return (
-    typeof value.name === "string" &&
-    typeof value.group === "string" &&
-    (value.throttle === null || typeof value.throttle === "number") &&
-    (value.timeout === null || typeof value.timeout === "number") &&
-    Array.isArray(value.triggers) &&
-    value.triggers.every((t: unknown) => typeof t === "string") &&
-    (value.lastSignalTimestamp === null || typeof value.lastSignalTimestamp === "number")
-  );
-}
-
-/** Type guard for JSON {@link WorkflowStatus} payloads from daemon HTTP/IPC. */
-export function isWorkflowStatus(value: unknown): value is WorkflowStatus {
-  if (!isPlainRecord(value)) return false;
-  const cfg = value.config;
-  if (!isPlainRecord(cfg)) return false;
-  return (
-    typeof value.name === "string" &&
-    typeof value.activeThreads === "number" &&
-    Array.isArray(value.activeRunIds) &&
-    value.activeRunIds.every((id: unknown) => typeof id === "string") &&
-    typeof value.queuedThreads === "number" &&
-    typeof cfg.concurrency === "number" &&
-    typeof cfg.overflow === "string"
-  );
-}

packages/core/src/daemon-transport.ts

@@ -1,28 +0,0 @@
-import type { HealthInfo, WorkflowStatus } from "./daemon-ipc-protocol.js";
-import type { SenseInfo } from "./sense.js";
-
-export type DaemonTransportTriggerResult = { ok: true } | { ok: false; error: string };
-
-export type DaemonTransportWorkflowLaunch = {
-  prompt: string;
-  maxRounds: number;
-  dryRun: boolean;
-};
-
-/**
- * Abstraction over daemon control plane (Unix socket IPC today, HTTP in Phase 2).
- * Implementations live in CLI / tools; the daemon kernel uses shared handler logic.
- */
-export type DaemonTransport = {
-  health(): Promise<HealthInfo>;
-  listSenses(): Promise<SenseInfo[]>;
-  listWorkflows(): Promise<WorkflowStatus[]>;
-  triggerSense(name: string): Promise<DaemonTransportTriggerResult>;
-  /** When `launch` is null, implementations use engine defaults (empty prompt, default max rounds, dryRun false). */
-  triggerWorkflow(
-    name: string,
-    launch: DaemonTransportWorkflowLaunch | null,
-  ): Promise<DaemonTransportTriggerResult>;
-  /** Kill a running or queued workflow thread by `runId` (same field as IPC `kill-workflow`). */
-  killWorkflow(runId: string): Promise<DaemonTransportTriggerResult>;
-};

packages/core/src/daemon.ts

@@ -4,8 +4,8 @@
  * one response object per line from the daemon.
  */
 
-import { isPlainRecord } from "./is-plain-record.js";
 import type { SenseInfo } from "./sense.js";
+import { isPlainRecord } from "./util.js";
 
 /** Runtime status of a registered workflow (for listing / observability). */
 export type WorkflowStatus = {
@@ -100,6 +100,32 @@ export type DaemonIpcResponse =
   | DaemonIpcListWorkflowsResponse
   | DaemonIpcHealthResponse;
 
+export type DaemonTransportTriggerResult = { ok: true } | { ok: false; error: string };
+
+export type DaemonTransportWorkflowLaunch = {
+  prompt: string;
+  maxRounds: number;
+  dryRun: boolean;
+};
+
+/**
+ * Abstraction over daemon control plane (Unix socket IPC today, HTTP in Phase 2).
+ * Implementations live in CLI / tools; the daemon kernel uses shared handler logic.
+ */
+export type DaemonTransport = {
+  health(): Promise<HealthInfo>;
+  listSenses(): Promise<SenseInfo[]>;
+  listWorkflows(): Promise<WorkflowStatus[]>;
+  triggerSense(name: string): Promise<DaemonTransportTriggerResult>;
+  /** When `launch` is null, implementations use engine defaults (empty prompt, default max rounds, dryRun false). */
+  triggerWorkflow(
+    name: string,
+    launch: DaemonTransportWorkflowLaunch | null,
+  ): Promise<DaemonTransportTriggerResult>;
+  /** Kill a running or queued workflow thread by `runId` (same field as IPC `kill-workflow`). */
+  killWorkflow(runId: string): Promise<DaemonTransportTriggerResult>;
+};
+
 function parseTriggerWorkflowFields(
   req: Record<string, unknown>,
 ): DaemonIpcTriggerWorkflowRequest | null {
@@ -150,3 +176,33 @@ export function parseDaemonIpcRequest(line: string): DaemonIpcRequest | null {
     return null;
   }
 }
+
+/** Type guard for JSON {@link SenseInfo} payloads from daemon HTTP/IPC. */
+export function isSenseInfo(value: unknown): value is SenseInfo {
+  if (!isPlainRecord(value)) return false;
+  return (
+    typeof value.name === "string" &&
+    typeof value.group === "string" &&
+    (value.throttle === null || typeof value.throttle === "number") &&
+    (value.timeout === null || typeof value.timeout === "number") &&
+    Array.isArray(value.triggers) &&
+    value.triggers.every((t: unknown) => typeof t === "string") &&
+    (value.lastSignalTimestamp === null || typeof value.lastSignalTimestamp === "number")
+  );
+}
+
+/** Type guard for JSON {@link WorkflowStatus} payloads from daemon HTTP/IPC. */
+export function isWorkflowStatus(value: unknown): value is WorkflowStatus {
+  if (!isPlainRecord(value)) return false;
+  const cfg = value.config;
+  if (!isPlainRecord(cfg)) return false;
+  return (
+    typeof value.name === "string" &&
+    typeof value.activeThreads === "number" &&
+    Array.isArray(value.activeRunIds) &&
+    value.activeRunIds.every((id: unknown) => typeof id === "string") &&
+    typeof value.queuedThreads === "number" &&
+    typeof cfg.concurrency === "number" &&
+    typeof cfg.overflow === "string"
+  );
+}

packages/core/src/duration.ts

@@ -1,22 +0,0 @@
-import type { Result } from "./result.js";
-import { err, ok } from "./result.js";
-
-const DURATION_RE = /^(\d+)([smh])$/;
-
-const DURATION_MULTIPLIERS: Record<string, number> = {
-  s: 1_000,
-  m: 60_000,
-  h: 3_600_000,
-};
-
-/**
- * Parse a duration string such as `5s`, `10m`, `1h` to milliseconds.
- * Used by `parseNerveConfig` sense/workflow duration fields.
- */
-export function parseDurationStringToMs(value: string): Result<number> {
-  const match = DURATION_RE.exec(value);
-  if (!match) {
-    return err(new Error(`invalid duration "${value}" (expected e.g. "5s", "10m", "1h")`));
-  }
-  return ok(Number(match[1]) * DURATION_MULTIPLIERS[match[2]]);
-}

packages/core/src/index.ts

@@ -12,14 +12,15 @@ export type {
   ComputeResult,
 } from "./config.js";
 export type { Signal, SenseInfo } from "./sense.js";
-export type { SenseComputeFn, SenseModule } from "./sense-contract.js";
-export { labelSenseTrigger, senseTriggerLabels } from "./sense-trigger-labels.js";
+export type { SenseComputeFn, SenseModule } from "./sense.js";
+export { labelSenseTrigger, senseTriggerLabels } from "./sense.js";
 export type {
   WorkflowMessage,
   RoleResult,
   Role,
   RoleMeta,
   StartStep,
+  ThreadContext,
   WorkflowContext,
   AgentFn,
   RoleStep,
@@ -28,11 +29,11 @@ export type {
   WorkflowDefinition,
 } from "./workflow.js";
 export { START, END, DEFAULT_ENGINE_MAX_ROUNDS } from "./workflow.js";
-export { parseDurationStringToMs } from "./duration.js";
-export type { Schema, ExtractFn } from "./extract-layer.js";
-export { ExtractError } from "./extract-layer.js";
-export type { Result } from "./result.js";
-export { ok, err } from "./result.js";
+export { parseDurationStringToMs } from "./util.js";
+export type { Schema, ExtractFn } from "./agent.js";
+export { ExtractError } from "./agent.js";
+export type { Result } from "./util.js";
+export { ok, err } from "./util.js";
 export {
   nerveCommandEnv,
   spawnSafe,
@@ -40,17 +41,17 @@ export {
   type SpawnError,
   type SpawnResult,
   type SpawnSafeOptions,
-} from "./spawn-safe.js";
-export { parseNerveConfig } from "./parse-nerve-config.js";
-export type { KnowledgeConfig } from "./knowledge-config.js";
-export { parseKnowledgeYaml } from "./knowledge-config.js";
-export { isPlainRecord } from "./is-plain-record.js";
-export { KNOWN_AGENT_ADAPTER_IDS } from "./agent-adapter-ids.js";
+} from "./util.js";
+export { parseNerveConfig } from "./config.js";
+export type { KnowledgeConfig } from "./config.js";
+export { parseKnowledgeYaml } from "./config.js";
+export { isPlainRecord } from "./util.js";
+export { KNOWN_AGENT_ADAPTER_IDS } from "./agent.js";
 
-export type { RoutedSenseOutput } from "./sense-workflow-directive.js";
-export { parseWorkflowTrigger, routeSenseComputeOutput } from "./sense-workflow-directive.js";
+export type { RoutedSenseOutput } from "./sense.js";
+export { parseWorkflowTrigger, routeSenseComputeOutput } from "./sense.js";
 
-export { isSenseInfo, isWorkflowStatus } from "./daemon-payload-guards.js";
+export { isSenseInfo, isWorkflowStatus } from "./daemon.js";
 export type {
   WorkflowStatus,
   HealthInfo,
@@ -68,10 +69,10 @@ export type {
   DaemonIpcListWorkflowsResponse,
   DaemonIpcHealthResponse,
   DaemonIpcResponse,
-} from "./daemon-ipc-protocol.js";
-export { parseDaemonIpcRequest } from "./daemon-ipc-protocol.js";
+} from "./daemon.js";
+export { parseDaemonIpcRequest } from "./daemon.js";
 export type {
   DaemonTransport,
   DaemonTransportTriggerResult,
   DaemonTransportWorkflowLaunch,
-} from "./daemon-transport.js";
+} from "./daemon.js";

packages/core/src/is-plain-record.ts

@@ -1,7 +0,0 @@
-/**
- * Narrows `unknown` to a plain JSON-style object (not null, not array).
- * Use after `JSON.parse` / YAML / IPC when validating structure field-by-field.
- */
-export function isPlainRecord(value: unknown): value is Record<string, unknown> {
-  return typeof value === "object" && value !== null && !Array.isArray(value);
-}

packages/core/src/knowledge-config.ts

@@ -1,64 +0,0 @@
-import { parse } from "yaml";
-
-import { isPlainRecord } from "./is-plain-record.js";
-import type { Result } from "./result.js";
-import { err, ok } from "./result.js";
-
-export type KnowledgeConfig = {
-  include: ReadonlyArray<string>;
-  exclude: ReadonlyArray<string>;
-};
-
-function parseStringList(field: unknown, label: string): Result<ReadonlyArray<string>> {
-  if (field === undefined || field === null) {
-    return ok([]);
-  }
-  if (!Array.isArray(field)) {
-    return err(new Error(`${label}: must be an array of strings`));
-  }
-  const out: string[] = [];
-  for (let i = 0; i < field.length; i++) {
-    const item = field[i];
-    if (typeof item !== "string" || item.length === 0) {
-      return err(new Error(`${label}[${String(i)}]: must be a non-empty string`));
-    }
-    out.push(item);
-  }
-  return ok(out);
-}
-
-/**
- * Parse `knowledge.yaml` at the repo root (RFC-003 Knowledge Layer).
- * `include` / `exclude` entries are glob patterns resolved against the repo root.
- */
-export function parseKnowledgeYaml(raw: string): Result<KnowledgeConfig> {
-  let parsed: unknown;
-  try {
-    parsed = parse(raw);
-  } catch (e) {
-    const message = e instanceof Error ? e.message : String(e);
-    return err(new Error(`YAML parse error: ${message}`));
-  }
-
-  if (parsed === undefined || parsed === null) {
-    return ok({ include: [], exclude: [] });
-  }
-
-  if (!isPlainRecord(parsed)) {
-    return err(new Error("knowledge.yaml: root must be a mapping"));
-  }
-
-  const includeResult = parseStringList(parsed.include, "include");
-  if (!includeResult.ok) {
-    return includeResult;
-  }
-  const excludeResult = parseStringList(parsed.exclude, "exclude");
-  if (!excludeResult.ok) {
-    return excludeResult;
-  }
-
-  return ok({
-    include: includeResult.value,
-    exclude: excludeResult.value,
-  });
-}

packages/core/src/parse-nerve-config.ts

@@ -1,348 +0,0 @@
-import { parse } from "yaml";
-
-import {
-  DEFAULT_SENSE_SIGNAL_RETENTION,
-  type ExtractConfig,
-  type NerveApiConfig,
-  type NerveConfig,
-  type SenseConfig,
-  type WorkflowConfig,
-} from "./config.js";
-import { parseDurationStringToMs } from "./duration.js";
-import { isPlainRecord } from "./is-plain-record.js";
-import type { Result } from "./result.js";
-import { err, ok } from "./result.js";
-import { DEFAULT_ENGINE_MAX_ROUNDS } from "./workflow.js";
-
-function isValidGroupName(value: string): boolean {
-  return /^[a-zA-Z0-9_-]+$/.test(value);
-}
-
-function parseRetentionField(name: string, field: unknown): Result<number> {
-  if (field === undefined || field === null) {
-    return ok(DEFAULT_SENSE_SIGNAL_RETENTION);
-  }
-  if (typeof field !== "number" || !Number.isInteger(field) || field < 1) {
-    return err(new Error(`senses.${name}.retention: must be a positive integer`));
-  }
-  return ok(field);
-}
-
-function parseDurationField(field: unknown, label: string): Result<number | null> {
-  if (field === undefined || field === null) return ok(null);
-  if (typeof field !== "string") {
-    return err(
-      new Error(`${label}: invalid duration "${field}" (expected e.g. "5s", "10m", "1h")`),
-    );
-  }
-  const msResult = parseDurationStringToMs(field);
-  if (!msResult.ok) {
-    return err(new Error(`${label}: ${msResult.error.message}`));
-  }
-  return ok(msResult.value);
-}
-
-function validateSenseConfig(name: string, raw: unknown): Result<SenseConfig> {
-  if (!isPlainRecord(raw)) {
-    return err(new Error(`senses.${name}: must be an object`));
-  }
-
-  const obj = raw;
-
-  if (typeof obj.group !== "string" || obj.group.trim() === "") {
-    return err(new Error(`senses.${name}.group: required string`));
-  }
-
-  if (!isValidGroupName(obj.group)) {
-    return err(
-      new Error(
-        `senses.${name}.group: invalid name "${obj.group}" (only alphanumeric, underscore, hyphen allowed)`,
-      ),
-    );
-  }
-
-  const throttleResult = parseDurationField(obj.throttle, `senses.${name}.throttle`);
-  if (!throttleResult.ok) return throttleResult;
-
-  const timeoutResult = parseDurationField(obj.timeout, `senses.${name}.timeout`);
-  if (!timeoutResult.ok) return timeoutResult;
-
-  const graceResult = parseDurationField(obj.grace_period, `senses.${name}.grace_period`);
-  if (!graceResult.ok) return graceResult;
-
-  const retentionResult = parseRetentionField(name, obj.retention);
-  if (!retentionResult.ok) return retentionResult;
-
-  const intervalResult = parseDurationField(obj.interval, `senses.${name}.interval`);
-  if (!intervalResult.ok) return intervalResult;
-
-  let on: string[] = [];
-  if (obj.on !== undefined && obj.on !== null) {
-    if (
-      !Array.isArray(obj.on) ||
-      !obj.on.every((item: unknown): item is string => typeof item === "string")
-    ) {
-      return err(new Error(`senses.${name}.on: must be an array of strings`));
-    }
-    on = obj.on;
-  }
-
-  return ok({
-    group: obj.group,
-    throttle: throttleResult.value,
-    timeout: timeoutResult.value,
-    gracePeriod: graceResult.value,
-    retention: retentionResult.value,
-    interval: intervalResult.value,
-    on,
-  });
-}
-
-function parseEngineMaxRounds(obj: Record<string, unknown>): Result<number> {
-  if (obj.max_rounds === undefined || obj.max_rounds === null) {
-    return ok(DEFAULT_ENGINE_MAX_ROUNDS);
-  }
-  if (
-    typeof obj.max_rounds !== "number" ||
-    !Number.isInteger(obj.max_rounds) ||
-    obj.max_rounds < 1
-  ) {
-    return err(new Error("max_rounds: must be a positive integer"));
-  }
-  return ok(obj.max_rounds);
-}
-
-function validateWorkflowConfig(name: string, raw: unknown): Result<WorkflowConfig> {
-  if (!isPlainRecord(raw)) {
-    return err(new Error(`workflows.${name}: must be an object`));
-  }
-
-  const obj = raw;
-
-  if (
-    typeof obj.concurrency !== "number" ||
-    !Number.isInteger(obj.concurrency) ||
-    obj.concurrency < 1
-  ) {
-    return err(new Error(`workflows.${name}.concurrency: must be a positive integer`));
-  }
-
-  if (obj.overflow !== "drop" && obj.overflow !== "queue") {
-    return err(new Error(`workflows.${name}.overflow: must be "drop" or "queue"`));
-  }
-
-  if (obj.overflow === "drop") {
-    if (obj.max_queue !== undefined && obj.max_queue !== null) {
-      return err(new Error(`workflows.${name}: max_queue is not allowed with overflow "drop"`));
-    }
-    return ok({
-      concurrency: obj.concurrency,
-      overflow: "drop" as const,
-    });
-  }
-
-  // overflow: "queue"
-  let maxQueue = 100; // default
-  if (obj.max_queue !== undefined && obj.max_queue !== null) {
-    if (
-      typeof obj.max_queue !== "number" ||
-      !Number.isInteger(obj.max_queue) ||
-      obj.max_queue < 1
-    ) {
-      return err(new Error(`workflows.${name}.max_queue: must be a positive integer`));
-    }
-    maxQueue = obj.max_queue;
-  }
-
-  return ok({
-    concurrency: obj.concurrency,
-    overflow: "queue" as const,
-    maxQueue,
-  });
-}
-
-function parseSenses(
-  obj: Record<string, unknown>,
-): Result<{ senses: Record<string, SenseConfig> }> {
-  if (!isPlainRecord(obj.senses)) {
-    return err(new Error("senses: required object"));
-  }
-
-  const sensesRaw = obj.senses;
-  const senses: Record<string, SenseConfig> = {};
-
-  for (const [name, senseRaw] of Object.entries(sensesRaw)) {
-    const result = validateSenseConfig(name, senseRaw);
-    if (!result.ok) return result;
-    senses[name] = result.value;
-  }
-
-  return ok({ senses });
-}
-
-const DEFAULT_API_BIND_HOST = "127.0.0.1";
-
-/** Hosts that may bind the HTTP API without `api.token` (loopback-only). */
-function isLoopbackOnlyApiHost(host: string): boolean {
-  const h = host.trim();
-  return h === "127.0.0.1" || h.toLowerCase() === "localhost";
-}
-
-function parseApiTokenField(api: Record<string, unknown>): Result<string | null> {
-  if (api.token === undefined || api.token === null) {
-    return ok(null);
-  }
-  if (typeof api.token !== "string") {
-    return err(new Error("api.token: must be a string when provided"));
-  }
-  if (api.token.length === 0) {
-    return err(new Error("api.token: must not be empty when provided"));
-  }
-  return ok(api.token);
-}
-
-function parseApiHostField(api: Record<string, unknown>): Result<string> {
-  if (api.host === undefined || api.host === null) {
-    return ok(DEFAULT_API_BIND_HOST);
-  }
-  if (typeof api.host !== "string") {
-    return err(new Error("api.host: must be a string when provided"));
-  }
-  if (api.host.length === 0) {
-    return err(new Error("api.host: must not be empty when provided"));
-  }
-  return ok(api.host);
-}
-
-function parseApiConfig(obj: Record<string, unknown>): Result<NerveApiConfig> {
-  if (obj.api === undefined || obj.api === null) {
-    return ok({ port: null, token: null, host: DEFAULT_API_BIND_HOST });
-  }
-  if (!isPlainRecord(obj.api)) {
-    return err(new Error("api: must be an object if provided"));
-  }
-  const api = obj.api;
-  if (api.port === undefined || api.port === null) {
-    return ok({ port: null, token: null, host: DEFAULT_API_BIND_HOST });
-  }
-  if (
-    typeof api.port !== "number" ||
-    !Number.isInteger(api.port) ||
-    api.port < 1 ||
-    api.port > 65_535
-  ) {
-    return err(new Error("api.port: must be an integer between 1 and 65535 if provided"));
-  }
-
-  const tokenResult = parseApiTokenField(api);
-  if (!tokenResult.ok) return tokenResult;
-  const hostResult = parseApiHostField(api);
-  if (!hostResult.ok) return hostResult;
-
-  if (!isLoopbackOnlyApiHost(hostResult.value) && tokenResult.value === null) {
-    return err(
-      new Error("api.host binds to non-loopback address, api.token is required for security"),
-    );
-  }
-
-  return ok({ port: api.port, token: tokenResult.value, host: hostResult.value });
-}
-
-function parseWorkflows(obj: Record<string, unknown>): Result<Record<string, WorkflowConfig>> {
-  if (obj.workflows === undefined || obj.workflows === null) return ok({});
-
-  if (!isPlainRecord(obj.workflows)) {
-    return err(new Error("workflows: must be an object if provided"));
-  }
-
-  const workflowsRaw = obj.workflows;
-  const workflows: Record<string, WorkflowConfig> = {};
-
-  for (const [name, wfRaw] of Object.entries(workflowsRaw)) {
-    const result = validateWorkflowConfig(name, wfRaw);
-    if (!result.ok) return result;
-    workflows[name] = result.value;
-  }
-
-  return ok(workflows);
-}
-
-function parseExtract(obj: Record<string, unknown>): Result<ExtractConfig | null> {
-  if (obj.extract === undefined || obj.extract === null) {
-    return ok(null);
-  }
-
-  if (!isPlainRecord(obj.extract)) {
-    return err(new Error("extract: must be an object if provided"));
-  }
-
-  const ext = obj.extract;
-
-  if (typeof ext.provider !== "string" || ext.provider.trim() === "") {
-    return err(new Error("extract.provider: required non-empty string"));
-  }
-
-  if (typeof ext.model !== "string" || ext.model.trim() === "") {
-    return err(new Error("extract.model: required non-empty string"));
-  }
-
-  return ok({ provider: ext.provider, model: ext.model });
-}
-
-export function parseNerveConfig(raw: string): Result<NerveConfig> {
-  let parsed: unknown;
-
-  try {
-    parsed = parse(raw);
-  } catch (e) {
-    const message = e instanceof Error ? e.message : String(e);
-    return err(new Error(`YAML parse error: ${message}`));
-  }
-
-  if (!isPlainRecord(parsed)) {
-    return err(new Error("Config must be a YAML object"));
-  }
-
-  const obj = parsed;
-
-  const sensesResult = parseSenses(obj);
-  if (!sensesResult.ok) return sensesResult;
-  const { senses } = sensesResult.value;
-
-  // Legacy top-level `reflexes` is rejected; each sense carries `interval` / `on` for the sense scheduler.
-  if (Object.hasOwn(obj, "reflexes")) {
-    return err(
-      new Error(
-        "reflexes: top-level key is no longer supported; set `interval` and `on` on each sense under `senses.<name>`",
-      ),
-    );
-  }
-
-  const workflowsResult = parseWorkflows(obj);
-  if (!workflowsResult.ok) return workflowsResult;
-
-  const maxRoundsResult = parseEngineMaxRounds(obj);
-  if (!maxRoundsResult.ok) return maxRoundsResult;
-
-  const apiResult = parseApiConfig(obj);
-  if (!apiResult.ok) return apiResult;
-
-  if (Object.hasOwn(obj, "agents")) {
-    return err(
-      new Error(
-        "agents: key is no longer supported — declare adapters on workflow roles (RFC-003)",
-      ),
-    );
-  }
-
-  const extractResult = parseExtract(obj);
-  if (!extractResult.ok) return extractResult;
-
-  return ok({
-    maxRounds: maxRoundsResult.value,
-    senses,
-    workflows: workflowsResult.value,
-    api: apiResult.value,
-    extract: extractResult.value,
-  });
-}

packages/core/src/result.ts

@@ -1,9 +0,0 @@
-export type Result<T, E = Error> = { ok: true; value: T } | { ok: false; error: E };
-
-export function ok<T>(value: T): Result<T, never> {
-  return { ok: true, value };
-}
-
-export function err<E = Error>(error: E): Result<never, E> {
-  return { ok: false, error };
-}

packages/core/src/sense-contract.ts

@@ -1,20 +0,0 @@
-import type { SQLiteTable } from "drizzle-orm/sqlite-core";
-
-/**
- * The function signature every sense `src/index.ts` must export as a named
- * `compute` export.
- *
- * Pure: receives only an AbortSignal. No DB, no peers.
- * Return `null` to stay silent, or a value `T` to emit a Signal.
- * The runtime handles persistence via `db.insert(table).values(result)`.
- */
-export type SenseComputeFn<T = unknown> = (signal: AbortSignal) => Promise<T | null>;
-
-/**
- * The full shape a sense module (`src/index.ts`) must export.
- * `compute` provides the data; `table` tells the runtime where to persist it.
- */
-export type SenseModule<T = unknown> = {
-  compute: SenseComputeFn<T>;
-  table: SQLiteTable;
-};

packages/core/src/sense-trigger-labels.ts

@@ -1,40 +0,0 @@
-import type { SenseConfig } from "./config.js";
-
-function formatIntervalMs(ms: number): string {
-  const totalSeconds = Math.floor(ms / 1000);
-  if (totalSeconds < 60) return `${totalSeconds}s`;
-  const minutes = Math.floor(totalSeconds / 60);
-  if (minutes < 60) return `${minutes}m`;
-  const hours = Math.floor(minutes / 60);
-  const remainingMinutes = minutes % 60;
-  return `${hours}h ${remainingMinutes}m`;
-}
-
-/** Human-readable label for a sense schedule (`interval` and/or `on`). */
-export function labelSenseTrigger(slice: Pick<SenseConfig, "interval" | "on">): string {
-  const parts: string[] = [];
-  if (slice.interval !== null) {
-    parts.push(`every ${formatIntervalMs(slice.interval)}`);
-  }
-  if (slice.on.length > 0) {
-    parts.push(`on: ${slice.on.join(", ")}`);
-  }
-  if (parts.length === 0) {
-    return "trigger (no interval or on)";
-  }
-  return parts.join(" · ");
-}
-
-/**
- * Human-readable trigger labels for a sense from its `SenseConfig.interval` / `.on`.
- * Returns an empty array when the sense is missing or has no schedule.
- */
-export function senseTriggerLabels(
-  senseName: string,
-  senses: Record<string, SenseConfig>,
-): string[] {
-  const sc = senses[senseName];
-  if (sc === undefined) return [];
-  if (sc.interval === null && sc.on.length === 0) return [];
-  return [labelSenseTrigger({ interval: sc.interval, on: sc.on })];
-}

packages/core/src/sense-workflow-directive.ts

@@ -1,56 +0,0 @@
-import type { WorkflowTrigger } from "./config.js";
-import { isPlainRecord } from "./is-plain-record.js";
-import type { Result } from "./result.js";
-import { err, ok } from "./result.js";
-
-/** Normalized non-null compute output for the kernel (unknown signal payload). */
-export type RoutedSenseOutput = {
-  signal: unknown;
-  workflow: WorkflowTrigger | null;
-};
-
-/**
- * Validates a structured workflow trigger object from Sense compute or IPC.
- */
-export function parseWorkflowTrigger(value: unknown): Result<WorkflowTrigger> {
-  if (!isPlainRecord(value)) {
-    return err(new Error("workflow trigger must be a plain object"));
-  }
-  const nameRaw = value.name;
-  if (typeof nameRaw !== "string" || nameRaw.trim().length === 0) {
-    return err(new Error('workflow trigger: "name" must be a non-empty string'));
-  }
-  const maxRounds = value.maxRounds;
-  if (typeof maxRounds !== "number" || !Number.isInteger(maxRounds) || maxRounds < 1) {
-    return err(new Error('workflow trigger: "maxRounds" must be an integer >= 1'));
-  }
-  const prompt = value.prompt;
-  if (typeof prompt !== "string") {
-    return err(new Error('workflow trigger: "prompt" must be a string'));
-  }
-  const dryRun = value.dryRun;
-  if (typeof dryRun !== "boolean") {
-    return err(new Error('workflow trigger: "dryRun" must be a boolean'));
-  }
-  return ok({ name: nameRaw.trim(), maxRounds, prompt, dryRun });
-}
-
-/**
- * Interprets a Sense compute non-null return value for the engine.
- * - Explicit `{ signal, workflow }` (workflow may be null): validates `workflow` when non-null.
- * - Any other value: treated as `{ signal: payload, workflow: null }` (shorthand).
- */
-export function routeSenseComputeOutput(payload: unknown): Result<RoutedSenseOutput> {
-  if (isPlainRecord(payload) && Object.hasOwn(payload, "signal")) {
-    const wfRaw = Object.hasOwn(payload, "workflow") ? payload.workflow : null;
-    if (wfRaw === null) {
-      return ok({ signal: payload.signal, workflow: null });
-    }
-    const parsed = parseWorkflowTrigger(wfRaw);
-    if (!parsed.ok) {
-      return ok({ signal: payload.signal, workflow: null });
-    }
-    return ok({ signal: payload.signal, workflow: parsed.value });
-  }
-  return ok({ signal: payload, workflow: null });
-}

packages/core/src/sense.ts

@@ -1,3 +1,8 @@
+import type { SQLiteTable } from "drizzle-orm/sqlite-core";
+
+import type { ComputeResult, SenseConfig, WorkflowTrigger } from "./config.js";
+import { type Result, err, isPlainRecord, ok } from "./util.js";
+
 export type Signal = {
   id: number;
   senseId: string;
@@ -15,3 +20,114 @@ export type SenseInfo = {
   triggers: string[];
   lastSignalTimestamp: number | null;
 };
+
+/**
+ * The function signature every sense `src/index.ts` must export as a named
+ * `compute` export.
+ *
+ * Pure: no DB, no peers.
+ * Return `null` to stay silent, or `{ signal, workflow }` to emit a Signal
+ * (and optionally trigger a Workflow).
+ * The runtime handles persistence via `db.insert(table).values(result.signal)`.
+ */
+export type SenseComputeFn<T = unknown> = () => Promise<ComputeResult<T>>;
+
+/**
+ * The full shape a sense module (`src/index.ts`) must export.
+ * `compute` provides the data; `table` tells the runtime where to persist it.
+ */
+export type SenseModule<T = unknown> = {
+  compute: SenseComputeFn<T>;
+  table: SQLiteTable;
+};
+
+/** Normalized non-null compute output for the kernel (unknown signal payload). */
+export type RoutedSenseOutput = {
+  signal: unknown;
+  workflow: WorkflowTrigger | null;
+};
+
+function formatIntervalMs(ms: number): string {
+  const totalSeconds = Math.floor(ms / 1000);
+  if (totalSeconds < 60) return `${totalSeconds}s`;
+  const minutes = Math.floor(totalSeconds / 60);
+  if (minutes < 60) return `${minutes}m`;
+  const hours = Math.floor(minutes / 60);
+  const remainingMinutes = minutes % 60;
+  return `${hours}h ${remainingMinutes}m`;
+}
+
+/** Human-readable label for a sense schedule (`interval` and/or `on`). */
+export function labelSenseTrigger(slice: Pick<SenseConfig, "interval" | "on">): string {
+  const parts: string[] = [];
+  if (slice.interval !== null) {
+    parts.push(`every ${formatIntervalMs(slice.interval)}`);
+  }
+  if (slice.on.length > 0) {
+    parts.push(`on: ${slice.on.join(", ")}`);
+  }
+  if (parts.length === 0) {
+    return "trigger (no interval or on)";
+  }
+  return parts.join(" · ");
+}
+
+/**
+ * Human-readable trigger labels for a sense from its `SenseConfig.interval` / `.on`.
+ * Returns an empty array when the sense is missing or has no schedule.
+ */
+export function senseTriggerLabels(
+  senseName: string,
+  senses: Record<string, SenseConfig>,
+): string[] {
+  const sc = senses[senseName];
+  if (sc === undefined) return [];
+  if (sc.interval === null && sc.on.length === 0) return [];
+  return [labelSenseTrigger({ interval: sc.interval, on: sc.on })];
+}
+
+/**
+ * Validates a structured workflow trigger object from Sense compute or IPC.
+ */
+export function parseWorkflowTrigger(value: unknown): Result<WorkflowTrigger> {
+  if (!isPlainRecord(value)) {
+    return err(new Error("workflow trigger must be a plain object"));
+  }
+  const nameRaw = value.name;
+  if (typeof nameRaw !== "string" || nameRaw.trim().length === 0) {
+    return err(new Error('workflow trigger: "name" must be a non-empty string'));
+  }
+  const maxRounds = value.maxRounds;
+  if (typeof maxRounds !== "number" || !Number.isInteger(maxRounds) || maxRounds < 1) {
+    return err(new Error('workflow trigger: "maxRounds" must be an integer >= 1'));
+  }
+  const prompt = value.prompt;
+  if (typeof prompt !== "string") {
+    return err(new Error('workflow trigger: "prompt" must be a string'));
+  }
+  const dryRun = value.dryRun;
+  if (typeof dryRun !== "boolean") {
+    return err(new Error('workflow trigger: "dryRun" must be a boolean'));
+  }
+  return ok({ name: nameRaw.trim(), maxRounds, prompt, dryRun });
+}
+
+/**
+ * Interprets a Sense compute non-null return value for the engine.
+ * - Explicit `{ signal, workflow }` (workflow may be null): validates `workflow` when non-null.
+ * - Any other value: treated as `{ signal: payload, workflow: null }` (shorthand).
+ */
+export function routeSenseComputeOutput(payload: unknown): Result<RoutedSenseOutput> {
+  if (isPlainRecord(payload) && Object.hasOwn(payload, "signal")) {
+    const wfRaw = Object.hasOwn(payload, "workflow") ? payload.workflow : null;
+    if (wfRaw === null) {
+      return ok({ signal: payload.signal, workflow: null });
+    }
+    const parsed = parseWorkflowTrigger(wfRaw);
+    if (!parsed.ok) {
+      return ok({ signal: payload.signal, workflow: null });
+    }
+    return ok({ signal: payload.signal, workflow: parsed.value });
+  }
+  return ok({ signal: payload, workflow: null });
+}

packages/core/src/util.ts

@@ -1,7 +1,8 @@
 import { spawn } from "node:child_process";
 import { homedir } from "node:os";
 import { join } from "node:path";
-import { type Result, err, ok } from "./result.js";
+
+export type Result<T, E = Error> = { ok: true; value: T } | { ok: false; error: E };
 
 /** Compatible with `process.env` for `child_process.spawn`. */
 export type SpawnEnv = Record<string, string | undefined>;
@@ -40,6 +41,42 @@ type SpawnSafeOptionsInput = SpawnSafeOptions | Omit<SpawnSafeOptions, "dryRun">
 
 const DEFAULT_TIMEOUT_MS = 300_000;
 
+export function ok<T>(value: T): Result<T, never> {
+  return { ok: true, value };
+}
+
+export function err<E = Error>(error: E): Result<never, E> {
+  return { ok: false, error };
+}
+
+/**
+ * Narrows `unknown` to a plain JSON-style object (not null, not array).
+ * Use after `JSON.parse` / YAML / IPC when validating structure field-by-field.
+ */
+export function isPlainRecord(value: unknown): value is Record<string, unknown> {
+  return typeof value === "object" && value !== null && !Array.isArray(value);
+}
+
+const DURATION_RE = /^(\d+)([smh])$/;
+
+const DURATION_MULTIPLIERS: Record<string, number> = {
+  s: 1_000,
+  m: 60_000,
+  h: 3_600_000,
+};
+
+/**
+ * Parse a duration string such as `5s`, `10m`, `1h` to milliseconds.
+ * Used by `parseNerveConfig` sense/workflow duration fields.
+ */
+export function parseDurationStringToMs(value: string): Result<number> {
+  const match = DURATION_RE.exec(value);
+  if (!match) {
+    return err(new Error(`invalid duration "${value}" (expected e.g. "5s", "10m", "1h")`));
+  }
+  return ok(Number(match[1]) * DURATION_MULTIPLIERS[match[2]]);
+}
+
 /**
  * PATH and PNPM_HOME for running `pnpm` and `nerve` from workflow roles.
  * Uses the pnpm store home only (no npm user bin); binaries must resolve via PATH.

packages/core/src/workflow.ts

@@ -21,39 +21,41 @@ export type WorkflowMessage = {
 /** The typed output of a Role execution. */
 export type RoleResult<Meta> = { content: string; meta: Meta };
 
-/**
- * A Role is a pure async function: receives the engine start frame plus prior
- * role messages only (the start frame is not included in `messages`).
- * Returns typed content + meta. Implementation can be an agent, LLM call,
- * script, HTTP request, etc.
- */
-export type Role<Meta> = (
-  start: StartStep,
-  messages: WorkflowMessage[],
-) => Promise<RoleResult<Meta>>;
-
 /** Maps role names to their meta types — the single generic that drives all inference. */
 export type RoleMeta = Record<string, Record<string, unknown>>;
 
-/** Engine start frame: prompt, max rounds cap, dry-run flag, and timestamps for the thread. */
+/** Engine start frame: initial prompt, max rounds cap, and thread identity. */
 export type StartStep = {
   role: START;
   content: string;
   /** Thread identity (same as workflow `runId`); for role prompts and CLI `nerve thread` context. */
-  meta: { maxRounds: number; dryRun: boolean; threadId: string };
+  meta: { maxRounds: number; threadId: string };
   timestamp: number;
 };
 
-/** Thread context passed to agent adapters (RFC-003): conversation frame, repo root, cancellation. */
-export type WorkflowContext = {
+/**
+ * Thread-scoped context for roles, moderator, and agent adapters (RFC-005).
+ * `workdir` and `signal` are adapter/engine config — not part of this shape.
+ */
+export type ThreadContext<M extends RoleMeta = RoleMeta> = {
+  threadId: string;
   start: StartStep;
-  messages: WorkflowMessage[];
-  workdir: string;
-  signal: AbortSignal;
+  steps: RoleStep<M>[];
 };
 
+/**
+ * @deprecated Use {@link ThreadContext}.
+ */
+export type WorkflowContext = ThreadContext;
+
+/**
+ * A Role receives the full thread context (start frame + prior role steps) and returns
+ * typed content + meta. Implementation can be an agent, LLM call, script, HTTP request, etc.
+ */
+export type Role<Meta> = (ctx: ThreadContext) => Promise<RoleResult<Meta>>;
+
 /** Unified agent invocation — raw string output; structured meta uses the extract layer. */
-export type AgentFn = (prompt: string, context: WorkflowContext) => Promise<string>;
+export type AgentFn = (ctx: ThreadContext, systemPrompt: string) => Promise<string>;
 
 /** A discriminated union of role steps after each execution, aligned with `StartStep` shape. */
 export type RoleStep<M extends RoleMeta> = {
@@ -61,23 +63,17 @@ export type RoleStep<M extends RoleMeta> = {
 }[keyof M & string];
 
 /**
- * Moderator input: the complete workflow history.
- * Contains the start frame and all role steps so far.
- * On initial call, `steps` is empty — moderator can check `steps.length === 0`.
- * Round count is `steps.length`; maxRounds is in `start.meta.maxRounds`.
+ * @deprecated Use {@link ThreadContext}.
  */
-export type ModeratorContext<M extends RoleMeta> = {
-  start: StartStep;
-  steps: RoleStep<M>[];
-};
+export type ModeratorContext<M extends RoleMeta> = ThreadContext<M>;
 
 /**
- * The moderator — a pure routing function. Receives the full workflow context
- * (start frame + all prior steps). Returns the next role name or END.
+ * The moderator — a pure routing function. Receives the full thread context
+ * (start frame + all prior steps). On initial call, `steps` is empty.
+ * Round count is `steps.length`; maxRounds is in `start.meta.maxRounds`.
+ * Returns the next role name or END.
  */
-export type Moderator<M extends RoleMeta> = (
-  context: ModeratorContext<M>,
-) => (keyof M & string) | END;
+export type Moderator<M extends RoleMeta> = (ctx: ThreadContext<M>) => (keyof M & string) | END;
 
 /** The complete definition of a workflow, as authored by users. */
 export type WorkflowDefinition<M extends RoleMeta> = {

packages/daemon/src/__tests__/fixtures/crash-worker.js

@@ -0,0 +1,9 @@
+// Ready then crashes on a timer; still echoes IPC so parent tests can send after respawn
+process.on("message", (msg) => {
+  if (msg && msg.type === "shutdown") {
+    process.exit(0);
+  }
+  process.send({ type: "echo", payload: msg });
+});
+process.send({ type: "ready" });
+setTimeout(() => process.exit(1), 50);

packages/daemon/src/__tests__/fixtures/echo-worker.js

@@ -0,0 +1,9 @@
+// Simple test worker: sends ready, echoes messages, handles shutdown
+process.on("message", (msg) => {
+  if (msg && msg.type === "shutdown") {
+    process.exit(0);
+  }
+  // Echo back with 'echo' type
+  process.send({ type: "echo", payload: msg });
+});
+process.send({ type: "ready" });

packages/daemon/src/__tests__/fixtures/stderr-worker.js

@@ -0,0 +1,9 @@
+// Like echo-worker but writes stderr for tail diagnostics
+console.error("stderr-marker");
+process.on("message", (msg) => {
+  if (msg && msg.type === "shutdown") {
+    process.exit(0);
+  }
+  process.send({ type: "echo", payload: msg });
+});
+process.send({ type: "ready" });

packages/daemon/src/__tests__/kernel-phase6.test.ts

@@ -70,6 +70,14 @@ const { createKernel } = await import("../kernel.js");
 // Helpers
 // ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
+/** Sense worker `fork` runs on the next microtask per scheduled `start`. */
+async function flushSenseWorkerForkMicrotasks(kernel: { groups: Set<string> }): Promise<void> {
+  const n = kernel.groups.size;
+  for (let i = 0; i < n; i++) {
+    await Promise.resolve();
+  }
+}
+
 function makeConfig(overrides: Partial<NerveConfig> = {}): NerveConfig {
   return {
     senses: {
@@ -142,6 +150,8 @@ describe("kernel — getHealth", () => {
       },
     });
     const kernel = createKernel(config, nerveRoot);
+    await flushSenseWorkerForkMicrotasks(kernel);
+    await vi.runAllTimersAsync();
 
     const health = kernel.getHealth();
     expect(health.activeSenses).toBe(3);
@@ -171,6 +181,8 @@ describe("kernel — restartGroup", () => {
   it("sends shutdown to old worker and spawns new one", async () => {
     const config = makeConfig();
     const kernel = createKernel(config, nerveRoot);
+    await flushSenseWorkerForkMicrotasks(kernel);
+    await vi.runAllTimersAsync();
 
     expect(mockChildren.length).toBe(1);
     const oldChild = mockChildren[0];
@@ -178,6 +190,7 @@ describe("kernel — restartGroup", () => {
     const restartPromise = kernel.restartGroup("system");
     // The shutdown message triggers exit in the mock
     await restartPromise;
+    await vi.runAllTimersAsync();
 
     // A new child should have been spawned
     expect(mockChildren.length).toBe(2);
@@ -191,6 +204,8 @@ describe("kernel — restartGroup", () => {
   it("restartGroup on unknown group does nothing", async () => {
     const config = makeConfig();
     const kernel = createKernel(config, nerveRoot);
+    await flushSenseWorkerForkMicrotasks(kernel);
+    await vi.runAllTimersAsync();
 
     expect(mockChildren.length).toBe(1);
     await kernel.restartGroup("nonexistent");
@@ -218,6 +233,8 @@ describe("kernel — reloadConfig", () => {
   it("adds new group worker when new sense group appears", async () => {
     const config = makeConfig();
     const kernel = createKernel(config, nerveRoot);
+    await flushSenseWorkerForkMicrotasks(kernel);
+    await vi.runAllTimersAsync();
 
     expect(mockChildren.length).toBe(1); // only system group
     expect(kernel.groups.has("network")).toBe(false);
@@ -249,6 +266,9 @@ describe("kernel — reloadConfig", () => {
       api: { port: null, token: null, host: "127.0.0.1" },
     });
 
+    await Promise.resolve();
+    await vi.runAllTimersAsync();
+
     expect(kernel.groups.has("network")).toBe(true);
     expect(mockChildren.length).toBe(2); // system + network
 
@@ -283,6 +303,8 @@ describe("kernel — reloadConfig", () => {
       api: { port: null, token: null, host: "127.0.0.1" },
     };
     const kernel = createKernel(config, nerveRoot);
+    await flushSenseWorkerForkMicrotasks(kernel);
+    await vi.runAllTimersAsync();
 
     expect(mockChildren.length).toBe(2);
     expect(kernel.groups.has("network")).toBe(true);
@@ -308,6 +330,7 @@ describe("kernel — reloadConfig", () => {
     });
 
     expect(kernel.groups.has("network")).toBe(false);
+    await vi.runAllTimersAsync();
     // Network child should have received shutdown
     expect(networkChild.send).toHaveBeenCalledWith(expect.objectContaining({ type: "shutdown" }));
 
@@ -317,6 +340,8 @@ describe("kernel — reloadConfig", () => {
   it("health reflects updated sense count after reloadConfig", async () => {
     const config = makeConfig();
     const kernel = createKernel(config, nerveRoot);
+    await flushSenseWorkerForkMicrotasks(kernel);
+    await vi.runAllTimersAsync();
 
     expect(kernel.getHealth().activeSenses).toBe(1);
 

packages/daemon/src/__tests__/kernel-trigger-sense.test.ts

@@ -29,6 +29,9 @@ type MockChild = EventEmitter & {
 function makeMockChild(pid = 1): MockChild {
   const child = new EventEmitter() as MockChild;
   child.connected = true;
+  setImmediate(() => {
+    child.emit("message", { type: "ready" });
+  });
   child.send = vi.fn((msg: unknown) => {
     if (
       msg !== null &&
@@ -136,6 +139,7 @@ describe("kernel.triggerSense()", () => {
       logStore: makeMockLogStore() as never,
     });
 
+    await vi.runAllTimersAsync();
     expect(() => kernel.triggerSense("no-such-sense")).toThrow(/Unknown sense/);
 
     await kernel.stop();
@@ -169,6 +173,7 @@ describe("kernel.triggerSense()", () => {
       logStore: makeMockLogStore() as never,
     });
 
+    await vi.runAllTimersAsync();
     // Two groups → two workers
     expect(mockChildren.length).toBe(2);
 
@@ -214,6 +219,7 @@ describe("kernel.triggerSense()", () => {
       logStore: makeMockLogStore() as never,
     });
 
+    await vi.runAllTimersAsync();
     // Both senses share the "system" group → one worker only
     expect(mockChildren.length).toBe(1);
     const worker = mockChildren[0];
@@ -237,6 +243,7 @@ describe("kernel.triggerSense()", () => {
       logStore: makeMockLogStore() as never,
     });
 
+    await new Promise<void>((resolve) => setImmediate(resolve));
     const worker = mockChildren[0];
     worker.connected = false;
 

packages/daemon/src/__tests__/kernel-workflow-integration.test.ts

@@ -102,6 +102,13 @@ function makeLogStore() {
   };
 }
 
+async function flushSenseWorkerForkMicrotasks(kernel: { groups: Set<string> }): Promise<void> {
+  const n = kernel.groups.size;
+  for (let i = 0; i < n; i++) {
+    await Promise.resolve();
+  }
+}
+
 function makeConfig(overrides: Partial<NerveConfig> = {}): NerveConfig {
   return {
     senses: {
@@ -164,6 +171,8 @@ describe("kernel + workflowManager integration", () => {
         workerScript: "fake-worker.js",
         logStore,
       });
+      await flushSenseWorkerForkMicrotasks(kernel);
+      await vi.runAllTimersAsync();
 
       // Simulate a sense worker sending a signal with workflow launch payload
       // The kernel's handleWorkerMessage processes "signal" type messages
@@ -222,6 +231,8 @@ describe("kernel + workflowManager integration", () => {
         workerScript: "fake-worker.js",
         logStore,
       });
+      await flushSenseWorkerForkMicrotasks(kernel);
+      await vi.runAllTimersAsync();
 
       // Simulate sense worker returning a signal plus workflow launch
       const workerPool = mockChildren[0];
@@ -275,6 +286,8 @@ describe("kernel + workflowManager integration", () => {
         workerScript: "fake-worker.js",
         logStore,
       });
+      await flushSenseWorkerForkMicrotasks(kernel);
+      await vi.runAllTimersAsync();
 
       const workerPool = mockChildren[0];
       if (workerPool) {
@@ -337,6 +350,8 @@ describe("kernel + workflowManager integration", () => {
         workerScript: "fake-worker.js",
         logStore,
       });
+      await flushSenseWorkerForkMicrotasks(kernel);
+      await vi.runAllTimersAsync();
 
       // Emit a regular signal (shorthand payload) — should NOT trigger any workflow
       const workerPool = mockChildren[0];
@@ -387,6 +402,8 @@ describe("kernel + workflowManager integration", () => {
         workerScript: "fake-worker.js",
         logStore,
       });
+      await flushSenseWorkerForkMicrotasks(kernel);
+      await vi.runAllTimersAsync();
 
       // Simulate sense compute returning a signal plus workflow launch
       const workerPool = mockChildren[0];
@@ -440,6 +457,8 @@ describe("kernel + workflowManager integration", () => {
         workerScript: "fake-worker.js",
         logStore,
       });
+      await flushSenseWorkerForkMicrotasks(kernel);
+      await vi.runAllTimersAsync();
 
       // Reload with a workflow added
       const newConfig: NerveConfig = {
@@ -517,6 +536,8 @@ describe("kernel + workflowManager integration", () => {
         workerScript: "fake-worker.js",
         logStore,
       });
+      await flushSenseWorkerForkMicrotasks(kernel);
+      await vi.runAllTimersAsync();
 
       // Reload with the workflow removed
       const newConfig: NerveConfig = {
@@ -600,6 +621,8 @@ describe("kernel + workflowManager integration", () => {
         workerScript: "fake-worker.js",
         logStore,
       });
+      await flushSenseWorkerForkMicrotasks(kernel);
+      await vi.runAllTimersAsync();
 
       // Trigger a workflow via sense compute return value
       const workerPool = mockChildren[0];
@@ -664,6 +687,8 @@ describe("kernel + workflowManager integration", () => {
         workerScript: "fake-worker.js",
         logStore,
       });
+      await flushSenseWorkerForkMicrotasks(kernel);
+      await vi.runAllTimersAsync();
 
       const health = kernel.getHealth();
       expect(health).toHaveProperty("activeWorkflows");

packages/daemon/src/__tests__/kernel.test.ts

@@ -16,10 +16,12 @@ type MockChild = EventEmitter & {
   send: ReturnType<typeof vi.fn>;
   kill: ReturnType<typeof vi.fn>;
   pid: number;
+  connected: boolean;
 };
 
 function makeMockChild(pid = 1): MockChild {
   const child = new EventEmitter() as MockChild;
+  child.connected = true;
   setImmediate(() => {
     child.emit("message", { type: "ready" });
   });
@@ -27,7 +29,10 @@ function makeMockChild(pid = 1): MockChild {
     if (msg === null || typeof msg !== "object") return;
     const m = msg as Record<string, unknown>;
     if (m.type === "shutdown") {
-      setImmediate(() => child.emit("exit", 0, null));
+      setImmediate(() => {
+        child.connected = false;
+        child.emit("exit", 0, null);
+      });
       return;
     }
     if (m.type === "compute" && typeof m.sense === "string") {
@@ -37,6 +42,7 @@ function makeMockChild(pid = 1): MockChild {
     }
   });
   child.kill = vi.fn((_signal?: string) => {
+    child.connected = false;
     child.emit("exit", null, _signal ?? "SIGKILL");
   });
   child.pid = pid;
@@ -59,6 +65,14 @@ const { createLogStore } = await import("@uncaged/nerve-store");
 // Helpers
 // ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
+/** `WorkerRuntime.start` schedules `fork` on the next microtask — flush one tick per initial group. */
+async function flushSenseWorkerForkMicrotasks(kernel: { groups: Set<string> }): Promise<void> {
+  const n = kernel.groups.size;
+  for (let i = 0; i < n; i++) {
+    await Promise.resolve();
+  }
+}
+
 function makeConfig(overrides: Partial<NerveConfig> = {}): NerveConfig {
   return {
     senses: {
@@ -173,6 +187,7 @@ describe("kernel — message routing", () => {
       },
     });
     const kernel = createKernel(config, nerveRoot);
+    await flushSenseWorkerForkMicrotasks(kernel);
 
     const child = mockChildren[0];
     child.emit("message", { type: "error", sense: "cpu-usage", error: "compute failed" });
@@ -201,6 +216,7 @@ describe("kernel — message routing", () => {
       },
     });
     const kernel = createKernel(config, nerveRoot);
+    await flushSenseWorkerForkMicrotasks(kernel);
 
     const child = mockChildren[0];
     const callsBefore = stderrSpy.mock.calls.length;
@@ -228,6 +244,7 @@ describe("kernel — message routing", () => {
       },
     });
     const kernel = createKernel(config, nerveRoot);
+    await flushSenseWorkerForkMicrotasks(kernel);
 
     const child = mockChildren[0];
     expect(() => child.emit("message", { type: "unknown-type" })).not.toThrow();
@@ -290,6 +307,7 @@ describe("kernel — groupForSense mapping", () => {
       api: { port: null, token: null, host: "127.0.0.1" },
     };
     const kernel = createKernel(config, nerveRoot);
+    await flushSenseWorkerForkMicrotasks(kernel);
 
     // system and network = 2 unique groups
     expect(mockChildren.length).toBe(2);
@@ -311,8 +329,10 @@ describe("kernel — groupForSense mapping", () => {
       },
     });
     const kernel = createKernel(config, nerveRoot);
-
+    await flushSenseWorkerForkMicrotasks(kernel);
     const child = mockChildren[0];
+    child.emit("message", { type: "ready" });
+
     vi.advanceTimersByTime(500);
 
     expect(child.send).toHaveBeenCalledWith(

packages/daemon/src/__tests__/sense-runtime.test.ts

@@ -176,14 +176,14 @@ describe("executeCompute", () => {
 
   it("returns non-null and inserts into table when compute returns data", async () => {
     const { runtime, sqlite } = makeRuntime(async () => ({
-      ts: 1000,
-      value: 0.5,
+      signal: { ts: 1000, value: 0.5 },
+      workflow: null,
     }));
 
     const result = await executeCompute(runtime);
     expect(result.ok).toBe(true);
     if (!result.ok) return;
-    expect(result.value).toEqual({ ts: 1000, value: 0.5 });
+    expect(result.value).toEqual({ signal: { ts: 1000, value: 0.5 }, workflow: null });
 
     const rows = sqlite.prepare("SELECT * FROM samples").all();
     expect(rows).toHaveLength(1);
@@ -228,7 +228,7 @@ describe("executeCompute", () => {
     const runtime: SenseRuntime = {
       name: "cpu-usage",
       db,
-      compute: async () => ({ ts: 1000, value: 1.23 }),
+      compute: async () => ({ signal: { ts: 1000, value: 1.23 }, workflow: null }),
       table: samples,
       persistSignal: () => {},
     };
@@ -248,14 +248,7 @@ describe("executeCompute", () => {
 
   it("returns err when compute exceeds timeoutMs", async () => {
     const { runtime, sqlite } = makeRuntime(
-      (signal) =>
-        new Promise<null>((resolve, reject) => {
-          const t = setTimeout(() => resolve(null), 5_000);
-          signal.addEventListener("abort", () => {
-            clearTimeout(t);
-            reject(new Error("aborted"));
-          });
-        }),
+      () => new Promise<null>((resolve) => setTimeout(() => resolve(null), 5_000)),
     );
 
     const result = await executeCompute(runtime, 50);
@@ -266,23 +259,14 @@ describe("executeCompute", () => {
   });
 
   it("completes within timeout when compute is fast", async () => {
-    const { runtime, sqlite } = makeRuntime(async () => ({ ts: 1, value: 42 }));
+    const { runtime, sqlite } = makeRuntime(async () => ({
+      signal: { ts: 1, value: 42 },
+      workflow: null,
+    }));
     const result = await executeCompute(runtime, 5_000);
     expect(result.ok).toBe(true);
     if (!result.ok) return;
-    expect(result.value).toEqual({ ts: 1, value: 42 });
-    sqlite.close();
-  });
-
-  it("passes AbortSignal to compute fn", async () => {
-    let capturedSignal: AbortSignal | undefined;
-    const { runtime, sqlite } = makeRuntime(async (signal) => {
-      capturedSignal = signal;
-      return null;
-    });
-
-    await executeCompute(runtime, 1_000);
-    expect(capturedSignal).toBeInstanceOf(AbortSignal);
+    expect(result.value).toEqual({ signal: { ts: 1, value: 42 }, workflow: null });
     sqlite.close();
   });
 });

packages/daemon/src/__tests__/worker-pool.test.ts

@@ -50,6 +50,7 @@ async function startWorkerWithReady(
   group: string,
 ): Promise<void> {
   const pr = pool.startWorker(group);
+  await Promise.resolve();
   const child = mockChildren[mockChildren.length - 1];
   child.emit("message", { type: "ready" });
   await pr;
@@ -137,6 +138,7 @@ describe("createSenseWorkerPool", () => {
     expect(pool.activeGroupCount()).toBe(1);
     pool.evictGroup("x");
     expect(pool.hasWorkerForGroup("x")).toBe(false);
+    await Promise.resolve();
     expect(mockChildren[0].send).toHaveBeenCalledWith(
       expect.objectContaining({ type: "shutdown" }),
     );
@@ -159,6 +161,7 @@ describe("createSenseWorkerPool", () => {
 
     const p = pool.restartGroup("g");
     expect(onBeforeGroupRestart).toHaveBeenCalledWith("g");
+    await Promise.resolve();
     expect(mockChildren[0].send).toHaveBeenCalledWith(
       expect.objectContaining({ type: "shutdown" }),
     );
@@ -171,7 +174,7 @@ describe("createSenseWorkerPool", () => {
   });
 
   it("onWorkerCrashed runs and schedules respawn after non-zero exit", async () => {
-    vi.useFakeTimers({ shouldAdvanceTime: true });
+    vi.useFakeTimers();
     const onWorkerCrashed = vi.fn();
     const pool = createSenseWorkerPool({
       nerveRoot: "/tmp/n",

packages/daemon/src/__tests__/worker-runtime.test.ts

@@ -0,0 +1,180 @@
+import { dirname, join } from "node:path";
+import { fileURLToPath } from "node:url";
+import { afterEach, describe, expect, it, vi } from "vitest";
+import { createWorkerRuntime } from "../worker-runtime.js";
+
+const fixturesDir = join(dirname(fileURLToPath(import.meta.url)), "fixtures");
+const echoWorkerPath = join(fixturesDir, "echo-worker.js");
+const crashWorkerPath = join(fixturesDir, "crash-worker.js");
+const stderrWorkerPath = join(fixturesDir, "stderr-worker.js");
+
+function baseConfig(script: string) {
+  return {
+    script,
+    argsForKey: () => [],
+    forwardStderr: true,
+    onMessage: vi.fn(),
+    onReady: vi.fn(),
+    onExit: vi.fn(),
+    respawn: {
+      enabled: true,
+      maxCrashes: 6,
+      windowMs: 60_000,
+      delayMs: 80,
+      allowRespawn: null,
+    },
+    shutdownTimeoutMs: 5000,
+  };
+}
+
+describe("createWorkerRuntime", () => {
+  const runtimes: Array<{ shutdown: () => Promise<void> }> = [];
+
+  afterEach(async () => {
+    await Promise.all(runtimes.splice(0).map((r) => r.shutdown()));
+  });
+
+  function track<R extends { shutdown: () => Promise<void> }>(r: R): R {
+    runtimes.push(r);
+    return r;
+  }
+
+  it("start + send message + receive echo", async () => {
+    const incoming: unknown[] = [];
+    const rt = track(
+      createWorkerRuntime({
+        ...baseConfig(echoWorkerPath),
+        onMessage: (_key, msg) => {
+          incoming.push(msg);
+        },
+      }),
+    );
+
+    await rt.start("a");
+    expect(rt.has("a")).toBe(true);
+    await rt.send("a", { type: "ping", n: 1 });
+
+    await vi.waitFor(() => {
+      expect(incoming.some((m) => isEchoOf(m, { type: "ping", n: 1 }))).toBe(true);
+    });
+    await rt.shutdown();
+  });
+
+  it("cold start on send (no explicit start)", async () => {
+    const incoming: unknown[] = [];
+    const rt = track(
+      createWorkerRuntime({
+        ...baseConfig(echoWorkerPath),
+        onMessage: (_key, msg) => {
+          incoming.push(msg);
+        },
+      }),
+    );
+
+    expect(rt.has("x")).toBe(false);
+    await rt.send("x", { type: "hi" });
+    await vi.waitFor(() => {
+      expect(rt.has("x")).toBe(true);
+      expect(incoming.some((m) => isEchoOf(m, { type: "hi" }))).toBe(true);
+    });
+    await rt.shutdown();
+  });
+
+  it("evict stops worker; has() is false", async () => {
+    const rt = track(createWorkerRuntime(baseConfig(echoWorkerPath)));
+    await rt.start("k");
+    expect(rt.has("k")).toBe(true);
+    await rt.evict("k");
+    expect(rt.has("k")).toBe(false);
+    await rt.shutdown();
+  });
+
+  it("drain stops and respawns (new pid)", async () => {
+    const rt = track(createWorkerRuntime(baseConfig(echoWorkerPath)));
+    await rt.start("k");
+    const before = rt.pid("k");
+    expect(before).not.toBeNull();
+    await rt.drain("k");
+    const after = rt.pid("k");
+    expect(after).not.toBeNull();
+    expect(after).not.toBe(before);
+    await rt.shutdown();
+  });
+
+  it("crash triggers auto-respawn", async () => {
+    const incoming: unknown[] = [];
+    const onExit = vi.fn();
+    const rt = track(
+      createWorkerRuntime({
+        ...baseConfig(crashWorkerPath),
+        onExit,
+        onMessage: (_key, msg) => {
+          incoming.push(msg);
+        },
+      }),
+    );
+
+    await rt.start("c");
+
+    await vi.waitFor(() => expect(onExit.mock.calls.length).toBeGreaterThanOrEqual(1), {
+      timeout: 3000,
+    });
+    await vi.waitFor(() => expect(rt.has("c")).toBe(true), { timeout: 3000 });
+
+    await rt.send("c", { type: "after-crash" });
+    await vi.waitFor(() => {
+      expect(incoming.some((m) => isEchoOf(m, { type: "after-crash" }))).toBe(true);
+    });
+    await rt.shutdown();
+  });
+
+  it("crash limit reached → no more automatic respawns", async () => {
+    const rt = track(
+      createWorkerRuntime({
+        ...baseConfig(crashWorkerPath),
+        respawn: {
+          enabled: true,
+          maxCrashes: 2,
+          windowMs: 60_000,
+          delayMs: 50,
+          allowRespawn: null,
+        },
+      }),
+    );
+
+    await rt.start("z");
+
+    await vi.waitFor(() => expect(rt.has("z")).toBe(false), { timeout: 8000 });
+
+    await rt.shutdown();
+  });
+
+  it("shutdown stops all workers", async () => {
+    const rt = track(createWorkerRuntime(baseConfig(echoWorkerPath)));
+    await rt.start("a");
+    await rt.start("b");
+    expect(rt.keys().sort()).toEqual(["a", "b"].sort());
+    await rt.shutdown();
+    expect(rt.keys()).toEqual([]);
+    expect(rt.has("a")).toBe(false);
+    expect(rt.has("b")).toBe(false);
+  });
+
+  it("stderrTail captures stderr output", async () => {
+    const rt = track(createWorkerRuntime(baseConfig(stderrWorkerPath)));
+    await rt.start("s");
+    await vi.waitFor(() => {
+      expect(rt.stderrTail("s")).toContain("stderr-marker");
+    });
+    await rt.shutdown();
+  });
+});
+
+function isEchoOf(msg: unknown, payload: unknown): boolean {
+  return (
+    typeof msg === "object" &&
+    msg !== null &&
+    (msg as Record<string, unknown>).type === "echo" &&
+    JSON.stringify((msg as Record<string, unknown>).payload) === JSON.stringify(payload)
+  );
+}

packages/daemon/src/agent-adapters/echo.ts

@@ -1,9 +1,9 @@
-import type { AgentConfig, AgentFn, WorkflowContext } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
+import type { AgentConfig, AgentFn, ThreadContext } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
 
 /**
  * Echo adapter (`type: "echo"`) — returns the assembled prompt unchanged.
  * Used for tests and dry-run wiring before real adapters exist.
  */
 export function createEchoAgent(_config: AgentConfig): AgentFn {
-  return async (prompt: string, _context: WorkflowContext) => prompt;
+  return async (_ctx: ThreadContext, prompt: string) => prompt;
 }

packages/daemon/src/index.ts

@@ -17,13 +17,12 @@ export type {
 
 export type { SignalBus, SignalHandler, Unsubscribe } from "./signal-bus.js";
 
-export type { ComputeFn, DrizzleDB, PeerMap, SenseRuntime } from "./sense-runtime.js";
+export type { DrizzleDB, SenseRuntime } from "./sense-runtime.js";
 
 export {
   runMigrations,
   openSenseDb,
-  openPeerDb,
-  loadComputeFn,
+  loadSenseModule,
   executeCompute,
 } from "./sense-runtime.js";
 

packages/daemon/src/ipc.ts

@@ -3,7 +3,7 @@
  * Protocol per RFC §5.2: hub-and-spoke, all messages through engine.
  */
 
-import type { Result } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
+import type { Result, WorkflowTrigger } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
 import { err, isPlainRecord, ok } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
 
 /** Parent → Worker: trigger one compute cycle for a sense */
@@ -72,6 +72,13 @@ export type SignalMessage = {
   payload: unknown;
 };
 
+/** Worker → Parent: sense compute result includes a workflow to start */
+export type SenseWorkflowTriggerMessage = {
+  type: "sense-workflow-trigger";
+  sense: string;
+  workflow: WorkflowTrigger;
+};
+
 /** Worker → Parent: compute threw or returned an unexpected error */
 export type ErrorMessage = {
   type: "error";
@@ -139,7 +146,8 @@ export type WorkerToParentMessage =
   | HealthResponseMessage
   | ThreadEventMessage
   | WorkflowErrorMessage
-  | ThreadWorkflowMessageMessage;
+  | ThreadWorkflowMessageMessage
+  | SenseWorkflowTriggerMessage;
 
 const PARENT_MSG_TYPES = new Set([
   "compute",
@@ -340,6 +348,7 @@ const WORKER_MSG_TYPES = new Set([
   "thread-event",
   "workflow-error",
   "thread-workflow-message",
+  "sense-workflow-trigger",
 ]);
 
 function parseThreadWorkflowMessageMsg(
@@ -377,6 +386,36 @@ function parseThreadWorkflowMessageMsg(
   });
 }
 
+function parseSenseWorkflowTriggerMsg(obj: Record<string, unknown>): Result<WorkerToParentMessage> {
+  if (typeof obj.sense !== "string") {
+    return err(new Error("Worker 'sense-workflow-trigger' message missing string 'sense' field"));
+  }
+  if (!isPlainRecord(obj.workflow)) {
+    return err(
+      new Error("Worker 'sense-workflow-trigger' message missing object 'workflow' field"),
+    );
+  }
+  const wf = obj.workflow;
+  if (typeof wf.name !== "string")
+    return err(new Error("Worker 'sense-workflow-trigger' workflow missing string 'name'"));
+  if (typeof wf.maxRounds !== "number")
+    return err(new Error("Worker 'sense-workflow-trigger' workflow missing number 'maxRounds'"));
+  if (typeof wf.prompt !== "string")
+    return err(new Error("Worker 'sense-workflow-trigger' workflow missing string 'prompt'"));
+  if (typeof wf.dryRun !== "boolean")
+    return err(new Error("Worker 'sense-workflow-trigger' workflow missing boolean 'dryRun'"));
+  return ok({
+    type: "sense-workflow-trigger",
+    sense: obj.sense,
+    workflow: {
+      name: wf.name,
+      maxRounds: wf.maxRounds,
+      prompt: wf.prompt,
+      dryRun: wf.dryRun,
+    },
+  });
+}
+
 /** Validate and parse an unknown IPC message received from a worker process. */
 export function parseWorkerMessage(raw: unknown): Result<WorkerToParentMessage> {
   if (!isPlainRecord(raw)) {
@@ -395,5 +434,6 @@ export function parseWorkerMessage(raw: unknown): Result<WorkerToParentMessage>
   if (obj.type === "thread-event") return parseThreadEventMsg(obj);
   if (obj.type === "workflow-error") return parseWorkflowErrorMsg(obj);
   if (obj.type === "thread-workflow-message") return parseThreadWorkflowMessageMsg(obj);
+  if (obj.type === "sense-workflow-trigger") return parseSenseWorkflowTriggerMsg(obj);
   return ok({ type: "ready" });
 }

packages/daemon/src/sense-runtime.ts

@@ -6,7 +6,7 @@ import { drizzle } from "drizzle-orm/node-sqlite";
 import type { NodeSQLiteDatabase } from "drizzle-orm/node-sqlite";
 import type { SQLiteTable } from "drizzle-orm/sqlite-core";
 
-import type { Result, SenseComputeFn } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
+import type { ComputeResult, Result, SenseComputeFn } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
 import { DEFAULT_SENSE_SIGNAL_RETENTION, err, isPlainRecord, ok } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
 
 /** A Drizzle DB instance (schema-generic) */
@@ -201,13 +201,15 @@ export async function loadSenseModule(
  * Execute a sense's compute function with an optional soft timeout.
  * If timeoutMs is provided and compute takes longer, the AbortSignal is
  * triggered and an error Result is returned.
- * When compute returns non-null, the result is persisted to the sense's table
- * via `db.insert(table).values(result)`.
+ * When compute returns non-null, `result.signal` is persisted to the sense's
+ * table via `db.insert(table).values(result.signal)` and `persistSignal` is
+ * called with `result.signal`. Returns the full `ComputeResult` so callers
+ * can inspect the `workflow` field.
  */
 export async function executeCompute(
   runtime: SenseRuntime,
   timeoutMs?: number,
-): Promise<Result<unknown | null>> {
+): Promise<Result<ComputeResult<unknown>>> {
   const controller = new AbortController();
 
   let timer: ReturnType<typeof setTimeout> | undefined;
@@ -222,14 +224,15 @@ export async function executeCompute(
       : null;
 
   try {
-    const computePromise = runtime.compute(controller.signal);
+    const computePromise = runtime.compute();
     const result = timeoutPromise
       ? await Promise.race([computePromise, timeoutPromise])
       : await computePromise;
 
     if (result !== null) {
       // Cast required: DrizzleDB is schema-agnostic; the sense module guarantees shape compatibility.
-      await runtime.db.insert(runtime.table).values(result as Record<string, unknown>);
+      await runtime.db.insert(runtime.table).values(result.signal as Record<string, unknown>);
+      runtime.persistSignal(result.signal);
     }
 
     return ok(result);

packages/daemon/src/sense-worker.ts

@@ -7,7 +7,7 @@
  * IPC event loop.
  *
  * Layout assumptions (nerve user config at `~/.uncaged-nerve/`):
- *   senses/<name>/index.js        ← compiled compute
+ *   dist/senses/<name>/index.js   ← bundled compute (esbuild)
  *   senses/<name>/migrations/     ← SQL migration files
  *   data/senses/<name>.db         ← SQLite data file
  *   nerve.yaml                    ← config
@@ -18,7 +18,7 @@ import "./experimental-warning-suppression.js";
 import { readFileSync } from "node:fs";
 import { join, resolve } from "node:path";
 
-import { parseNerveConfig, routeSenseComputeOutput } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
+import { parseNerveConfig } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
 import type { NerveConfig } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
 
 import type { WorkerToParentMessage } from "./ipc.js";
@@ -79,7 +79,7 @@ async function initSense(
 ): Promise<SenseRuntime> {
   const dbPath = join(nerveRoot, "data", "senses", `${senseName}.db`);
   const migrationsDir = join(nerveRoot, "senses", senseName, "migrations");
-  const senseIndexPath = resolve(join(nerveRoot, "senses", senseName, "index.js"));
+  const senseIndexPath = resolve(join(nerveRoot, "dist", "senses", senseName, "index.js"));
 
   const dbResult = openSenseDb(dbPath, migrationsDir, retention);
   if (!dbResult.ok) {
@@ -150,12 +150,7 @@ async function runCompute(
     }
     clearGracePeriodTimer(senseName);
     if (result.value != null) {
-      const routeResult = routeSenseComputeOutput(result.value);
-      if (!routeResult.ok) {
-        sendError(senseName, routeResult.error.message);
-        return;
-      }
-      runtime.persistSignal(routeResult.value.signal);
+      // Single IPC message: kernel uses routeSenseComputeOutput(payload) for signal + optional workflow.
       sendSignal(senseName, result.value);
     }
   } catch (e: unknown) {

packages/daemon/src/worker-pool.ts

@@ -1,19 +1,13 @@
 /**
- * Sense worker pool — forked child processes per sense group (IPC lifecycle).
+ * Sense worker pool — thin wrapper around WorkerRuntime (RFC-006): one fork per sense group.
  */
 
-import { fork } from "node:child_process";
-import type { ChildProcess } from "node:child_process";
 import { dirname, join } from "node:path";
 import { fileURLToPath } from "node:url";
 
-import type { ComputeMessage, ShutdownMessage } from "./ipc.js";
-import { parseWorkerMessage } from "./ipc.js";
-import {
-  formatCapturedStderrTail,
-  formatChildExitSummary,
-  teeCapturedStderr,
-} from "./worker-fork-support.js";
+import type { ComputeMessage } from "./ipc.js";
+import { formatCapturedStderrTail, formatChildExitSummary } from "./worker-fork-support.js";
+import { createWorkerRuntime } from "./worker-runtime.js";
 
 export function resolveWorkerScript(): string {
   const __filename = fileURLToPath(import.meta.url);
@@ -21,17 +15,12 @@ export function resolveWorkerScript(): string {
   return join(__dir, "sense-worker.js");
 }
 
-type WorkerEntry = {
-  group: string;
-  process: ChildProcess;
-};
-
 export type SenseWorkerPoolOptions = {
   nerveRoot: string;
   workerScript: string;
   /** Invoked for every IPC message from a worker (including ready / signal / error). */
   onWorkerMessage: (raw: unknown) => void;
-  /** Sense names in a group — used when clearing scheduler state on crash or restart. */
+  /** Sense names in a group — reserved for scheduler-aligned cleanup (kernel passes current config). */
   sensesForGroup: (group: string) => string[];
   /**
    * Called when a worker exits with non-zero code before scheduling a respawn
@@ -58,144 +47,106 @@ export type SenseWorkerPool = {
   activeGroupCount: () => number;
 };
 
-function spawnWorker(
-  nerveRoot: string,
-  group: string,
-  workerScript: string,
-  stderrTail: { value: string },
-): ChildProcess {
-  const child = fork(workerScript, ["--group", group, "--root", nerveRoot], {
-    stdio: ["ignore", "inherit", "pipe", "ipc"],
-  });
-  teeCapturedStderr(child, stderrTail);
-  child.on("error", (err) => {
-    if ((err as NodeJS.ErrnoException).code !== "EPIPE") {
-      console.error("[worker] error:", err.message);
-    }
-  });
-  return child;
-}
-
-function sendComputeToProcess(worker: ChildProcess, senseName: string): void {
-  if (worker.connected === false) return;
-  const msg: ComputeMessage = { type: "compute", sense: senseName };
-  try {
-    worker.send(msg);
-  } catch {
-    // IPC channel closed between connected check and send
-  }
-}
-
-function sendShutdownToProcess(worker: ChildProcess): void {
-  if (worker.connected === false) return;
-  const msg: ShutdownMessage = { type: "shutdown" };
-  try {
-    worker.send(msg);
-  } catch {
-    // IPC channel closed between connected check and send
-  }
-}
-
-function waitForExit(child: ChildProcess, timeoutMs: number): Promise<void> {
-  return new Promise((resolve) => {
-    const timer = setTimeout(() => {
-      child.kill("SIGKILL");
-      resolve();
-    }, timeoutMs);
-    child.once("exit", () => {
-      clearTimeout(timer);
-      resolve();
-    });
-  });
-}
+/** Matches legacy pool: long crash window, 1s respawn delay, practical unlimited respawns. */
+const SENSE_WORKER_RESPAWN = {
+  enabled: true,
+  maxCrashes: 100_000,
+  windowMs: 86_400_000,
+  delayMs: 1000,
+} as const;
 
 export function createSenseWorkerPool(options: SenseWorkerPoolOptions): SenseWorkerPool {
-  const workers = new Map<string, WorkerEntry>();
-
-  function startWorker(group: string): Promise<void> {
-    const stderrTail = { value: "" };
-    const child = spawnWorker(options.nerveRoot, group, options.workerScript, stderrTail);
-
-    let workerReadyResolve: (() => void) | undefined;
-    const workerReady = new Promise<void>((resolve) => {
-      workerReadyResolve = resolve;
-    });
-
-    child.on("message", (raw: unknown) => {
-      const result = parseWorkerMessage(raw);
-      if (result.ok && result.value.type === "ready") {
-        workerReadyResolve?.();
-      }
+  const runtime = createWorkerRuntime<string>({
+    script: options.workerScript,
+    argsForKey: (group) => ["--group", group, "--root", options.nerveRoot],
+    forwardStderr: true,
+    onMessage: (_key, raw) => {
       options.onWorkerMessage(raw);
-    });
-
-    child.on("exit", (code, signal) => {
-      const summary = formatChildExitSummary(code, signal ?? null);
+    },
+    onReady: (_key, msg) => {
+      options.onWorkerMessage(msg);
+    },
+    onExit: (group, code, signal) => {
+      const sig =
+        signal === null || signal === undefined || signal === ""
+          ? null
+          : (signal as NodeJS.Signals);
+      const summary = formatChildExitSummary(code, sig);
       process.stderr.write(
-        `[kernel] worker for group "${group}" exited (${summary})${formatCapturedStderrTail(stderrTail.value)}\n`,
+        `[kernel] worker for group "${group}" exited (${summary})${formatCapturedStderrTail(runtime.stderrTail(group))}\n`,
       );
-      workerReadyResolve?.();
       if (!options.isStopped() && code !== 0) {
         process.stderr.write(`[kernel] respawning worker for group "${group}" in 1s\n`);
         options.onWorkerCrashed(group);
-        setTimeout(() => {
-          if (!options.isStopped()) {
-            startWorker(group);
-          }
-        }, 1000);
       }
-    });
+    },
+    respawn: {
+      ...SENSE_WORKER_RESPAWN,
+      allowRespawn: (_group) => !options.isStopped(),
+    },
+    shutdownTimeoutMs: 5000,
+  });
 
-    workers.set(group, { group, process: child });
-    return workerReady;
+  /** Groups we have ever started — mirrors legacy Map presence for `restartGroup` no-op when unknown. */
+  const trackedGroups = new Set<string>();
+  /** Marks groups mid-evict so `hasWorkerForGroup` drops immediately (legacy synchronous eviction). */
+  const evicting = new Set<string>();
+
+  async function startWorker(group: string): Promise<void> {
+    trackedGroups.add(group);
+    await runtime.start(group);
   }
 
   async function restartGroup(group: string): Promise<void> {
-    const entry = workers.get(group);
-    if (entry === undefined) return;
-
-    options.onBeforeGroupRestart(group);
-
-    sendShutdownToProcess(entry.process);
-    await waitForExit(entry.process, 5000);
-
-    if (!options.isStopped()) {
-      await startWorker(group);
+    if (!trackedGroups.has(group)) {
+      return;
     }
+    options.onBeforeGroupRestart(group);
+    await runtime.drain(group);
   }
 
   function evictGroup(group: string): void {
-    const entry = workers.get(group);
-    if (entry === undefined) return;
-    sendShutdownToProcess(entry.process);
-    workers.delete(group);
+    trackedGroups.delete(group);
+    evicting.add(group);
+    void runtime.evict(group).finally(() => {
+      evicting.delete(group);
+    });
   }
 
   async function shutdownAll(): Promise<void> {
-    const exitPromises: Promise<void>[] = [];
-    for (const entry of workers.values()) {
-      sendShutdownToProcess(entry.process);
-      exitPromises.push(waitForExit(entry.process, 5000));
-    }
-    await Promise.all(exitPromises);
+    await runtime.shutdown();
+    trackedGroups.clear();
+    evicting.clear();
   }
 
   function sendCompute(group: string, senseName: string): void {
-    const entry = workers.get(group);
-    if (entry === undefined) return;
-    sendComputeToProcess(entry.process, senseName);
+    if (!trackedGroups.has(group) || evicting.has(group)) {
+      return;
+    }
+    // Legacy pool: `child.send` no-op when IPC is closed (still allow cold start: child === null).
+    if (runtime.hasDisconnectedChild(group)) {
+      return;
+    }
+    const msg: ComputeMessage = { type: "compute", sense: senseName };
+    if (!runtime.trySendSync(group, msg)) {
+      void runtime.send(group, msg).catch(() => {
+        // IPC channel may close between scheduling and send — same as legacy try/catch on child.send
+      });
+    }
   }
 
   function getWorkerPid(group: string): number | null {
-    return workers.get(group)?.process.pid ?? null;
+    return runtime.pid(group);
   }
 
+  /** True once `startWorker` has been called for the group and it is not mid-evict (matches legacy Map key). */
   function hasWorkerForGroup(group: string): boolean {
-    return workers.has(group);
+    return trackedGroups.has(group) && !evicting.has(group);
   }
 
+  /** Count of sense groups with a worker slot (includes not-yet-ready), excluding evicted keys. */
   function activeGroupCount(): number {
-    return workers.size;
+    return trackedGroups.size;
   }
 
   return {

packages/daemon/src/worker-runtime.ts

@@ -0,0 +1,404 @@
+/**
+ * Generic message-routed worker process manager (RFC-006).
+ * One forked Node child per key; cold start, crash respawn, drain/evict, shutdown.
+ */
+
+import { type ChildProcess, type Serializable, fork } from "node:child_process";
+import { isPlainRecord } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
+
+const STDERR_TAIL_MAX_CHARS = 2048;
+
+export type WorkerRuntimeConfig<K extends string> = {
+  script: string;
+  argsForKey: (key: K) => string[];
+  /** When false, stderr is not captured into `stderrTail` (e.g. tests without a pipe). */
+  forwardStderr: boolean;
+  onMessage: (key: K, msg: unknown) => void;
+  onReady: (key: K, msg: unknown) => void;
+  onExit: (key: K, code: number | null, signal: string | null) => void;
+  respawn: {
+    enabled: boolean;
+    maxCrashes: number;
+    windowMs: number;
+    delayMs: number;
+    /** When non-null, return false to skip automatic respawn after an unexpected exit. */
+    allowRespawn: ((key: K) => boolean) | null;
+  };
+  shutdownTimeoutMs: number;
+};
+
+export type WorkerRuntime<K extends string> = {
+  send: (key: K, msg: unknown) => Promise<void>;
+  /** When the worker is already ready and IPC-connected, sends synchronously (returns true). Otherwise false — caller may fall back to `send`. */
+  trySendSync: (key: K, msg: unknown) => boolean;
+  start: (key: K) => Promise<void>;
+  evict: (key: K) => Promise<void>;
+  drain: (key: K) => Promise<void>;
+  shutdown: () => Promise<void>;
+  has: (key: K) => boolean;
+  /** True when a child exists but IPC is disconnected (legacy pool skipped sends in this case). */
+  hasDisconnectedChild: (key: K) => boolean;
+  pid: (key: K) => number | null;
+  keys: () => K[];
+  stderrTail: (key: K) => string;
+};
+
+type WorkerMachineState = "stopped" | "starting" | "ready" | "draining";
+
+type ReadyWaiter = {
+  resolve: () => void;
+  reject: (err: Error) => void;
+};
+
+/** Internal: one forked process slot (ManagedWorker). */
+type WorkerSlot<K extends string> = {
+  key: K;
+  state: WorkerMachineState;
+  child: ChildProcess | null;
+  pid: number | null;
+  stderrTail: string;
+  crashTimestamps: number[];
+  expectExit: boolean;
+  readyWaiters: ReadyWaiter[];
+  opChain: Promise<void>;
+};
+
+function isReadyIpcMessage(raw: unknown): boolean {
+  return isPlainRecord(raw) && raw.type === "ready";
+}
+
+function signalToString(signal: NodeJS.Signals | null): string | null {
+  if (signal === null) {
+    return null;
+  }
+  return String(signal);
+}
+
+function attachStderrTail<K extends string>(child: ChildProcess, slot: WorkerSlot<K>): void {
+  const stream = child.stderr;
+  if (stream == null) {
+    return;
+  }
+  stream.setEncoding("utf8");
+  stream.on("data", (chunk: string | Buffer) => {
+    const text = typeof chunk === "string" ? chunk : chunk.toString("utf8");
+    slot.stderrTail = (slot.stderrTail + text).slice(-STDERR_TAIL_MAX_CHARS);
+  });
+}
+
+function enqueueOp<K extends string>(slot: WorkerSlot<K>, fn: () => Promise<void>): Promise<void> {
+  const run = slot.opChain.then(fn, fn);
+  slot.opChain = run.then(
+    () => {},
+    () => {},
+  );
+  return run;
+}
+
+function resolveReadyWaiters<K extends string>(slot: WorkerSlot<K>): void {
+  const waiters = slot.readyWaiters;
+  slot.readyWaiters = [];
+  for (const w of waiters) {
+    w.resolve();
+  }
+}
+
+function rejectReadyWaiters<K extends string>(slot: WorkerSlot<K>, err: Error): void {
+  const waiters = slot.readyWaiters;
+  slot.readyWaiters = [];
+  for (const w of waiters) {
+    w.reject(err);
+  }
+}
+
+function waitForReady<K extends string>(
+  slot: WorkerSlot<K>,
+  shutdownTimeoutMs: number,
+): Promise<void> {
+  if (slot.state === "ready" && slot.child !== null && slot.child.connected) {
+    return Promise.resolve();
+  }
+  return new Promise((resolve, reject) => {
+    let settled = false;
+    const timer = setTimeout(() => {
+      if (!settled) {
+        settled = true;
+        reject(new Error(`Worker "${String(slot.key)}" ready timeout`));
+      }
+    }, shutdownTimeoutMs);
+    slot.readyWaiters.push({
+      resolve: () => {
+        if (settled) {
+          return;
+        }
+        settled = true;
+        clearTimeout(timer);
+        resolve();
+      },
+      reject: (err: Error) => {
+        if (settled) {
+          return;
+        }
+        settled = true;
+        clearTimeout(timer);
+        reject(err);
+      },
+    });
+  });
+}
+
+async function waitForChildExit(child: ChildProcess, timeoutMs: number): Promise<void> {
+  await new Promise<void>((resolve) => {
+    const timer = setTimeout(() => {
+      child.kill("SIGKILL");
+    }, timeoutMs);
+    child.once("exit", () => {
+      clearTimeout(timer);
+      resolve();
+    });
+  });
+}
+
+export function createWorkerRuntime<K extends string>(
+  config: WorkerRuntimeConfig<K>,
+): WorkerRuntime<K> {
+  const workers = new Map<K, WorkerSlot<K>>();
+
+  function getOrCreateSlot(key: K): WorkerSlot<K> {
+    let slot = workers.get(key);
+    if (slot === undefined) {
+      slot = {
+        key,
+        state: "stopped",
+        child: null,
+        pid: null,
+        stderrTail: "",
+        crashTimestamps: [],
+        expectExit: false,
+        readyWaiters: [],
+        opChain: Promise.resolve(),
+      };
+      workers.set(key, slot);
+    }
+    return slot;
+  }
+
+  function handleWorkerMessage(slot: WorkerSlot<K>, msg: unknown): void {
+    if (isReadyIpcMessage(msg)) {
+      if (slot.state === "starting") {
+        slot.state = "ready";
+        config.onReady(slot.key, msg);
+        resolveReadyWaiters(slot);
+      }
+      return;
+    }
+    config.onMessage(slot.key, msg);
+  }
+
+  function onChildExit(
+    slot: WorkerSlot<K>,
+    code: number | null,
+    signal: NodeJS.Signals | null,
+  ): void {
+    config.onExit(slot.key, code, signalToString(signal));
+
+    if (slot.child !== null) {
+      slot.child.removeAllListeners("message");
+      slot.child.removeAllListeners("exit");
+    }
+
+    const wasExpect = slot.expectExit;
+    slot.expectExit = false;
+
+    slot.child = null;
+    slot.pid = null;
+
+    if (wasExpect) {
+      slot.state = "stopped";
+      return;
+    }
+
+    rejectReadyWaiters(slot, new Error(`Worker "${String(slot.key)}" exited unexpectedly`));
+    slot.state = "stopped";
+
+    void enqueueOp(slot, async () => {
+      await handleUnexpectedCrashRecovery(slot);
+    });
+  }
+
+  function registerChild(slot: WorkerSlot<K>, child: ChildProcess): void {
+    slot.child = child;
+    slot.pid = child.pid ?? null;
+    if (config.forwardStderr) {
+      attachStderrTail(child, slot);
+    }
+    child.on("message", (msg: unknown) => {
+      handleWorkerMessage(slot, msg);
+    });
+    child.on("exit", (code, sig) => {
+      onChildExit(slot, code, sig ?? null);
+    });
+  }
+
+  async function forkAndWaitReady(slot: WorkerSlot<K>): Promise<void> {
+    if (slot.state === "ready" && slot.child !== null && slot.child.connected) {
+      return;
+    }
+
+    slot.state = "starting";
+
+    let child: ChildProcess;
+    try {
+      child = fork(config.script, config.argsForKey(slot.key), {
+        stdio: ["ignore", "inherit", "pipe", "ipc"],
+        env: process.env,
+      });
+    } catch (e) {
+      slot.state = "stopped";
+      const err = e instanceof Error ? e : new Error(String(e));
+      rejectReadyWaiters(slot, err);
+      throw err;
+    }
+
+    registerChild(slot, child);
+    await waitForReady(slot, config.shutdownTimeoutMs);
+  }
+
+  async function gracefulStop(slot: WorkerSlot<K>): Promise<void> {
+    if (slot.child === null) {
+      return;
+    }
+    slot.expectExit = true;
+    slot.state = "draining";
+    const child = slot.child;
+    try {
+      child.send({ type: "shutdown" });
+    } catch {
+      // IPC channel may have closed between null-check and send
+    }
+    await waitForChildExit(child, config.shutdownTimeoutMs);
+  }
+
+  async function handleUnexpectedCrashRecovery(slot: WorkerSlot<K>): Promise<void> {
+    if (!config.respawn.enabled) {
+      return;
+    }
+    if (config.respawn.allowRespawn !== null && !config.respawn.allowRespawn(slot.key)) {
+      return;
+    }
+
+    const now = Date.now();
+    slot.crashTimestamps.push(now);
+    slot.crashTimestamps = slot.crashTimestamps.filter((t) => now - t <= config.respawn.windowMs);
+
+    if (slot.crashTimestamps.length >= config.respawn.maxCrashes) {
+      console.error(
+        `[WorkerRuntime] worker "${String(slot.key)}" exceeded crash limit (${String(config.respawn.maxCrashes)} in ${String(config.respawn.windowMs)}ms); not respawning`,
+      );
+      return;
+    }
+
+    await new Promise<void>((resolve) => setTimeout(resolve, config.respawn.delayMs));
+    await forkAndWaitReady(slot);
+  }
+
+  async function shutdownWorker(slot: WorkerSlot<K>): Promise<void> {
+    await gracefulStop(slot);
+    workers.delete(slot.key);
+  }
+
+  function isActive(slot: WorkerSlot<K>): boolean {
+    return slot.state === "ready" && slot.child !== null && slot.child.connected;
+  }
+
+  return {
+    send: async (key: K, msg: unknown) => {
+      const slot = getOrCreateSlot(key);
+      await enqueueOp(slot, async () => {
+        await forkAndWaitReady(slot);
+        const child = slot.child;
+        if (child === null || !child.connected) {
+          throw new Error(`Worker "${String(key)}" is not connected`);
+        }
+        child.send(msg as Serializable);
+      });
+    },
+
+    trySendSync: (key: K, msg: unknown): boolean => {
+      const slot = workers.get(key);
+      if (slot === undefined || !isActive(slot)) {
+        return false;
+      }
+      const child = slot.child;
+      if (child === null || !child.connected) {
+        return false;
+      }
+      try {
+        child.send(msg as Serializable);
+        return true;
+      } catch {
+        return false;
+      }
+    },
+
+    start: async (key: K) => {
+      const slot = getOrCreateSlot(key);
+      await enqueueOp(slot, async () => {
+        await forkAndWaitReady(slot);
+      });
+    },
+
+    evict: async (key: K) => {
+      const slot = getOrCreateSlot(key);
+      await enqueueOp(slot, async () => {
+        await gracefulStop(slot);
+        workers.delete(key);
+      });
+    },
+
+    drain: async (key: K) => {
+      const slot = getOrCreateSlot(key);
+      await enqueueOp(slot, async () => {
+        if (slot.child === null) {
+          await forkAndWaitReady(slot);
+          return;
+        }
+        await gracefulStop(slot);
+        await forkAndWaitReady(slot);
+      });
+    },
+
+    shutdown: async () => {
+      const snapshot = [...workers.values()];
+      await Promise.all(snapshot.map((slot) => enqueueOp(slot, () => shutdownWorker(slot))));
+    },
+
+    has: (key: K) => {
+      const slot = workers.get(key);
+      return slot !== undefined && isActive(slot);
+    },
+
+    hasDisconnectedChild: (key: K): boolean => {
+      const slot = workers.get(key);
+      if (slot === undefined || slot.child === null) {
+        return false;
+      }
+      return !slot.child.connected;
+    },
+
+    pid: (key: K) => {
+      const slot = workers.get(key);
+      if (slot === undefined || !isActive(slot) || slot.pid === null) {
+        return null;
+      }
+      return slot.pid;
+    },
+
+    keys: () => [...workers.values()].filter((slot) => isActive(slot)).map((slot) => slot.key),
+
+    stderrTail: (key: K) => {
+      const slot = workers.get(key);
+      return slot === undefined ? "" : slot.stderrTail;
+    },
+  };
+}

packages/daemon/src/workflow-manager.ts

@@ -60,7 +60,7 @@ export type WorkflowManager = {
   updateConfig: (newConfig: NerveConfig) => void;
   /**
    * Drain active threads for a workflow, then respawn its worker process.
-   * Used for hot reload when bundled workflow output under workflows/<name>/dist/ changes.
+   * Used for hot reload when bundled workflow output under dist/workflows/<name>/ changes.
    * Waits up to `drainTimeoutMs` for threads to complete before force-killing.
    */
   drainAndRespawn: (workflowName: string, drainTimeoutMs?: number) => Promise<void>;
@@ -127,7 +127,6 @@ function ensureThreadMessagesWithStart(
   threadId: string,
   fallbackPrompt: string,
   fallbackMaxRounds: number,
-  fallbackDryRun: boolean,
 ): WorkflowMessage[] {
   const mapped: WorkflowMessage[] = messages.map((m) => ({
     role: m.role,
@@ -141,7 +140,7 @@ function ensureThreadMessagesWithStart(
   const start: WorkflowMessage = {
     role: START,
     content: fallbackPrompt,
-    meta: { maxRounds: fallbackMaxRounds, dryRun: fallbackDryRun, threadId },
+    meta: { maxRounds: fallbackMaxRounds, threadId },
     timestamp: Date.now(),
   };
   return [start, ...mapped];
@@ -408,7 +407,6 @@ export function createWorkflowManager(
       runId,
       launch.prompt,
       launch.maxRounds,
-      launch.dryRun,
     );
     state.active.add(runId);
     const msg: ResumeThreadMessage = {

packages/daemon/src/workflow-worker.ts

@@ -14,7 +14,14 @@ import "./experimental-warning-suppression.js";
 import { existsSync } from "node:fs";
 import { join, resolve } from "node:path";
 
-import type { RoleMeta, StartStep, WorkflowDefinition, WorkflowMessage } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
+import type {
+  RoleMeta,
+  RoleStep,
+  StartStep,
+  ThreadContext,
+  WorkflowDefinition,
+  WorkflowMessage,
+} from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
 import { END, START, isPlainRecord } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
 
 import type {
@@ -87,15 +94,14 @@ function normalizeStartMeta(
   threadIdFallback: string,
 ): StartStep["meta"] {
   if (!isPlainRecord(meta)) {
-    return { maxRounds: maxRoundsFallback, dryRun: false, threadId: threadIdFallback };
+    return { maxRounds: maxRoundsFallback, threadId: threadIdFallback };
   }
   const maxRounds = typeof meta.maxRounds === "number" ? meta.maxRounds : maxRoundsFallback;
-  const dryRun = typeof meta.dryRun === "boolean" ? meta.dryRun : false;
   const threadId =
     typeof meta.threadId === "string" && meta.threadId.length > 0
       ? meta.threadId
       : threadIdFallback;
-  return { maxRounds, dryRun, threadId };
+  return { maxRounds, threadId };
 }
 
 function startStepFromWorkflowMessage(
@@ -107,7 +113,7 @@ function startStepFromWorkflowMessage(
     return {
       role: START,
       content: "",
-      meta: { maxRounds: maxRoundsFallback, dryRun: false, threadId: threadIdFallback },
+      meta: { maxRounds: maxRoundsFallback, threadId: threadIdFallback },
       timestamp: Date.now(),
     };
   }
@@ -124,8 +130,30 @@ type ThreadMessagesState = {
   start: StartStep;
   /** Role outputs only; never includes the `__start__` frame. */
   messages: WorkflowMessage[];
+  /** From IPC (`start-thread` / `resume-thread`); not part of `StartStep.meta`. */
+  dryRun: boolean;
 };
 
+function workflowMessagesToRoleSteps(messages: WorkflowMessage[]): RoleStep<RoleMeta>[] {
+  return messages.map((m) => ({
+    role: m.role,
+    meta: m.meta as Record<string, unknown>,
+    content: m.content,
+    timestamp: m.timestamp,
+  })) as RoleStep<RoleMeta>[];
+}
+
+function buildThreadContext(
+  start: StartStep,
+  roleMessages: WorkflowMessage[],
+): ThreadContext<RoleMeta> {
+  return {
+    threadId: start.meta.threadId,
+    start,
+    steps: workflowMessagesToRoleSteps(roleMessages),
+  };
+}
+
 function initThreadMessages(
   runId: string,
   resumeMessages: WorkflowMessage[],
@@ -139,6 +167,7 @@ function initThreadMessages(
       return {
         start: startStepFromWorkflowMessage(first, maxRounds, runId),
         messages: [...rest],
+        dryRun,
       };
     }
     const prompt = freshPrompt ?? "";
@@ -146,17 +175,18 @@ function initThreadMessages(
       start: {
         role: START,
         content: prompt,
-        meta: { maxRounds, dryRun, threadId: runId },
+        meta: { maxRounds, threadId: runId },
         timestamp: Date.now(),
       },
       messages: [...resumeMessages],
+      dryRun,
     };
   }
   const prompt = freshPrompt ?? "";
   const start: StartStep = {
     role: START,
     content: prompt,
-    meta: { maxRounds, dryRun, threadId: runId },
+    meta: { maxRounds, threadId: runId },
     timestamp: Date.now(),
   };
   sendWorkflowMessage(runId, {
@@ -165,14 +195,13 @@ function initThreadMessages(
     meta: start.meta,
     timestamp: start.timestamp,
   });
-  return { start, messages: [] };
+  return { start, messages: [], dryRun };
 }
 
 async function executeRole(
   def: WorkflowDefinition<RoleMeta>,
   nextRole: string,
-  start: StartStep,
-  messages: WorkflowMessage[],
+  ctx: ThreadContext<RoleMeta>,
   runId: string,
 ): Promise<{ content: string; meta: Record<string, unknown> } | null> {
   const role = def.roles[nextRole];
@@ -183,7 +212,7 @@ async function executeRole(
 
   let result: { content: string; meta: Record<string, unknown> };
   try {
-    result = await role(start, messages);
+    result = await role(ctx);
   } catch (e: unknown) {
     const errMsg = e instanceof Error ? e.message : String(e);
     sendThreadEvent(runId, "failed", { error: errMsg, exitCode: 1 });
@@ -213,37 +242,20 @@ async function runThread(
     dryRun,
   );
 
-  const steps: Array<{
-    role: string;
-    meta: Record<string, unknown>;
-    content: string;
-    timestamp: number;
-  }> = [];
-
-  // Rebuild steps from any resumed messages
-  for (const msg of roleMessages) {
-    steps.push({
-      role: msg.role,
-      meta: msg.meta as Record<string, unknown>,
-      content: msg.content,
-      timestamp: msg.timestamp,
-    });
-  }
-
   if (killFlag.value) {
     sendThreadEvent(runId, "killed", { exitCode: 137 });
     return;
   }
 
-  let nextRole = def.moderator({ start, steps });
+  let nextRole = def.moderator(buildThreadContext(start, roleMessages));
 
   if (nextRole === END) {
     sendThreadEvent(runId, "completed", { exitCode: 0 });
     return;
   }
 
-  while (steps.length < maxRounds) {
-    const result = await executeRole(def, nextRole, start, roleMessages, runId);
+  while (roleMessages.length < maxRounds) {
+    const result = await executeRole(def, nextRole, buildThreadContext(start, roleMessages), runId);
 
     if (killFlag.value) {
       sendThreadEvent(runId, "killed", { exitCode: 137 });
@@ -261,14 +273,7 @@ async function runThread(
     roleMessages.push(message);
     sendWorkflowMessage(runId, message);
 
-    steps.push({
-      role: nextRole,
-      meta: result.meta,
-      content: result.content,
-      timestamp: message.timestamp,
-    });
-
-    nextRole = def.moderator({ start, steps });
+    nextRole = def.moderator(buildThreadContext(start, roleMessages));
 
     if (nextRole === END) {
       sendThreadEvent(runId, "completed", { exitCode: 0 });
@@ -298,7 +303,7 @@ async function loadWorkflowDefinition(
   nerveRoot: string,
   workflowName: string,
 ): Promise<WorkflowDefinition<RoleMeta>> {
-  const indexPath = resolve(join(nerveRoot, "workflows", workflowName, "dist", "index.js"));
+  const indexPath = resolve(join(nerveRoot, "dist", "workflows", workflowName, "index.js"));
   if (!existsSync(indexPath)) {
     throw new Error(
       `Workflow definition not found for "${workflowName}". Expected:\n  ${indexPath}`,

packages/role-committer/src/index.ts

@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-import type { AgentFn, Role, StartStep } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
+import type { AgentFn, Role, ThreadContext } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
 import type { LlmExtractorConfig } from "@uncaged/nerve-workflow-utils";
 import { createRole, decorateRole, onFail, withDryRun } from "@uncaged/nerve-workflow-utils";
 import { z } from "zod";
@@ -43,13 +43,17 @@ export function createCommitterRole(
 ): Role<CommitterMeta> {
   const inner = createRole(
     adapter,
-    async (start: StartStep) => committerPrompt(start.meta.threadId),
+    async (ctx: ThreadContext) => committerPrompt(ctx.threadId),
     committerMetaSchema,
     extract,
   );
 
   return decorateRole(inner, [
-    withDryRun({ label: "committer", meta: { committed: true } as CommitterMeta }),
+    withDryRun({
+      label: "committer",
+      meta: { committed: true } as CommitterMeta,
+      dryRun: extract.dryRun === true,
+    }),
     onFail({ label: "committer", meta: { committed: false } as CommitterMeta }),
   ]) as Role<CommitterMeta>;
 }

packages/role-reviewer/src/reviewer.ts

@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-import type { AgentFn, Role, StartStep } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
+import type { AgentFn, Role, ThreadContext } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
 import type { LlmExtractorConfig } from "@uncaged/nerve-workflow-utils";
 import { createRole } from "@uncaged/nerve-workflow-utils";
 import { z } from "zod";
@@ -84,7 +84,7 @@ export function createReviewerRole(
   const resolved: ReviewerConfig = { ...defaults, ...config };
   return createRole(
     adapter,
-    async (start: StartStep) => reviewerPrompt({ threadId: start.meta.threadId, config: resolved }),
+    async (ctx: ThreadContext) => reviewerPrompt({ threadId: ctx.threadId, config: resolved }),
     reviewerMetaSchema,
     extract,
   );

packages/workflow-meta/src/develop-sense/roles/coder.ts

@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-import type { AgentFn, Role, StartStep } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
+import type { AgentFn, Role, ThreadContext } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
 import type { LlmExtractorConfig } from "@uncaged/nerve-workflow-utils";
 import { createRole } from "@uncaged/nerve-workflow-utils";
 import { z } from "zod";
@@ -43,7 +43,7 @@ Return \`done: false\` if you made progress but there is still work to do.`;
 export function createCoderRole(adapter: AgentFn, extract: LlmExtractorConfig): Role<CoderMeta> {
   return createRole(
     adapter,
-    async (start: StartStep) => coderPrompt({ threadId: start.meta.threadId }),
+    async (ctx: ThreadContext) => coderPrompt({ threadId: ctx.threadId }),
     coderMetaSchema,
     extract,
   );

packages/workflow-meta/src/develop-sense/roles/planner.ts

@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-import type { AgentFn, Role, StartStep } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
+import type { AgentFn, Role, ThreadContext } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
 import type { LlmExtractorConfig } from "@uncaged/nerve-workflow-utils";
 import { createRole } from "@uncaged/nerve-workflow-utils";
 import { z } from "zod";
@@ -32,7 +32,7 @@ export function createPlannerRole(
 ): Role<PlannerMeta> {
   return createRole(
     adapter,
-    async (start: StartStep) => plannerPrompt({ threadId: start.meta.threadId }),
+    async (ctx: ThreadContext) => plannerPrompt({ threadId: ctx.threadId }),
     plannerMetaSchema,
     extract,
   );

packages/workflow-meta/src/develop-sense/roles/tester.ts

@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-import type { AgentFn, Role, StartStep } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
+import type { AgentFn, Role, ThreadContext } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
 import type { LlmExtractorConfig } from "@uncaged/nerve-workflow-utils";
 import { createRole } from "@uncaged/nerve-workflow-utils";
 import { z } from "zod";
@@ -53,7 +53,7 @@ export function createTesterRole(
 ): Role<TesterMeta> {
   return createRole(
     adapter,
-    async (start: StartStep) => testerPrompt({ threadId: start.meta.threadId, nerveRoot }),
+    async (ctx: ThreadContext) => testerPrompt({ threadId: ctx.threadId, nerveRoot }),
     testerMetaSchema,
     extract,
   );

packages/workflow-meta/src/develop-workflow/roles/coder.ts

@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-import type { AgentFn, Role, StartStep } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
+import type { AgentFn, Role, ThreadContext } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
 import type { LlmExtractorConfig } from "@uncaged/nerve-workflow-utils";
 import { createRole } from "@uncaged/nerve-workflow-utils";
 import { z } from "zod";
@@ -62,7 +62,7 @@ Return \`done: false\` if you made progress but there is still work to do, or if
 export function createCoderRole(adapter: AgentFn, extract: LlmExtractorConfig): Role<CoderMeta> {
   return createRole(
     adapter,
-    async (start: StartStep) => coderPrompt({ threadId: start.meta.threadId }),
+    async (ctx: ThreadContext) => coderPrompt({ threadId: ctx.threadId }),
     coderMetaSchema,
     extract,
   );

packages/workflow-meta/src/develop-workflow/roles/planner.ts

@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-import type { AgentFn, Role, StartStep } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
+import type { AgentFn, Role, ThreadContext } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
 import type { LlmExtractorConfig } from "@uncaged/nerve-workflow-utils";
 import { createRole } from "@uncaged/nerve-workflow-utils";
 import { z } from "zod";
@@ -61,7 +61,7 @@ export function createPlannerRole(
 ): Role<PlannerMeta> {
   return createRole(
     adapter,
-    async (start: StartStep) => plannerPrompt({ threadId: start.meta.threadId }),
+    async (ctx: ThreadContext) => plannerPrompt({ threadId: ctx.threadId }),
     plannerMetaSchema,
     extract,
   );

packages/workflow-meta/src/develop-workflow/roles/tester.ts

@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-import type { AgentFn, Role, StartStep } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
+import type { AgentFn, Role, ThreadContext } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
 import type { LlmExtractorConfig } from "@uncaged/nerve-workflow-utils";
 import { createRole } from "@uncaged/nerve-workflow-utils";
 import { z } from "zod";
@@ -54,7 +54,7 @@ export function createTesterRole(
 ): Role<TesterMeta> {
   return createRole(
     adapter,
-    async (start: StartStep) => testerPrompt({ threadId: start.meta.threadId, nerveRoot }),
+    async (ctx: ThreadContext) => testerPrompt({ threadId: ctx.threadId, nerveRoot }),
     testerMetaSchema,
     extract,
   );

packages/workflow-utils/src/__tests__/create-llm-adapter.test.ts

@@ -0,0 +1,54 @@
+import { afterEach, describe, expect, it, vi } from "vitest";
+
+import { START, type ThreadContext } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
+
+import { createLlmAdapter } from "../create-llm-adapter.js";
+
+function makeCtx(threadId: string, userContent: string): ThreadContext {
+  return {
+    threadId,
+    start: {
+      role: START,
+      content: userContent,
+      meta: { maxRounds: 10, threadId },
+      timestamp: 1,
+    },
+    steps: [],
+  };
+}
+
+describe("createLlmAdapter", () => {
+  afterEach(() => {
+    vi.unstubAllGlobals();
+    vi.restoreAllMocks();
+  });
+
+  it("posts system + user (start.content) and returns assistant text", async () => {
+    const fetchMock = vi.fn().mockResolvedValue({
+      ok: true,
+      status: 200,
+      text: async () =>
+        JSON.stringify({
+          choices: [{ message: { content: "model reply" } }],
+        }),
+    });
+    vi.stubGlobal("fetch", fetchMock);
+
+    const provider = { baseUrl: "https://api.example/v1", apiKey: "k", model: "m" };
+    const adapter = createLlmAdapter(provider);
+    const out = await adapter(makeCtx("t1", "trigger text"), "system instructions");
+
+    expect(out).toBe("model reply");
+    expect(fetchMock).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(1);
+    const [, init] = fetchMock.mock.calls[0] as [string, RequestInit];
+    const body = JSON.parse(init.body as string) as {
+      model: string;
+      messages: Array<{ role: string; content: string }>;
+    };
+    expect(body.model).toBe("m");
+    expect(body.messages).toEqual([
+      { role: "system", content: "system instructions" },
+      { role: "user", content: "trigger text" },
+    ]);
+  });
+});

packages/workflow-utils/src/__tests__/create-role.test.ts

@@ -2,9 +2,8 @@ import type {
   AgentFn,
   ModeratorContext,
   RoleMeta,
-  WorkflowContext,
+  ThreadContext,
   WorkflowDefinition,
-  WorkflowMessage,
 } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
 import { END, START } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
 import { afterEach, describe, expect, it, vi } from "vitest";
@@ -50,17 +49,25 @@ function toolCallResponse(argsJson: string): {
 function makeStart(threadId: string): {
   role: typeof START;
   content: string;
-  meta: { maxRounds: number; dryRun: boolean; threadId: string };
+  meta: { maxRounds: number; threadId: string };
   timestamp: number;
 } {
   return {
     role: START,
     content: "",
-    meta: { maxRounds: 10, dryRun: false, threadId },
+    meta: { maxRounds: 10, threadId },
     timestamp: Date.now(),
   };
 }
 
+function makeCtx(threadId: string): ThreadContext {
+  return {
+    threadId,
+    start: makeStart(threadId),
+    steps: [],
+  };
+}
+
 describe("createRole", () => {
   afterEach(() => {
     vi.unstubAllGlobals();
@@ -71,88 +78,83 @@ describe("createRole", () => {
     vi.stubGlobal("fetch", vi.fn().mockResolvedValue(toolCallResponse(JSON.stringify({ n: 3 }))));
 
     const schema = z.object({ n: z.number() });
-    const adapter: AgentFn = async (prompt) => prompt;
-    const role = createRole(adapter, "hello", schema, { provider });
+    const adapter: AgentFn = async (_ctx, prompt) => prompt;
+    const role = createRole(adapter, "hello", schema, { provider, dryRun: null });
 
-    const out = await role(makeStart("t1"), []);
+    const out = await role(makeCtx("t1"));
     expect(out.content).toBe("hello");
     expect(out.meta).toEqual({ n: 3 });
   });
 
-  it("passes WorkflowContext with workdir defaulting to process.cwd()", async () => {
+  it("passes ThreadContext to AgentFn", async () => {
     vi.stubGlobal("fetch", vi.fn().mockResolvedValue(toolCallResponse(JSON.stringify({ n: 0 }))));
 
-    const seen: WorkflowContext[] = [];
-    const adapter: AgentFn = async (_prompt, ctx) => {
+    const seen: ThreadContext[] = [];
+    const adapter: AgentFn = async (ctx, _prompt) => {
       seen.push(ctx);
       return "x";
     };
-    const role = createRole(adapter, "p", z.object({ n: z.number() }), { provider });
-    await role(makeStart("t1"), []);
+    const role = createRole(adapter, "p", z.object({ n: z.number() }), { provider, dryRun: null });
+    await role(makeCtx("t1"));
 
     expect(seen).toHaveLength(1);
-    expect(seen[0].workdir).toBe(process.cwd());
+    expect(seen[0].threadId).toBe("t1");
+    expect(seen[0].steps).toEqual([]);
   });
 
   it("resolves dynamic prompt functions before AgentFn", async () => {
     vi.stubGlobal("fetch", vi.fn().mockResolvedValue(toolCallResponse(JSON.stringify({ n: 99 }))));
 
     const schema = z.object({ n: z.number() });
-    const adapter: AgentFn = async (prompt) => prompt;
+    const adapter: AgentFn = async (_ctx, prompt) => prompt;
     const role = createRole(
       adapter,
-      async (start, messages) => `tid=${start.meta.threadId} n=${messages.length}`,
+      async (ctx) => `tid=${ctx.threadId} n=${ctx.steps.length}`,
       schema,
-      { provider },
+      { provider, dryRun: null },
     );
 
-    const start = makeStart("thread-x");
-    const msgs: WorkflowMessage[] = [{ role: "a", content: "m", meta: {}, timestamp: 1 }];
-    const out = await role(start, msgs);
-    expect(out.content).toBe("tid=thread-x n=1");
+    const ctx: ThreadContext = {
+      threadId: "thread-x",
+      start: makeStart("thread-x"),
+      steps: [],
+    };
+    const out = await role(ctx);
+    expect(out.content).toBe("tid=thread-x n=0");
     expect(out.meta).toEqual({ n: 99 });
   });
 
-  it("uses start.meta.dryRun when extract.dryRun is omitted", async () => {
-    const spy = vi.spyOn(extractFn, "extractMetaOrThrow").mockResolvedValue({ n: 0 });
-
-    const adapter: AgentFn = async () => "raw";
-    const role = createRole(adapter, "p", z.object({ n: z.number() }), { provider });
-    const start = {
-      role: START,
-      content: "",
-      meta: { maxRounds: 10, dryRun: true, threadId: "x" },
-      timestamp: 1,
-    };
-    await role(start, []);
-
-    expect(spy).toHaveBeenCalledWith(
-      "raw",
-      expect.anything(),
-      expect.objectContaining({ provider, dryRun: true }),
-    );
-  });
-
-  it("prefers extract.dryRun over start.meta.dryRun", async () => {
+  it("uses extract dryRun null as live extract", async () => {
     const spy = vi.spyOn(extractFn, "extractMetaOrThrow").mockResolvedValue({ n: 0 });
 
     const adapter: AgentFn = async () => "raw";
     const role = createRole(adapter, "p", z.object({ n: z.number() }), {
       provider,
-      dryRun: false,
+      dryRun: null,
     });
-    const start = {
-      role: START,
-      content: "",
-      meta: { maxRounds: 10, dryRun: true, threadId: "x" },
-      timestamp: 1,
-    };
-    await role(start, []);
+    await role(makeCtx("x"));
 
     expect(spy).toHaveBeenCalledWith(
       "raw",
       expect.anything(),
-      expect.objectContaining({ dryRun: false }),
+      expect.objectContaining({ provider, dryRun: false }),
+    );
+  });
+
+  it("uses extract.dryRun true for structured extract", async () => {
+    const spy = vi.spyOn(extractFn, "extractMetaOrThrow").mockResolvedValue({ n: 0 });
+
+    const adapter: AgentFn = async () => "raw";
+    const role = createRole(adapter, "p", z.object({ n: z.number() }), {
+      provider,
+      dryRun: true,
+    });
+    await role(makeCtx("x"));
+
+    expect(spy).toHaveBeenCalledWith(
+      "raw",
+      expect.anything(),
+      expect.objectContaining({ dryRun: true }),
     );
   });
 });
@@ -164,7 +166,7 @@ describe("WorkflowDefinition compatibility", () => {
     const manual: WorkflowDefinition<M> = {
       name: "legacy",
       roles: {
-        legacy: async (_start, _messages) => ({
+        legacy: async (_ctx) => ({
           content: "hi",
           meta: { id: "a" },
         }),
@@ -172,8 +174,8 @@ describe("WorkflowDefinition compatibility", () => {
       moderator: (_ctx: ModeratorContext<M>) => END,
     };
 
-    const start = makeStart("t1");
-    const out = await manual.roles.legacy(start, []);
+    const ctx = makeCtx("t1");
+    const out = await manual.roles.legacy(ctx);
     expect(out.content).toBe("hi");
     expect(out.meta.id).toBe("a");
   });

packages/workflow-utils/src/__tests__/role-decorators.test.ts

@@ -1,22 +1,25 @@
 import { describe, expect, it } from "vitest";
 
-import type { Role, StartStep } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
+import type { Role, ThreadContext } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
 
 import { START } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
 import { decorateRole, onFail, withDryRun } from "../role-decorators.js";
 
 type TestMeta = Record<string, unknown> & { ok: boolean };
 
-function fakeStart(dryRun: boolean): StartStep {
+function fakeCtx(): ThreadContext {
   return {
-    role: START,
-    content: "",
-    meta: {
-      threadId: "t1",
-      dryRun,
-      maxRounds: 10,
+    threadId: "t1",
+    start: {
+      role: START,
+      content: "",
+      meta: {
+        threadId: "t1",
+        maxRounds: 10,
+      },
+      timestamp: Date.now(),
     },
-    timestamp: Date.now(),
+    steps: [],
   };
 }
 
@@ -38,18 +41,19 @@ const failNonErrorRole: Role<TestMeta> = async () => {
 // ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
 describe("withDryRun", () => {
-  const dec = withDryRun<TestMeta>({ label: "test", meta: { ok: true } });
+  const dec = withDryRun<TestMeta>({ label: "test", meta: { ok: true }, dryRun: true });
 
   it("short-circuits on dry-run", async () => {
     const role = dec(successRole);
-    const result = await role(fakeStart(true), []);
+    const result = await role(fakeCtx());
     expect(result.content).toBe("[dry-run] test skipped");
     expect(result.meta).toEqual({ ok: true });
   });
 
   it("delegates when not dry-run", async () => {
-    const role = dec(successRole);
-    const result = await role(fakeStart(false), []);
+    const innerDec = withDryRun<TestMeta>({ label: "test", meta: { ok: true }, dryRun: false });
+    const role = innerDec(successRole);
+    const result = await role(fakeCtx());
     expect(result.content).toBe("done");
     expect(result.meta).toEqual({ ok: true });
   });
@@ -64,21 +68,21 @@ describe("onFail", () => {
 
   it("passes through on success", async () => {
     const role = dec(successRole);
-    const result = await role(fakeStart(false), []);
+    const result = await role(fakeCtx());
     expect(result.content).toBe("done");
     expect(result.meta).toEqual({ ok: true });
   });
 
   it("catches Error and returns structured failure", async () => {
     const role = dec(failRole);
-    const result = await role(fakeStart(false), []);
+    const result = await role(fakeCtx());
     expect(result.content).toBe("test failed: boom");
     expect(result.meta).toEqual({ ok: false });
   });
 
   it("catches non-Error throws", async () => {
     const role = dec(failNonErrorRole);
-    const result = await role(fakeStart(false), []);
+    const result = await role(fakeCtx());
     expect(result.content).toBe("test failed: string error");
     expect(result.meta).toEqual({ ok: false });
   });
@@ -91,21 +95,21 @@ describe("onFail", () => {
 describe("decorateRole", () => {
   it("applies decorators left-to-right", async () => {
     const role = decorateRole(failRole, [
-      withDryRun({ label: "x", meta: { ok: true } }),
-      onFail({ label: "x", meta: { ok: false } }),
+      withDryRun<TestMeta>({ label: "x", meta: { ok: true }, dryRun: false }),
+      onFail<TestMeta>({ label: "x", meta: { ok: false } }),
     ]);
     // Not dry-run, so withDryRun passes through → failRole throws → onFail catches
-    const result = await role(fakeStart(false), []);
+    const result = await role(fakeCtx());
     expect(result.content).toBe("x failed: boom");
     expect(result.meta).toEqual({ ok: false });
   });
 
   it("dry-run short-circuits before onFail", async () => {
     const role = decorateRole(failRole, [
-      withDryRun({ label: "x", meta: { ok: true } }),
-      onFail({ label: "x", meta: { ok: false } }),
+      withDryRun<TestMeta>({ label: "x", meta: { ok: true }, dryRun: true }),
+      onFail<TestMeta>({ label: "x", meta: { ok: false } }),
     ]);
-    const result = await role(fakeStart(true), []);
+    const result = await role(fakeCtx());
     expect(result.content).toBe("[dry-run] x skipped");
     expect(result.meta).toEqual({ ok: true });
   });

packages/workflow-utils/src/__tests__/role-factories.test.ts

@@ -1,20 +1,24 @@
 import { afterEach, describe, expect, it, vi } from "vitest";
 import { z } from "zod";
 
-import { START } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
+import { START, type ThreadContext } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
 
 import { createCursorRole } from "../role-cursor.js";
 import { createHermesRole } from "../role-hermes.js";
 import { createLlmRole } from "../role-llm.js";
 import { createReActRole } from "../role-react.js";
 
-function startFrame(dryRun: boolean, threadId: string) {
+function threadCtx(threadId: string): ThreadContext {
   return {
-    role: START,
-    content: "user prompt",
-    meta: { maxRounds: 10, dryRun, threadId },
-    timestamp: 1,
-  } as const;
+    threadId,
+    start: {
+      role: START,
+      content: "user prompt",
+      meta: { maxRounds: 10, threadId },
+      timestamp: 1,
+    },
+    steps: [],
+  };
 }
 
 describe("createCursorRole", () => {
@@ -27,13 +31,14 @@ describe("createCursorRole", () => {
     const schema = z.object({ done: z.boolean() });
     const role = createCursorRole({
       cwd: process.cwd(),
-      prompt: async (tid) => {
-        expect(tid).toBe("run-1");
+      prompt: async (ctx) => {
+        expect(ctx.threadId).toBe("run-1");
         return "task";
       },
       extract: { provider: { baseUrl: "https://x", apiKey: "k", model: "m" }, schema },
+      dryRun: true,
     });
-    const out = await role(startFrame(true, "run-1"), []);
+    const out = await role(threadCtx("run-1"));
     expect(out.content).toContain("dryRun");
     expect(out.meta).toEqual({ done: false });
   });
@@ -48,13 +53,14 @@ describe("createHermesRole", () => {
   it("uses dry run stub and extract defaults", async () => {
     const schema = z.object({ done: z.boolean() });
     const role = createHermesRole({
-      prompt: async (tid) => {
-        expect(tid).toBe("h1");
+      prompt: async (ctx) => {
+        expect(ctx.threadId).toBe("h1");
         return "hermes task";
       },
       extract: { provider: { baseUrl: "https://x", apiKey: "k", model: "m" }, schema },
+      dryRun: true,
     });
-    const out = await role(startFrame(true, "h1"), []);
+    const out = await role(threadCtx("h1"));
     expect(out.content).toContain("hermes");
     expect(out.meta).toEqual({ done: false });
   });
@@ -99,13 +105,13 @@ describe("createLlmRole", () => {
 
     const role = createLlmRole({
       provider: { baseUrl: "https://api", apiKey: "k", model: "gpt" },
-      prompt: async (tid) => {
-        expect(tid).toBe("llm1");
+      prompt: async (ctx) => {
+        expect(ctx.threadId).toBe("llm1");
         return [{ role: "user" as const, content: "hi" }];
       },
       extract: { provider: { baseUrl: "https://ext", apiKey: "k2", model: "small" }, schema },
     });
-    const out = await role(startFrame(false, "llm1"), []);
+    const out = await role(threadCtx("llm1"));
     expect(out.content).toBe("hello from model");
     expect(out.meta).toEqual({ n: 7 });
   });
@@ -183,8 +189,8 @@ describe("createReActRole", () => {
     const role = createReActRole({
       provider: { baseUrl: "https://api", apiKey: "k", model: "gpt" },
       tools: [tool],
-      prompt: async (tid) => {
-        expect(tid).toBe("r1");
+      prompt: async (ctx) => {
+        expect(ctx.threadId).toBe("r1");
         return [{ role: "user" as const, content: "go" }];
       },
       extract: {
@@ -193,7 +199,7 @@ describe("createReActRole", () => {
       },
       maxIterations: 5,
     });
-    const out = await role(startFrame(false, "r1"), []);
+    const out = await role(threadCtx("r1"));
     expect(out.content).toBe("final answer");
     expect(out.meta).toEqual({ done: true });
   });

packages/workflow-utils/src/create-llm-adapter.ts

@@ -0,0 +1,22 @@
+import type { AgentFn, ThreadContext } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
+
+import { formatLlmError } from "./shared/format-error.js";
+import { chatCompletionText } from "./shared/llm-chat.js";
+import type { LlmProvider } from "./shared/llm-extract.js";
+
+/** Single-turn chat adapter: system comes from `createRole` prompt; user is the thread start frame. */
+export function createLlmAdapter(provider: LlmProvider): AgentFn {
+  return async (ctx: ThreadContext, systemPrompt: string) => {
+    const result = await chatCompletionText({
+      provider,
+      messages: [
+        { role: "system", content: systemPrompt },
+        { role: "user", content: ctx.start.content },
+      ],
+    });
+    if (!result.ok) {
+      throw new Error(`llm: ${formatLlmError(result.error)}`);
+    }
+    return result.value;
+  };
+}

packages/workflow-utils/src/create-role.ts

@@ -1,32 +1,19 @@
-import type {
-  AgentFn,
-  Role,
-  StartStep,
-  WorkflowContext,
-  WorkflowMessage,
-} from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
+import type { AgentFn, Role, ThreadContext } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
 import type { z } from "zod";
 
 import { extractMetaOrThrow } from "./shared/extract-fn.js";
 import type { LlmProvider } from "./shared/llm-extract.js";
 
-type PromptInput = string | ((start: StartStep, messages: WorkflowMessage[]) => Promise<string>);
+type PromptInput = string | ((ctx: ThreadContext) => Promise<string>);
 
 export type LlmExtractorConfig = {
   provider: LlmProvider;
-  /** When omitted, uses `start.meta.dryRun` at runtime. */
-  dryRun?: boolean;
+  /** When null, structured extract runs in live mode (not dry-run). */
+  dryRun: boolean | null;
 };
 
-type StartMetaWithWorkdir = StartStep["meta"] & { workdir?: string | null };
-
-function resolveWorkdir(start: StartStep): string {
-  const m = start.meta as StartMetaWithWorkdir;
-  return m.workdir ?? process.cwd();
-}
-
-function resolveDryRun(extract: LlmExtractorConfig, start: StartStep): boolean {
-  return extract.dryRun ?? start.meta.dryRun;
+function resolveExtractDryRun(extract: LlmExtractorConfig): boolean {
+  return extract.dryRun === true;
 }
 
 /** Builds a Role from an AgentFn, prompt, Zod meta schema, and LLM extract config. */
@@ -36,19 +23,12 @@ export function createRole<M extends Record<string, unknown>>(
   meta: z.ZodType<M>,
   extract: LlmExtractorConfig,
 ): Role<M> {
-  return async (start: StartStep, messages: WorkflowMessage[]) => {
-    const ctx: WorkflowContext = {
-      start,
-      messages,
-      workdir: resolveWorkdir(start),
-      signal: new AbortController().signal,
-    };
-
-    const promptText = typeof prompt === "string" ? prompt : await prompt(start, messages);
-    const raw = await adapter(promptText, ctx);
+  return async (ctx: ThreadContext) => {
+    const promptText = typeof prompt === "string" ? prompt : await prompt(ctx);
+    const raw = await adapter(ctx, promptText);
     const result = await extractMetaOrThrow(raw, meta, {
       provider: extract.provider,
-      dryRun: resolveDryRun(extract, start),
+      dryRun: resolveExtractDryRun(extract),
     });
     return { content: raw, meta: result };
   };

packages/workflow-utils/src/index.ts

@@ -1,9 +1,6 @@
 // Primary API — role factory templates
+export { createLlmAdapter } from "./create-llm-adapter.js";
 export { createRole, type LlmExtractorConfig } from "./create-role.js";
-export { createCursorRole } from "./role-cursor.js";
-export { createHermesRole } from "./role-hermes.js";
-export { createLlmRole } from "./role-llm.js";
-export { createReActRole } from "./role-react.js";
 export { llmExtract, llmExtractWithRetry } from "./shared/llm-extract.js";
 export { mergeExtractConfig, type ExtractConfigLayer } from "./shared/merge-extract-config.js";
 export {
@@ -19,7 +16,6 @@ export {
   type NerveYamlError,
   type ReadNerveYamlOptions,
 } from "./shared/context.js";
-export { isDryRun } from "./role-types.js";
 export {
   decorateRole,
   withDryRun,
@@ -37,18 +33,6 @@ export {
   type SpawnSafeOptions,
 } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
 export type { LlmError, LlmProvider } from "./shared/llm-extract.js";
-export type {
-  CliPromptFn,
-  CursorRoleDefaults,
-  CursorRoleRequired,
-  HermesRoleDefaults,
-  HermesRoleRequired,
-  LlmMessage,
-  LlmPromptFn,
-  LlmRoleRequired,
-  MetaExtractConfig,
-  ReActRoleDefaults,
-  ReActRoleRequired,
-  ReActTool,
-} from "./role-types.js";
+export { isDryRun } from "./role-types.js";
+export type { LlmMessage, MetaExtractConfig } from "./role-types.js";
 export type { LlmChatError } from "./shared/llm-chat.js";

packages/workflow-utils/src/role-cursor.ts

@@ -2,7 +2,6 @@ import { type CursorAgentMode, cursorAgent } from "@uncaged/nerve-adapter-cursor
 import type { Role, SpawnEnv } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
 
 import type { CursorRoleDefaults, CursorRoleRequired } from "./role-types.js";
-import { isDryRun } from "./role-types.js";
 import { formatLlmError } from "./shared/format-error.js";
 import { llmExtract } from "./shared/llm-extract.js";
 
@@ -11,6 +10,7 @@ const CURSOR_DEFAULTS: CursorRoleDefaults = {
   model: "auto",
   env: {},
   timeoutMs: 300_000,
+  dryRun: false,
 };
 
 function pick<T>(opts: Record<string, unknown>, key: string, fallback: T): T {
@@ -27,14 +27,14 @@ function pick<T>(opts: Record<string, unknown>, key: string, fallback: T): T {
 export function createCursorRole<T>(
   options: CursorRoleRequired<T> & Partial<CursorRoleDefaults>,
 ): Role<T> {
-  return async (start, _messages) => {
-    const dry = isDryRun(start);
+  return async (ctx) => {
     const d = CURSOR_DEFAULTS;
     const mode = pick<CursorAgentMode>(options as Record<string, unknown>, "mode", d.mode);
     const model = pick<string>(options as Record<string, unknown>, "model", d.model);
     const env = pick<SpawnEnv>(options as Record<string, unknown>, "env", d.env);
     const timeoutMs = pick<number>(options as Record<string, unknown>, "timeoutMs", d.timeoutMs);
-    const prompt = await options.prompt(start.meta.threadId);
+    const dry = pick<boolean>(options as Record<string, unknown>, "dryRun", d.dryRun);
+    const prompt = await options.prompt(ctx);
     const run = await cursorAgent({
       prompt,
       mode,

packages/workflow-utils/src/role-decorators.ts

@@ -1,6 +1,4 @@
-import type { Role, StartStep, WorkflowMessage } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
-
-import { isDryRun } from "./role-types.js";
+import type { Role, ThreadContext } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
 
 // ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 // Decorator types
@@ -38,23 +36,25 @@ export type WithDryRunOptions<M> = {
   label: string;
   /** Meta returned when dry-run skips execution. */
   meta: M;
+  /** Adapter-level dry-run flag (e.g. from extract / wiring config). */
+  dryRun: boolean;
 };
 
 /**
  * Returns a decorator that short-circuits with a stable result when
- * `start.meta.dryRun` is true.
+ * `dryRun` is true.
  */
 export function withDryRun<M extends Record<string, unknown>>(
   opts: WithDryRunOptions<M>,
 ): RoleDecorator<M> {
-  return (role) => async (start: StartStep, messages: WorkflowMessage[]) => {
-    if (isDryRun(start)) {
+  return (role) => async (ctx: ThreadContext) => {
+    if (opts.dryRun) {
       return {
         content: `[dry-run] ${opts.label} skipped`,
         meta: opts.meta,
       };
     }
-    return role(start, messages);
+    return role(ctx);
   };
 }
 
@@ -76,9 +76,9 @@ export type OnFailOptions<M> = {
 export function onFail<M extends Record<string, unknown>>(
   opts: OnFailOptions<M>,
 ): RoleDecorator<M> {
-  return (role) => async (start: StartStep, messages: WorkflowMessage[]) => {
+  return (role) => async (ctx: ThreadContext) => {
     try {
-      return await role(start, messages);
+      return await role(ctx);
     } catch (e) {
       const msg = e instanceof Error ? e.message : String(e);
       return {

packages/workflow-utils/src/role-hermes.ts

@@ -1,7 +1,6 @@
 import type { Role } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
 
 import type { HermesRoleDefaults, HermesRoleRequired } from "./role-types.js";
-import { isDryRun } from "./role-types.js";
 import { formatLlmError } from "./shared/format-error.js";
 import { hermesAgent, resolveHermesOptions } from "./shared/hermes-agent.js";
 import { llmExtract } from "./shared/llm-extract.js";
@@ -9,10 +8,9 @@ import { llmExtract } from "./shared/llm-extract.js";
 export function createHermesRole<T>(
   options: HermesRoleRequired<T> & Partial<HermesRoleDefaults>,
 ): Role<T> {
-  return async (start, _messages) => {
-    const dry = isDryRun(start);
+  return async (ctx) => {
     const h = resolveHermesOptions(options);
-    const prompt = await options.prompt(start.meta.threadId);
+    const prompt = await options.prompt(ctx);
     const run = await hermesAgent({
       prompt,
       model: h.model,
@@ -22,7 +20,7 @@ export function createHermesRole<T>(
       maxTurns: h.maxTurns,
       env: Object.keys(h.env).length === 0 ? null : h.env,
       timeoutMs: h.timeoutMs,
-      dryRun: dry,
+      dryRun: h.dryRun,
       abortSignal: null,
     });
     if (!run.ok) {
@@ -43,7 +41,7 @@ export function createHermesRole<T>(
       text,
       schema: options.extract.schema,
       provider: options.extract.provider,
-      dryRun: dry,
+      dryRun: h.dryRun,
     });
     if (!metaR.ok) {
       throw new Error(`llmExtract: ${formatLlmError(metaR.error)}`);

packages/workflow-utils/src/role-llm.ts

@@ -1,15 +1,19 @@
 import type { Role } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
 
-import type { LlmMessage, LlmRoleRequired } from "./role-types.js";
-import { isDryRun } from "./role-types.js";
+import type { LlmMessage, LlmRoleDefaults, LlmRoleRequired } from "./role-types.js";
 import { formatLlmError } from "./shared/format-error.js";
 import { chatCompletionText } from "./shared/llm-chat.js";
 import { llmExtract } from "./shared/llm-extract.js";
 
-export function createLlmRole<T>(options: LlmRoleRequired<T>): Role<T> {
-  return async (start, _messages) => {
-    const dry = isDryRun(start);
-    const messages: LlmMessage[] = await options.prompt(start.meta.threadId);
+const LLM_DEFAULTS: LlmRoleDefaults = {
+  dryRun: false,
+};
+
+export function createLlmRole<T>(options: LlmRoleRequired<T> & Partial<LlmRoleDefaults>): Role<T> {
+  return async (ctx) => {
+    const dry =
+      "dryRun" in options && options.dryRun !== undefined ? options.dryRun : LLM_DEFAULTS.dryRun;
+    const messages: LlmMessage[] = await options.prompt(ctx);
     const result = await chatCompletionText({ provider: options.provider, messages });
     if (!result.ok) {
       throw new Error(`llm: ${formatLlmError(result.error)}`);

packages/workflow-utils/src/role-react.ts

@@ -1,26 +1,26 @@
 import type { Role } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
 
 import type { LlmMessage, ReActRoleDefaults, ReActRoleRequired } from "./role-types.js";
-import { isDryRun } from "./role-types.js";
 import { formatLlmError } from "./shared/format-error.js";
 import { reActIterativeChat } from "./shared/llm-chat.js";
 import { llmExtract } from "./shared/llm-extract.js";
 
 const REACT_DEFAULTS: ReActRoleDefaults = {
   maxIterations: 10,
+  dryRun: false,
 };
 
 export function createReActRole<T>(
   options: ReActRoleRequired<T> & Partial<ReActRoleDefaults>,
 ): Role<T> {
-  return async (start, _messages) => {
-    const dry = isDryRun(start);
+  return async (ctx) => {
     const def = REACT_DEFAULTS;
     const maxIt =
       "maxIterations" in options && options.maxIterations !== undefined
         ? options.maxIterations
         : def.maxIterations;
-    const messages: LlmMessage[] = await options.prompt(start.meta.threadId);
+    const dry = "dryRun" in options && options.dryRun !== undefined ? options.dryRun : def.dryRun;
+    const messages: LlmMessage[] = await options.prompt(ctx);
     const result = await reActIterativeChat({
       provider: options.provider,
       tools: options.tools,

packages/workflow-utils/src/role-types.ts

@@ -1,18 +1,21 @@
-import type { SpawnEnv, StartStep } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
+import type { SpawnEnv, StartStep, ThreadContext } from "@uncaged/nerve-core";
 import type { z } from "zod";
 
 import type { LlmProvider } from "./shared/llm-extract.js";
 
-/** Returns the thread-level dry-run flag from the workflow start frame. */
-export function isDryRun(start: StartStep): boolean {
-  return start.meta.dryRun;
+/**
+ * @deprecated `dryRun` has been removed from `StartStep.meta` (RFC-005).
+ * Use adapter/role-level `dryRun` config instead.
+ */
+export function isDryRun(_start: StartStep): boolean {
+  return false;
 }
 
-export type CliPromptFn = (threadId: string) => Promise<string>;
+export type CliPromptFn = (ctx: ThreadContext) => Promise<string>;
 
 export type LlmMessage = { role: "system" | "user" | "assistant"; content: string };
 
-export type LlmPromptFn = (threadId: string) => Promise<LlmMessage[]>;
+export type LlmPromptFn = (ctx: ThreadContext) => Promise<LlmMessage[]>;
 
 export type MetaExtractConfig<T> = {
   provider: LlmProvider;
@@ -37,6 +40,7 @@ export type CursorRoleDefaults = {
   model: string;
   env: SpawnEnv;
   timeoutMs: number;
+  dryRun: boolean;
 };
 
 export type HermesRoleRequired<T> = {
@@ -52,6 +56,7 @@ export type HermesRoleDefaults = {
   maxTurns: number;
   env: SpawnEnv;
   timeoutMs: number;
+  dryRun: boolean;
 };
 
 export type LlmRoleRequired<T> = {
@@ -60,6 +65,10 @@ export type LlmRoleRequired<T> = {
   extract: MetaExtractConfig<T>;
 };
 
+export type LlmRoleDefaults = {
+  dryRun: boolean;
+};
+
 export type ReActRoleRequired<T> = {
   provider: LlmProvider;
   tools: ReActTool[];
@@ -69,4 +78,5 @@ export type ReActRoleRequired<T> = {
 
 export type ReActRoleDefaults = {
   maxIterations: number;
+  dryRun: boolean;
 };

packages/workflow-utils/src/shared/hermes-agent.ts

@@ -13,22 +13,30 @@ const HERMES_DEFAULTS: HermesRoleDefaults = {
   maxTurns: 90,
   env: {},
   timeoutMs: 600_000,
+  dryRun: false,
 };
 
+const HERMES_OPTION_KEYS = [
+  "model",
+  "provider",
+  "skills",
+  "quiet",
+  "maxTurns",
+  "env",
+  "timeoutMs",
+  "dryRun",
+] as const satisfies readonly (keyof HermesRoleDefaults)[];
+
 export function resolveHermesOptions<T>(
   options: HermesRoleRequired<T> & Partial<HermesRoleDefaults>,
 ): HermesRoleDefaults {
   const d = HERMES_DEFAULTS;
-  return {
-    model: "model" in options && options.model !== undefined ? options.model : d.model,
-    provider:
-      "provider" in options && options.provider !== undefined ? options.provider : d.provider,
-    skills: "skills" in options && options.skills !== undefined ? options.skills : d.skills,
-    quiet: "quiet" in options && options.quiet !== undefined ? options.quiet : d.quiet,
-    maxTurns:
-      "maxTurns" in options && options.maxTurns !== undefined ? options.maxTurns : d.maxTurns,
-    env: "env" in options && options.env !== undefined ? options.env : d.env,
-    timeoutMs:
-      "timeoutMs" in options && options.timeoutMs !== undefined ? options.timeoutMs : d.timeoutMs,
-  };
+  const o = options as Partial<HermesRoleDefaults>;
+  let resolved: HermesRoleDefaults = { ...d };
+  for (const k of HERMES_OPTION_KEYS) {
+    if (k in o && o[k] !== undefined) {
+      resolved = { ...resolved, [k]: o[k] } as HermesRoleDefaults;
+    }
+  }
+  return resolved;
 }