[Bug] ChatUI: first message of a new session flickers in the sidebar conversation list and disappears after the AI finishes

[wcqqq1214]

Description

In ChatUI (the built-in Dashboard Webchat), when starting a new conversation inside a project and sending its first message, the current session briefly appears in the sidebar "conversation" section (below the projects) while the AI is loading. As soon as the AI finishes generating, that entry disappears from the "conversation" section — the session is then only visible under its project.

This only happens for the first message of a session; subsequent messages in the same session do not trigger it.

Screenshot 1: current session appears in the conversation list while AI is loading

Screenshot 2: the session disappears from the conversation list after AI finishes

Reproduction Steps

1. Open the Dashboard and go to ChatUI (/chat).
2. Select a project in the left sidebar (ProjectList).
3. Type and send the first message of a new session.
4. While the AI is loading, check the "conversation" section of the sidebar: the current session is listed there.
5. After the AI finishes outputting, the entry disappears from the "conversation" section; the session is only shown inside its project.

AstrBot Version

4.27.2

Operating System

MacOS

Deployment Method

Local source install; also reproduced in Docker.

Message Platform Adapter

Built-in Webchat (Dashboard ChatUI), no third-party adapter

Error Log

No error logs — this is a frontend-only rendering issue and the backend processes the message normally.

Supplementary Information

No response

Checklist

• I have searched the Issue list for related issues and could not resolve the problem, or this issue has never been reported before.
• I have tried disabling all plugins to rule out issues caused by plugins.
• The issue I am reporting is related to AstrBot itself, not to a specific plugin.
• I have read and agree to the project's Code of Conduct.
• (Optional) I am willing to submit a PR to help fix this issue.

[dosubot]

Thanks for the detailed report. I traced through the frontend code and can confirm the root cause:

The session is created without a project_id, and the sidebar refreshes before the project association completes.

The flow is:

1. newSession() calls chatApi.createSession() without any project identifier, then immediately calls getSessions() to refresh the sidebar [1]. At this point, the backend returns the session in the general conversation list since it has no project_id.
2. Only after that, addSessionToProject(sessionId, targetProjectId) is called to associate the session with the project [2].
3. When the AI finishes and the SSE stream completes, onSessionsChanged triggers another getSessions() refresh [3]. By now the project association is in place, so the backend's listSessions() no longer returns it — it only appears under listProjectSessions(projectId) [4].

This explains the flicker: a brief window where the session exists without a project association, and the sidebar refresh exposes it in the general conversation list.

Possible fixes:

1. Create with project_id — modify createSession() to accept an optional project_id so the session is born already associated with the project. This eliminates the window entirely.
2. Defer the refresh — skip the getSessions() call inside newSession() when a project is selected, and only refresh after addSessionToProject() completes.
3. Optimistic UI filter — if selectedProjectId is set, exclude the newly created session from the general sidebar list on the client side until the next full refresh.

Option 1 is the cleanest since it avoids the two-step creation + association pattern altogether. Since you mentioned you're willing to submit a PR, that would be a great approach.

To reply, just mention @dosu.

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