fix(cli): seed personal provider config so -p --model works on a fresh host

CHANGELOG.md

@@ -12,6 +12,13 @@ This file is the public-facing release log for the npm package `zagent`.
 
 ## Unreleased
 
+- fix(cli): seed the kernel's personal provider config from the cli config before
+  app-server backed runs (`-p --model/--effort`, `commit-msg`, `models test`) —
+  the 3.14.x app-server registry never imports the legacy cli config itself, so
+  a fresh host answered every model-bearing `session/create` with
+  model-not-found until the kernel's own `-p` path happened to migrate it.
+  `doctor` now flags a configured model the runtime registry cannot resolve.
+
 ## 0.0.238 — 2026-09-21
 
 - Live-user-testing fixes: `quota reset use` checks credentials before its

package.json

@@ -73,6 +73,7 @@
     "packages/driver/memory.mjs",
     "packages/driver/offpeak.mjs",
     "packages/driver/permissions.mjs",
+    "packages/driver/personal-provider.mjs",
     "packages/driver/plugins.mjs",
     "packages/driver/provider-errors.mjs",
     "packages/driver/providers.mjs",

packages/cli/test-cli-ux.mjs

@@ -43,7 +43,8 @@ writeFileSync(path.join(catalogDir, 'models_catalog_1.json'), JSON.stringify({
 mkdirSync(path.join(home, '.zcode', 'cli'), { recursive: true });
 writeFileSync(path.join(home, '.zcode', 'cli', 'config.json'), JSON.stringify({
   model: { main: 'zai/glm-5.3', lite: 'zai/glm-5.3-flash' },
-  provider: { zai: { kind: 'anthropic', options: { baseURL: 'https://api.z.ai/api/anthropic/', apiKey: 'fixture' } } },
+  provider: { zai: { kind: 'anthropic', options: { baseURL: 'https://api.z.ai/api/anthropic/', apiKey: 'fixture' },
+    models: { 'glm-5.3': {}, 'glm-5.3-flash': {} } } },
 }));
 
 const env = {

packages/cli/zagent-commit-msg.mjs

@@ -154,8 +154,10 @@ if (effort) {
 }
 
 const { ZCodeProtocolClient } = await import('../driver/zcode-protocol.mjs');
+const { provisionPersonalProviderConfig } = await import('../driver/personal-provider.mjs');
 let client, code = 0;
 try {
+  try { provisionPersonalProviderConfig(); } catch {} // fresh-host registry seed (see personal-provider.mjs)
   client = new ZCodeProtocolClient({ cwd: process.cwd() });
   await client.ready;
   // The registry is GUI-pushed (provider/updateAccountConfig); a headless spawn

packages/cli/zagent-models.mjs

@@ -139,8 +139,10 @@ if (process.argv[2] === 'test') {
     [[providerId, modelId]] = hits;
   }
   const { ZCodeProtocolClient } = await import('../driver/zcode-protocol.mjs');
+  const { provisionPersonalProviderConfig } = await import('../driver/personal-provider.mjs');
   let client, code = 0;
   try {
+    try { provisionPersonalProviderConfig(); } catch {} // fresh-host registry seed (see personal-provider.mjs)
     client = new ZCodeProtocolClient({ cwd: process.cwd() });
     await client.ready;
     // The registry is GUI-pushed (provider/updateAccountConfig); a headless

packages/cli/zagent-print.mjs

@@ -17,6 +17,7 @@ import { ZCodeProtocolClient, runTurn, sessionSid, currentAnswer, extractUsage }
 import { setMode, MODES } from '../driver/session-control.mjs';
 import { autoAllow } from '../driver/permissions.mjs';
 import { modelReasoningLevels } from '../driver/providers.mjs';
+import { provisionPersonalProviderConfig } from '../driver/personal-provider.mjs';
 import { KERNEL_VALUE_FLAGS, KERNEL_LIST_FLAGS } from './commands.mjs';
 
 const VALUE_FLAGS = new Set(['--model', '--effort', '--mode', '--cwd', '--output-format', '--locale']);
@@ -151,7 +152,11 @@ async function openPrintClient(cwd) {
 // --prompt" and zagentd does the same. A user-chosen --mode still applies via
 // session/setMode (kernel-side enforcement); plan approval prompts hit the
 // client's default decline handler, so headless plan mode produces the plan.
-export async function runPrintOnce(sel, { client, createClient = openPrintClient, timeoutMs = 600_000, catalog, providerConfig } = {}) {
+// `provision` seeds the kernel's personal provider config from the legacy cli
+// config before the app-server spawn — the app-server registry never runs the
+// kernel's own legacy import (see personal-provider.mjs), so without this a
+// fresh host answers every model-bearing session/create with model-not-found.
+export async function runPrintOnce(sel, { client, createClient = openPrintClient, timeoutMs = 600_000, catalog, providerConfig, provision = provisionPersonalProviderConfig } = {}) {
   const t0 = Date.now();
   const cwd = path.resolve(sel.cwd ?? process.cwd());
   const key = path.normalize(cwd);
@@ -185,7 +190,10 @@ export async function runPrintOnce(sel, { client, createClient = openPrintClient
     params.thoughtLevel = sel.effort;
   }
   const own = !client;
-  if (own) client = await createClient(cwd);
+  if (own) {
+    try { provision(); } catch {} // best-effort registry seed; a failure must not block the run
+    client = await createClient(cwd);
+  }
   let sid = null;
   try {
     const created = await client.call('session/create', params);

packages/cli/zagent.mjs

@@ -19,6 +19,7 @@ import { findRuntime, kernelEnv, kernelResolves } from '../driver/runtime.mjs';
 import { runtimeCapabilities, capabilityLine } from '../driver/runtime-info.mjs';
 import { buildLaunchArgs, tuiPreference, tuiNodeSupported, TUI_NODE_FLOOR, nodeSqliteSupported, NODE_SQLITE_FLOOR } from '../driver/tui-launch.mjs';
 import { provisionStandaloneAccounts } from '../driver/account-provider.mjs';
+import { modelResolutionCheck, personalProviderConfigPath } from '../driver/personal-provider.mjs';
 import { explainProviderError, formatProviderError } from '../driver/provider-errors.mjs';
 import { nodeLine, doctorCredential, extensionCounts, hooksLine, diskLine, logDirLine, displayPath, displayText } from '../driver/doctor.mjs';
 import { snapshotStatus, snapshotLine } from '../driver/snapshot-guard.mjs';
@@ -621,6 +622,21 @@ if (args[0] === 'doctor' || !rt) {
   const cred = doctorCredential({ config: cfgJson, hasConfig: existsSync(cfg) });
   console.log(`credential: ${cred ?? 'NONE'}`);
   if (!cred && existsSync(cfg)) warnings.push('no Coding Plan credential in any source — turns will stop at the sign-in card');
+  // The credential can be fine while the model still cannot resolve: the
+  // app-server registry reads personal providers from v2/provider_config.json
+  // only, so a config whose selected provider/model is absent there (and not
+  // derivable from the cli config) fails every -p run with model-not-found.
+  // Doctor reports that class ahead of the turn instead of exiting 0.
+  if (cfgJson) {
+    const res = modelResolutionCheck({ config: cfgJson });
+    if (res) {
+      console.log(`model: ${res.detail}${res.ok ? '' : ' — NOT RESOLVABLE'}`);
+      if (!res.ok) {
+        warnings.push(`${res.detail} — cannot resolve in the runtime registry; fix the provider/model list in the cli config or in ${displayPath(personalProviderConfigPath())}`);
+        unhealthy = true;
+      }
+    }
+  }
   const ext = extensionCounts({ config: cfgJson });
   console.log(`plugins: ${ext.plugins} installed`);
   console.log(hooksLine(ext));