Show every agent tab's summary, not just the focused one

The tab bar's row-2 summary was painted only for the active tab. Add a per-child summaryTextFor/summaryRawFor helper (active variants now delegate to it), carry each tab's childID on its tabRect, and loop over all visible tabs so each renders its own summary under its column. Layout is unchanged (still 3 rows); narrow tabs clip as before. Resolves the per-tab summary TODO item.
Give injected agent submit Enter a longer settle delay
2026-05-25 13:06:53 +01:00 · 2026-05-25 13:00:54 +01:00 · 2026-05-25 12:43:56 +01:00 · 2026-05-25 12:40:23 +01:00 · 2026-05-25 12:39:31 +01:00 · 2026-05-25 12:33:59 +01:00
52 changed files with 6252 additions and 829 deletions
--- a/.gitea/workflows/release.yml
+++ b/.gitea/workflows/release.yml
@@ -11,14 +11,19 @@ jobs:
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v4

-      - uses: actions/setup-go@v5
+      - uses: jdx/mise-action@v2
        with:
-          go-version-file: go.mod
          cache: true

-      - uses: mlugg/setup-zig@v1
+      - name: Cache Go modules
+        uses: actions/cache@v4
        with:
-          version: 0.15.2
+          path: |
+            ~/.cache/go-build
+            ~/go/pkg/mod
+          key: ${{ runner.os }}-go-${{ hashFiles('**/go.sum') }}
+          restore-keys: |
+            ${{ runner.os }}-go-

      - name: Build libghostty-vt
        run: make deps
--- a/.gitignore
+++ b/.gitignore
@@ -7,4 +7,5 @@ spike-report-*.txt
 /bin/
 /spike
 /.worktrees/
+/.claude/worktrees/
 internal/harness/.artifacts/
--- a/.mise.toml
+++ b/.mise.toml
@@ -3,6 +3,8 @@
 # libghostty-vt is built from a pinned upstream Ghostty commit; that
 # commit's build.zig.zon pins minimum_zig_version = 0.15.2. We match
 # it here so contributors don't have to puzzle out the version from
-# a deep upstream file.
+# a deep upstream file. The go pin matches go.mod so CI and local
+# builds use the same toolchain.
 [tools]
 zig = "0.15.2"
+go = "1.26.3"
--- a/CHANGELOG.md
+++ b/CHANGELOG.md
@@ -6,6 +6,264 @@ loosely follows [Semantic Versioning](https://semver.org/spec/v2.0.0.html).

 ## [Unreleased]

+### Added
+- MCP clients can now call `scratchpad_delete` with a scratchpad name
+  to remove a shared project scratchpad.
+
+### Changed
+- The tab bar now shows each visible agent tab's own summary instead
+  of only rendering the focused tab's summary.
+- Grid-mode `get_process_output` now returns whitespace-normalized
+  text to avoid sending padded terminal rows and repeated blank lines
+  over MCP.
+
+### Fixed
+- Injected agent input now sends the submit Enter as a separated,
+  settled keystroke so messages reliably submit instead of sometimes
+  sitting unsent in the composer.
+- Codex agents are no longer reported idle while a turn is still
+  running.
+- Slow MCP tool calls such as `wait_for_pattern` no longer block later
+  tool calls on the same MCP connection.
+- Closing an agent now escalates from SIGTERM to SIGKILL when needed,
+  so agents that ignore SIGTERM disappear from the running tab bar
+  after one Close action while keeping their exited pane readable.
+- Sidebar timer indicators now repaint as their visible countdown
+  value changes, so labels progress from minutes to seconds without
+  waiting for unrelated terminal output or focus changes.
+- Raw terminal focused actions now show a single `Close` row instead
+  of separate stop/delete-style lifecycle choices that did the same
+  thing for ephemeral terminal panes.
+- Restarting a process from the palette now restores the focused pane
+  and host chrome before waiting for the old process to exit, so the
+  tab bar and sidebar do not disappear during slow restarts.
+- Deleting the focused scratchpad now moves focus to another
+  scratchpad when one exists, or back to a running terminal/agent
+  instead of dropping into the empty state.
+- Multiline paste into raw terminal and command panes no longer pays
+  the agent-specific per-Enter delay, making large pasted input arrive
+  as one PTY write outside Claude/Codex/OpenCode panes.
+
+## [0.0.7] - 2026-05-18
+
+### Added
+- The top tab bar now prefixes each agent tab's label with its
+  idle-state glyph (✕ error, ? permission, ◐ thinking, ○ idle, ●
+  working), matching the sidebar's vocabulary so the state of every
+  open agent is visible without opening or focusing each tab.
+
+### Changed
+- Built-in agent presets (`claude`, `codex`, `opencode`) now live in
+  memory and user preset files merge over them by name instead of
+  patterm writing default preset files into `$XDG_CONFIG_HOME`. Add
+  `"disabled": true` in a matching user preset to hide a built-in.
+- Generated MCP config files for agent launches now live under the
+  runtime agent directory instead of `$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/patterm/mcp`.
+- Auto-summarization settings now save as soon as a changed row is
+  applied, including cadence/provider/toggle changes and model edits,
+  without requiring a separate save step.
+- The Agents / Auto-summarization settings screen no longer shows
+  explicit Save, Cancel, or Back rows, and its footer copy no longer
+  describes a separate save/cancel flow.
+- Auto-summarization setting rows now visually separate grey labels
+  from regular-colour values.
+- The active-thread summary in the tab bar is now constrained to the
+  active tab's width instead of spanning the whole top row.
+- Sidebar summary text now wraps from the full summary text instead of
+  using an ellipsized single-line value.
+
+### Fixed
+- Claude permission prompts are now detected from the rendered pane as
+  well as the recent output tail, so the sidebar marks the pane as
+  waiting for permission even while `Calling patterm...` continues to
+  repaint.
+- Removed the redundant "Back to Settings" row from the
+  Agents / Auto-summarization settings screen.
+- Pending `timer_*` entries are now cancelled when their owning or
+  watched child is closed via `close_process`, preventing stale
+  timer bodies from being re-delivered to the orchestrator pane
+  after the work has already been handled.
+
+## [0.0.6] - 2026-05-15
+
+### Changed
+- Toast notifications now reserve three content rows and word-wrap
+  the message body inside the box, replacing the previous
+  single-line+ellipsis layout. The `Ctrl-N · N more` inline hint is
+  gone; instead the host status strip surfaces a `Ctrl-N · dismiss`
+  hint, shown only while a notification is on screen so the chord
+  doesn't advertise itself when it has nothing to dismiss.
+
+### Fixed
+- Auto-summary no longer fails immediately with `codex summarizer:
+  error: unexpected argument '--ask-for-approval' found`. The codex
+  CLI dropped that flag; we now rely on `--sandbox read-only` (which
+  already implies no approvals) instead of passing it.
+- Toast box no longer flickers / half-erases while the focused
+  child (claude, codex, opencode, etc.) repaints its TUI. The
+  overlay is now stitched onto the end of the per-chunk PTY write
+  under `outMu`, and wrapped in DECSET 2026 (synchronized output)
+  brackets so terminals that support it batch the child's redraw +
+  the box paint into a single frame instead of racing cell-by-cell.
+
+## [0.0.5] - 2026-05-15
+
+### Changed
+- Replaced the single-slot status-line "flash" with a stackable toast
+  surface anchored at the top-right of the focused pane. `flashError`,
+  `flashTransient`, and MCP `request_human_attention` now push onto
+  the toast stack (cap 5, oldest drops). Toasts persist until
+  dismissed with `Ctrl-N`, or cleared via the new
+  "Clear notifications" palette command. The status line no longer
+  shows the `[!]` prefix.
+- `Ctrl-N` is consumed by the host only when there is a toast to
+  dismiss; an empty stack lets `Ctrl-N` pass through to the focused
+  child so readline / nano / emacs / opencode keep their bindings.
+- Command palette is calmer when something is focused. Focused-section
+  rows now read as bare verbs (`Rename`, `Close`, `Stop`, `Restart`,
+  `Delete`, `Edit`) instead of repeating the focused name (`Close
+  agent: codex`); the title bar's `on: codex` / `pad: notes.md`
+  carries the subject. Fuzzy queries still match the dropped context
+  through the row hint (e.g. typing `close codex` still finds the
+  Close row).
+- Dashed `── Focused ──` / `── Open ──` / `── Spawn ──` section
+  banners are gone. Sections are separated by a single blank spacer
+  row, so the action labels themselves carry the visual weight.
+- The Open section no longer lists a `Switch to <current>` row for
+  the pane you're already focused on.
+
+## [0.0.4] - 2026-05-15
+
+### Changed
+- Release workflow (`.gitea/workflows/release.yml`) now provisions
+  Zig and Go through `jdx/mise-action@v2`, reading the versions from
+  `.mise.toml` (zig 0.15.2, go 1.26.3). Both toolchains were
+  previously installed via `mlugg/setup-zig` and `actions/setup-go`,
+  whose mirror chase / GitHub fetch combined for ~8 minutes per run
+  before any patterm code compiled. mise pulls each tool once and
+  caches the install dir, so subsequent runs hit the cache instead of
+  re-downloading. `make deps` still resolves zig via `mise which zig`
+  with a PATH fallback; `go.mod` already pinned `go 1.26.3`, so the
+  new `go` entry in `.mise.toml` just keeps CI and local builds on
+  the same toolchain.
+- A Go module/build cache step (`actions/cache@v4`, keyed on
+  `go.sum`) was added so `go build` doesn't re-download dependencies
+  on every tag push.
+
+## [0.0.3] - 2026-05-15
+
+### Added
+- Auto-summarization for top-level agent tabs. patterm now loads
+  `$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/patterm/settings.json`, enables Codex-based
+  summaries by default (`gpt-5.4-mini`; OpenCode defaults to
+  `opencode-go/minimax-m2.7`), and can run Codex, OpenCode, or opt-in
+  Claude summarizers with configurable model names. Summary
+  attempts are armed by meaningful human input, wait for recent output
+  to go quiet, and respect a minimum cadence so unchanged tabs are not
+  summarized on a timer. The active thread summary appears under the
+  top tab title and in the sidebar below the Agent Tree section.
+- Settings overlay reachable from the command palette via
+  `Open Settings`. The searchable Settings picker opens
+  `Agents / Auto-summarization`, where users can enable/disable
+  summaries, choose provider, edit provider model names, cycle cadence,
+  test the selected summarizer (`patterm okay`), summarize the current
+  top-level agent immediately, and explicitly save or cancel draft
+  settings changes. Cadence choices match Solo: `15s`, `30s`, and
+  `1m`; the value is a minimum quiet/activity gap before another
+  summary attempt for the same top-level agent, not a background
+  periodic timer.
+
+### Changed
+- Command palette UX overhaul. The single flat list grew section
+  bands (`── Focused ──`, `── Open ──`, `── Spawn ──`, `── Quit ──`)
+  so the rows are scannable at a glance; cursor navigation skips
+  the dim header rows transparently. A chip strip — `[All] Open
+  Spawn Close` — sits below the query line and tracks the active
+  macro filter; `Tab` / `Shift-Tab` cycle through the chips, and
+  the typed-prefix macros (`sw `, `sp `, `k `) still work and now
+  collapse the whole prefix on a single backspace instead of
+  leaving a stray `sw` behind. The title bar surfaces the current
+  focus subject (`on: <child>` / `pad: <name>`) so the user knows
+  which Focused row is targeting what. The duplicate global Close
+  list is gone — close is reachable via the Focused-section action,
+  the `k ` macro / `[Close]` chip, or the new `Ctrl-X` inline close
+  on a Switch row. The "(current)" marker on the focused Switch row
+  became a leading `▶`. The empty-state hint now reads `no matches
+  · ⌫ to widen` instead of bare `no matches`. The middle divider
+  shows a `▼ N more` / `▲ N above` scroll indicator when the list
+  overflows, and the footer carries a `cursor/total` counter.
+- Spawn verbs are unified on **Spawn**: `Run process: …` →
+  `Spawn process: …`, `New Terminal` → `Spawn terminal`, and the
+  freeform-form row is now `Spawn process… (custom)` so the
+  trailing ellipsis still signals it opens a form.
+- Filtering switched from binary fuzzy-include to scored ranking.
+  Prefix matches beat word-boundary matches beat substring matches
+  beat scattered-fuzzy matches; ties fall back to section order so
+  a Focused-section hit always outranks an equally tight Spawn
+  hit. The matched characters in the rendered label render in
+  accent+bold so the user can see why a row matched.
+- Rename forms split the long subject (`scratchpad:
+  some-really-long-name.md`) onto its own dim row above the input
+  so the title bar no longer truncates with an ellipsis when the
+  subject name is wide.
+- New palette accelerators: `Alt-1` … `Alt-9` quick-pick the Nth
+  visible row, `Home` / `End` jump to first / last selectable row,
+  `?` (with empty query) opens an inline keybinding cheat-sheet
+  which any further keystroke dismisses, and `Ctrl-R` inside the
+  Spawn-process form toggles "Relaunch on exit" without leaving
+  the command field.
+
+### Fixed
+- Error/status flashes now restore the currently focused pane instead
+  of drawing the empty-state hint over a running agent or process.
+- Release workflow (`.gitea/workflows/release.yml`) now uses
+  `mlugg/setup-zig@v2` instead of the deprecated `@v1`. v1 hard-coded
+  the pre-0.14 tarball name (`zig-linux-x86_64-<ver>.tar.xz`), so
+  every mirror and the official `ziglang.org/builds` returned 404 for
+  Zig 0.15.2 and the v0.0.1 / v0.0.2 tag pushes never produced a
+  release asset. v2 uses the post-0.14 `zig-x86_64-linux-<ver>.tar.xz`
+  layout, so the runner can fetch Zig and build patterm.
+- Typing into a focused child while its emulator viewport is
+  scrolled up into scrollback history now auto-snaps the viewport
+  back to the live area. Previously the keystroke reached the
+  child PTY but the input box was off-screen below the visible
+  region, so it looked like typing did nothing. Wheel scrolling
+  and Ctrl-B are unchanged; only forwarded keystrokes snap.
+- Top tab bar now keeps the top-level agent's tab highlighted
+  when focus is on one of its sub-agents (or on a Processes pane
+  entry, matching the existing agent-tree behavior). Previously
+  the tab would lose its highlight as soon as you stepped into a
+  child agent, even though you were still within that thread.
+
+### Changed
+- MCP tool descriptions and `help('coordination')` /
+  `help('readiness')` now spell out that a sub-agent's reply to
+  `send_message` lands in the caller's own pane (tagged
+  `[sub-agent:<name>]`), not in the sub-agent's output. The canonical
+  wait-for-reply pattern — `send_message` → `timer_fire_when_idle_any`
+  on the sub-agent → read your own pane — is now called out on
+  `send_message`, `wait_for_pattern`, both `timer_fire_when_idle_*`,
+  the help topics, and the server-instructions preamble every agent
+  reads at startup. Previously `wait_for_pattern` was the obvious
+  blocking primitive in the catalog, and agents routinely called it
+  against the sub-agent for a reply that had already arrived in their
+  own pane, deadlocking until the wait timed out. No behaviour
+  changes; descriptions only.
+- Agent-initiated `spawn_agent` and `spawn_process` MCP calls no
+  longer steal viewport focus from the currently active tab. The
+  new child still appears in the sidebar and tab bar; switch to it
+  explicitly via the palette or `select_process`. Palette-initiated
+  spawns and persistence restores are unchanged — they still auto-
+  focus the new pane.
+- Sidebar rows (Processes, Agent Tree, Scratchpads) now truncate
+  overflowing names with a trailing `…` instead of spilling into
+  the main viewport. The focused row marquees its name when it
+  overflows — 1 s hold on the head, ~150 ms per cell scroll until
+  the tail is visible, 1 s hold on the tail, snap back. Row
+  position never moves while the marquee animates. When budget is
+  tight, the trailing timer indicator drops before the name
+  ellipses, since the name is the only identifier the row carries.
+
 ## [0.0.2] - 2026-05-15

 ### Added
--- a/SPEC.md
+++ b/SPEC.md
@@ -39,7 +39,7 @@ The tool is one Go process that owns: the TUI, all PTYs, vt-emulated grids, sess

 ## 3. Project state layout

-Scratchpads (user data) live under `$XDG_DATA_HOME`; presets and config live under `$XDG_CONFIG_HOME`.
+Scratchpads (user data) live under `$XDG_DATA_HOME`; user-authored preset overlays and config live under `$XDG_CONFIG_HOME`.

 ```
 $XDG_DATA_HOME/patterm/
@@ -53,12 +53,12 @@ $XDG_DATA_HOME/patterm/
            └── <agent-written>.md

 $XDG_CONFIG_HOME/patterm/
-├── config.json                # global settings (theme, default keymap, etc.)
+├── settings.json              # global settings, written only after the user changes settings
 └── presets/
    ├── agents/
-    │   ├── claude.json        # ships as default
-    │   ├── codex.json         # ships as default
-    │   ├── opencode.json      # ships as default
+    │   ├── claude.json        # optional overlay for built-in claude
+    │   ├── codex.json         # optional overlay for built-in codex
+    │   ├── opencode.json      # optional overlay for built-in opencode
    │   └── <user-defined>.json
    └── processes/
        ├── dev.json           # e.g. { "name": "bun run dev", "argv": ["bun", "run", "dev"] }
@@ -66,7 +66,7 @@ $XDG_CONFIG_HOME/patterm/
        └── <user-defined>.json
 ```

-Both preset directories are scanned at startup; every file found becomes a palette entry ("Spawn agent: claude", "Run process: bun run dev", …). Presets are project-agnostic in v1 — the same set is available in every project. Per-project overrides can be added later.
+patterm always has built-in agent presets for `claude`, `codex`, and `opencode`. User preset files are scanned at startup and merged into matching built-ins by `name`, or added as standalone custom presets when the name is new. A matching file with `"disabled": true` hides a built-in. Startup does not write default preset files. Presets are project-agnostic in v1 — the same set is available in every project. Per-project overrides can be added later.

 Project key = `sha256(realpath(project_dir))[:16]`. Used only as a scratchpad directory name — there is no daemon to look up.

@@ -121,7 +121,7 @@ Scratchpads and command-preset trust grants persist across runs. Sessions and ch
 Almost all application functions are driven through a single command palette opened with `Ctrl-K`. The palette is a fuzzy-searchable list of commands, scoped to whatever makes sense for the current focus. Two kinds of entries appear:

 - **Built-in commands** — "Switch to session…", "Focus pane…", "Take input control", "Release control to orchestrator", "Open scratchpad…", "Kill child…", "Quit", etc.
- **Preset commands** — one entry per file under `$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/patterm/presets/`. Agent presets surface as "Spawn agent: codex" / "Spawn agent: claude" / …; process presets surface as "Run process: bun run dev" / "Run process: vitest" / …. The label comes from the preset's `name` field; the action is "launch this preset into a new pane."
+- **Preset commands** — one entry per built-in or user-defined preset. Agent presets surface as "Spawn agent: codex" / "Spawn agent: claude" / …; process presets surface as "Run process: bun run dev" / "Run process: vitest" / …. The label comes from the preset's `name` field; the action is "launch this preset into a new pane."

 Selecting a preset either launches it immediately (no required args) or opens a sub-palette for optional args — namely an **initial prompt** (agent presets only), which patterm injects into the spawned PTY's input after the agent is ready (§8). The orchestrator equivalent of this — `spawn_agent` / `spawn_process` MCP tools — uses the exact same machinery: pick a preset by name, optionally supply an initial prompt, patterm handles the rest.

@@ -365,11 +365,11 @@ Risks acknowledged: the orchestrator's reading of the prompt is a vision/parsing

 ## 10. Presets

-Presets are user-editable JSON files that describe how to launch something. patterm itself has no hard-coded agent or process types — every spawnable thing is a preset. Two flavours:
+Presets describe how to launch something. patterm has built-in defaults for common agent CLIs, and user-editable JSON files can override, disable, or add presets. Two flavours:

 ### Agent presets

-`$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/patterm/presets/agents/<name>.json`. Launches a vendor LLM CLI with MCP wired up and the conversation-protocol addendum injected.
+Built-in agent presets launch vendor LLM CLIs with MCP wired up and the conversation-protocol addendum injected. `$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/patterm/presets/agents/<name>.json` can overlay a built-in by `name` or define a new agent preset.

 | Field | Purpose |
 |---|---|
@@ -377,17 +377,18 @@ Presets are user-editable JSON files that describe how to launch something. patt
 | `argv` | Full launch argv (e.g. `["claude"]`, `["codex", "--no-tui-banner"]`) |
 | `env` | Env vars to set (merged over inherited env) |
 | `working_dir` | Defaults to the project root |
+| `disabled` | If `true`, hides a built-in preset with the same `name` |
 | `mcp_injection` | How to point this CLI at patterm's stdio proxy. One of: `{ "kind": "flag", "flag": "--mcp-config", "config_path": "..." }`, `{ "kind": "config_file", "path": "~/.codex/config.toml", "merge_key": "mcp_servers" }`, `{ "kind": "env_var", "var": "MCP_CONFIG_PATH" }` |
 | `ready_signal` | How to detect the TUI is ready (default: 1s idle after launch). Override per-CLI if needed. |
 | `chrome_trim_hints` | Optional regexes / row ranges for stripping vendor chrome in grid reads |

-Default presets shipped: `claude`, `codex`, `opencode`. Authoring these is per-vendor research — each CLI has its own MCP config conventions, ready states, and TUI chrome. Users can copy and edit them, or add new ones (e.g. a second `claude` preset that launches with a specific model or system prompt file).
+Built-in presets: `claude`, `codex`, `opencode`. Authoring these is per-vendor research — each CLI has its own MCP config conventions, ready states, idle detection, and TUI chrome. Users can add small overlay files for built-ins, disable built-ins, or add new presets (e.g. a second `claude-sonnet` preset that launches with a specific model or system prompt file).

 MCP config flow: at startup, for each agent preset, patterm renders a small JSON pointing at its own `mcp-stdio` proxy subcommand (`patterm mcp-stdio --socket <pid-sock> --identity <token>`) into a per-preset temp file. The launch then uses the preset's `mcp_injection` strategy to hand that path to the CLI. The user's global vendor config is never mutated.

 ### Process presets

-`$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/patterm/presets/processes/<name>.json`. Launches a raw command in a PTY — no MCP, no addendum, no system prompt.
+`$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/patterm/presets/processes/<name>.json`. Launches a raw command in a PTY — no MCP, no addendum, no system prompt. There are no built-in process presets.

 | Field | Purpose |
 |---|---|
--- a/TODO.md
+++ b/TODO.md
@@ -1,184 +0,0 @@
-# Perf Audit (auto-generated 2026-05-15)
-Findings from a codebase sweep — not user-reported, needs review before
-action. Each item names the anchor and a sketched fix.
-
-Baseline benchmark numbers (`go test -bench=. ./internal/app/`, AMD
-Ryzen 7 7800X3D, libghostty-vt **ReleaseFast** after the Makefile
-fix landed):
-
-```
-# Renderer alone
-ViewportRenderer_PlainASCII       229 MB/s     1.3 KB/op    6 allocs/op
-ViewportRenderer_StyledLines       89 MB/s    91   KB/op  4325 allocs/op
-ViewportRenderer_RatatuiBurst      40 MB/s   365   KB/op 17306 allocs/op
-RendererThroughput_ReuseInstance   90 MB/s   316   KB/op 17380 allocs/op
-ContainsOSC_NoOSC                3050 MB/s     0   B/op     0 allocs/op
-
-# ASCII-video stream (renderer only — 3 sec at the target fps)
-ASCIIVideo_Stream_8Color_120fps     260 µs/frame  3845 fps_ceiling   3.1% budget
-ASCIIVideo_Stream_TrueColor_120fps  576 µs/frame  1735 fps_ceiling   6.9% budget
-
-# Full pipeline (em.Write + renderer + io.Discard write)
-Pipeline_ASCIIVideo_8Color_120fps     493 µs/frame  2030 fps_ceiling   5.9% budget
-Pipeline_ASCIIVideo_TrueColor_120fps 1075 µs/frame   931 fps_ceiling  12.9% budget
-
-# Emulator alone (libghostty-vt CSI/SGR parser)
-Emulator_Write_Stream_8Color_120fps    257 µs/frame  3890 fps_ceiling
-Emulator_Write_Stream_TrueColor_120fps 488 µs/frame  2051 fps_ceiling
-```
-
-Result of the fix below: 27-32× pipeline speedup, 60× emulator
-speedup. Pipeline hits 930-2030 fps end-to-end — 7-16× headroom
-over the 120 fps target on the heaviest workload (truecolor
-full-screen redraws).
-
-
- [ ] **viewport renderer allocates ~1 alloc per 4 input bytes on SGR/CSI-heavy chunks.** [MEDIUM]
-  - `internal/app/viewport_renderer.go` — the styled-lines and
-    ratatui benchmarks show 4-17k allocs per chunk. The hot
-    contributors are likely (a) `string(vr.buf)` / `string(params)`
-    conversions in `emitCSI` for every escape sequence, (b) the
-    `pending strings.Builder` resizing as fragments arrive, and (c)
-    `vr.shifter.Shift(vr.buf)` returning a fresh slice per CSI.
-  - Fix direction: switch CSI param parsing to byte-slice
-    comparison (no string conversion); reuse `vr.buf` and
-    `vr.pending` backing arrays across `Render` calls by
-    pre-growing in `newViewportRenderer`; have `cursorShifter.Shift`
-    return into a caller-owned buffer instead of allocating.
-    Profile-guided: run the styled-lines bench, point pprof at the
-    allocs profile, fix the top three call sites.
-
- [ ] **viewport renderer throughput (~90 MB/s styled) limits codex steady-state.** [MEDIUM]
-  - The styled-lines and ratatui benchmarks come in at 89 MB/s and
-    40 MB/s respectively. A 100 KB/s codex burst is far under that
-    limit, but a session-resume dump of a 5 MiB chat history takes
-    50-130 ms of pure renderer time at those rates — enough to be
-    user-visible at the start of a long resume.
-  - Fix direction: same as the alloc fix above; once the per-call
-    allocation cost drops, the throughput ceiling rises with it.
-    Worth re-running the benches after fixing the allocs and only
-    investing further if the styled-lines bench is still under
-    ~300 MB/s.
-
- [ ] **Session.Children() allocates a fresh slice on every call.** [MEDIUM]
-  - `internal/app/session.go:530-541` walks `s.order` under `s.mu` and
-    builds a new `[]*Child` slice every time. Callers on hot paths:
-    `drawSidebar` calls it twice per frame
-    (`internal/app/sidebar.go:139` and `:171`); `drawTabBar` calls it
-    once per frame (`internal/app/tabbar.go:37`); the classifier
-    iterates it every 250 ms (`internal/app/classifier.go:38`); and
-    palette/navigation hit it on every Ctrl-A/D/W/S keystroke.
-  - Fix direction: store the snapshot in an `atomic.Pointer[[]*Child]`
-    on `Session`, refresh it under `s.mu` only when `Spawn` / `delete`
-    mutates the map. Readers get O(1) `Load()` with zero allocation —
-    same pattern already used for `listeners` (session.go:118-123).
-
- [ ] **wait_for_pattern re-scans the entire stream/grid every iteration.** [MEDIUM]
-  - `internal/app/host.go:476-493` (the `check` closure). On `scope =
-    "scrollback"` it calls `c.StreamRead(0)` followed by
-    `stripANSIBytes(nil, b)` over the entire ring on every wake — a
-    full O(ring size) walk per chunk arrival. On `grid` it goes
-    through PlainText (one CGO call) plus a regex match against the
-    full grid string. For an agent waiting on a marker in a chatty
-    pane, every PTY chunk fires `check()`.
-  - Fix direction: for `scrollback`, track the offset of the last
-    check and run the regex only over the new tail, reusing a
-    per-call scratch buffer for ANSI stripping. For `grid`, dedupe
-    on `ScreenVersion()` — skip when version hasn't changed.
-
- [ ] **search_output compiles regex + strips ANSI on every call.** [MEDIUM]
-  - `internal/app/host.go:428` compiles a fresh `regexp.Regexp` per
-    invocation; `:434` strips ANSI over the entire ring buffer when
-    `kind="rendered"`. Agents that poll `search_output` with the same
-    pattern (the typical "watch for marker" loop) repay both costs on
-    every call.
-  - Fix direction: small LRU of compiled regexes keyed by pattern
-    string (cap maybe 32) on `toolHost`. Cache the stripped-ANSI
-    buffer keyed by `c.ScreenVersion()` so consecutive searches over
-    an unchanged ring reuse the strip.
-
- [ ] **GetProcessOutput grid mode acquires the emulator twice.** [MEDIUM]
-  - `internal/app/host.go:375-391` does `em := c.Emulator()` for
-    ActiveScreen / Cursor / Size, then at line 387 re-fetches
-    `em := c.Emulator()` for PlainText. Each `Emulator()` call goes
-    through `ptyMu` and inspects the live PTY pointer. Under a
-    chatty agent polling `get_process_output` every 100 ms this is
-    a redundant lock and pointer chase per call.
-  - Fix direction: hold the emulator reference from the first
-    lookup; reuse it for PlainText. The check `if em == nil` still
-    runs cleanly because the variable is captured.
-
- [ ] **FindChildByIdentity is O(N) under the session lock.** [LOW]
-  - `internal/app/session.go:553-565` scans the children map looking
-    for a matching `Identity` token on every new mcp-stdio
-    connection. Not a steady-state hot path — only fires once per
-    child spawn — but with many short-lived sub-agents it adds up
-    and contends with everyone else taking `s.mu`.
-  - Fix direction: maintain an `identityIndex map[string]string`
-    (identity → child id) updated alongside spawn / exit, give the
-    lookup an O(1) read.
-
- [ ] **Per-promoter regex matches in the idle classifier.** [LOW]
-  - `internal/app/idle.go:175-182` (`matchAny`) walks each compiled
-    pattern and runs the DFA over the same 4 KiB tail. A preset with
-    five permission patterns + five error patterns is ten DFA
-    invocations per child per 250 ms tick.
-  - Fix direction: at preset load time, compile each `_patterns`
-    list into a single alternation regex (`(?:p1)|(?:p2)|…`). The
-    classifier then makes one Match call per category per tick.
-
- [ ] **Port-detection dedup is O(N²) over c.ports.** [LOW]
-  - `internal/app/child.go:461-467`: for each fresh URL match the
-    code linearly scans the existing port list. The list rarely
-    grows past a handful, but a dev server that lists "all open
-    ports" in one log line interacts badly: M new matches × N
-    existing entries.
-  - Fix direction: keep a `seenPorts map[int]struct{}` next to
-    `c.ports`, rebuilt on prune (none today). O(1) per match.
-
- [ ] **Port-sighting string allocations happen before the dedup check.** [LOW]
-  - `internal/app/child.go:455-456` allocates `urlForm` and `portStr`
-    before line 461's `seen` walk. Both strings are wasted when the
-    port is already in `c.ports`. Inside `c.portsMu` for the whole
-    loop body too, blocking the `Ports()` reader path.
-  - Fix direction: bind the port int first (cheap parse from
-    `m[1]`), do the seen check, only then allocate the URL string
-    for the surviving sighting.
-
- [ ] **classifier `time.Now()` syscall per child per tick.** [LOW]
-  - `internal/app/classifier.go:54` (and the `IdleMS` /
-    `TitleIdleMS` helpers it transitively calls in
-    `internal/app/child.go:343-374`) each call `time.Now()`.
-    Reading time on Linux is fast (vDSO) but with N children × 4
-    `time.Now()` per tick × 4 ticks/sec it's wasted work that can
-    be batched.
-  - Fix direction: capture `now := time.Now().UnixNano()` once at
-    the top of `classifyAll` and thread it into `classifyOne` and
-    the helpers as a parameter.
-
- [ ] **wait_for_pattern subscribes a listener for every call.** [LOW]
-  - `internal/app/host.go:472-474`: each invocation calls
-    `Session.Subscribe(wake)` which clones the listener slice and
-    swaps the atomic pointer; the `defer Unsubscribe` does the same
-    on exit. Two allocations per `wait_for_pattern`. The agent
-    pattern of looping on `wait_for_pattern` after every tool call
-    pays this churn on the steady-state path.
-  - Fix direction: a per-child `chunkBroadcaster` registered once
-    at child spawn that hands out lightweight subscriber tokens,
-    rather than going through the full session listener machinery.
-
-# On Hold
- [ ] There's a unicode <?> being displayed in opencode [ON HOLD]
-  - Investigated 2026-05-14: patterm passes ghostty grapheme codepoints
-    through unchanged (vt/ghostty.go:452-462), so the `<?>` glyph is
-    most likely the *host* terminal's font fallback for opencode's
-    Nerd Font private-use codepoints, not a patterm substitution.
-    Need a concrete reproduction (which codepoint, which host
-    terminal/font) before changing rendering.
- [ ] After codex rips for like 15 minutes, the terminal becomes quite slow. [ON HOLD / VERIFYING]
-  - 2026-05-14: Perf plan P1-P11 landed (see CHANGELOG). Needs a real
-    long-running codex session to confirm whether the steady-state
-    slowdown is gone or some hotspot remains. Capture a pprof if it
-    still feels slow after ≥15 minutes — the structural drivers the
-    audit named are all addressed, so a remaining symptom is a new
-    one and probably wants fresh profiling.
--- a/fucked-up-terminal-3.txt
+++ b/fucked-up-terminal-3.txt
@@ -1,61 +0,0 @@
-                                                                                                        claude                                                                                                         + new │ Processes
-━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━───────│ ─────────────────────────
- - abc1234 if no tag exists yet
-
- 4. Wire version into the release workflow
-
- Update .gitea/workflows/release.yml lines 31-35 to inject the pushed tag:
-
- go build -trimpath \
-   -ldflags="-s -w -X main.version=${{ github.ref_name }}" \
-   -o dist/patterm-${{ github.ref_name }}-linux-amd64 \
-   ./cmd/patterm
-
- github.ref_name is the tag name (e.g. v0.0.1) because the workflow only
- triggers on tags: ['v*'].
-
- 5. Update inline doc comment
-
- cmd/patterm/main.go header comment (lines 5-11) — add the --version form
- to the usage block. SPEC.md/CLAUDE.md already use --, no change needed there.
-
- Out of scope
-
- - Surfacing version in MCP whoami (the hardcoded "version": "0.1.0" in
- internal/mcp/protocol.go:27 is the MCP protocol version, not the patterm
- binary version — leave it).
- - Renaming any existing flags.
- - Adding short forms like -p for --project.
-
- Critical files
-
- - cmd/patterm/main.go — import swap, --version wiring, version var, header comment
- - cmd/patterm/debug_harness.go — import swap
- - Makefile lines 38-39 — VERSION var + ldflags
- - .gitea/workflows/release.yml lines 31-35 — ldflags
- - go.mod / go.sum — add github.com/spf13/pflag
-
- Verification
-
- 1. go build -o ./bin/patterm ./cmd/patterm (without Makefile) → still builds, version reports dev.
- 2. make patterm → ./bin/patterm --version prints patterm v0.0.1 (commit <sha>, built <date>).
- 3. ./bin/patterm -h → help text shows --project string and --version lines.
- 4. ./bin/patterm -project /tmp → pflag rejects with usage error (confirms -- is enforced).
- 5. ./bin/patterm --project /tmp → starts normally.
- 6. ./bin/patterm mcp-stdio --socket /tmp/s --identity x → existing path still works (will fail to connect, but should parse flags fine).
- 7. ./bin/patterm debug-harness --scenario internal/harness/scenarios/spawn_process_via_palette.json → harness still runs.
- 8. go test ./... and go test ./internal/harness/... — both green.
- 9. Push a temporary tag locally and inspect git describe output; confirm release workflow's ${{ github.ref_name }} substitution matches the tag.
-╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌╌
-
- Claude has written up a plan and is ready to execute. Would you like to proceed?
-
- ❯ 1. Yes, and use auto mode
-   2. Yes, manually approve edits
-   3. No, refine with Ultraplan on Claude Code on the web
-   4. Tell Claude what to change
-      shift+tab to approve with this feedback
-
- ctrl-g to edit in VS Code · ~/.claude/plans/flags-in-this-project-vectorized-gosling.md
-
-claude · you have control                                                                                                                                                                   Ctrl-A/D · tabs  ·  Ctrl-W/S · tree  ·  Ctrl-K · palette
--- a/internal/app/app.go
+++ b/internal/app/app.go
@@ -55,6 +55,10 @@ func Run(ctx context.Context, opts Options) error {
 	if err != nil {
 		return fmt.Errorf("app: load presets: %w", err)
 	}
+	appSettings, settingsPath, err := loadSettings()
+	if err != nil {
+		logf("settings load: %v", err)
+	}

 	// Ensure the per-project scratchpad dir exists so MCP and the UI
 	// can read/write into it. SPEC §3.
@@ -169,7 +173,22 @@ func Run(ctx context.Context, opts Options) error {
 		hostRows:     rows,
 		stdinTTY:     term.IsTerminal(int(os.Stdin.Fd())),
 		metrics:      metrics,
+		settings:     appSettings,
+		settingsPath: settingsPath,
+		ctx:          ctx,
 	}
+	st.summaries = newSummaryManager(sess, opts.ProjectDir, presets, func() autoSummarySettings {
+		st.settingsMu.Lock()
+		defer st.settingsMu.Unlock()
+		return st.settings.AutoSummary.clone()
+	}, func() {
+		st.markChromeDirty()
+		st.markSidebarDirty()
+	}, func(_ string, result summaryState) {
+		if result.Error != "" {
+			st.flashError(fmt.Sprintf("summary: %v", result.Error))
+		}
+	})
 	sess.SetMetrics(metrics)
 	host.attention = st
 	host.focus = st
@@ -177,6 +196,7 @@ func Run(ctx context.Context, opts Options) error {
 	host.scratch = st
 	st.lastExit.Store(-1)
 	sess.Subscribe(st)
+	go st.summaries.run(ctx)

 	st.enterScreen()
 	st.renderEmptyState()
@@ -306,6 +326,37 @@ func Run(ctx context.Context, opts Options) error {
 		}
 	}()

+	// Timer sidebar refresher: countdown labels are computed at draw
+	// time, so wake the sidebar when the next visible timer bucket is
+	// due to change even if no child PTY output arrives.
+	wg.Add(1)
+	go func() {
+		defer wg.Done()
+		st.runTimerSidebarRefresher(ctx)
+	}()
+
+	// Marquee ticker: while a focused sidebar row's name overflows the
+	// rail width, advance the pause-scroll-pause animation by marking
+	// the sidebar dirty every marqueeStep. The chrome ticker above does
+	// the actual repaint. When no row is animating, this is a single
+	// cheap wakeup with no work.
+	wg.Add(1)
+	go func() {
+		defer wg.Done()
+		ticker := time.NewTicker(marqueeStep)
+		defer ticker.Stop()
+		for {
+			select {
+			case <-ctx.Done():
+				return
+			case <-ticker.C:
+			}
+			if st.marquee.active() {
+				st.markSidebarDirty()
+			}
+		}
+	}()
+
 	// External termination: SPEC §2 step 4 (SIGTERM/SIGHUP → graceful exit).
 	wg.Add(1)
 	sigCh := make(chan os.Signal, 1)
@@ -376,7 +427,6 @@ type uiState struct {
 	// switch resets the offset cleanly.
 	padOffsetName string

-
 	// activeAgentID tracks which top-level agent tab "owns" the agent
 	// tree section of the sidebar. It only updates when focus lands on
 	// an agent (or one of its sub-agents), so the agent tree stays
@@ -389,10 +439,11 @@ type uiState struct {
 	repaintNextPTY       string
 	repaintNextPTYBudget int

-	// attention is the latest request_human_attention surfaced via MCP;
-	// rendered in the status line until cleared.
-	attentionText string
-	attentionAt   string
+	// toasts is the stackable notification surface. flashError,
+	// flashTransient, and notifyAttention all push onto it; the user
+	// dismisses entries with Ctrl-N or the "Clear notifications"
+	// palette command.
+	toasts toastStack

 	// pendingTrust is the most recent trust prompt — surfaced in the
 	// status line until the user resolves it with Ctrl-K. v1 keeps the
@@ -410,6 +461,12 @@ type uiState struct {
 	// check on the disabled path.
 	metrics *metricsTracker

+	settingsMu   sync.Mutex
+	settings     settings
+	settingsPath string
+	ctx          context.Context
+	summaries    *summaryManager
+
 	// chromeCacheMu guards the last-rendered byte cache for each chrome
 	// element. The tab bar, sidebar, and status line all repaint on
 	// many state changes and on every PTY chunk, but their content
@@ -436,6 +493,11 @@ type uiState struct {
 	sidebarDirty atomic.Bool
 	chromeWake   chan struct{}

+	// marquee animates the focused sidebar row's name when it overflows
+	// the rail width. The dedicated 150ms ticker below flips
+	// sidebarDirty while a row is animating; idle case is free.
+	marquee marqueeState
+
 	// padsCacheMu guards the cached scratchpad listing. The sidebar
 	// and palette/sidebar nav helpers read it on every chunk-driven
 	// repaint; the cache invalidates in scratchpadsChanged() which is
@@ -451,6 +513,49 @@ func (st *uiState) dbgf(format string, args ...any) {
 	logf(format, args...)
 }

+func (st *uiState) activeSummaryText(width int) string {
+	st.mu.Lock()
+	active := st.activeAgentID
+	st.mu.Unlock()
+	return st.summaryTextFor(active, width)
+}
+
+func (st *uiState) summaryTextFor(childID string, width int) string {
+	text := st.summaryRawFor(childID)
+	if text == "" || width <= 0 {
+		return ""
+	}
+	if visibleLen(text) > width {
+		text = clipRunes(text, width-1) + "…"
+	}
+	return text
+}
+
+func (st *uiState) activeSummaryRaw() string {
+	st.mu.Lock()
+	active := st.activeAgentID
+	st.mu.Unlock()
+	return st.summaryRawFor(active)
+}
+
+func (st *uiState) summaryRawFor(childID string) string {
+	if st.summaries == nil || childID == "" {
+		return ""
+	}
+	st.settingsMu.Lock()
+	enabled := st.settings.AutoSummary.Enabled
+	st.settingsMu.Unlock()
+	if !enabled {
+		return ""
+	}
+	sum := st.summaries.Summary(childID)
+	text := strings.TrimSpace(sum.Text)
+	if text == "" {
+		return ""
+	}
+	return text
+}
+
 // trustRequest is one outstanding SPEC §7 trust prompt: an agent tried
 // to spawn / start / restart against an untrusted command preset and
 // the host wants user confirmation before the next attempt succeeds.
@@ -476,6 +581,7 @@ func (st *uiState) focusProcess(processID string) {
 	if c == nil {
 		return
 	}
+	st.marquee.reset()
 	layout := st.layoutSnapshot()
 	onAlt := childIsOnAlt(c)
 	st.mu.Lock()
@@ -543,6 +649,7 @@ func (st *uiState) focusScratchpad(name string) {
 	if name == "" {
 		return
 	}
+	st.marquee.reset()
 	st.mu.Lock()
 	if st.padOffsetName != name {
 		st.padOffset = 0
@@ -581,11 +688,26 @@ func (st *uiState) clearViewportArea() {
 	_, _ = os.Stdout.WriteString(b.String())
 }

+func (st *uiState) repaintFocusedWithChrome() {
+	st.mu.Lock()
+	padFocused := st.focusedPad != ""
+	st.mu.Unlock()
+	if padFocused {
+		st.repaintFocusedPad()
+	} else {
+		st.repaintFocused()
+	}
+	st.drawTabBar()
+	st.drawSidebar()
+	st.drawStatusLine()
+}
+
 func (st *uiState) restartFocusedCommand(processID string) {
 	c := st.sess.FindChild(processID)
 	if c == nil || c.Kind != KindCommand {
 		return
 	}
+	st.marquee.reset()
 	layout := st.layoutSnapshot()
 	renderer := newViewportRenderer(layout)
 	st.mu.Lock()
@@ -596,14 +718,18 @@ func (st *uiState) restartFocusedCommand(processID string) {
 	st.repaintNextPTYBudget = 2
 	st.mu.Unlock()

-	st.outMu.Lock()
-	_, _ = os.Stdout.Write(renderer.ClearViewport())
-	st.outMu.Unlock()
+	st.repaintFocusedWithChrome()

 	if err := st.sess.Restart(c.ID, syscall.SIGTERM, layout.childCols(), layout.childRows()); err != nil {
 		st.flashError(fmt.Sprintf("restart %s: %v", c.DisplayName(), err))
+		st.drawTabBar()
+		st.drawSidebar()
+		st.drawStatusLine()
 		return
 	}
+	st.outMu.Lock()
+	_, _ = os.Stdout.Write(renderer.ClearViewport())
+	st.outMu.Unlock()
 	st.moveToViewportOrigin()
 	st.drawTabBar()
 	st.drawSidebar()
@@ -638,29 +764,19 @@ func (st *uiState) updateActiveAgentLocked(c *Child) {
 }

 // notifyAttention is the request_human_attention sink (SPEC §7). We
-// surface a one-line toast in the status row and remember the most
-// recent ask so the status line keeps showing it. The sidebar-blink is
-// deferred until the §4 chrome lands.
+// push a toast onto the stack; the focused-pane render path picks it
+// up. The sidebar-blink is deferred until the §4 chrome lands.
 func (st *uiState) notifyAttention(childID, reason string) {
 	c := st.sess.FindChild(childID)
 	name := childID
 	if c != nil {
 		name = c.DisplayName()
 	}
-	st.mu.Lock()
-	st.attentionText = fmt.Sprintf("attention: %s — %s", name, reason)
-	st.attentionAt = childID
-	st.mu.Unlock()
-	st.drawStatusLine()
+	st.notifyToast(toastAttention, fmt.Sprintf("%s — %s", name, reason))
 }

 func (st *uiState) scratchpadsChanged() {
-	st.padsCacheMu.Lock()
-	st.padsCache = nil
-	st.padsCacheMu.Unlock()
-	st.chromeCacheMu.Lock()
-	st.sidebarCache = ""
-	st.chromeCacheMu.Unlock()
+	st.invalidateScratchpadsCache()
 	st.drawSidebar()
 	st.mu.Lock()
 	focusedPad := st.focusedPad
@@ -670,8 +786,39 @@ func (st *uiState) scratchpadsChanged() {
 	}
 }

-// OnChildSpawned auto-focuses the new child.
+func (st *uiState) invalidateScratchpadsCache() {
+	st.padsCacheMu.Lock()
+	st.padsCache = nil
+	st.padsCacheMu.Unlock()
+	st.chromeCacheMu.Lock()
+	st.sidebarCache = ""
+	st.chromeCacheMu.Unlock()
+}
+
+// OnChildSpawned auto-focuses the new child when the spawn came from
+// the user (palette, persistence restore, or an external MCP client with
+// no resolved identity). When ParentID is set — meaning a patterm-managed
+// agent spawned this child via spawn_agent/spawn_process — focus stays
+// on whatever the user was watching; the new child is still surfaced in
+// the sidebar/tab bar so it's reachable via the palette or select_process.
 func (st *uiState) OnChildSpawned(c *Child) {
+	if st.summaries != nil {
+		st.summaries.RegisterChild(c)
+	}
+	if c.ParentID != "" {
+		st.mu.Lock()
+		if st.palette != nil {
+			st.palette.children = st.sess.Children()
+			st.palette.focused = st.focusedID
+			st.palette.rebuild()
+			st.renderPaletteLocked()
+		}
+		st.mu.Unlock()
+		st.drawTabBar()
+		st.drawSidebar()
+		return
+	}
+	st.marquee.reset()
 	layout := st.layoutSnapshot()
 	onAlt := childIsOnAlt(c)
 	st.mu.Lock()
@@ -721,18 +868,29 @@ func (st *uiState) OnChildSpawned(c *Child) {
 	st.drawStatusLine()
 }

-// OnChildStateChanged repaints the sidebar whenever a child's
-// idle-state badge flips. Cheap — the badge is the only chrome that
-// reflects state today, and drawSidebar bails when the cached frame
-// hasn't changed.
+// OnChildStateChanged repaints the sidebar and tab bar whenever a
+// child's idle-state badge flips. Cheap — both draws bail when the
+// cached frame hasn't changed.
 func (st *uiState) OnChildStateChanged(string, IdleState) {
+	st.drawTabBar()
 	st.drawSidebar()
 }

+// OnChildClosed is the explicit-removal hook (close_process or the
+// terminal-corpse cleanup in reapChild). The UI already reflects
+// removals via the OnChildExited path and the children-map view, so
+// this is a no-op here — the timerManager is the consumer that
+// cares.
+func (st *uiState) OnChildClosed(string) {}
+
 // OnChildExited drops focus and shows the empty state if it was the
 // focused child.
 func (st *uiState) OnChildExited(c *Child) {
+	if st.summaries != nil {
+		st.summaries.UnregisterChild(c.ID)
+	}
 	st.lastExit.Store(int32(c.ExitCode()))
+	st.marquee.reset()
 	layout := st.layoutSnapshot()
 	renderEmpty := false
 	st.mu.Lock()
@@ -818,6 +976,9 @@ func (st *uiState) OnPTYOut(childID string, chunk []byte) {
 	if st.metrics != nil {
 		entry = time.Now()
 	}
+	if st.summaries != nil {
+		st.summaries.ObserveOutput(childID)
+	}
 	layout := st.layoutSnapshot()
 	st.mu.Lock()
 	focus := st.focusedID
@@ -860,14 +1021,19 @@ func (st *uiState) OnPTYOut(childID string, chunk []byte) {
 			st.metrics.recordRender(time.Since(rstart))
 		}
 	}
-	// One write covers the autowrap-disable prelude, the chunk, and the
-	// autowrap-restore postlude — three syscalls collapsed into one
-	// under outMu. The three sequences were already emitted atomically
-	// under the lock; coalescing just halves the syscall count.
-	wrapped := make([]byte, 0, len(out)+10)
+	// One write covers the autowrap-disable prelude, the chunk, the
+	// autowrap-restore postlude, and (when a toast is up) the toast
+	// overlay — four syscalls collapsed into one under outMu. The
+	// sequences were already emitted atomically under the lock;
+	// coalescing just halves the syscall count and makes claude's
+	// continuous redraws + our toast layer land in the same frame so
+	// the box doesn't flicker as the child paints over its cells.
+	overlay := st.toastOverlayBytes()
+	wrapped := make([]byte, 0, len(out)+len(overlay)+10)
 	wrapped = append(wrapped, "\x1b[?7l"...)
 	wrapped = append(wrapped, out...)
 	wrapped = append(wrapped, "\x1b[?7h"...)
+	wrapped = append(wrapped, overlay...)
 	var wstart time.Time
 	if st.metrics != nil {
 		wstart = time.Now()
@@ -1016,6 +1182,55 @@ func (st *uiState) markSidebarDirty() {
 	}
 }

+func (st *uiState) runTimerSidebarRefresher(ctx context.Context) {
+	if st.timers == nil {
+		<-ctx.Done()
+		return
+	}
+	changes := st.timers.changeEvents()
+	var timer *time.Timer
+	var timerC <-chan time.Time
+	stop := func() {
+		if timer == nil {
+			return
+		}
+		if !timer.Stop() {
+			select {
+			case <-timer.C:
+			default:
+			}
+		}
+		timer = nil
+		timerC = nil
+	}
+	arm := func() {
+		stop()
+		wait, ok := st.timers.nextSidebarRefreshAfter(time.Now())
+		if !ok {
+			return
+		}
+		if wait < timerSidebarMinRefresh {
+			wait = timerSidebarMinRefresh
+		}
+		timer = time.NewTimer(wait)
+		timerC = timer.C
+	}
+	defer stop()
+	arm()
+	for {
+		select {
+		case <-ctx.Done():
+			return
+		case <-changes:
+			st.markSidebarDirty()
+			arm()
+		case <-timerC:
+			st.markSidebarDirty()
+			arm()
+		}
+	}
+}
+
 func (st *uiState) invalidateChromeCache() {
 	st.chromeCacheMu.Lock()
 	st.tabBarCache = ""
@@ -1054,8 +1269,6 @@ func (st *uiState) drawStatusLine() {
 	palOpen := st.palette != nil
 	focusID := st.focusedID
 	focusName := st.focusedName
-	attention := st.attentionText
-	attentionAt := st.attentionAt
 	var trustMsg string
 	if st.pendingTrust != nil {
 		trustMsg = fmt.Sprintf("trust preset %q? [y]es / [n]o", st.pendingTrust.presetName)
@@ -1095,13 +1308,6 @@ func (st *uiState) drawStatusLine() {
 			left = owner
 		}
 	}
-	if attention != "" && attentionAt == focusID {
-		left = "[!] " + attention
-	}
-	if attention != "" && attentionAt == "" {
-		// Sticky attention/flash from somewhere outside the focused pane.
-		left = "[!] " + attention
-	}
 	if trustMsg != "" {
 		left = "[trust] " + trustMsg
 	}
@@ -1119,6 +1325,12 @@ func (st *uiState) drawStatusLine() {
 			hints = append(hints, "Ctrl-R · restart")
 		}
 	}
+	// Surface the toast-dismiss chord only while a notification is on
+	// screen — the hint is noise otherwise, and Ctrl-N falls through
+	// to the focused PTY when the stack is empty.
+	if st.toasts.length() > 0 {
+		hints = append(hints, "Ctrl-N · dismiss")
+	}
 	right := strings.Join(hints, "  ·  ")
 	for len(hints) > 1 && int(cols)-len(left)-len(right) < 1 {
 		hints = hints[1:]
@@ -1157,8 +1369,6 @@ func (st *uiState) drawStatusLine() {
 // child is focused.
 func (st *uiState) renderEmptyState() {
 	layout := st.layoutSnapshot()
-	st.outMu.Lock()
-	defer st.outMu.Unlock()
 	line := "Press Ctrl-K to spawn an agent or process"
 	row := int(layout.mainTop) + (int(layout.childRows()) / 2)
 	col := int(layout.mainLeft) + ((int(layout.childCols()) - len(line)) / 2)
@@ -1168,7 +1378,10 @@ func (st *uiState) renderEmptyState() {
 	if col < int(layout.mainLeft) {
 		col = int(layout.mainLeft)
 	}
+	st.outMu.Lock()
 	fmt.Fprintf(os.Stdout, "\x1b[?25l\x1b[H\x1b[2J\x1b[%d;%dH\x1b[2m%s\x1b[0m", row, col, line)
+	st.outMu.Unlock()
+	st.renderToasts()
 }

 func (st *uiState) hostSizeSnapshot() (uint16, uint16) {
@@ -1291,24 +1504,6 @@ func (st *uiState) processStdin(chunk []byte) {
 	}

 	forward := make([]byte, 0, len(chunk))
-	flushForward := func() {
-		if len(forward) == 0 {
-			return
-		}
-		if st.focusedID != "" {
-			if c := st.sess.FindChild(st.focusedID); c != nil && c.Status() == StatusRunning {
-				prev := c.Owner()
-				// InjectAsUser splits Enter bytes onto their own
-				// writes so claude / codex / opencode don't treat a
-				// "text\r" batch as a paste.
-				_ = c.InjectAsUser(forward)
-				if prev != OwnerUser {
-					go st.drawStatusLine()
-				}
-			}
-		}
-		forward = forward[:0]
-	}

 	var pendingAction *paletteAction
 	var pendingNav navEntry
@@ -1317,6 +1512,35 @@ func (st *uiState) processStdin(chunk []byte) {
 	var pendingViewportBottom bool
 	var pendingPadStep int
 	var pendingPadExit bool
+	var pendingDismissToast bool
+
+	flushForward := func() {
+		if len(forward) == 0 {
+			return
+		}
+		if st.focusedID != "" {
+			if c := st.sess.FindChild(st.focusedID); c != nil && c.Status() == StatusRunning {
+				prev := c.Owner()
+				// Agent panes split Enter bytes onto their own writes
+				// so claude / codex / opencode don't treat a
+				// "text\r" batch as a paste. Raw terminals keep paste
+				// bytes batched.
+				_ = c.InjectAsUser(forward)
+				if st.summaries != nil {
+					st.summaries.ObserveHumanInput(c.ID, forward)
+				}
+				if prev != OwnerUser {
+					go st.drawStatusLine()
+				}
+				// Auto-snap the emulator viewport to the live area
+				// on any forwarded keystroke. Without this, typing
+				// while scrolled into history leaves the cursor /
+				// echoed bytes off-screen below the visible region.
+				pendingViewportBottom = true
+			}
+		}
+		forward = forward[:0]
+	}

 	// childOnPrimary captures whether the focused child is on its primary
 	// screen at the start of this chunk. Wheel events on the primary
@@ -1476,6 +1700,11 @@ func (st *uiState) processStdin(chunk []byte) {
 			} else if hit, _ := matchCtrlChar(chunk, i, 'd'); hit {
 			} else if hit, _ := matchCtrlChar(chunk, i, 'w'); hit {
 			} else if hit, _ := matchCtrlChar(chunk, i, 's'); hit {
+			} else if hit, _ := matchCtrlChar(chunk, i, 'n'); hit {
+				// Ctrl-N is the toast dismiss key. In pad view we
+				// allow it through the chord block so the handler
+				// below can fire even though pads otherwise swallow
+				// bytes.
 			} else {
 				i++
 				continue
@@ -1501,6 +1730,11 @@ func (st *uiState) processStdin(chunk []byte) {
 				adv = 1
 			}
 			i += adv
+			if action.kind == "settings-save" {
+				st.applySettingsAction(action)
+				st.renderPaletteLocked()
+				continue
+			}
 			if done {
 				a := action
 				pendingAction = &a
@@ -1574,6 +1808,22 @@ func (st *uiState) processStdin(chunk []byte) {
 				break
 			}
 		}
+		// Ctrl-N dismisses the most recent toast. We only consume the
+		// chord when there's actually a toast to dismiss; otherwise the
+		// bytes fall through to the focused PTY so readline /
+		// nano / emacs / opencode keep working in shells and editors.
+		if hit, adv := matchCtrlChar(chunk, i, 'n'); hit {
+			if st.toasts.length() > 0 {
+				flushForward()
+				pendingDismissToast = true
+				i += adv
+				continue
+			}
+			forward = append(forward, chunk[i:i+adv]...)
+			i += adv
+			continue
+		}
+
 		// Ctrl-B snaps the focused child's emulator viewport back to the
 		// active area. Use this as the escape hatch from a scrolled-up
 		// state — wheel scrolls move the viewport into the libghostty
@@ -1655,6 +1905,11 @@ func (st *uiState) processStdin(chunk []byte) {
 	if pendingPadExit {
 		st.exitPadView()
 	}
+	if pendingDismissToast {
+		if st.toasts.dismissTop() {
+			st.refreshToastSurface()
+		}
+	}
 }

 // scrollFocusedViewport scrolls the focused child's emulator viewport by
@@ -1707,7 +1962,10 @@ func (st *uiState) scrollFocusedViewportToBottom() {
 }

 func (st *uiState) openPaletteLocked() {
-	st.palette = newPalette(st.sess.Children(), st.focusedID, st.focusedPad, st.presets)
+	st.settingsMu.Lock()
+	appSettings := st.settings.clone()
+	st.settingsMu.Unlock()
+	st.palette = newPalette(st.sess.Children(), st.focusedID, st.focusedPad, st.presets, appSettings)
 	// Push a "no kitty flags" entry onto the host terminal's keyboard
 	// stack so palette input arrives in plain legacy form regardless of
 	// what the focused child pushed. Codex/ratatui enables kitty mode
@@ -1860,6 +2118,11 @@ func (st *uiState) closePalette(action paletteAction) {
 	case "quit":
 		st.requestExit()

+	case "toasts-clear":
+		if st.toasts.clear() {
+			st.refreshToastSurface()
+		}
+
 	case "pad-delete":
 		st.handlePadDelete(action.padName)

@@ -1880,28 +2143,124 @@ func (st *uiState) closePalette(action paletteAction) {

 	case "proc-restart":
 		st.handleProcRestart(action.childID)
+
+	case "settings-test":
+		st.applySettingsAction(action)
+		restoreView()
+		st.drawTabBar()
+		st.drawSidebar()
+		st.drawStatusLine()
+		go st.testSummarizer()
+
+	case "settings-run-now":
+		st.applySettingsAction(action)
+		restoreView()
+		st.drawTabBar()
+		st.drawSidebar()
+		st.drawStatusLine()
+		st.runSummaryNow()
 	}
 }

+func (st *uiState) applySettingsAction(action paletteAction) {
+	if action.settings == nil {
+		return
+	}
+	next := action.settings.clone()
+	st.settingsMu.Lock()
+	path := st.settingsPath
+	st.settingsMu.Unlock()
+	if err := saveSettings(path, next); err != nil {
+		st.flashError(fmt.Sprintf("save settings: %v", err))
+		return
+	}
+	st.settingsMu.Lock()
+	st.settings = next
+	st.settingsMu.Unlock()
+}
+
+func (st *uiState) testSummarizer() {
+	if st.summaries == nil {
+		return
+	}
+	base := st.ctx
+	if base == nil {
+		base = context.Background()
+	}
+	ctx, cancel := context.WithTimeout(base, summaryTimeout)
+	defer cancel()
+	if err := st.summaries.Test(ctx); err != nil {
+		st.flashError(fmt.Sprintf("summarizer test: %v", err))
+		return
+	}
+	st.flashTransient("summarizer test passed")
+}
+
+func (st *uiState) runSummaryNow() {
+	if st.summaries == nil {
+		return
+	}
+	st.mu.Lock()
+	active := st.activeAgentID
+	st.mu.Unlock()
+	if active == "" {
+		st.flashError("no active top-level agent to summarize")
+		return
+	}
+	ctx := st.ctx
+	if ctx == nil {
+		ctx = context.Background()
+	}
+	st.summaries.RunNow(ctx, active)
+	st.flashTransient("summary requested")
+}
+
 func (st *uiState) handlePadDelete(name string) {
 	if name == "" || st.pads == nil {
 		st.repaintFocused()
 		return
 	}
+	st.mu.Lock()
+	wasFocused := st.focusedPad == name
+	st.mu.Unlock()
 	if err := st.pads.Delete(name); err != nil {
 		st.flashError(fmt.Sprintf("delete %s: %v", name, err))
 		return
 	}
+	if wasFocused {
+		st.invalidateScratchpadsCache()
+		if entries := st.padsList(); len(entries) > 0 {
+			next := entries[0].Name
 			st.mu.Lock()
-	if st.focusedPad == name {
-		st.focusedPad = ""
+			st.focusedPad = next
+			st.focusedID = ""
+			st.focusedName = next
+			if st.padOffsetName != next {
+				st.padOffset = 0
+				st.padOffsetName = next
 			}
 			st.mu.Unlock()
-	st.scratchpadsChanged()
-	st.repaintFocused()
+			st.repaintFocusedWithChrome()
+			return
+		}
+		if next := firstRunningTopLevel(st.sess.Children()); next != nil {
+			st.focusProcess(next.ID)
+			return
+		}
+		st.mu.Lock()
+		st.focusedPad = ""
+		st.focusedName = ""
+		st.padOffset = 0
+		st.padOffsetName = ""
+		st.mu.Unlock()
+		st.renderEmptyState()
 		st.drawTabBar()
 		st.drawSidebar()
 		st.drawStatusLine()
+		return
+	}
+	st.scratchpadsChanged()
+	st.repaintFocusedWithChrome()
 }

 func (st *uiState) handlePadRename(oldName, newName string) {
@@ -1994,11 +2353,9 @@ func (st *uiState) handleChildRename(childID, newName string) {
 	st.drawStatusLine()
 }

-// handleChildClose removes a child entry entirely. For agents this is
-// equivalent to a SIGTERM kill (the entry is ephemeral and disappears
-// from the session once the PTY exits). For command processes it's
-// equivalent to the MCP close_process tool: SIGKILL if alive, then
-// drop the entry so it stops appearing in the switch/restart lists.
+// handleChildClose removes a child entry entirely for process deletes.
+// For agent Close, it terminates the PTY with escalation but preserves
+// the exited pane so the user can still read the corpse.
 func (st *uiState) handleChildClose(childID string, kill bool) {
 	if childID == "" {
 		st.repaintFocused()
@@ -2013,7 +2370,11 @@ func (st *uiState) handleChildClose(childID string, kill bool) {
 	if kill {
 		_ = st.sess.Close(childID, syscall.SIGKILL)
 	} else {
-		_ = st.sess.Kill(childID, syscall.SIGTERM)
+		go func() {
+			if err := st.sess.Terminate(childID, syscall.SIGTERM); err != nil {
+				logf("terminate child %s: %v", childID, err)
+			}
+		}()
 	}
 	st.repaintFocused()
 	st.drawTabBar()
@@ -2050,8 +2411,19 @@ func (st *uiState) handleProcRestart(childID string) {
 		return
 	}
 	layout := st.layoutSnapshot()
+	st.mu.Lock()
+	if c.ID == st.focusedID {
+		st.renderer = newViewportRenderer(layout)
+		st.repaintNextPTY = c.ID
+		st.repaintNextPTYBudget = 2
+	}
+	st.mu.Unlock()
+	st.repaintFocusedWithChrome()
 	if err := st.sess.Restart(childID, syscall.SIGTERM, layout.childCols(), layout.childRows()); err != nil {
 		st.flashError(fmt.Sprintf("restart %s: %v", c.DisplayName(), err))
+		st.drawTabBar()
+		st.drawSidebar()
+		st.drawStatusLine()
 		return
 	}
 	st.repaintFocused()
@@ -2060,28 +2432,18 @@ func (st *uiState) handleProcRestart(childID string) {
 	st.drawStatusLine()
 }

-// flashError surfaces a spawn/etc. failure in the status line until the
-// next attention update overwrites it. stderr is hidden under the alt
-// screen so we can't rely on Fprintln(os.Stderr).
+// flashError surfaces a spawn/etc. failure as an error toast over the
+// focused pane. stderr is hidden under the alt screen so we can't rely
+// on Fprintln(os.Stderr).
 func (st *uiState) flashError(msg string) {
-	st.mu.Lock()
-	st.attentionText = msg
-	st.attentionAt = "" // shows on every focus until cleared
-	st.mu.Unlock()
-	st.renderEmptyState()
-	st.drawTabBar()
-	st.drawSidebar()
-	st.drawStatusLine()
+	st.notifyToast(toastError, msg)
 }

 // flashTransient is the softer cousin of flashError used for
-// trust-prompt resolutions. Same status-line surface; the prefix differs.
+// trust-prompt resolutions and other ack-style notices. Same
+// stackable surface, info styling.
 func (st *uiState) flashTransient(msg string) {
-	st.mu.Lock()
-	st.attentionText = msg
-	st.attentionAt = ""
-	st.mu.Unlock()
-	st.drawStatusLine()
+	st.notifyToast(toastInfo, msg)
 }

 // repaintFocused redraws the current focused child's screen snapshot.
@@ -2125,8 +2487,9 @@ func (st *uiState) repaintFocused() {
 	}
 	st.mu.Unlock()
 	st.outMu.Lock()
-	defer st.outMu.Unlock()
 	_, _ = os.Stdout.Write(out)
+	st.outMu.Unlock()
+	st.renderToasts()
 }

 // repaintFocusedPad paints the focused scratchpad's content into the
@@ -2150,8 +2513,9 @@ func (st *uiState) repaintFocusedPad() {
 		return
 	}
 	st.outMu.Lock()
-	defer st.outMu.Unlock()
 	_, _ = os.Stdout.Write(out)
+	st.outMu.Unlock()
+	st.renderToasts()
 }

 // renderPadView builds the bytes that paint a scratchpad's content
--- a/internal/app/child.go
+++ b/internal/app/child.go
@@ -26,6 +26,11 @@ import (
 // false positives (timestamps, exit codes, etc.).
 var portRegex = regexp.MustCompile(`https?://[^\s:/]+:(\d{2,5})(?:/[^\s]*)?`)

+const (
+	agentInterPieceDelay   = 15 * time.Millisecond
+	agentSubmitSettleDelay = 100 * time.Millisecond
+)
+
 type ChildStatus string

 const (
@@ -625,25 +630,25 @@ func (c *Child) InjectAsOrchestrator(b []byte) error {
 }

 // writeInput is the shared PTY write path used by both injection
-// flavours. Each Enter byte (CR or LF) is split onto its own write
-// with a brief delay so TUI agents with paste-detection (claude,
+// flavours. Agent panes split each Enter byte (CR or LF) onto its own
+// write with a brief delay so TUI agents with paste-detection (claude,
 // codex, opencode) don't coalesce a trailing CR into the text that
-// preceded it. Without the split, `pty.Write([]byte("hello\r"))`
-// arrives at the agent as one read() and gets treated as multi-line
-// pasted content rather than "key Enter".
+// preceded it. Raw terminals and command panes receive the original
+// byte stream in one write; otherwise a multiline paste pays the agent
+// workaround's delay once per line.
 func (c *Child) writeInput(b []byte) error {
 	pty := c.PTY()
 	if pty == nil {
 		return errors.New("child has no pty")
 	}
-	pieces := splitOnEnter(b)
+	pieces := inputWritePieces(c.Kind, b)
 	if len(pieces) <= 1 {
 		_, err := pty.Write(b)
 		return err
 	}
 	for i, piece := range pieces {
-		if i > 0 {
-			time.Sleep(15 * time.Millisecond)
+		if delay := pieceWriteDelay(i, len(pieces), piece); delay > 0 {
+			time.Sleep(delay)
 		}
 		if _, err := pty.Write(piece); err != nil {
 			return err
@@ -652,6 +657,27 @@ func (c *Child) writeInput(b []byte) error {
 	return nil
 }

+func inputWritePieces(kind ChildKind, b []byte) [][]byte {
+	if kind != KindAgent {
+		return [][]byte{b}
+	}
+	return splitOnEnter(b)
+}
+
+func pieceWriteDelay(index, total int, piece []byte) time.Duration {
+	if index == 0 {
+		return 0
+	}
+	if index == total-1 && isLoneEnter(piece) {
+		return agentSubmitSettleDelay
+	}
+	return agentInterPieceDelay
+}
+
+func isLoneEnter(piece []byte) bool {
+	return len(piece) == 1 && (piece[0] == '\r' || piece[0] == '\n')
+}
+
 func mintIdentity() string {
 	var buf [12]byte
 	_, _ = rand.Read(buf[:])
--- a/internal/app/child_input_test.go
+++ b/internal/app/child_input_test.go
@@ -0,0 +1,90 @@
+package app
+
+import (
+	"bytes"
+	"testing"
+	"time"
+)
+
+func TestInputWritePiecesOnlySplitAgentEnters(t *testing.T) {
+	in := []byte("alpha\nbeta\rgamma")
+	for _, kind := range []ChildKind{KindTerminal, KindCommand} {
+		t.Run(string(kind), func(t *testing.T) {
+			got := inputWritePieces(kind, in)
+			if len(got) != 1 || !bytes.Equal(got[0], in) {
+				t.Fatalf("inputWritePieces(%s) = %#v, want one original chunk", kind, got)
+			}
+		})
+	}
+
+	got := inputWritePieces(KindAgent, in)
+	if len(got) != 5 {
+		t.Fatalf("agent pieces len = %d, want 5 (%#v)", len(got), got)
+	}
+	want := [][]byte{[]byte("alpha"), []byte("\n"), []byte("beta"), []byte("\r"), []byte("gamma")}
+	for i := range want {
+		if !bytes.Equal(got[i], want[i]) {
+			t.Fatalf("agent piece %d = %q, want %q", i, got[i], want[i])
+		}
+	}
+}
+
+func TestPieceWriteDelay(t *testing.T) {
+	cases := []struct {
+		name  string
+		index int
+		total int
+		piece []byte
+		want  time.Duration
+	}{
+		{
+			name:  "first piece",
+			index: 0,
+			total: 3,
+			piece: []byte("body"),
+			want:  0,
+		},
+		{
+			name:  "middle body piece",
+			index: 1,
+			total: 3,
+			piece: []byte("body"),
+			want:  agentInterPieceDelay,
+		},
+		{
+			name:  "final carriage return submit",
+			index: 1,
+			total: 2,
+			piece: []byte("\r"),
+			want:  agentSubmitSettleDelay,
+		},
+		{
+			name:  "final newline submit",
+			index: 1,
+			total: 2,
+			piece: []byte("\n"),
+			want:  agentSubmitSettleDelay,
+		},
+		{
+			name:  "final non-enter piece",
+			index: 2,
+			total: 3,
+			piece: []byte("tail"),
+			want:  agentInterPieceDelay,
+		},
+		{
+			name:  "standalone enter fast path",
+			index: 0,
+			total: 1,
+			piece: []byte("\r"),
+			want:  0,
+		},
+	}
+	for _, tc := range cases {
+		t.Run(tc.name, func(t *testing.T) {
+			if got := pieceWriteDelay(tc.index, tc.total, tc.piece); got != tc.want {
+				t.Fatalf("pieceWriteDelay(%d, %d, %q) = %s, want %s", tc.index, tc.total, tc.piece, got, tc.want)
+			}
+		})
+	}
+}
--- a/internal/app/classifier.go
+++ b/internal/app/classifier.go
@@ -50,8 +50,14 @@ func (s *Session) classifyOne(c *Child) {
 	idleMS := c.IdleMS()
 	titleIdleMS := c.TitleIdleMS()
 	title := c.Title()
-	tail := c.tailBytes(classifierTailBytes)
-	state, reason := classify(c.idleDetection, exited, exitNonZero, idleMS, titleIdleMS, title, tail)
+	tail := stripANSIBytes(nil, c.tailBytes(classifierTailBytes))
+	var screen []byte
+	if em := c.Emulator(); em != nil {
+		if txt, err := em.ScreenText(); err == nil {
+			screen = []byte(txt)
+		}
+	}
+	state, reason := classify(c.idleDetection, exited, exitNonZero, idleMS, titleIdleMS, title, tail, screen)
 	if c.setIdleState(state, reason) {
 		s.emitStateChanged(c.ID, state)
 	}
--- a/internal/app/debug.go
+++ b/internal/app/debug.go
@@ -111,6 +111,13 @@ func (d *debugCapture) OnChildStateChanged(id string, state IdleState) {
 	})
 }

+func (d *debugCapture) OnChildClosed(id string) {
+	d.writeEvent("child_closed", map[string]any{
+		"time": time.Now().Format(time.RFC3339Nano),
+		"id":   id,
+	})
+}
+
 func (d *debugCapture) OnPTYOut(childID string, chunk []byte) {
 	if len(chunk) == 0 {
 		return
--- a/internal/app/host.go
+++ b/internal/app/host.go
@@ -7,6 +7,7 @@ import (
 	"sync"
 	"syscall"
 	"time"
+	"unicode"

 	"github.com/hjbdev/patterm/internal/mcp"
 	"github.com/hjbdev/patterm/internal/preset"
@@ -86,10 +87,10 @@ func newToolHost(sess *Session, pads *scratchpad.Store, launcher *Launcher, pres
 	return h
 }

-// timerListenerAdapter forwards OnChildStateChanged into the timer
-// manager and ignores the other ChildEventListener methods. The
-// session's listener API is by-interface, so we wrap the manager
-// rather than make it implement the full surface.
+// timerListenerAdapter forwards OnChildStateChanged and OnChildClosed
+// into the timer manager and ignores the other ChildEventListener
+// methods. The session's listener API is by-interface, so we wrap
+// the manager rather than make it implement the full surface.
 type timerListenerAdapter struct{ m *timerManager }

 func (a timerListenerAdapter) OnChildSpawned(*Child)   {}
@@ -98,6 +99,9 @@ func (a timerListenerAdapter) OnPTYOut(string, []byte) {}
 func (a timerListenerAdapter) OnChildStateChanged(id string, st IdleState) {
 	a.m.onChildStateChanged(id, st)
 }
+func (a timerListenerAdapter) OnChildClosed(id string) {
+	a.m.onChildClosed(id)
+}

 func (h *toolHost) SetSize(cols, rows uint16) {
 	h.sizeMu.Lock()
@@ -395,7 +399,7 @@ func (h *toolHost) GetProcessOutput(callerID, processID, mode string, sinceOffse
 		if c.Kind == KindAgent {
 			txt = applyChromeTrim(txt, h.chromeHintsFor(c.PresetRef))
 		}
-		out.Content = txt
+		out.Content = normalizeGridText(txt)
 		return out, nil
 	case "stream":
 		b, end := c.StreamRead(sinceOffset)
@@ -553,6 +557,7 @@ func (n *chunkNotifier) OnPTYOut(id string, chunk []byte) {
 	}
 }
 func (n *chunkNotifier) OnChildStateChanged(string, IdleState) {}
+func (n *chunkNotifier) OnChildClosed(string)                  {}

 func (h *toolHost) GetProcessPorts(callerID, processID string) ([]mcp.PortSighting, error) {
 	c := h.sess.FindChild(processID)
@@ -828,6 +833,14 @@ func (h *toolHost) ScratchpadAppend(name, content string) error {
 	return err
 }

+func (h *toolHost) ScratchpadDelete(name string) error {
+	err := h.pads.Delete(name)
+	if err == nil && h.scratch != nil {
+		h.scratch.scratchpadsChanged()
+	}
+	return err
+}
+
 func (h *toolHost) WhoAmI(callerID string) mcp.WhoAmI {
 	w := mcp.WhoAmI{
 		ProcessID: callerID,
@@ -1006,6 +1019,30 @@ func stripANSI(s string) string {
 	return ansiRegexp.ReplaceAllString(s, "")
 }

+func normalizeGridText(s string) string {
+	s = strings.ReplaceAll(s, "\r\n", "\n")
+	s = strings.ReplaceAll(s, "\r", "\n")
+
+	lines := strings.Split(s, "\n")
+	out := make([]string, 0, len(lines))
+	pendingBlank := false
+	for _, line := range lines {
+		line = strings.TrimRightFunc(line, unicode.IsSpace)
+		if line == "" {
+			if len(out) > 0 {
+				pendingBlank = true
+			}
+			continue
+		}
+		if pendingBlank {
+			out = append(out, "")
+			pendingBlank = false
+		}
+		out = append(out, line)
+	}
+	return strings.Join(out, "\n")
+}
+
 // stripANSIBytes is the byte-slice form of stripANSI. Skips the
 // string conversion and the regex DFA — useful when the caller will
 // itself walk the result line-by-line (SearchOutput) or feed it to a
@@ -1087,7 +1124,7 @@ func availableToolsForRole(role mcp.CallerRole) []string {
 		"send_input", "send_message", "request_human_attention",
 		"timer_wait", "timer_set", "timer_fire_when_idle_any", "timer_fire_when_idle_all",
 		"timer_cancel", "timer_pause", "timer_resume", "timer_list",
-		"scratchpad_list", "scratchpad_read", "scratchpad_write", "scratchpad_append",
+		"scratchpad_list", "scratchpad_read", "scratchpad_write", "scratchpad_append", "scratchpad_delete",
 		"whoami", "help",
 	}
 	if role == mcp.RoleOrchestrator {
@@ -1135,14 +1172,15 @@ func helpFor(topic string) mcp.HelpResponse {
 	case "coordination":
 		return mcp.HelpResponse{
 			Topic: "coordination",
-			Content:      "send_message tags the message with the caller's role (parent → [orchestrator], child → [sub-agent:<name>]). Siblings must route through their parent. request_human_attention raises a UI notification when you can't safely decide.",
-			RelatedTools: []string{"send_message", "request_human_attention"},
+			Content: "send_message tags the message with the caller's role (parent → [orchestrator], child → [sub-agent:<name>]). Siblings must route through their parent. request_human_attention raises a UI notification when you can't safely decide.\n\n" +
+				"Reply routing: a sub-agent's reply to your send_message lands in YOUR pane tagged `[sub-agent:<name>]`, not in the sub-agent's output. Anti-pattern: `wait_for_pattern(sub_agent, …)` to wait for a reply — the sub-agent is already idle, its output won't change, and the call spins to timeout. Pattern: send_message → timer_fire_when_idle_any([sub_agent_id], body=\"[system] sub-agent finished\") → when the timer fires, the reply is already queued as your next user turn (or visible via get_process_output on your own pane).",
+			RelatedTools: []string{"send_message", "request_human_attention", "timer_fire_when_idle_any", "timer_fire_when_idle_all"},
 		}
 	case "scratchpads":
 		return mcp.HelpResponse{
 			Topic:        "scratchpads",
-			Content:      "Project-scoped markdown files. Read returns content + revision; pass that back as expected_revision on write to get last-write-wins-with-detection. Append is unconditional.",
-			RelatedTools: []string{"scratchpad_list", "scratchpad_read", "scratchpad_write", "scratchpad_append"},
+			Content:      "Project-scoped markdown files. Read returns content + revision; pass that back as expected_revision on write to get last-write-wins-with-detection. Append is unconditional; delete removes a pad by name.",
+			RelatedTools: []string{"scratchpad_list", "scratchpad_read", "scratchpad_write", "scratchpad_append", "scratchpad_delete"},
 		}
 	case "timers":
 		return mcp.HelpResponse{
@@ -1162,8 +1200,13 @@ func helpFor(topic string) mcp.HelpResponse {
 	case "readiness":
 		return mcp.HelpResponse{
 			Topic: "readiness",
-			Content:      "A pane is 'idle' once nothing has been written to its PTY for ~1s (SPEC §11). Treat idle as a signal to read, not a guarantee of completion. wait_for_pattern lets you wait on a known terminal marker for stronger evidence.",
-			RelatedTools: []string{"wait_for_pattern", "get_process_status"},
+			Content: "A pane is 'idle' once nothing has been written to its PTY for ~1s (SPEC §11). Treat idle as a signal to read, not a guarantee of completion.\n\n" +
+				"Waiting for a sub-agent's reply (canonical pattern):\n" +
+				"  1. send_message(sub_agent_id, request)\n" +
+				"  2. timer_fire_when_idle_any(watched=[sub_agent_id], body=\"[system] sub-agent done\")\n" +
+				"  3. When the timer fires you re-enter as a fresh user turn; the sub-agent's reply is already in your own pane tagged `[sub-agent:<name>]` (read via get_process_output on yourself if you need it explicitly).\n\n" +
+				"wait_for_pattern is for waiting on text a process emits in its OWN output (a shell prompt, a build's \"tests passed\" line). It does NOT see send_message replies, because those land in the caller's pane, not the target's — calling wait_for_pattern on a sub-agent to wait for its reply deadlocks until timeout.",
+			RelatedTools: []string{"wait_for_pattern", "get_process_status", "timer_fire_when_idle_any", "send_message"},
 		}
 	case "permissions":
 		return mcp.HelpResponse{
--- a/internal/app/idle.go
+++ b/internal/app/idle.go
@@ -118,7 +118,8 @@ func compilePatterns(ps []string) []*regexp.Regexp {
 //   - titleIdleMS: ms since the last OSC title change (0 if no title yet)
 //   - title: current OSC title
 //   - tail: recent output bytes for regex matching
-func classify(cfg *resolvedIdleDetection, exited, exitNonZero bool, idleMS, titleIdleMS int64, title string, tail []byte) (IdleState, string) {
+//   - screen: current rendered screen text for persistent prompt matching
+func classify(cfg *resolvedIdleDetection, exited, exitNonZero bool, idleMS, titleIdleMS int64, title string, tail, screen []byte) (IdleState, string) {
 	if exited {
 		if exitNonZero {
 			return StateError, "process exited non-zero"
@@ -128,14 +129,14 @@ func classify(cfg *resolvedIdleDetection, exited, exitNonZero bool, idleMS, titl
 	if cfg == nil {
 		cfg = &resolvedIdleDetection{strategy: StrategyOutputActivity, idleThresholdMS: defaultIdleThresholdMS}
 	}
-	if len(tail) > 0 {
-		if matchAny(cfg.errorRegexes, tail) {
+	if len(tail) > 0 || len(screen) > 0 {
+		if matchAny(cfg.errorRegexes, tail, screen) {
 			return StateError, "error regex matched"
 		}
-		if matchAny(cfg.permissionRegexes, tail) {
+		if matchAny(cfg.permissionRegexes, tail, screen) {
 			return StatePermission, "permission regex matched"
 		}
-		if matchAny(cfg.thinkingRegexes, tail) {
+		if matchAny(cfg.thinkingRegexes, tail, screen) {
 			return StateThinking, "thinking regex matched"
 		}
 	}
@@ -172,12 +173,14 @@ func baseStateFromIdleMS(idleMS, threshold int64) (IdleState, string) {
 	return StateIdle, "quiet for threshold"
 }

-func matchAny(res []*regexp.Regexp, tail []byte) bool {
+func matchAny(res []*regexp.Regexp, texts ...[]byte) bool {
 	for _, re := range res {
-		if re.Match(tail) {
+		for _, text := range texts {
+			if len(text) > 0 && re.Match(text) {
 				return true
 			}
 		}
+	}
 	return false
 }

--- a/internal/app/idle_test.go
+++ b/internal/app/idle_test.go
@@ -30,7 +30,7 @@ func TestClassifyOutputActivity(t *testing.T) {
 	}
 	for _, tc := range cases {
 		t.Run(tc.name, func(t *testing.T) {
-			got, _ := classify(cfg, false, false, tc.idleMS, 0, "", nil)
+			got, _ := classify(cfg, false, false, tc.idleMS, 0, "", nil, nil)
 			if got != tc.want {
 				t.Fatalf("got %q want %q", got, tc.want)
 			}
@@ -41,22 +41,37 @@ func TestClassifyOutputActivity(t *testing.T) {
 func TestClassifyTitleStability(t *testing.T) {
 	cfg := &resolvedIdleDetection{strategy: StrategyOSCTitleStability, idleThresholdMS: 2000}
 	// Title change recent → working.
-	if got, _ := classify(cfg, false, false, 9999, 500, "step 3", nil); got != StateWorking {
+	if got, _ := classify(cfg, false, false, 9999, 500, "step 3", nil, nil); got != StateWorking {
 		t.Fatalf("recent title change: got %q", got)
 	}
 	// Title stable past threshold → idle.
-	if got, _ := classify(cfg, false, false, 9999, 5000, "step 3", nil); got != StateIdle {
+	if got, _ := classify(cfg, false, false, 9999, 5000, "step 3", nil, nil); got != StateIdle {
 		t.Fatalf("stable title: got %q", got)
 	}
 	// No title yet: fall back to output activity.
-	if got, _ := classify(cfg, false, false, 100, 0, "", nil); got != StateWorking {
+	if got, _ := classify(cfg, false, false, 100, 0, "", nil, nil); got != StateWorking {
 		t.Fatalf("no title yet, recent output: got %q", got)
 	}
-	if got, _ := classify(cfg, false, false, 5000, 0, "", nil); got != StateIdle {
+	if got, _ := classify(cfg, false, false, 5000, 0, "", nil, nil); got != StateIdle {
 		t.Fatalf("no title yet, output idle: got %q", got)
 	}
 }

+func TestClassifyTitleStabilityThinkingPatternOverridesIdle(t *testing.T) {
+	cfg := &resolvedIdleDetection{
+		strategy:        StrategyOSCTitleStability,
+		idleThresholdMS: 2000,
+		thinkingRegexes: []*regexp.Regexp{mustCompile(t, `(?i)esc to interrupt`)},
+	}
+	screen := []byte("• Working (5s • esc to interrupt)")
+	if got, _ := classify(cfg, false, false, 9999, 5000, "codex", nil, screen); got != StateThinking {
+		t.Fatalf("thinking screen marker: got %q want %q", got, StateThinking)
+	}
+	if got, _ := classify(cfg, false, false, 9999, 5000, "codex", nil, []byte(">_")); got != StateIdle {
+		t.Fatalf("stable title without marker: got %q want %q", got, StateIdle)
+	}
+}
+
 func TestClassifyTitleStatus(t *testing.T) {
 	cfg := &resolvedIdleDetection{
 		strategy:        StrategyOSCTitleStatus,
@@ -67,14 +82,14 @@ func TestClassifyTitleStatus(t *testing.T) {
 			"error":      StateError,
 		},
 	}
-	if got, _ := classify(cfg, false, false, 9999, 500, "Thinking…", nil); got != StateThinking {
+	if got, _ := classify(cfg, false, false, 9999, 500, "Thinking…", nil, nil); got != StateThinking {
 		t.Fatalf("thinking title: got %q", got)
 	}
-	if got, _ := classify(cfg, false, false, 9999, 500, "Waiting for permission", nil); got != StatePermission {
+	if got, _ := classify(cfg, false, false, 9999, 500, "Waiting for permission", nil, nil); got != StatePermission {
 		t.Fatalf("permission title: got %q", got)
 	}
 	// No match in map → fall back to stability.
-	if got, _ := classify(cfg, false, false, 9999, 5000, "ready", nil); got != StateIdle {
+	if got, _ := classify(cfg, false, false, 9999, 5000, "ready", nil, nil); got != StateIdle {
 		t.Fatalf("unmatched title, stable: got %q", got)
 	}
 }
@@ -88,25 +103,30 @@ func TestClassifyPromoterRegex(t *testing.T) {
 		thinkingRegexes:   []*regexp.Regexp{mustCompile(t, `Thinking`)},
 	}
 	// Permission promoter beats idle.
-	if got, _ := classify(cfg, false, false, 5000, 0, "", []byte("Approve? [y/n]")); got != StatePermission {
+	if got, _ := classify(cfg, false, false, 5000, 0, "", []byte("Approve? [y/n]"), nil); got != StatePermission {
 		t.Fatalf("permission promoter: got %q", got)
 	}
 	// Error trumps permission.
-	if got, _ := classify(cfg, false, false, 5000, 0, "", []byte("panic: bad\nApprove?")); got != StateError {
+	if got, _ := classify(cfg, false, false, 5000, 0, "", []byte("panic: bad\nApprove?"), nil); got != StateError {
 		t.Fatalf("error promoter beats permission: got %q", got)
 	}
 	// Thinking promoter on idle output.
-	if got, _ := classify(cfg, false, false, 5000, 0, "", []byte("Thinking…")); got != StateThinking {
+	if got, _ := classify(cfg, false, false, 5000, 0, "", []byte("Thinking…"), nil); got != StateThinking {
 		t.Fatalf("thinking promoter: got %q", got)
 	}
+	// Rendered-screen prompts still promote even when the raw tail no
+	// longer contains the original prompt bytes.
+	if got, _ := classify(cfg, false, false, 100, 0, "", []byte("Calling patterm..."), []byte("Approve? [y/n]")); got != StatePermission {
+		t.Fatalf("screen permission promoter: got %q", got)
+	}
 }

 func TestClassifyExitTerminal(t *testing.T) {
 	cfg := &resolvedIdleDetection{strategy: StrategyOutputActivity, idleThresholdMS: 2000}
-	if got, _ := classify(cfg, true, true, 0, 0, "", nil); got != StateError {
+	if got, _ := classify(cfg, true, true, 0, 0, "", nil, nil); got != StateError {
 		t.Fatalf("non-zero exit: got %q", got)
 	}
-	if got, _ := classify(cfg, true, false, 0, 0, "", nil); got != StateIdle {
+	if got, _ := classify(cfg, true, false, 0, 0, "", nil, nil); got != StateIdle {
 		t.Fatalf("clean exit: got %q", got)
 	}
 }
--- a/internal/app/launch.go
+++ b/internal/app/launch.go
@@ -261,15 +261,11 @@ func (l *Launcher) LaunchTerminal(argv []string, displayName, parentID, workDir
 }

 func (l *Launcher) writeMCPConfig(identity string) (string, error) {
-	dir, err := preset.ConfigDir()
+	dir, err := mcpRuntimeDir(identity)
 	if err != nil {
 		return "", err
 	}
-	dir = filepath.Join(dir, "mcp")
-	if err := os.MkdirAll(dir, 0o700); err != nil {
-		return "", err
-	}
-	path := filepath.Join(dir, identity+".json")
+	path := filepath.Join(dir, "mcp.json")
 	cfg := map[string]any{
 		"mcpServers": map[string]any{
 			"patterm": map[string]any{
--- a/internal/app/launch_test.go
+++ b/internal/app/launch_test.go
@@ -0,0 +1,30 @@
+package app
+
+import (
+	"os"
+	"path/filepath"
+	"strings"
+	"testing"
+)
+
+func TestWriteMCPConfigUsesRuntimeDir(t *testing.T) {
+	runtimeDir := t.TempDir()
+	configHome := filepath.Join(t.TempDir(), "config")
+	t.Setenv("XDG_RUNTIME_DIR", runtimeDir)
+	t.Setenv("XDG_CONFIG_HOME", configHome)
+
+	l := &Launcher{bin: "patterm", mcpSocket: "/tmp/patterm.sock"}
+	path, err := l.writeMCPConfig("abc123")
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("writeMCPConfig: %v", err)
+	}
+	if !strings.HasPrefix(path, filepath.Join(runtimeDir, "patterm", "agents", "abc123")) {
+		t.Fatalf("path = %q, want under runtime dir", path)
+	}
+	if _, err := os.Stat(path); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("config file stat: %v", err)
+	}
+	if _, err := os.Stat(filepath.Join(configHome, "patterm")); !os.IsNotExist(err) {
+		t.Fatalf("writeMCPConfig created XDG config dir or unexpected stat error: %v", err)
+	}
+}
--- a/internal/app/layout_test.go
+++ b/internal/app/layout_test.go
@@ -14,10 +14,10 @@ func TestTerminalLayoutWideUsesMainViewport(t *testing.T) {
 	if l.childCols() != 91 {
 		t.Fatalf("child cols: got %d want 91", l.childCols())
 	}
-	if l.childRows() != 37 {
-		t.Fatalf("child rows: got %d want 37", l.childRows())
+	if l.childRows() != 36 {
+		t.Fatalf("child rows: got %d want 36", l.childRows())
 	}
-	if l.mainTop != 3 || l.statusRow != 40 {
+	if l.mainTop != 4 || l.statusRow != 40 {
 		t.Fatalf("unexpected vertical chrome: mainTop=%d statusRow=%d", l.mainTop, l.statusRow)
 	}
 }
@@ -30,8 +30,8 @@ func TestTerminalLayoutNarrowHidesSidebar(t *testing.T) {
 	if l.childCols() != 38 {
 		t.Fatalf("child cols: got %d want 38", l.childCols())
 	}
-	if l.childRows() != 9 {
-		t.Fatalf("child rows: got %d want 9", l.childRows())
+	if l.childRows() != 8 {
+		t.Fatalf("child rows: got %d want 8", l.childRows())
 	}
 }

@@ -46,13 +46,13 @@ func TestSpawnSizingUsesViewportDimensions(t *testing.T) {
 	l := newTerminalLayout(120, 40)
 	launcher := NewLauncher(nil, "", l.childCols(), l.childRows())
 	cols, rows := launcher.size()
-	if cols != 91 || rows != 37 {
-		t.Fatalf("launcher size: got %dx%d want 91x37", cols, rows)
+	if cols != 91 || rows != 36 {
+		t.Fatalf("launcher size: got %dx%d want 91x36", cols, rows)
 	}

 	host := newToolHost(nil, nil, nil, preset.Set{}, nil, l.childCols(), l.childRows())
 	cols, rows = host.size()
-	if cols != 91 || rows != 37 {
-		t.Fatalf("tool host size: got %dx%d want 91x37", cols, rows)
+	if cols != 91 || rows != 36 {
+		t.Fatalf("tool host size: got %dx%d want 91x36", cols, rows)
 	}
 }
--- a/internal/app/marquee.go
+++ b/internal/app/marquee.go
@@ -0,0 +1,123 @@
+package app
+
+import (
+	"sync"
+	"time"
+)
+
+// Phase ordering of the marquee state machine: hold the head, scroll
+// one cell per marqueeStep until the tail is visible, hold the tail,
+// snap back to the head.
+const (
+	phaseHoldStart = iota
+	phaseScroll
+	phaseHoldEnd
+)
+
+const (
+	marqueeHoldStart = time.Second
+	marqueeStep      = 150 * time.Millisecond
+	marqueeHoldEnd   = time.Second
+)
+
+// marqueeState drives the focused sidebar row's pause-scroll-pause
+// animation. State is wall-clock anchored (since), not tick-count
+// anchored, so a missed tick yields a slightly later frame rather
+// than a skipped one.
+type marqueeState struct {
+	mu      sync.Mutex
+	id      string
+	nameLen int
+	budget  int
+	state   int
+	offset  int
+	since   time.Time
+}
+
+// step advances the state machine for the row identified by id with
+// the given visible name length (in runes) and column budget. It
+// returns the current scroll offset, whether the row is animating
+// (i.e. nameLen > budget), and how long until the next visual change.
+//
+// When id changes, or nameLen <= budget, the state machine resets to
+// phaseHoldStart with offset 0 anchored at now.
+func (m *marqueeState) step(id string, nameLen, budget int, now time.Time) (offset int, animating bool, nextWake time.Duration) {
+	m.mu.Lock()
+	defer m.mu.Unlock()
+
+	if id != m.id || nameLen != m.nameLen || budget != m.budget {
+		m.id = id
+		m.nameLen = nameLen
+		m.budget = budget
+		m.state = phaseHoldStart
+		m.offset = 0
+		m.since = now
+	}
+
+	if nameLen <= budget || budget <= 0 {
+		return 0, false, 0
+	}
+
+	maxOffset := nameLen - budget
+
+	for {
+		elapsed := now.Sub(m.since)
+		switch m.state {
+		case phaseHoldStart:
+			if elapsed < marqueeHoldStart {
+				return 0, true, marqueeHoldStart - elapsed
+			}
+			m.state = phaseScroll
+			m.since = m.since.Add(marqueeHoldStart)
+			continue
+		case phaseScroll:
+			steps := int(elapsed / marqueeStep)
+			if steps >= maxOffset {
+				m.offset = maxOffset
+				m.state = phaseHoldEnd
+				m.since = m.since.Add(time.Duration(maxOffset) * marqueeStep)
+				continue
+			}
+			m.offset = steps
+			rem := marqueeStep - (elapsed % marqueeStep)
+			return m.offset, true, rem
+		case phaseHoldEnd:
+			if elapsed < marqueeHoldEnd {
+				return maxOffset, true, marqueeHoldEnd - elapsed
+			}
+			m.state = phaseHoldStart
+			m.offset = 0
+			m.since = m.since.Add(marqueeHoldEnd)
+			continue
+		default:
+			m.state = phaseHoldStart
+			m.offset = 0
+			m.since = now
+			return 0, true, marqueeHoldStart
+		}
+	}
+}
+
+// active reports whether the marquee currently has an overflowing row
+// to animate. The marquee ticker goroutine uses this to gate dirty
+// flag flips so an idle sidebar costs nothing.
+func (m *marqueeState) active() bool {
+	m.mu.Lock()
+	defer m.mu.Unlock()
+	return m.id != "" && m.nameLen > m.budget && m.budget > 0
+}
+
+// reset clears all state, forcing the next step() call to start a
+// fresh phaseHoldStart. Call this when focus changes so the newly
+// focused row begins with a full head-hold instead of inheriting
+// whatever phase the previous focus was in.
+func (m *marqueeState) reset() {
+	m.mu.Lock()
+	defer m.mu.Unlock()
+	m.id = ""
+	m.nameLen = 0
+	m.budget = 0
+	m.state = phaseHoldStart
+	m.offset = 0
+	m.since = time.Time{}
+}
--- a/internal/app/marquee_test.go
+++ b/internal/app/marquee_test.go
@@ -0,0 +1,161 @@
+package app
+
+import (
+	"testing"
+	"time"
+)
+
+func TestMarqueeStepFits(t *testing.T) {
+	var m marqueeState
+	now := time.Unix(0, 0)
+	off, animating, _ := m.step("a", 5, 10, now)
+	if animating {
+		t.Fatalf("expected no animation when name fits in budget")
+	}
+	if off != 0 {
+		t.Fatalf("expected offset 0, got %d", off)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestMarqueePhaseProgression(t *testing.T) {
+	var m marqueeState
+	// name 10 runes, budget 5 → maxOffset = 5.
+	const nameLen, budget = 10, 5
+	t0 := time.Unix(0, 0)
+
+	// At t0: phaseHoldStart, offset 0, animating.
+	off, anim, wake := m.step("row", nameLen, budget, t0)
+	if off != 0 || !anim || wake != marqueeHoldStart {
+		t.Fatalf("t0: off=%d anim=%v wake=%v", off, anim, wake)
+	}
+
+	// Just before hold expires: still offset 0.
+	off, anim, _ = m.step("row", nameLen, budget, t0.Add(marqueeHoldStart-time.Millisecond))
+	if off != 0 || !anim {
+		t.Fatalf("pre-expiry hold: off=%d anim=%v", off, anim)
+	}
+
+	// At hold expiry + 1 step: should have transitioned to scroll, offset 1.
+	off, anim, _ = m.step("row", nameLen, budget, t0.Add(marqueeHoldStart+marqueeStep))
+	if !anim || off != 1 {
+		t.Fatalf("first scroll step: off=%d anim=%v", off, anim)
+	}
+
+	// Mid-scroll: offset == 3.
+	off, _, _ = m.step("row", nameLen, budget, t0.Add(marqueeHoldStart+3*marqueeStep))
+	if off != 3 {
+		t.Fatalf("mid scroll: off=%d", off)
+	}
+
+	// Tail reached: offset == maxOffset == 5.
+	off, _, _ = m.step("row", nameLen, budget, t0.Add(marqueeHoldStart+5*marqueeStep+time.Millisecond))
+	if off != 5 {
+		t.Fatalf("tail: off=%d", off)
+	}
+
+	// Hold-end window still pegged at maxOffset.
+	off, _, _ = m.step("row", nameLen, budget, t0.Add(marqueeHoldStart+5*marqueeStep+marqueeHoldEnd/2))
+	if off != 5 {
+		t.Fatalf("hold-end mid: off=%d", off)
+	}
+
+	// After hold-end: snap back to offset 0.
+	off, _, _ = m.step("row", nameLen, budget, t0.Add(marqueeHoldStart+5*marqueeStep+marqueeHoldEnd+time.Millisecond))
+	if off != 0 {
+		t.Fatalf("snap back: off=%d", off)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestMarqueeIDChangeResets(t *testing.T) {
+	var m marqueeState
+	t0 := time.Unix(0, 0)
+	_, _, _ = m.step("a", 10, 5, t0)
+	// Advance well into scroll for row "a".
+	_, _, _ = m.step("a", 10, 5, t0.Add(marqueeHoldStart+3*marqueeStep))
+	// Now focus moves to "b": offset must reset to 0 and phase to hold-start.
+	off, anim, wake := m.step("b", 10, 5, t0.Add(marqueeHoldStart+3*marqueeStep))
+	if off != 0 || !anim || wake != marqueeHoldStart {
+		t.Fatalf("id reset: off=%d anim=%v wake=%v", off, anim, wake)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestMarqueeActive(t *testing.T) {
+	var m marqueeState
+	if m.active() {
+		t.Fatalf("fresh marquee should not be active")
+	}
+	_, _, _ = m.step("row", 10, 5, time.Unix(0, 0))
+	if !m.active() {
+		t.Fatalf("expected active after overflow step")
+	}
+	_, _, _ = m.step("row", 4, 5, time.Unix(0, 0))
+	if m.active() {
+		t.Fatalf("should not be active when name fits")
+	}
+}
+
+func TestMarqueeReset(t *testing.T) {
+	var m marqueeState
+	_, _, _ = m.step("row", 10, 5, time.Unix(0, 0))
+	m.reset()
+	if m.active() {
+		t.Fatalf("expected inactive after reset")
+	}
+	// After reset, stepping the same id starts fresh.
+	off, _, wake := m.step("row", 10, 5, time.Unix(5, 0))
+	if off != 0 || wake != marqueeHoldStart {
+		t.Fatalf("post-reset start: off=%d wake=%v", off, wake)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestFitName(t *testing.T) {
+	cases := []struct {
+		name, in string
+		budget   int
+		want     string
+	}{
+		{"fits", "abc", 5, "abc"},
+		{"exact", "abcde", 5, "abcde"},
+		{"truncate", "abcdef", 5, "abcd…"},
+		{"budget1", "abcdef", 1, "…"},
+		{"budget0", "abc", 0, ""},
+		{"unicode", "αβγδεζη", 4, "αβγ…"},
+	}
+	for _, c := range cases {
+		t.Run(c.name, func(t *testing.T) {
+			got := fitName(c.in, c.budget)
+			if got != c.want {
+				t.Fatalf("fitName(%q, %d) = %q want %q", c.in, c.budget, got, c.want)
+			}
+		})
+	}
+}
+
+func TestMarqueeWindow(t *testing.T) {
+	got := marqueeWindow("abcdefgh", 4, 2)
+	if got != "cdef" {
+		t.Fatalf("window = %q", got)
+	}
+	// Clamp end-of-string overflow.
+	got = marqueeWindow("abcdef", 4, 10)
+	if got != "cdef" {
+		t.Fatalf("clamped window = %q", got)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestClampVisible(t *testing.T) {
+	// Plain string longer than width.
+	if got := clampVisible("abcdef", 3); visibleLen(got) != 3 {
+		t.Fatalf("plain clamp visible = %d (%q)", visibleLen(got), got)
+	}
+	// Already-fitting string is unchanged.
+	if got := clampVisible("abc", 5); got != "abc" {
+		t.Fatalf("unchanged = %q", got)
+	}
+	// SGR-wrapped string: visible portion must be <= width.
+	in := "\x1b[1mhello\x1b[0m world"
+	got := clampVisible(in, 5)
+	if visibleLen(got) != 5 {
+		t.Fatalf("sgr clamp visible = %d (%q)", visibleLen(got), got)
+	}
+}
--- a/internal/app/palette.go
+++ b/internal/app/palette.go
--- a/internal/app/palette_context_test.go
+++ b/internal/app/palette_context_test.go
@@ -31,14 +31,17 @@ func findItem(p *paletteState, want string) (int, *paletteItem) {

 func TestContextItemsScratchpad(t *testing.T) {
 	p := newPalette(nil, "", "notes.md", preset.Set{})
-	if i, _ := findItem(p, "pad-delete"); i != 0 {
-		t.Fatalf("pad-delete at %d; want top", i)
+	// With the dashed section header gone, pad-edit is the first row;
+	// pad-rename-form follows, with destructive pad-delete last in the
+	// Focused section.
+	if i, _ := findItem(p, "pad-edit"); i != 0 {
+		t.Fatalf("pad-edit at %d; want 0", i)
 	}
 	if _, it := findItem(p, "pad-rename-form"); it == nil || it.action.padName != "notes.md" {
 		t.Fatalf("pad-rename-form missing or wrong padName: %+v", it)
 	}
-	if _, it := findItem(p, "pad-edit"); it == nil {
-		t.Fatalf("pad-edit missing")
+	if i, _ := findItem(p, "pad-delete"); i < 0 {
+		t.Fatalf("pad-delete missing")
 	}
 	// No focused child → no agent/proc context items.
 	if i, _ := findItem(p, "agent-rename-form"); i != -1 {
@@ -80,9 +83,31 @@ func TestContextItemsProcess(t *testing.T) {
 	}
 }

+func TestContextItemsTerminalUsesCloseNotStop(t *testing.T) {
+	c := makeFakeChild("tid", "terminal", KindTerminal)
+	p := newPalette([]*Child{c}, "tid", "", preset.Set{})
+	if _, it := findItem(p, "proc-stop"); it == nil || it.label != "Close" {
+		t.Fatalf("terminal close row missing or mislabelled: %+v", it)
+	}
+	if _, it := findItem(p, "proc-restart"); it == nil {
+		t.Fatalf("terminal restart row missing")
+	}
+	if i, _ := findItem(p, "proc-delete"); i != -1 {
+		t.Fatalf("terminal should not show a separate delete/close row, found at %d", i)
+	}
+	for i, it := range p.items {
+		if it.label == "Stop" {
+			t.Fatalf("terminal should not show Stop row, found at %d", i)
+		}
+	}
+}
+
 func TestContextItemsAppearAboveSwitch(t *testing.T) {
-	c := makeFakeChild("pid", "devserver", KindCommand)
-	p := newPalette([]*Child{c}, "pid", "", preset.Set{})
+	// Two children so there's still a non-focused switch entry to compare
+	// against (the focused child is suppressed from the Open section).
+	focused := makeFakeChild("pid", "devserver", KindCommand)
+	other := makeFakeChild("oid", "worker", KindCommand)
+	p := newPalette([]*Child{focused, other}, "pid", "", preset.Set{})
 	procIdx, _ := findItem(p, "proc-rename-form")
 	switchIdx, _ := findItem(p, "switch")
 	if procIdx < 0 || switchIdx < 0 {
--- a/internal/app/palette_input_test.go
+++ b/internal/app/palette_input_test.go
@@ -47,36 +47,50 @@ func TestPaletteBareEscCancels(t *testing.T) {
 	}
 }

+// firstSelectable returns the lowest item index whose action is
+// selectable (not a section header), or -1 if the palette has no
+// selectable rows.
+func firstSelectable(p *paletteState) int {
+	for i, it := range p.items {
+		if it.action.kind != "header" {
+			return i
+		}
+	}
+	return -1
+}
+
 func TestPaletteKittyArrowsNavigate(t *testing.T) {
 	pr := []*preset.Preset{{Name: "a"}, {Name: "b"}, {Name: "c"}}
 	p := newPalette(nil, "", "", preset.Set{Agents: pr})
-	if p.cursor != 0 {
-		t.Fatalf("initial cursor %d", p.cursor)
+	first := firstSelectable(p)
+	if first < 0 || p.cursor != first {
+		t.Fatalf("initial cursor %d, want first selectable %d", p.cursor, first)
 	}
 	// Kitty functional Down arrow.
 	_, _, adv := p.handleInput([]byte("\x1b[57353u"), 0)
 	if adv != 8 {
 		t.Fatalf("advance %d", adv)
 	}
-	if p.cursor != 1 {
-		t.Fatalf("cursor %d after Down, want 1", p.cursor)
+	if p.cursor != first+1 {
+		t.Fatalf("cursor %d after Down, want %d", p.cursor, first+1)
 	}
 	// Kitty functional Up arrow.
 	_, _, _ = p.handleInput([]byte("\x1b[57352u"), 0)
-	if p.cursor != 0 {
-		t.Fatalf("cursor %d after Up, want 0", p.cursor)
+	if p.cursor != first {
+		t.Fatalf("cursor %d after Up, want %d", p.cursor, first)
 	}
 }

 func TestPaletteLegacyArrowsStillWork(t *testing.T) {
 	pr := []*preset.Preset{{Name: "a"}, {Name: "b"}}
 	p := newPalette(nil, "", "", preset.Set{Agents: pr})
+	first := firstSelectable(p)
 	_, _, adv := p.handleInput([]byte("\x1b[B"), 0)
 	if adv != 3 {
 		t.Fatalf("advance %d", adv)
 	}
-	if p.cursor != 1 {
-		t.Fatalf("cursor %d, want 1", p.cursor)
+	if p.cursor != first+1 {
+		t.Fatalf("cursor %d, want %d", p.cursor, first+1)
 	}
 }

--- a/internal/app/palette_ux_test.go
+++ b/internal/app/palette_ux_test.go
@@ -0,0 +1,484 @@
+package app
+
+import (
+	"bytes"
+	"strings"
+	"testing"
+
+	"github.com/hjbdev/patterm/internal/preset"
+)
+
+// -- Phase 1: naming & dropped global Close list ---------------------
+
+func TestPaletteVerbsAreUnified(t *testing.T) {
+	procs := []*preset.Preset{{Name: "dev"}}
+	agents := []*preset.Preset{{Name: "claude"}}
+	p := newPalette(nil, "", "", preset.Set{Agents: agents, Processes: procs})
+	gotLabels := make([]string, 0, len(p.items))
+	for _, it := range p.items {
+		if it.action.kind == "header" {
+			continue
+		}
+		gotLabels = append(gotLabels, it.label)
+	}
+	joined := strings.Join(gotLabels, "\n")
+
+	mustContain := []string{
+		"Spawn agent: claude",
+		"Spawn process: dev",
+		"Spawn terminal",
+		"Spawn process… (custom)",
+	}
+	for _, want := range mustContain {
+		if !strings.Contains(joined, want) {
+			t.Errorf("missing unified-verb label %q in:\n%s", want, joined)
+		}
+	}
+	// The pre-overhaul verb forms must not appear anywhere.
+	mustNotContain := []string{"Run process:", "New Terminal", "Spawn process… (custom)"}
+	for _, bad := range mustNotContain {
+		if strings.Contains(joined, bad) {
+			t.Errorf("leftover legacy verb %q present in:\n%s", bad, joined)
+		}
+	}
+}
+
+func TestPaletteDropsGlobalCloseList(t *testing.T) {
+	c1 := makeFakeChild("a", "claude", KindAgent)
+	c2 := makeFakeChild("b", "dev", KindCommand)
+	p := newPalette([]*Child{c1, c2}, "", "", preset.Set{})
+	// No focus → no Focused context, so no "kill" / "agent-close" /
+	// "proc-stop" rows should exist at all.
+	for _, kind := range []string{"kill", "agent-close", "proc-stop", "proc-delete"} {
+		if i, _ := findItem(p, kind); i != -1 {
+			t.Fatalf("kind %q present at %d; global Close list should be gone", kind, i)
+		}
+	}
+}
+
+// -- Phase 2: section headers and cursor skip ------------------------
+
+func TestPaletteSectionsSeparatedBySpacers(t *testing.T) {
+	// Section-named dashed headers are gone; groups are visually
+	// separated by a single non-selectable blank row. Verify that the
+	// build emits one such spacer between every pair of adjacent groups
+	// and never a leading spacer.
+	c := makeFakeChild("a", "claude", KindAgent)
+	other := makeFakeChild("b", "worker", KindCommand)
+	p := newPalette([]*Child{c, other}, "a", "",
+		preset.Set{Agents: []*preset.Preset{{Name: "codex"}}})
+
+	if len(p.items) == 0 {
+		t.Fatalf("palette built no items")
+	}
+	if p.items[0].action.kind == "header" {
+		t.Fatalf("first row is a spacer; should be a selectable item")
+	}
+	transitions := 0
+	prevGroup := p.items[0].group
+	for i := 1; i < len(p.items); i++ {
+		it := p.items[i]
+		if it.group != prevGroup {
+			if it.action.kind != "header" || it.label != "" {
+				t.Fatalf("group transition at %d not a blank spacer: %+v", i, it)
+			}
+			transitions++
+			// The row immediately after the spacer must be selectable.
+			if i+1 >= len(p.items) || p.items[i+1].action.kind == "header" {
+				t.Fatalf("spacer at %d not followed by selectable row", i)
+			}
+			prevGroup = p.items[i+1].group
+		}
+		// No dashed banners anywhere.
+		if it.action.kind == "header" && strings.Contains(it.label, "──") {
+			t.Errorf("dashed section header still present at %d: %q", i, it.label)
+		}
+	}
+	if transitions == 0 {
+		t.Fatalf("no section transitions found in palette items")
+	}
+}
+
+func TestPaletteCursorSkipsHeaders(t *testing.T) {
+	pr := []*preset.Preset{{Name: "a"}, {Name: "b"}}
+	p := newPalette(nil, "", "", preset.Set{Agents: pr})
+	// Initial cursor must land on a selectable row, never a header.
+	if p.items[p.cursor].action.kind == "header" {
+		t.Fatalf("initial cursor sits on a header: %+v", p.items[p.cursor])
+	}
+	// Walk to the end with cursorDown; every stop must be selectable.
+	for i := 0; i < len(p.items)*2; i++ {
+		p.cursorDown()
+		if p.items[p.cursor].action.kind == "header" {
+			t.Fatalf("cursorDown landed on a header at index %d", p.cursor)
+		}
+	}
+	// Walk back to top.
+	for i := 0; i < len(p.items)*2; i++ {
+		p.cursorUp()
+		if p.items[p.cursor].action.kind == "header" {
+			t.Fatalf("cursorUp landed on a header at index %d", p.cursor)
+		}
+	}
+}
+
+func TestPaletteEnterOnHeaderIsNoOp(t *testing.T) {
+	pr := []*preset.Preset{{Name: "a"}}
+	p := newPalette(nil, "", "", preset.Set{Agents: pr})
+	// Force the cursor onto a header.
+	for i, it := range p.items {
+		if it.action.kind == "header" {
+			p.cursor = i
+			break
+		}
+	}
+	_, done, _ := p.handleInput([]byte("\r"), 0)
+	if done {
+		t.Fatalf("Enter on header closed palette; expected no-op")
+	}
+}
+
+// -- Phase 3: filter chips & macro coexistence -----------------------
+
+func TestPaletteTabCyclesChip(t *testing.T) {
+	p := newTestPalette()
+	// All → Open
+	_, _, _ = p.handleInput([]byte{'\t'}, 0)
+	if string(p.query) != "sw " {
+		t.Fatalf("Tab #1: query %q, want %q", string(p.query), "sw ")
+	}
+	// Open → Spawn
+	_, _, _ = p.handleInput([]byte{'\t'}, 0)
+	if string(p.query) != "sp " {
+		t.Fatalf("Tab #2: query %q, want %q", string(p.query), "sp ")
+	}
+	// Spawn → Close
+	_, _, _ = p.handleInput([]byte{'\t'}, 0)
+	if string(p.query) != "k " {
+		t.Fatalf("Tab #3: query %q, want %q", string(p.query), "k ")
+	}
+	// Close → All (wraps)
+	_, _, _ = p.handleInput([]byte{'\t'}, 0)
+	if string(p.query) != "" {
+		t.Fatalf("Tab #4 wrap: query %q, want empty", string(p.query))
+	}
+}
+
+func TestPaletteShiftTabCyclesBackwards(t *testing.T) {
+	p := newTestPalette()
+	// Shift-Tab via legacy CSI Z: All → Close
+	_, _, _ = p.handleInput([]byte("\x1b[Z"), 0)
+	if string(p.query) != "k " {
+		t.Fatalf("Shift-Tab: query %q, want %q", string(p.query), "k ")
+	}
+}
+
+func TestPaletteBackspaceThroughTrailingMacro(t *testing.T) {
+	p := newTestPalette()
+	p.query = []rune("sw ")
+	p.rebuild()
+	p.backspace()
+	if string(p.query) != "" {
+		t.Fatalf("backspace through 'sw ' left %q; want empty", string(p.query))
+	}
+}
+
+func TestPaletteMacroPreservesQueryCase(t *testing.T) {
+	// Tab cycling shouldn't downcase the user-typed search text.
+	p := newTestPalette()
+	p.query = []rune("Foo")
+	p.rebuild()
+	_, _, _ = p.handleInput([]byte{'\t'}, 0)
+	if string(p.query) != "sw Foo" {
+		t.Fatalf("query after Tab over 'Foo' = %q; want 'sw Foo'", string(p.query))
+	}
+}
+
+// -- Phase 4: scored matching ----------------------------------------
+
+func TestFuzzyScorePrefixBeatsBoundaryBeatsSubstring(t *testing.T) {
+	prefix, _ := fuzzyScore("spawn agent: foo", "", "spa")
+	boundary, _ := fuzzyScore("hello spam", "", "spa")
+	substring, _ := fuzzyScore("escapade", "", "spa")
+	if !(prefix > boundary && boundary > substring) {
+		t.Fatalf("score ordering wrong: prefix=%d boundary=%d substring=%d", prefix, boundary, substring)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestFuzzyScoreReturnsMatchPositions(t *testing.T) {
+	_, pos := fuzzyScore("spawn process: dev", "", "dev")
+	want := []int{15, 16, 17}
+	if len(pos) != len(want) {
+		t.Fatalf("positions = %v, want %v", pos, want)
+	}
+	for i, p := range pos {
+		if p != want[i] {
+			t.Fatalf("pos[%d] = %d, want %d (full %v)", i, p, want[i], pos)
+		}
+	}
+}
+
+func TestPaletteScoredResultsDropHeaders(t *testing.T) {
+	pr := []*preset.Preset{{Name: "claude"}, {Name: "codex"}}
+	p := newPalette(nil, "", "", preset.Set{Agents: pr})
+	// Type a needle that matches both.
+	p.query = []rune("c")
+	p.rebuild()
+	for _, it := range p.items {
+		if it.action.kind == "header" {
+			t.Fatalf("scored mode should not emit header rows; got %+v", it)
+		}
+	}
+}
+
+func TestPaletteScoringFloatsPrefixMatchToTop(t *testing.T) {
+	// "x" is a prefix of "xtest" preset; it's a scattered-fuzzy match
+	// against many other rows. Scoring should land the prefix match at
+	// the top regardless of group order.
+	pr := []*preset.Preset{
+		{Name: "alpha"},
+		{Name: "xtest"},
+		{Name: "beta"},
+	}
+	p := newPalette(nil, "", "", preset.Set{Agents: pr})
+	p.query = []rune("xt")
+	p.rebuild()
+	if len(p.items) == 0 {
+		t.Fatalf("no scored items for needle 'xt'")
+	}
+	if !strings.Contains(p.items[0].label, "xtest") {
+		t.Fatalf("expected xtest at top of scored list, got %q", p.items[0].label)
+	}
+}
+
+// -- Phase 5: power-user accelerators --------------------------------
+
+func TestPaletteCtrlXOnSwitchKills(t *testing.T) {
+	c := makeFakeChild("a", "claude", KindAgent)
+	p := newPalette([]*Child{c}, "", "", preset.Set{})
+	// Cursor should already be on the switch row (it's the first
+	// selectable item with no Focused section).
+	idx, _ := findItem(p, "switch")
+	if idx < 0 {
+		t.Fatalf("no switch item in palette")
+	}
+	p.cursor = idx
+	action, done, _ := p.handleInput([]byte{0x18}, 0)
+	if !done {
+		t.Fatalf("Ctrl-X on switch row didn't close palette: action=%+v", action)
+	}
+	if action.kind != "kill" || action.childID != "a" {
+		t.Fatalf("Ctrl-X action = %+v, want kill of 'a'", action)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestPaletteCtrlXOnNonSwitchIsNoOp(t *testing.T) {
+	p := newPalette(nil, "", "", preset.Set{})
+	// Cursor parks on Quit or Spawn entries — neither is a switch row.
+	_, done, _ := p.handleInput([]byte{0x18}, 0)
+	if done {
+		t.Fatalf("Ctrl-X on non-switch closed palette")
+	}
+}
+
+func TestPaletteHelpToggle(t *testing.T) {
+	p := newTestPalette()
+	// `?` with empty query opens help.
+	_, done, _ := p.handleInput([]byte("?"), 0)
+	if done {
+		t.Fatalf("? closed palette")
+	}
+	if !p.showHelp {
+		t.Fatalf("? didn't open help")
+	}
+	// Next keystroke dismisses.
+	_, _, _ = p.handleInput([]byte("a"), 0)
+	if p.showHelp {
+		t.Fatalf("help still showing after dismissing keystroke")
+	}
+}
+
+func TestPaletteHelpDoesNotInterceptInQuery(t *testing.T) {
+	p := newTestPalette()
+	p.query = []rune("dev")
+	p.rebuild()
+	_, _, _ = p.handleInput([]byte("?"), 0)
+	if p.showHelp {
+		t.Fatalf("? with non-empty query incorrectly opened help")
+	}
+	if string(p.query) != "dev?" {
+		t.Fatalf("? with non-empty query failed to append: %q", string(p.query))
+	}
+}
+
+func TestPaletteHomeEndJumpsOverHeaders(t *testing.T) {
+	pr := []*preset.Preset{{Name: "a"}, {Name: "b"}}
+	p := newPalette(nil, "", "", preset.Set{Agents: pr})
+	// End jumps to last selectable.
+	p.cursorEnd()
+	if p.items[p.cursor].action.kind == "header" {
+		t.Fatalf("End landed on header: %+v", p.items[p.cursor])
+	}
+	if p.items[p.cursor].action.kind != "quit" {
+		t.Fatalf("End on simple palette should park on Quit; got %+v", p.items[p.cursor])
+	}
+	// Home returns to first selectable.
+	p.cursorHome()
+	if p.items[p.cursor].action.kind == "header" {
+		t.Fatalf("Home landed on header: %+v", p.items[p.cursor])
+	}
+}
+
+func TestPaletteAltDigitQuickPick(t *testing.T) {
+	pr := []*preset.Preset{{Name: "first"}, {Name: "second"}}
+	p := newPalette(nil, "", "", preset.Set{Agents: pr})
+	// Alt-1 picks the first selectable item (Spawn agent: first).
+	action, done, adv := p.handleInput([]byte("\x1b1"), 0)
+	if adv != 2 {
+		t.Fatalf("Alt-1 advance %d, want 2", adv)
+	}
+	if !done {
+		t.Fatalf("Alt-1 didn't close palette")
+	}
+	if action.kind != "spawn-agent" || action.preset == nil || action.preset.Name != "first" {
+		t.Fatalf("Alt-1 action = %+v, want spawn-agent first", action)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestAutoSummaryCadenceCyclesSoloValues(t *testing.T) {
+	p := newPalette(nil, "", "", preset.Set{}, defaultSettings())
+	p.mode = paletteModeAutoSummary
+	for i, row := range autoSummaryRows() {
+		if row.key == "cadence" {
+			p.cursor = i
+			break
+		}
+	}
+	if p.settings.AutoSummary.Cadence != "1m" {
+		t.Fatalf("initial cadence = %q", p.settings.AutoSummary.Cadence)
+	}
+	action, done, _ := p.activateAutoSummaryRow()
+	if done || action.kind != "settings-save" {
+		t.Fatalf("first cycle action = %+v done=%v, want settings-save without close", action, done)
+	}
+	if p.settings.AutoSummary.Cadence != "15s" {
+		t.Fatalf("first cycle cadence = %q", p.settings.AutoSummary.Cadence)
+	}
+	action, done, _ = p.activateAutoSummaryRow()
+	if done || action.kind != "settings-save" {
+		t.Fatalf("second cycle action = %+v done=%v, want settings-save without close", action, done)
+	}
+	if p.settings.AutoSummary.Cadence != "30s" {
+		t.Fatalf("second cycle cadence = %q", p.settings.AutoSummary.Cadence)
+	}
+	action, done, _ = p.activateAutoSummaryRow()
+	if done || action.kind != "settings-save" {
+		t.Fatalf("third cycle action = %+v done=%v, want settings-save without close", action, done)
+	}
+	if p.settings.AutoSummary.Cadence != "1m" {
+		t.Fatalf("third cycle cadence = %q", p.settings.AutoSummary.Cadence)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestAutoSummaryScreenOmitsExplicitSaveCancelBackRows(t *testing.T) {
+	omitted := map[string]bool{
+		"Save settings":    true,
+		"Cancel":           true,
+		"Back to Settings": true,
+	}
+	for _, row := range autoSummaryRows() {
+		if omitted[row.label] {
+			t.Fatalf("auto-summary settings should not show %q", row.label)
+		}
+	}
+}
+
+func TestAutoSummaryRenderOmitsStaleSettingsHelp(t *testing.T) {
+	p := newPalette(nil, "", "", preset.Set{}, defaultSettings())
+	p.mode = paletteModeAutoSummary
+	var b bytes.Buffer
+	p.renderAutoSummary(wrapWriter(&b), 100, 30)
+	out := b.String()
+	for _, text := range []string{
+		"Save settings",
+		"Cancel",
+		"Back to Settings",
+		"changes save",
+		"applies immediately",
+	} {
+		if strings.Contains(out, text) {
+			t.Fatalf("auto-summary render should not contain %q:\n%s", text, out)
+		}
+	}
+}
+
+func TestAutoSummaryValueRowsStyleLabelAndValueSeparately(t *testing.T) {
+	p := newPalette(nil, "", "", preset.Set{}, defaultSettings())
+	rows := p.autoSummaryDisplayRows()
+	for _, row := range rows {
+		if strings.Contains(row, "Cadence:") {
+			if !strings.HasPrefix(row, styleHint+"Cadence:"+styleReset+" ") {
+				t.Fatalf("cadence row styling = %q", row)
+			}
+			if strings.Contains(strings.TrimPrefix(row, styleHint+"Cadence:"+styleReset+" "), styleHint) {
+				t.Fatalf("cadence value should use regular text styling: %q", row)
+			}
+			return
+		}
+	}
+	t.Fatal("missing cadence display row")
+}
+
+func TestAutoSummaryTextInputSavesWhenSubmitted(t *testing.T) {
+	p := newPalette(nil, "", "", preset.Set{}, defaultSettings())
+	p.mode = paletteModeSettingsInput
+	p.settingsInput = &settingsInputForm{
+		title: "codex model",
+		field: "codex_model",
+		value: []rune("custom-model"),
+	}
+	action, done, _ := p.handleSettingsTextInput([]byte{'\r'}, 0)
+	if done || action.kind != "settings-save" {
+		t.Fatalf("submit action = %+v done=%v, want settings-save without close", action, done)
+	}
+	if got := p.settings.AutoSummary.modelFor("codex"); got != "custom-model" {
+		t.Fatalf("codex model = %q", got)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestPaletteFormCtrlRTogglesRelaunchFromCommandField(t *testing.T) {
+	p := newPalette(nil, "", "", preset.Set{})
+	p.mode = paletteModeSpawnForm
+	p.form = &spawnProcessForm{}
+	// Type without leaving the command field, then Ctrl-R.
+	for _, b := range []byte("xyz") {
+		_, _, _ = p.handleInput([]byte{b}, 0)
+	}
+	if p.form.field != 0 {
+		t.Fatalf("field jumped to %d", p.form.field)
+	}
+	_, _, _ = p.handleInput([]byte{0x12}, 0)
+	if !p.form.relaunch {
+		t.Fatalf("Ctrl-R didn't toggle relaunch from command field")
+	}
+	// Second press toggles back.
+	_, _, _ = p.handleInput([]byte{0x12}, 0)
+	if p.form.relaunch {
+		t.Fatalf("second Ctrl-R didn't toggle off")
+	}
+}
+
+// -- Phase 6: counter / scroll indicator -----------------------------
+
+func TestPaletteFooterCounter(t *testing.T) {
+	pr := []*preset.Preset{{Name: "a"}, {Name: "b"}, {Name: "c"}}
+	p := newPalette(nil, "", "", preset.Set{Agents: pr})
+	total := p.visibleSelectableCount()
+	if total < 4 { // 3 spawn-agents + terminal + custom + quit
+		t.Fatalf("expected ≥4 selectables; got %d", total)
+	}
+	idx := p.selectableIndex()
+	if idx <= 0 {
+		t.Fatalf("selectable index = %d on freshly-built palette; want ≥1", idx)
+	}
+}
--- a/internal/app/ring_test.go
+++ b/internal/app/ring_test.go
@@ -104,3 +104,44 @@ func TestStripANSIBytesEquivalence(t *testing.T) {
 		}
 	}
 }
+
+func TestNormalizeGridText(t *testing.T) {
+	cases := []struct {
+		name string
+		in   string
+		want string
+	}{
+		{
+			name: "line endings",
+			in:   "one\r\ntwo\rthree",
+			want: "one\ntwo\nthree",
+		},
+		{
+			name: "trailing whitespace",
+			in:   "one   \ntwo\t\t\nthree",
+			want: "one\ntwo\nthree",
+		},
+		{
+			name: "collapse blank runs",
+			in:   "one\n\n\n two\n \n\t\nthree",
+			want: "one\n\n two\n\nthree",
+		},
+		{
+			name: "trim leading and trailing blanks",
+			in:   "\n \n\t\none\n\n",
+			want: "one",
+		},
+		{
+			name: "already clean",
+			in:   "one\n\ntwo\nthree",
+			want: "one\n\ntwo\nthree",
+		},
+	}
+	for _, tc := range cases {
+		t.Run(tc.name, func(t *testing.T) {
+			if got := normalizeGridText(tc.in); got != tc.want {
+				t.Fatalf("normalizeGridText(%q) = %q, want %q", tc.in, got, tc.want)
+			}
+		})
+	}
+}
--- a/internal/app/scratchpad_delete_test.go
+++ b/internal/app/scratchpad_delete_test.go
@@ -0,0 +1,137 @@
+package app
+
+import (
+	"errors"
+	"io"
+	"os"
+	"testing"
+
+	"github.com/hjbdev/patterm/internal/preset"
+	"github.com/hjbdev/patterm/internal/scratchpad"
+)
+
+func silenceStdout(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Helper()
+	old := os.Stdout
+	r, w, err := os.Pipe()
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("pipe stdout: %v", err)
+	}
+	done := make(chan struct{})
+	go func() {
+		_, _ = io.Copy(io.Discard, r)
+		close(done)
+	}()
+	os.Stdout = w
+	t.Cleanup(func() {
+		os.Stdout = old
+		_ = w.Close()
+		<-done
+		_ = r.Close()
+	})
+}
+
+func newScratchpadDeleteTestState(t *testing.T) (*uiState, *scratchpad.Store) {
+	t.Helper()
+	t.Setenv("XDG_DATA_HOME", t.TempDir())
+	pads, err := scratchpad.Open("scratchpad-delete-test")
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("scratchpad.Open: %v", err)
+	}
+	sess := NewSession(t.TempDir(), "scratchpad-delete-test")
+	t.Cleanup(sess.Shutdown)
+	st := &uiState{
+		sess:       sess,
+		pads:       pads,
+		hostCols:   120,
+		hostRows:   40,
+		chromeWake: make(chan struct{}, 1),
+	}
+	return st, pads
+}
+
+func TestDeletingFocusedScratchpadFocusesAnotherPad(t *testing.T) {
+	silenceStdout(t)
+	st, pads := newScratchpadDeleteTestState(t)
+	if _, err := pads.Write("alpha.md", "alpha", ""); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("write alpha: %v", err)
+	}
+	if _, err := pads.Write("beta.md", "beta", ""); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("write beta: %v", err)
+	}
+	st.focusedPad = "alpha.md"
+	st.focusedName = "alpha.md"
+	st.padOffsetName = "alpha.md"
+	st.padOffset = 3
+
+	st.handlePadDelete("alpha.md")
+
+	if st.focusedPad != "beta.md" {
+		t.Fatalf("focusedPad = %q, want beta.md", st.focusedPad)
+	}
+	if st.focusedID != "" {
+		t.Fatalf("focusedID = %q, want empty while another pad is focused", st.focusedID)
+	}
+	if st.padOffset != 0 || st.padOffsetName != "beta.md" {
+		t.Fatalf("pad offset = (%q,%d), want (beta.md,0)", st.padOffsetName, st.padOffset)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestDeletingLastFocusedScratchpadFocusesRunningChild(t *testing.T) {
+	silenceStdout(t)
+	st, pads := newScratchpadDeleteTestState(t)
+	if _, err := pads.Write("only.md", "only", ""); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("write only: %v", err)
+	}
+	child := makeFakeChild("pid", "devserver", KindCommand)
+	addChild(st.sess, child)
+	st.focusedPad = "only.md"
+	st.focusedName = "only.md"
+
+	st.handlePadDelete("only.md")
+
+	if st.focusedPad != "" {
+		t.Fatalf("focusedPad = %q, want empty after falling back to child", st.focusedPad)
+	}
+	if st.focusedID != "pid" {
+		t.Fatalf("focusedID = %q, want pid", st.focusedID)
+	}
+}
+
+type scratchpadChangeRecorder struct {
+	count int
+}
+
+func (r *scratchpadChangeRecorder) scratchpadsChanged() {
+	r.count++
+}
+
+func TestToolHostScratchpadDeleteRemovesPadAndRefreshes(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Setenv("XDG_DATA_HOME", t.TempDir())
+	pads, err := scratchpad.Open("scratchpad-delete-host-test")
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("scratchpad.Open: %v", err)
+	}
+	if _, err := pads.Write("doomed.md", "content", ""); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("write doomed.md: %v", err)
+	}
+	recorder := &scratchpadChangeRecorder{}
+	host := newToolHost(nil, pads, nil, preset.Set{}, nil, 120, 40)
+	host.scratch = recorder
+
+	if err := host.ScratchpadDelete("doomed.md"); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("ScratchpadDelete: %v", err)
+	}
+	if recorder.count != 1 {
+		t.Fatalf("scratchpadsChanged calls = %d, want 1", recorder.count)
+	}
+	if _, _, err := pads.Read("doomed.md"); !errors.Is(err, os.ErrNotExist) {
+		t.Fatalf("read deleted pad error = %v, want os.ErrNotExist", err)
+	}
+	if err := host.ScratchpadDelete("doomed.md"); !errors.Is(err, os.ErrNotExist) {
+		t.Fatalf("delete missing error = %v, want os.ErrNotExist", err)
+	}
+	if recorder.count != 1 {
+		t.Fatalf("scratchpadsChanged calls after failed delete = %d, want 1", recorder.count)
+	}
+}
--- a/internal/app/session.go
+++ b/internal/app/session.go
@@ -91,6 +91,12 @@ type ChildEventListener interface {
 	// updates a child's IdleState. Listeners use this to repaint the
 	// sidebar badge and to evaluate idle-aware timers.
 	OnChildStateChanged(childID string, state IdleState)
+	// OnChildClosed fires when a child is being removed from the
+	// session (either via close_process, or — for agent/terminal
+	// kinds — when the PTY exits and the entry will never be
+	// restarted). It signals that any pending references to childID
+	// (e.g. timers owned by or watching it) should be dropped.
+	OnChildClosed(childID string)
 }

 func NewSession(projectDir, projectKey string) *Session {
@@ -167,6 +173,12 @@ func (s *Session) emitStateChanged(id string, state IdleState) {
 	}
 }

+func (s *Session) emitClosed(id string) {
+	for _, l := range s.listenersSnapshot() {
+		l.OnChildClosed(id)
+	}
+}
+
 func (s *Session) ChildEnv() []string {
 	env := os.Environ()
 	// Mark patterm-owned PTYs so a recursive `patterm` invocation can
@@ -374,10 +386,29 @@ func (s *Session) Close(id string, sig syscall.Signal) error {
 		}
 	}
 	s.mu.Unlock()
+	// Notify listeners outside s.mu so they can take their own locks
+	// without inversion. Timer manager uses this to drop pending
+	// timers owned by or watching the closed child — otherwise the
+	// next classifier tick can deliver a stale fire to the parent.
+	s.emitClosed(id)
 	s.forgetPersisted(id)
 	return nil
 }

+// Terminate stops a live child with SIGTERM/SIGKILL escalation but
+// leaves its session entry intact so callers can keep showing the
+// exited pane.
+func (s *Session) Terminate(id string, sig syscall.Signal) error {
+	c := s.FindChild(id)
+	if c == nil {
+		return fmt.Errorf("no such process %q", id)
+	}
+	if c.IsLive() {
+		terminateAndWait(c, sig, childStopTimeout)
+	}
+	return nil
+}
+
 // mintUniqueIDLocked mints an opaque process_id (SPEC §7) and retries
 // if it collides with an existing entry. Caller holds s.mu.
 func (s *Session) mintUniqueIDLocked() string {
@@ -486,6 +517,7 @@ func (s *Session) reapChild(c *Child, runID uint64) {
 			}
 		}
 		s.mu.Unlock()
+		s.emitClosed(c.ID)
 	}
 }

--- a/internal/app/session_test.go
+++ b/internal/app/session_test.go
@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 package app

 import (
+	"strings"
 	"syscall"
 	"testing"
 	"time"
@@ -101,6 +102,50 @@ func TestSpawnInstallsIdleDetectionBeforePublish(t *testing.T) {
 	}
 }

+func TestTerminateEscalatesWithoutRemovingEntry(t *testing.T) {
+	sess := NewSession(t.TempDir(), "test")
+	c, err := sess.Spawn(SpawnSpec{
+		Kind: KindAgent,
+		Argv: []string{"sh", "-c", "trap '' TERM; echo ready; while :; do sleep 1; done"},
+	}, 80, 24)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("spawn: %v", err)
+	}
+	t.Cleanup(func() {
+		if c.IsLive() {
+			_ = c.signal(syscall.SIGKILL)
+		}
+	})
+	waitUntilLive(t, c)
+	waitForStreamText(t, c, "ready")
+
+	start := time.Now()
+	if err := sess.Terminate(c.ID, syscall.SIGTERM); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("Terminate: %v", err)
+	}
+	if elapsed := time.Since(start); elapsed < childStopTimeout {
+		t.Fatalf("Terminate returned before SIGKILL fallback: elapsed=%s timeout=%s", elapsed, childStopTimeout)
+	}
+	waitUntilNotLive(t, c)
+
+	if got := sess.FindChild(c.ID); got == nil {
+		t.Fatalf("Terminate removed child entry %s", c.ID)
+	}
+}
+
+func waitForStreamText(t *testing.T, c *Child, want string) {
+	t.Helper()
+	deadline := time.Now().Add(5 * time.Second)
+	for time.Now().Before(deadline) {
+		b, _ := c.StreamRead(0)
+		if strings.Contains(string(b), want) {
+			return
+		}
+		time.Sleep(20 * time.Millisecond)
+	}
+	t.Fatalf("child %s never wrote %q", c.ID, want)
+}
+
 func waitUntilLive(t *testing.T, c *Child) {
 	t.Helper()
 	deadline := time.Now().Add(5 * time.Second)
--- a/internal/app/settings.go
+++ b/internal/app/settings.go
@@ -0,0 +1,150 @@
+package app
+
+import (
+	"encoding/json"
+	"fmt"
+	"os"
+	"path/filepath"
+
+	"github.com/hjbdev/patterm/internal/preset"
+)
+
+const (
+	defaultSummaryProvider = "codex"
+	defaultCodexModel      = "gpt-5.4-mini"
+	defaultOpenCodeModel   = "opencode-go/minimax-m2.7"
+	defaultClaudeModel     = "claude-haiku-4-5"
+)
+
+type settings struct {
+	AutoSummary autoSummarySettings `json:"auto_summary"`
+}
+
+type autoSummarySettings struct {
+	Enabled         bool              `json:"enabled"`
+	Provider        string            `json:"provider"`
+	Models          map[string]string `json:"models"`
+	Cadence         string            `json:"cadence"`
+	QuietWindowMS   int               `json:"quiet_window_ms"`
+	MinInputChars   int               `json:"min_input_chars"`
+	MaxHistoryChars int               `json:"max_history_chars"`
+}
+
+func defaultSettings() settings {
+	return settings{
+		AutoSummary: autoSummarySettings{
+			Enabled:         true,
+			Provider:        defaultSummaryProvider,
+			Models:          defaultSummaryModels(),
+			Cadence:         "1m",
+			QuietWindowMS:   3000,
+			MinInputChars:   4,
+			MaxHistoryChars: 12000,
+		},
+	}
+}
+
+func defaultSummaryModels() map[string]string {
+	return map[string]string{
+		"codex":    defaultCodexModel,
+		"opencode": defaultOpenCodeModel,
+		"claude":   defaultClaudeModel,
+	}
+}
+
+func loadSettings() (settings, string, error) {
+	base, err := preset.ConfigDir()
+	if err != nil {
+		return settings{}, "", err
+	}
+	path := filepath.Join(base, "settings.json")
+	st := defaultSettings()
+	b, err := os.ReadFile(path)
+	if err != nil {
+		if os.IsNotExist(err) {
+			return st, path, nil
+		}
+		return st, path, fmt.Errorf("settings: read %s: %w", path, err)
+	}
+	if err := json.Unmarshal(b, &st); err != nil {
+		return defaultSettings(), path, fmt.Errorf("settings: parse %s: %w", path, err)
+	}
+	st.normalize()
+	return st, path, nil
+}
+
+func saveSettings(path string, st settings) error {
+	if path == "" {
+		return fmt.Errorf("settings: empty path")
+	}
+	st.normalize()
+	if err := os.MkdirAll(filepath.Dir(path), 0o700); err != nil {
+		return err
+	}
+	b, err := json.MarshalIndent(st, "", "  ")
+	if err != nil {
+		return err
+	}
+	b = append(b, '\n')
+	return os.WriteFile(path, b, 0o600)
+}
+
+func (st *settings) normalize() {
+	def := defaultSettings()
+	if st.AutoSummary.Provider == "" {
+		st.AutoSummary.Provider = def.AutoSummary.Provider
+	}
+	switch st.AutoSummary.Provider {
+	case "codex", "opencode", "claude":
+	default:
+		st.AutoSummary.Provider = def.AutoSummary.Provider
+	}
+	if st.AutoSummary.Models == nil {
+		st.AutoSummary.Models = defaultSummaryModels()
+	} else {
+		for k, v := range defaultSummaryModels() {
+			if st.AutoSummary.Models[k] == "" {
+				st.AutoSummary.Models[k] = v
+			}
+		}
+	}
+	if st.AutoSummary.Cadence == "" {
+		st.AutoSummary.Cadence = def.AutoSummary.Cadence
+	}
+	if st.AutoSummary.QuietWindowMS <= 0 {
+		st.AutoSummary.QuietWindowMS = def.AutoSummary.QuietWindowMS
+	}
+	if st.AutoSummary.MinInputChars <= 0 {
+		st.AutoSummary.MinInputChars = def.AutoSummary.MinInputChars
+	}
+	if st.AutoSummary.MaxHistoryChars <= 0 {
+		st.AutoSummary.MaxHistoryChars = def.AutoSummary.MaxHistoryChars
+	}
+}
+
+func (st settings) clone() settings {
+	st.normalize()
+	if st.AutoSummary.Models != nil {
+		models := make(map[string]string, len(st.AutoSummary.Models))
+		for k, v := range st.AutoSummary.Models {
+			models[k] = v
+		}
+		st.AutoSummary.Models = models
+	}
+	return st
+}
+
+func (a autoSummarySettings) clone() autoSummarySettings {
+	st := settings{AutoSummary: a}.clone()
+	return st.AutoSummary
+}
+
+func (a autoSummarySettings) modelFor(provider string) string {
+	if a.Models == nil {
+		return defaultSummaryModels()[provider]
+	}
+	if m := a.Models[provider]; m != "" {
+		return m
+	}
+	return defaultSummaryModels()[provider]
+}
--- a/internal/app/settings_test.go
+++ b/internal/app/settings_test.go
@@ -0,0 +1,72 @@
+package app
+
+import (
+	"os"
+	"path/filepath"
+	"testing"
+)
+
+func TestLoadSettingsDefaults(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Setenv("XDG_CONFIG_HOME", t.TempDir())
+	st, path, err := loadSettings()
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("loadSettings: %v", err)
+	}
+	if filepath.Base(path) != "settings.json" {
+		t.Fatalf("settings path = %q", path)
+	}
+	if !st.AutoSummary.Enabled {
+		t.Fatal("auto-summary should default enabled")
+	}
+	if st.AutoSummary.Provider != "codex" {
+		t.Fatalf("provider = %q want codex", st.AutoSummary.Provider)
+	}
+	if st.AutoSummary.Cadence != "1m" {
+		t.Fatalf("cadence = %q want 1m", st.AutoSummary.Cadence)
+	}
+	if got := st.AutoSummary.modelFor("codex"); got != "gpt-5.4-mini" {
+		t.Fatalf("codex model = %q", got)
+	}
+	if got := st.AutoSummary.modelFor("opencode"); got != "opencode-go/minimax-m2.7" {
+		t.Fatalf("opencode model = %q", got)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestSettingsCloneDoesNotShareModelMap(t *testing.T) {
+	st := defaultSettings()
+	cp := st.clone()
+	cp.AutoSummary.Models["codex"] = "changed"
+	if st.AutoSummary.Models["codex"] == "changed" {
+		t.Fatal("clone shared Models map with original")
+	}
+	a := st.AutoSummary.clone()
+	a.Models["opencode"] = "changed"
+	if st.AutoSummary.Models["opencode"] == "changed" {
+		t.Fatal("autoSummarySettings clone shared Models map with original")
+	}
+}
+
+func TestSaveAndLoadSettings(t *testing.T) {
+	dir := t.TempDir()
+	t.Setenv("XDG_CONFIG_HOME", dir)
+	st := defaultSettings()
+	st.AutoSummary.Provider = "opencode"
+	st.AutoSummary.Models["opencode"] = "minimax/test"
+	path := filepath.Join(dir, "patterm", "settings.json")
+	if err := saveSettings(path, st); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("saveSettings: %v", err)
+	}
+	if _, err := os.Stat(path); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("settings file missing: %v", err)
+	}
+	got, _, err := loadSettings()
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("loadSettings: %v", err)
+	}
+	if got.AutoSummary.Provider != "opencode" {
+		t.Fatalf("provider = %q", got.AutoSummary.Provider)
+	}
+	if got.AutoSummary.modelFor("opencode") != "minimax/test" {
+		t.Fatalf("opencode model = %q", got.AutoSummary.modelFor("opencode"))
+	}
+}
--- a/internal/app/sidebar.go
+++ b/internal/app/sidebar.go
@@ -12,6 +12,128 @@ const (
 	statusRows  = 1
 )

+// fitName returns name truncated to fit budget visible cells, with a
+// trailing "…" when it overflows. Operates on RAW (unstyled) input;
+// the caller wraps the result in SGR. Returns "" when budget <= 0.
+func fitName(name string, budget int) string {
+	if budget <= 0 {
+		return ""
+	}
+	runes := []rune(name)
+	if len(runes) <= budget {
+		return name
+	}
+	if budget == 1 {
+		return "…"
+	}
+	return string(runes[:budget-1]) + "…"
+}
+
+// marqueeWindow returns the window of name starting at offset, exactly
+// budget cells wide. Pre: caller has decided the name overflows budget
+// and offset is in [0, len([]rune(name))-budget]. Operates on RAW
+// (unstyled) input.
+func marqueeWindow(name string, budget, offset int) string {
+	if budget <= 0 {
+		return ""
+	}
+	runes := []rune(name)
+	if len(runes) <= budget {
+		return name
+	}
+	if offset < 0 {
+		offset = 0
+	}
+	end := offset + budget
+	if end > len(runes) {
+		end = len(runes)
+		offset = end - budget
+		if offset < 0 {
+			offset = 0
+		}
+	}
+	return string(runes[offset:end])
+}
+
+// clampVisible truncates s so that its visible (non-SGR) length is at
+// most width cells, preserving any active style by appending a reset.
+// Used as a defensive net by write() so a row whose decoration was
+// mis-sized still cannot spill past the sidebar band into the PTY area.
+func clampVisible(s string, width int) string {
+	if width <= 0 {
+		return ""
+	}
+	if visibleLen(s) <= width {
+		return s
+	}
+	var b strings.Builder
+	b.Grow(len(s))
+	visible := 0
+	inEsc := false
+	for _, r := range s {
+		if inEsc {
+			b.WriteRune(r)
+			if r == 'm' || r == 'H' {
+				inEsc = false
+			}
+			continue
+		}
+		if r == 0x1b {
+			inEsc = true
+			b.WriteRune(r)
+			continue
+		}
+		if visible >= width {
+			break
+		}
+		b.WriteRune(r)
+		visible++
+	}
+	b.WriteString(styleReset)
+	return b.String()
+}
+
+// chooseSidebarSuffix decides whether to keep or drop the trailing
+// timer indicator from a sidebar row's suffix. When the row's name
+// would have to ellipsise with the timer present, but the budget
+// freed by dropping the timer still leaves at least 6 cells for the
+// name, the timer is dropped. The name is the only identifier the
+// user has for that row; the timer is recoverable from the status
+// line and palette.
+func chooseSidebarSuffix(nameRuneLen, width int, prefix, suffix, timer string) (string, int) {
+	prefixCost := visibleLen(prefix)
+	budget := width - prefixCost - visibleLen(suffix)
+	if nameRuneLen <= budget || timer == "" {
+		return suffix, budget
+	}
+	slim := strings.TrimSuffix(suffix, timer)
+	if slim == suffix {
+		return suffix, budget
+	}
+	slimBudget := width - prefixCost - visibleLen(slim)
+	if slimBudget >= 6 {
+		return slim, slimBudget
+	}
+	return suffix, budget
+}
+
+// rowNameSlot returns the unstyled name cell for a sidebar row.
+// Unfocused (or focused-and-fitting) rows get fitName with a trailing
+// "…" on overflow. The focused row, when its name overflows the
+// budget, gets the current marquee window — exactly budget cells
+// wide so the surrounding row geometry stays put while it animates.
+func (st *uiState) rowNameSlot(id, rawName string, budget int, focused bool) string {
+	if budget <= 0 {
+		return ""
+	}
+	runes := []rune(rawName)
+	if !focused || len(runes) <= budget {
+		return fitName(rawName, budget)
+	}
+	off, _, _ := st.marquee.step(id, len(runes), budget, time.Now())
+	return marqueeWindow(rawName, budget, off)
+}
+
 // formatShortDuration renders a duration as a short, sidebar-friendly
 // suffix: ms under 1s, "12s" under 60s, "3m" otherwise.
 func formatShortDuration(d time.Duration) string {
@@ -73,6 +195,9 @@ func (st *uiState) drawSidebar() {
 		if row > maxRow {
 			return
 		}
+		if visibleLen(content) > width {
+			content = clampVisible(content, width)
+		}
 		pad := width - visibleLen(content)
 		if pad < 0 {
 			pad = 0
@@ -154,14 +279,19 @@ func (st *uiState) drawSidebar() {
 		if c.AutoRestart() {
 			marker = " " + styleDim + "⟳" + styleReset
 		}
-		var line string
+		timer := timerIndicator(c)
+		var prefix, openStyle string
 		if focused {
-			line = " " + styleAccent + "▎" + styleReset + " " + glyph + " " +
-				styleBold + c.DisplayName() + styleReset + marker + timerIndicator(c)
+			prefix = " " + styleAccent + "▎" + styleReset + " " + glyph + " "
+			openStyle = styleBold
 		} else {
-			line = "   " + glyph + " " + styleHint + c.DisplayName() + styleReset + marker + timerIndicator(c)
+			prefix = "   " + glyph + " "
+			openStyle = styleHint
 		}
-		write(line)
+		raw := c.DisplayName()
+		suffix, budget := chooseSidebarSuffix(len([]rune(raw)), width, prefix, marker+timer, timer)
+		nameCell := st.rowNameSlot(c.ID, raw, budget, focused)
+		write(prefix + openStyle + nameCell + styleReset + suffix)
 	}

 	// Agent Tree section — formerly "Session tree". Shows the active
@@ -186,14 +316,29 @@ func (st *uiState) drawSidebar() {
 		}
 		focused := c.ID == focus
 		glyph := statusGlyph(c, focused)
-		var line string
+		timer := timerIndicator(c)
+		var prefix, openStyle string
 		if focused {
-			line = " " + styleAccent + "▎" + styleReset + " " + indent + glyph + " " +
-				styleBold + c.DisplayName() + styleReset + timerIndicator(c)
+			prefix = " " + styleAccent + "▎" + styleReset + " " + indent + glyph + " "
+			openStyle = styleBold
 		} else {
-			line = "   " + indent + glyph + " " + styleHint + c.DisplayName() + styleReset + timerIndicator(c)
+			prefix = "   " + indent + glyph + " "
+			openStyle = styleHint
+		}
+		raw := c.DisplayName()
+		suffix, budget := chooseSidebarSuffix(len([]rune(raw)), width, prefix, timer, timer)
+		nameCell := st.rowNameSlot(c.ID, raw, budget, focused)
+		write(prefix + openStyle + nameCell + styleReset + suffix)
+	}
+
+	if summary := st.activeSummaryRaw(); summary != "" && row+2 <= maxRow {
+		write("")
+		for _, line := range wrapSidebarSummary(summary, width-4) {
+			if row > maxRow {
+				break
+			}
+			write("   " + styleDim + line + styleReset)
 		}
-		write(line)
 	}

 	// Scratchpads list — names only. The preview pane used to live
@@ -212,14 +357,18 @@ func (st *uiState) drawSidebar() {
 					if row > maxRow {
 						break
 					}
-					var line string
-					if e.Name == focusPad {
-						line = " " + styleAccent + "▎" + styleReset + " " +
-							styleBold + e.Name + styleReset
+					focused := e.Name == focusPad
+					var prefix, openStyle string
+					if focused {
+						prefix = " " + styleAccent + "▎" + styleReset + " "
+						openStyle = styleBold
 					} else {
-						line = "   " + styleHint + e.Name + styleReset
+						prefix = "   "
+						openStyle = styleHint
 					}
-					write(line)
+					budget := width - visibleLen(prefix)
+					nameCell := st.rowNameSlot("pad:"+e.Name, e.Name, budget, focused)
+					write(prefix + openStyle + nameCell + styleReset)
 				}
 			}
 		}
@@ -251,3 +400,48 @@ func (st *uiState) drawSidebar() {
 	fmt.Fprintf(os.Stdout, "\x1b7%s\x1b8", frame)
 	st.outMu.Unlock()
 }
+
+func wrapSidebarSummary(s string, width int) []string {
+	if width < 1 {
+		width = 1
+	}
+	words := strings.Fields(s)
+	if len(words) == 0 {
+		return nil
+	}
+	var out []string
+	var cur string
+	for _, word := range words {
+		if visibleLen(word) > width {
+			if cur != "" {
+				out = append(out, cur)
+				cur = ""
+			}
+			for visibleLen(word) > width {
+				out = append(out, clipRunes(word, width))
+				word = string([]rune(word)[width:])
+			}
+			if word != "" {
+				cur = word
+			}
+			continue
+		}
+		if cur == "" {
+			cur = word
+			continue
+		}
+		if visibleLen(cur)+1+visibleLen(word) <= width {
+			cur += " " + word
+			continue
+		}
+		out = append(out, cur)
+		cur = word
+	}
+	if cur != "" {
+		out = append(out, cur)
+	}
+	if len(out) > 3 {
+		out = out[:3]
+	}
+	return out
+}
--- a/internal/app/spawn_focus_test.go
+++ b/internal/app/spawn_focus_test.go
@@ -0,0 +1,46 @@
+package app
+
+import (
+	"testing"
+)
+
+// TestOnChildSpawnedAgentChildKeepsFocus verifies that when a child is
+// spawned with a ParentID set (i.e. a patterm-managed agent caused the
+// spawn over MCP), OnChildSpawned does NOT steal viewport focus from
+// the currently focused child.
+func TestOnChildSpawnedAgentChildKeepsFocus(t *testing.T) {
+	sess := NewSession(t.TempDir(), "test")
+	st := &uiState{sess: sess}
+
+	parent := newChildEntry("p_parent", "parent", KindAgent, nil, nil, "", "", "")
+	st.focusedID = parent.ID
+	st.focusedName = parent.Name
+
+	subAgent := newChildEntry("p_sub", "sub", KindAgent, nil, nil, parent.ID, "", "")
+
+	st.OnChildSpawned(subAgent)
+
+	if got := st.focusedID; got != parent.ID {
+		t.Fatalf("agent-initiated spawn should not change focusedID: want %q, got %q", parent.ID, got)
+	}
+	if got := st.focusedName; got != parent.Name {
+		t.Fatalf("focusedName changed: want %q, got %q", parent.Name, got)
+	}
+}
+
+// TestOnChildSpawnedPaletteChildTakesFocus verifies the legacy path is
+// preserved: spawns with an empty ParentID (palette, restore, external
+// MCP caller) still auto-focus the new child.
+func TestOnChildSpawnedPaletteChildTakesFocus(t *testing.T) {
+	sess := NewSession(t.TempDir(), "test")
+	st := &uiState{sess: sess}
+	st.lastExit.Store(-1)
+
+	c := newChildEntry("p_new", "newchild", KindAgent, nil, nil, "", "", "")
+
+	st.OnChildSpawned(c)
+
+	if got := st.focusedID; got != c.ID {
+		t.Fatalf("palette-initiated spawn should auto-focus: want %q, got %q", c.ID, got)
+	}
+}
--- a/internal/app/summarizer.go
+++ b/internal/app/summarizer.go
@@ -0,0 +1,463 @@
+package app
+
+import (
+	"bytes"
+	"context"
+	"encoding/json"
+	"fmt"
+	"os/exec"
+	"strings"
+	"sync"
+	"time"
+	"unicode"
+
+	"github.com/hjbdev/patterm/internal/preset"
+)
+
+const (
+	summaryTickInterval = time.Second
+	summaryTimeout      = 90 * time.Second
+	summaryMaxLineCells = 240
+)
+
+type summaryState struct {
+	Text      string
+	State     IdleState
+	UpdatedAt time.Time
+	Error     string
+}
+
+type summaryManager struct {
+	sess       *Session
+	projectDir string
+	presets    preset.Set
+	settings   func() autoSummarySettings
+	onUpdate   func()
+	onResult   func(string, summaryState)
+
+	mu      sync.Mutex
+	tracked map[string]bool
+	entries map[string]*summaryEntry
+}
+
+type summaryEntry struct {
+	armed          bool
+	dirty          bool
+	running        bool
+	lastInputAt    time.Time
+	lastOutputAt   time.Time
+	lastAttemptAt  time.Time
+	lastSummarized int64
+	state          summaryState
+}
+
+type summarizerResponse struct {
+	Summary string `json:"summary"`
+	State   string `json:"state"`
+}
+
+func newSummaryManager(sess *Session, projectDir string, presets preset.Set, settingsFn func() autoSummarySettings, onUpdate func(), onResult func(string, summaryState)) *summaryManager {
+	return &summaryManager{
+		sess:       sess,
+		projectDir: projectDir,
+		presets:    presets,
+		settings:   settingsFn,
+		onUpdate:   onUpdate,
+		onResult:   onResult,
+		tracked:    make(map[string]bool),
+		entries:    make(map[string]*summaryEntry),
+	}
+}
+
+func (m *summaryManager) run(ctx context.Context) {
+	ticker := time.NewTicker(summaryTickInterval)
+	defer ticker.Stop()
+	for {
+		select {
+		case <-ctx.Done():
+			return
+		case <-ticker.C:
+			m.maybeStart(ctx, time.Now())
+		}
+	}
+}
+
+func (m *summaryManager) ObserveHumanInput(childID string, b []byte) {
+	if m == nil || !m.isTracked(childID) {
+		return
+	}
+	cfg := m.settings()
+	if len(strings.TrimSpace(string(b))) < cfg.MinInputChars {
+		return
+	}
+	m.mu.Lock()
+	e := m.entryLocked(childID)
+	e.armed = true
+	e.lastInputAt = time.Now()
+	m.mu.Unlock()
+}
+
+func (m *summaryManager) ObserveOutput(childID string) {
+	if m == nil || !m.isTracked(childID) {
+		return
+	}
+	m.mu.Lock()
+	e := m.entryLocked(childID)
+	if e.armed {
+		e.dirty = true
+		e.lastOutputAt = time.Now()
+	}
+	m.mu.Unlock()
+}
+
+func (m *summaryManager) RegisterChild(c *Child) {
+	if m == nil || c == nil {
+		return
+	}
+	m.mu.Lock()
+	defer m.mu.Unlock()
+	if isTopLevelSummarizedAgent(c) {
+		m.tracked[c.ID] = true
+	} else {
+		delete(m.tracked, c.ID)
+	}
+}
+
+func (m *summaryManager) UnregisterChild(id string) {
+	if m == nil || id == "" {
+		return
+	}
+	m.mu.Lock()
+	defer m.mu.Unlock()
+	delete(m.tracked, id)
+}
+
+func (m *summaryManager) isTracked(id string) bool {
+	m.mu.Lock()
+	defer m.mu.Unlock()
+	return m.tracked[id]
+}
+
+func (m *summaryManager) Summary(childID string) summaryState {
+	if m == nil || childID == "" {
+		return summaryState{}
+	}
+	m.mu.Lock()
+	defer m.mu.Unlock()
+	if e := m.entries[childID]; e != nil {
+		return e.state
+	}
+	return summaryState{}
+}
+
+func (m *summaryManager) RunNow(ctx context.Context, childID string) {
+	if m == nil || childID == "" {
+		return
+	}
+	c := m.sess.FindChild(childID)
+	if !isTopLevelSummarizedAgent(c) {
+		return
+	}
+	m.mu.Lock()
+	e := m.entryLocked(c.ID)
+	if e.running {
+		m.mu.Unlock()
+		return
+	}
+	e.running = true
+	e.lastAttemptAt = time.Now()
+	m.mu.Unlock()
+	go m.runOne(ctx, c.ID, true)
+}
+
+func (m *summaryManager) Test(ctx context.Context) error {
+	cfg := m.settings()
+	return runSummarizerHealth(ctx, cfg, m.projectDir)
+}
+
+func (m *summaryManager) entryLocked(id string) *summaryEntry {
+	e := m.entries[id]
+	if e == nil {
+		e = &summaryEntry{}
+		m.entries[id] = e
+	}
+	return e
+}
+
+func (m *summaryManager) maybeStart(ctx context.Context, now time.Time) {
+	cfg := m.settings()
+	if !cfg.Enabled {
+		return
+	}
+	cadence, err := time.ParseDuration(cfg.Cadence)
+	if err != nil || cadence <= 0 {
+		cadence = time.Minute
+	}
+	quiet := time.Duration(cfg.QuietWindowMS) * time.Millisecond
+	var startID string
+	for _, c := range m.sess.Children() {
+		if !isTopLevelSummarizedAgent(c) {
+			continue
+		}
+		m.mu.Lock()
+		e := m.entryLocked(c.ID)
+		eligible := e.armed && e.dirty && !e.running &&
+			!e.lastOutputAt.IsZero() && now.Sub(e.lastOutputAt) >= quiet &&
+			(e.lastAttemptAt.IsZero() || now.Sub(e.lastAttemptAt) >= cadence) &&
+			c.ScreenVersion() != e.lastSummarized
+		if eligible {
+			e.running = true
+			e.lastAttemptAt = now
+			startID = c.ID
+		}
+		m.mu.Unlock()
+		if startID != "" {
+			go m.runOne(ctx, startID, false)
+			return
+		}
+	}
+}
+
+func (m *summaryManager) runOne(ctx context.Context, childID string, manual bool) {
+	c := m.sess.FindChild(childID)
+	if c == nil {
+		m.finish(childID, summaryState{Error: "process disappeared"}, 0)
+		return
+	}
+	cfg := m.settings()
+	snapshot := buildSummarySnapshot(c, cfg.MaxHistoryChars, m.chromeHintsFor(c.PresetRef))
+	if strings.TrimSpace(snapshot) == "" {
+		m.finish(childID, summaryState{Error: "empty snapshot"}, c.ScreenVersion())
+		return
+	}
+	runCtx, cancel := context.WithTimeout(ctx, summaryTimeout)
+	defer cancel()
+	resp, err := runSummarizer(runCtx, cfg, m.projectDir, snapshot)
+	st := summaryState{UpdatedAt: time.Now()}
+	if err != nil {
+		st.Error = err.Error()
+		m.finish(childID, st, c.ScreenVersion())
+		return
+	}
+	st.Text = strings.TrimSpace(resp.Summary)
+	st.State = summaryIdleState(resp.State)
+	if st.Text == "" {
+		st.Error = "empty summary"
+	}
+	if manual && st.Text != "" && st.State == StateUnknown {
+		st.State = c.IdleState()
+	}
+	m.finish(childID, st, c.ScreenVersion())
+}
+
+func (m *summaryManager) finish(childID string, st summaryState, version int64) {
+	m.mu.Lock()
+	e := m.entryLocked(childID)
+	e.running = false
+	if st.Text != "" || st.Error != "" {
+		if st.Text == "" && e.state.Text != "" {
+			st.Text = e.state.Text
+			st.State = e.state.State
+			st.UpdatedAt = e.state.UpdatedAt
+		}
+		e.state = st
+	}
+	if st.Text != "" {
+		e.armed = false
+		e.dirty = false
+		e.lastSummarized = version
+	}
+	m.mu.Unlock()
+	if m.onUpdate != nil {
+		m.onUpdate()
+	}
+	if m.onResult != nil && (st.Text != "" || st.Error != "") {
+		m.onResult(childID, st)
+	}
+}
+
+func isTopLevelSummarizedAgent(c *Child) bool {
+	return c != nil && c.Kind == KindAgent && c.ParentID == "" && c.Status() == StatusRunning
+}
+
+func (m *summaryManager) chromeHintsFor(presetName string) []string {
+	if presetName == "" {
+		return nil
+	}
+	for _, p := range m.presets.Agents {
+		if p.Name == presetName {
+			return p.ChromeTrimHints
+		}
+	}
+	return nil
+}
+
+func buildSummarySnapshot(c *Child, maxChars int, chromeHints []string) string {
+	if maxChars <= 0 {
+		maxChars = 12000
+	}
+	grid := ""
+	if em := c.Emulator(); em != nil {
+		if txt, err := em.PlainText(); err == nil {
+			grid = compactSummaryText(applyChromeTrim(txt, chromeHints))
+		}
+	}
+	tailBytes := max(maxChars*4, maxChars)
+	b := c.tailBytes(tailBytes)
+	history := compactSummaryText(applyChromeTrim(string(stripANSIBytes(nil, b)), chromeHints))
+	history = tailString(history, maxChars)
+	var out strings.Builder
+	if history != "" {
+		out.WriteString("Recent rendered history:\n")
+		out.WriteString(history)
+		out.WriteString("\n\n")
+	}
+	if grid != "" && !strings.Contains(history, grid) {
+		out.WriteString("Current visible grid:\n")
+		out.WriteString(grid)
+	}
+	return tailString(out.String(), maxChars)
+}
+
+func compactSummaryText(in string) string {
+	in = string(stripANSIBytes(nil, []byte(in)))
+	in = strings.ReplaceAll(in, "\r\n", "\n")
+	in = strings.ReplaceAll(in, "\r", "\n")
+	lines := strings.Split(in, "\n")
+	out := make([]string, 0, len(lines))
+	blank := false
+	for _, line := range lines {
+		line = strings.TrimRightFunc(line, unicode.IsSpace)
+		line = strings.Map(func(r rune) rune {
+			if r == '\t' || r == '\n' {
+				return r
+			}
+			if r < 0x20 || r == 0x7f {
+				return -1
+			}
+			return r
+		}, line)
+		line = truncateSummaryLine(line, summaryMaxLineCells)
+		if strings.TrimSpace(line) == "" {
+			if blank {
+				continue
+			}
+			blank = true
+			out = append(out, "")
+			continue
+		}
+		blank = false
+		out = append(out, line)
+	}
+	return strings.TrimSpace(strings.Join(out, "\n"))
+}
+
+func truncateSummaryLine(s string, max int) string {
+	if max <= 0 || visibleLen(s) <= max {
+		return s
+	}
+	return clipRunes(s, max-1) + "…"
+}
+
+func tailString(s string, max int) string {
+	rs := []rune(s)
+	if len(rs) <= max {
+		return s
+	}
+	return string(rs[len(rs)-max:])
+}
+
+func runSummarizer(ctx context.Context, cfg autoSummarySettings, projectDir, snapshot string) (summarizerResponse, error) {
+	prompt := summaryPrompt(snapshot)
+	out, err := runSummarizerCommand(ctx, cfg, projectDir, prompt)
+	if err != nil {
+		return summarizerResponse{}, err
+	}
+	resp, err := parseSummarizerResponse(out)
+	if err != nil {
+		return summarizerResponse{}, err
+	}
+	if summaryIdleState(resp.State) == StateUnknown {
+		return summarizerResponse{}, fmt.Errorf("invalid summary state %q", resp.State)
+	}
+	return resp, nil
+}
+
+func runSummarizerHealth(ctx context.Context, cfg autoSummarySettings, projectDir string) error {
+	out, err := runSummarizerCommand(ctx, cfg, projectDir, "Reply with exactly: patterm okay")
+	if err != nil {
+		return err
+	}
+	if strings.TrimSpace(out) != "patterm okay" {
+		return fmt.Errorf("health check did not return patterm okay")
+	}
+	return nil
+}
+
+func runSummarizerCommand(ctx context.Context, cfg autoSummarySettings, projectDir, prompt string) (string, error) {
+	provider := cfg.Provider
+	model := cfg.modelFor(provider)
+	var cmd *exec.Cmd
+	switch provider {
+	case "opencode":
+		cmd = exec.CommandContext(ctx, "opencode", "run", "--model", model, "--dir", projectDir, prompt)
+	case "claude":
+		cmd = exec.CommandContext(ctx, "claude", "--print", "--model", model, prompt)
+	default:
+		cmd = exec.CommandContext(ctx, "codex", "exec", "--ephemeral", "--skip-git-repo-check", "--sandbox", "read-only", "--model", model, "-")
+		cmd.Stdin = strings.NewReader(prompt)
+	}
+	cmd.Dir = projectDir
+	var stderr bytes.Buffer
+	cmd.Stderr = &stderr
+	out, err := cmd.Output()
+	if err != nil {
+		msg := strings.TrimSpace(stderr.String())
+		if msg == "" {
+			msg = err.Error()
+		}
+		return "", fmt.Errorf("%s summarizer: %s", provider, msg)
+	}
+	return string(out), nil
+}
+
+func summaryPrompt(snapshot string) string {
+	return "Summarize this terminal/agent snapshot for a compact UI catch-up aid.\n" +
+		"Return only JSON with keys summary and state. State must be one of IDLE, PERMISSION, THINKING, WORKING, ERROR.\n" +
+		"Keep summary under 180 characters, concrete, and avoid mentioning that you are summarizing.\n\n" +
+		snapshot
+}
+
+func parseSummarizerResponse(out string) (summarizerResponse, error) {
+	var resp summarizerResponse
+	if err := json.Unmarshal([]byte(strings.TrimSpace(out)), &resp); err == nil {
+		return resp, nil
+	}
+	for _, line := range strings.Split(out, "\n") {
+		line = strings.TrimSpace(line)
+		if !strings.HasPrefix(line, "{") || !strings.HasSuffix(line, "}") {
+			continue
+		}
+		if err := json.Unmarshal([]byte(line), &resp); err == nil {
+			return resp, nil
+		}
+	}
+	return resp, fmt.Errorf("summary output was not JSON")
+}
+
+func summaryIdleState(s string) IdleState {
+	switch strings.ToUpper(strings.TrimSpace(s)) {
+	case "IDLE":
+		return StateIdle
+	case "PERMISSION":
+		return StatePermission
+	case "THINKING":
+		return StateThinking
+	case "WORKING":
+		return StateWorking
+	case "ERROR":
+		return StateError
+	default:
+		return StateUnknown
+	}
+}
--- a/internal/app/summarizer_test.go
+++ b/internal/app/summarizer_test.go
@@ -0,0 +1,125 @@
+package app
+
+import (
+	"strings"
+	"testing"
+
+	"github.com/hjbdev/patterm/internal/preset"
+)
+
+func TestParseSummarizerResponseAllowsWrappedJSON(t *testing.T) {
+	resp, err := parseSummarizerResponse("log\n{\"summary\":\"Waiting for tests\",\"state\":\"WORKING\"}\n")
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("parseSummarizerResponse: %v", err)
+	}
+	if resp.Summary != "Waiting for tests" || summaryIdleState(resp.State) != StateWorking {
+		t.Fatalf("response = %+v", resp)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestCompactSummaryTextDropsControlAndRedundantWhitespace(t *testing.T) {
+	got := compactSummaryText("hello\x00 world  \n\n\n\x1b[31mred\x1b[0m\n")
+	if strings.ContainsRune(got, '\x00') {
+		t.Fatalf("control byte survived: %q", got)
+	}
+	if strings.Contains(got, "\n\n\n") {
+		t.Fatalf("redundant blanks survived: %q", got)
+	}
+	if strings.Contains(got, "\x1b") {
+		t.Fatalf("ansi survived: %q", got)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestWrapSidebarSummaryKeepsWordBoundaries(t *testing.T) {
+	got := wrapSidebarSummary("alpha beta gamma delta", 12)
+	want := []string{"alpha beta", "gamma delta"}
+	if len(got) != len(want) {
+		t.Fatalf("lines = %#v", got)
+	}
+	for i := range want {
+		if got[i] != want[i] {
+			t.Fatalf("line %d = %q want %q", i, got[i], want[i])
+		}
+	}
+	long := wrapSidebarSummary("supercalifragilistic short", 8)
+	if len(long) == 0 || strings.Contains(strings.Join(long, ""), "…") {
+		t.Fatalf("long word should wrap without ellipsis: %#v", long)
+	}
+	for _, line := range long {
+		if visibleLen(line) > 8 {
+			t.Fatalf("line %q exceeds width", line)
+		}
+	}
+}
+
+func TestSummaryTextForSelectsChildAndClips(t *testing.T) {
+	sess := NewSession(t.TempDir(), "test")
+	cfg := defaultSettings()
+	st := &uiState{
+		sess:     sess,
+		settings: cfg,
+		summaries: newSummaryManager(sess, t.TempDir(), preset.Set{}, func() autoSummarySettings {
+			return cfg.AutoSummary.clone()
+		}, nil, nil),
+	}
+	st.summaries.mu.Lock()
+	st.summaries.entries["a1"] = &summaryEntry{state: summaryState{Text: " alpha summary "}}
+	st.summaries.entries["a2"] = &summaryEntry{state: summaryState{Text: "beta summary"}}
+	st.summaries.entries["empty"] = &summaryEntry{state: summaryState{Text: "   "}}
+	st.summaries.entries["long"] = &summaryEntry{state: summaryState{Text: "abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz"}}
+	st.summaries.mu.Unlock()
+
+	if got := st.summaryTextFor("a2", 20); got != "beta summary" {
+		t.Fatalf("summaryTextFor(a2) = %q, want beta summary", got)
+	}
+	if got := st.summaryTextFor("empty", 20); got != "" {
+		t.Fatalf("summaryTextFor(empty) = %q, want empty", got)
+	}
+	if got := st.summaryTextFor("long", 8); got != "abcdefg…" {
+		t.Fatalf("summaryTextFor(long) = %q, want abcdefg…", got)
+	}
+
+	st.settingsMu.Lock()
+	st.settings.AutoSummary.Enabled = false
+	st.settingsMu.Unlock()
+	if got := st.summaryTextFor("a1", 20); got != "" {
+		t.Fatalf("summaryTextFor disabled = %q, want empty", got)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestSummaryManagerArmsOnlyTrackedTopLevelAgents(t *testing.T) {
+	sess := NewSession(t.TempDir(), "test")
+	c := newChildEntry("a1", "agent", KindAgent, []string{"fake"}, nil, "", "", "")
+	running := StatusRunning
+	c.status.Store(&running)
+	sess.children[c.ID] = c
+	sess.order = append(sess.order, c.ID)
+	cfg := defaultSettings().AutoSummary
+	m := newSummaryManager(sess, t.TempDir(), preset.Set{}, func() autoSummarySettings {
+		return cfg.clone()
+	}, nil, nil)
+	m.ObserveHumanInput(c.ID, []byte("please summarize"))
+	if got := m.Summary(c.ID); got.Text != "" {
+		t.Fatalf("untracked agent should not update summary state: %+v", got)
+	}
+	m.RegisterChild(c)
+	m.ObserveHumanInput(c.ID, []byte("please summarize"))
+	m.ObserveOutput(c.ID)
+	m.mu.Lock()
+	e := m.entries[c.ID]
+	m.mu.Unlock()
+	if e == nil || !e.armed || !e.dirty {
+		t.Fatalf("tracked top-level agent not armed/dirty: %+v", e)
+	}
+
+	sub := newChildEntry("a2", "sub", KindAgent, []string{"fake"}, nil, c.ID, "", "")
+	sub.status.Store(&running)
+	m.RegisterChild(sub)
+	m.ObserveHumanInput(sub.ID, []byte("please summarize"))
+	m.mu.Lock()
+	_, ok := m.entries[sub.ID]
+	m.mu.Unlock()
+	if ok {
+		t.Fatal("sub-agent should not get a summary entry")
+	}
+}
--- a/internal/app/tabbar.go
+++ b/internal/app/tabbar.go
@@ -8,9 +8,9 @@ import (
 	"unicode/utf8"
 )

-// Two-row tab bar: labels row, underline row. The PTY viewport's top
+// Three-row tab bar: labels row, active-thread summary row, underline row. The PTY viewport's top
 // row is therefore mainTop == tabBarRows + 1.
-const tabBarRows = 2
+const tabBarRows = 3

 // drawTabBar renders the top tab strip across the full host width.
 // Tabs share the available width with a flex layout — each visible
@@ -24,7 +24,11 @@ func (st *uiState) drawTabBar() {
 	}
 	st.mu.Lock()
 	palOpen := st.palette != nil
-	focus := st.focusedID
+	// Highlight the top-level agent tab even when focus has stepped
+	// into a sub-agent (or a Processes pane entry). activeAgentID walks
+	// the parent chain to the root, so the user always sees which tab
+	// their current thread belongs to.
+	focus := st.activeAgentID
 	st.mu.Unlock()
 	if palOpen {
 		return
@@ -55,12 +59,14 @@ func (st *uiState) drawTabBar() {
 	newHintW := utf8.RuneCountInString(newHint) + 2 // " + new " framing

 	type tabRect struct {
+		childID    string
 		startCol   int
 		width      int
 		label      string
+		glyph      string
+		glyphStyle string
 		active     bool
 	}
-
 	// Reserve space at the right edge for "+ new". If there are too
 	// many tabs to fit even at minTabWidth, drop tabs from the right
 	// until they do. The current focus stays visible.
@@ -110,9 +116,16 @@ func (st *uiState) drawTabBar() {
 			if i < extra {
 				w++
 			}
+			active := c.ID == focus
+			glyph, glyphStyle := tabIdleGlyph(c.IdleState(), active)
 			label := c.DisplayName()
 			labelW := utf8.RuneCountInString(label)
-			maxLabelW := w - 2 // one pad on each side
+			// Reserve room for the glyph + its trailing space when present
+			// (1 + 1 runes), on top of the one-cell pad on each side.
+			maxLabelW := w - 2
+			if glyph != "" {
+				maxLabelW -= 2
+			}
 			if maxLabelW < 1 {
 				maxLabelW = 1
 			}
@@ -125,17 +138,21 @@ func (st *uiState) drawTabBar() {
 				labelW = utf8.RuneCountInString(label)
 			}
 			tabs = append(tabs, tabRect{
+				childID:    c.ID,
 				startCol:   col,
 				width:      w,
 				label:      label,
-				active:   c.ID == focus,
+				glyph:      glyph,
+				glyphStyle: glyphStyle,
+				active:     active,
 			})
 			col += w
 		}
 	}

 	var b strings.Builder
-	// Clear both rows so a stale label from the previous frame can't
+	// Clear all tab-bar rows so stale labels or summaries from the
+	// previous frame can't
 	// bleed through. Use ECH clamped to `width` (= childCols) instead of
 	// `\x1b[2K`: 2K wipes the entire line including the sidebar columns,
 	// and if drawSidebar's chrome cache is fresh it won't repaint to
@@ -143,32 +160,47 @@ func (st *uiState) drawTabBar() {
 	// and content should be.
 	fmt.Fprintf(&b, "\x1b[1;1H\x1b[%dX", width)
 	fmt.Fprintf(&b, "\x1b[2;1H\x1b[%dX", width)
+	fmt.Fprintf(&b, "\x1b[3;1H\x1b[%dX", width)

 	for _, t := range tabs {
-		// Row 1: centre-ish label inside the tab cell.
+		// Row 1: centre-ish glyph+label inside the tab cell.
 		labelW := utf8.RuneCountInString(t.label)
-		leftPad := (t.width - labelW) / 2
+		visibleW := labelW
+		if t.glyph != "" {
+			visibleW += 2 // glyph + separator space
+		}
+		leftPad := (t.width - visibleW) / 2
 		if leftPad < 1 {
 			leftPad = 1
 		}
-		rightPad := t.width - labelW - leftPad
+		rightPad := t.width - visibleW - leftPad
 		if rightPad < 0 {
 			rightPad = 0
 		}
-		fmt.Fprintf(&b, "\x1b[1;%dH", t.startCol)
+		cellStyle := styleHint
 		if t.active {
-			b.WriteString(styleActive)
-		} else {
-			b.WriteString(styleHint)
+			cellStyle = styleActive
 		}
+		fmt.Fprintf(&b, "\x1b[1;%dH", t.startCol)
+		b.WriteString(cellStyle)
 		b.WriteString(strings.Repeat(" ", leftPad))
+		if t.glyph != "" {
+			// Glyph uses its own colour so error/permission states pop
+			// regardless of tab focus, matching the sidebar's vocabulary.
+			b.WriteString(styleReset)
+			b.WriteString(t.glyphStyle)
+			b.WriteString(t.glyph)
+			b.WriteString(styleReset)
+			b.WriteString(cellStyle)
+			b.WriteString(" ")
+		}
 		b.WriteString(t.label)
 		b.WriteString(strings.Repeat(" ", rightPad))
 		b.WriteString(styleReset)

-		// Row 2: underline. Thick accent for the active tab, faint
+		// Row 3: underline. Thick accent for the active tab, faint
 		// border for the rest.
-		fmt.Fprintf(&b, "\x1b[2;%dH", t.startCol)
+		fmt.Fprintf(&b, "\x1b[3;%dH", t.startCol)
 		if t.active {
 			b.WriteString(styleAccent)
 			b.WriteString(strings.Repeat("━", t.width))
@@ -185,10 +217,17 @@ func (st *uiState) drawTabBar() {
 		fmt.Fprintf(&b, "\x1b[1;%dH %s%s%s ", hintCol, styleDim, newHint, styleReset)
 		// Underline continues faintly under the hint so the strip
 		// reads as one bar.
-		fmt.Fprintf(&b, "\x1b[2;%dH%s%s%s",
+		fmt.Fprintf(&b, "\x1b[3;%dH%s%s%s",
 			hintCol, styleBorder, strings.Repeat("─", newHintW), styleReset)
 	}

+	for _, tab := range tabs {
+		summaryWidth := tab.width - 2
+		if summary := st.summaryTextFor(tab.childID, summaryWidth); summary != "" {
+			fmt.Fprintf(&b, "\x1b[2;%dH %s%s%s", tab.startCol, styleDim, summary, styleReset)
+		}
+	}
+
 	frame := b.String()
 	st.chromeCacheMu.Lock()
 	if frame == st.tabBarCache {
@@ -208,3 +247,29 @@ func (st *uiState) drawTabBar() {
 	defer st.outMu.Unlock()
 	fmt.Fprintf(os.Stdout, "\x1b7%s\x1b8", frame)
 }
+
+// tabIdleGlyph returns the one-rune state indicator (and its SGR style)
+// to render before a tab's label. Mirrors the sidebar's vocabulary so
+// users learn the symbols in one place: ✕ error, ? permission, ◐
+// thinking, ○ idle, ● working. Returns ("", "") for StateUnknown so the
+// first frame after spawn doesn't show a misleading badge.
+func tabIdleGlyph(state IdleState, active bool) (string, string) {
+	base := styleHint
+	if active {
+		base = styleAccent
+	}
+	switch state {
+	case StateError:
+		return "✕", styleError
+	case StatePermission:
+		return "?", styleAccent
+	case StateThinking:
+		return "◐", base
+	case StateIdle:
+		return "○", base
+	case StateWorking:
+		return "●", base
+	default:
+		return "", ""
+	}
+}
--- a/internal/app/timers.go
+++ b/internal/app/timers.go
@@ -58,6 +58,7 @@ type timerManager struct {
 	mu      sync.Mutex
 	nextID  int
 	timers  map[string]*pendingTimer
+	changes chan struct{}

 	// fireFn is the callback used to deliver the body to the owning
 	// process. Decoupled so tests can substitute a recorder. Defaults
@@ -69,11 +70,23 @@ func newTimerManager(sess *Session) *timerManager {
 	m := &timerManager{
 		sess:    sess,
 		timers:  make(map[string]*pendingTimer),
+		changes: make(chan struct{}, 1),
 	}
 	m.fireFn = defaultFireFn
 	return m
 }

+func (m *timerManager) changeEvents() <-chan struct{} {
+	return m.changes
+}
+
+func (m *timerManager) notifyChanged() {
+	select {
+	case m.changes <- struct{}{}:
+	default:
+	}
+}
+
 func defaultFireFn(owner *Child, body, label string) {
 	if owner == nil || !owner.IsLive() {
 		return
@@ -121,6 +134,7 @@ func (m *timerManager) TimerSet(ownerID string, body, label string, seconds floa
 	m.timers[id] = t
 	m.mu.Unlock()
 	t.rt = time.AfterFunc(d, func() { m.fireDelay(id) })
+	m.notifyChanged()
 	return id, nil
 }

@@ -136,6 +150,7 @@ func (m *timerManager) fireDelay(id string) {
 	body, label := t.body, t.label
 	delete(m.timers, id)
 	m.mu.Unlock()
+	m.notifyChanged()
 	m.fireFn(owner, body, label)
 }

@@ -214,6 +229,7 @@ func (m *timerManager) registerIdleTimer(kind pendingTimerKind, ownerID, body, l
 	}
 	m.timers[id] = t
 	m.mu.Unlock()
+	m.notifyChanged()
 	resp.ID = id
 	resp.Status = "pending"
 	return resp, nil
@@ -231,6 +247,7 @@ func (m *timerManager) fireIdleMaxWait(id string) {
 	body, label := t.body, t.label
 	delete(m.timers, id)
 	m.mu.Unlock()
+	m.notifyChanged()
 	m.fireFn(owner, body, label)
 }

@@ -291,11 +308,79 @@ func (m *timerManager) onChildStateChanged(childID string, state IdleState) {
 		delete(m.timers, id)
 	}
 	m.mu.Unlock()
+	if len(firedIDs) > 0 {
+		m.notifyChanged()
+	}
 	for _, f := range fires {
 		m.fireFn(f.owner, f.body, f.label)
 	}
 }

+// onChildClosed drops pending timer references to childID. Called
+// from Session.Close (and the terminal-corpse cleanup in reapChild)
+// via the session listener bus — a deliberate signal from the host
+// that childID is gone and the parent is not waiting on it anymore.
+//
+// Semantics:
+//   - timers owned by childID are cancelled and deleted: their owner
+//     is gone, so even if defaultFireFn's IsLive guard would no-op
+//     the delivery, the entry has no business surviving a close.
+//   - timers watching childID have childID pruned from t.watched
+//     (and t.idleBaseline). If t.watched becomes empty the timer is
+//     cancelled and deleted; we deliberately do NOT synthesise a
+//     fire here. The parent already received any legitimate idle
+//     transition before close_process — see allWatchedIdleLocked's
+//     "treat as satisfied" comment, which only applies to a
+//     concurrent re-evaluation, not to this explicit-removal hook.
+//
+// The natural-exit path (reapChild → emitExit for agent/command
+// kinds) is NOT routed through here: the classifier emits a final
+// idle transition on exit, which fires and deletes any watching
+// timers exactly once. Cancelling on exit would swallow that
+// legitimate fire and leave the parent never notified.
+func (m *timerManager) onChildClosed(childID string) {
+	m.mu.Lock()
+	changed := false
+	for id, t := range m.timers {
+		if t.ownerID == childID {
+			if t.rt != nil {
+				t.rt.Stop()
+				t.rt = nil
+			}
+			t.status = timerStatusCanceled
+			delete(m.timers, id)
+			changed = true
+			continue
+		}
+		if !contains(t.watched, childID) {
+			continue
+		}
+		pruned := t.watched[:0]
+		for _, w := range t.watched {
+			if w != childID {
+				pruned = append(pruned, w)
+			}
+		}
+		t.watched = pruned
+		if t.idleBaseline != nil {
+			delete(t.idleBaseline, childID)
+		}
+		changed = true
+		if len(t.watched) == 0 {
+			if t.rt != nil {
+				t.rt.Stop()
+				t.rt = nil
+			}
+			t.status = timerStatusCanceled
+			delete(m.timers, id)
+		}
+	}
+	m.mu.Unlock()
+	if changed {
+		m.notifyChanged()
+	}
+}
+
 // allWatchedIdleLocked reports whether every watched child is now
 // idle. Called with m.mu held — uses live Child.IdleState() under the
 // child's own atomic, not under m.mu.
@@ -315,19 +400,21 @@ func (m *timerManager) allWatchedIdleLocked(t *pendingTimer) bool {
 // TimerCancel removes a pending or paused timer owned by ownerID.
 func (m *timerManager) TimerCancel(ownerID, id string) error {
 	m.mu.Lock()
-	defer m.mu.Unlock()
 	t, ok := m.timers[id]
 	if !ok {
+		m.mu.Unlock()
 		return mcp.Errorf(mcp.ErrorKindNotFound, "no such timer %q", id)
 	}
 	// Empty ownerID = top-level orchestrator caller (e.g. a non-agent
 	// MCP client); allow it to manage every timer in the session.
 	// Otherwise the caller's own id must match the timer's owner.
 	if ownerID != "" && t.ownerID != ownerID {
+		m.mu.Unlock()
 		return mcp.Errorf(mcp.ErrorKindRoleForbidden, "timer %q is not owned by caller", id)
 	}
 	if t.status == timerStatusFired || t.status == timerStatusCanceled {
 		// Cancelling a fired/cancelled timer is idempotent.
+		m.mu.Unlock()
 		return nil
 	}
 	if t.rt != nil {
@@ -336,6 +423,8 @@ func (m *timerManager) TimerCancel(ownerID, id string) error {
 	}
 	t.status = timerStatusCanceled
 	delete(m.timers, id)
+	m.mu.Unlock()
+	m.notifyChanged()
 	return nil
 }

@@ -343,18 +432,20 @@ func (m *timerManager) TimerCancel(ownerID, id string) error {
 // keeps the timer in the registry.
 func (m *timerManager) TimerPause(ownerID, id string) error {
 	m.mu.Lock()
-	defer m.mu.Unlock()
 	t, ok := m.timers[id]
 	if !ok {
+		m.mu.Unlock()
 		return mcp.Errorf(mcp.ErrorKindNotFound, "no such timer %q", id)
 	}
 	// Empty ownerID = top-level orchestrator caller (e.g. a non-agent
 	// MCP client); allow it to manage every timer in the session.
 	// Otherwise the caller's own id must match the timer's owner.
 	if ownerID != "" && t.ownerID != ownerID {
+		m.mu.Unlock()
 		return mcp.Errorf(mcp.ErrorKindRoleForbidden, "timer %q is not owned by caller", id)
 	}
 	if t.status != timerStatusPending {
+		m.mu.Unlock()
 		return mcp.Errorf(mcp.ErrorKindInvalidArgs, "timer %q is not pending", id)
 	}
 	if t.rt != nil {
@@ -370,6 +461,8 @@ func (m *timerManager) TimerPause(ownerID, id string) error {
 		t.pausedWasMaxWait = t.kind != timerKindDelay
 	}
 	t.status = timerStatusPaused
+	m.mu.Unlock()
+	m.notifyChanged()
 	return nil
 }

@@ -448,6 +541,7 @@ func (m *timerManager) TimerResume(ownerID, id string) error {
 		delete(m.timers, id)
 	}
 	m.mu.Unlock()
+	m.notifyChanged()
 	if fireNow {
 		m.fireFn(owner, body, label)
 	}
@@ -528,6 +622,56 @@ func (m *timerManager) activeForChild(id string) *mcp.TimerInfo {
 	return &info
 }

+const (
+	timerSidebarMinRefresh       = 50 * time.Millisecond
+	timerSidebarSubsecondRefresh = 100 * time.Millisecond
+)
+
+func nextTimerSidebarLabelChange(d time.Duration) time.Duration {
+	if d <= 0 {
+		return 0
+	}
+	if d < time.Second {
+		if d < timerSidebarSubsecondRefresh {
+			return d
+		}
+		return timerSidebarSubsecondRefresh
+	}
+
+	step := time.Second
+	if d >= time.Hour {
+		step = time.Hour
+	} else if d >= time.Minute {
+		step = time.Minute
+	}
+	wait := d % step
+	if wait <= 0 || wait < timerSidebarMinRefresh {
+		return timerSidebarMinRefresh
+	}
+	return wait
+}
+
+func (m *timerManager) nextSidebarRefreshAfter(now time.Time) (time.Duration, bool) {
+	m.mu.Lock()
+	defer m.mu.Unlock()
+	var best time.Duration
+	found := false
+	for _, t := range m.timers {
+		if t.status != timerStatusPending || t.firesAt.IsZero() {
+			continue
+		}
+		wait := nextTimerSidebarLabelChange(t.firesAt.Sub(now))
+		if wait <= 0 {
+			wait = timerSidebarMinRefresh
+		}
+		if !found || wait < best {
+			best = wait
+			found = true
+		}
+	}
+	return best, found
+}
+
 func isIdleState(s IdleState) bool {
 	return s == StateIdle
 }
--- a/internal/app/timers_test.go
+++ b/internal/app/timers_test.go
@@ -65,6 +65,93 @@ func newTestManager(t *testing.T) (*Session, *timerManager, *recorderFire) {
 	return sess, mgr, rec
 }

+func waitTimerChange(t *testing.T, mgr *timerManager) {
+	t.Helper()
+	select {
+	case <-mgr.changeEvents():
+	case <-time.After(time.Second):
+		t.Fatal("timed out waiting for timer change signal")
+	}
+}
+
+func TestNextTimerSidebarLabelChange(t *testing.T) {
+	tests := []struct {
+		name string
+		d    time.Duration
+		want time.Duration
+	}{
+		{name: "minutes", d: 2*time.Minute + 10*time.Second, want: 10 * time.Second},
+		{name: "minute_to_seconds", d: time.Minute + 500*time.Millisecond, want: 500 * time.Millisecond},
+		{name: "seconds", d: 59*time.Second + 500*time.Millisecond, want: 500 * time.Millisecond},
+		{name: "subsecond", d: 500 * time.Millisecond, want: timerSidebarSubsecondRefresh},
+		{name: "nearly_done", d: 30 * time.Millisecond, want: 30 * time.Millisecond},
+	}
+	for _, tt := range tests {
+		t.Run(tt.name, func(t *testing.T) {
+			if got := nextTimerSidebarLabelChange(tt.d); got != tt.want {
+				t.Fatalf("nextTimerSidebarLabelChange(%s) = %s, want %s", tt.d, got, tt.want)
+			}
+		})
+	}
+}
+
+func TestTimerSidebarRefreshAfterUsesSoonestActiveBoundary(t *testing.T) {
+	_, mgr, _ := newTestManager(t)
+	now := time.Unix(123, 0)
+	mgr.mu.Lock()
+	mgr.timers["slow"] = &pendingTimer{
+		id:      "slow",
+		status:  timerStatusPending,
+		firesAt: now.Add(2*time.Minute + 10*time.Second),
+	}
+	mgr.timers["fast"] = &pendingTimer{
+		id:      "fast",
+		status:  timerStatusPending,
+		firesAt: now.Add(59*time.Second + 500*time.Millisecond),
+	}
+	mgr.timers["paused"] = &pendingTimer{
+		id:      "paused",
+		status:  timerStatusPaused,
+		firesAt: now.Add(100 * time.Millisecond),
+	}
+	mgr.mu.Unlock()
+
+	got, ok := mgr.nextSidebarRefreshAfter(now)
+	if !ok {
+		t.Fatal("nextSidebarRefreshAfter did not find active timers")
+	}
+	if got != 500*time.Millisecond {
+		t.Fatalf("nextSidebarRefreshAfter = %s, want 500ms", got)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestTimerManagerSignalsChangesForSidebar(t *testing.T) {
+	sess, mgr, _ := newTestManager(t)
+	owner := fakeChild("p_owner")
+	addChild(sess, owner)
+
+	id, err := mgr.TimerSet("p_owner", "x", "", 60)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("TimerSet: %v", err)
+	}
+	waitTimerChange(t, mgr)
+
+	if err := mgr.TimerPause("p_owner", id); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("TimerPause: %v", err)
+	}
+	waitTimerChange(t, mgr)
+
+	if err := mgr.TimerResume("p_owner", id); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("TimerResume: %v", err)
+	}
+	waitTimerChange(t, mgr)
+
+	if err := mgr.TimerCancel("p_owner", id); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("TimerCancel: %v", err)
+	}
+	waitTimerChange(t, mgr)
+}
+
 func TestTimerSetDelivers(t *testing.T) {
 	sess, mgr, rec := newTestManager(t)
 	c := fakeChild("p_owner")
@@ -411,3 +498,178 @@ func TestTimerRecordsRemovedOnIdleFire(t *testing.T) {
 		t.Fatalf("fired idle timer %s was not removed from registry", resp.ID)
 	}
 }
+
+// TestTimerCloseChildPrunesWatched covers the happy partial-prune
+// case: an idle_any timer watches two children, one is closed, the
+// timer stays pending and the remaining child can still satisfy it.
+func TestTimerCloseChildPrunesWatched(t *testing.T) {
+	sess, mgr, rec := newTestManager(t)
+	owner := fakeChild("p_owner")
+	a := fakeChild("p_a")
+	b := fakeChild("p_b")
+	addChild(sess, owner)
+	addChild(sess, a)
+	addChild(sess, b)
+	working := StateWorking
+	a.idleState.Store(&working)
+	b.idleState.Store(&working)
+
+	resp, err := mgr.TimerFireWhenIdleAny("p_owner", "one done", "", []string{"p_a", "p_b"}, 0)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("TimerFireWhenIdleAny: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	mgr.onChildClosed("p_a")
+
+	mgr.mu.Lock()
+	t1, ok := mgr.timers[resp.ID]
+	if !ok {
+		mgr.mu.Unlock()
+		t.Fatalf("timer was removed but still has live watched")
+	}
+	watched := append([]string(nil), t1.watched...)
+	mgr.mu.Unlock()
+	if len(watched) != 1 || watched[0] != "p_b" {
+		t.Fatalf("watched after close: %v, want [p_b]", watched)
+	}
+	if got := rec.snapshot(); len(got) != 0 {
+		t.Fatalf("close synthesised a fire: %+v", got)
+	}
+
+	// p_b can still satisfy the timer.
+	idle := StateIdle
+	b.idleState.Store(&idle)
+	mgr.onChildStateChanged("p_b", StateIdle)
+	if got := rec.snapshot(); len(got) != 1 || got[0].Body != "one done" {
+		t.Fatalf("post-prune fire: %+v", got)
+	}
+}
+
+// TestTimerCloseLastWatchedCancels is the regression for the
+// reported stale-fire symptom: the only watched child is closed,
+// so the timer must be cancelled — no synthetic fire, and the
+// registry entry must be gone so a trailing classifier tick for the
+// removed child cannot re-deliver later.
+func TestTimerCloseLastWatchedCancels(t *testing.T) {
+	sess, mgr, rec := newTestManager(t)
+	owner := fakeChild("p_owner")
+	a := fakeChild("p_a")
+	addChild(sess, owner)
+	addChild(sess, a)
+	working := StateWorking
+	a.idleState.Store(&working)
+
+	resp, err := mgr.TimerFireWhenIdleAny("p_owner", "stale body", "", []string{"p_a"}, 0)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("TimerFireWhenIdleAny: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	mgr.onChildClosed("p_a")
+
+	mgr.mu.Lock()
+	_, stillThere := mgr.timers[resp.ID]
+	mgr.mu.Unlock()
+	if stillThere {
+		t.Fatalf("timer with no remaining watched should be removed")
+	}
+	if got := rec.snapshot(); len(got) != 0 {
+		t.Fatalf("close synthesised a fire: %+v", got)
+	}
+
+	// Simulate the trailing classifier tick for the now-closed child —
+	// must not fire.
+	mgr.onChildStateChanged("p_a", StateIdle)
+	if got := rec.snapshot(); len(got) != 0 {
+		t.Fatalf("trailing state change re-fired: %+v", got)
+	}
+}
+
+// TestTimerCloseChildIdleAllPartialPrune mirrors the idle_any
+// partial-prune for idle_all: pruning a watched child shrinks the
+// list; the remaining child going idle then satisfies the timer.
+func TestTimerCloseChildIdleAllPartialPrune(t *testing.T) {
+	sess, mgr, rec := newTestManager(t)
+	owner := fakeChild("p_owner")
+	a := fakeChild("p_a")
+	b := fakeChild("p_b")
+	addChild(sess, owner)
+	addChild(sess, a)
+	addChild(sess, b)
+	working := StateWorking
+	a.idleState.Store(&working)
+	b.idleState.Store(&working)
+
+	resp, err := mgr.TimerFireWhenIdleAll("p_owner", "all done", "", []string{"p_a", "p_b"}, 0)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("TimerFireWhenIdleAll: %v", err)
+	}
+	if resp.Status != "pending" {
+		t.Fatalf("status: got %q want pending", resp.Status)
+	}
+
+	mgr.onChildClosed("p_a")
+
+	idle := StateIdle
+	b.idleState.Store(&idle)
+	mgr.onChildStateChanged("p_b", StateIdle)
+	if got := rec.snapshot(); len(got) != 1 || got[0].Body != "all done" {
+		t.Fatalf("idle_all after partial prune: %+v", got)
+	}
+}
+
+// TestTimerCloseOwnerCancelsDelay ensures a delay timer is dropped
+// when its owner is closed: no delivery, registry empty, the
+// underlying time.Timer is stopped.
+func TestTimerCloseOwnerCancelsDelay(t *testing.T) {
+	sess, mgr, rec := newTestManager(t)
+	c := fakeChild("p_owner")
+	addChild(sess, c)
+	id, err := mgr.TimerSet("p_owner", "x", "", 0.1)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("TimerSet: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	mgr.onChildClosed("p_owner")
+
+	mgr.mu.Lock()
+	_, stillThere := mgr.timers[id]
+	mgr.mu.Unlock()
+	if stillThere {
+		t.Fatalf("delay timer was not removed when owner closed")
+	}
+	time.Sleep(200 * time.Millisecond) // past the original firesAt
+	if got := rec.snapshot(); len(got) != 0 {
+		t.Fatalf("delay timer fired after owner close: %+v", got)
+	}
+}
+
+// TestTimerCloseWatchedSubAgent is the exact shape of the reported
+// stale-fire bug: orchestrator registers a watcher on a sub-agent,
+// the sub-agent is closed, and the orchestrator must receive
+// nothing (no stale body delivered after close_process).
+func TestTimerCloseWatchedSubAgent(t *testing.T) {
+	sess, mgr, rec := newTestManager(t)
+	parent := fakeChild("p_owner")
+	sub := fakeChild("p_sub")
+	addChild(sess, parent)
+	addChild(sess, sub)
+	working := StateWorking
+	sub.idleState.Store(&working)
+
+	if _, err := mgr.TimerFireWhenIdleAny(
+		"p_owner",
+		"codex-review-591 finished. Read your own pane …",
+		"", []string{"p_sub"}, 0,
+	); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("TimerFireWhenIdleAny: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	mgr.onChildClosed("p_sub")
+
+	// Trailing classifier emission for the closed sub-agent must
+	// not deliver anything to the parent.
+	mgr.onChildStateChanged("p_sub", StateIdle)
+	if got := rec.snapshot(); len(got) != 0 {
+		t.Fatalf("stale fire delivered to parent after sub-agent close: %+v", got)
+	}
+}
--- a/internal/app/toast.go
+++ b/internal/app/toast.go
@@ -0,0 +1,361 @@
+package app
+
+import (
+	"os"
+	"strings"
+	"sync"
+)
+
+// toastKind classifies a toast for styling and for migrating the
+// pre-existing flashError / flashTransient / notifyAttention call
+// sites onto the new stack.
+type toastKind int
+
+const (
+	toastInfo toastKind = iota
+	toastError
+	toastAttention
+)
+
+// toast is one entry in the host-level notification stack. Toasts
+// persist until the user dismisses them with Ctrl-N or the
+// "Clear notifications" palette command — there's no auto-expiry.
+type toast struct {
+	id   uint64
+	kind toastKind
+	text string
+}
+
+// toastStackCap caps how many toasts can be visible at once.
+// Older entries drop off the bottom when a new push would exceed it.
+const toastStackCap = 5
+
+// toastBoxMaxWidth bounds the rendered box width so a wide pane
+// doesn't produce huge toasts. Boxes shrink below this when the pane
+// is narrow.
+const toastBoxMaxWidth = 50
+
+// toastBoxMinWidth is the floor below which we refuse to render —
+// any narrower and there's not enough room for borders + content.
+const toastBoxMinWidth = 20
+
+// toastContentRows is how many lines of message body each toast box
+// reserves. The dismiss hint lives on the host status strip, so the
+// box itself is purely the message.
+const toastContentRows = 3
+
+// toastStack owns the ordered list of live toasts. Oldest at
+// index 0, newest (visually topmost) at the end. The stack's own
+// mutex is intentionally separate from uiState.mu so push / dismiss
+// can be called from any goroutine without participating in the
+// host's bigger lock-ordering rules.
+type toastStack struct {
+	mu    sync.Mutex
+	items []toast
+	next  uint64
+}
+
+func (s *toastStack) push(kind toastKind, text string) {
+	s.mu.Lock()
+	defer s.mu.Unlock()
+	s.next++
+	s.items = append(s.items, toast{id: s.next, kind: kind, text: text})
+	if len(s.items) > toastStackCap {
+		s.items = s.items[len(s.items)-toastStackCap:]
+	}
+}
+
+// dismissTop pops the most recent toast (the one rendered at the
+// top of the stack). Returns true if something was removed so
+// callers can decide whether to repaint.
+func (s *toastStack) dismissTop() bool {
+	s.mu.Lock()
+	defer s.mu.Unlock()
+	if len(s.items) == 0 {
+		return false
+	}
+	s.items = s.items[:len(s.items)-1]
+	return true
+}
+
+func (s *toastStack) clear() bool {
+	s.mu.Lock()
+	defer s.mu.Unlock()
+	if len(s.items) == 0 {
+		return false
+	}
+	s.items = s.items[:0]
+	return true
+}
+
+func (s *toastStack) snapshot() []toast {
+	s.mu.Lock()
+	defer s.mu.Unlock()
+	if len(s.items) == 0 {
+		return nil
+	}
+	out := make([]toast, len(s.items))
+	copy(out, s.items)
+	return out
+}
+
+func (s *toastStack) length() int {
+	s.mu.Lock()
+	defer s.mu.Unlock()
+	return len(s.items)
+}
+
+// notifyToast is the single entry point that the former flash
+// helpers now delegate to. It pushes onto the stack and triggers a
+// repaint of the focused surface so the new toast appears
+// immediately; the repaint path also re-renders the stack on top.
+func (st *uiState) notifyToast(kind toastKind, text string) {
+	st.toasts.push(kind, text)
+	st.refreshToastSurface()
+}
+
+// refreshToastSurface re-renders whatever surface the toasts are
+// drawn over (focused child, focused pad, or the empty-state
+// canvas). Each of those paths calls renderToasts at the end, so
+// the toast layer is always reapplied on top of a freshly-drawn
+// pane. Centralised so push / dismiss / clear share one code path.
+//
+// The status strip also gains/loses the "Ctrl-N · dismiss" hint as
+// the stack toggles between empty and non-empty, so we redraw it
+// here too rather than waiting for the chrome ticker.
+func (st *uiState) refreshToastSurface() {
+	st.mu.Lock()
+	focusedPad := st.focusedPad
+	focusedID := st.focusedID
+	palOpen := st.palette != nil
+	st.mu.Unlock()
+	if palOpen {
+		// Palette owns the whole screen while it's open; toasts will
+		// repaint via closePalette's restore path.
+		return
+	}
+	switch {
+	case focusedPad != "":
+		st.repaintFocusedPad()
+	case focusedID != "":
+		st.repaintFocused()
+	default:
+		st.renderEmptyState()
+	}
+	st.drawStatusLine()
+}
+
+// renderToasts draws the toast stack over the top-right of the
+// focused pane. Called from repaintFocused / repaintFocusedPad /
+// renderEmptyState after they finish so toasts always sit on top of
+// freshly-redrawn pane content. Safe to call when the stack is
+// empty (no-op).
+func (st *uiState) renderToasts() {
+	bytes := st.toastOverlayBytes()
+	if len(bytes) == 0 {
+		return
+	}
+	st.outMu.Lock()
+	defer st.outMu.Unlock()
+	_, _ = os.Stdout.Write(bytes)
+}
+
+// toastOverlayBytes builds the toast layer as a single byte buffer
+// without writing to stdout. Returns nil when the stack is empty or
+// the layout can't accommodate a box. Callers either write it
+// directly (renderToasts) or stitch it onto the end of another
+// stdout write so claude/codex/opencode redraws that paint over the
+// top-right region can't leave the toast half-erased.
+func (st *uiState) toastOverlayBytes() []byte {
+	items := st.toasts.snapshot()
+	if len(items) == 0 {
+		return nil
+	}
+	st.mu.Lock()
+	palOpen := st.palette != nil
+	st.mu.Unlock()
+	if palOpen {
+		return nil
+	}
+	layout := st.layoutSnapshot()
+	paneCols := int(layout.childCols())
+	paneRows := int(layout.childRows())
+	if paneCols < toastBoxMinWidth+2 || paneRows < toastContentRows+2 {
+		return nil
+	}
+	boxWidth := toastBoxMaxWidth
+	if max := paneCols - 4; max < boxWidth {
+		boxWidth = max
+	}
+	if boxWidth < toastBoxMinWidth {
+		return nil
+	}
+	contentWidth := boxWidth - 4 // 2 border cells + 2 inner padding
+	// Reserve two columns for the icon prefix on row 1 so wrapped rows
+	// indent under the body text rather than under the glyph.
+	const iconCols = 2
+	bodyRoom := contentWidth - iconCols
+	if bodyRoom < 1 {
+		return nil
+	}
+
+	var b strings.Builder
+	// Wrap the whole overlay in DECSET 2026 (synchronized output)
+	// brackets so terminals that support BSU/ESU buffer the box paint
+	// into a single frame — without this, claude's continuous redraws
+	// and our overlay race on each cell, producing visible flicker.
+	// Terminals that don't recognise 2026 ignore the brackets, so the
+	// fallback behaviour is the same as before.
+	b.WriteString("\x1b[?2026h\x1b7\x1b[?25l")
+
+	row := int(layout.mainTop) + 1
+	col := int(layout.mainLeft) + paneCols - boxWidth - 1
+	if col < int(layout.mainLeft) {
+		col = int(layout.mainLeft)
+	}
+
+	// Render newest first (visually on top), iterating items in
+	// reverse so the most recent push lands at the smallest row.
+	for idx := len(items) - 1; idx >= 0; idx-- {
+		t := items[idx]
+		height := toastContentRows + 2
+		// Stop if we'd run off the bottom of the pane.
+		if row+height > int(layout.mainTop)+paneRows {
+			break
+		}
+		border := toastBorderStyle(t.kind)
+		wrapped := wrapToastBody(t.text, bodyRoom)
+
+		// Top border.
+		moveTo(&b, row, col)
+		b.WriteString(border)
+		b.WriteString("╭")
+		b.WriteString(strings.Repeat("─", boxWidth-2))
+		b.WriteString("╮")
+		b.WriteString(styleReset)
+		row++
+
+		// Content rows. Row 0 carries the kind glyph; rows 1..N indent
+		// by iconCols spaces so wrapped text lines up under the body.
+		for i := 0; i < toastContentRows; i++ {
+			moveTo(&b, row, col)
+			b.WriteString(border)
+			b.WriteString("│")
+			b.WriteString(styleReset)
+			b.WriteString(" ")
+			if i == 0 {
+				b.WriteString(toastIcon(t.kind))
+			} else {
+				b.WriteString(strings.Repeat(" ", iconCols))
+			}
+			line := wrapped[i]
+			b.WriteString(line)
+			b.WriteString(strings.Repeat(" ", max(0, bodyRoom-visibleLen(line))))
+			b.WriteString(" ")
+			b.WriteString(border)
+			b.WriteString("│")
+			b.WriteString(styleReset)
+			row++
+		}
+
+		// Bottom border.
+		moveTo(&b, row, col)
+		b.WriteString(border)
+		b.WriteString("╰")
+		b.WriteString(strings.Repeat("─", boxWidth-2))
+		b.WriteString("╯")
+		b.WriteString(styleReset)
+		row++
+
+		// 1-row gap between stacked toasts.
+		row++
+	}
+
+	b.WriteString("\x1b[?25h\x1b8\x1b[?2026l")
+	return []byte(b.String())
+}
+
+func toastBorderStyle(kind toastKind) string {
+	switch kind {
+	case toastError:
+		return styleError
+	case toastAttention:
+		return styleAccent
+	default:
+		return styleBorder
+	}
+}
+
+// wrapToastBody word-wraps text into exactly toastContentRows lines,
+// each at most width visible runes wide. Short messages are padded
+// with empty trailing lines so callers can iterate a fixed-size
+// slice; messages that don't fit get ellipsized on the last line.
+func wrapToastBody(text string, width int) []string {
+	out := make([]string, toastContentRows)
+	if width < 1 {
+		return out
+	}
+	all := wrapToastWords(text, width)
+	if len(all) > toastContentRows {
+		all = all[:toastContentRows]
+		last := all[len(all)-1]
+		if visibleLen(last) >= width {
+			last = clipRunes(last, width-1) + "…"
+		} else {
+			last = last + "…"
+		}
+		all[len(all)-1] = last
+	}
+	for i, l := range all {
+		out[i] = l
+	}
+	return out
+}
+
+// wrapToastWords is a small word-wrapper sized for toast bodies:
+// greedy, breaks overlong words on rune boundaries, drops collapsing
+// whitespace via strings.Fields.
+func wrapToastWords(text string, width int) []string {
+	var lines []string
+	var cur string
+	flush := func() {
+		if cur != "" {
+			lines = append(lines, cur)
+			cur = ""
+		}
+	}
+	for _, word := range strings.Fields(text) {
+		for visibleLen(word) > width {
+			flush()
+			head := clipRunes(word, width)
+			lines = append(lines, head)
+			word = word[len(head):]
+		}
+		if word == "" {
+			continue
+		}
+		if cur == "" {
+			cur = word
+			continue
+		}
+		if visibleLen(cur)+1+visibleLen(word) <= width {
+			cur += " " + word
+			continue
+		}
+		flush()
+		cur = word
+	}
+	flush()
+	return lines
+}
+
+func toastIcon(kind toastKind) string {
+	switch kind {
+	case toastError:
+		return styleError + "✗ " + styleReset
+	case toastAttention:
+		return styleAccent + "! " + styleReset
+	default:
+		return styleHint + "• " + styleReset
+	}
+}
--- a/internal/app/toast_test.go
+++ b/internal/app/toast_test.go
@@ -0,0 +1,164 @@
+package app
+
+import (
+	"strings"
+	"testing"
+)
+
+func TestToastStackPushAndOrder(t *testing.T) {
+	var s toastStack
+	s.push(toastInfo, "one")
+	s.push(toastError, "two")
+	s.push(toastAttention, "three")
+
+	snap := s.snapshot()
+	if len(snap) != 3 {
+		t.Fatalf("snapshot len = %d, want 3", len(snap))
+	}
+	if snap[0].text != "one" || snap[1].text != "two" || snap[2].text != "three" {
+		t.Fatalf("snapshot order wrong: %#v", snap)
+	}
+	if snap[0].kind != toastInfo || snap[1].kind != toastError || snap[2].kind != toastAttention {
+		t.Fatalf("snapshot kinds wrong: %#v", snap)
+	}
+	// IDs strictly increase.
+	if !(snap[0].id < snap[1].id && snap[1].id < snap[2].id) {
+		t.Fatalf("ids not increasing: %#v", snap)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestToastStackCapDropsOldest(t *testing.T) {
+	var s toastStack
+	for i := 0; i < toastStackCap+3; i++ {
+		s.push(toastInfo, "msg")
+	}
+	snap := s.snapshot()
+	if len(snap) != toastStackCap {
+		t.Fatalf("len = %d, want %d", len(snap), toastStackCap)
+	}
+	// The earliest IDs should have been dropped, leaving the highest
+	// toastStackCap IDs.
+	for i := 1; i < len(snap); i++ {
+		if snap[i].id <= snap[i-1].id {
+			t.Fatalf("ordering broken after cap: %#v", snap)
+		}
+	}
+	// First retained id should be 4 (1,2,3 dropped; cap=5 leaves 4..8).
+	want := uint64(toastStackCap + 3 - toastStackCap + 1)
+	if snap[0].id != want {
+		t.Fatalf("first retained id = %d, want %d", snap[0].id, want)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestToastStackDismissTop(t *testing.T) {
+	var s toastStack
+	if s.dismissTop() {
+		t.Fatalf("dismissTop on empty stack returned true")
+	}
+	s.push(toastInfo, "a")
+	s.push(toastError, "b")
+	if !s.dismissTop() {
+		t.Fatalf("dismissTop returned false with items present")
+	}
+	snap := s.snapshot()
+	if len(snap) != 1 || snap[0].text != "a" {
+		t.Fatalf("after dismissTop: %#v", snap)
+	}
+	if !s.dismissTop() {
+		t.Fatalf("dismissTop on last item returned false")
+	}
+	if s.length() != 0 {
+		t.Fatalf("length after final dismiss = %d, want 0", s.length())
+	}
+}
+
+func TestToastStackClear(t *testing.T) {
+	var s toastStack
+	if s.clear() {
+		t.Fatalf("clear on empty returned true")
+	}
+	s.push(toastInfo, "a")
+	s.push(toastError, "b")
+	s.push(toastAttention, "c")
+	if !s.clear() {
+		t.Fatalf("clear returned false with items present")
+	}
+	if s.length() != 0 {
+		t.Fatalf("length after clear = %d, want 0", s.length())
+	}
+	if snap := s.snapshot(); snap != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("snapshot after clear = %#v, want nil", snap)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestToastStackSnapshotIsCopy(t *testing.T) {
+	var s toastStack
+	s.push(toastInfo, "a")
+	snap := s.snapshot()
+	snap[0].text = "mutated"
+	again := s.snapshot()
+	if again[0].text != "a" {
+		t.Fatalf("snapshot is not an independent copy: %#v", again)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestWrapToastBodyFixedHeight(t *testing.T) {
+	got := wrapToastBody("short", 20)
+	if len(got) != toastContentRows {
+		t.Fatalf("len = %d, want %d", len(got), toastContentRows)
+	}
+	if got[0] != "short" {
+		t.Fatalf("line 0 = %q, want \"short\"", got[0])
+	}
+	if got[1] != "" || got[2] != "" {
+		t.Fatalf("trailing pads not empty: %#v", got)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestWrapToastBodyWrapsOnWordBoundary(t *testing.T) {
+	got := wrapToastBody("the quick brown fox jumps over", 10)
+	// Expect greedy fill: "the quick" (9), "brown fox" (9), "jumps over" (10).
+	want := []string{"the quick", "brown fox", "jumps over"}
+	for i, w := range want {
+		if got[i] != w {
+			t.Fatalf("line %d = %q, want %q (full=%#v)", i, got[i], w, got)
+		}
+	}
+}
+
+func TestWrapToastBodyEllipsizesOverflow(t *testing.T) {
+	got := wrapToastBody("alpha beta gamma delta epsilon zeta eta theta", 6)
+	if len(got) != toastContentRows {
+		t.Fatalf("len = %d, want %d", len(got), toastContentRows)
+	}
+	last := got[toastContentRows-1]
+	if !strings.HasSuffix(last, "…") {
+		t.Fatalf("overflow should ellipsize last line, got %q (full=%#v)", last, got)
+	}
+	if visibleLen(last) > 6 {
+		t.Fatalf("last line %q exceeds width 6", last)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestWrapToastBodyBreaksOverlongWord(t *testing.T) {
+	got := wrapToastBody("supercalifragilistic", 6)
+	if got[0] != "superc" {
+		t.Fatalf("line 0 = %q, want \"superc\"", got[0])
+	}
+	if got[1] != "alifra" {
+		t.Fatalf("line 1 = %q, want \"alifra\"", got[1])
+	}
+	// Third line should hold the rest (possibly ellipsized).
+	if got[2] == "" {
+		t.Fatalf("line 2 unexpectedly empty: %#v", got)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestWrapToastBodyEmptyInput(t *testing.T) {
+	got := wrapToastBody("", 20)
+	for i, l := range got {
+		if l != "" {
+			t.Fatalf("line %d = %q, want \"\"", i, l)
+		}
+	}
+}
--- a/internal/app/viewport_renderer_test.go
+++ b/internal/app/viewport_renderer_test.go
@@ -16,7 +16,7 @@ func bytesRepeat(b byte, n int) []byte {
 func TestViewportRendererShiftsCursor(t *testing.T) {
 	vr := newViewportRenderer(newTerminalLayout(120, 40))
 	got := string(vr.Render([]byte("\x1b[H")))
-	if got != "\x1b[3;1H" {
+	if got != "\x1b[4;1H" {
 		t.Fatalf("CUP home: got %q", got)
 	}
 }
@@ -66,7 +66,7 @@ func TestViewportRendererSwallowsOriginModeToggles(t *testing.T) {
 	if !strings.Contains(got, "a") || !strings.Contains(got, "b") || !strings.Contains(got, "c") {
 		t.Fatalf("origin-mode toggles should not drop surrounding text: got %q", got)
 	}
-	if strings.Count(got, "\x1b[3;1H") != 2 {
+	if strings.Count(got, "\x1b[4;1H") != 2 {
 		t.Fatalf("origin-mode set/reset should home inside the viewport twice: got %q", got)
 	}
 }
@@ -88,23 +88,23 @@ func TestViewportRendererOriginModeCUPUsesScrollTop(t *testing.T) {
 	if strings.Contains(got, "\x1b[?6h") {
 		t.Fatalf("origin-mode set leaked to host: %q", got)
 	}
-	if !strings.Contains(got, "\x1b[7;1H") {
-		t.Fatalf("CUP row 1 in origin mode should land at scrollTop row 5 shifted to host row 7: got %q", got)
+	if !strings.Contains(got, "\x1b[8;1H") {
+		t.Fatalf("CUP row 1 in origin mode should land at scrollTop row 5 shifted to host row 8: got %q", got)
 	}
 }

 func TestViewportRendererClearScreenIsViewportOnly(t *testing.T) {
-	// hostRows=7 leaves four viewport rows after the 2-row tab bar and
+	// hostRows=7 leaves three viewport rows after the 3-row tab bar and
 	// 1-row status reservation.
 	vr := newViewportRenderer(newTerminalLayout(20, 7))
 	got := string(vr.Render([]byte("\x1b[2J")))
 	if strings.Contains(got, "\x1b[2J") {
 		t.Fatalf("host clear-screen leaked through: %q", got)
 	}
-	if strings.Count(got, "\x1b[20X") != 4 {
+	if strings.Count(got, "\x1b[20X") != 3 {
 		t.Fatalf("clear rows: got %q", got)
 	}
-	if !strings.Contains(got, "\x1b[3;1H") || !strings.Contains(got, "\x1b[6;1H") {
+	if !strings.Contains(got, "\x1b[4;1H") || !strings.Contains(got, "\x1b[6;1H") {
 		t.Fatalf("clear did not target viewport rows: %q", got)
 	}
 }
@@ -140,13 +140,12 @@ func TestViewportRendererClearToEndIsViewportOnly(t *testing.T) {
 		t.Fatalf("host clear-to-end leaked through: %q", got)
 	}
 	// childCols == 19 (40 cols - 28 sidebar - 1 gap - 0-index fudge).
-	// Each of the 4 viewport rows should get a 19-cell erase.
 	// childCols == 11 with hostCols=40 (28 sidebar + 1 gap reserved).
-	// 4 viewport rows, but the cursor row uses ECH at cursor (col 1),
-	// so we expect 4 erases of 11 cells each.
+	// 3 viewport rows, but the cursor row uses ECH at cursor (col 1),
+	// so we expect 3 erases of 11 cells each.
 	count := strings.Count(got, "\x1b[11X")
-	if count != 4 {
-		t.Fatalf("expected 4 ECH-11 sequences, got %d in %q", count, got)
+	if count != 3 {
+		t.Fatalf("expected 3 ECH-11 sequences, got %d in %q", count, got)
 	}
 }

@@ -182,7 +181,7 @@ func TestViewportRendererClampsCUPColumn(t *testing.T) {
 	// column so the host cursor never lands in the sidebar.
 	vr := newViewportRenderer(newTerminalLayout(120, 40))
 	got := string(vr.Render([]byte("\x1b[5;95H")))
-	if !strings.Contains(got, "\x1b[7;91H") {
+	if !strings.Contains(got, "\x1b[8;91H") {
 		t.Fatalf("CUP col 95 should clamp to 91 (childCols): got %q", got)
 	}
 }
@@ -277,7 +276,7 @@ func TestViewportRendererFlagsScrollVerbs(t *testing.T) {

 func TestViewportRendererFlagsLineFeedAtViewportBottomAsScrolling(t *testing.T) {
 	vr := newViewportRenderer(newTerminalLayout(120, 40))
-	_ = vr.Render([]byte("\x1b[37;1H\n"))
+	_ = vr.Render([]byte("\x1b[36;1H\n"))
 	if !vr.TookScrollAction() {
 		t.Fatalf("LF at viewport bottom should flag scroll")
 	}
@@ -285,7 +284,7 @@ func TestViewportRendererFlagsLineFeedAtViewportBottomAsScrolling(t *testing.T)

 func TestViewportRendererDoesNotFlagLineFeedBeforeViewportBottom(t *testing.T) {
 	vr := newViewportRenderer(newTerminalLayout(120, 40))
-	_ = vr.Render([]byte("\x1b[36;1H\n"))
+	_ = vr.Render([]byte("\x1b[35;1H\n"))
 	if vr.TookScrollAction() {
 		t.Fatalf("LF before viewport bottom should not flag scroll")
 	}
@@ -312,7 +311,7 @@ func TestViewportRendererClampsCUUAtViewportTop(t *testing.T) {
 	vr := newViewportRenderer(newTerminalLayout(120, 40))
 	// CUP to viewport row 1 then CUU by 50.
 	got := string(vr.Render([]byte("\x1b[1;1H\x1b[50ACLOBBER")))
-	if !strings.Contains(got, "\x1b[3;1H") {
+	if !strings.Contains(got, "\x1b[4;1H") {
 		t.Fatalf("expected CUP shifted to mainTop: got %q", got)
 	}
 	// The CUU should have been swallowed (n clamped to 0 from row 1).
@@ -339,10 +338,10 @@ func TestViewportRendererClampsCUUPartial(t *testing.T) {
 }

 func TestViewportRendererClampsCUDAtViewportBottom(t *testing.T) {
-	// childRows=37 for layout(120, 40). Park cursor at row 37, ask for
+	// childRows=36 for layout(120, 40). Park cursor at row 36, ask for
 	// 10 down → safe step is 0.
 	vr := newViewportRenderer(newTerminalLayout(120, 40))
-	got := string(vr.Render([]byte("\x1b[37;1H\x1b[10B")))
+	got := string(vr.Render([]byte("\x1b[36;1H\x1b[10B")))
 	if strings.Contains(got, "\x1b[10B") {
 		t.Fatalf("CUD past viewport bottom should be dropped: got %q", got)
 	}
@@ -363,10 +362,10 @@ func TestViewportRendererClampsCPLAndHomesColumn(t *testing.T) {

 func TestViewportRendererClampsCNL(t *testing.T) {
 	vr := newViewportRenderer(newTerminalLayout(120, 40))
-	// CUP to row 35 then CNL by 50 → safe step is 2 (childRows-35).
-	got := string(vr.Render([]byte("\x1b[35;10H\x1b[50E")))
+	// CUP to row 34 then CNL by 50 → safe step is 2 (childRows-34).
+	got := string(vr.Render([]byte("\x1b[34;10H\x1b[50E")))
 	if !strings.Contains(got, "\x1b[2E") {
-		t.Fatalf("CNL 50 from row 35 should clamp to 2: got %q", got)
+		t.Fatalf("CNL 50 from row 34 should clamp to 2: got %q", got)
 	}
 }

--- a/internal/harness/scenarios/error_flash_preserves_focused_pane.json
+++ b/internal/harness/scenarios/error_flash_preserves_focused_pane.json
@@ -0,0 +1,37 @@
+{
+  "name": "error_flash_preserves_focused_pane",
+  "presets": {
+    "processes": [
+      {
+        "name": "steady",
+        "argv": ["sh", "-lc", "printf 'STEADY READY\\n'; sleep 5"]
+      }
+    ]
+  },
+  "trust": ["steady"],
+  "steps": [
+    {
+      "type": "mcp_call",
+      "method": "spawn_process",
+      "params": {"kind": "command", "preset": "steady", "name": "steady"},
+      "save_as": "proc"
+    },
+    { "type": "wait_text", "contains": "STEADY READY", "timeout_ms": 5000 },
+    { "type": "send_chord", "chord": "ctrl-k" },
+    { "type": "send_text", "text": "Open Settings" },
+    { "type": "send_chord", "chord": "enter" },
+    { "type": "send_chord", "chord": "enter" },
+    { "type": "send_chord", "chord": "ctrl-n" },
+    { "type": "send_chord", "chord": "ctrl-n" },
+    { "type": "send_chord", "chord": "ctrl-n" },
+    { "type": "send_chord", "chord": "ctrl-n" },
+    { "type": "send_chord", "chord": "ctrl-n" },
+    { "type": "send_chord", "chord": "ctrl-n" },
+    { "type": "send_chord", "chord": "ctrl-n" },
+    { "type": "send_chord", "chord": "enter" },
+    { "type": "wait_text", "contains": "no active top-level agent to summarize", "timeout_ms": 5000 },
+    { "type": "wait_text", "contains": "STEADY READY", "timeout_ms": 5000 },
+    { "type": "assert_contains", "contains": "STEADY READY" },
+    { "type": "assert_not_contains", "contains": "Press Ctrl-K to spawn an agent or process" }
+  ]
+}
--- a/internal/harness/scenarios/idle_screen_permission_prompt.json
+++ b/internal/harness/scenarios/idle_screen_permission_prompt.json
@@ -0,0 +1,37 @@
+{
+  "name": "idle_screen_permission_prompt",
+  "presets": {
+    "processes": [
+      {
+        "name": "screen-permission",
+        "argv": [
+          "sh",
+          "-lc",
+          "printf '\\033[2J\\033[HCalling patterm...\\n\\nTool use\\n\\nDo you want to proceed?\\n  1. Yes\\n'; i=0; while [ $i -lt 300 ]; do printf '\\033[HCalling patterm... %03d' $i; i=$((i+1)); done; sleep 60"
+        ],
+        "idle_detection": {
+          "strategy": "output_activity",
+          "idle_threshold_ms": 500,
+          "permission_patterns": ["Do you want to proceed\\?"]
+        }
+      }
+    ]
+  },
+  "trust": ["screen-permission"],
+  "steps": [
+    {
+      "type": "mcp_call",
+      "method": "spawn_process",
+      "params": {"kind": "command", "preset": "screen-permission", "name": "screen-permission"},
+      "save_as": "proc"
+    },
+    {
+      "type": "wait_until_mcp",
+      "method": "get_process_status",
+      "params": {"process_id": "{{proc.process_id}}"},
+      "path": "idle_state",
+      "equals": "permission",
+      "timeout_ms": 4000
+    }
+  ]
+}
--- a/internal/harness/scenarios/rename_process_via_palette.json
+++ b/internal/harness/scenarios/rename_process_via_palette.json
@@ -16,7 +16,7 @@
    { "type": "send_chord", "chord": "ctrl-k" },
    { "type": "send_text", "text": "Rename process" },
    { "type": "send_chord", "chord": "enter" },
-    { "type": "wait_text", "contains": "Rename process", "timeout_ms": 3000 },
+    { "type": "wait_text", "contains": "process: original", "timeout_ms": 3000 },
    { "type": "send_chord", "chord": "ctrl-u" },
    { "type": "send_text", "text": "renamed-pane" },
    { "type": "send_chord", "chord": "enter" },
--- a/internal/harness/scenarios/restart_process_keeps_chrome.json
+++ b/internal/harness/scenarios/restart_process_keeps_chrome.json
@@ -0,0 +1,32 @@
+{
+  "name": "restart_process_keeps_chrome",
+  "cols": 120,
+  "rows": 40,
+  "scripts": [
+    {
+      "name": "slow-restart",
+      "body": "#!/bin/sh\ncount_file=\"$XDG_RUNTIME_DIR/slow-restart-count\"\nif [ -f \"$count_file\" ]; then\n  n=$(cat \"$count_file\")\nelse\n  n=0\nfi\nn=$((n + 1))\nprintf '%s\\n' \"$n\" > \"$count_file\"\nprintf 'SLOW READY %s\\n' \"$n\"\ntrap 'sleep 3; exit 0' TERM\nwhile true; do sleep 1; done\n"
+    }
+  ],
+  "steps": [
+    {
+      "type": "mcp_call",
+      "method": "spawn_process",
+      "params": { "kind": "command", "argv": ["slow-restart"], "name": "slow-restart" },
+      "save_as": "spawned"
+    },
+    {
+      "type": "mcp_call",
+      "method": "select_process",
+      "params": { "process_id": "{{spawned.process_id}}" }
+    },
+    { "type": "wait_text", "contains": "SLOW READY 1", "timeout_ms": 5000 },
+    { "type": "wait_stable", "timeout_ms": 2000 },
+    { "type": "assert_contains", "contains": "Processes" },
+    { "type": "send_text", "text": "\u000brestart\r" },
+    { "type": "wait_stable", "timeout_ms": 2000 },
+    { "type": "assert_contains", "contains": "Processes" },
+    { "type": "assert_contains", "contains": "slow-restart" },
+    { "type": "wait_text", "contains": "SLOW READY 2", "timeout_ms": 7000 }
+  ]
+}
--- a/internal/harness/scenarios/sidebar_survives_linefeed_scroll.json
+++ b/internal/harness/scenarios/sidebar_survives_linefeed_scroll.json
@@ -5,7 +5,7 @@
  "scripts": [
    {
      "name": "linefeed-scroll",
-      "body": "#!/bin/sh\n# Plain LF at the bottom of the child viewport scrolls the host's\n# DECSTBM region. Because that region spans every column, enough LFs\n# drag the sidebar border and section labels out of the visible region\n# unless patterm invalidates and repaints the sidebar cache.\ni=0\nwhile [ $i -lt 12 ]; do\n  printf 'warmup %02d\\n' \"$i\"\n  i=$((i + 1))\n  sleep 0.05\ndone\nprintf 'LINEFEED READY\\n'\nIFS= read -r _\nprintf '\\033[1;37r'\nprintf '\\033[37;1H'\ni=0\nwhile [ $i -lt 45 ]; do\n  printf 'scroll line %02d\\n' \"$i\"\n  i=$((i + 1))\ndone\nprintf 'LINEFEED DONE\\n'\nsleep 5\n"
+      "body": "#!/bin/sh\n# Plain LF at the bottom of the child viewport scrolls the host's\n# DECSTBM region. Because that region spans every column, enough LFs\n# drag the sidebar border and section labels out of the visible region\n# unless patterm invalidates and repaints the sidebar cache.\ni=0\nwhile [ $i -lt 12 ]; do\n  printf 'warmup %02d\\n' \"$i\"\n  i=$((i + 1))\n  sleep 0.05\ndone\nprintf 'LINEFEED READY\\n'\nIFS= read -r _\nprintf '\\033[1;36r'\nprintf '\\033[36;1H'\ni=0\nwhile [ $i -lt 45 ]; do\n  printf 'scroll line %02d\\n' \"$i\"\n  i=$((i + 1))\ndone\nprintf 'LINEFEED DONE\\n'\nsleep 5\n"
    }
  ],
  "steps": [
@@ -19,13 +19,13 @@
    { "type": "mark_raw", "save_as": "before_scroll" },
    { "type": "send_chord", "chord": "enter" },
    { "type": "wait_text", "contains": "LINEFEED DONE", "timeout_ms": 5000 },
+    { "type": "wait_stable", "timeout_ms": 2000 },
    {
      "type": "assert_raw_since_regex",
      "from": "before_scroll",
-      "regex": "Agent Tree",
+      "regex": "LINEFEED DONE",
      "timeout_ms": 2000
    },
-    { "type": "wait_stable", "timeout_ms": 2000 },
    { "type": "assert_contains", "contains": "Processes" },
    { "type": "assert_contains", "contains": "Agent Tree" },
    { "type": "assert_contains", "contains": "Scratchpads" },
--- a/internal/harness/scenarios/toast_dismiss.json
+++ b/internal/harness/scenarios/toast_dismiss.json
@@ -0,0 +1,32 @@
+{
+  "name": "toast_dismiss",
+  "presets": {
+    "processes": [
+      {
+        "name": "steady",
+        "argv": ["sh", "-lc", "printf 'STEADY READY\\n'; sleep 30"]
+      }
+    ]
+  },
+  "trust": ["steady"],
+  "steps": [
+    {
+      "type": "mcp_call",
+      "method": "spawn_process",
+      "params": {"kind": "command", "preset": "steady", "name": "steady"},
+      "save_as": "proc"
+    },
+    { "type": "wait_text", "contains": "STEADY READY", "timeout_ms": 5000 },
+    {
+      "type": "mcp_call",
+      "method": "request_human_attention",
+      "params": {"process_id": "{{proc.process_id}}", "reason": "needs eyes on the deploy"}
+    },
+    { "type": "wait_text", "contains": "needs eyes on the deploy", "timeout_ms": 5000 },
+    { "type": "assert_contains", "contains": "STEADY READY" },
+    { "type": "send_chord", "chord": "ctrl-n" },
+    { "type": "wait_stable", "timeout_ms": 2000 },
+    { "type": "assert_contains", "contains": "STEADY READY" },
+    { "type": "assert_not_contains", "contains": "needs eyes on the deploy" }
+  ]
+}
--- a/internal/mcp/mcp.go
+++ b/internal/mcp/mcp.go
@@ -96,10 +96,34 @@ func (s *Server) acceptLoop() {
 // identity token (SPEC §10); we resolve it to a child id and stash that
 // as the caller for every subsequent tool call.
 func (s *Server) handleConn(conn net.Conn) {
-	defer conn.Close()
+	var writeMu sync.Mutex
+	var wg sync.WaitGroup
+	defer func() {
+		wg.Wait()
+		_ = conn.Close()
+	}()
 	r := bufio.NewReader(conn)

 	var callerID string
+	writeResp := func(resp []byte) bool {
+		if resp == nil {
+			return true
+		}
+		resp = append(resp, '\n')
+		writeMu.Lock()
+		defer writeMu.Unlock()
+		for len(resp) > 0 {
+			n, err := conn.Write(resp)
+			if err != nil {
+				return false
+			}
+			if n == 0 {
+				return false
+			}
+			resp = resp[n:]
+		}
+		return true
+	}

 	greeting, err := r.ReadBytes('\n')
 	if err != nil {
@@ -115,24 +139,21 @@ func (s *Server) handleConn(conn net.Conn) {
 	} else {
 		// Treat as a real request from an unknown caller.
 		resp := s.dispatch("", greeting)
-		if resp != nil {
-			resp = append(resp, '\n')
-			if _, werr := conn.Write(resp); werr != nil {
+		if !writeResp(resp) {
 			return
 		}
 	}
-	}

 	for {
 		line, err := r.ReadBytes('\n')
 		if len(line) > 0 {
-			resp := s.dispatch(callerID, line)
-			if resp != nil {
-				resp = append(resp, '\n')
-				if _, werr := conn.Write(resp); werr != nil {
-					return
-				}
-			}
+			req := append([]byte(nil), line...)
+			wg.Add(1)
+			go func() {
+				defer wg.Done()
+				resp := s.dispatch(callerID, req)
+				_ = writeResp(resp)
+			}()
 		}
 		if err != nil {
 			return
--- a/internal/mcp/mcp_test.go
+++ b/internal/mcp/mcp_test.go
@@ -0,0 +1,190 @@
+package mcp
+
+import (
+	"bufio"
+	"encoding/json"
+	"fmt"
+	"net"
+	"sync"
+	"syscall"
+	"testing"
+	"time"
+
+	"github.com/hjbdev/patterm/internal/scratchpad"
+)
+
+func TestHandleConnDispatchesRequestsConcurrently(t *testing.T) {
+	serverConn, clientConn := net.Pipe()
+	t.Cleanup(func() { _ = clientConn.Close() })
+
+	host := &blockingToolHost{
+		waitEntered: make(chan struct{}),
+		waitRelease: make(chan struct{}),
+	}
+	s := &Server{}
+	s.SetHost(host)
+	done := make(chan struct{})
+	go func() {
+		s.handleConn(serverConn)
+		close(done)
+	}()
+
+	reader := bufio.NewReader(clientConn)
+	writeLine(t, clientConn, `{"patterm_identity":"ident"}`)
+	writeLine(t, clientConn, `{"jsonrpc":"2.0","id":1,"method":"wait_for_pattern","params":{"process_id":"p_slow","pattern":"never","timeout_seconds":300}}`)
+	select {
+	case <-host.waitEntered:
+	case <-time.After(time.Second):
+		t.Fatal("wait_for_pattern did not enter fake host")
+	}
+
+	writeLine(t, clientConn, `{"jsonrpc":"2.0","id":2,"method":"get_process_status","params":{"process_id":"p_fast"}}`)
+	fast := readJSONRPCResponse(t, clientConn, reader, time.Second)
+	if got := string(fast.ID); got != "2" {
+		t.Fatalf("first response id = %s, want 2; response=%s", got, fast.Raw)
+	}
+	if fast.Error != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("fast response returned error: %+v", fast.Error)
+	}
+
+	_ = clientConn.SetReadDeadline(time.Now().Add(50 * time.Millisecond))
+	if line, err := reader.ReadBytes('\n'); err == nil {
+		t.Fatalf("slow response arrived before release: %s", line)
+	}
+
+	close(host.waitRelease)
+	slow := readJSONRPCResponse(t, clientConn, reader, time.Second)
+	if got := string(slow.ID); got != "1" {
+		t.Fatalf("second response id = %s, want 1; response=%s", got, slow.Raw)
+	}
+	if slow.Error != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("slow response returned error: %+v", slow.Error)
+	}
+
+	_ = clientConn.Close()
+	select {
+	case <-done:
+	case <-time.After(time.Second):
+		t.Fatal("handleConn did not exit after client close")
+	}
+}
+
+type jsonRPCResponse struct {
+	Raw    string
+	ID     json.RawMessage    `json:"id"`
+	Result map[string]any     `json:"result"`
+	Error  *jsonRPCErrorShape `json:"error"`
+}
+
+type jsonRPCErrorShape struct {
+	Code    int    `json:"code"`
+	Message string `json:"message"`
+}
+
+func writeLine(t *testing.T, conn net.Conn, line string) {
+	t.Helper()
+	_ = conn.SetWriteDeadline(time.Now().Add(time.Second))
+	if _, err := fmt.Fprintln(conn, line); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("write %s: %v", line, err)
+	}
+}
+
+func readJSONRPCResponse(t *testing.T, conn net.Conn, reader *bufio.Reader, timeout time.Duration) jsonRPCResponse {
+	t.Helper()
+	_ = conn.SetReadDeadline(time.Now().Add(timeout))
+	line, err := reader.ReadBytes('\n')
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("read response: %v", err)
+	}
+	var resp jsonRPCResponse
+	resp.Raw = string(line)
+	if err := json.Unmarshal(line, &resp); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("parse response %s: %v", line, err)
+	}
+	return resp
+}
+
+type blockingToolHost struct {
+	waitEntered chan struct{}
+	waitRelease chan struct{}
+	waitOnce    sync.Once
+}
+
+func (h *blockingToolHost) ResolveCallerIdentity(identity string) string { return "caller-" + identity }
+func (h *blockingToolHost) CallerRole(string) CallerRole                 { return RoleOrchestrator }
+func (h *blockingToolHost) SpawnAgent(string, SpawnAgentArgs) (ProcessInfo, error) {
+	return ProcessInfo{}, nil
+}
+func (h *blockingToolHost) SpawnProcess(string, SpawnProcessArgs) (ProcessInfo, error) {
+	return ProcessInfo{}, nil
+}
+func (h *blockingToolHost) StartProcess(string, string) (ProcessInfo, error) {
+	return ProcessInfo{}, nil
+}
+func (h *blockingToolHost) RestartProcess(string, string, syscall.Signal) (ProcessInfo, error) {
+	return ProcessInfo{}, nil
+}
+func (h *blockingToolHost) StopProcess(string, string, syscall.Signal) (ProcessInfo, error) {
+	return ProcessInfo{}, nil
+}
+func (h *blockingToolHost) CloseProcess(string, string) error          { return nil }
+func (h *blockingToolHost) RenameProcess(string, string, string) error { return nil }
+func (h *blockingToolHost) SelectProcess(string, string) error         { return nil }
+func (h *blockingToolHost) ListProcesses(string, string) []ProcessInfo { return nil }
+func (h *blockingToolHost) GetProcessStatus(string, string) (ProcessStatus, error) {
+	return ProcessStatus{ProcessInfo: ProcessInfo{ID: "p_fast", Status: "running"}}, nil
+}
+func (h *blockingToolHost) GetProjectStatus(string) (ProjectStatus, error) {
+	return ProjectStatus{}, nil
+}
+func (h *blockingToolHost) GetProcessOutput(string, string, string, int64) (ProcessOutput, error) {
+	return ProcessOutput{}, nil
+}
+func (h *blockingToolHost) GetProcessRawOutput(string, string, int64) (RawOutput, error) {
+	return RawOutput{}, nil
+}
+func (h *blockingToolHost) SearchOutput(string, string, string, string, int) (SearchResult, error) {
+	return SearchResult{}, nil
+}
+func (h *blockingToolHost) WaitForPattern(string, string, string, float64, string) (bool, string, error) {
+	h.waitOnce.Do(func() { close(h.waitEntered) })
+	<-h.waitRelease
+	return true, "matched", nil
+}
+func (h *blockingToolHost) GetProcessPorts(string, string) ([]PortSighting, error) {
+	return nil, nil
+}
+func (h *blockingToolHost) SendInput(string, SendInputArgs) (SendInputResult, error) {
+	return SendInputResult{}, nil
+}
+func (h *blockingToolHost) SendMessage(string, string, string) error           { return nil }
+func (h *blockingToolHost) RequestHumanAttention(string, string, string) error { return nil }
+func (h *blockingToolHost) TimerWait(string, float64, string) (string, error) {
+	return "", nil
+}
+func (h *blockingToolHost) TimerSet(string, TimerSetArgs) (TimerHandle, error) {
+	return TimerHandle{}, nil
+}
+func (h *blockingToolHost) TimerFireWhenIdleAny(string, TimerFireWhenIdleArgs) (TimerFireWhenIdleResponse, error) {
+	return TimerFireWhenIdleResponse{}, nil
+}
+func (h *blockingToolHost) TimerFireWhenIdleAll(string, TimerFireWhenIdleArgs) (TimerFireWhenIdleResponse, error) {
+	return TimerFireWhenIdleResponse{}, nil
+}
+func (h *blockingToolHost) TimerCancel(string, string) error { return nil }
+func (h *blockingToolHost) TimerPause(string, string) error  { return nil }
+func (h *blockingToolHost) TimerResume(string, string) error { return nil }
+func (h *blockingToolHost) TimerList(string) ([]TimerInfo, error) {
+	return nil, nil
+}
+func (h *blockingToolHost) ScratchpadList() ([]scratchpad.Entry, error) { return nil, nil }
+func (h *blockingToolHost) ScratchpadRead(string) (string, string, error) {
+	return "", "", nil
+}
+func (h *blockingToolHost) ScratchpadWrite(string, string, string) (string, error) {
+	return "", nil
+}
+func (h *blockingToolHost) ScratchpadAppend(string, string) error { return nil }
+func (h *blockingToolHost) ScratchpadDelete(string) error         { return nil }
+func (h *blockingToolHost) WhoAmI(string) WhoAmI                  { return WhoAmI{} }
+func (h *blockingToolHost) Help(string, string) HelpResponse      { return HelpResponse{} }
--- a/internal/mcp/protocol.go
+++ b/internal/mcp/protocol.go
@@ -43,7 +43,7 @@ var serverInfo = map[string]any{
 //     up as sub-agents and won't be tied into the patterm lifecycle.
 //
 // Keep this short — clients vary in how much they surface to the LLM.
-const serverInstructions = "You are already running INSIDE patterm; the `patterm` MCP server is connected over the same stdio MCP transport you use for any other MCP server. Use the MCP tools you see in tools/list — do NOT (a) try to launch `patterm` or `patterm mcp-stdio` yourself, (b) poke the Unix socket through perl / nc / socat / curl, or (c) shell out to `claude` / `codex` / `opencode` to start a peer. Any of those bypasses caller-identity and the new agent will land as a stray top-level tab instead of a child under you. Start with `whoami` for your role and the full tool list, then `help('topics')` for orientation. `spawn_agent` is the only correct way to start a sub-agent; `spawn_process` is for non-LLM commands; `list_processes` / `get_process_output` inspect them; `send_input` / `send_message` drive them. Whatever you spawn is yours to `close_process` when done."
+const serverInstructions = "You are already running INSIDE patterm; the `patterm` MCP server is connected over the same stdio MCP transport you use for any other MCP server. Use the MCP tools you see in tools/list — do NOT (a) try to launch `patterm` or `patterm mcp-stdio` yourself, (b) poke the Unix socket through perl / nc / socat / curl, or (c) shell out to `claude` / `codex` / `opencode` to start a peer. Any of those bypasses caller-identity and the new agent will land as a stray top-level tab instead of a child under you. Start with `whoami` for your role and the full tool list, then `help('topics')` for orientation. `spawn_agent` is the only correct way to start a sub-agent; `spawn_process` is for non-LLM commands; `list_processes` / `get_process_output` inspect them; `send_input` / `send_message` drive them. Whatever you spawn is yours to `close_process` when done. When you `send_message` a sub-agent, its reply comes back into YOUR pane as `[sub-agent:<name>] …`, not into the sub-agent's output — to wait for it, use `timer_fire_when_idle_any([sub_agent])` and then read your own pane; do NOT `wait_for_pattern` on the sub-agent, that will deadlock until timeout."

 // toolDescriptor is the shape returned by `tools/list`. inputSchema is
 // a JSON Schema object — we provide a minimal `{type: "object"}` schema
@@ -219,7 +219,7 @@ func toolCatalog() []toolDescriptor {
 		},
 		{
 			Name:        "wait_for_pattern",
-			Description: "Block until pattern appears in process output or timeout elapses.",
+			Description: "Block until pattern appears in the TARGET process's own output, or timeout elapses. Use this for waiting on text the target itself will emit (a shell prompt, a build's \"tests passed\" line, etc.). Anti-pattern: do NOT use this to wait for a sub-agent's reply to send_message — replies are routed into the CALLER's pane tagged `[sub-agent:<name>]`, not into the sub-agent's output, so this call will spin to timeout. For sub-agent coordination use `timer_fire_when_idle_any` and then read your own pane.",
 			InputSchema: objectSchema(map[string]any{
 				"process_id":      stringProp("Target process id."),
 				"pattern":         stringProp("Regex pattern."),
@@ -249,7 +249,7 @@ func toolCatalog() []toolDescriptor {
 		},
 		{
 			Name:        "send_message",
-			Description: "Deliver a text message to another process as orchestrator-owned input.",
+			Description: "Deliver a text message to another process as orchestrator-owned input. Fire-and-forget: returns immediately, without waiting for the recipient to read or act. If the recipient replies via send_message, that reply arrives in YOUR pane tagged `[sub-agent:<name>]` (child→parent) or `[orchestrator]` (parent→child) — NOT in the recipient's output. To wait for a sub-agent's reply, schedule `timer_fire_when_idle_any([sub_agent_id], body=…)` and then read your own pane when the timer fires. Do not `wait_for_pattern` on the recipient for a reply; it will deadlock.",
 			InputSchema: objectSchema(map[string]any{
 				"target_process_id": stringProp("Recipient process id."),
 				"message":           stringProp("Message body."),
@@ -283,7 +283,7 @@ func toolCatalog() []toolDescriptor {
 		},
 		{
 			Name:        "timer_fire_when_idle_any",
-			Description: "Schedule a timer that fires when any watched process enters idle (already-idle entries excluded), or when max_wait_seconds elapses.",
+			Description: "Canonical way to wait for a sub-agent to finish working: send_message the sub-agent, then schedule this with watched=[sub_agent_id]; when it fires, the reply is already sitting in your own pane tagged `[sub-agent:<name>]`. Schedules a timer that fires when any watched process enters idle (already-idle entries excluded), or when max_wait_seconds elapses.",
 			InputSchema: objectSchema(map[string]any{
 				"watched":          arrayOfStringsProp("Process ids to watch."),
 				"body":             stringProp("Message delivered verbatim to the owning agent when the timer fires."),
@@ -294,7 +294,7 @@ func toolCatalog() []toolDescriptor {
 		},
 		{
 			Name:        "timer_fire_when_idle_all",
-			Description: "Schedule a timer that fires when all watched processes are idle (already-idle entries count as satisfied), or when max_wait_seconds elapses.",
+			Description: "Canonical way to wait for several sub-agents to finish working in parallel: send_message each one, then schedule this with watched=[…ids]; when it fires, each reply is in your own pane tagged `[sub-agent:<name>]`. Schedules a timer that fires when all watched processes are idle (already-idle entries count as satisfied), or when max_wait_seconds elapses.",
 			InputSchema: objectSchema(map[string]any{
 				"watched":          arrayOfStringsProp("Process ids to watch."),
 				"body":             stringProp("Message delivered verbatim to the owning agent when the timer fires."),
@@ -358,6 +358,13 @@ func toolCatalog() []toolDescriptor {
 				"content": stringProp("Text to append."),
 			}, []string{"name", "content"}),
 		},
+		{
+			Name:        "scratchpad_delete",
+			Description: "Delete a scratchpad entry.",
+			InputSchema: objectSchema(map[string]any{
+				"name": stringProp("Scratchpad name."),
+			}, []string{"name"}),
+		},
 		{
 			Name:        "whoami",
 			Description: "Return the caller's identity, role, parent, project metadata, and available tools.",
--- a/internal/mcp/tools.go
+++ b/internal/mcp/tools.go
@@ -101,6 +101,7 @@ type ToolHost interface {
 	ScratchpadRead(name string) (content string, revision string, err error)
 	ScratchpadWrite(name, content, expectedRevision string) (revision string, err error)
 	ScratchpadAppend(name, content string) error
+	ScratchpadDelete(name string) error

 	// Meta.
 	WhoAmI(callerID string) WhoAmI
@@ -776,6 +777,18 @@ func callTool(h ToolHost, callerID, method string, params json.RawMessage) (any,
 		}
 		return map[string]any{"ok": true}, 0, "", nil

+	case "scratchpad_delete":
+		var p struct {
+			Name string `json:"name"`
+		}
+		if err := unmarshalParams(params, &p); err != nil {
+			return nil, codeInvalidParams, err.Error(), nil
+		}
+		if err := h.ScratchpadDelete(p.Name); err != nil {
+			return nil, codeInternal, err.Error(), nil
+		}
+		return map[string]any{"ok": true}, 0, "", nil
+
 	case "whoami":
 		return h.WhoAmI(callerID), 0, "", nil

--- a/internal/preset/preset.go
+++ b/internal/preset/preset.go
@@ -4,6 +4,7 @@
 package preset

 import (
+	"bytes"
 	"encoding/json"
 	"errors"
 	"fmt"
@@ -35,6 +36,7 @@ type Preset struct {
 	Argv       []string          `json:"argv"`
 	Env        map[string]string `json:"env,omitempty"`
 	WorkingDir string            `json:"working_dir,omitempty"`
+	Disabled   bool              `json:"disabled,omitempty"`

 	// Process-only.
 	Shell bool `json:"shell,omitempty"`
@@ -119,28 +121,22 @@ type Set struct {
 	Processes []*Preset
 }

-// Load scans the standard locations under $XDG_CONFIG_HOME/patterm/
-// presets/{agents,processes}/*.json. Unknown files are skipped with a
-// warning to stderr; the spec is forgiving here.
+// Load returns the built-in presets plus user overlays from
+// $XDG_CONFIG_HOME/patterm/presets/{agents,processes}/*.json. Startup
+// does not write default files; user files only override or extend the
+// in-memory defaults. A user overlay with {"disabled": true} hides a
+// built-in preset of the same name.
 func Load() (Set, error) {
 	base, err := ConfigDir()
 	if err != nil {
 		return Set{}, err
 	}
-	if err := os.MkdirAll(base, 0o700); err != nil {
-		return Set{}, fmt.Errorf("preset: mkdir %s: %w", base, err)
-	}

-	// Make sure the default-preset files exist on first run. Idempotent.
-	if err := ensureDefaults(base); err != nil {
-		return Set{}, err
-	}
-
-	agents, err := loadDir(filepath.Join(base, "presets", "agents"), KindAgent)
+	agents, err := loadWithDefaults(filepath.Join(base, "presets", "agents"), KindAgent, defaultAgentPresets())
 	if err != nil {
 		return Set{}, err
 	}
-	procs, err := loadDir(filepath.Join(base, "presets", "processes"), KindCommand)
+	procs, err := loadWithDefaults(filepath.Join(base, "presets", "processes"), KindCommand, nil)
 	if err != nil {
 		return Set{}, err
 	}
@@ -160,51 +156,154 @@ func ConfigDir() (string, error) {
 	return filepath.Join(home, ".config", "patterm"), nil
 }

-func loadDir(dir string, kind Kind) ([]*Preset, error) {
-	if err := os.MkdirAll(dir, 0o700); err != nil {
-		return nil, fmt.Errorf("preset: mkdir %s: %w", dir, err)
+func loadWithDefaults(dir string, kind Kind, defaults []*Preset) ([]*Preset, error) {
+	byName := make(map[string]*Preset, len(defaults))
+	for _, p := range defaults {
+		cp := clonePreset(p)
+		cp.Kind = kind
+		byName[cp.Name] = cp
 	}
+
 	entries, err := os.ReadDir(dir)
 	if err != nil {
+		if os.IsNotExist(err) {
+			return sortedPresets(byName), nil
+		}
 		return nil, fmt.Errorf("preset: read %s: %w", dir, err)
 	}
-	var out []*Preset
 	for _, e := range entries {
 		if e.IsDir() || !strings.HasSuffix(e.Name(), ".json") {
 			continue
 		}
 		path := filepath.Join(dir, e.Name())
-		p, err := loadFile(path, kind)
+		p, err := loadFileOverlay(path, kind, byName)
 		if err != nil {
 			fmt.Fprintf(os.Stderr, "patterm: preset %s: %v\n", path, err)
 			continue
 		}
+		if p.Disabled {
+			delete(byName, p.Name)
+			continue
+		}
+		byName[p.Name] = p
+	}
+	return sortedPresets(byName), nil
+}
+
+func sortedPresets(byName map[string]*Preset) []*Preset {
+	out := make([]*Preset, 0, len(byName))
+	for _, p := range byName {
 		out = append(out, p)
 	}
 	sort.Slice(out, func(i, j int) bool { return out[i].Name < out[j].Name })
-	return out, nil
+	return out
 }

-func loadFile(path string, kind Kind) (*Preset, error) {
+func loadFileOverlay(path string, kind Kind, defaults map[string]*Preset) (*Preset, error) {
 	b, err := os.ReadFile(path)
 	if err != nil {
 		return nil, err
 	}
+	var header struct {
+		Name     string `json:"name"`
+		Disabled bool   `json:"disabled,omitempty"`
+	}
+	if err := json.Unmarshal(b, &header); err != nil {
+		return nil, err
+	}
+	if header.Name == "" {
+		return nil, errors.New("missing 'name'")
+	}
+	if def := defaults[header.Name]; def != nil {
+		p, err := mergePreset(def, b)
+		if err != nil {
+			return nil, err
+		}
+		p.Path = path
+		p.Kind = kind
+		return p, validatePreset(p)
+	}
+	var p Preset
+	if err := json.Unmarshal(b, &p); err != nil {
+		return nil, err
+	}
+	p.Path = path
+	p.Kind = kind
+	return &p, validatePreset(&p)
+}
+
+func validatePreset(p *Preset) error {
+	if p.Name == "" {
+		return errors.New("missing 'name'")
+	}
+	if p.Disabled {
+		return nil
+	}
+	if len(p.Argv) == 0 && !p.Shell {
+		return errors.New("missing 'argv'")
+	}
+	return nil
+}
+
+func mergePreset(def *Preset, overlay []byte) (*Preset, error) {
+	base, err := presetMap(def)
+	if err != nil {
+		return nil, err
+	}
+	var over map[string]any
+	dec := json.NewDecoder(bytes.NewReader(overlay))
+	dec.UseNumber()
+	if err := dec.Decode(&over); err != nil {
+		return nil, err
+	}
+	deepMerge(base, over)
+	b, err := json.Marshal(base)
+	if err != nil {
+		return nil, err
+	}
 	var p Preset
 	if err := json.Unmarshal(b, &p); err != nil {
 		return nil, err
 	}
-	if p.Name == "" {
-		return nil, errors.New("missing 'name'")
-	}
-	if len(p.Argv) == 0 && !p.Shell {
-		return nil, errors.New("missing 'argv'")
-	}
-	p.Path = path
-	p.Kind = kind
 	return &p, nil
 }

+func presetMap(p *Preset) (map[string]any, error) {
+	b, err := json.Marshal(p)
+	if err != nil {
+		return nil, err
+	}
+	var m map[string]any
+	dec := json.NewDecoder(bytes.NewReader(b))
+	dec.UseNumber()
+	if err := dec.Decode(&m); err != nil {
+		return nil, err
+	}
+	return m, nil
+}
+
+func deepMerge(dst, src map[string]any) {
+	for k, v := range src {
+		if sm, ok := v.(map[string]any); ok {
+			if dm, ok := dst[k].(map[string]any); ok {
+				deepMerge(dm, sm)
+				continue
+			}
+		}
+		dst[k] = v
+	}
+}
+
+func clonePreset(p *Preset) *Preset {
+	if p == nil {
+		return nil
+	}
+	b, _ := json.Marshal(p)
+	var out Preset
+	_ = json.Unmarshal(b, &out)
+	return &out
+}
+
 // ResolvedArgv returns the argv to actually exec, handling the
 // process-preset "shell: true" case (SPEC §10).
 func (p *Preset) ResolvedArgv() []string {
@@ -214,16 +313,8 @@ func (p *Preset) ResolvedArgv() []string {
 	return p.Argv
 }

-// ensureDefaults writes default agent presets (claude/codex/opencode)
-// and a sample process preset on first run. Never overwrites existing
-// user files.
-func ensureDefaults(base string) error {
-	defaults := []struct {
-		rel  string
-		body string
-	}{
-		{
-			"presets/agents/claude.json",
+func defaultAgentPresets() []*Preset {
+	bodies := []string{
 		`{
  "name": "claude",
  "argv": ["claude"],
@@ -249,9 +340,6 @@ func ensureDefaults(base string) error {
  ]
 }
 `,
-		},
-		{
-			"presets/agents/codex.json",
 		`{
  "name": "codex",
  "argv": ["codex"],
@@ -264,7 +352,10 @@ func ensureDefaults(base string) error {
  "ready_signal": { "idle_ms": 1000 },
  "idle_detection": {
    "strategy": "osc_title_stability",
-    "idle_threshold_ms": 2000
+    "idle_threshold_ms": 2000,
+    "thinking_patterns": [
+      "(?i)esc to interrupt"
+    ]
  },
  "chrome_trim_hints": [
    "^OpenAI Codex",
@@ -275,9 +366,6 @@ func ensureDefaults(base string) error {
  ]
 }
 `,
-		},
-		{
-			"presets/agents/opencode.json",
 		`{
  "name": "opencode",
  "argv": ["opencode"],
@@ -301,19 +389,15 @@ func ensureDefaults(base string) error {
  ]
 }
 `,
-		},
 	}
-	for _, d := range defaults {
-		full := filepath.Join(base, d.rel)
-		if _, err := os.Stat(full); err == nil {
-			continue
+	out := make([]*Preset, 0, len(bodies))
+	for _, body := range bodies {
+		var p Preset
+		if err := json.Unmarshal([]byte(body), &p); err != nil {
+			panic(err)
 		}
-		if err := os.MkdirAll(filepath.Dir(full), 0o700); err != nil {
-			return err
+		p.Kind = KindAgent
+		out = append(out, &p)
 	}
-		if err := os.WriteFile(full, []byte(d.body), 0o600); err != nil {
-			return err
-		}
-	}
-	return nil
+	return out
 }
--- a/internal/preset/preset_test.go
+++ b/internal/preset/preset_test.go
@@ -0,0 +1,131 @@
+package preset
+
+import (
+	"os"
+	"path/filepath"
+	"testing"
+)
+
+func TestLoadUsesBuiltInDefaultsWithoutWritingConfig(t *testing.T) {
+	configHome := filepath.Join(t.TempDir(), "config")
+	t.Setenv("XDG_CONFIG_HOME", configHome)
+
+	set, err := Load()
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("Load: %v", err)
+	}
+	if _, err := os.Stat(filepath.Join(configHome, "patterm")); !os.IsNotExist(err) {
+		t.Fatalf("Load created config dir or unexpected stat error: %v", err)
+	}
+	if len(set.Agents) != 3 {
+		t.Fatalf("agents len = %d, want 3", len(set.Agents))
+	}
+	claude := presetByName(set.Agents, "claude")
+	if claude == nil {
+		t.Fatal("missing built-in claude preset")
+	}
+	if claude.IdleDetection == nil || len(claude.IdleDetection.PermissionPatterns) == 0 {
+		t.Fatalf("built-in claude missing permission patterns: %+v", claude.IdleDetection)
+	}
+	codex := presetByName(set.Agents, "codex")
+	if codex == nil {
+		t.Fatal("missing built-in codex preset")
+	}
+	if codex.IdleDetection == nil || len(codex.IdleDetection.ThinkingPatterns) == 0 {
+		t.Fatalf("built-in codex missing thinking patterns: %+v", codex.IdleDetection)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestLoadMergesUserOverlayIntoBuiltInPreset(t *testing.T) {
+	configHome := t.TempDir()
+	t.Setenv("XDG_CONFIG_HOME", configHome)
+	dir := filepath.Join(configHome, "patterm", "presets", "agents")
+	if err := os.MkdirAll(dir, 0o700); err != nil {
+		t.Fatal(err)
+	}
+	writeFile(t, filepath.Join(dir, "claude.json"), `{
+  "name": "claude",
+  "argv": ["claude", "--model", "sonnet"],
+  "idle_detection": { "idle_threshold_ms": 3500 }
+}`)
+
+	set, err := Load()
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("Load: %v", err)
+	}
+	claude := presetByName(set.Agents, "claude")
+	if claude == nil {
+		t.Fatal("missing claude preset")
+	}
+	if got := claude.Argv; len(got) != 3 || got[0] != "claude" || got[2] != "sonnet" {
+		t.Fatalf("argv = %#v", got)
+	}
+	if claude.IdleDetection.IdleThresholdMS != 3500 {
+		t.Fatalf("idle threshold = %d", claude.IdleDetection.IdleThresholdMS)
+	}
+	if len(claude.IdleDetection.PermissionPatterns) == 0 {
+		t.Fatalf("permission patterns were not inherited: %+v", claude.IdleDetection)
+	}
+	if claude.MCPInjection == nil || claude.MCPInjection.Kind != "flag" {
+		t.Fatalf("mcp injection was not inherited: %+v", claude.MCPInjection)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestLoadCanDisableBuiltInPreset(t *testing.T) {
+	configHome := t.TempDir()
+	t.Setenv("XDG_CONFIG_HOME", configHome)
+	dir := filepath.Join(configHome, "patterm", "presets", "agents")
+	if err := os.MkdirAll(dir, 0o700); err != nil {
+		t.Fatal(err)
+	}
+	writeFile(t, filepath.Join(dir, "opencode.json"), `{"name":"opencode","disabled":true}`)
+
+	set, err := Load()
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("Load: %v", err)
+	}
+	if presetByName(set.Agents, "opencode") != nil {
+		t.Fatal("opencode preset was not disabled")
+	}
+	if presetByName(set.Agents, "claude") == nil || presetByName(set.Agents, "codex") == nil {
+		t.Fatalf("other built-ins missing: %+v", set.Agents)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestLoadAddsCustomUserPreset(t *testing.T) {
+	configHome := t.TempDir()
+	t.Setenv("XDG_CONFIG_HOME", configHome)
+	dir := filepath.Join(configHome, "patterm", "presets", "processes")
+	if err := os.MkdirAll(dir, 0o700); err != nil {
+		t.Fatal(err)
+	}
+	writeFile(t, filepath.Join(dir, "test.json"), `{"name":"test","argv":["go","test","./..."]}`)
+
+	set, err := Load()
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("Load: %v", err)
+	}
+	proc := presetByName(set.Processes, "test")
+	if proc == nil {
+		t.Fatal("missing custom process preset")
+	}
+	if proc.Kind != KindCommand {
+		t.Fatalf("kind = %q", proc.Kind)
+	}
+}
+
+func presetByName(ps []*Preset, name string) *Preset {
+	for _, p := range ps {
+		if p.Name == name {
+			return p
+		}
+	}
+	return nil
+}
+
+func writeFile(t *testing.T, path, body string) {
+	t.Helper()
+	if err := os.WriteFile(path, []byte(body), 0o600); err != nil {
+		t.Fatal(err)
+	}
+}
Author	SHA1	Message	Date
Harry Bayliss	d2342f99cf	Show every agent tab's summary, not just the focused one The tab bar's row-2 summary was painted only for the active tab. Add a per-child summaryTextFor/summaryRawFor helper (active variants now delegate to it), carry each tab's childID on its tabRect, and loop over all visible tabs so each renders its own summary under its column. Layout is unchanged (still 3 rows); narrow tabs clip as before. Resolves the per-tab summary TODO item.	2026-05-25 13:06:53 +01:00
Harry Bayliss	178b4437b1	Give injected agent submit Enter a longer settle delay The trailing CR that submits orchestrator-injected input was written only 15ms after the body, inside TUI agents' paste-coalescing window, so codex (and other paste-detecting agents) intermittently swallowed it as a newline and left the message composed but unsent. Centralize the per-piece timing in a pure pieceWriteDelay helper: keep 15ms between body lines but give the final lone Enter a 100ms settle gap so the agent closes the preceding burst and registers the CR as submit. Covers send_input, send_message, timers, and the spawn initial prompt (all go through writeInput). Resolves the codex composer-submit TODO item.	2026-05-25 13:00:54 +01:00
Harry Bayliss	0725375755	Hold codex in thinking while a turn is running Codex uses the osc_title_stability idle strategy, but it draws its progress in the pane body ('Working … esc to interrupt'), not the OSC title. The title goes stable mid-turn, so ~2s later the classifier declared codex idle while it was still working. Add a thinking-promoter pattern ((?i)esc to interrupt) to the codex built-in preset; classify() checks promoter regexes against the rendered screen before the title-stability verdict, so codex stays in thinking until the turn's in-progress footer actually disappears. Resolves the [CODEX IDLE] TODO item.	2026-05-25 12:43:56 +01:00
Harry Bayliss	3022e4adeb	Track per-tab summary visibility TODO	2026-05-25 12:40:23 +01:00
Harry Bayliss	7b5a22618f	Dispatch MCP requests concurrently per connection handleConn processed requests serially, so a slow tool (e.g. wait_for_pattern with a 300s timeout) monopolized the single per-agent MCP connection and every queued call timed out behind it. Handle each request in its own goroutine, serialize responses through a per-conn write mutex (full response written atomically, partial writes handled), copy the request line before handing it off (bufio reuses its buffer), and wait on a WaitGroup before closing the conn so in-flight handlers finish cleanly. Greeting stays sequential; notifications still get no response. Resolves the [MCP TIMEOUT] TODO item.	2026-05-25 12:39:31 +01:00
Harry Bayliss	53f06b604f	Normalize whitespace in grid get_process_output to save tokens Grid snapshots pad every row to the full terminal width and leave the bottom of the screen blank, so MCP grid reads carried a lot of dead whitespace. Add normalizeGridText (CRLF/lone-CR to LF, right-trim each line, collapse blank runs to a single blank, drop leading/trailing blanks) and apply it to the grid branch of GetProcessOutput only. Stream output, raw output, and WaitForPattern matching are untouched. Resolves the terminal-read newline/token-waste TODO item.	2026-05-25 12:33:59 +01:00
Harry Bayliss	50fd7be70d	Escalate agent Close to SIGKILL so it terminates in one action Agent 'Close' (agent-close) sent a single SIGTERM via Session.Kill and never escalated, so an agent that traps/ignores SIGTERM (e.g. opencode) stayed in the running tab bar until the user closed it again. Add Session.Terminate, which reuses terminateAndWait (SIGTERM, wait, then SIGKILL) but preserves the session entry so the exited pane stays readable, and route handleChildClose's agent path through it in a goroutine to keep the UI responsive during the stop timeout. Resolves the opencode double-close TODO item.	2026-05-25 12:30:13 +01:00
Harry Bayliss	96f7c66d5f	Add scratchpad_delete MCP tool Mirrors the existing scratchpad_* tools end-to-end: catalog schema, dispatch, ToolHost.ScratchpadDelete, and a host method that delegates to scratchpad.Store.Delete and fires scratchpadsChanged() on success so the sidebar refreshes. Missing-pad errors surface rather than being masked. Resolves the [MCP SCRATCHPAD DELETE] TODO item.	2026-05-25 12:23:58 +01:00
Harry Bayliss	f61788eff2	Work through TODO fixes	2026-05-21 15:45:01 +01:00
harry	c1b66f9f8a	Merge pull request 'Show idle state in the top tab bar + release v0.0.7' (#7 ) from worktree-timers-cancel-on-close into main	2026-05-18 13:25:38 +01:00
Harry Bayliss	fe25fcf043	Release v0.0.7 All checks were successful release / build-linux-amd64 (push) Successful in 12m5s Details	2026-05-18 13:02:46 +01:00
Harry Bayliss	2fa00ad510	Show idle state in the top tab bar Each agent tab now prefixes its label with the same one-rune idle indicator the sidebar uses (✕ error, ? permission, ◐ thinking, ○ idle, ● working), so the state of every open agent is visible without opening or focusing each tab. Tab redraws now fire on idle-state changes in addition to sidebar redraws.	2026-05-18 13:02:35 +01:00
Harry Bayliss	412b1167a2	Cancel pending timers when a child is closed (#6 ) Co-authored-by: Harry Bayliss <harry@hjb.dev> Co-committed-by: Harry Bayliss <harry@hjb.dev>	2026-05-18 12:46:50 +01:00
Harry Bayliss	34b41be1df	Cancel pending timers when a child is closed Stale timer bodies were re-delivered to the orchestrator pane after the parent had already processed the sub-agent's reply and called close_process. The timer registry held no link to the child lifecycle, so timers owned by or watching the closed child lingered until something triggered a fire — e.g. a trailing classifier tick for the now-removed child. Add an OnChildClosed hook to ChildEventListener, emit it from Session.Close (and the terminal-corpse path in reapChild), and have the timer manager prune the registry: cancel timers owned by the closed child; remove the closed child from each timer's watched list (cancel the timer outright when watched empties). Natural exit deliberately does not route through this hook — the classifier already emits an idle transition on exit which delivers any legitimate "fire when sub-agent finishes" semantics exactly once; cancelling on exit would swallow that.	2026-05-18 12:37:32 +01:00
Harry Bayliss	de60b93bc6	Use built-in agent preset defaults	2026-05-18 11:28:00 +01:00
Harry Bayliss	67b994f629	Clean up auto-summary settings menu	2026-05-18 10:17:25 +01:00
Harry Bayliss	f10598601f	Finish settings TODO cleanup	2026-05-18 10:05:26 +01:00
Harry Bayliss	cadd4c8f64	Release v0.0.6 All checks were successful release / build-linux-amd64 (push) Successful in 11m48s Details	2026-05-15 21:55:09 +01:00
Harry Bayliss	98d1c059cf	summarizer tweaks	2026-05-15 21:54:14 +01:00
Harry Bayliss	cf65d5d707	Wrap toast bodies, slim the dismiss hint, and stop flicker Toasts now render three content rows with word-wrapped bodies. The in-toast "Ctrl-N · N more" hint is replaced by a short "Ctrl-N · dismiss" entry on the status strip that only appears while a notification is live. The box stops flickering while the focused child repaints its TUI: the overlay is stitched onto the per-chunk PTY write under outMu and bracketed by DECSET 2026 so supporting terminals buffer the child's redraw and the box paint into a single frame.	2026-05-15 21:24:18 +01:00
Harry Bayliss	ef9b8e71c6	Release v0.0.5 All checks were successful release / build-linux-amd64 (push) Successful in 11m51s Details	2026-05-15 20:56:38 +01:00
Harry Bayliss	e64060e40f	Calm down the focused-section labels in the command palette Focused-section rows are now bare verbs (Rename, Close, Stop, Restart, Delete, Edit) instead of repeating the focused name. The title bar already carries the subject, and the row hint preserves fuzzy-search matches like "close codex". Section banners are replaced by a single blank spacer row so the verbs themselves carry the visual weight, and the Open section no longer lists "Switch to <current>" for the pane that's already focused.	2026-05-15 20:30:31 +01:00
harry	e4ab8c2136	Merge pull request 'Add stackable toast notifications' (#5 ) from worktree-toast-notifications into main	2026-05-15 20:28:10 +01:00
Harry Bayliss	f312b6d345	Add stackable toast notifications Replaces the single-slot status-line flash with a top-right toast stack over the focused pane. flashError, flashTransient, and notifyAttention all push onto the same stack (cap 5, FIFO drop). Ctrl-N dismisses the most recent toast; empty stack falls through to the focused PTY so readline / nano / emacs / opencode bindings keep working. A new "Clear notifications" palette item empties the stack.	2026-05-15 20:26:35 +01:00
Harry Bayliss	e6f5a94fae	Trim actioned perf-audit items; add palette polish TODO Removes the 2026-05-15 perf audit findings that have either shipped (see CHANGELOG) or are tracked elsewhere, and replaces them with the remaining palette-refinement notes: generic labels for focused actions ("Close current agent") and a higher-level concern that the palette has grown cluttered as features were added.	2026-05-15 19:53:51 +01:00
Harry Bayliss	c1ecba0624	Use mise to install zig + go in release CI; cut 0.0.4 All checks were successful release / build-linux-amd64 (push) Successful in 13m7s Details `mlugg/setup-zig` was chasing mirrors for ~4 minutes on every run (see v0.0.1 / v0.0.2 logs) and `actions/setup-go` was spending another ~4 minutes downloading Go before patterm started building. mise already manages the project's zig pin; adding `go = "1.26.3"` to `.mise.toml` (matching go.mod) lets `jdx/mise-action@v2` install both with one cached step. Subsequent runs reuse the mise cache instead of re-resolving mirror URLs and re-downloading toolchains. Also adds an `actions/cache@v4` step for `~/.cache/go-build` and `~/go/pkg/mod` keyed on `go.sum` so `go build` itself doesn't re-pull modules every tag push.	2026-05-15 19:38:13 +01:00
Harry Bayliss	878e9370bc	Fix error flashes replacing focused pane	2026-05-15 19:27:42 +01:00
Harry Bayliss	fd9c19e5c2	Fix release CI: upgrade mlugg/setup-zig to v2 and cut 0.0.3 Some checks failed release / build-linux-amd64 (push) Has been cancelled Details `mlugg/setup-zig@v1` is deprecated and only knows the pre-0.14 tarball name (`zig-linux-x86_64-<ver>.tar.xz`), so every mirror — and the official ziglang.org/builds — returned 404 for Zig 0.15.2 on both the v0.0.1 and v0.0.2 release runs. v2 uses the new `zig-x86_64-linux-<ver>.tar.xz` layout that Zig switched to in 0.14+. Also rolls the existing CHANGELOG `[Unreleased]` work into a dated `[0.0.3]` section and adds the CI fix to its Fixed list.	2026-05-15 19:14:21 +01:00
Harry Bayliss	6d90cd7185	Match Solo summary cadence options	2026-05-15 19:13:54 +01:00
Harry Bayliss	d648d5b775	Add auto-summary settings	2026-05-15 19:09:21 +01:00
harry	1bf51bb784	Merge pull request 'Overhaul command palette UX' (#4 ) from feat/palette-ux-overhaul into main Reviewed-on: #4	2026-05-15 18:25:38 +01:00
Harry Bayliss	81bc77366f	Overhaul command palette UX Six-phase sweep: section headers (Focused / Open / Spawn / Quit) with header-skip cursor; chip strip mirroring sw/sp/k macros, driven by Tab; unified Spawn verbs across agent / process / terminal / custom; dropped duplicate global Close list in favor of Ctrl-X inline close on a Switch row plus the [Close] chip; scored matching (prefix > word-boundary > substring > fuzzy) with matched-char highlighting; title bar surfaces focus subject; rename forms split long subject onto its own row; new Alt-1..9 quick-pick, Home/End, ? help overlay, and Ctrl-R relaunch toggle inside the spawn-process form. Scroll indicator and cursor/total counter round out the footer.	2026-05-15 16:41:44 +01:00
Harry Bayliss	0c960fa859	Clarify sub-agent reply routing in MCP tool descriptions A sub-agent's reply to send_message lands in the caller's own pane tagged [sub-agent:<name>], not in the sub-agent's output. The descriptions for wait_for_pattern, send_message, both timer_fire_when_idle_*, and the server-instructions preamble now spell this out, along with the canonical send_message → timer_fire_when_idle_any → read-own-pane pattern. help('readiness') and help('coordination') updated to match. Previously agents reached for wait_for_pattern on the sub-agent and deadlocked until timeout because the reply had already been delivered to their own pane.	2026-05-15 16:08:07 +01:00
Harry Bayliss	b05065a601	Sync TODO.md perf-audit review pass Removed low/marginal items from the original sweep; remaining items have measured or workflow evidence to justify action.	2026-05-15 16:07:58 +01:00
Harry Bayliss	08187aed77	Don't steal focus when an agent spawns a child via MCP	2026-05-15 15:53:50 +01:00
Harry Bayliss	24c8183832	Auto-snap child viewport to bottom when typing into scrollback Typing into a focused child while its emulator viewport was scrolled up left the keystroke heading to the PTY but the input box invisible below the visible region — it looked like typing did nothing. processStdin's flushForward now sets pendingViewportBottom whenever bytes are actually injected, so the existing post-loop handler snaps the viewport and repaints. Wheel events and Ctrl-B paths are untouched: both are intercepted before reaching forward, so wheel still scrolls into history and Ctrl-B is still the explicit escape hatch. Only bytes that would actually reach the child PTY trigger the snap.	2026-05-15 15:34:00 +01:00
Harry Bayliss	b5dfaf39c4	Marquee long sidebar names; truncate with ellipsis otherwise Sidebar rows that overflow the rail width used to spill characters into the main viewport. They now truncate with a trailing "…" when unfocused (or when the focused name still fits). The focused row whose name overflows runs a pause-scroll-pause marquee: 1 s hold on the head, ~150 ms per cell scroll, 1 s hold on the tail, snap back. The row's geometry never moves while it animates, so nothing below shifts. A dedicated 150 ms goroutine flips sidebarDirty only while a row is actively animating; the chrome ticker does the actual repaint. Idle is a single cheap wakeup. focus / spawn / exit / restart all reset the marquee state so the new focused row starts from frame zero. When the row's budget is tight, the trailing timer indicator drops before the name ellipses since the name is the only identifier the row carries. clampVisible() is a defensive net inside write(): even if a row's decoration size were mis-computed, it will not spill past the sidebar band into the PTY area.	2026-05-15 15:33:39 +01:00
Harry Bayliss	1fb919c22a	Keep parent tab highlighted when focus is on a sub-agent The top tab bar compared against focusedID, so stepping into a sub-agent dropped the parent tab's highlight even though the user was still inside that thread. activeAgentID already walks the parent chain to the top-level root for the sidebar's agent tree — reuse it for the tab strip too.	2026-05-15 15:26:06 +01:00