[T-185C2E] Git Worktree

[weekly-daniel]

Summary

Replace per-task repository cloning with per-task Git worktrees and branches, while keeping planning in the configured repository checkout and updating cleanup/docs/tests around the new lifecycle.

Key Changes

• server/src/orchestrator.js (replace clone-based workspace setup with git worktree creation/reuse/removal and move planning off task workspaces)
• server/src/index.js (adjust startup and task cleanup logic so it treats the workspace root as a worktree root and only removes safe orphan worktrees)
• server/src/config.js (keep existing configurable workspaceRoot behavior but update prompt/help text assumptions if they still describe cloned workspaces)
• server/src/orchestrator.pr.test.js (cover PR flow against worktree-backed repositories and any new git raw calls)
• server/src/orchestrator.delete.test.js (cover deletion/cleanup behavior for worktree-backed task directories)
• server/src/orchestrator.test.js (add focused unit coverage for branch/worktree preparation and planner cwd changes)

Validation

• server/src/orchestrator.test.js: planning uses task.repoPath directly and does not create a workspace before approval
• server/src/orchestrator.test.js: implementation creates a branch-backed worktree under the configured workspace root and reuses it when valid
• server/src/orchestrator.test.js: stale/mismatched task directories are removed and recreated as worktrees
• server/src/orchestrator.pr.test.js: PR creation still fetches/rebases/pushes from the task worktree and manual-PR fallback remains intact
• server/src/orchestrator.delete.test.js: deleting/completing/resetting tasks removes the worktree safely and clears workspacePath
• server/src/index.test.js: startup orphan cleanup preserves active task worktrees and removes orphan task worktrees only
• README.md / docs/task-flow.md: no automated test, but verify wording matches actual lifecycle

Review

• Verdict: PASS
• Summary: Changed files: server/src/orchestrator.js, server/src/index.js, server/src/config.js, server/src/orchestrator.test.js, server/src/orchestrator.pr.test.js, server/src/orchestrator.delete.test.js,
• Minor issues: (Confidence 82) cleanupOrphanTaskWorktrees in server/src/index.js:140-153 deletes orphan directories with rmSync without attempting git worktree remove first. If git worktree list --porcelain failed for a; (Confidence 78) parseWorktreeList is duplicated with slightly different return types: index.js:89 returns a Set of paths, orchestrator.js:640 returns an Array of {path, branchRef} objects. Both parse the

Risks

• git worktree add fails if the target branch already exists and is checked out in another worktree; the implementation needs a clear reuse/error path instead of forcing branch deletion.
• Cleanup is more delicate than today because removing a worktree by deleting the directory can leave stale Git metadata behind; the plan should prefer git worktree remove and only force-delete as a fallback.
• Planning in task.repoPath assumes configured repos are valid local Git checkouts; if remote URLs are still allowed anywhere in the UI, the implementation may need an explicit validation/error path instead of relying on legacy blocker recovery.
• PR flow currently hardcodes main as the base branch; the worktree change should not expand scope into dependency-aware branching yet, but tests should make that constraint explicit.

[Copilot]

Pull request overview

This PR migrates task execution from per-task repository clones to per-task Git worktrees + branches, while keeping planning in the configured repository checkout and updating cleanup logic, docs, and tests to match the new lifecycle.

Changes:

• Replace clone-based workspace provisioning with Git worktree creation/reuse/removal in the orchestrator.
• Update server startup + manual approval cleanup to treat the workspace root as a worktree root and remove only safe orphan task directories.
• Expand/adjust tests and docs to reflect planning-in-repo and implementation-in-worktree behavior.

Reviewed changes

Copilot reviewed 10 out of 13 changed files in this pull request and generated 5 comments.

Show a summary per file

File	Description
server/src/orchestrator.js	Introduces worktree lifecycle helpers, runs planning in repo checkout, and removes worktrees on task completion/cleanup paths.
server/src/index.js	Makes max-review approval cleanup async via worktree removal; adds orphan task worktree cleanup at startup.
server/src/config.js	Updates prompt/rules text to reflect implementation running in a task worktree.
server/src/orchestrator.test.js	Adds unit coverage for planning cwd and worktree preparation/reuse behavior; checks updated prompt wording.
server/src/orchestrator.pr.test.js	Verifies PR flow still pushes from the task worktree and removes the worktree on success.
server/src/orchestrator.delete.test.js	Ensures deleting terminal tasks triggers worktree removal and clears workspacePath.
server/src/index.test.js	Updates approval cleanup test to use orchestrator worktree removal; adds coverage for orphan cleanup behavior.
server/src/agents.test.js	Adjusts path handling for URL-derived cwd strings.
docs/task-flow.md	Updates lifecycle documentation to describe planning-in-repo and worktree-backed implementation/review.
README.md	Updates user-facing docs to describe worktrees instead of per-task workspaces/clones.
package-lock.json	Lockfile metadata updates.
server/package-lock.json	Lockfile metadata updates.
client/package-lock.json	Lockfile metadata updates.

Files not reviewed (2)

• client/package-lock.json: Language not supported
• server/package-lock.json: Language not supported

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[Copilot]

Pull request overview

Copilot reviewed 17 out of 20 changed files in this pull request and generated 3 comments.

Files not reviewed (2)

• client/package-lock.json: Language not supported
• server/package-lock.json: Language not supported

Comments suppressed due to low confidence (1)

server/src/orchestrator.js:1231

• deleteTask proceeds to remove the plan and delete the task record even if removeTaskWorktree fails to remove the underlying worktree directory/registration (and removeTaskWorktree does not currently return success/failure). This can leave behind an untracked worktree that startup cleanup may never remove because there’s no longer a task referencing it. Consider having removeTaskWorktree return a boolean (or throw) and making deleteTask fail/abort (or at least log and keep the task) when cleanup is unsuccessful.

  if (task.workspacePath) {
    await removeTaskWorktree(task);
  }

  store.removePlan(taskId);
  store.deleteTask(taskId);
  return true;

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