CCB v6(Linux) - Infinite Parallel Agents Edition

Native multi-agent runtime for terminal split panes Claude · Codex · Gemini · OpenCode · Droid Visible concurrency, native communication, project-scoped runtime

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Introduction: CCB v6 is the infinite parallel agents edition. It turns split-pane collaboration into a native multi-agent runtime where agents can run side by side, hold independent roles and personalities, and delegate to each other through a stable built-in communication layer.

Why Parallel Agents Matter

Parallel agents are not just "more panes on screen". In CCB, each agent can own a fully independent role, task stream, skill library, and personality.

CCB provides the runtime foundation for stable agent-to-agent communication and effectively unbounded delegation. It supports arbitrary agent naming and window arrangement, per-agent control, broadcast dispatch, and point-to-point communication.

🚀 User Commands

• ccb start, restore, and attach CCB in the project directory from the terminal
• ccb -s safe mode
• ccb -n rebuild the project .ccb state
• ccb kill close CCB
• ccb kill -f deep-clean exit

💬 Communication Usage

Inside a provider / agent runtime:

• /ask all "sync on the latest repo state" broadcasts one message to all live agents.
• /ask reviewer "review the new parser change" sends work to the named [reviewer] agent.

Typical pattern:

• use ask all for one-shot broadcast or global sync
• use ask agent_name for targeted delegation
• use implicit skill-based calls; agents invoke ask themselves, and skills are currently auto-installed into Codex, Claude, and other providers
• if you only occasionally need to inspect replies manually, pend and watch are secondary tools

🛠 Config Control

ccb is controlled by .ccb/ccb.config. That file defines agent names, pane layout, and whether an agent runs inplace or in a separate git worktree.

Quick rules:

• agent_name:provider defines one agent. agent_name is also the pane label and logical runtime name.
• cmd adds one shell pane.
• ; splits panes horizontally from left to right.
• , splits panes vertically from top to bottom.
• Default workspace mode is inplace. If one agent needs an isolated git worktree to avoid conflicts, write agent_name:provider(worktree).

Example:

cmd; writer:codex, reviewer:claude; qa:gemini(worktree)

This layout means:

• left pane: cmd
• right side: a vertical stack
• top-right pane: writer
• bottom-right side: a horizontal split between reviewer and qa
• qa runs in an isolated git worktree; writer and reviewer run inplace in the main project

Historical note: older release notes below may mention askd, legacy flags, or removed commands. Those references are kept only as changelog history and do not redefine the current CLI surface.

• Codex Plugin Projection Fixed: managed Codex homes now project plugin-bundle authority under .tmp/plugins/ and .tmp/plugins.sha, so isolated agents inherit the marketplace catalog and installed plugin assets they actually need instead of starting with plugin-enabled config but missing bundles
• Plugin Refresh Semantics Tightened: startup now refreshes managed plugin projections as one authority unit, removes stale managed plugin residue when the source projection disappears, and keeps a cheap no-recopy fast path when the source plugin freshness marker is unchanged
• Cmd Shell / Session Env Hardening: the cmd pane now directly execs the resolved user shell and preserves ordinary user-session transport variables such as DISPLAY, WAYLAND_DISPLAY, DBUS_SESSION_BUS_ADDRESS, XAUTHORITY, and SSH_AUTH_SOCK, improving fish/zsh and GUI-command compatibility

• Codex Explicit Route Authority: managed Codex homes now materialize agent-local config.toml and auth.json as the sole authority for explicit key / url routes, so agent-scoped API overrides replace inherited global provider routes instead of drifting back to system config
• Codex Session Namespace Rotation: managed Codex startup now fingerprints explicit route authority, stamps reusable session bindings with that authority, and rotates stale sessions/ namespaces before launch when the bound route no longer matches
• Foreground Attach UX Hardening: interactive ccb startup now seeds tmux namespace creation from the real terminal viewport and issues a best-effort client refresh after attach so first paint matches the current terminal size without manual redraw

• Managed Claude Auth Preservation: managed Claude homes now preserve agent-local login auth when the global Claude home has been logged out, so a project-scoped re-login survives restart instead of re-entering a browser-link loop
• Auth Projection Semantics Tightened: Claude startup still refreshes source auth when it exists, but no longer treats missing source auth as an instruction to blank managed auth; disabled auth inheritance still clears stale copied auth state
• Startup Regression Coverage Expanded: targeted regressions now lock this behavior at the projection layer, provider workspace preparation, and Claude launcher startup path

• macOS Release Path: shared release artifact naming and updater resolution now cover the macOS universal bundle alongside Linux/WSL release assets
• Source Dev Install Mode: installs from a git checkout now stay linked to the live source tree, skip startup auto-update prompts, and can switch to a managed release install through ccb update
• Agent API / Model Shortcuts: .ccb/ccb.config now accepts flat per-agent key, url, and model shortcuts so common provider overrides stay concise
• Preview Packaging Hardening: preview release exports now exclude generated output paths inside the repo, fixing recursive self-copy failures such as dist-macos-smoke

• Cached Startup Prompt: interactive foreground ccb start now reads install-scoped cached release metadata and only prompts when a newer stable release is already known locally
• Background Refresh: missing or stale update cache now refreshes in the background with short network budgets instead of delaying the project startup path
• Upgrade / Defer / Silence: startup prompt supports upgrade now, defer for the current version, or silence that exact version
• Startup Boundary Preserved: release-update checks remain advisory and outside the project lifecycle startup transaction

• Cold Start Namespace Fix: project tmux namespace startup now treats no server running on <project socket> as an absent namespace that must be created, instead of failing startup as a generic tmux inspect error
• Release Regression Coverage: targeted namespace backend/state regression tests now lock this cold-start path so ccb -> ping -> kill blackbox lifecycle stays covered
• Contract Clarification: the startup supervision contract now explicitly defines project-socket no server running as a recreate signal rather than a fatal inspect failure

• Gemini Login Inheritance: managed Gemini homes now project login-auth selection and oauth_creds.json for oauth-personal reuse, and remove stale copied credentials when auth inheritance is disabled
• Shared Tmux Ready Budget: project-owned respawn-pane now uses the same tmux ready-retry budget as namespace create/reflow, reducing transient no server running failures during startup and supervision
• Background Startup Compatibility: background lifecycle startup keeps supervision compatibility while separating readiness-probe timeouts from operational RPC budgets
• Diagnostics Secret Redaction: diagnostic bundles now exclude Gemini oauth_creds.json alongside other provider credential artifacts

• WSL Compatibility Fixed: project runtime now avoids binding Unix sockets onto unsupported WSL mounted-drive filesystems and hardens installer staging plus tmux namespace readiness
• macOS Lifecycle Hardening: startup, restore, and project identity paths were tightened so macOS follows the same lifecycle authority model as Linux without intermittent startup drift
• Respawn Retry Boundary: transient tmux respawn fork, server-exit, and readiness failures are retried inside runtime supervision instead of leaking outward as false lifecycle