fix(templates): stop shipping the dd-* demo fleet and a dead GitHub repo list as starting points

[vybe]

Fixes #1931

A fresh install's Library advertised 14 local templates — 11 of them the dd-* VC
due-diligence demo fleet — plus 6 GitHub repos last pushed Dec-2025/Jan-2026 that no
install had ever overridden. Both were presented as real starting points. They are not: the
dd-* agents only work as a deployed set, and the GitHub list was a bundled default nobody
curated. The catalog now shows 3 starters (sage, scout, scribe) and 0 GitHub
repos.

What changed

• hidden: true on the 11 dd-* templates via the existing bug: agent template catalog surfaces internal test/canary fixtures + a broken stub as real templates #1513 mechanism — omitted
  from GET /api/templates, still creatable by id. The fleet stays deployable as a set
  through a bundled manifest.
• DEFAULT_GITHUB_TEMPLATE_REPOS = []. The constant is kept, not deleted — TMPL-001's
  None-vs-[] fallback, routers/settings.py, and the Settings "defaults" badge all
  reference it, and trinity-enterprise#14 will repoint the same seam.
• Every bundled template directory must now declare hidden: (CI-enforced). The runtime
  default is deliberately unchanged — flipping it would turn a forgotten key into a silent
  absence.
• Library + Settings empty states now name an action the user can actually take.
• .gitleaks.toml: YOUR_TOKEN allowlisted (a regexes entry, not paths). The new
  manifest's DEPLOY comment reuses the sanctioned Authorization: Bearer YOUR_TOKEN placeholder
  already in research-network.yaml:10, which trips gitleaks' default curl-auth-header rule;
  a regexes entry suppresses only that placeholder, so config/manifests/ stays scanned for
  real secrets (a paths block is a pre-scan file skip and would not).

Deliberate decisions (not scope drift)

• The marketplace-first empty state was an explicit human decision that superseded the
  plan. The abilityai/abilities marketplace and its create-agent wizards are presented as
  the recommended path; Settings → GitHub Templates + owner/repo is secondary. The
  plan had these the other way round.
• Settings.vue is AC-fix: add missing logging_config.py to backend Dockerfile #4 completion, not scope drift. The Library's new hint pointed at a
  destination that itself dead-ended — Settings said "No templates configured. Add a GitHub
  repo above or reset to defaults" while the Reset button is :disabled in exactly that
  state and the shipped default list is now empty. Fixing the origin without the destination
  would have left the dead end one click further in.
• The manifest was PROMOTED from docs/demos/vc-due-diligence/system-manifest.yaml, not
  invented, and is named vc-due-diligence.yaml on purpose. Deployed agent names are
  built as f"{system_name}-{short_name}" (system_service.py:382) and
  dd-lead/CLAUDE.md hardcodes its roster as nine vc-due-diligence-dd-* literals. Any
  other manifest name therefore ships 11 healthy containers whose orchestrator 404s on every
  delegation — with green CI. A new guard
  (tests/unit/test_1931_manifest_roster.py) catches exactly that. The promoted copy also adds
  the dd-lead → specialist permissions the demo left to a manual step and drops three keys
  that were dead or harmful there.
• Tag-alongs, named so they aren't mistaken for drift: the Library.vue page-level hint
  copy; the ent124 test widening from a fixed path to a glob; the
  test_real_catalog_surfaces_the_three_starters rename and its now-inert ordering clause; and
  a third test file (test_1931_empty_github_defaults.py) that converts a read-only
  "these two branches are byte-identical" argument into a running proof.

Two intended side-effects

• GET /api/templates now makes zero outbound GitHub calls on a cold metadata cache.
• The new manifest is inert data, not a trigger — BUNDLED_MANIFEST_PATH hard-codes
  config/manifests/default-system.yaml (system_seed_service.py:83), so nothing auto-deploys
  it.

Measured outcome

	before	after
Visible local templates	14	3 (sage, scout, scribe)
GitHub repos in the shipped default list	6	0
Bundled dirs omitting hidden:	25	0

25 bundled template directories total: 3 visible, 22 hidden.

Verification

• Full tests/unit (verify stage): 6012 passed / 18 skipped
• Full tests/unit (ship stage re-run): 6010 passed / 18 skipped / 2 failed — both failures are
  environmental, not branch-caused; see "Ship-stage re-run caveats" below.
• 3-file #1931 set + the 2 modified test files, re-run at ship stage after the docstring fix:
  69 passed (test_1931_catalog_intent.py, test_1931_empty_github_defaults.py,
  test_1931_manifest_roster.py, test_local_templates_listing.py,
  test_ent124_default_system_seed.py)
• npm run build: clean
• /verify-local --skip-agent: PASS; integration 70 passed / 13 skipped / 2 deselected
• Image-level proof: /app/config/manifests/vc-due-diligence.yaml is present in the built
  backend image, 6493 B byte-match, parses to name = 'vc-due-diligence', 11 agents, zero
  vc-demo.

Guard mutations all fail RED

Mutation	Result
Drop a dd-* hidden: key	3 red
Add a visible directory	visible-set pin red
Manifest name: → vc-demo	roster red
Break a name inside .claude/commands/	roster red

Ship-stage re-run caveats (host environment, disclosed)

The ship-stage full-suite re-run was done on a host whose environment differs from the verify
host. Two artifacts, neither branch-caused:

1. 4 files could not be collected — test_1771{a,b,c}_*_properties.py need hypothesis,
   which is a declared test dep (tests/requirements-test.txt:26 — hypothesis==6.161.5)
   simply not installed on this host. Excluded from the re-run; all four are untouched by
   this branch.

2. 2 failed — test_1081_physical_meter.py::TestPerAgentMeter::test_available_floors_at_zero_over_ceiling[sqlite]
   and ::TestDisjointBulkMeter::test_max_respects_506_clamp[sqlite]. Shared-state
   interference from a second, unrelated pytest process running concurrently on the same host
   (these tests exercise the fleet-wide max_parallel_tasks_ceiling setting, which feat(capacity): admin-configurable system-wide ceiling + agent-settings UI for max_parallel_tasks #506
   deliberately reads uncached from shared system_settings). Evidence they are not
   branch-caused:

   • tests/unit/test_1081_physical_meter.py is byte-identical to origin/dev
     (blob 622c4eb4);
   • both named tests pass in isolation;
   • the whole file passes in isolation — 14 passed.

   CI runs the suite without a competing process, so this should not reproduce there.

Pre-existing failure — disclosed, not branch-caused

tests/unit/test_1069_voip_call_path_param.py::test_flat_path_params_are_agent_name_not_name
imports get_flat_dependant (line 214), which fastapi 0.141.1 removed.
tests/requirements-test.txt:33 floats fastapi>=0.115.0 with no upper bound, so whether
this test passes depends on which fastapi a host resolves.

This branch leaves tests/unit/test_1069_voip_call_path_param.py, src/backend/routers/voip.py,
and tests/requirements-test.txt byte-identical to origin/dev — verified by blob hash — so
it cannot be branch-caused either way.

Honest correction to the hand-off note: on the host used for this ship run the test
passes (fastapi 0.136.1 resolved, where get_flat_dependant still exists). The red is
real but environment-dependent, not "fails on this host". The unbounded pin is the actual
defect and is listed as a follow-up below.

Follow-ups (listed, deliberately not filed)

• Delete docs/demos/vc-due-diligence/system-manifest.yaml. It still carries prompt:
  (line 46), and system_service.py:1143 writes that fleet-wide via
  db.set_setting("trinity_prompt", …). This PR only adds a SUPERSEDED header naming the
  hazard.
• Pin an upper bound on fastapi in tests/requirements-test.txt — the unbounded >=
  above is why a green branch can go red on a different host.
• template-processing.md:560-578 documents a GITHUB_TEMPLATES = [...] literal at
  "config.py:91-164" that does not exist (confirmed: the symbol is absent from a 380-line
  config.py). Pre-existing rot, left alone because it is a live Path traversal in template resolution: local:<id> read escape, plus name:-derived credential staging that leaks another tenant's .mcp.json #1900 collision file.
• The now-dead if repo in DEFAULT_GITHUB_TEMPLATE_REPOS: branch in
  template_service.py:602 (also Path traversal in template resolution: local:<id> read escape, plus name:-derived credential staging that leaks another tenant's .mcp.json #1900's file this run).
• README / onboarding / MULTI_AGENT_SYSTEM_GUIDE.md Corbin/Ruby staleness.
• research-network.yaml / acme-consulting.yaml headers document deploy commands that cannot
  work.
• dd-lead should discover its roster via list_agents instead of hardcoding nine names —
  the root fix for this whole class.
• Process-Engine orphans, dead since decision: fold process engine agent_task through TaskExecutionService, or delete the engine #430.
• The fork-to-own browse surface is empty with zero GitHub templates. Not a regression — the
  backend fails LOUD with FORK_TO_OWN_REQUIRED plus remediation.

Merge order

Four files collide with sibling PRs. No rebase is needed today — origin/dev is unmoved at
the base commit. First-merged wins; the others rebase.

File	Note
docs/memory/requirements/core-agent.md §4.1	all three PRs; clean 2-bullet insert at the …since #843. anchor
docs/memory/feature-flows.md	index row
docs/memory/feature-flows/template-processing.md
tests/unit/test_local_templates_listing.py	one bottom-anchored hunk at line 312 of 368

🤖 Generated with Claude Code

[github-actions]

⚠️ Nightly unit-suite check skipped — merge conflict against dev.

Resolve by running git merge dev locally and pushing the result. The next nightly run will re-test once the conflict is gone.

[AndriiPasternak31]

APPROVE — /review + /validate-pr. Zero critical findings, 3 warnings, none blocking.

I verified the load-bearing claims from source rather than from the PR body, and mutation-tested the guards. Everything holds. One correction below, in the PR's favour.

Verified independently

Claim	Method	Result
.gitleaks.toml is a regexes entry, not paths	read the full [[allowlists]] block; grepped every +/- line	✅ '''YOUR_TOKEN''' appended to regexes (:65); paths (:50-61) byte-untouched, so config/manifests/ stays scanned for real secrets. The only added lines naming config/manifests are comment text inside the regexes entry. gitleaks CI passing is the empirical half.
vc-due-diligence.yaml is inert	grepped every config/manifests reference repo-wide; read _resolve_manifest	✅ BUNDLED_MANIFEST_PATH (system_seed_service.py:83) is a string literal; the resolver reads exactly two sources (env override + that literal). Zero glob/iterdir/listdir/scandir in the three system modules. Every other reference is packaging (Dockerfile COPY, compose :ro).
hidden: is catalog-only — the fleet stays deployable	traced all read paths	✅ get_local_templates() (:529) is the sole exclusion point. get_local_template(), crud._resolve_local_template(), and system_service._preflight_template all resolve by directory name and never read the flag.
Manifest's name/roster claims	read the cited code	✅ base_name = f"{system_name}-{short_name}" (system_service.py:383). dd-lead/CLAUDE.md = 13 occurrences, 9 distinct names — exactly the 9 permissions.explicit edges, dd-intake correctly absent. The other ten dd-*/CLAUDE.md: 0 cross-agent refs, so 9 edges is the complete topology, not an omission.
explicit = full replacement	read configure_permissions	✅ :455-459 clears every system agent absent from the map before applying. Comment is accurate.
Catalog outcome	audited all 25 dirs on disk	✅ VISIBLE = {sage, scout, scribe}, 22 hidden, 0 undeclared — matches the PR's table exactly.
Tests	ran them	✅ 69 passed, reproducing the stated number.
Guards aren't vacuous	mutated the tree, ran, restored	✅ Drop dd-founder's hidden: → 3 red. Manifest name: → vc-demo → roster red. Both match the mutation table. Tree restored, 69 green again, git status clean.
Test hygiene	ran tests/lint_sys_modules.py	✅ 194 violations vs baseline 240 — no new.

Two things the PR under-claims, worth stating: Invariant #13 needed no code change — MCP list_templates → client.listTemplates() → GET /api/templates → the same single filter, so all three surfaces converge (only the tool description needed editing, which it got). And the upgrade path is fine — both compose files bind-mount ./config/agent-templates:/agent-configs/templates:ro, so existing installs pick up the hidden: flags on restart rather than needing a volume reset.

The new empty state's CTA is real, not decorative: useTemplate({id:'github-custom'}) → :initial-template → form.template (CreateAgentModal.vue:347), and :447 explicitly exempts the sentinel from the "template doesn't exist → reset to blank" guard, with :365 auto-focusing the repo input.

Correction: the merge-order table over-warns

I simulated squash-merges in a throwaway worktree rather than predicting from hunk overlap:

Scenario	Conflicts
dev + #1935, rebase #1934	docs/memory/requirements/core-agent.md only
dev + #1935 + #1936, rebase #1934	docs/memory/requirements/core-agent.md only

template-processing.md auto-merges; feature-flows.md and test_local_templates_listing.py never conflict. The one conflict is a pure adjacent-insert — #1935's #1900 read-path bullet vs this PR's two bullets at the same §4.1 anchor, zero semantic overlap. Resolution is keep both, either order. I resolved it that way, completed all 7 commits clean, and re-ran: 84 passed (this PR's 69 + #1935's additions to the same files). The two PRs' guards coexist, and #1935's own bullet independently states "Hidden templates (hidden: true) stay resolvable by id: the barrier reads the name, never the flag" — corroborating this PR's central claim.

Flagging this down because an inflated conflict list invites a careless bulk resolution on the one file that actually needs care.

Warnings (non-blocking)

1. The superseded demo manifest keeps its live footgun. docs/demos/vc-due-diligence/system-manifest.yaml:46 still carries prompt:, and system_service.py:1143 writes it fleet-wide via db.set_setting("trinity_prompt", …). The SUPERSEDED header names the hazard and the README is repointed — real mitigation — but the header itself says the file "is NOT guarded against drift," and removal is one line. Its sibling claims do check out: auto_start has zero reads, and the only folders read is per-agent (:193). Fine as the filed follow-up; noting the one-line option.

2. #1936's prose goes stale on rebase. Its §4.1.1 says "all 14 visible bundled templates failed the same four HARD checks" — after this PR, 3 are visible, contradicting §4.1 two bullets above. Its tests are safe (GUARDED_TEMPLATES is an explicit tuple, deliberately not a live hidden query, with a comment citing #1931). Docs-coherence fix for whoever lands second.

3. Issue #1931 carries both status-in-progress and status-ready. Auto-promotion writes status-in-dev and leaves status-ready as drift. Worth dropping before merge.

Suggestions

• requirements/security.md §20.8 doesn't name the new YOUR_TOKEN entry. Consistent with precedent (it never listed your-api-key/your-domain\.com either), so optional.
• test_1931_manifest_roster.py mutates sys.path at import while its sibling explicitly argues against that, and its assert paths runs at collection time (called in the @parametrize at :72) so a missing config/manifests/ errors rather than skips. Cosmetic.

Forward-looking

Once #1911 (ent#126) lands, GET /api/systems/manifests globs config/manifests/ and surfaces each manifest as a one-click UI install with a sets_prompt warning — so vc-due-diligence.yaml stops being merely inert data and becomes a listed, installable catalog entry. That reads as AC #2's ideal fulfilment rather than a defect, and I checked the interaction: _preflight_template resolves through _resolve_local_template, which ignores hidden, so all 11 dd-* preflight valid: true rather than showing up broken. No action — just don't carry "inert" forward as an assumption after #1911.

Process

All 24 CI checks pass, including gitleaks, prod-image-smoke, regression diff, the sys.modules lint, e2e, and 6 pytest runs (3 seeds × base/head). Security greps clean — the only "email" hit is @pytest.mark.parametrize and the 5 "IP" hits are GitHub-logo SVG path coordinates. Zero new os.getenv() (no config-packaging gap); config.py is a modification already covered by Dockerfile:83, and the new manifest ships via the wholesale Dockerfile:109 COPY ../../config/manifests. architecture.md:222 names only default-system.yaml for the seed and stays accurate with a second manifest present, so skipping it was right. All 6 ACs trace to a named guard.

The detail I'd single out: test_real_catalog_surfaces_the_three_starters noticed its own ordering clause could only go vacuous, not red, on the very change it guarded — said so in the docstring, and replaced it with a non-vacuous priority == 20 assertion. That's the failure mode most PRs ship silently.

Merge order: land #1935 first, expect exactly one conflict in core-agent.md, resolve keep-both.