From ba42f2424605f7172bde26294ae16e7f455a5373 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001
From: Alan Buscaglia <gentlemanprogramming@gmail.com>
Date: Thu, 28 May 2026 16:37:41 +0200
Subject: [PATCH] fix(pi): show actionable status for ambiguous project errors
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Replace the generic '· error' status bar label with '· ambiguous project'
when the underlying failure is an ambiguous project detection (multiple git
repos in cwd). Adds `errorStatusLabel()` to map known error patterns to
actionable labels so users can distinguish backend errors from project
resolution problems.

Closes #384
---
 plugin/pi/README.md                  |  8 ++++++++
 plugin/pi/index.ts                   |  7 ++++++-
 plugin/pi/test/index-source.test.mjs | 12 ++++++++++++
 3 files changed, 26 insertions(+), 1 deletion(-)

diff --git a/plugin/pi/README.md b/plugin/pi/README.md
index c67b31c9..1468febf 100644
--- a/plugin/pi/README.md
+++ b/plugin/pi/README.md
@@ -112,6 +112,13 @@ Pi-native compact tools use the same HTTP server path as event capture, includin
 
 Normal memory activity also updates the status bar with short progress/result text such as `🧠 engram · search…` and `🧠 engram · ✓ 4 results`. The extension does not use notifications for normal memory operations.
 
+When a tool call fails because Engram cannot determine which project to use, the status bar shows an actionable label instead of the generic `error`:
+
+| Status bar label           | Meaning                                                                                               |
+| -------------------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
+| `🧠 repos · ambiguous project` | Pi was started from a directory that contains multiple git repos. Run Pi from inside a single repo, or add `.engram/config.json` with `project_name` to the parent directory. |
+| `🧠 repos · error`         | A different tool or network error occurred. Expand the tool output in Pi for the full error message.  |
+
 Full tool details remain available by expanding the tool output in Pi. If `gentle-engram` or the Engram server is not installed/running, the compact tool reports an error instead of implying memory is available.
 
 ## What Pi can remember
@@ -231,6 +238,7 @@ MCP tool calls still use Engram core's canonical project resolver at call time.
 | Existing MCP config was not replaced                         | Run `pi-engram init --force`.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           |
 | `mem_current_project` reports `/project/current` unsupported | Restart or upgrade the running `engram serve`; check `ENGRAM_URL`/`ENGRAM_BIN`. If `.engram/config.json` exists, Pi uses it as a temporary fallback.                                                                                                                    |
 | `mem_session_summary` cannot detect a project                | Ask the user which project should receive the summary, then retry `mem_session_summary` with `project: "name"`.                                                                                                                                                         |
+| Status bar shows `🧠 repos · ambiguous project`             | Pi was started from a parent directory that contains multiple git repos. Run Pi from inside a single repo, or add `.engram/config.json` with `"project_name": "my-project"` to the ambiguous directory.                                                                 |
 
 ## Next steps
 
diff --git a/plugin/pi/index.ts b/plugin/pi/index.ts
index 608edec4..25d7b313 100644
--- a/plugin/pi/index.ts
+++ b/plugin/pi/index.ts
@@ -261,6 +261,11 @@ function truncate(str: string, max: number): string {
   return str.length > max ? `${str.slice(0, max)}...` : str;
 }
 
+function errorStatusLabel(message: string): string {
+  if (/ambiguous project/i.test(message)) return "ambiguous project";
+  return "error";
+}
+
 function stripPrivateTags(str: string): string {
   return redactPrivateTags(str).trim();
 }
@@ -686,7 +691,7 @@ async function executeMemoryTool(toolName: string, params: Record<string, unknow
     const details = error instanceof EngramHttpError
       ? { error: message, http_status: error.status, data: error.data }
       : { error: message };
-    ctx.ui?.setStatus?.("engram", `🧠 ${project} · error`);
+    ctx.ui?.setStatus?.("engram", `🧠 ${project} · ${errorStatusLabel(message)}`);
     return { content: [{ type: "text" as const, text: message }], details, isError: true };
   }
 }
diff --git a/plugin/pi/test/index-source.test.mjs b/plugin/pi/test/index-source.test.mjs
index 22b1a900..9440d7e0 100644
--- a/plugin/pi/test/index-source.test.mjs
+++ b/plugin/pi/test/index-source.test.mjs
@@ -15,3 +15,15 @@ test("project detection 404 falls back to local config or diagnostic", () => {
   assert.match(source, /error\.status === 404[\s\S]*detectLocalConfigProject\(cwd\) \|\| projectCurrentUnsupportedError\(cwd\)/);
   assert.match(source, /does not support \/project\/current/);
 });
+
+test("ambiguous_project error maps to actionable status label, not generic 'error'", () => {
+  // The status bar must NOT show the generic 'error' label for ambiguous project conditions.
+  // Instead it should show an actionable label such as 'ambiguous project'.
+  assert.match(source, /function errorStatusLabel\(/);
+  // Verify the function maps ambiguous project messages to the actionable label
+  assert.match(source, /ambiguous project/);
+  // Verify executeMemoryTool uses errorStatusLabel instead of the bare 'error' string
+  assert.match(source, /errorStatusLabel\(message\)/);
+  // The bare '· error' hardcoded string should no longer be present in the catch block
+  assert.doesNotMatch(source, /setStatus\?\.\("engram",\s*`🧠 \$\{project\} · error`\)/);
+});