# PRD 0020: Start and attach to agents from inside the dashboard

- **Status:** Active
- **Author:** didericis
- **Created:** 2026-05-26

## Summary

Today the dashboard is read-only: it surfaces pending proposals
and active agents (PRD 0019) but can't *start* an agent or
*re-enter* one. The operator's path is split — they launch
agents from one terminal (`./cli.py start <name>`), and watch
them from another (`./cli.py dashboard`).

This PRD collapses that split. The dashboard becomes the
operator's single surface: pressing a key opens an agent picker,
selecting one runs the existing prepare → preflight → launch
flow inside a curses-friendly variant, and on yield drops to a
full-screen `docker exec -it … claude` session (the "handoff"
shape from `docs/research/claude-code-pane-in-dashboard.md`).
When the operator exits claude, the dashboard re-renders with
the now-running bottle visible in the agents pane.

Crucially, the bottle's lifetime is decoupled from both the
claude session AND the dashboard process. Exit claude → back to
dashboard, bottle still running. Start another agent → two
bottles up at once. Quit the dashboard → bottles continue
running. Teardown is **always explicit**: the operator presses
`x` on an agent, or runs `./cli.py cleanup` later.

## Problem

Two real frictions today:

1. **Two terminals for one workflow.** The dashboard is the
   right shape to *watch* agents — proposals queue, status
   updates, operator-edit verbs — but it's the wrong shape to
   *start* them. Today you open a second terminal for that. In
   parallel use (3–5 bottles), the operator has 5+ terminals
   open and the dashboard's "active agents" pane is hopelessly
   behind reality because they just spawned three in a row.

2. **`./cli.py start` ties the bottle to a single claude
   session.** The start command's `ExitStack` brings the bottle
   up, runs claude, and tears down on Ctrl-D — fine for a one-
   shot session, wrong for "let me bounce in and out of this
   bottle a few times while triaging proposals." Today the only
   way to re-enter a bottle after exiting claude is to start a
   fresh one and lose all in-bottle state.

The dashboard already discovers active bottles, scopes
operator-edit verbs to a selected agent (PRD 0019), and
captures full-merged logs per bottle (PRD 0018). It already
*wants* to be the primary surface. This PRD finishes that.

## Goals / Success Criteria

1. From inside `./cli.py dashboard`, pressing `n` (new) opens
   an agent picker listing every agent defined in the manifest.
   Selecting one runs `prepare → preflight → launch`.
2. The preflight Y/N summary renders cleanly — either as a
   curses modal or via `curses.endwin() → text-mode prompt
   → restore`, matching the existing editor-flow pattern.
3. On launch success, the dashboard performs a handoff (option
   1 from the research doc): `curses.endwin()` → `docker exec
   -it bot-bottle-<slug> claude --dangerously-skip-permissions`
   → on exit, `stdscr.refresh()` and re-render with the new
   bottle in the agents pane.
4. The bottle's lifetime is owned by the dashboard process, NOT
   by any single claude session. Exiting claude (Ctrl-D, `/exit`)
   returns to the dashboard with the bottle still running. The
   operator can start more agents and re-enter previous ones.
5. Pressing Enter on a selected row in the agents pane re-
   attaches to that agent's bottle via the same handoff — drops
   to full-screen claude, returns on exit.
6. Pressing `x` (or similar — keybinding decided in design)
   on a selected agent stops just that bottle (compose down +
   state cleanup) without quitting the dashboard.
7. Quitting the dashboard (`q`) leaves every running bottle
   running. Bottle teardown is always explicit (per-bottle `x`
   or `./cli.py cleanup`). The next `./cli.py dashboard`
   invocation re-discovers them via `list_active_slugs()` and
   surfaces re-attach for any it can reconstruct context for
   (see "Cross-dashboard re-attach" below).

## Non-goals

- **A pane that hosts the claude TUI alongside proposals.** The
  embedded-emulator option from the research doc is out of
  scope. The handoff (option 1) is the v1; option 2 is a
  separate PRD if and when handoff is observably insufficient.
- **Adopting bottles started by an out-of-dashboard `./cli.py
  start` invocation.** Those have their own ExitStack-owner and
  the dashboard treats them as read-only-watch (already does
  today). Re-attach only applies to bottles the *current
  dashboard process* started.
- **Resurrecting an out-of-process bottle into a new dashboard
  with full re-attach.** A bottle started by `./cli.py start`
  in another terminal — or by a previous dashboard run, now
  exited — appears in the agents pane (already does, PRD 0019)
  and can be re-attached via `docker exec -it claude` because
  the agent container is still running `sleep infinity`. That's
  in scope. What's *out* is anything that requires the launch-
  context object to drive teardown — e.g., the
  ExitStack-tracked CA + state cleanup `_settle_state` performs
  today. Cross-dashboard re-attach uses the existing
  `./cli.py cleanup` for teardown, not an `x` keypress (see
  open questions).
- **Multi-window UI.** Single curses window, two existing
  panes (proposals + agents); the agent picker is a modal, not
  a third pane.
- **Removing `./cli.py start`.** Stays as the script-friendly /
  legacy entry point. The dashboard is the new default.

## Scope

### In scope

- Manifest-driven agent picker (curses modal): list view with
  j/k navigation + Enter to confirm, Esc to abort.
- Preflight rendering inside the dashboard's curses surface
  (modal or drop-and-resume — picked in design).
- A new `_dashboard_start_flow` that wraps prepare + preflight
  + launch and returns a `DockerBottle` handle the dashboard
  retains alongside its `pending` and `agents` lists.
- A `bottles: dict[slug, DockerBottle]` map on the main loop
  that owns every dashboard-launched handle. ExitStack tears
  them all down on dashboard exit.
- `Enter` on an agents-pane row → re-attach handoff (docker
  exec -it claude into the existing container).
- `x` (or similar) on an agents-pane row → explicit per-bottle
  stop without quitting.
- `q` (existing quit key) → tear down all dashboard-launched
  bottles before returning.

### Out of scope

- Changes to `./cli.py start` itself. It keeps its current
  shape; the dashboard reuses its internal pieces (backend.
  prepare / backend.launch) without reaching through the CLI
  layer.
- Changes to `backend.launch`'s context-manager contract; the
  dashboard's bottle map just holds the context-manager-yielded
  Bottle and calls `__exit__` on quit / explicit stop.
- New manifest fields. The picker reads what's already there.
- Adopting non-dashboard bottles into the dashboard's owned set.

## Proposed design

### Bottle ownership

Today's flow:

```
./cli.py start agent
  └─ with backend.launch(plan) as bottle:        ← bottle alive while inside `with`
       bottle.exec_agent([...], tty=True)       ← blocks until claude exits
     # context exits → compose down → state cleanup
```

The proposed dashboard-driven flow:

```
./cli.py dashboard
  └─ bottles: dict[str, tuple[ContextManager, DockerBottle]] = {}

     # operator presses `n`, picks agent
     cm = backend.launch(plan)
     bottle = cm.__enter__()                     ← enter but don't bind to a `with`
     bottles[plan.slug] = (cm, bottle)

     # operator interacts via:
     curses.endwin()
     bottle.exec_agent([...], tty=True)         ← blocks; returns on Ctrl-D
     stdscr.refresh()
     # bottle is STILL ALIVE — only the claude process exited

     # ... operator presses `x` on selected agent:
     cm, _ = bottles.pop(slug)
     cm.__exit__(None, None, None)               ← tears down just that one

     # ... operator presses `q`:
     return  # bottles dict still populated; no teardown
```

Two shifts:

1. Bottles outlive any single claude session — the dashboard
   manages enter/exit per bottle, not per attach. Exit claude
   → still in the dashboard with the bottle running.
2. Bottles outlive the dashboard process itself. Quitting the
   dashboard does NOT close the context managers; the docker
   compose project keeps running with the agent container in
   `sleep infinity`. A subsequent dashboard invocation
   re-discovers it via `docker compose ls` (PRD 0019's
   `list_active_slugs`) and surfaces re-attach.

   The trade-off: state cleanup that today runs in
   `_settle_state` (transcript snapshot, preserve-marker
   evaluation, state-dir reap) doesn't fire on a quit-while-
   running bottle. It DOES fire when the operator explicitly
   stops via `x`, because that calls `cm.__exit__`. For
   bottles a previous dashboard quit on, `./cli.py cleanup`
   is the path — its compose-down + state-reap logic
   already covers the case.

### Cross-dashboard re-attach

When the dashboard discovers a bottle in `discover_active_agents`
that it didn't itself start (a previous-dashboard or external
`./cli.py start` bottle), Enter still attaches via `docker exec
-it … claude` — the agent container is running `sleep infinity`
exactly the same way regardless of who started it. The only
thing the current dashboard lacks for those bottles is the
launch-context object needed to drive a clean teardown via
`x`.

For v1 we surface this honestly: pressing `x` on a non-owned
agent shows a status hint pointing at `./cli.py cleanup` (or
`./cli.py cleanup` targeted at the slug if we add that flag
later). The agent stays alive; the operator handles teardown
out-of-band. Enter (re-attach) works for both owned and
non-owned bottles.

### Agent picker

Pressing `n` opens a centered modal listing every agent name
from `spec.manifest.agents`. j/k navigates; Enter selects; Esc
aborts. Width is the longest name + bottle name + a column for
"already running?" so the operator can see at a glance whether
picking an agent starts a fresh one (different slug suffix) or
not.

```
┌─ start agent ───────────────────────────┐
│   implementer       dev      (running)  │
│ > researcher        dev                 │
│   triage-bot        sandbox             │
└─ Enter: start  Esc: cancel ─────────────┘
```

Starting an agent that already has a running bottle is allowed
— each `start` mints a fresh slug — but the picker surfaces the
already-running state so the operator doesn't accidentally
double-launch.

### Preflight Y/N

Two viable shapes:

**Modal** — render the preflight summary lines (`agent / env /
skills / bottle / git gate / egress`) in a centered curses
modal with `[y/N]` at the bottom. Capture the next keypress.

**Drop-and-resume** — `curses.endwin()`, print the preflight to
stderr, read y/N from stdin, restore curses. Matches the
editor-flow + handoff pattern; lower implementation cost.

Lean toward **modal** for the y/N because it doesn't flash the
terminal between dashboard frames. Drop-and-resume is acceptable
if modal proves fiddly.

### Re-attach (Enter on agent)

Same handoff pattern the new-agent flow uses. For an agent the
dashboard started this session, the dashboard holds the
`DockerBottle` handle in its `bottles` dict and calls
`bottle.exec_agent(...)`. For an agent it discovered via
`list_active_slugs` (previous-dashboard or external start),
the dashboard synthesizes a one-shot `DockerBottle` from the
slug — container name is `bot-bottle-<slug>`, no prompt
path because the agent's claude config already has `--append-
system-prompt-file` baked in from the original launch —
and runs the same exec. Either way, Enter drops to
full-screen claude; on exit the dashboard re-renders.

### Explicit per-bottle stop

`x` on a dashboard-owned agent: pop the `(cm, bottle)` from
the dict, call `cm.__exit__(None, None, None)` which drives
the existing compose-down + state-settle logic. Refresh the
agents pane.

`x` on a non-owned agent (discovered via `list_active_slugs`
but not in `bottles` dict): no-op with status hint pointing
at `./cli.py cleanup` (the existing path that tears down
ANY bot-bottle compose project plus reaps state dirs).

### Dashboard quit

`q` returns the dashboard process to 0 without touching any
running bottles. The `bottles` dict goes out of scope but
because the context managers' `__exit__` is never invoked,
the `docker compose` project keeps running. The next dashboard
invocation discovers the bottles via `list_active_slugs` and
surfaces re-attach.

This is a real departure from today's `./cli.py start`
semantics (which couples bottle lifetime to the process via
ExitStack). It's intentional: the dashboard is a watching +
acting surface, not a lifetime owner.

## Implementation chunks

Sized for one PR each.

1. **Refactor `_launch_bottle` so the launch + exec_agent
   pieces are separable.** Today's `cli/start.py` runs both
   inside one function. Extract `prepare_with_preflight(spec,
   *, render_preflight, prompt_yes)` and `attach_agent(bottle,
   *, remote_control)`. The CLI's existing one-shot use binds
   them as before; the dashboard binds them with curses-aware
   render + prompt callables. No behavior change.
2. **Agent picker modal + new-agent flow.** New key `n` opens
   the picker; `prepare_with_preflight` runs against the
   selected agent; on Y, `backend.launch(plan)` enters the
   dashboard's ExitStack; handoff invokes `attach_agent`.
3. **Re-attach via Enter on owned agents-pane row.** Looks up
   the slug in the dashboard's `bottles` map; if present →
   handoff; else → status-line hint pointing at `./cli.py
   resume`.
4. **Explicit per-bottle stop (`x` keybinding).** Pop the
   bottle's `close` callback off the stack, call it, refresh.
5. **Quit-cleanup (`q`).** Hook `stack.close()` into the
   normal return path. Document the "exiting dashboard tears
   down every bottle it started" contract in `dashboard.py`'s
   module docstring.

## Resolved questions

1. **Modal vs. drop-and-resume for preflight Y/N.** Resolved:
   **modal.** Render the preflight lines centered in a curses
   sub-window with `[y/N]` at the bottom; capture the next
   keypress. If geometry proves fiddly during implementation
   we'll fall back to drop-and-resume, but modal is the target.

2. **Agent picker: text-filter typing.** Resolved: **yes,
   include filter typing.** As the operator types, the list
   filters to agents whose name matches (substring,
   case-insensitive). j/k still navigates within the filtered
   set; Esc clears the filter on first press, exits the picker
   on the second.

3. **Container-died-during-claude handling.** Keep the design
   as drafted: transcript snapshot (`snapshot_transcript`) +
   `mark_preserved` if exit code is non-zero + remove from
   the `bottles` dict + status line `"claude session for
   [slug] ended with exit N; preserved for resume"`. The
   bottle's `cm.__exit__` would normally run on stop; here it
   runs as part of the death-handling (the container is
   already gone, but compose-down + state-settle still
   sequence the network removal + state cleanup correctly).

4. **Double-start of the same agent.** Allowed. The picker
   surfaces a `(N running)` annotation next to any agent name
   that already has live bottles in this dashboard's `bottles`
   dict OR in `list_active_slugs()`, so the operator sees the
   running-count before picking. Selecting an already-running
   agent name mints a fresh slug for the new bottle as
   normal.

5. **Quit behavior.** Resolved: **`q` does NOT tear down any
   bottles.** Dashboard exit is purely a UI exit; the
   bottles dict goes out of scope without invoking `__exit__`,
   so the `docker compose` projects keep running. Bottle
   teardown is always explicit: per-bottle `x` (for
   dashboard-owned), or `./cli.py cleanup` (for everything).

## Open questions

6. **Race between handoff and 1s refresh tick.** While the
   dashboard's `stdscr.timeout` is set, a key press fires the
   handoff and the dashboard sits in `docker exec` for minutes.
   `discover_active_agents` / `discover_pending` don't poll
   during that window — that's harmless on its own (the moment
   we `stdscr.refresh()` after exec returns, the next loop
   iter runs discovery and the panes reflect reality), but
   it does mean: (a) proposals queued during the claude
   session won't fire any operator notification until the
   handoff ends, and (b) a bottle that died mid-claude won't
   be detectable until the operator exits back to the
   dashboard. Not blocking v1 — flagging as a known limitation
   to revisit alongside the option-2 embedded-emulator path
   from the research doc.

## References

- PRD 0018 — compose-per-instance lifecycle (the `backend.
  launch` context-manager contract this PRD layers against)
- PRD 0019 — active-agents pane + selection model (the
  agents-pane row the re-attach + stop verbs hook into)
- `docs/research/claude-code-pane-in-dashboard.md` — option 1
  (handoff) is what `attach_agent` implements here; options 2
  / 3 are out of scope for this PRD
- `bot_bottle/cli/start.py:_launch_bottle` — the function
  chunk 1 extracts the prepare + attach pieces out of
