# AGENTS.md
Project-level context for AI agents working in this repository.

> **⚠️ IMPORTANT: All work must be done in THIS source directory (`~/src/ollie/`).**
> Never edit files under `~/.config/ollie/` — that is an install target.
> Changes made there are overwritten on the next `just install-data`.
> Edit source files here, then run `just` to build and install.

## Project Overview
Ollie is an AI agent runtime inspired by Plan 9: agent state and behaviors are exposed as files in a 9P namespace. Orchestration, scheduling, and UIs are external — shell scripts, editors, web apps. The core is minimal; capabilities come from composing scripts.
## Repository Layout
Monorepo with Git submodules. Each submodule has its own Go module (except `el` which is Elisp and `kde` which is C++/Qt).
```
ollie/                              ← you are here
├── virtfs/           (Go module)   Virtual filesystem EDSL (FsNodeDecl, BuildTree, Tree)
├── toolsrv/          (Go)          Tool server client library (Conn, Dial)
├── cmd/
│   ├── olliesrv/     (Go)          9P server binary
│   │   └── internal/
│   │       ├── fs/                 9P namespace (everything in spec.go)
│   │       │   ├── spec.go         Single source of truth — entire namespace + handlers
│   │       │   └── support.go     Shared utilities (streamChat, stripMarkers, dispatch)
│   │       ├── agent/             Agent loop, history, hooks
│   │       ├── session/           Session lifecycle, persistence
│   │       ├── backend/           LLM backends (ollama, openai, anthropic, etc.)
│   │       └── bypass/            Sandbox bypass broker
│   ├── toolsrv/      (Go)          Tool server binary (sandboxed execution)
│   │   └── internal/
│   │       ├── fs/                 toolsrv 9P namespace (spec.go)
│   │       └── sandbox/           Landlock enforcement
│   ├── ollie-9p/     (Go)          CLI client for the 9P namespace
│   └── ollie-remote/ (Go)          Remote execution agent
├── tools/            (Go)          Tool implementations:
│   └── lsp/                        LSP bridge + cmd/ binaries
├── kde/              (C++/Qt6)     KDE integration: GUI, Kate plugin, KRunner, tray
├── contrib/elisp     (Elisp)       Emacs frontend (ellie.el)
├── data/agents/                    Agent config JSONs (loaded at runtime)
├── data/prompts/                   System prompt templates (markdown)
├── data/tools/                     Tool executables + .meta sidecar files
├── data/skills/                    Domain knowledge modules (markdown)
├── sandbox/                        Landlock sandbox config YAML
├── doc/                            Architecture docs, usage guide
├── contrib/                        Community scripts
└── experiments/                    Trial notes
```
### Canonical source for prompts/tools/skills

> **⛔ DO NOT edit `~/.config/ollie/` directly — it is an install target. All changes go in this repo.**

Prompt and tool files live in `data/`. The `just install-data` target copies them to `~/.config/ollie/`.
| Location | Purpose | Deployed by |
|----------|---------|-------------|
| `data/prompts/`, `data/tools/` | Canonical source for all prompts, tools, and skills | `just install-data` |
| `data/skills/` | Domain knowledge modules (markdown) | `just install-data` |
| `kde/` | KDE-specific tool scripts (`gui_*`) | `just install-kde` |
## Build System
```bash
# Build and install everything:
just
# Individual build targets:
just ninep        # olliesrv + ollie-9p
just toolsrv      # tool server binary
just core         # core Go packages
just kde          # KDE integration (cmake with ~/.local prefix)
just lsp-tools    # LSP tool binaries
# Install targets:
just install-data     # agents, prompts, tools, skills → ~/.config/ollie/
just install-el       # ellie.el → ~/.config/emacs/ellie/
# Test:
just test         # run all tests
just test-core    # core Go tests
just test-9p      # 9p integration tests
# Lifecycle:
just uninstall    # remove all installed files
just clean        # remove build artifacts
```
Requires [just](https://github.com/casey/just): `cargo install just`
## Testing
```bash
# All Go tests (excludes cmd/ollie-remote which needs just to build):
go test $(go list ./... | grep -v cmd/ollie-remote)
# KDE has integration test scripts:
cd kde && ./test-e2e.sh
# ollie-remote requires the just build pipeline to resolve embedded deps:
just ollie-remote
just test
# or individually:
just test-remote
```

**Note on `cmd/ollie-remote`**: This package uses `//go:embed sandbox/default.yaml` and `//go:embed all:tools`. The embedded files are not in the source tree — `just ollie-remote` copies them in before building then cleans up. Running `go test ./...` will fail on this package. Use `just test-remote` or `go test $(go list ./... | grep -v cmd/ollie-remote)` instead.
## Language & Conventions

- **Go** (root module): Go 1.25+, standard library preferred, minimal dependencies.
- **C++20/Qt6/KF6** (kde): CMake build, dual Qt5/Qt6 support where noted.
- **Elisp** (el): single file `ellie.el`.
- **Tool scripts**: Python 3, Bash, or compiled binaries. Must be executable. Metadata lives in a `.meta` sidecar JSON file (see `data/tools/*.meta`).
### Code style
- Go: `gofmt`, short variable names, error returns (no panics), table-driven tests.
- Tool scripts: emit structured output (`STATUS=ok`, `STATUS=error`). Image/LSP tools return JSON content blocks.
- Prompts: markdown, concise, example-driven. Follow the pattern in existing `tools-*.md` files.
## Architecture (key concepts)
1. **One integration surface**: 9P filesystem. Sessions at `session/{sname}/agent/{aname}/`. All control via `ctl` (rdwr: write command, read response). Tools, skills, memory on physical filesystem via env vars.
2. **Two-process model**: Each session runs an `olliesrv` (the 9P namespace, agent loop, backends) and a per-session `toolsrv` (sandboxed tool execution). They communicate over a Unix socket using 9P. The toolsrv is spawned by olliesrv at session creation and has its own namespace (`/proc/new`, `/ctl`, `/tools`, etc.).
3. **Agent loop** (`cmd/olliesrv/internal/agent/loop.go`): Streaming LLM call → parse tool calls → dispatch to toolsrv → loop until no more tool calls or max steps.
4. **Tool dispatch**: ALL tools (including `reasoning_think`, `file_read`, `shell`) execute through the per-session toolsrv. The agent holds a `*toolsrv.Conn` (9P client) and calls `CallTool(name, args)` which writes to `proc/new` and reads the result. Tool registry is per-agent, keyed by agent ID in the protocol.
5. **Sandbox** (`cmd/toolsrv/internal/sandbox/`): Landlock-based. Config in `sandbox/*.yaml` defines filesystem access per profile. Escape via bypass broker (`cmd/olliesrv/internal/bypass/`).
6. **Backends** (`cmd/olliesrv/internal/backend/`): Ollama, OpenAI-compatible, Anthropic, Copilot, Kiro, Gemini. Selectable per-session.
7. **Prompts assembled at runtime**: Agent JSON `prompt` array specifies which prompt files to concatenate. The base system prompt is embedded in the binary and always prepended.
8. **9P namespace declared via virtfs EDSL**: The entire filesystem is a single recursive `FsNodeDecl` tree in `cmd/olliesrv/internal/fs/spec.go`, built by `virtfs.BuildTree()`. Every handler is an inline closure — no indirection. Same pattern in `cmd/toolsrv/internal/fs/spec.go`.
## Key Files
| What | Where |
|------|-------|
| 9P namespace (olliesrv) | `cmd/olliesrv/internal/fs/spec.go` |
| 9P namespace (toolsrv) | `cmd/toolsrv/internal/fs/spec.go` |
| virtfs EDSL | `virtfs/decl.go`, `virtfs/builder.go` |
| Agent loop | `cmd/olliesrv/internal/agent/loop.go` |
| Tool server binary | `cmd/toolsrv/` |
| Tool server client | `toolsrv/client9p.go` |
| Remote execution | `cmd/ollie-remote/` |
| Sandbox enforcement | `cmd/toolsrv/internal/sandbox/` |
| Session management | `cmd/olliesrv/internal/session/` |
| System prompt template | Embedded in binary (`cmd/olliesrv/internal/prompts/`) |
| Agent configs | `data/agents/*.json` |
| KDE GUI | `kde/gui/` |
| Kate plugin | `kde/kate/` |
## Environment
Config lives in `~/.config/ollie/env`. Key variables:
- `OLLIE_BACKEND` — default backend (ollama, openai, anthropic, copilot, kiro)
- `OLLIE_MODEL` — default model
- Tools live at `$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/ollie/tools` (default: `~/.config/ollie/tools`)
- Memory lives at `$XDG_DATA_HOME/ollie/optmem` (default: `~/.local/share/ollie/optmem`)
## Adding a new tool

### Script-based tool (Python/Bash)
1. Create an executable script in `data/tools/<name>`
2. Create `data/tools/<name>.meta` with JSON metadata:
   ```json
   {"description":"...","prompt":"...","args":{...},"tier":"hot","readOnly":false}
   ```
3. Run `just install-data` to install

### Compiled tool (Go)
1. Create a package under `tools/<family>/cmd/<name>/main.go`
   - Read JSON args from stdin, write result to stdout, exit 0/1
   - Share library code in `tools/<family>/` (e.g. `tools/lsp/`)
2. Create `<name>.meta` alongside `main.go` in the same `cmd/<name>/` directory (same format as above)
3. Add a build target in the justfile that compiles to `{{cfg}}/tools/<name>` **and** installs the `.meta` file alongside it
4. Run `just` to build and install

The `.meta` file lives with the code that produces the tool, not in `data/tools/`. See the `lsp-tools` just target for the canonical pattern.

Both paths produce the same result: an executable + `.meta` in `$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/ollie/tools`.
The registry doesn't distinguish between scripts and binaries.
## Adding a new prompt
1. Write the markdown file in `data/prompts/`
2. If it should be loaded by default, reference it in `data/agents/default.json`
3. Run `just install-data` to install
## Submodule workflow
The only remaining submodule is `kde/`. For KDE:
```bash
# Update KDE submodule:
git submodule update --remote --merge kde
# Work in the KDE submodule:
cd kde
# ... make changes, commit ...
git push
cd ..
git add kde
git commit -m "update kde submodule"
```
Each submodule has its own remote at `ssh://lkn@lneely.de:44220/lkn/ollie-{name}.git`.
When cloning, use `--recurse-submodules` or run `git submodule update --init --recursive`.