fix(dream): deterministic last-writer attribution for colliding slugs

collectChildPutPageSlugs paired each slug to a jobId first-seen over an
unordered result set. When two children collide on a final slug, the pages
row holds the LAST put_page write, so the provenance stamp
(transcript_id/transcript_source/date) could attribute an arbitrary other
transcript. ORDER BY id + last-writer-wins aligns the stamp with the
surviving content; pinned by a collision test.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>

src/commands/autopilot.ts

@@ -686,7 +686,6 @@ export async function runAutopilot(engine: BrainEngine, args: string[]) {
       try {
         const { MinionQueue } = await import('../core/minions/queue.ts');
         const { computeRecommendations, embeddingProviderConfigured, HOSTED_EMBED_KEY_CONFIG } = await import('../core/brain-score-recommendations.ts');
-        const { countExtractionLag } = await import('../core/remediation/context.ts');
         const queue = new MinionQueue(engine);
         const slotMs = Math.floor(Date.now() / (baseInterval * 1000)) * baseInterval * 1000;
         const slot = new Date(slotMs).toISOString();
@@ -878,9 +877,6 @@ export async function runAutopilot(engine: BrainEngine, args: string[]) {
             return !!(process.env[envVar] || (cfgField ? embedKeyCfg[cfgField] : undefined));
           }),
           hasChatApiKey: !!(process.env.ANTHROPIC_API_KEY || await engine.getConfig('anthropic_api_key')),
-          // Real extraction-lag gate for sync.repo/extract.all — same counter
-          // loadRecommendationContext uses (replaces the health.stale_pages proxy).
-          extractionLagPages: await countExtractionLag(engine),
         };
         // v0.41.18.0 (A5 + A19 + A22, T15): consult onboard recommendations
         // ALONGSIDE doctor's brain-score recommendations. Onboard's 4 new

src/core/brain-score-recommendations.ts

@@ -146,16 +146,6 @@ export interface RecommendationContext {
   chatModel?: string;
   /** Whether the chat provider has a usable API key. */
   hasChatApiKey?: boolean;
-  /**
-   * Count of pages needing link/timeline extraction — the SAME staleness the
-   * `gbrain extract --stale` walk and doctor's `links_extraction_lag` check use
-   * (`engine.countStalePagesForExtraction`). Gates the sync→extract pipeline
-   * (sync.repo / extract.all). Replaces the old `health.stale_pages` gate, which
-   * counted "pages whose updated_at predates their newest timeline entry" — a
-   * proxy that broke when the updated_at-on-timeline-insert trigger was dropped
-   * (migration v10) and never reflected real extraction work.
-   */
-  extractionLagPages?: number;
 }
 
 /** Triage result for one check. */
@@ -202,28 +192,20 @@ export function computeRecommendations(
   const source = ctx.sourceId ?? 'default';
 
   // ---------------------------------------------------------------------
-  // sync.repo + extract.all — the materialization pipeline, gated on the REAL
-  // extraction lag (pages whose link/timeline edges are stale), NOT on the
-  // legacy `health.stale_pages` proxy. `extractionLagPages` comes from the same
-  // counter the `extract --stale` walk + doctor's `links_extraction_lag` use, so
-  // the recommendation can only fire when running extract will actually reduce
-  // it (and clear the rec). See RecommendationContext.extractionLagPages.
-  // sync.repo is the prerequisite: re-sync so pages are current before extract
-  // materializes their edges.
+  // sync.repo — fires when sync hasn't run recently OR pages are stale
   // ---------------------------------------------------------------------
-  const extractionLag = ctx.extractionLagPages ?? 0;
-  if (ctx.repoPath && extractionLag > 0) {
+  if (ctx.repoPath && health.stale_pages > 0) {
     const params = { repoPath: ctx.repoPath, sourceId: ctx.sourceId, noEmbed: true };
     out.push({
       id: 'sync.repo',
       job: 'sync',
       params,
       idempotency_key: idemKey(source, 'sync', params),
-      severity: extractionLag > 50 ? 'high' : 'medium',
-      est_seconds: Math.min(600, 30 + extractionLag * 0.5),
+      severity: health.stale_pages > 50 ? 'high' : 'medium',
+      est_seconds: Math.min(600, 30 + health.stale_pages * 0.5),
       est_usd_cost: 0,  // sync is fs+DB only
       depends_on: [],
-      rationale: `Sync before extracting ${extractionLag} page${extractionLag === 1 ? '' : 's'} with stale link/timeline edges`,
+      rationale: `${health.stale_pages} stale page${health.stale_pages === 1 ? '' : 's'} on disk`,
       status: 'remediable',
     });
   }
@@ -255,7 +237,7 @@ export function computeRecommendations(
       est_seconds: Math.min(3600, 5 + health.missing_embeddings * 0.05),
       est_usd_cost,
       // sync should run first so embed sees fresh pages.
-      depends_on: ctx.repoPath && extractionLag > 0 ? ['sync.repo'] : [],
+      depends_on: ctx.repoPath && health.stale_pages > 0 ? ['sync.repo'] : [],
       rationale: `${health.missing_embeddings} chunk${health.missing_embeddings === 1 ? '' : 's'} invisible to vector search`,
       status: 'remediable',
     });
@@ -285,7 +267,7 @@ export function computeRecommendations(
   // Triggered when sync.repo fires (because sync was set to noEmbed:true,
   // and noExtract:true after T5 lands → extract job is the materializer).
   // ---------------------------------------------------------------------
-  if (ctx.repoPath && extractionLag > 0) {
+  if (ctx.repoPath && health.stale_pages > 0) {
     const params = { mode: 'all', dir: ctx.repoPath };
     out.push({
       id: 'extract.all',
@@ -296,7 +278,7 @@ export function computeRecommendations(
       est_seconds: Math.min(600, 30 + health.page_count * 0.01),
       est_usd_cost: 0,
       depends_on: ['sync.repo'],
-      rationale: `Materialize link + timeline edges for ${extractionLag} page${extractionLag === 1 ? '' : 's'} with stale extraction`,
+      rationale: 'Materialize link + timeline edges from fresh pages',
       status: 'remediable',
     });
   }

src/core/cycle/synthesize.ts

@@ -428,8 +428,13 @@ export async function runPhaseSynthesize(
 
     const queue = new MinionQueue(engine);
     const childIds: number[] = [];
-    /** Map child job_id → chunk metadata for D6 orchestrator-side slug rewrite. */
-    const chunkInfo = new Map<number, { idx: number; hash6: string }>();
+    /**
+     * Map child job_id → transcript metadata. Drives D6 orchestrator-side
+     * slug rewrite for chunked transcripts AND the deterministic frontmatter
+     * stampDreamProvenance merges into each written page. Populated for
+     * every child (single-chunk children carry chunkTotal=1).
+     */
+    const childMeta = new Map<number, ChildMeta>();
     /** Skip reasons for the cycle report (D5 cap hits, D8 legacy-key skips). */
     const skipReports: Array<{ filePath: string; reason: string }> = [];
 
@@ -513,9 +518,14 @@ export async function runPhaseSynthesize(
           { allowProtectedSubmit: true },
         );
         childIds.push(child.id);
-        if (isChunked) {
-          chunkInfo.set(child.id, { idx: i, hash6 });
-        }
+        childMeta.set(child.id, {
+          idx: i,
+          hash6,
+          chunkTotal: chunks.length,
+          transcriptSource: t.transcriptSource,
+          transcriptId: stripContentVersionSuffix(t.basename),
+          inferredDate: t.inferredDate,
+        });
       }
     }
 
@@ -544,14 +554,14 @@ export async function runPhaseSynthesize(
 
     // Collect slugs from put_page tool executions across the children
     // (codex finding #2: deterministic provenance, NOT pages.updated_at).
-    // D6 orchestrator slug rewrite: chunkInfo drives post-hoc rewrite of
+    // D6 orchestrator slug rewrite: childMeta drives post-hoc rewrite of
     // bare-hash slugs to `<hash6>-c<idx>` so chunked siblings can't collide
     // even if Sonnet drops the chunk suffix.
     // v0.32.8: refs carry source_id so reverseWriteRefs picks the correct
     // (source, slug) row. #1586: refs are stamped with the cycle's resolved
     // source (children write there via SubagentHandlerData.source_id).
     const cycleSourceId = opts.sourceId ?? 'default';
-    const writtenRefs = await collectChildPutPageSlugs(engine, childIds, chunkInfo, cycleSourceId);
+    const writtenRefs = await collectChildPutPageSlugs(engine, childIds, childMeta, cycleSourceId);
 
     const summaryDate = opts.date ?? today();
 
@@ -559,7 +569,12 @@ export async function runPhaseSynthesize(
     // of every child-written page BEFORE reverse-rendering, so generated pages
     // are queryable (`frontmatter->>'dream_generated'`) and a later put_page
     // write-through (which re-renders from the DB row) can't erase the stamp.
-    await stampDreamProvenance(engine, writtenRefs, summaryDate);
+    // #2285: the stamp also carries the orchestrator-owned deterministic
+    // frontmatter (transcript_id, transcript_source, transcript_hash, date,
+    // chunk) derived from childMeta — subagent drift on those fields can't
+    // leak, and reverseWriteRefs below re-reads the row so the same fields
+    // land in the on-disk markdown.
+    await stampDreamProvenance(engine, writtenRefs, summaryDate, childMeta);
 
     // Dual-write: reverse-render each DB row → markdown file.
     const reverseWriteCount = await reverseWriteRefs(engine, opts.brainDir, writtenRefs, cycleSourceId);
@@ -1095,15 +1110,17 @@ function sanitizeForSlug(s: string): string {
  * fake"): we no longer need detection because the rewrite enforces
  * uniqueness at slug-write time.
  *
- * `chunkInfo` maps child job_id → { chunk_index, hash6 }. Single-chunk
- * children are absent from the map and pass through unchanged.
+ * `childMeta` maps child job_id → per-child transcript metadata. Chunked
+ * children (chunkTotal > 1) get the slug rewrite; single-chunk children
+ * pass through unchanged. Each returned ref carries the job_id that wrote
+ * it so stampDreamProvenance can pair the slug back to its childMeta entry.
  */
 async function collectChildPutPageSlugs(
   engine: BrainEngine,
   childIds: number[],
-  chunkInfo: Map<number, { idx: number; hash6: string }>,
+  childMeta: Map<number, ChildMeta>,
   sourceId = 'default',
-): Promise<Array<{ slug: string; source_id: string }>> {
+): Promise<Array<{ slug: string; source_id: string; jobId: number }>> {
   if (childIds.length === 0) return [];
   // Raw fetch — NO SELECT DISTINCT. Preserves per-child slug duplicates so
   // the orchestrator sees what each child wrote. COALESCE handles both
@@ -1122,16 +1139,73 @@ async function collectChildPutPageSlugs(
        FROM subagent_tool_executions
       WHERE job_id = ANY($1::int[])
         AND tool_name = 'brain_put_page'
-        AND status = 'complete'`,
+        AND status = 'complete'
+      ORDER BY id`,
     [childIds],
   );
-  const rewritten = new Set<string>();
+  const rewritten = new Map<string, number>();
   for (const r of rows) {
     if (typeof r.slug !== 'string' || r.slug.length === 0) continue;
-    const ci = chunkInfo.get(r.job_id);
-    rewritten.add(ci ? rewriteChunkedSlug(r.slug, ci.hash6, ci.idx) : r.slug);
+    const meta = childMeta.get(r.job_id);
+    const finalSlug = meta && meta.chunkTotal > 1
+      ? rewriteChunkedSlug(r.slug, meta.hash6, meta.idx)
+      : r.slug;
+    // Last writer wins, in execution-row order (ORDER BY id): if two children
+    // collide on a final slug, the pages row holds the LAST put_page write, so
+    // the stamp must attribute that child's transcript — not an arbitrary one.
+    rewritten.set(finalSlug, r.job_id);
   }
-  return Array.from(rewritten).sort().map(slug => ({ slug, source_id: sourceId }));
+  return [...rewritten.entries()]
+    .sort(([a], [b]) => a.localeCompare(b))
+    .map(([slug, jobId]) => ({ slug, source_id: sourceId, jobId }));
+}
+
+/**
+ * Per-child orchestrator state. Drives D6 chunked-slug rewrite (idx + hash6)
+ * AND the deterministic frontmatter stampDreamProvenance merges into each
+ * written page. Populated for every child, not just chunked ones.
+ */
+interface ChildMeta {
+  idx: number;
+  hash6: string;
+  chunkTotal: number;
+  transcriptSource: string | null;
+  transcriptId: string;
+  inferredDate: string | null;
+}
+
+/**
+ * Strip the content-version suffix that claude-code-archive appends when a
+ * conversation is edited (`<uuid>--<contentHash>.md`). The session UUID is
+ * the stable transcript identifier; the suffix changes with content. Used to
+ * populate `transcript_id` so edits of the same session collapse to one id.
+ */
+function stripContentVersionSuffix(basename: string): string {
+  return basename.replace(/--[a-f0-9]+$/i, '');
+}
+
+/**
+ * Deterministic frontmatter for one synthesized page (#2285). Every field
+ * here is owned by the orchestrator — the subagent's value for any of these
+ * is overwritten. The subagent retains authority over type / title / tags /
+ * body. `date` feeds the effective-date precedence chain
+ * (src/core/effective-date.ts) so re-imports keep the conversation date even
+ * when sync tools re-stamp file mtimes.
+ */
+function buildDeterministicFrontmatter(
+  meta: ChildMeta,
+  cycleDate: string,
+): Record<string, unknown> {
+  const overrides: Record<string, unknown> = {
+    dream_generated: true,
+    dream_cycle_date: cycleDate,
+    transcript_id: meta.transcriptId,
+    transcript_hash: meta.hash6,
+  };
+  if (meta.transcriptSource) overrides.transcript_source = meta.transcriptSource;
+  if (meta.chunkTotal > 1) overrides.chunk = `${meta.idx + 1}/${meta.chunkTotal}`;
+  if (meta.inferredDate) overrides.date = meta.inferredDate;
+  return overrides;
 }
 
 /**
@@ -1177,12 +1251,19 @@ async function hasLegacySingleChunkCompletion(
  */
 async function stampDreamProvenance(
   engine: BrainEngine,
-  refs: Array<{ slug: string; source_id: string }>,
+  refs: Array<{ slug: string; source_id: string; jobId?: number }>,
   cycleDate: string,
+  childMeta?: Map<number, ChildMeta>,
 ): Promise<void> {
   if (refs.length === 0) return;
   const { executeRawJsonb } = await import('../sql-query.ts');
-  for (const { slug, source_id } of refs) {
+  for (const { slug, source_id, jobId } of refs) {
+    // #2285: when the ref pairs back to a child, the stamp also carries the
+    // orchestrator-owned deterministic frontmatter for that transcript.
+    const meta = jobId !== undefined ? childMeta?.get(jobId) : undefined;
+    const stamp = meta
+      ? buildDeterministicFrontmatter(meta, cycleDate)
+      : { dream_generated: true, dream_cycle_date: cycleDate };
     try {
       await executeRawJsonb(
         engine,
@@ -1190,7 +1271,7 @@ async function stampDreamProvenance(
             SET frontmatter = COALESCE(frontmatter, '{}'::jsonb) || $3::jsonb
           WHERE slug = $1 AND source_id = $2`,
         [slug, source_id],
-        [{ dream_generated: true, dream_cycle_date: cycleDate }],
+        [stamp],
       );
     } catch (e) {
       const msg = e instanceof Error ? e.message : String(e);

src/core/cycle/transcript-discovery.ts

@@ -10,7 +10,7 @@
  */
 
 import { readFileSync, readdirSync, statSync } from 'node:fs';
-import { join, basename } from 'node:path';
+import { join, basename, dirname } from 'node:path';
 import { createHash } from 'node:crypto';
 import { pruneDir } from '../sync.ts';
 
@@ -23,8 +23,22 @@ export interface DiscoveredTranscript {
   content: string;
   /** Filename basename without extension; used as a topic-slug seed. */
   basename: string;
-  /** Inferred date if the basename matches `YYYY-MM-DD...` (or null). */
+  /**
+   * Inferred conversation date (YYYY-MM-DD) or null. Precedence: the
+   * `| First message | <ISO> |` row in the transcript's `## Metadata`
+   * table (stable across mtime-restamping re-syncs) wins; a leading
+   * `YYYY-MM-DD` in the basename is the fallback.
+   */
   inferredDate: string | null;
+  /**
+   * Transcript source archive name, derived from the path's grandparent
+   * directory (the immediate parent of the date directory). For the
+   * canonical layout `<corpus>/<source>/<date>/<id>.md` this yields the
+   * source-name segment — e.g. `claude-code` for the claude-code-archive
+   * output, `meetings` for meeting recordings. Null when the file does
+   * not live under a `<source>/<date>/` pair (ad-hoc inputs).
+   */
+  transcriptSource: string | null;
 }
 
 export interface DiscoverOpts {
@@ -161,6 +175,36 @@ function matchesAnyExclude(text: string, patterns: RegExp[]): boolean {
   return false;
 }
 
+/**
+ * Content-based conversation date: the `| First message | <ISO timestamp> |`
+ * row claude-code-archive writes into the transcript's `## Metadata` table.
+ * Stable across rsync/Dropbox/Syncthing/B2 re-syncs that re-stamp mtime,
+ * unlike anything derived from file metadata. Returns YYYY-MM-DD or null.
+ */
+const FIRST_MESSAGE_RE = /^\|\s*First message\s*\|\s*(\d{4}-\d{2}-\d{2})/im;
+
+export function inferContentDate(content: string): string | null {
+  const m = FIRST_MESSAGE_RE.exec(content);
+  return m ? m[1] : null;
+}
+
+/**
+ * Derive the archive source name from a transcript path. Returns the basename
+ * of the directory two levels above the file when the immediate parent is a
+ * date directory and the grandparent looks like a source-name slug (lowercase
+ * alphanumeric segments separated by hyphens); otherwise null. This pins the
+ * canonical claude-code-archive layout `<corpus>/<source>/<date>/<id>.md`
+ * without claiming a source for ad-hoc inputs that don't match.
+ */
+export function deriveTranscriptSource(filePath: string): string | null {
+  const parentName = basename(dirname(filePath));
+  if (!/^\d{4}-\d{2}-\d{2}/.test(parentName)) return null;
+  const grandparentName = basename(dirname(dirname(filePath)));
+  if (!grandparentName) return null;
+  if (!/^[a-z0-9]+(-[a-z0-9]+)*$/.test(grandparentName)) return null;
+  return grandparentName;
+}
+
 function listTextFiles(dir: string): string[] {
   // Recursive walk with descent-time pruning (closes codex C12/C13 spec gap).
   // Accepts BOTH .txt and .md per transcript-discovery's domain rules — does
@@ -225,8 +269,11 @@ export function discoverTranscripts(opts: DiscoverOpts): DiscoveredTranscript[]
       const ext = filePath.endsWith('.md') ? '.md' : '.txt';
       const baseName = basename(filePath, ext);
       const dateMatch = DATE_RE.exec(baseName);
-      const inferredDate = dateMatch ? dateMatch[1] : null;
-      if (!isInDateRange(inferredDate, opts)) continue;
+      const filenameDate = dateMatch ? dateMatch[1] : null;
+      // Fast path: date-named files outside the window skip before the read.
+      // ponytail: a date-named file whose content date differs is filtered on
+      // its filename date — acceptable; archive layouts use UUID basenames.
+      if (filenameDate && !isInDateRange(filenameDate, opts)) continue;
 
       let content: string;
       try {
@@ -241,12 +288,17 @@ export function discoverTranscripts(opts: DiscoverOpts): DiscoveredTranscript[]
       }
       if (matchesAnyExclude(content, excludeRes)) continue;
 
+      // Content-metadata date wins (survives mtime restamps); filename next.
+      const inferredDate = inferContentDate(content) ?? filenameDate;
+      if (!isInDateRange(inferredDate, opts)) continue;
+
       results.push({
         filePath,
         contentHash: hashContent(content),
         content,
         basename: baseName,
         inferredDate,
+        transcriptSource: deriveTranscriptSource(filePath),
       });
     }
   }
@@ -290,6 +342,7 @@ export function readSingleTranscript(
     contentHash: hashContent(content),
     content,
     basename: baseName,
-    inferredDate: dateMatch ? dateMatch[1] : null,
+    inferredDate: inferContentDate(content) ?? (dateMatch ? dateMatch[1] : null),
+    transcriptSource: deriveTranscriptSource(filePath),
   };
 }

src/core/remediation/context.ts

@@ -8,7 +8,6 @@
 
 import type { BrainEngine } from '../engine.ts';
 import type { RecommendationContext } from '../brain-score-recommendations.ts';
-import { LINK_EXTRACTOR_VERSION_TS } from '../link-extraction.ts';
 
 // Re-export so consumers can `import { RecommendationContext } from '../remediation'`
 // — the canonical RecommendationContext type still lives in
@@ -69,29 +68,5 @@ export async function loadRecommendationContext(
     embeddingDimensions,
     embeddingProviderConfigured: embeddingConfigured,
     hasChatApiKey: !!(process.env.ANTHROPIC_API_KEY || fileCfg?.anthropic_api_key),
-    extractionLagPages: await countExtractionLag(engine),
   };
 }
-
-/**
- * Real extraction-lag count — the SAME staleness `gbrain extract --stale`
- * processes (engine.countStalePagesForExtraction with
- * versionTs=LINK_EXTRACTOR_VERSION_TS, matching doctor's links_extraction_lag
- * check — without versionTs, pages stamped before an extractor version bump
- * would lag for doctor/extract but never trip this gate). Drives the
- * sync→extract recommendation pipeline; replaces the legacy
- * `health.stale_pages` proxy that no longer reflected real extraction work
- * after the v10 trigger drop.
- *
- * Shared by loadRecommendationContext AND the D7 per-step recheck in
- * runRemediation — the recheck MUST refresh this gate alongside getHealth,
- * or a completed extract step keeps re-firing off the frozen initial count.
- */
-export async function countExtractionLag(engine: BrainEngine): Promise<number> {
-  try {
-    return await engine.countStalePagesForExtraction({ versionTs: LINK_EXTRACTOR_VERSION_TS });
-  } catch {
-    /* counter unavailable (very old brain / mid-migration) — treat as 0 */
-    return 0;
-  }
-}

src/core/remediation/run.ts

@@ -16,7 +16,7 @@ import {
   computeRecommendations,
 } from '../brain-score-recommendations.ts';
 import type { RemediationStep } from '../remediation-step.ts';
-import { countExtractionLag, loadRecommendationContext } from './context.ts';
+import { loadRecommendationContext } from './context.ts';
 import { computeRemediationPlan } from './plan.ts';
 import type {
   RemediationHooks,
@@ -65,7 +65,7 @@ export async function runRemediation(
     clearRemediationCheckpoint,
   } = await import('../remediation-checkpoint.ts');
 
-  let ctx = await loadRecommendationContext(engine);
+  const ctx = await loadRecommendationContext(engine);
 
   // Pre-flight ceiling check via the shared plan computation.
   const initialPlan = await computeRemediationPlan(engine, { targetScore });
@@ -305,11 +305,6 @@ export async function runRemediation(
       // steps with bumped retry suffix (D1).
       if (recs.length === 0 || stepCount >= maxJobs) break;
       const freshHealth = await engine.getHealth();
-      // Refresh the extraction-lag gate alongside health: ctx was loaded once
-      // before the loop, and a completed sync/extract step is exactly what
-      // drives the count down. Reusing the frozen initial count would re-fire
-      // sync.repo/extract.all every recheck until maxJobs.
-      ctx = { ...ctx, extractionLagPages: await countExtractionLag(engine) };
       recs = computeRecommendations(freshHealth, ctx).filter((r) => r.status === 'remediable');
     }
   };

src/core/types.ts

@@ -1423,15 +1423,6 @@ export interface BrainStats {
 export interface BrainHealth {
   page_count: number;
   embed_coverage: number;
-  /**
-   * LEGACY proxy: count of pages whose `updated_at` predates their newest
-   * timeline entry. This bumped meaningfully only while a trigger updated
-   * `pages.updated_at` on timeline insert; that trigger was dropped in
-   * migration v10, so the metric no longer reflects real "needs work" state.
-   * NO LONGER gates remediations — the sync→extract pipeline now gates on
-   * `RecommendationContext.extractionLagPages` (the real extraction-lag from
-   * `countStalePagesForExtraction`). Retained for the CLI health line + back-compat.
-   */
   stale_pages: number;
   /**
    * Islanded pages — zero inbound AND zero outbound links. A hub page

test/brain-score-recommendations.test.ts

@@ -119,12 +119,13 @@ describe('computeRecommendations', () => {
     expect(recs.find((r) => r.id === 'embed.stale')).toBeUndefined();
   });
 
-  test('extraction lag + dead links produce sync + backlinks + extract', () => {
+  test('stale pages + dead links produce sync + backlinks + extract', () => {
     const health = makeHealth({
+      stale_pages: 25,
       dead_links: 8,
       brain_score: 70,
     });
-    const recs = computeRecommendations(health, { repoPath: '/brain', embeddingProviderConfigured: true, extractionLagPages: 25 });
+    const recs = computeRecommendations(health, { repoPath: '/brain', embeddingProviderConfigured: true });
     const ids = recs.map((r) => r.id);
     expect(ids).toContain('sync.repo');
     expect(ids).toContain('backlinks.fix');
@@ -132,17 +133,18 @@ describe('computeRecommendations', () => {
   });
 
   test('extract.all depends on sync.repo (D14: stable ids)', () => {
-    const health = makeHealth();
-    const recs = computeRecommendations(health, { repoPath: '/brain', embeddingProviderConfigured: true, extractionLagPages: 10 });
+    const health = makeHealth({ stale_pages: 10 });
+    const recs = computeRecommendations(health, { repoPath: '/brain', embeddingProviderConfigured: true });
     const extract = recs.find((r) => r.id === 'extract.all');
     expect(extract?.depends_on).toContain('sync.repo');
   });
 
-  test('embed.stale depends on sync.repo when extraction also needed', () => {
+  test('embed.stale depends on sync.repo when sync also needed', () => {
     const health = makeHealth({
+      stale_pages: 10,
       missing_embeddings: 100,
     });
-    const recs = computeRecommendations(health, { repoPath: '/brain', embeddingProviderConfigured: true, extractionLagPages: 10 });
+    const recs = computeRecommendations(health, { repoPath: '/brain', embeddingProviderConfigured: true });
     const embed = recs.find((r) => r.id === 'embed.stale');
     expect(embed?.depends_on).toContain('sync.repo');
   });
@@ -157,9 +159,9 @@ describe('computeRecommendations', () => {
   test('severity ordering: critical before high before medium', () => {
     const health = makeHealth({
       missing_embeddings: 100,  // critical
+      stale_pages: 80,          // high
     });
-    // extractionLagPages > 50 → sync.repo fires at 'high' severity.
-    const recs = computeRecommendations(health, { repoPath: '/brain', embeddingProviderConfigured: true, extractionLagPages: 80 });
+    const recs = computeRecommendations(health, { repoPath: '/brain', embeddingProviderConfigured: true });
     const critIdx = recs.findIndex((r) => r.severity === 'critical');
     const highIdx = recs.findIndex((r) => r.severity === 'high');
     expect(critIdx).toBeLessThan(highIdx);
@@ -168,10 +170,11 @@ describe('computeRecommendations', () => {
   // D6 #5 — THE critical regression test for the agent contract.
   test('D6 #5: determinism — same input twice produces identical output', () => {
     const health = makeHealth({
+      stale_pages: 10,
       missing_embeddings: 50,
       dead_links: 3,
     });
-    const ctx = { repoPath: '/brain', embeddingProviderConfigured: true, sourceId: 'default', extractionLagPages: 10 };
+    const ctx = { repoPath: '/brain', embeddingProviderConfigured: true, sourceId: 'default' };
     const run1 = computeRecommendations(health, ctx);
     const run2 = computeRecommendations(health, ctx);
     expect(JSON.stringify(run1)).toBe(JSON.stringify(run2));

test/cycle-dream-output-root.test.ts

@@ -26,6 +26,7 @@ const transcript: DiscoveredTranscript = {
   content: 'User: hello world',
   contentHash: 'abcdef0123456789',
   inferredDate: '2026-07-17',
+  transcriptSource: null,
 } as DiscoveredTranscript;
 
 describe('#2415: buildSynthesisPrompt output root', () => {

test/cycle-synthesize-slug-collection.test.ts

@@ -152,3 +152,94 @@ describe('#2569: stampDreamProvenance persists the marker into DB frontmatter',
     await stampDreamProvenance(engine as any, refs, '2026-07-17'); // idempotent
   });
 });
+
+describe('#2285: orchestrator-owned deterministic transcript frontmatter', () => {
+  const meta = {
+    idx: 1,
+    hash6: 'abc123',
+    chunkTotal: 3,
+    transcriptSource: 'claude-code',
+    transcriptId: 'session-uuid',
+    inferredDate: '2026-05-15',
+  };
+
+  test('collectChildPutPageSlugs pairs each ref back to the writing job', async () => {
+    const refs = await collectChildPutPageSlugs(
+      engine as any, [1001], new Map([[1001, { ...meta, chunkTotal: 1 }]]), 'mybrain',
+    );
+    expect(refs.length).toBeGreaterThan(0);
+    for (const r of refs) {
+      expect(r.jobId).toBe(1001);
+      expect(r.source_id).toBe('mybrain'); // #1586: cycle source, never hardcoded 'default'
+    }
+  });
+
+  test('slug collision across children attributes the LAST writer (matches surviving putPage)', async () => {
+    const db = (engine as any).db;
+    // Jobs 1001 then 1002 write the same slug; the pages row would hold
+    // 1002's content (last put_page wins), so the ref must carry jobId 1002.
+    await db.query(
+      `INSERT INTO subagent_tool_executions (job_id, message_idx, tool_use_id, tool_name, status, input)
+       VALUES (1001, 9, 'tool_dup_a', 'brain_put_page', 'complete', $1::jsonb)`,
+      [JSON.stringify({ slug: 'wiki/agents/test/collision', body: 'first' })],
+    );
+    await db.query(
+      `INSERT INTO subagent_tool_executions (job_id, message_idx, tool_use_id, tool_name, status, input)
+       VALUES (1002, 9, 'tool_dup_b', 'brain_put_page', 'complete', $1::jsonb)`,
+      [JSON.stringify({ slug: 'wiki/agents/test/collision', body: 'second' })],
+    );
+    const refs = await collectChildPutPageSlugs(engine as any, [1001, 1002], new Map());
+    const hit = refs.find((r: { slug: string }) => r.slug === 'wiki/agents/test/collision');
+    expect(hit?.jobId).toBe(1002);
+  });
+
+  test('stampDreamProvenance merges the transcript metadata into DB frontmatter', async () => {
+    const slug = 'wiki/originals/ideas/2026-07-17-transcript-meta-abc123';
+    await engine.putPage(slug, {
+      type: 'note',
+      title: 'Meta stamp',
+      compiled_truth: 'body',
+      timeline: '',
+      frontmatter: { keep_me: 'yes', transcript_id: 'subagent-drift' },
+    });
+    await stampDreamProvenance(
+      engine as any,
+      [{ slug, source_id: 'default', jobId: 42 }],
+      '2026-07-17',
+      new Map([[42, meta]]),
+    );
+    const rows = await engine.executeRaw<{ fm: Record<string, unknown> }>(
+      `SELECT frontmatter AS fm FROM pages WHERE slug = $1`, [slug],
+    );
+    const fm = rows[0].fm as Record<string, unknown>;
+    expect(fm.dream_generated).toBe(true);
+    expect(fm.dream_cycle_date).toBe('2026-07-17');
+    expect(fm.transcript_id).toBe('session-uuid'); // orchestrator wins over subagent drift
+    expect(fm.transcript_hash).toBe('abc123');
+    expect(fm.transcript_source).toBe('claude-code');
+    expect(fm.chunk).toBe('2/3');
+    expect(fm.date).toBe('2026-05-15');
+    expect(fm.keep_me).toBe('yes'); // subagent-owned keys survive
+  });
+
+  test('single-chunk children with no inferredDate stamp only the applicable fields', async () => {
+    const slug = 'wiki/originals/ideas/2026-07-17-minimal-meta-abc123';
+    await engine.putPage(slug, {
+      type: 'note', title: 'Minimal', compiled_truth: 'b', timeline: '', frontmatter: {},
+    });
+    await stampDreamProvenance(
+      engine as any,
+      [{ slug, source_id: 'default', jobId: 43 }],
+      '2026-07-17',
+      new Map([[43, { ...meta, chunkTotal: 1, transcriptSource: null, inferredDate: null }]]),
+    );
+    const rows = await engine.executeRaw<{ fm: Record<string, unknown> }>(
+      `SELECT frontmatter AS fm FROM pages WHERE slug = $1`, [slug],
+    );
+    const fm = rows[0].fm as Record<string, unknown>;
+    expect(fm.transcript_id).toBe('session-uuid');
+    expect(fm.chunk).toBeUndefined();
+    expect(fm.transcript_source).toBeUndefined();
+    expect(fm.date).toBeUndefined();
+  });
+});

test/cycle-synthesize.test.ts

@@ -302,6 +302,7 @@ describe('judgeSignificance', () => {
       content: 'A short conversation about something interesting.',
       basename: 'x',
       inferredDate: null,
+      transcriptSource: null,
     };
   }
 
@@ -415,6 +416,7 @@ describe('judgeSignificance — UTF-16 safety (v0.41.13)', () => {
       content,
       basename: 'long',
       inferredDate: null,
+      transcriptSource: null,
     };
   }
 

test/cycle/synthesize-gateway-adapter.test.ts

@@ -45,6 +45,7 @@ const FIXTURE_TRANSCRIPT: DiscoveredTranscript = {
   content: 'Synthetic transcript content for gateway-adapter parity tests.',
   contentHash: 'sha-fixture-1',
   inferredDate: '2026-05-24',
+  transcriptSource: null,
 };
 
 describe('makeJudgeClient — construction-time provider probe', () => {

test/cycle/transcript-discovery-metadata.test.ts

@@ -0,0 +1,109 @@
+/**
+ * #2285 — transcript metadata discovery.
+ *
+ * Pins the two discovery-side additions:
+ *   1. `transcriptSource` — derived from the `<source>/<date>/<file>` path
+ *      layout; null for ad-hoc inputs that don't match.
+ *   2. Content-based date inference — the `| First message | <ISO> |` row in
+ *      the transcript's `## Metadata` table wins over the filename-regex
+ *      date (stable across mtime-restamping re-syncs); filename is the
+ *      fallback.
+ *
+ * Pure filesystem; no engine, no LLM.
+ */
+
+import { describe, test, expect, beforeEach, afterEach } from 'bun:test';
+import { mkdtempSync, rmSync, writeFileSync, mkdirSync } from 'node:fs';
+import { tmpdir } from 'node:os';
+import { join, dirname } from 'node:path';
+import {
+  discoverTranscripts,
+  readSingleTranscript,
+  deriveTranscriptSource,
+  inferContentDate,
+} from '../../src/core/cycle/transcript-discovery.ts';
+
+let tmpDir: string;
+
+beforeEach(() => {
+  tmpDir = mkdtempSync(join(tmpdir(), 'gbrain-transcript-meta-'));
+});
+
+afterEach(() => {
+  rmSync(tmpDir, { recursive: true, force: true });
+});
+
+function write(relPath: string, body: string): string {
+  const full = join(tmpDir, relPath);
+  mkdirSync(dirname(full), { recursive: true });
+  writeFileSync(full, body);
+  return full;
+}
+
+const FILLER = 'User: hello world. '.repeat(200);
+const METADATA_BLOCK =
+  '## Metadata\n\n| Key | Value |\n| --- | --- |\n| First message | 2026-05-15T03:51:11.584Z |\n\n';
+
+describe('deriveTranscriptSource', () => {
+  test('extracts the source slug from <source>/<date>/<file> layout', () => {
+    expect(deriveTranscriptSource('/corpus/claude-code/2026-06-12/abc.md')).toBe('claude-code');
+    expect(deriveTranscriptSource('/corpus/voice-notes/2026-06-12/xyz.md')).toBe('voice-notes');
+  });
+
+  test('null when the parent dir is not a date dir or grandparent is not a slug', () => {
+    expect(deriveTranscriptSource('/corpus/flat-file.md')).toBeNull();
+    expect(deriveTranscriptSource('/corpus/claude-code/not-a-date/abc.md')).toBeNull();
+    expect(deriveTranscriptSource('/corpus/Not A Slug/2026-06-12/abc.md')).toBeNull();
+  });
+});
+
+describe('inferContentDate', () => {
+  test('parses the | First message | row', () => {
+    expect(inferContentDate(METADATA_BLOCK)).toBe('2026-05-15');
+  });
+  test('null when absent', () => {
+    expect(inferContentDate(FILLER)).toBeNull();
+  });
+});
+
+describe('discoverTranscripts — transcriptSource + date cascade', () => {
+  test('populates transcriptSource per file; null for flat files', () => {
+    write('claude-code/2026-06-12/aaaa.md', FILLER);
+    write('2026-06-12-flat.md', FILLER);
+    const out = discoverTranscripts({ corpusDir: tmpDir, minChars: 100 });
+    const byBase = new Map(out.map(t => [t.basename, t.transcriptSource]));
+    expect(byBase.get('aaaa')).toBe('claude-code');
+    expect(byBase.get('2026-06-12-flat')).toBeNull();
+  });
+
+  test('content First-message date wins over the filename date', () => {
+    write('2026-01-01-named.md', METADATA_BLOCK + FILLER);
+    const out = discoverTranscripts({ corpusDir: tmpDir, minChars: 100 });
+    expect(out).toHaveLength(1);
+    expect(out[0].inferredDate).toBe('2026-05-15');
+  });
+
+  test('filename date remains the fallback when content has no metadata row', () => {
+    write('2026-01-01-named.md', FILLER);
+    const out = discoverTranscripts({ corpusDir: tmpDir, minChars: 100 });
+    expect(out[0].inferredDate).toBe('2026-01-01');
+  });
+
+  test('date filter matches on the content date for UUID-named transcripts', () => {
+    write('claude-code/2026-05-15/uuid-basename.md', METADATA_BLOCK + FILLER);
+    const hit = discoverTranscripts({ corpusDir: tmpDir, minChars: 100, date: '2026-05-15' });
+    expect(hit).toHaveLength(1);
+    const miss = discoverTranscripts({ corpusDir: tmpDir, minChars: 100, date: '2026-05-16' });
+    expect(miss).toHaveLength(0);
+  });
+});
+
+describe('readSingleTranscript — same metadata surface', () => {
+  test('carries transcriptSource and prefers the content date', () => {
+    const p = write('claude-code/2026-05-15/2026-01-01-single.md', METADATA_BLOCK + FILLER);
+    const t = readSingleTranscript(p, { minChars: 100 });
+    expect(t).not.toBeNull();
+    expect(t!.transcriptSource).toBe('claude-code');
+    expect(t!.inferredDate).toBe('2026-05-15');
+  });
+});

test/progress.test.ts

@@ -216,17 +216,21 @@ describe('progress reporter', () => {
   });
 
   test('only one process-level signal handler installed across many reporters', () => {
-    // Baseline: one handler already installed by prior tests in this file.
+    // Baseline: one handler already installed by prior tests in this file, and
+    // possibly live reporters from OTHER test files sharing this bun process
+    // (shard composition is not this test's invariant — assert the delta, not
+    // an absolute zero, or shard reshuffles make this fail spuriously).
     const installedBefore = __signalHandlerInstalledForTest();
+    const liveBefore = __liveReporterCountForTest();
     const { stream } = sink(false);
     for (let i = 0; i < 50; i++) {
       const p = createProgress({ mode: 'json', stream, minIntervalMs: 0, minItems: 1 });
       p.start(`phase_${i}`, 1);
       p.finish();
     }
-    // After 50 reporter lifecycles, still exactly one handler and zero leaked live entries.
+    // After 50 reporter lifecycles, still exactly one handler and zero NET leaked live entries.
     expect(__signalHandlerInstalledForTest()).toBe(installedBefore || true);
-    expect(__liveReporterCountForTest()).toBe(0);
+    expect(__liveReporterCountForTest()).toBe(liveBefore);
   });
 
   test('startHeartbeat() fires heartbeats and stop() clears', async () => {

test/remediation-context-extraction-lag.test.ts

@@ -1,62 +0,0 @@
-// test/remediation-context-extraction-lag.test.ts
-//
-// Pins the v-next fix: the sync→extract remediation pipeline gates on REAL
-// extraction lag, not the legacy `health.stale_pages` proxy (which counted
-// "updated_at predates newest timeline entry" — meaningless after the v10
-// trigger drop). loadRecommendationContext now populates `extractionLagPages`
-// from `engine.countStalePagesForExtraction` — the SAME counter the
-// `gbrain extract --stale` walk and doctor's `links_extraction_lag` use — so a
-// recommendation can only fire when running extract will actually reduce it.
-
-import { afterAll, beforeAll, describe, expect, it } from 'bun:test';
-import { PGLiteEngine } from '../src/core/pglite-engine.ts';
-import { loadRecommendationContext } from '../src/core/remediation/context.ts';
-
-let engine: PGLiteEngine;
-
-beforeAll(async () => {
-  engine = new PGLiteEngine();
-  await engine.connect({});
-  await engine.initSchema();
-});
-
-afterAll(async () => {
-  await engine.disconnect();
-});
-
-describe('loadRecommendationContext — extractionLagPages wiring', () => {
-  it('is 0 on an empty brain (nothing to extract)', async () => {
-    const ctx = await loadRecommendationContext(engine);
-    expect(ctx.extractionLagPages).toBe(0);
-  });
-
-  it('reflects the real extraction-lag count once a page needs extraction', async () => {
-    // A freshly-imported page has links_extracted_at = NULL, which the canonical
-    // countStalePagesForExtraction predicate counts as stale-for-extraction.
-    await engine.putPage('p0', {
-      title: 'p0',
-      type: 'note' as never,
-      compiled_truth: 'body that is long enough to pass any minimum-length guards in the codebase',
-      timeline: '',
-      frontmatter: {},
-      source_path: 'p0.md',
-    });
-    const ctx = await loadRecommendationContext(engine);
-    expect(ctx.extractionLagPages).toBeGreaterThan(0);
-  });
-
-  it('counts pages stamped before LINK_EXTRACTOR_VERSION_TS (version-bump arm)', async () => {
-    // Backdate p0 so BOTH the NULL arm and the updated_at arm are quiet:
-    // updated_at < links_extracted_at, but links_extracted_at predates the
-    // extractor version stamp. doctor's links_extraction_lag and
-    // `extract --stale` both count this page; the remediation gate must too.
-    await engine.executeRaw(
-      `UPDATE pages SET updated_at = '2020-01-01T00:00:00Z'::timestamptz,
-                        links_extracted_at = '2020-01-02T00:00:00Z'::timestamptz
-        WHERE slug = 'p0'`,
-      [],
-    );
-    const ctx = await loadRecommendationContext(engine);
-    expect(ctx.extractionLagPages).toBeGreaterThan(0);
-  });
-});

test/remediation-run-d7-refresh.serial.test.ts

@@ -1,81 +0,0 @@
-// test/remediation-run-d7-refresh.serial.test.ts
-//
-// Pins the D7-recheck half of the extraction-lag gate fix: runRemediation
-// loads RecommendationContext ONCE before the step loop, and the per-step
-// recheck (D7) must REFRESH ctx.extractionLagPages alongside getHealth.
-// Without the refresh, a completed sync/extract step keeps re-firing off
-// the frozen initial count — the plan never converges and the loop burns
-// steps until maxJobs.
-//
-// SERIAL (R2): uses top-level mock.module for the minion queue +
-// wait-for-completion so no real worker is needed — mocks leak across
-// files in a shard process, so this file must run in its own process.
-
-import { describe, expect, mock, test } from 'bun:test';
-
-// The fake brain: sync.repo clears the extraction lag when it "runs"
-// (today's sync materializes link/timeline edges; extract.all is the
-// explicit re-materializer). The frozen-ctx bug makes runRemediation
-// ignore that and resubmit sync.repo on every D7 recheck.
-let extractionLag = 25;
-const submittedJobs: string[] = [];
-
-mock.module('../src/core/minions/queue.ts', () => ({
-  MinionQueue: class {
-    constructor(_engine: unknown) {}
-    async add(job: string): Promise<{ id: number }> {
-      submittedJobs.push(job);
-      if (job === 'sync' || job === 'extract') extractionLag = 0;
-      return { id: submittedJobs.length };
-    }
-  },
-}));
-
-mock.module('../src/core/minions/wait-for-completion.ts', () => ({
-  waitForCompletion: async () => ({ status: 'completed' }),
-}));
-
-const health = () => ({
-  page_count: 100,
-  embed_coverage: 1.0,
-  stale_pages: 0, // legacy proxy stays 0 — the real counter drives the gate
-  orphan_pages: 0,
-  missing_embeddings: 0,
-  brain_score: 70,
-  dead_links: 0,
-  link_coverage: 1.0,
-  timeline_coverage: 1.0,
-  most_connected: [],
-  embed_coverage_score: 35,
-  link_density_score: 25,
-  timeline_coverage_score: 15,
-  no_orphans_score: 15,
-  no_dead_links_score: 10,
-});
-
-const fakeEngine = {
-  kind: 'pglite' as const,
-  getHealth: async () => health(),
-  getConfig: async (key: string) =>
-    key === 'sync.repo_path' ? '/tmp/brain-example' : null,
-  countStalePagesForExtraction: async () => extractionLag,
-};
-
-describe('runRemediation D7 recheck — extraction-lag gate refresh', () => {
-  test('a completed materializer step clears the gate; the pipeline is not resubmitted', async () => {
-    const { runRemediation } = await import('../src/core/remediation/run.ts');
-    const result = await runRemediation(
-      // Only the methods the orchestrator touches are needed.
-      fakeEngine as never,
-      { targetScore: 0, maxJobs: 6 },
-    );
-    // Frozen-ctx bug: extractionLagPages stays 25 forever, so every D7
-    // recheck re-introduces the sync/extract pipeline and the loop burns
-    // all 6 maxJobs. With the refresh, the plan converges after the first
-    // completed step: no step id is ever submitted twice.
-    const ids = result.submitted.map((s) => s.id);
-    expect(new Set(ids).size).toBe(ids.length);
-    expect(submittedJobs.length).toBeLessThan(3);
-    expect(extractionLag).toBe(0);
-  });
-});