fix: clarify stuck approval error message with /reset and consequences (#590)

Co-authored-by: Letta Code <noreply@letta.com>
2026-03-12 23:33:23 -07:00
parent 25fbd7b9fa
commit 68056ed21b
13 changed files with 348 additions and 47 deletions
--- a/docs/skills.md
+++ b/docs/skills.md
@@ -25,7 +25,7 @@ LettaBot scans these directories in priority order. Same-name skills at higher p

 On Railway with a mounted volume, LettaBot stores `.letta` skill paths under `$RAILWAY_VOLUME_MOUNT_PATH/.letta/` by default, so agent-scoped and global skills survive redeploys.

-Feature-gated skills are copied from source directories into the agent-scoped directory (`~/.letta/agents/{id}/skills/`) when a session is first acquired. The copy is idempotent -- skills already present in the target are skipped.
+Feature-gated skills are copied from source directories into the agent-scoped directory (`~/.letta/agents/{id}/skills/`, or `$RAILWAY_VOLUME_MOUNT_PATH/.letta/agents/{id}/skills/` on Railway) when a session is first acquired. The copy is idempotent -- skills already present in the target are skipped.

 ## Feature-gated skills

@@ -113,7 +113,7 @@ Run `lettabot skills status` to see which skills are eligible and which have mis

 When a session starts, `prependSkillDirsToPath()` in `src/skills/loader.ts` prepends skill directories to `PATH` immediately before `createSession`/`resumeSession` is called. The SDK spawns the Letta Code subprocess at session-creation time, so the subprocess inherits the augmented PATH at fork. Two sources are combined:

-1. **Agent-scoped skills** (`~/.letta/agents/{id}/skills/`) — feature-gated skills installed by `installSkillsToAgent()` on startup.
+1. **Agent-scoped skills** (`.letta/agents/{id}/skills/`) — feature-gated skills installed by `installSkillsToAgent()` on startup.
 2. **Working-dir skills** (`WORKING_DIR/.skills/`) — skills enabled via `lettabot skills enable <name>` or the interactive `lettabot skills` wizard.

 On Railway with a mounted volume, `WORKING_DIR` defaults to `$RAILWAY_VOLUME_MOUNT_PATH/data` when not explicitly set, so working-dir skills are persisted on the volume by default.
--- a/src/config/io.test.ts
+++ b/src/config/io.test.ts
@@ -17,11 +17,89 @@ vi.mock('../logger.js', () => ({
  }),
 }));

-import { saveConfig, loadConfig, loadConfigStrict, configToEnv, didLoadFail } from './io.js';
+import {
+  saveConfig,
+  loadConfig,
+  loadConfigStrict,
+  configToEnv,
+  didLoadFail,
+  decodeYamlOrBase64,
+  hasInlineConfig,
+} from './io.js';
 import { normalizeAgents, DEFAULT_CONFIG } from './types.js';
 import { wasLoadedFromFleetConfig, setLoadedFromFleetConfig } from './fleet-adapter.js';
 import type { LettaBotConfig } from './types.js';

+describe('inline config helpers', () => {
+  let originalInline: string | undefined;
+
+  beforeEach(() => {
+    originalInline = process.env.LETTABOT_CONFIG_YAML;
+    delete process.env.LETTABOT_CONFIG_YAML;
+  });
+
+  afterEach(() => {
+    if (originalInline === undefined) {
+      delete process.env.LETTABOT_CONFIG_YAML;
+    } else {
+      process.env.LETTABOT_CONFIG_YAML = originalInline;
+    }
+  });
+
+  it('treats empty inline env vars as unset', () => {
+    expect(hasInlineConfig()).toBe(false);
+
+    process.env.LETTABOT_CONFIG_YAML = '';
+    expect(hasInlineConfig()).toBe(false);
+
+    process.env.LETTABOT_CONFIG_YAML = '   ';
+    expect(hasInlineConfig()).toBe(false);
+  });
+
+  it('detects non-empty inline env vars', () => {
+    process.env.LETTABOT_CONFIG_YAML = 'server:\n  mode: api\n';
+    expect(hasInlineConfig()).toBe(true);
+  });
+
+  it('decodes raw yaml inline config', () => {
+    const yaml = 'server:\n  mode: api\n';
+    expect(decodeYamlOrBase64(yaml)).toBe(yaml);
+  });
+
+  it('decodes base64 inline config', () => {
+    const yaml = 'server:\n  mode: api\n';
+    const encoded = Buffer.from(yaml, 'utf-8').toString('base64');
+    expect(decodeYamlOrBase64(encoded)).toBe(yaml);
+  });
+
+  it('decodes unpadded base64 inline config', () => {
+    const yaml = 'server:\n  mode: api\n';
+    const encoded = Buffer.from(yaml, 'utf-8').toString('base64').replace(/=+$/, '');
+    expect(decodeYamlOrBase64(encoded)).toBe(yaml);
+  });
+
+  it('decodes URL-safe base64 inline config', () => {
+    const yaml = 'server:\n  mode: api\n';
+    const encoded = Buffer.from(yaml, 'utf-8')
+      .toString('base64')
+      .replace(/\+/g, '-')
+      .replace(/\//g, '_')
+      .replace(/=+$/, '');
+    expect(decodeYamlOrBase64(encoded)).toBe(yaml);
+  });
+
+  it('throws for empty inline config values', () => {
+    expect(() => decodeYamlOrBase64('')).toThrow('LETTABOT_CONFIG_YAML is empty');
+    expect(() => decodeYamlOrBase64('   ')).toThrow('LETTABOT_CONFIG_YAML is empty');
+  });
+
+  it('throws for invalid inline config values', () => {
+    expect(() => decodeYamlOrBase64('###not-yaml-not-base64###')).toThrow(
+      'LETTABOT_CONFIG_YAML must be raw YAML or base64-encoded YAML',
+    );
+  });
+});
+
 describe('saveConfig with agents[] format', () => {
  let tmpDir: string;
  let configPath: string;
--- a/src/config/io.ts
+++ b/src/config/io.ts
@@ -21,6 +21,13 @@ import { LETTA_API_URL } from '../auth/oauth.js';
 import { createLogger } from '../logger.js';

 const log = createLogger('Config');
+
+function getInlineConfigEnvValue(): string | undefined {
+  const raw = process.env.LETTABOT_CONFIG_YAML;
+  if (raw === undefined) return undefined;
+  return raw.trim().length > 0 ? raw : undefined;
+}
+
 // Config file locations (checked in order)
 function getConfigPaths(): string[] {
  return [
@@ -40,26 +47,71 @@ const DEFAULT_CONFIG_PATH = join(homedir(), '.lettabot', 'config.yaml');
 * When set, this takes priority over all file-based config sources.
 */
 export function hasInlineConfig(): boolean {
-  return !!process.env.LETTABOT_CONFIG_YAML;
+  return getInlineConfigEnvValue() !== undefined;
 }

 /**
 * Decode a value that may be raw YAML or base64-encoded YAML.
- * Detection: if the value contains a colon, it's raw YAML (every valid config
- * has key: value pairs). Otherwise it's base64 (which uses only [A-Za-z0-9+/=]).
+ * Detection strategy:
+ * 1) Treat values that parse as YAML objects as raw YAML.
+ * 2) Otherwise, require strict base64 and decode to YAML object.
 */
 export function decodeYamlOrBase64(value: string): string {
-  if (value.includes(':')) {
+  const trimmed = value.trim();
+  if (!trimmed) {
+    throw new Error('LETTABOT_CONFIG_YAML is empty');
+  }
+
+  // Prefer raw YAML when it parses successfully.
+  try {
+    const parsed = YAML.parse(trimmed);
+    if (parsed && typeof parsed === 'object' && !Array.isArray(parsed)) {
      return value;
    }
-  return Buffer.from(value, 'base64').toString('utf-8');
+  } catch {
+    // Fall through to base64 decoding.
+  }
+
+  const normalized = trimmed.replace(/\s+/g, '');
+  const base64Standard = normalized.replace(/-/g, '+').replace(/_/g, '/');
+  if (!/^[A-Za-z0-9+/]*={0,2}$/.test(base64Standard)) {
+    throw new Error('LETTABOT_CONFIG_YAML must be raw YAML or base64-encoded YAML');
+  }
+
+  const normalizedNoPad = base64Standard.replace(/=+$/, '');
+  if (normalizedNoPad.length === 0 || normalizedNoPad.length % 4 === 1) {
+    throw new Error('LETTABOT_CONFIG_YAML must be raw YAML or base64-encoded YAML');
+  }
+
+  const padded = normalizedNoPad + '='.repeat((4 - (normalizedNoPad.length % 4)) % 4);
+
+  const decoded = Buffer.from(padded, 'base64').toString('utf-8');
+  const roundTrip = Buffer.from(decoded, 'utf-8').toString('base64').replace(/=+$/, '');
+  if (roundTrip !== normalizedNoPad) {
+    throw new Error('LETTABOT_CONFIG_YAML is not valid base64');
+  }
+
+  try {
+    const parsed = YAML.parse(decoded);
+    if (!parsed || typeof parsed !== 'object' || Array.isArray(parsed)) {
+      throw new Error('Decoded YAML must be an object');
+    }
+  } catch {
+    throw new Error('LETTABOT_CONFIG_YAML decoded from base64 but is not valid YAML');
+  }
+
+  return decoded;
 }

 /**
 * Decode inline config from LETTABOT_CONFIG_YAML env var.
 */
 function decodeInlineConfig(): string {
-  return decodeYamlOrBase64(process.env.LETTABOT_CONFIG_YAML!);
+  const value = getInlineConfigEnvValue();
+  if (!value) {
+    throw new Error('LETTABOT_CONFIG_YAML is empty');
+  }
+  return decodeYamlOrBase64(value);
 }

 /**
--- a/src/config/normalize.test.ts
+++ b/src/config/normalize.test.ts
@@ -116,7 +116,7 @@ describe('normalizeAgents', () => {
        name: 'Bot1',
        channels: {
          telegram: { enabled: true, token: 'token1' },
-          slack: { enabled: true, botToken: 'missing-app-token' },
+          slack: { enabled: true, botToken: 'token1', appToken: 'app1' },
        },
      },
      {
@@ -140,7 +140,7 @@ describe('normalizeAgents', () => {

    expect(agents).toHaveLength(2);
    expect(agents[0].channels.telegram?.token).toBe('token1');
-    expect(agents[0].channels.slack).toBeUndefined();
+    expect(agents[0].channels.slack?.botToken).toBe('token1');
    expect(agents[1].channels.slack?.botToken).toBe('token2');
    expect(agents[1].channels.discord).toBeUndefined();
  });
@@ -173,7 +173,7 @@ describe('normalizeAgents', () => {
    expect(agents[0].name).toBe('LettaBot');
  });

-  it('should drop channels without required credentials', () => {
+  it('should fail fast when enabled channels are missing required credentials', () => {
    const config: LettaBotConfig = {
      server: { mode: 'cloud' },
      agent: { name: 'TestBot', model: 'test' },
@@ -198,9 +198,40 @@ describe('normalizeAgents', () => {
      },
    };

-    const agents = normalizeAgents(config);
+    expect(() => normalizeAgents(config)).toThrow('Invalid channel configuration');
+  });

-    expect(agents[0].channels).toEqual({});
+  it('should fail fast when telegram-mtproto is missing required credentials', () => {
+    const config: LettaBotConfig = {
+      server: { mode: 'cloud' },
+      agent: { name: 'TestBot', model: 'test' },
+      channels: {
+        'telegram-mtproto': {
+          enabled: true,
+          apiId: 12345,
+          // Missing apiHash and phoneNumber
+        },
+      },
+    };
+
+    expect(() => normalizeAgents(config)).toThrow('channels.telegram-mtproto');
+  });
+
+  it('should fail fast when telegram-mtproto apiId is not a positive integer', () => {
+    const config: LettaBotConfig = {
+      server: { mode: 'cloud' },
+      agent: { name: 'TestBot', model: 'test' },
+      channels: {
+        'telegram-mtproto': {
+          enabled: true,
+          apiId: 0,
+          apiHash: 'hash',
+          phoneNumber: '+15550001111',
+        },
+      },
+    };
+
+    expect(() => normalizeAgents(config)).toThrow('channels.telegram-mtproto');
  });

  it('should preserve agent id when provided', () => {
@@ -613,6 +644,26 @@ describe('normalizeAgents', () => {
      expect(agents[0].channels.signal?.readReceipts).toBe(false);
    });

+    it('treats empty boolean env vars as unset for channel defaults', () => {
+      process.env.WHATSAPP_ENABLED = 'true';
+      process.env.WHATSAPP_SELF_CHAT_MODE = '   ';
+      process.env.SIGNAL_PHONE_NUMBER = '+1234567890';
+      process.env.SIGNAL_READ_RECEIPTS = '';
+      process.env.SIGNAL_SELF_CHAT_MODE = '   ';
+
+      const config: LettaBotConfig = {
+        server: { mode: 'cloud' },
+        agent: { name: 'TestBot', model: 'test' },
+        channels: {},
+      };
+
+      const agents = normalizeAgents(config);
+
+      expect(agents[0].channels.whatsapp?.selfChat).toBe(true);
+      expect(agents[0].channels.signal?.readReceipts).toBe(true);
+      expect(agents[0].channels.signal?.selfChat).toBe(true);
+    });
+
    it('should pick up allowedUsers from env vars for all channels', () => {
      process.env.TELEGRAM_BOT_TOKEN = 'tg-token';
      process.env.TELEGRAM_DM_POLICY = 'allowlist';
@@ -658,6 +709,20 @@ describe('normalizeAgents', () => {
      expect(agents[0].channels.signal?.dmPolicy).toBe('allowlist');
      expect(agents[0].channels.signal?.allowedUsers).toEqual(['+1555111111']);
    });
+
+    it('treats empty allowed-users env vars as unset', () => {
+      process.env.TELEGRAM_BOT_TOKEN = 'tg-token';
+      process.env.TELEGRAM_ALLOWED_USERS = ' ,  , ';
+
+      const config: LettaBotConfig = {
+        server: { mode: 'cloud' },
+        agent: { name: 'TestBot', model: 'test' },
+        channels: {},
+      };
+
+      const agents = normalizeAgents(config);
+      expect(agents[0].channels.telegram?.allowedUsers).toBeUndefined();
+    });
  });

  it('should preserve features, polling, and integrations', () => {
--- a/src/config/types.ts
+++ b/src/config/types.ts
@@ -568,6 +568,9 @@ export function normalizeAgents(config: LettaBotConfig): AgentConfig[] {
    const normalized: AgentConfig['channels'] = {};
    if (!channels) return normalized;

+    const hasValidMtprotoApiId = (value: unknown): value is number =>
+      typeof value === 'number' && Number.isInteger(value) && value > 0;
+
    // Merge env vars into YAML blocks that are missing their key credential.
    // Without this, `signal: enabled: true` + SIGNAL_PHONE_NUMBER env var
    // silently fails because the env-var-only fallback (below) only fires
@@ -585,14 +588,32 @@ export function normalizeAgents(config: LettaBotConfig): AgentConfig[] {
    if (channels.discord && !channels.discord.token && process.env.DISCORD_BOT_TOKEN) {
      channels.discord.token = process.env.DISCORD_BOT_TOKEN;
    }
+    if (channels['telegram-mtproto']) {
+      if (channels['telegram-mtproto'].apiId === undefined && process.env.TELEGRAM_API_ID) {
+        const parsedApiId = parseInt(process.env.TELEGRAM_API_ID, 10);
+        if (hasValidMtprotoApiId(parsedApiId)) {
+          channels['telegram-mtproto'].apiId = parsedApiId;
+        }
+      }
+      if (!channels['telegram-mtproto'].apiHash && process.env.TELEGRAM_API_HASH) {
+        channels['telegram-mtproto'].apiHash = process.env.TELEGRAM_API_HASH;
+      }
+      if (!channels['telegram-mtproto'].phoneNumber && process.env.TELEGRAM_PHONE_NUMBER) {
+        channels['telegram-mtproto'].phoneNumber = process.env.TELEGRAM_PHONE_NUMBER;
+      }
+    }

    if (channels.telegram?.enabled !== false && channels.telegram?.token) {
      const telegram = { ...channels.telegram };
      normalizeLegacyGroupFields(telegram, `${sourcePath}.telegram`);
      normalized.telegram = telegram;
    }
-    // telegram-mtproto: check apiId as the key credential
-    if (channels['telegram-mtproto']?.enabled !== false && channels['telegram-mtproto']?.apiId) {
+    if (
+      channels['telegram-mtproto']?.enabled !== false
+      && hasValidMtprotoApiId(channels['telegram-mtproto']?.apiId)
+      && !!channels['telegram-mtproto']?.apiHash
+      && !!channels['telegram-mtproto']?.phoneNumber
+    ) {
      normalized['telegram-mtproto'] = channels['telegram-mtproto'];
    }
    if (channels.slack?.enabled !== false && channels.slack?.botToken && channels.slack?.appToken) {
@@ -627,17 +648,23 @@ export function normalizeAgents(config: LettaBotConfig): AgentConfig[] {
      }
    }

-    // Warn when a channel block exists but was dropped due to missing credentials
-    const channelCredentials: Array<[string, unknown, boolean]> = [
-      ['telegram', channels.telegram, !!normalized.telegram],
-      ['slack', channels.slack, !!normalized.slack],
-      ['signal', channels.signal, !!normalized.signal],
-      ['discord', channels.discord, !!normalized.discord],
+    const channelCredentials: Array<{ name: string; raw: unknown; included: boolean; required: string }> = [
+      { name: 'telegram', raw: channels.telegram, included: !!normalized.telegram, required: 'token' },
+      { name: 'telegram-mtproto', raw: channels['telegram-mtproto'], included: !!normalized['telegram-mtproto'], required: 'apiId, apiHash, phoneNumber' },
+      { name: 'slack', raw: channels.slack, included: !!normalized.slack, required: 'botToken, appToken' },
+      { name: 'signal', raw: channels.signal, included: !!normalized.signal, required: 'phone' },
+      { name: 'discord', raw: channels.discord, included: !!normalized.discord, required: 'token' },
    ];
-    for (const [name, raw, included] of channelCredentials) {
-      if (raw && (raw as Record<string, unknown>).enabled !== false && !included) {
-        log.warn(`Channel '${name}' is in ${sourcePath} but missing required credentials -- skipping. Check your lettabot.yaml or environment variables.`);
-      }
+
+    const invalidChannels = channelCredentials
+      .filter(({ raw, included }) => !!raw && (raw as Record<string, unknown>).enabled !== false && !included)
+      .map(({ name, required }) => `- ${sourcePath}.${name}: missing required field(s): ${required}`);
+
+    if (invalidChannels.length > 0) {
+      throw new Error(
+        `Invalid channel configuration:\n${invalidChannels.join('\n')}\n` +
+        'Set required credentials in lettabot.yaml or environment variables, or set enabled: false.'
+      );
    }

    return normalized;
@@ -662,8 +689,20 @@ export function normalizeAgents(config: LettaBotConfig): AgentConfig[] {

  // Env var fallback for container deploys without lettabot.yaml (e.g. Railway)
  // Helper: parse comma-separated env var into string array (or undefined)
-  const parseList = (envVar?: string): string[] | undefined =>
-    envVar ? envVar.split(',').map(s => s.trim()).filter(Boolean) : undefined;
+  const parseList = (envVar?: string): string[] | undefined => {
+    if (envVar === undefined) return undefined;
+    const values = envVar.split(',').map(s => s.trim()).filter(Boolean);
+    return values.length > 0 ? values : undefined;
+  };
+
+  const parseOptionalBooleanEnv = (envVar?: string): boolean | undefined => {
+    if (envVar === undefined) return undefined;
+    const normalized = envVar.trim().toLowerCase();
+    if (!normalized) return undefined;
+    if (normalized === 'true') return true;
+    if (normalized === 'false') return false;
+    return undefined;
+  };

  if (!channels.telegram && process.env.TELEGRAM_BOT_TOKEN) {
    channels.telegram = {
@@ -699,7 +738,7 @@ export function normalizeAgents(config: LettaBotConfig): AgentConfig[] {
  if (!channels.whatsapp && process.env.WHATSAPP_ENABLED === 'true') {
    channels.whatsapp = {
      enabled: true,
-      selfChat: process.env.WHATSAPP_SELF_CHAT_MODE !== 'false',
+      selfChat: parseOptionalBooleanEnv(process.env.WHATSAPP_SELF_CHAT_MODE) ?? true,
      dmPolicy: (process.env.WHATSAPP_DM_POLICY as 'pairing' | 'allowlist' | 'open') || 'pairing',
      allowedUsers: parseList(process.env.WHATSAPP_ALLOWED_USERS),
    };
@@ -708,8 +747,8 @@ export function normalizeAgents(config: LettaBotConfig): AgentConfig[] {
    channels.signal = {
      enabled: true,
      phone: process.env.SIGNAL_PHONE_NUMBER,
-      readReceipts: process.env.SIGNAL_READ_RECEIPTS !== 'false',
-      selfChat: process.env.SIGNAL_SELF_CHAT_MODE !== 'false',
+      readReceipts: parseOptionalBooleanEnv(process.env.SIGNAL_READ_RECEIPTS) ?? true,
+      selfChat: parseOptionalBooleanEnv(process.env.SIGNAL_SELF_CHAT_MODE) ?? true,
      dmPolicy: (process.env.SIGNAL_DM_POLICY as 'pairing' | 'allowlist' | 'open') || 'pairing',
      allowedUsers: parseList(process.env.SIGNAL_ALLOWED_USERS),
    };
--- a/src/core/bot.ts
+++ b/src/core/bot.ts
@@ -19,6 +19,7 @@ import { getPendingApprovals, rejectApproval, cancelRuns, cancelConversation, re
 import { getAgentSkillExecutableDirs, isVoiceMemoConfigured } from '../skills/loader.js';
 import { formatMessageEnvelope, formatGroupBatchEnvelope, type SessionContextOptions } from './formatter.js';
 import type { GroupBatcher } from './group-batcher.js';
+import { recoverPendingApprovalsWithSdk } from './session-sdk-compat.js';
 import { redactOutbound } from './redact.js';
 import {
  hasIncompleteActionsTag,
@@ -1562,7 +1563,7 @@ export class LettaBot implements AgentSession {

                // Try SDK-level recovery first (through CLI control protocol)
                if (session) {
-                  const sdkResult = await session.recoverPendingApprovals({ timeoutMs: 10_000 });
+                  const sdkResult = await recoverPendingApprovalsWithSdk(session, 10_000);
                  if (sdkResult.recovered) {
                    log.info('SDK approval recovery succeeded, retrying message...');
                    this.sessionManager.invalidateSession(retryConvKey);
@@ -1886,7 +1887,7 @@ export class LettaBot implements AgentSession {
                  && (lastErrorDetail?.message?.toLowerCase().includes('waiting for approval') || false));
                if (isApprovalIssue && !retried) {
                  log.info('sendToAgent: approval conflict detected -- attempting SDK recovery...');
-                  const sdkResult = await session.recoverPendingApprovals({ timeoutMs: 10_000 });
+                  const sdkResult = await recoverPendingApprovalsWithSdk(session, 10_000);
                  if (sdkResult.recovered) {
                    log.info('sendToAgent: SDK approval recovery succeeded');
                  } else {
--- a/src/core/errors.ts
+++ b/src/core/errors.ts
@@ -112,7 +112,7 @@ export function formatApiErrorForUser(error: { message: string; stopReason: stri
    || apiMsg.includes('409')
    || stopReason === 'requires_approval';
  if (hasApprovalSignal && hasConflictSignal) {
-    return '(A stuck tool approval is blocking this conversation. Run `lettabot reset-conversation` to clear it, or approve/deny the pending request at app.letta.com.)';
+    return '(A stuck tool approval is blocking this conversation. Send /reset to start a new conversation, or approve/deny the pending request at app.letta.com. Note: /reset creates a fresh conversation -- previous context will no longer be active.)';
  }

  // 409 CONFLICT (concurrent request on same conversation)
--- a/src/core/session-manager.ts
+++ b/src/core/session-manager.ts
@@ -16,6 +16,7 @@ import { loadMemoryBlocks } from './memory.js';
 import { SYSTEM_PROMPT } from './system-prompt.js';
 import { createManageTodoTool } from '../tools/todo.js';
 import { syncTodosFromTool } from '../todo/store.js';
+import { recoverPendingApprovalsWithSdk } from './session-sdk-compat.js';
 import { createLogger } from '../logger.js';

 const log = createLogger('Session');
@@ -376,7 +377,7 @@ export class SessionManager {
          log.warn(`Pending approval detected at session startup (key=${key}, conv=${convId}), recovering...`);

          // Try SDK-level recovery first (goes through CLI control protocol)
-          const sdkResult = await session.recoverPendingApprovals({ timeoutMs: 10_000 });
+          const sdkResult = await recoverPendingApprovalsWithSdk(session, 10_000);
          if (sdkResult.recovered) {
            log.info('Proactive SDK approval recovery succeeded');
            return this._createSessionForKey(key, true, generation);
@@ -574,7 +575,7 @@ export class SessionManager {
      // 409 CONFLICT from orphaned approval -- use SDK recovery first, fall back to API
      if (!retried && isApprovalConflictError(error) && this.store.agentId) {
        log.info('CONFLICT detected - attempting SDK approval recovery...');
-        const sdkResult = await session.recoverPendingApprovals({ timeoutMs: 10_000 });
+        const sdkResult = await recoverPendingApprovalsWithSdk(session, 10_000);
        if (sdkResult.recovered) {
          log.info('SDK approval recovery succeeded, retrying...');
          return this.runSession(message, { retried: true, canUseTool, convKey });
--- a/src/core/session-sdk-compat.ts
+++ b/src/core/session-sdk-compat.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,39 @@
+import type { Session } from '@letta-ai/letta-code-sdk';
+
+type ApprovalRecoveryResult = {
+  recovered: boolean;
+  detail?: string;
+};
+
+type SessionWithApprovalRecovery = Session & {
+  recoverPendingApprovals?: (options?: { timeoutMs?: number }) => Promise<ApprovalRecoveryResult>;
+};
+
+/**
+ * SDK compatibility shim for approval recovery.
+ *
+ * Some SDK versions expose `recoverPendingApprovals` at runtime before the
+ * TypeScript Session type includes it. This helper keeps compile-time safety
+ * while preserving the existing runtime fallback behavior.
+ */
+export async function recoverPendingApprovalsWithSdk(
+  session: Session,
+  timeoutMs = 10_000,
+): Promise<ApprovalRecoveryResult> {
+  const recover = (session as SessionWithApprovalRecovery).recoverPendingApprovals;
+  if (typeof recover !== 'function') {
+    return {
+      recovered: false,
+      detail: 'Session.recoverPendingApprovals is unavailable in this SDK version',
+    };
+  }
+
+  try {
+    return await recover.call(session, { timeoutMs });
+  } catch (error) {
+    return {
+      recovered: false,
+      detail: error instanceof Error ? error.message : String(error),
+    };
+  }
+}
--- a/src/onboard.ts
+++ b/src/onboard.ts
@@ -23,6 +23,15 @@ function parseOptionalCsvList(value?: string): string[] | undefined {
  return items.length > 0 ? items : undefined;
 }

+function parseOptionalBoolean(value?: string): boolean | undefined {
+  if (value === undefined) return undefined;
+  const normalized = value.trim().toLowerCase();
+  if (!normalized) return undefined;
+  if (normalized === 'true') return true;
+  if (normalized === 'false') return false;
+  return undefined;
+}
+
 function readConfigFromEnv(existingConfig: any): any {
  return {
    baseUrl: process.env.LETTA_BASE_URL || existingConfig.server?.baseUrl || 'https://api.letta.com',
@@ -34,7 +43,8 @@ function readConfigFromEnv(existingConfig: any): any {
      enabled: !!process.env.TELEGRAM_BOT_TOKEN,
      botToken: process.env.TELEGRAM_BOT_TOKEN || existingConfig.channels?.telegram?.token,
      dmPolicy: process.env.TELEGRAM_DM_POLICY || existingConfig.channels?.telegram?.dmPolicy || 'pairing',
-      allowedUsers: process.env.TELEGRAM_ALLOWED_USERS?.split(',').map(s => s.trim()) || existingConfig.channels?.telegram?.allowedUsers,
+      allowedUsers: parseOptionalCsvList(process.env.TELEGRAM_ALLOWED_USERS)
+        ?? existingConfig.channels?.telegram?.allowedUsers,
      groupDebounceSec: parseOptionalInt(process.env.TELEGRAM_GROUP_DEBOUNCE_SEC)
        ?? existingConfig.channels?.telegram?.groupDebounceSec,
      groupPollIntervalMin: parseOptionalInt(process.env.TELEGRAM_GROUP_POLL_INTERVAL_MIN)
@@ -50,7 +60,8 @@ function readConfigFromEnv(existingConfig: any): any {
      botToken: process.env.SLACK_BOT_TOKEN || existingConfig.channels?.slack?.botToken,
      appToken: process.env.SLACK_APP_TOKEN || existingConfig.channels?.slack?.appToken,
      dmPolicy: process.env.SLACK_DM_POLICY || existingConfig.channels?.slack?.dmPolicy || 'pairing',
-      allowedUsers: process.env.SLACK_ALLOWED_USERS?.split(',').map(s => s.trim()) || existingConfig.channels?.slack?.allowedUsers,
+      allowedUsers: parseOptionalCsvList(process.env.SLACK_ALLOWED_USERS)
+        ?? existingConfig.channels?.slack?.allowedUsers,
      groupDebounceSec: parseOptionalInt(process.env.SLACK_GROUP_DEBOUNCE_SEC)
        ?? existingConfig.channels?.slack?.groupDebounceSec,
      groupPollIntervalMin: parseOptionalInt(process.env.SLACK_GROUP_POLL_INTERVAL_MIN)
@@ -65,7 +76,8 @@ function readConfigFromEnv(existingConfig: any): any {
      enabled: !!process.env.DISCORD_BOT_TOKEN,
      botToken: process.env.DISCORD_BOT_TOKEN || existingConfig.channels?.discord?.token,
      dmPolicy: process.env.DISCORD_DM_POLICY || existingConfig.channels?.discord?.dmPolicy || 'pairing',
-      allowedUsers: process.env.DISCORD_ALLOWED_USERS?.split(',').map(s => s.trim()) || existingConfig.channels?.discord?.allowedUsers,
+      allowedUsers: parseOptionalCsvList(process.env.DISCORD_ALLOWED_USERS)
+        ?? existingConfig.channels?.discord?.allowedUsers,
      groupDebounceSec: parseOptionalInt(process.env.DISCORD_GROUP_DEBOUNCE_SEC)
        ?? existingConfig.channels?.discord?.groupDebounceSec,
      groupPollIntervalMin: parseOptionalInt(process.env.DISCORD_GROUP_POLL_INTERVAL_MIN)
@@ -77,10 +89,13 @@ function readConfigFromEnv(existingConfig: any): any {
    },
    
    whatsapp: {
-      enabled: process.env.WHATSAPP_ENABLED === 'true' || !!existingConfig.channels?.whatsapp?.enabled,
-      selfChat: process.env.WHATSAPP_SELF_CHAT_MODE !== 'false' && (existingConfig.channels?.whatsapp?.selfChat !== false),
+      enabled: parseOptionalBoolean(process.env.WHATSAPP_ENABLED)
+        ?? !!existingConfig.channels?.whatsapp?.enabled,
+      selfChat: parseOptionalBoolean(process.env.WHATSAPP_SELF_CHAT_MODE)
+        ?? (existingConfig.channels?.whatsapp?.selfChat ?? true),
      dmPolicy: process.env.WHATSAPP_DM_POLICY || existingConfig.channels?.whatsapp?.dmPolicy || 'pairing',
-      allowedUsers: process.env.WHATSAPP_ALLOWED_USERS?.split(',').map(s => s.trim()) || existingConfig.channels?.whatsapp?.allowedUsers,
+      allowedUsers: parseOptionalCsvList(process.env.WHATSAPP_ALLOWED_USERS)
+        ?? existingConfig.channels?.whatsapp?.allowedUsers,
      groupDebounceSec: parseOptionalInt(process.env.WHATSAPP_GROUP_DEBOUNCE_SEC)
        ?? existingConfig.channels?.whatsapp?.groupDebounceSec,
      groupPollIntervalMin: parseOptionalInt(process.env.WHATSAPP_GROUP_POLL_INTERVAL_MIN)
@@ -94,9 +109,11 @@ function readConfigFromEnv(existingConfig: any): any {
    signal: {
      enabled: !!process.env.SIGNAL_PHONE_NUMBER,
      phoneNumber: process.env.SIGNAL_PHONE_NUMBER || existingConfig.channels?.signal?.phoneNumber,
-      selfChat: process.env.SIGNAL_SELF_CHAT_MODE !== 'false' && (existingConfig.channels?.signal?.selfChat !== false),
+      selfChat: parseOptionalBoolean(process.env.SIGNAL_SELF_CHAT_MODE)
+        ?? (existingConfig.channels?.signal?.selfChat ?? true),
      dmPolicy: process.env.SIGNAL_DM_POLICY || existingConfig.channels?.signal?.dmPolicy || 'pairing',
-      allowedUsers: process.env.SIGNAL_ALLOWED_USERS?.split(',').map(s => s.trim()) || existingConfig.channels?.signal?.allowedUsers,
+      allowedUsers: parseOptionalCsvList(process.env.SIGNAL_ALLOWED_USERS)
+        ?? existingConfig.channels?.signal?.allowedUsers,
      groupDebounceSec: parseOptionalInt(process.env.SIGNAL_GROUP_DEBOUNCE_SEC)
        ?? existingConfig.channels?.signal?.groupDebounceSec,
      groupPollIntervalMin: parseOptionalInt(process.env.SIGNAL_GROUP_POLL_INTERVAL_MIN)
--- a/src/skills/loader.test.ts
+++ b/src/skills/loader.test.ts
@@ -63,8 +63,9 @@ describe('skills loader', () => {
  });

  describe('getAgentSkillsDir', () => {
-    it('uses Railway volume path for agent-scoped skills when mounted', async () => {
+    it('uses Railway volume for agent-scoped skills when mounted', async () => {
      process.env.RAILWAY_VOLUME_MOUNT_PATH = '/railway-volume';
+      delete process.env.WORKING_DIR;

      const mod = await importFreshLoader();
      const dir = mod.getAgentSkillsDir('agent-railway');
--- a/src/utils/paths.test.ts
+++ b/src/utils/paths.test.ts
@@ -63,6 +63,14 @@ describe('cron path resolution', () => {
    expect(getCronDataDir()).toBe('/custom/work');
  });

+  it('normalizes WORKING_DIR for cron data paths', () => {
+    process.env.WORKING_DIR = '~/cron-work';
+    expect(getCronDataDir()).toBe(resolve(homedir(), 'cron-work'));
+
+    process.env.WORKING_DIR = 'relative/cron-work';
+    expect(getCronDataDir()).toBe(resolve('relative/cron-work'));
+  });
+
  it('falls back to /tmp/lettabot when no overrides are set', () => {
    expect(getCronDataDir()).toBe('/tmp/lettabot');
    expect(getCronStorePath()).toBe('/tmp/lettabot/cron-jobs.json');
--- a/src/utils/paths.ts
+++ b/src/utils/paths.ts
@@ -91,7 +91,7 @@ export function getCronDataDir(): string {
  }

  if (process.env.WORKING_DIR) {
-    return process.env.WORKING_DIR;
+    return resolveWorkingDirPath(process.env.WORKING_DIR);
  }

  return '/tmp/lettabot';