feat(mini-apps): live data refresh + install reliability

- watch ~/.rowboat/apps: data.json changes push into open apps (shim
  re-fetches, onData fires); installs/updates re-list the gallery live and
  reload an open app once the write settles
- atomic installs (temp->rename) so an app opened mid-install never reads a
  partial file
- serve app assets by direct disk read instead of net.fetch(file://) —
  Chromium's network service could stall and blank every open app at once

apps/x/apps/main/src/main.ts

@@ -39,7 +39,7 @@ import { identifyIfSignedIn } from "@x/core/dist/analytics/identify.js";
 import { initConfigs } from "@x/core/dist/config/initConfigs.js";
 import { getAgentSlackCliStatus } from "@x/core/dist/slack/agent-slack-exec.js";
 import { resolveWorkspacePath } from "@x/core/dist/workspace/workspace.js";
-import { resolveMiniAppAsset, MINIAPP_BRIDGE_JS } from "./mini-apps-handler.js";
+import { resolveMiniAppAsset, serveMiniAppAsset, initMiniAppsWatcher, MINIAPP_BRIDGE_JS } from "./mini-apps-handler.js";
 import started from "electron-squirrel-startup";
 import { execFileSync } from "node:child_process";
 import { init as initChromeSync } from "@x/core/dist/knowledge/chrome-extension/server/server.js";
@@ -181,7 +181,9 @@ function registerAppProtocol() {
         }
         const absPath = resolveMiniAppAsset(id, segments.join("/"));
         if (!absPath) return new Response("Forbidden", { status: 403 });
-        return net.fetch(pathToFileURL(absPath).toString());
+        // Direct disk read — bypasses Chromium's network service, which can
+        // stall under load and blank every open app at once.
+        return serveMiniAppAsset(absPath);
       } catch {
         return new Response("Forbidden", { status: 403 });
       }
@@ -426,6 +428,9 @@ app.whenReady().then(async () => {
   // start bg-task scheduler (cron / window)
   initBackgroundTaskScheduler();
 
+  // watch ~/.rowboat/apps for data.json changes → live-refresh open Mini Apps
+  initMiniAppsWatcher();
+
   // register event consumers and start the shared event processor
   // (consumes $WorkDir/events/pending/, routes events to all consumers
   // concurrently for Pass-1, then fires each consumer's candidates in parallel)

apps/x/apps/main/src/mini-apps-handler.ts

@@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
 import fs from 'fs';
 import path from 'path';
+import { BrowserWindow } from 'electron';
 import { WorkDir } from '@x/core/dist/config/config.js';
 import { MiniAppManifest } from '@x/shared/dist/mini-app.js';
 import type { z } from 'zod';
@@ -61,6 +62,8 @@ export const MINIAPP_BRIDGE_JS = `
       stateCbs.forEach(function (cb) { try { cb(state); } catch (_) {} });
     } else if (m.type === 'rowboat:mini-app:theme') {
       applyTheme(m.theme);
+    } else if (m.type === 'rowboat:mini-app:data-updated') {
+      loadData();
     } else if (m.type === 'rowboat:mini-app:rpc-result') {
       var p = pending[m.id];
       if (p) { delete pending[m.id]; if (m.ok) p.resolve(m.result); else p.reject(new Error(m.error || 'request failed')); }
@@ -107,8 +110,13 @@ export function seedApps(apps: Array<{ manifest: Manifest; html: string; data?:
     const dir = appDir(manifest.id);
     const distDir = path.join(dir, 'dist');
     ensureDir(distDir);
-    fs.writeFileSync(path.join(dir, 'manifest.json'), JSON.stringify(manifest, null, 2));
+    // Atomic writes so a concurrently-open app never reads a partial file.
-    fs.writeFileSync(path.join(distDir, 'index.html'), app.html);
+    const writeAtomic = (p: string, content: string) => {
+      fs.writeFileSync(`${p}.tmp`, content);
+      fs.renameSync(`${p}.tmp`, p);
+    };
+    writeAtomic(path.join(distDir, 'index.html'), app.html);
+    writeAtomic(path.join(dir, 'manifest.json'), JSON.stringify(manifest, null, 2));
     const dataPath = path.join(dir, 'data.json');
     if (app.data !== undefined && !fs.existsSync(dataPath)) {
       fs.writeFileSync(dataPath, JSON.stringify(app.data, null, 2));
@@ -174,6 +182,81 @@ export function getAppData(id: string): { data: unknown | null } {
   }
 }
 
+/**
+ * Watch ~/.rowboat/apps for data.json changes and notify all renderer windows
+ * (mini-apps:dataChanged) so an open app can reload its data live. Debounced
+ * per app id (agents write via temp→rename, which fires multiple fs events).
+ */
+export function initMiniAppsWatcher(): void {
+  fs.mkdirSync(APPS_DIR, { recursive: true });
+  const pending = new Map<string, NodeJS.Timeout>();
+  const notify = (channel: 'mini-apps:dataChanged' | 'mini-apps:appsChanged', id: string) => {
+    for (const win of BrowserWindow.getAllWindows()) {
+      if (!win.isDestroyed() && win.webContents) {
+        win.webContents.send(channel, { id });
+      }
+    }
+  };
+  const schedule = (channel: 'mini-apps:dataChanged' | 'mini-apps:appsChanged', id: string) => {
+    const key = `${channel}:${id}`;
+    const existing = pending.get(key);
+    if (existing) clearTimeout(existing);
+    pending.set(key, setTimeout(() => { pending.delete(key); notify(channel, id); }, 300));
+  };
+  try {
+    fs.watch(APPS_DIR, { recursive: true }, (_event, filename) => {
+      if (!filename) return;
+      // filename is relative to APPS_DIR, e.g. "<id>/dist/data.json"
+      const id = filename.split(path.sep)[0];
+      if (!id || id.startsWith('.') || filename.endsWith('.tmp')) return;
+      if (filename.endsWith('data.json')) {
+        schedule('mini-apps:dataChanged', id);
+      } else if (filename.endsWith('manifest.json') || filename.endsWith('index.html')) {
+        // install / update settled → gallery re-lists, open frames reload
+        schedule('mini-apps:appsChanged', id);
+      }
+    });
+  } catch (err) {
+    console.error('[MiniApps] watcher failed to start:', err);
+  }
+}
+
+const MIME_BY_EXT: Record<string, string> = {
+  '.html': 'text/html; charset=utf-8',
+  '.js': 'text/javascript; charset=utf-8',
+  '.mjs': 'text/javascript; charset=utf-8',
+  '.css': 'text/css; charset=utf-8',
+  '.json': 'application/json; charset=utf-8',
+  '.svg': 'image/svg+xml',
+  '.png': 'image/png',
+  '.jpg': 'image/jpeg',
+  '.jpeg': 'image/jpeg',
+  '.gif': 'image/gif',
+  '.webp': 'image/webp',
+  '.ico': 'image/x-icon',
+  '.woff2': 'font/woff2',
+  '.txt': 'text/plain; charset=utf-8',
+};
+
+/**
+ * Serve a mini-app asset by reading it directly from disk. Deliberately avoids
+ * net.fetch(file://…): that routes through Chromium's shared network service,
+ * which can stall under load and blank every open app at once. Logs slow serves
+ * so stalls are visible in the terminal.
+ */
+export async function serveMiniAppAsset(absPath: string): Promise<Response> {
+  const started = Date.now();
+  try {
+    const buf = await fs.promises.readFile(absPath);
+    const mime = MIME_BY_EXT[path.extname(absPath).toLowerCase()] ?? 'application/octet-stream';
+    const ms = Date.now() - started;
+    if (ms > 250) console.warn(`[MiniApps] slow asset serve (${ms}ms): ${absPath}`);
+    return new Response(new Uint8Array(buf), { headers: { 'content-type': mime } });
+  } catch {
+    return new Response('Not Found', { status: 404 });
+  }
+}
+
 /**
  * Resolve app://miniapp/<id>/<rel> to an absolute file path under the app's dist
  * dir, guarding against path traversal. Returns null if outside the dist root.

apps/x/apps/renderer/src/components/mini-app-frame.tsx

@@ -122,8 +122,22 @@ export function MiniAppFrame({ manifest }: { manifest: miniApp.MiniAppManifest }
     }
 
     window.addEventListener('message', handleMessage)
+    // Live refresh: when this app's data.json changes on disk (agent run),
+    // tell the shim to re-fetch so onData fires with fresh data.
+    const offDataChanged = window.ipc.on('mini-apps:dataChanged', ({ id }) => {
+      if (id === manifest.id) postToFrame({ type: MINI_APP_MESSAGE.dataUpdated })
+    })
+    // If this app itself was just (re)installed, reload the frame — covers an
+    // app opened mid-install that rendered a partial/blank page. Reset src
+    // (contentWindow.location is cross-origin and would throw).
+    const offAppsChanged = window.ipc.on('mini-apps:appsChanged', ({ id }) => {
+      const frame = iframeRef.current
+      if (id === manifest.id && frame) frame.src = frame.src // eslint-disable-line no-self-assign
+    })
     return () => {
       window.removeEventListener('message', handleMessage)
+      offDataChanged()
+      offAppsChanged()
       themeObserver.disconnect()
     }
   }, [manifest.id, scope])

apps/x/apps/renderer/src/components/mini-apps-view.tsx

@@ -176,25 +176,32 @@ export function MiniAppsView({ initialAppId, initialVersion, onNewApp }: { initi
   const [manifests, setManifests] = useState<miniApp.MiniAppManifest[]>([])
 
   // Open a specific app when asked from outside (app-navigation open-app).
-  useEffect(() => {
+  // Adjust-during-render pattern: react to a new request (version bump) without
+  // an effect.
+  const [appliedVersion, setAppliedVersion] = useState(initialVersion)
+  if (initialVersion !== appliedVersion) {
+    setAppliedVersion(initialVersion)
     if (initialAppId) setSelectedId(initialAppId)
-  }, [initialAppId, initialVersion])
+  }
 
-  // List apps installed under ~/.rowboat/apps. Apps are created there by the
+  // List apps installed under ~/.rowboat/apps (created by the copilot builder or
-  // copilot builder (or placed manually); none are bundled in the repo.
+  // placed manually; none are bundled in the repo). Keeps the list live as apps
+  // are installed/updated, and re-lists on each open-app request (the app may
+  // have been installed after this view mounted).
   useEffect(() => {
     let cancelled = false
-    ;(async () => {
+    const load = async () => {
       try {
         const r = await window.ipc.invoke('mini-apps:list', null)
-        if (cancelled) return
+        if (!cancelled) setManifests([...r.manifests].sort((a, b) => a.title.localeCompare(b.title)))
-        setManifests([...r.manifests].sort((a, b) => a.title.localeCompare(b.title)))
       } catch {
         if (!cancelled) setManifests([])
       }
-    })()
+    }
-    return () => { cancelled = true }
+    void load()
-  }, [])
+    const off = window.ipc.on('mini-apps:appsChanged', () => { void load() })
+    return () => { cancelled = true; off() }
+  }, [initialVersion])
 
   const selected = selectedId ? manifests.find((m) => m.id === selectedId) : undefined
 

apps/x/apps/renderer/src/mini-apps/runtime.ts

@@ -49,6 +49,8 @@ const BRIDGE_SHIM = /* js */ `
       stateCbs.forEach(function (cb) { try { cb(state); } catch (_) {} });
     } else if (m.type === 'rowboat:mini-app:theme') {
       applyTheme(m.theme);
+    } else if (m.type === 'rowboat:mini-app:data-updated') {
+      loadData();
     } else if (m.type === 'rowboat:mini-app:rpc-result') {
       var p = pending[m.id];
       if (p) {

apps/x/apps/renderer/src/mini-apps/types.ts

@@ -73,6 +73,8 @@ export type MiniAppInboundMessage =
   | { type: 'rowboat:mini-app:state'; state: unknown }
   /** Host theme; sent on ready and whenever the app theme changes. */
   | { type: 'rowboat:mini-app:theme'; theme: 'light' | 'dark' }
+  /** data.json changed on disk — the shim re-fetches and fires onData. */
+  | { type: 'rowboat:mini-app:data-updated' }
   /** Result of a previously requested rpc call, correlated by id. */
   | { type: 'rowboat:mini-app:rpc-result'; id: string; ok: boolean; result?: unknown; error?: string }
 
@@ -83,5 +85,6 @@ export const MINI_APP_MESSAGE = {
   data: 'rowboat:mini-app:data',
   state: 'rowboat:mini-app:state',
   theme: 'rowboat:mini-app:theme',
+  dataUpdated: 'rowboat:mini-app:data-updated',
   rpcResult: 'rowboat:mini-app:rpc-result',
 } as const

apps/x/packages/core/src/application/lib/builtin-tools.ts

@@ -1527,8 +1527,15 @@ export const BuiltinTools: z.infer<typeof BuiltinToolsSchema> = {
                 const dir = path.join(WorkDir, 'apps', m.id);
                 const dist = path.join(dir, 'dist');
                 await fs.mkdir(dist, { recursive: true });
-                await fs.writeFile(path.join(dir, 'manifest.json'), JSON.stringify(m, null, 2));
+                // Atomic writes (temp→rename): an app opened mid-install must never
-                await fs.writeFile(path.join(dist, 'index.html'), html);
+                // see a partially-written manifest or index.html (blank screen).
+                const writeAtomic = async (p: string, content: string) => {
+                    const tmp = `${p}.tmp`;
+                    await fs.writeFile(tmp, content);
+                    await fs.rename(tmp, p);
+                };
+                await writeAtomic(path.join(dist, 'index.html'), html);
+                await writeAtomic(path.join(dir, 'manifest.json'), JSON.stringify(m, null, 2));
                 if (data !== undefined) {
                     let payload: unknown = data;
                     if (typeof payload === 'string') { try { payload = JSON.parse(payload); } catch { payload = undefined; } }

apps/x/packages/shared/src/ipc.ts

@@ -1033,6 +1033,19 @@ const ipcSchemas = {
     req: z.object({ id: z.string() }),
     res: z.object({ data: z.unknown().nullable() }),
   },
+  // Mini Apps: event pushed main→renderer when an app's data.json changes on
+  // disk (agent refresh), so an open app can reload its data live.
+  'mini-apps:dataChanged': {
+    req: z.object({ id: z.string() }),
+    res: z.null(),
+  },
+  // Mini Apps: event pushed main→renderer when an app is installed/updated
+  // (manifest or index.html changed), so the gallery re-lists and an open app
+  // reloads once the install settles.
+  'mini-apps:appsChanged': {
+    req: z.object({ id: z.string() }),
+    res: z.null(),
+  },
   // Mini Apps: proxy an HTTP request through main (bypasses browser CORS for the
   // sandboxed app origin). GET/POST to http(s) only.
   'mini-apps:fetch': {