fix(server): share send-prompt path between MCP and Session

Extract `unarchiveAgentState` and `sendPromptToAgent` into `mcp-shared`
so every surface (app/WS, MCP, CLI-through-MCP) runs the same sequence:
unarchive → ensureAgentLoaded → optional mode change → recordUserMessage
→ startAgentRun. MCP `send_agent_prompt` previously skipped unarchive and
cold-agent rehydration, so sending to an archived agent over MCP left it
hidden from `paseo ls` and failed entirely when the agent wasn't already
in memory. Session now delegates to the shared function and its private
`unarchiveAgentState` is gone.

packages/server/src/server/agent/mcp-server.ts

@@ -40,6 +40,7 @@ import {
   parseDurationString,
   resolveProviderAndModel,
   sanitizePermissionRequest,
+  sendPromptToAgent,
   setupFinishNotification,
   serializeSnapshotWithMetadata,
   startAgentRun,
@@ -768,30 +769,20 @@ export async function createAgentMcpServer(options: AgentMcpServerOptions): Prom
       },
     },
     async ({ agentId, prompt, sessionMode, background = false, notifyOnFinish = false }) => {
-      const snapshot = agentManager.getAgent(agentId);
-      if (!snapshot) {
-        throw new Error(`Agent ${agentId} not found`);
-      }
-
       if (agentManager.hasInFlightRun(agentId)) {
         waitTracker.cancel(agentId, "Agent run interrupted by new prompt");
       }
 
-      if (sessionMode) {
+      await sendPromptToAgent({
-        await agentManager.setAgentMode(agentId, sessionMode);
+        agentManager,
-      }
+        agentStorage,
-
+        agentId,
-      try {
+        userMessageText: prompt,
-        agentManager.recordUserMessage(agentId, prompt, {
+        prompt,
-          emitState: false,
+        sessionMode,
+        logger: childLogger,
       });
-      } catch (error) {
-        childLogger.error({ err: error, agentId }, "Failed to record user message");
-      }
 
-      startAgentRun(agentManager, agentId, prompt, childLogger, {
-        replaceRunning: true,
-      });
       if (notifyOnFinish && callerAgentId) {
         setupFinishNotification({
           agentManager,

packages/server/src/server/agent/mcp-shared.ts

@@ -1,10 +1,15 @@
 import { z } from "zod";
 import type { Logger } from "pino";
 
-import type { AgentPromptInput, AgentPermissionRequest } from "./agent-sdk-types.js";
+import type {
+  AgentPromptInput,
+  AgentPermissionRequest,
+  AgentRunOptions,
+} from "./agent-sdk-types.js";
 import type { AgentManager, ManagedAgent, WaitForAgentResult } from "./agent-manager.js";
 import { curateAgentActivity } from "./activity-curator.js";
 import type { AgentStorage } from "./agent-storage.js";
+import { ensureAgentLoaded } from "./agent-loading.js";
 import { serializeAgentSnapshot } from "../messages.js";
 import { StoredScheduleSchema } from "../schedule/types.js";
 import type { AgentProvider } from "./agent-sdk-types.js";
@@ -94,6 +99,7 @@ export function resolveProviderAndModel(params: {
 
 export type StartAgentRunOptions = {
   replaceRunning?: boolean;
+  runOptions?: AgentRunOptions;
 };
 
 /**
@@ -171,9 +177,10 @@ export function startAgentRun(
   options?: StartAgentRunOptions,
 ): void {
   const shouldReplace = Boolean(options?.replaceRunning && agentManager.hasInFlightRun(agentId));
+  const runOptions = options?.runOptions;
   const iterator = shouldReplace
-    ? agentManager.replaceAgentRun(agentId, prompt)
+    ? agentManager.replaceAgentRun(agentId, prompt, runOptions)
-    : agentManager.streamAgent(agentId, prompt);
+    : agentManager.streamAgent(agentId, prompt, runOptions);
   void (async () => {
     try {
       for await (const _ of iterator) {
@@ -185,6 +192,92 @@ export function startAgentRun(
   })();
 }
 
+/**
+ * Clear the archived flag from a stored agent record.
+ * Shared across Session (app/WS), MCP, and CLI so every surface that acts on
+ * an archived agent unarchives it the same way.
+ */
+export async function unarchiveAgentState(
+  agentStorage: AgentStorage,
+  agentManager: AgentManager,
+  agentId: string,
+): Promise<boolean> {
+  const record = await agentStorage.get(agentId);
+  if (!record || !record.archivedAt) {
+    return false;
+  }
+  const updatedAt = new Date().toISOString();
+  await agentStorage.upsert({
+    ...record,
+    archivedAt: null,
+    updatedAt,
+  });
+  agentManager.notifyAgentState(agentId);
+  return true;
+}
+
+export interface SendPromptToAgentParams {
+  agentManager: AgentManager;
+  agentStorage: AgentStorage;
+  agentId: string;
+  /** Raw user text to record in the timeline. */
+  userMessageText: string;
+  /** Prompt to dispatch to the provider (may include image blocks or wrapped text). */
+  prompt: AgentPromptInput;
+  messageId?: string;
+  runOptions?: AgentRunOptions;
+  /** Optional mode to set on the agent before the run starts. */
+  sessionMode?: string;
+  logger: Logger;
+}
+
+/**
+ * Full send-prompt orchestration: unarchive → load → (optional mode change) →
+ * record user message → start run.
+ *
+ * Every surface that sends a prompt to an agent (Session/WS, MCP, CLI-through-MCP)
+ * MUST go through this so behavior can never drift between them.
+ */
+export async function sendPromptToAgent(params: SendPromptToAgentParams): Promise<void> {
+  const {
+    agentManager,
+    agentStorage,
+    agentId,
+    userMessageText,
+    prompt,
+    messageId,
+    runOptions,
+    sessionMode,
+    logger,
+  } = params;
+
+  await unarchiveAgentState(agentStorage, agentManager, agentId);
+
+  await ensureAgentLoaded(agentId, {
+    agentManager,
+    agentStorage,
+    logger,
+  });
+
+  if (sessionMode) {
+    await agentManager.setAgentMode(agentId, sessionMode);
+  }
+
+  try {
+    agentManager.recordUserMessage(agentId, userMessageText, {
+      messageId,
+      emitState: false,
+    });
+  } catch (error) {
+    logger.error({ err: error, agentId }, "Failed to record user message");
+  }
+
+  startAgentRun(agentManager, agentId, prompt, logger, {
+    replaceRunning: true,
+    runOptions,
+  });
+}
+
 interface SetupFinishNotificationParams {
   agentManager: AgentManager;
   agentStorage: AgentStorage;

packages/server/src/server/session.ts

@@ -65,6 +65,7 @@ import {
   toAgentPersistenceHandle,
 } from "./persistence-hooks.js";
 import { ensureAgentLoaded } from "./agent/agent-loading.js";
+import { sendPromptToAgent, unarchiveAgentState } from "./agent/mcp-shared.js";
 import { experimental_createMCPClient } from "ai";
 import { StreamableHTTPClientTransport } from "@modelcontextprotocol/sdk/client/streamableHttp.js";
 import type { VoiceCallerContext, VoiceSpeakHandler } from "./voice-types.js";
@@ -2188,21 +2189,6 @@ export class Session {
     });
   }
 
-  private async unarchiveAgentState(agentId: string): Promise<boolean> {
-    const record = await this.agentStorage.get(agentId);
-    if (!record || !record.archivedAt) {
-      return false;
-    }
-    const updatedAt = new Date().toISOString();
-    await this.agentStorage.upsert({
-      ...record,
-      archivedAt: null,
-      updatedAt,
-    });
-    this.agentManager.notifyAgentState(agentId);
-    return true;
-  }
-
   private async unarchiveAgentByHandle(handle: AgentPersistenceHandle): Promise<void> {
     const records = await this.agentStorage.list();
     const matched = records.find(
@@ -2213,7 +2199,7 @@ export class Session {
     if (!matched) {
       return;
     }
-    await this.unarchiveAgentState(matched.id);
+    await unarchiveAgentState(this.agentStorage, this.agentManager, matched.id);
   }
 
   private async handleUpdateAgentRequest(
@@ -2711,38 +2697,28 @@ export class Session {
       `Sending text to agent ${agentId}${images && images.length > 0 ? ` with ${images.length} image attachment(s)` : ""}`,
     );
 
-    await this.unarchiveAgentState(agentId);
+    const promptText = options?.spokenInput ? wrapSpokenInput(text) : text;
+    const prompt = this.buildAgentPrompt(promptText, images);
 
     try {
-      await ensureAgentLoaded(agentId, {
+      await sendPromptToAgent({
         agentManager: this.agentManager,
         agentStorage: this.agentStorage,
+        agentId,
+        userMessageText: text,
+        prompt,
+        messageId,
+        runOptions,
         logger: this.sessionLogger,
       });
+      return { ok: true };
     } catch (error) {
-      this.handleAgentRunError(agentId, error, "Failed to initialize agent before sending prompt");
+      this.handleAgentRunError(agentId, error, "Failed to send agent message");
       return {
         ok: false,
         error: error instanceof Error ? error.message : String(error),
       };
     }
-
-    try {
-      this.agentManager.recordUserMessage(agentId, text, {
-        messageId,
-        emitState: false,
-      });
-    } catch (error) {
-      this.sessionLogger.error(
-        { err: error, agentId },
-        `Failed to record user message for agent ${agentId}`,
-      );
-    }
-
-    const promptText = options?.spokenInput ? wrapSpokenInput(text) : text;
-    const prompt = this.buildAgentPrompt(promptText, images);
-
-    return this.startAgentStream(agentId, prompt, runOptions);
   }
 
   /**
@@ -2902,7 +2878,7 @@ export class Session {
     try {
       await this.unarchiveAgentByHandle(handle);
       const snapshot = await this.agentManager.resumeAgentFromPersistence(handle, overrides);
-      await this.unarchiveAgentState(snapshot.id);
+      await unarchiveAgentState(this.agentStorage, this.agentManager, snapshot.id);
       await this.agentManager.hydrateTimelineFromProvider(snapshot.id);
       await this.forwardAgentUpdate(snapshot);
       const timelineSize = this.agentManager.getTimeline(snapshot.id).length;
@@ -2943,7 +2919,7 @@ export class Session {
     this.sessionLogger.info({ agentId }, `Refreshing agent ${agentId} from persistence`);
 
     try {
-      await this.unarchiveAgentState(agentId);
+      await unarchiveAgentState(this.agentStorage, this.agentManager, agentId);
       let snapshot: ManagedAgent;
       const existing = this.agentManager.getAgent(agentId);
       if (existing) {
@@ -6396,44 +6372,32 @@ export class Session {
 
     try {
       const agentId = resolved.agentId;
-      await this.unarchiveAgentState(agentId);
-
-      await ensureAgentLoaded(agentId, {
-        agentManager: this.agentManager,
-        agentStorage: this.agentStorage,
-        logger: this.sessionLogger,
-      });
-
-      this.sessionLogger.trace(
-        { agentId, messageId: msg.messageId, textPrefix: msg.text.slice(0, 80) },
-        "send_agent_message_request: recording user message",
-      );
-      try {
-        this.agentManager.recordUserMessage(agentId, msg.text, {
-          messageId: msg.messageId,
-          emitState: false,
-        });
-      } catch (error) {
-        this.sessionLogger.error(
-          { err: error, agentId },
-          "Failed to record user message for send_agent_message_request",
-        );
-      }
 
       const prompt = this.buildAgentPrompt(msg.text, msg.images);
       this.sessionLogger.trace(
-        { agentId, messageId: msg.messageId },
+        { agentId, messageId: msg.messageId, textPrefix: msg.text.slice(0, 80) },
-        "send_agent_message_request: starting agent stream",
+        "send_agent_message_request: dispatching shared sendPromptToAgent",
       );
-      const started = this.startAgentStream(agentId, prompt);
+      try {
-      if (!started.ok) {
+        await sendPromptToAgent({
+          agentManager: this.agentManager,
+          agentStorage: this.agentStorage,
+          agentId,
+          userMessageText: msg.text,
+          prompt,
+          messageId: msg.messageId,
+          logger: this.sessionLogger,
+        });
+      } catch (error) {
+        const message = error instanceof Error ? error.message : String(error);
+        this.handleAgentRunError(agentId, error, "Failed to send agent message");
         this.emit({
           type: "send_agent_message_response",
           payload: {
             requestId: msg.requestId,
             agentId,
             accepted: false,
-            error: started.error,
+            error: message,
           },
         });
         return;