## Thinking Path
> - Paperclip orchestrates AI agents via adapters (`claude_local`,
`codex_local`, etc.)
> - Each adapter type has different capabilities — instructions bundles,
skill materialization, local JWT — but these were gated by 5 hardcoded
type lists scattered across server routes and UI components
> - External adapter plugins (e.g. a future `opencode_k8s`) cannot add
themselves to those hardcoded lists without patching Paperclip source
> - The existing `supportsLocalAgentJwt` field on `ServerAdapterModule`
proves the right pattern already exists; it just wasn't applied to the
other capability gates
> - This pull request replaces the 4 remaining hardcoded lists with
declarative capability flags on `ServerAdapterModule`, exposed through
the adapter listing API
> - The benefit is that external adapter plugins can now declare their
own capabilities without any changes to Paperclip source code
## What Changed
- **`packages/adapter-utils/src/types.ts`** — added optional capability
fields to `ServerAdapterModule`: `supportsInstructionsBundle`,
`instructionsPathKey`, `requiresMaterializedRuntimeSkills`
- **`server/src/routes/agents.ts`** — replaced
`DEFAULT_MANAGED_INSTRUCTIONS_ADAPTER_TYPES` and
`ADAPTERS_REQUIRING_MATERIALIZED_RUNTIME_SKILLS` hardcoded sets with
capability-aware helper functions that fall back to the legacy sets for
adapters that don't set flags
- **`server/src/routes/adapters.ts`** — `GET /api/adapters` now includes
a `capabilities` object per adapter (all four flags + derived
`supportsSkills`)
- **`server/src/adapters/registry.ts`** — all built-in adapters
(`claude_local`, `codex_local`, `process`, `cursor`) now declare flags
explicitly
- **`ui/src/adapters/use-adapter-capabilities.ts`** — new hook that
fetches adapter capabilities from the API
- **`ui/src/pages/AgentDetail.tsx`** — replaced hardcoded `isLocal`
allowlist with `capabilities.supportsInstructionsBundle` from the API
- **`ui/src/components/AgentConfigForm.tsx`** /
**`OnboardingWizard.tsx`** — replaced `NONLOCAL_TYPES` denylist with
capability-based checks
- **`server/src/__tests__/adapter-registry.test.ts`** /
**`adapter-routes.test.ts`** — tests covering flag exposure,
undefined-when-unset, and per-adapter values
- **`docs/adapters/creating-an-adapter.md`** — new "Capability Flags"
section documenting all flags and an example for external plugin authors
## Verification
- Run `pnpm test --filter=@paperclip/server -- adapter-registry
adapter-routes` — all new tests pass
- Run `pnpm test --filter=@paperclip/adapter-utils` — existing tests
still pass
- Spin up dev server, open an agent with `claude_local` type —
instructions bundle tab still visible
- Create/open an agent with a non-local type — instructions bundle tab
still hidden
- Call `GET /api/adapters` and verify each adapter includes a
`capabilities` object with the correct flags
## Risks
- **Low risk overall** — all new flags are optional with
backwards-compatible fallbacks to the existing hardcoded sets; no
adapter behaviour changes unless a flag is explicitly set
- Adapters that do not declare flags continue to use the legacy lists,
so there is no regression risk for built-in adapters
- The UI capability hook adds one API call to AgentDetail mount; this is
a pre-existing endpoint, so no new latency path is introduced
## Model Used
- Provider: Anthropic
- Model: Claude Sonnet 4.6 (`claude-sonnet-4-6`)
- Context: 200k token context window
- Mode: Agentic tool use (code editing, bash, grep, file reads)
## Checklist
- [x] I have included a thinking path that traces from project context
to this change
- [x] I have specified the model used (with version and capability
details)
- [x] I have run tests locally and they pass
- [x] I have added or updated tests where applicable
- [ ] If this change affects the UI, I have included before/after
screenshots
- [x] I have updated relevant documentation to reflect my changes
- [x] I have considered and documented any risks above
- [x] I will address all Greptile and reviewer comments before
requesting merge
---------
Co-authored-by: Pawla Abdul (Bot) <pawla@groombook.dev>
Co-authored-by: Paperclip <noreply@paperclip.ing>
Replace the client-side-only override store with a real server-side
toggle. When a developer pauses the external override, the server swaps
ALL adapter behavior back to the builtin — execute handler, model listing,
config schema, detection — not just the UI parser.
Server changes:
- registry.ts: builtinFallbacks map + pausedOverrides set + setOverridePaused()
- routes/adapters.ts: PATCH /api/adapters/:type/override endpoint + overridePaused in list
UI changes:
- adapters.ts: setOverridePaused API method + overridePaused on AdapterInfo
- AdapterManager: overrideMutation calls server, instant feedback via invalidate()
- use-disabled-adapters.ts: reads adapter.overridePaused from server response
Removed:
- disabled-overrides-store.ts: no longer needed (server is the source of truth)
Note: already-running agent sessions keep the adapter they started with.
Only new sessions use the swapped adapter.
When an external plugin overrides a built-in adapter type, the
GET /api/adapters response now includes overriddenBuiltin: true. The
Adapter Manager shows an 'Overrides built-in' badge on such adapters.
- Plugin loader: install/reload/remove/reinstall external adapters
from npm packages or local directories
- Plugin store persisted at ~/.paperclip/adapter-plugins.json
- Self-healing UI parser resolution with version caching
- UI: Adapter Manager page, dynamic loader, display registry
with humanized names for unknown adapter types
- Dev watch: exclude adapter-plugins dir from tsx watcher
to prevent mid-request server restarts during reinstall
- All consumer fallbacks use getAdapterLabel() for consistent display
- AdapterTypeDropdown uses controlled open state for proper close behavior
- Remove hermes-local from built-in UI (externalized to plugin)
- Add docs for external adapters and UI parser contract
