fix: prevent agent proliferation when adding bots to channels#621
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May 20, 2026
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…l UI - Extract reuse helpers into agentReuse.ts (commandsMatch, pickPreferred, findReusablePersonaAgent, findReusableGenericAgent, findReusableAgent) - Add generic agent reuse: when no persona and no custom prompt, reuse existing agent with matching command instead of spawning a new keypair - Add forceNewInstance flag to CreateChannelManagedAgentInput so users can explicitly opt into creating a fresh instance - Guard both persona and generic reuse paths with forceNewInstance check - Add useReusableAgentDetection hook for UI-side reuse detection - Add AddChannelBotReuseGuard component: radio choice defaulting to reuse, with opt-out for 'Create new instance' - Wire guardrail into AddChannelBotDialog — shows when reuse would fire for single-agent selections (1 persona or generic with blank prompt)
Replace bordered card with radio buttons → label + select dropdown + helper text. Same visual plane as 'Who can talk to this agent' field.
Covers commandsMatch, parseTimestamp, pickPreferredManagedAgent, findReusablePersonaAgent, findReusableGenericAgent, and findReusableAgent. 38 test cases covering edge cases: - Path normalization and claude command aliasing - Whitespace-only vs empty vs undefined systemPrompt - Running vs stopped agent preference - Null/undefined timestamp handling - Channel member exclusion logic
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Category: improvement
User Impact: Adding an agent to a channel now reuses an existing instance by default instead of spawning a duplicate, reducing agent sprawl from dozens of redundant keypairs down to one per persona.
Problem: The "+" button in channel headers spawned a brand-new managed agent (new keypair) every time — even when that persona already had a running agent. This led to 79 agent instances and 89 unique bot pubkeys across 26 channels.
Solution: Strengthen the reuse logic so existing agents are attached to new channels by default. A guardrail UI (select dropdown) lets users explicitly opt into creating a fresh instance when isolation is needed.
File changes
desktop/src/features/agents/agentReuse.ts
New file. Extracted reuse helper functions:
findReusablePersonaAgent(existing logic, moved here),findReusableGenericAgent(new — matches on command + blank prompt), andfindReusableAgent(unified entry point for the UI hook).desktop/src/features/agents/channelAgents.ts
Refactored to import reuse helpers from
agentReuse.ts. AddedforceNewInstancegate to both persona and generic reuse paths so the UI escape hatch works. Added the new generic agent reuse block (command match + empty prompt guard).desktop/src/features/agents/hooks.ts
Re-exports
findReusableAgentfromagentReuse.tsso the detection hook can import it cleanly.desktop/src/features/channels/ui/AddChannelBotDialog.tsx
Integrates the reuse detection hook and renders the
AddChannelBotReuseGuardcomponent when a reusable agent is found. PassesforceNewInstanceinto the mutation inputs.desktop/src/features/channels/ui/AddChannelBotReuseGuard.tsx
New component. Select dropdown (label + select + helper text pattern, matching
RespondToField) that defaults to "Reuse existing agent" with opt-out to "Create new instance."desktop/src/features/channels/ui/useReusableAgentDetection.ts
New hook. Detects whether a reusable managed agent exists for the current dialog selection (single persona or blank generic) so the UI can show the guardrail before submission.
Reproduction Steps