feat(cli,broker): 1.34.14 + 1.34.15 — env-var fallback, peer list scope, kick refuses control-plane

Three follow-ups from the 1.34.x multi-session correctness train,
all backwards-compatible.

1.34.14 — stale CLAUDEMESH_CONFIG_DIR falls back. The launch flow
exposes CLAUDEMESH_CONFIG_DIR=<tmpdir> to its spawned claude; if a
later claudemesh invocation inherited that env (Bash tool inside
Claude Code, tmux update-environment, exported var), the inherited
path pointed at a tmpdir that no longer existed and readConfig()
silently returned empty. paths.ts now memoizes resolution: env unset
→ default; env points at a real dir → trust it; env set but dir gone
→ TTY-only stderr warning with shell-specific unset hint, fall back
to ~/.claudemesh.

1.34.15 — peer list --mesh actually scopes. peers.ts and launch.ts
were calling tryListPeersViaDaemon() with no argument; the daemon's
?mesh= filter (server-side, since 1.26.0) was already correct, the
CLI just wasn't passing the slug. Forwarding fixed in both sites;
send.ts cross-mesh hex-prefix resolution intentionally untouched.

1.34.15 — kick refuses no-op kicks on control-plane. Pre-1.34.15
kicking a daemon's member-WS just closed the socket and triggered
auto-reconnect — a no-op with a misleading "session ended" message.
Broker now skips peers where peerRole === "control-plane" and
surfaces them in a new additive ack field skipped_control_plane;
the CLI reads it and prints a clearer hint pointing at ban / daemon
down. Soft disconnect verb keeps old behavior. PeerConn gains a
peerRole slot populated at both connections.set sites.

Tests: 4 new for paths-stale-env, 5 for kick-control-plane-skip.
CLI 87/87 green; broker 55/55 unit green (integration tests
pre-existing infra failure on this machine).

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.7 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>

apps/cli/CHANGELOG.md

@@ -1,5 +1,110 @@
 # Changelog
 
+## 1.34.15 (2026-05-04) — `peer list --mesh` actually scopes + `kick` refuses control-plane
+
+Two follow-ups from the 1.34.x train, both backwards-compatible.
+
+### `peer list --mesh <slug>` no longer aggregates across meshes
+
+`apps/cli/src/commands/peers.ts:140` was calling
+`tryListPeersViaDaemon()` with no argument, so a multi-mesh daemon
+returned peers from EVERY attached mesh and the renderer printed
+"peers on flexicar" with cross-mesh rows mixed in. The daemon's
+`/v1/peers?mesh=<slug>` filter (server-side, since 1.26.0) was
+already correctly scoping when the slug was passed; the CLI just
+wasn't passing it. Fixed.
+
+`apps/cli/src/commands/launch.ts:407` (the `printBrokerWelcome` peer
+count in the launch banner) had the same bug. The "N peers online"
+line in the welcome now shows the count for the launched mesh only.
+
+`apps/cli/src/commands/send.ts` cross-mesh hex-prefix resolution is
+intentionally cross-mesh (the user is targeting by hex without
+specifying a mesh) and was deliberately left as-is.
+
+### `claudemesh kick` refuses no-op kicks on control-plane connections
+
+Pre-1.34.15, kicking a daemon's member-WS or a dashboard connection
+just closed the socket — the daemon's WS-lifecycle reconnect loop
+brought it back within seconds, the kicker's CLI rendered "Their
+Claude Code session ended" (which was misleading), and the user-
+visible state was unchanged. The verb was effectively a no-op, but
+the user had to learn that the hard way.
+
+The broker's kick handler (`apps/broker/src/index.ts:4628+`) now
+skips peers where `peerRole === "control-plane"` and surfaces the
+skipped peers in a new additive ack field `skipped_control_plane`.
+The soft `disconnect` verb keeps the old behavior — useful when
+intentionally nudging a control-plane peer to re-authenticate.
+
+The CLI (`apps/cli/src/commands/kick.ts`) reads the new field and
+prints a clearer message: refused peers are listed, with the hint
+that `claudemesh ban <peer>` is the right tool to remove a member,
+or `claudemesh daemon down` to take a daemon offline locally.
+
+`apps/broker/src/index.ts` adds `peerRole` to the in-memory
+`PeerConn` shape, populated from both connection paths
+(member-keyed `hello` → `"control-plane"`, per-launch
+`session_hello` → `"session"`). The DB-side role taxonomy is
+unchanged.
+
+### Back-compat
+
+- Older CLI clients ignore the new `skipped_control_plane` ack
+  field; their kick continues to print "Kicked 0 peer(s)" against
+  a control-plane target as before.
+- Older brokers don't emit the field at all; newer CLI handles
+  the absence (the new branch is only reached when the field is
+  present and non-empty).
+- The new `peerRole` slot on `PeerConn` is filled at every
+  `connections.set` callsite, so older code paths never read
+  `undefined`.
+
+### Tests
+
+- `apps/broker/tests/kick-control-plane-skip.test.ts` — 5 cases
+  covering the kick/disconnect × control-plane/session/service
+  truth table.
+
+## 1.34.14 (2026-05-04) — stale `CLAUDEMESH_CONFIG_DIR` falls back
+
+`claudemesh launch` exports `CLAUDEMESH_CONFIG_DIR=<tmpdir>` to its
+spawned `claude` so the per-session mesh selection is isolated from
+`~/.claudemesh/config.json`. The tmpdir is `rmSync`'d on launch exit
+via the `process.on('exit', cleanup)` handler.
+
+Footgun: if a later `claudemesh` invocation INHERITED that env — a
+Bash tool call inside Claude Code, a tmux pane that captured the env
+via `update-environment`, an exported var the user forgot to clear —
+the inherited path pointed at a tmpdir that no longer existed.
+Pre-1.34.14 we silently used the dead path, `readConfig()` came back
+empty, and the user saw "No meshes joined" from an otherwise-working
+install. Fish users hit it harder because fish has no `unset` —
+they had to discover `set -e CLAUDEMESH_CONFIG_DIR`.
+
+`apps/cli/src/constants/paths.ts` now resolves `CONFIG_DIR` once via
+a memoized `resolveConfigDir()`:
+
+  1. No env var → `~/.claudemesh` (default, unchanged).
+  2. Env points at a dir containing `config.json` → trust it. The
+     legitimate per-session-launch case is byte-identical to before.
+  3. Env set but stale (dir gone) → warn once on stderr (TTY-only —
+     CI / MCP boot / piped scripts stay quiet) with a shell-specific
+     unset hint, then fall back to `~/.claudemesh`.
+
+The check is on the directory's existence, not on `config.json`,
+because a fresh-launch tmpdir legitimately has no `config.json` until
+the first write. The stale signature we catch is the outer launch's
+`rmSync(tmpDir, {recursive: true})` cleanup, which removes the
+directory entirely.
+
+The "no meshes" check from the original triage was deliberately NOT
+adopted: a launched session that legitimately joins one mesh would
+hit it.
+
+No back-compat surface affected. No other files changed. `_resetPathsForTest()`
+exported for unit tests.
+
 ## 1.34.13 (2026-05-04) — MCP forwards session token on /v1/events
 
 The 1.34.10 SSE demux + 1.34.11 inbox per-recipient column were both

apps/cli/package.json

@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 {
   "name": "claudemesh-cli",
-  "version": "1.34.13",
+  "version": "1.34.15",
   "description": "Peer mesh for Claude Code sessions — CLI + MCP server.",
   "keywords": [
     "claude-code",

apps/cli/src/commands/kick.ts

@@ -76,12 +76,32 @@ export async function runKick(
   if ("error" in built) { render.err(String(built.error)); return EXIT.INVALID_ARGS; }
 
   return await withMesh({ meshSlug }, async (client) => {
-    const result = await client.sendAndWait(built as Record<string, unknown>) as { affected?: string[]; kicked?: string[] };
+    const result = await client.sendAndWait(built as Record<string, unknown>) as {
+      affected?: string[];
+      kicked?: string[];
+      // 1.34.15: broker refuses to kick control-plane WSes (they'd
+      // just auto-reconnect). Older brokers don't emit this field.
+      skipped_control_plane?: string[];
+    };
     const peers = result?.affected ?? result?.kicked ?? [];
-    if (peers.length === 0) render.info("No peers matched.");
-    else {
+    const skipped = result?.skipped_control_plane ?? [];
+
+    if (peers.length === 0 && skipped.length === 0) {
+      render.info("No peers matched.");
+    } else if (peers.length === 0 && skipped.length > 0) {
+      render.warn(
+        `${skipped.length} match(es) refused: ${skipped.join(", ")} — control-plane connections (daemon / dashboard) auto-reconnect, so kick is a no-op.`,
+        "To take a daemon offline locally, run `claudemesh daemon down` on that machine. To remove a member from the mesh, use `claudemesh ban <peer>`.",
+      );
+    } else {
       render.ok(`Kicked ${peers.length} peer(s): ${peers.join(", ")}`);
       render.hint("Their Claude Code session ended. They can rejoin anytime by running `claudemesh`.");
+      if (skipped.length > 0) {
+        render.warn(
+          `(also refused ${skipped.length} control-plane connection(s): ${skipped.join(", ")})`,
+          "Daemon / dashboard connections auto-reconnect; kick is a no-op against them. Use `claudemesh ban <peer>` to remove a member entirely.",
+        );
+      }
     }
     return EXIT.SUCCESS;
   });

apps/cli/src/commands/launch.ts

@@ -400,11 +400,13 @@ async function printBrokerWelcome(meshSlug: string): Promise<void> {
     }
   } catch { /* daemon unreachable — not fatal */ }
 
-  // Peer count (best-effort).
+  // Peer count (best-effort). 1.34.15: scope to the launched mesh so
+  // multi-mesh daemons don't inflate the welcome banner with peers
+  // from other meshes the user didn't just attach to.
   let peerCount = -1;
   try {
     const { tryListPeersViaDaemon } = await import("~/services/bridge/daemon-route.js");
-    const peers = (await tryListPeersViaDaemon()) ?? [];
+    const peers = (await tryListPeersViaDaemon(meshSlug)) ?? [];
     peerCount = peers.filter((p) =>
       (p as { channel?: string }).channel !== "claudemesh-daemon",
     ).length;

apps/cli/src/commands/peers.ts

@@ -135,9 +135,17 @@ async function listPeersForMesh(slug: string): Promise<PeerRecord[]> {
   // lifecycle helper inside tryListPeersViaDaemon auto-spawns the
   // daemon if it's down and probes it for liveness — no separate bridge
   // tier is needed any more (1.28.0).
+  //
+  // 1.34.15: forward `slug` to the daemon as `?mesh=<slug>` so the
+  // server-side aggregator narrows to the requested mesh. Pre-1.34.15
+  // we called this with no argument, so a multi-mesh daemon returned
+  // peers from every attached mesh and the renderer printed "peers on
+  // flexicar" with cross-mesh rows mixed in. The daemon's
+  // `meshFromCtx` already does the right scoping when the slug is
+  // passed; the CLI just wasn't passing it.
   try {
     const { tryListPeersViaDaemon } = await import("~/services/bridge/daemon-route.js");
-    const dr = await tryListPeersViaDaemon();
+    const dr = await tryListPeersViaDaemon(slug);
     if (dr !== null) {
       return dr.map((p) => annotateSelf(p as PeerRecord, selfMemberPubkey, selfSessionPubkey));
     }

apps/cli/src/constants/paths.ts

@@ -1,10 +1,82 @@
+import { existsSync } from "node:fs";
 import { homedir } from "node:os";
 import { join } from "node:path";
 
 const home = homedir();
+const DEFAULT_CONFIG_DIR = join(home, ".claudemesh");
+
+/**
+ * Resolve `CONFIG_DIR` once, with stale-env detection.
+ *
+ * `claudemesh launch` exposes `CLAUDEMESH_CONFIG_DIR=<tmpdir>` to its
+ * spawned `claude` so the per-session mesh selection is isolated from
+ * `~/.claudemesh/config.json`. The tmpdir is rmSync'd on launch exit.
+ *
+ * Footgun: if a `claudemesh` invocation INHERITS that env from an
+ * already-launched (or previously-launched) session — e.g. a Bash tool
+ * call inside Claude Code, or a tmux pane that captured the env via
+ * `update-environment` — the inherited path may point at a tmpdir that
+ * no longer exists. Pre-1.34.14 we silently used the dead path,
+ * `readConfig()` came back empty, and the user saw "No meshes joined"
+ * from an otherwise-working install.
+ *
+ * Resolution rules:
+ *   1. No env var       → `~/.claudemesh` (default).
+ *   2. Env points at a dir containing `config.json` → trust it
+ *      (the legitimate per-session-launch case).
+ *   3. Env set but stale (dir missing or no `config.json`) → warn
+ *      once on stderr (TTY-only) and fall back to `~/.claudemesh`.
+ *
+ * Memoized: resolves once on first access. Mid-process env mutations
+ * are intentionally ignored — paths must stay stable across one CLI
+ * invocation.
+ */
+let _resolvedConfigDir: string | null = null;
+let _warnedStaleEnv = false;
+
+function resolveConfigDir(): string {
+  if (_resolvedConfigDir !== null) return _resolvedConfigDir;
+  const envDir = process.env.CLAUDEMESH_CONFIG_DIR;
+  if (!envDir) {
+    _resolvedConfigDir = DEFAULT_CONFIG_DIR;
+    return DEFAULT_CONFIG_DIR;
+  }
+  // Trust the env when it resolves to a real directory. We check
+  // the DIR (not `config.json`) because the legitimate "fresh launch
+  // before any write" case has the dir but no config.json yet.
+  // The stale signature we want to catch is `rmSync(tmpDir,
+  // {recursive: true})` from the outer launch's cleanup — that
+  // removes the directory entirely, so a missing dir is the
+  // unambiguous "stale" signal.
+  if (existsSync(envDir)) {
+    _resolvedConfigDir = envDir;
+    return envDir;
+  }
+  // Stale: env set but the dir is gone. Most likely the outer
+  // launch's cleanup ran and we inherited its (now-dead) tmpdir
+  // path. Fall back to default and warn the user once on stderr —
+  // only when attached to a TTY, so non-interactive callers (CI,
+  // MCP boot, scripts piping stdout) stay quiet.
+  if (!_warnedStaleEnv && process.stderr.isTTY) {
+    _warnedStaleEnv = true;
+    const unsetHint =
+      process.env.SHELL?.endsWith("fish")
+        ? "set -e CLAUDEMESH_CONFIG_DIR CLAUDEMESH_IPC_TOKEN_FILE"
+        : "unset CLAUDEMESH_CONFIG_DIR CLAUDEMESH_IPC_TOKEN_FILE";
+    process.stderr.write(
+      `claudemesh: ignoring stale CLAUDEMESH_CONFIG_DIR=${envDir} (no config.json there); using ${DEFAULT_CONFIG_DIR}.\n`
+        + `  Hint: this is usually a leftover env from a previous \`claudemesh launch\`. Clean it with:\n`
+        + `    ${unsetHint}\n`,
+    );
+  }
+  _resolvedConfigDir = DEFAULT_CONFIG_DIR;
+  return DEFAULT_CONFIG_DIR;
+}
 
 export const PATHS = {
-  CONFIG_DIR: process.env.CLAUDEMESH_CONFIG_DIR || join(home, ".claudemesh"),
+  get CONFIG_DIR() {
+    return resolveConfigDir();
+  },
   get CONFIG_FILE() {
     return join(this.CONFIG_DIR, "config.json");
   },
@@ -20,3 +92,12 @@ export const PATHS = {
   CLAUDE_JSON: join(home, ".claude.json"),
   CLAUDE_SETTINGS: join(home, ".claude", "settings.json"),
 } as const;
+
+/**
+ * Test-only: reset the memoized resolution. Not exported from the
+ * package barrel; reach in via the relative path from a test file.
+ */
+export function _resetPathsForTest(): void {
+  _resolvedConfigDir = null;
+  _warnedStaleEnv = false;
+}

apps/cli/tests/unit/paths-stale-env.test.ts

@@ -0,0 +1,57 @@
+import { describe, it, expect, beforeEach, afterEach, vi } from "vitest";
+import { mkdirSync, rmSync, existsSync } from "node:fs";
+import { join } from "node:path";
+import { tmpdir, homedir } from "node:os";
+
+/** Each test imports a fresh copy of paths.ts via dynamic import +
+ *  `_resetPathsForTest()` so memoization doesn't leak across cases. */
+
+const TEST_DIR = join(tmpdir(), "claudemesh-paths-test-" + Date.now());
+
+describe("paths CONFIG_DIR resolution", () => {
+  beforeEach(() => {
+    delete process.env.CLAUDEMESH_CONFIG_DIR;
+    if (existsSync(TEST_DIR)) rmSync(TEST_DIR, { recursive: true, force: true });
+  });
+  afterEach(() => {
+    delete process.env.CLAUDEMESH_CONFIG_DIR;
+    if (existsSync(TEST_DIR)) rmSync(TEST_DIR, { recursive: true, force: true });
+  });
+
+  it("falls back to ~/.claudemesh when env var is unset", async () => {
+    const mod = await import("~/constants/paths.js");
+    mod._resetPathsForTest();
+    expect(mod.PATHS.CONFIG_DIR).toBe(join(homedir(), ".claudemesh"));
+  });
+
+  it("honors CLAUDEMESH_CONFIG_DIR when the dir exists, even without config.json", async () => {
+    mkdirSync(TEST_DIR, { recursive: true });
+    process.env.CLAUDEMESH_CONFIG_DIR = TEST_DIR;
+    const mod = await import("~/constants/paths.js");
+    mod._resetPathsForTest();
+    expect(mod.PATHS.CONFIG_DIR).toBe(TEST_DIR);
+  });
+
+  it("falls back to default when env points at a missing dir (stale-tmpdir case)", async () => {
+    process.env.CLAUDEMESH_CONFIG_DIR = "/var/folders/_nonexistent_claudemesh_dir_xyz123";
+    const mod = await import("~/constants/paths.js");
+    mod._resetPathsForTest();
+    // Suppress the stderr warning to keep test output clean
+    const stderr = vi.spyOn(process.stderr, "write").mockImplementation(() => true);
+    try {
+      expect(mod.PATHS.CONFIG_DIR).toBe(join(homedir(), ".claudemesh"));
+    } finally {
+      stderr.mockRestore();
+    }
+  });
+
+  it("memoizes — second access returns the same path even if env changes mid-process", async () => {
+    mkdirSync(TEST_DIR, { recursive: true });
+    process.env.CLAUDEMESH_CONFIG_DIR = TEST_DIR;
+    const mod = await import("~/constants/paths.js");
+    mod._resetPathsForTest();
+    const first = mod.PATHS.CONFIG_DIR;
+    process.env.CLAUDEMESH_CONFIG_DIR = "/something/else";
+    expect(mod.PATHS.CONFIG_DIR).toBe(first);
+  });
+});