fix(sync): guard putPage 0-row RETURNING + reclassify sync failure copy (#2189)

Root cause of #2189's opaque per-file crash: putPage's INSERT … ON CONFLICT
DO UPDATE … RETURNING can yield 0 rows when brain-local DB state (e.g. a
BEFORE trigger) suppresses the write, and rowToPage(rows[0]) then died with
"undefined is not an object (evaluating 'row.deleted_at')". Both engines now
throw a descriptive error naming the slug + source_id so the failure is
diagnosable per-file instead of an anonymous TypeError.

Also lands the salvageable parts of community PR #2586 (takeover): the
"failed to parse / fix the frontmatter" copy misclassified runtime import
errors as YAML problems — reworded to "failed to import" — plus its
first-code-sync PGLite smoke test.

New regression test reproduces the exact 0-row RETURNING state via a
suppressing trigger: fails pre-fix with the reported crash signature,
passes with the guard.

Co-authored-by: javieraldape <javieraldape@users.noreply.github.com>
Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>

src/cli.ts

@@ -365,12 +365,6 @@ async function main() {
     if (def.required && params[key] === undefined) {
       if (queryHasAlt && key === 'query') continue;
       const cliName = op.cliHints?.name || op.name;
-      // #2822: when the missing param is the op's stdin-fed one, the usage
-      // line alone is misleading (the positionals may all be present — the
-      // pipe was just empty). Name the real problem.
-      if (op.cliHints?.stdin === key) {
-        console.error(`Error: required "${key}" is missing — stdin was empty or not piped. Pipe content on stdin or pass --${key.replace(/_/g, '-')}.`);
-      }
       const positional = op.cliHints?.positional || [];
       const usage = positional.map(p => `<${p}>`).join(' ');
       console.error(`Usage: gbrain ${cliName} ${usage}`);
@@ -767,10 +761,6 @@ export function parseOpArgs(op: Operation, args: string[]): Record<string, unkno
   const params: Record<string, unknown> = {};
   const positional = op.cliHints?.positional || [];
   let posIdx = 0;
-  // #2822: track which params came from positionals so a later flag that
-  // silently discards one (`gbrain put CONTENT --slug foo` — CONTENT was
-  // parsed as the slug) gets a stderr warning instead of vanishing.
-  const positionallySet = new Set<string>();
 
   for (let i = 0; i < args.length; i++) {
     const arg = args[i];
@@ -788,20 +778,13 @@ export function parseOpArgs(op: Operation, args: string[]): Record<string, unkno
       if (paramDef?.type === 'boolean') {
         params[key] = true;
       } else if (i + 1 < args.length) {
-        if (positionallySet.has(key) && params[key] !== args[i + 1]) {
-          console.error(`Warning: ${arg} overrides the positional <${key}> value ${JSON.stringify(params[key])}.`);
-        }
         params[key] = args[++i];
         if (paramDef?.type === 'number') params[key] = Number(params[key]);
       }
     } else if (posIdx < positional.length) {
       const key = positional[posIdx++];
       const paramDef = op.params[key];
-      if (params[key] !== undefined && params[key] !== (paramDef?.type === 'number' ? Number(arg) : arg)) {
-        console.error(`Warning: positional <${key}> overrides the earlier --${key.replace(/_/g, '-')} value ${JSON.stringify(params[key])}.`);
-      }
       params[key] = paramDef?.type === 'number' ? Number(arg) : arg;
-      positionallySet.add(key);
     }
   }
 
@@ -813,11 +796,7 @@ export function parseOpArgs(op: Operation, args: string[]): Record<string, unkno
       console.error(`Error: stdin content exceeds ${MAX_STDIN} bytes. Split into smaller inputs.`);
       process.exit(1);
     }
-    // #2822: empty/whitespace-only stdin (cron with no input, broken pipe)
-    // stays UNSET so the required-param check rejects the call instead of
-    // silently writing an empty page (0 chunks, invisible to search and
-    // embed --stale).
-    if (stdinContent.trim().length > 0) params[op.cliHints.stdin] = stdinContent;
+    params[op.cliHints.stdin] = stdinContent;
   }
 
   return params;

src/commands/lint.ts

@@ -48,7 +48,6 @@ const FRONTMATTER_RULE_NAMES: Record<ParseValidationCode, string> = {
   NESTED_QUOTES: 'frontmatter-nested-quotes',
   NON_STRING_FIELD: 'frontmatter-non-string-field',
   EMPTY_FRONTMATTER: 'frontmatter-empty',
-  MULTI_FRONTMATTER: 'frontmatter-multi',
 };
 
 /** Codes whose lint findings are fixable by `gbrain frontmatter validate --fix`. */

src/commands/sync.ts

@@ -197,7 +197,7 @@ export interface SyncResult {
   /** Pages re-embedded during this sync's auto-embed step. 0 if --no-embed or skipped. */
   embedded: number;
   pagesAffected: string[];
-  failedFiles?: number; // count of parse failures (Bug 9)
+  failedFiles?: number; // count of per-file import/sync failures (Bug 9)
   /**
    * v0.41.13.0 partial-sync fields (only set when status === 'partial').
    *
@@ -3183,7 +3183,7 @@ async function performSyncInner(engine: BrainEngine, opts: SyncOpts): Promise<Sy
     await clearOpCheckpoint(engine, ckpt.target);
   };
 
-  // issue #1939 adversarial finding #1: a file that failed to parse (open ledger
+  // issue #1939 adversarial finding #1: a file that failed to import (open ledger
   // row) and is then deleted/renamed-away never re-enters failedFiles and never
   // imports, so its row would never clear and would age doctor to a permanent
   // FAIL. Treat removed paths as resolved so the ledger self-heals.
@@ -3215,9 +3215,9 @@ async function performSyncInner(engine: BrainEngine, opts: SyncOpts): Promise<Sy
     } else {
       const fileFailCount = failedFiles.filter(f => isSkippablePath(f.path)).length;
       serr(
-        `\nSync blocked: ${fileFailCount} file(s) failed to parse:\n` +
+        `\nSync blocked: ${fileFailCount} file(s) failed to import:\n` +
         `${codeBreakdown}\n\n` +
-        `Fix the frontmatter and re-run, or use 'gbrain sync --skip-failed' to ` +
+        `Fix the listed file errors and re-run, or use 'gbrain sync --skip-failed' to ` +
         `acknowledge and move on. A file that keeps failing auto-skips after ` +
         `${resolveAutoSkipThreshold()} consecutive syncs.`,
       );
@@ -5355,7 +5355,7 @@ function printSyncResult(result: SyncResult, sink: NodeJS.WriteStream = process.
     case 'dry_run':
       break; // already printed in performSync
     case 'blocked_by_failures':
-      write(`Sync BLOCKED at ${result.toCommit.slice(0, 8)}: ${result.failedFiles ?? 0} file(s) failed to parse.`);
+      write(`Sync BLOCKED at ${result.toCommit.slice(0, 8)}: ${result.failedFiles ?? 0} file(s) failed to import.`);
       write(`  See ~/.gbrain/sync-failures.jsonl for details, or run 'gbrain doctor'.`);
       write(`  Fix the files then re-run 'gbrain sync', or 'gbrain sync --skip-failed' to move on.`);
       break;

src/core/import-file.ts

@@ -301,17 +301,6 @@ export async function importFromContent(
   // silently fabricated a duplicate at (default, slug) — causing later
   // bare-slug subqueries (getTags, deleteChunks, etc.) to crash with 21000.
   const sourceId = opts.sourceId;
-  // #2822: reject empty/whitespace-only content before any work happens. An
-  // empty page writes 0 chunks — invisible to search AND to `embed --stale`
-  // (nothing to embed), so the mistake never surfaces. Empty content is
-  // always a caller bug (empty piped stdin, bad shell substitution). Thrown
-  // (not returned) so every wrapper site surfaces the message, matching the
-  // ContentSanityBlockError flow.
-  if (content.trim().length === 0) {
-    throw new Error(
-      `Content for "${slug}" is empty; refusing to write an empty page (0 chunks would be invisible to search and embed --stale).`,
-    );
-  }
   // Reject oversized payloads before any parsing, chunking, or embedding happens.
   // Uses Buffer.byteLength to count UTF-8 bytes the same way disk size would,
   // so the network path behaves identically to the file path.
@@ -325,17 +314,7 @@ export async function importFromContent(
     };
   }
 
-  const parsed = parseMarkdown(content, slug + '.md', { activePack: opts.activePack, validate: true });
-
-  // #2743: reject stacked frontmatter (the double-put corruption class —
-  // already-serialized markdown re-wrapped in fresh frontmatter). gray-matter
-  // parses only the first block; the second would land verbatim in the body
-  // and poison every subsequent round-trip. Only MULTI_FRONTMATTER rejects
-  // here — the other validation codes keep their lint-only semantics.
-  const multiFm = parsed.errors?.find(e => e.code === 'MULTI_FRONTMATTER');
-  if (multiFm) {
-    throw new Error(`MULTI_FRONTMATTER: ${multiFm.message} (slug "${slug}", line ${multiFm.line})`);
-  }
+  const parsed = parseMarkdown(content, slug + '.md', { activePack: opts.activePack });
 
   // v0.42 (#1699 trust boundary): strip gate-owned markers from UNTRUSTED
   // input. parseMarkdown preserves every frontmatter key except type/title/

src/core/markdown.ts

@@ -11,8 +11,7 @@ export type ParseValidationCode =
   | 'NULL_BYTES'
   | 'NESTED_QUOTES'
   | 'NON_STRING_FIELD'
-  | 'EMPTY_FRONTMATTER'
-  | 'MULTI_FRONTMATTER';
+  | 'EMPTY_FRONTMATTER';
 
 export interface ParseValidationError {
   code: ParseValidationCode;
@@ -332,50 +331,6 @@ function collectValidationErrors(
       });
     }
   }
-
-  // 9. MULTI_FRONTMATTER (#2743) — a second ---…--- block right after the
-  //    closing fence is stacked frontmatter (the double-put corruption class:
-  //    already-serialized markdown re-wrapped in fresh frontmatter).
-  //    gray-matter parses only the first block and silently leaves the second
-  //    in the body. Heuristic: first non-empty line after the close is `---`,
-  //    a later `---` closes it, EVERY line between is frontmatter-shaped
-  //    (YAML `key:`, `- ` list item, `#` comment, indented continuation, or
-  //    blank — the issue's "stop at the first non-frontmatter character"
-  //    spec), and at least one is a `key:` line. A lone `---` stays a
-  //    markdown horizontal rule, and an hrule followed by prose — even
-  //    colon-prefixed prose like `Note: …` mixed with plain lines — is body
-  //    content, not a stacked block.
-  let afterClose = closeLine + 1;
-  while (afterClose < lines.length && lines[afterClose].trim().length === 0) afterClose++;
-  if (afterClose < lines.length && lines[afterClose].trim() === '---') {
-    let secondClose = -1;
-    for (let i = afterClose + 1; i < lines.length; i++) {
-      const trimmed = lines[i].trim();
-      if (trimmed === '---') {
-        secondClose = i;
-        break;
-      }
-      const yamlShaped =
-        trimmed.length === 0 ||
-        /^[A-Za-z_][\w-]*\s*:/.test(trimmed) ||
-        trimmed.startsWith('- ') ||
-        trimmed === '-' ||
-        trimmed.startsWith('#') ||
-        /^\s/.test(lines[i]);
-      if (!yamlShaped) break; // first non-frontmatter line → body prose, not a stacked block
-    }
-    if (
-      secondClose > afterClose + 1 &&
-      lines.slice(afterClose + 1, secondClose).some(l => /^\s*[A-Za-z_][\w-]*\s*:/.test(l))
-    ) {
-      errors.push({
-        code: 'MULTI_FRONTMATTER',
-        message:
-          'Stacked frontmatter: a second ---…--- block follows the frontmatter (double-put corruption); merge into a single frontmatter block',
-        line: afterClose + 1,
-      });
-    }
-  }
 }
 
 /**

src/core/pglite-engine.ts

@@ -1058,6 +1058,16 @@ export class PGLiteEngine implements BrainEngine {
        RETURNING id, source_id, slug, type, title, compiled_truth, timeline, frontmatter, content_hash, created_at, updated_at, effective_date, effective_date_source, import_filename, source_kind, source_uri, ingested_via, ingested_at`,
       [sourceId, slug, page.type, pageKind, page.title, page.compiled_truth, page.timeline || '', JSON.stringify(frontmatter), hash, effectiveDate, effectiveDateSource, importFilename, chunkerVersion, sourcePath, sourceKind, sourceUri, ingestedVia, ingestedAt]
     );
+    // #2189: an INSERT … ON CONFLICT DO UPDATE … RETURNING that yields 0 rows
+    // (e.g. a BEFORE trigger suppressing the write) previously crashed in
+    // rowToPage with an opaque "undefined is not an object (row.deleted_at)".
+    // Throw a diagnosable error naming the row instead. Mirrors postgres-engine.ts.
+    if (!rows[0]) {
+      throw new Error(
+        `putPage: INSERT … RETURNING produced no row for slug='${slug}' source_id='${sourceId}'. ` +
+        `A trigger or rule on the pages table may be suppressing the write.`
+      );
+    }
     return rowToPage(rows[0] as Record<string, unknown>);
   }
 

src/core/postgres-engine.ts

@@ -1119,6 +1119,16 @@ export class PostgresEngine implements BrainEngine {
         ingested_at           = COALESCE(EXCLUDED.ingested_at,           pages.ingested_at)
       RETURNING id, source_id, slug, type, title, compiled_truth, timeline, frontmatter, content_hash, created_at, updated_at, effective_date, effective_date_source, import_filename, source_kind, source_uri, ingested_via, ingested_at
     `;
+    // #2189: an INSERT … ON CONFLICT DO UPDATE … RETURNING that yields 0 rows
+    // (e.g. a BEFORE trigger suppressing the write) previously crashed in
+    // rowToPage with an opaque "undefined is not an object (row.deleted_at)".
+    // Throw a diagnosable error naming the row instead. Mirrors pglite-engine.ts.
+    if (!rows[0]) {
+      throw new Error(
+        `putPage: INSERT … RETURNING produced no row for slug='${slug}' source_id='${sourceId}'. ` +
+        `A trigger or rule on the pages table may be suppressing the write.`
+      );
+    }
     return rowToPage(rows[0]);
   }
 

test/cli-args.test.ts

@@ -1,8 +1,4 @@
-import { afterEach, describe, expect, test } from 'bun:test';
-import { spawnSync } from 'child_process';
-import { join, resolve } from 'path';
-import { mkdtempSync, rmSync } from 'fs';
-import { tmpdir } from 'os';
+import { describe, expect, test } from 'bun:test';
 import { parseOpArgs } from '../src/cli.ts';
 import { operationsByName } from '../src/core/operations.ts';
 
@@ -24,70 +20,5 @@ describe('parseOpArgs', () => {
       source_id: 'gstack-code-repo-0e4763c9',
     });
   });
-
-  describe('positional/flag overwrite warning (#2822)', () => {
-    const errors: string[] = [];
-    const origError = console.error;
-    const captureErrors = () => {
-      console.error = (...args: unknown[]) => errors.push(args.join(' '));
-    };
-    afterEach(() => {
-      console.error = origError;
-      errors.length = 0;
-    });
-
-    test('a flag that overwrites a positional value warns to stderr', () => {
-      captureErrors();
-      const params = parseOpArgs(operationsByName.query, ['positional text', '--query', 'flag text']);
-      expect(params.query).toBe('flag text');
-      expect(errors.some(e => e.includes('Warning') && e.includes('--query'))).toBe(true);
-    });
-
-    test('a positional that overwrites an earlier flag value warns to stderr', () => {
-      captureErrors();
-      const params = parseOpArgs(operationsByName.query, ['--query', 'flag text', 'positional text']);
-      expect(params.query).toBe('positional text');
-      expect(errors.some(e => e.includes('Warning') && e.includes('<query>'))).toBe(true);
-    });
-
-    test('no warning when flag and positional agree', () => {
-      captureErrors();
-      parseOpArgs(operationsByName.query, ['same', '--query', 'same']);
-      expect(errors).toEqual([]);
-    });
-  });
 });
 
-describe('gbrain put — empty non-TTY stdin rejects (#2822)', () => {
-  const REPO = resolve(import.meta.dir, '..');
-  const CLI = join(REPO, 'src', 'cli.ts');
-
-  const runPut = (input: string) => {
-    // Isolated HOME so a regression can never write into a real brain.
-    const home = mkdtempSync(join(tmpdir(), 'gbrain-put-empty-'));
-    try {
-      return spawnSync('bun', [CLI, 'put', 'inbox/empty-stdin-test'], {
-        stdio: ['pipe', 'pipe', 'pipe'],
-        input,
-        encoding: 'utf-8',
-        timeout: 60_000,
-        env: { ...process.env, HOME: home, GBRAIN_SKIP_STARTUP_HOOKS: '1' },
-      });
-    } finally {
-      rmSync(home, { recursive: true, force: true });
-    }
-  };
-
-  test('empty stdin exits 1 and names the missing content param', () => {
-    const res = runPut('');
-    expect(res.status).toBe(1);
-    expect(res.stderr).toContain('content');
-    expect(res.stderr).toContain('stdin');
-  }, 90_000);
-
-  test('whitespace-only stdin also exits 1', () => {
-    const res = runPut('   \n\t\n');
-    expect(res.status).toBe(1);
-    expect(res.stderr).toContain('stdin');
-  }, 90_000);
-});

test/import-file.test.ts

@@ -708,32 +708,3 @@ body unchanged
     expect(shortCircuited).toBe(true);
   });
 });
-
-describe('importFromContent — empty content guard (#2822)', () => {
-  test('empty string throws instead of writing an invisible 0-chunk page', async () => {
-    const engine = mockEngine();
-    await expect(importFromContent(engine, 'inbox/empty', '', { noEmbed: true })).rejects.toThrow(/empty/i);
-    expect((engine as any)._calls.find((c: any) => c.method === 'putPage')).toBeUndefined();
-  });
-
-  test('whitespace-only content throws', async () => {
-    const engine = mockEngine();
-    await expect(importFromContent(engine, 'inbox/ws', '  \n\t \n', { noEmbed: true })).rejects.toThrow(/empty/i);
-  });
-});
-
-describe('importFromContent — stacked frontmatter rejection (#2743)', () => {
-  test('double-put shaped content (two ---…--- blocks) throws MULTI_FRONTMATTER', async () => {
-    const engine = mockEngine();
-    const md = '---\ntitle: outer\n---\n\n---\ntitle: inner\ntype: concept\n---\n\nreal body';
-    await expect(importFromContent(engine, 'inbox/double', md, { noEmbed: true })).rejects.toThrow(/MULTI_FRONTMATTER/);
-    expect((engine as any)._calls.find((c: any) => c.method === 'putPage')).toBeUndefined();
-  });
-
-  test('normal content with horizontal rules in the body still imports', async () => {
-    const engine = mockEngine();
-    const md = '---\ntitle: ok\ntype: concept\n---\n\nprose before\n\n---\n\nprose after the rule';
-    const result = await importFromContent(engine, 'inbox/hrule', md, { noEmbed: true });
-    expect(result.status).toBe('imported');
-  });
-});

test/markdown-validation.test.ts

@@ -256,56 +256,6 @@ body`;
     });
   });
 
-  describe('MULTI_FRONTMATTER (#2743)', () => {
-    test('stacked frontmatter immediately after the close fence', () => {
-      const md = `${fence}\ntitle: outer\n${fence}\n${fence}\ntitle: inner\ntype: concept\n${fence}\n\nbody`;
-      const parsed = parseMarkdown(md, undefined, { validate: true });
-      expect(parsed.errors!.map(e => e.code)).toContain('MULTI_FRONTMATTER');
-    });
-
-    test('stacked frontmatter with a blank line between blocks (serializeMarkdown shape)', () => {
-      const md = `${fence}\ntitle: outer\n${fence}\n\n${fence}\ntitle: inner\n${fence}\n\nbody`;
-      const parsed = parseMarkdown(md, undefined, { validate: true });
-      expect(parsed.errors!.map(e => e.code)).toContain('MULTI_FRONTMATTER');
-    });
-
-    test('horizontal rules in the body are NOT flagged', () => {
-      const md = `${fence}\ntitle: ok\n${fence}\n\nsome prose\n\n${fence}\n\nmore prose\n\n${fence}\n\nend`;
-      const parsed = parseMarkdown(md, undefined, { validate: true });
-      expect(parsed.errors!.map(e => e.code)).not.toContain('MULTI_FRONTMATTER');
-    });
-
-    test('hrule pair at body start without YAML-shaped lines is NOT flagged', () => {
-      const md = `${fence}\ntitle: ok\n${fence}\n\n${fence}\n\nplain prose between rules\n\n${fence}\n\nend`;
-      const parsed = parseMarkdown(md, undefined, { validate: true });
-      expect(parsed.errors!.map(e => e.code)).not.toContain('MULTI_FRONTMATTER');
-    });
-
-    test('timeline sentinel form is NOT flagged', () => {
-      const md = `${fence}\ntitle: ok\n${fence}\n\nbody text\n\n${fence}\n\n## Timeline\n- 2024-01-01: thing`;
-      const parsed = parseMarkdown(md, undefined, { validate: true });
-      expect(parsed.errors!.map(e => e.code)).not.toContain('MULTI_FRONTMATTER');
-    });
-
-    test('body hrule + colon-prefixed prose (`Note: …`) mixed with plain lines is NOT flagged', () => {
-      const md = `${fence}\ntitle: ok\ntype: concept\n${fence}\n\n${fence}\n\nNote: remember to follow up\n\nlots of plain prose here\n\n${fence}\n\nmore prose`;
-      const parsed = parseMarkdown(md, undefined, { validate: true });
-      expect(parsed.errors!.map(e => e.code)).not.toContain('MULTI_FRONTMATTER');
-    });
-
-    test('fence pairing stops at the first non-frontmatter line (no far-fence pairing across prose)', () => {
-      const md = `${fence}\ntitle: ok\n${fence}\n\n${fence}\n\n${'plain prose line\n'.repeat(40)}TODO: fix the widget\n${'more prose\n'.repeat(40)}${fence}\nend`;
-      const parsed = parseMarkdown(md, undefined, { validate: true });
-      expect(parsed.errors!.map(e => e.code)).not.toContain('MULTI_FRONTMATTER');
-    });
-
-    test('stacked block with list-valued keys is still flagged', () => {
-      const md = `${fence}\ntitle: outer\n${fence}\n\n${fence}\ntitle: inner\ntags:\n  - a\n  - b\n${fence}\n\nbody`;
-      const parsed = parseMarkdown(md, undefined, { validate: true });
-      expect(parsed.errors!.map(e => e.code)).toContain('MULTI_FRONTMATTER');
-    });
-  });
-
   test('error.line is set for line-bearing errors', () => {
     const md = `${fence}\ntype: concept\n${fence}\n# Heading inline\n\nbody\x00drop`;
     const parsed = parseMarkdown(md, undefined, { validate: true });

test/putpage-returning-guard.test.ts

@@ -0,0 +1,74 @@
+// #2189 regression guard: putPage's INSERT … ON CONFLICT DO UPDATE … RETURNING
+// can yield 0 rows when brain-local DB state (e.g. a BEFORE INSERT trigger)
+// suppresses the write. Pre-fix, rowToPage(rows[0]) crashed with the opaque
+// "undefined is not an object (evaluating 'row.deleted_at')" that failed
+// ~all files of a code sync. Post-fix, putPage throws a descriptive error
+// naming the slug + source_id so the failure is diagnosable per-file.
+//
+// Same guard lands in postgres-engine.ts (engine-parity invariant); this test
+// exercises the PGLite side, where the issue was reported.
+
+import { describe, expect, test, beforeAll, afterAll } from 'bun:test';
+import { PGLiteEngine } from '../src/core/pglite-engine.ts';
+
+let engine: PGLiteEngine;
+
+beforeAll(async () => {
+  engine = new PGLiteEngine();
+  await engine.connect({});
+  await engine.initSchema();
+  // Simulate the reporter's state-dependent failure: a trigger that
+  // suppresses inserts for one slug, making RETURNING produce no row.
+  await engine.executeRaw(`
+    CREATE OR REPLACE FUNCTION suppress_pages_insert() RETURNS trigger AS $$
+    BEGIN
+      IF NEW.slug = 'suppressed-page' THEN RETURN NULL; END IF;
+      RETURN NEW;
+    END;
+    $$ LANGUAGE plpgsql;
+  `);
+  await engine.executeRaw(`
+    CREATE TRIGGER suppress_pages_insert_trg
+    BEFORE INSERT ON pages
+    FOR EACH ROW EXECUTE FUNCTION suppress_pages_insert();
+  `);
+});
+
+afterAll(async () => {
+  await engine.executeRaw('DROP TRIGGER IF EXISTS suppress_pages_insert_trg ON pages');
+  await engine.executeRaw('DROP FUNCTION IF EXISTS suppress_pages_insert');
+  await engine.disconnect();
+});
+
+describe('putPage RETURNING guard (#2189)', () => {
+  test('0-row RETURNING throws a descriptive error, not row.deleted_at TypeError', async () => {
+    let err: Error | undefined;
+    try {
+      await engine.putPage('suppressed-page', {
+        type: 'code',
+        title: 'Suppressed',
+        compiled_truth: 'x',
+        timeline: '',
+      });
+    } catch (e) {
+      err = e as Error;
+    }
+    expect(err).toBeDefined();
+    expect(err!.message).toContain('putPage');
+    expect(err!.message).toContain("slug='suppressed-page'");
+    expect(err!.message).toContain("source_id='default'");
+    // The pre-fix crash signature must be gone.
+    expect(err!.message).not.toContain('deleted_at');
+  });
+
+  test('unsuppressed slugs still upsert normally with the trigger installed', async () => {
+    const page = await engine.putPage('normal-page', {
+      type: 'concept',
+      title: 'Normal',
+      compiled_truth: 'y',
+      timeline: '',
+    });
+    expect(page.slug).toBe('normal-page');
+    expect(page.source_id).toBe('default');
+  });
+});

test/sync.test.ts

@@ -375,6 +375,31 @@ describe('performSync dry-run never writes', () => {
     expect(messages.some(m => m.includes('git pull failed'))).toBe(false);
   });
 
+  test('first PGLite code sync imports code files without runtime failures', async () => {
+    const { performSync } = await import('../src/commands/sync.ts');
+    mkdirSync(join(repoPath, 'src'), { recursive: true });
+    writeFileSync(
+      join(repoPath, 'src/example.ts'),
+      'export function add(left: number, right: number) { return left + right; }\n',
+    );
+    execSync('git add -A && git commit -m "add code file"', { cwd: repoPath, stdio: 'pipe' });
+
+    const result = await performSync(engine, {
+      repoPath,
+      noPull: true,
+      noEmbed: true,
+      noExtract: true,
+      strategy: 'code',
+    });
+
+    expect(result.status).toBe('first_sync');
+    expect(result.added).toBe(1);
+    expect(result.failedFiles ?? 0).toBe(0);
+    const page = await engine.getPage('src-example-ts');
+    expect(page?.type).toBe('code');
+    expect(page?.frontmatter).toMatchObject({ file: 'src/example.ts', language: 'typescript' });
+  });
+
   test('incremental dry-run does NOT write to DB or advance the bookmark', async () => {
     const { performSync } = await import('../src/commands/sync.ts');
     // First do a real sync to seed the bookmark.