Slash commands: registry, dispatcher, help, and palette parity audit

[Hmbown]

Scope

Audit every registered slash command as a first-class product surface, not just a parser entry. This is the inbox-zero pass for commands.

Commands to include from crates/tui/src/commands/mod.rs: /anchor, /help, /clear, /exit, /model, /models, /provider, /queue, /stash, /hooks, /subagents, /agent, /links, /feedback, /home, /workspace, /note, /memory, /attach, /task, /jobs, /mcp, /network, /rename, /save, /fork, /sessions, /load, /compact, /relay, /context, /cycles, /cycle, /recall, /export, /config, /mode, /theme, /verbose, /trust, /logout, /tokens, /translate, /system, /edit, /diff, /change, /undo, /retry, /init, /lsp, /share, /goal, /settings, /status, /statusline, /skills, /skill, /review, /restore, /rlm, /cost, /profile, /cache.

Also account for retired migration handlers kept out of autocomplete: /set and /deepseek.

Acceptance

• Produce a command wiring table: registry entry, aliases, usage, dispatcher branch, command palette behavior, /help output, docs coverage, test coverage, and owning component.
• Identify registered-but-low-quality entries, including /profile currently reusing the generic help description.
• Identify dispatcher-only commands or aliases that are intentionally hidden from autocomplete.
• Do not change behavior except for obvious bugs. File follow-up issues into the right milestone for each component gap.
• Use existing issues as evidence, not instructions, and avoid closing anything during the audit.

Related existing signals

• Feature: Add tui_help tool for on-demand command reference #1708 command reference tool
• Improve i18n coverage for commands, modals, and widgets #790 i18n coverage for commands/modals/widgets
• feat(commands): /dryrun — preview the next chat completion request without sending it #1004 proposed /dryrun
• 支持底部状态栏自定义配置（[statusline]），显示 API 余额等实时信息 #1551 statusline customization
• Feature: Display API account balance #1735 account balance display
• thinking-trace UX: natural-feel default vs explicit /verbose toggle (v0.8.12) #598 /verbose thinking-trace UX

This should leave v0.8.42 with a clean map of what is real, what is stale, and what each upcoming milestone owns.

[Hmbown]

Implementation notes for the next agent:

Primary files to inspect:

• crates/tui/src/commands/mod.rs for COMMANDS, dispatch, aliases, retired migration handlers.
• crates/tui/src/tui/command_palette.rs for direct-run behavior and palette metadata.
• crates/tui/src/tui/views/help.rs and crates/tui/src/localization.rs for visible help strings.
• docs/KEYBINDINGS.md, docs/CONFIGURATION.md, README command docs, and tests under crates/tui/src/commands/*.

Suggested audit shape:

struct CommandAuditRow {
    name: String,
    aliases: Vec<String>,
    usage: String,
    registered: bool,
    dispatched: bool,
    palette_visible: bool,
    help_text: String,
    docs_paths: Vec<String>,
    tests: Vec<String>,
    owner: CommandOwner,
    gaps: Vec<String>,
}

for info in COMMANDS {
    row.registered = true;
    row.dispatched = dispatch_accepts(info.name) && info.aliases.iter().all(dispatch_accepts);
    row.palette_visible = palette_lists(info.name);
    row.help_text = localize(info.description_id);
    row.gaps += validate_usage(info.usage);
    row.gaps += validate_non_generic_description(info.name, info.description_id);
}

for dispatcher_branch in dispatcher_branches() {
    if !COMMANDS.contains(dispatcher_branch.name) {
        classify_as_hidden_or_bug(dispatcher_branch);
    }
}

Quality checks worth adding as tests:

• Every COMMANDS entry has a dispatch branch for name and aliases.
• Every visible command has non-empty localized help and usage beginning with /.
• No command reuses an unrelated description id. Current candidate: /profile reuses CmdHelpDescription.
• Dispatcher-only commands are documented as intentionally hidden. Current candidates: /set, /deepseek, and skill-name fallback.

Output artifact:
A table in the issue or a small docs file that maps each command to one of the later milestone issues: truth surface, spatial workbench, control plane, tool studio, continuity, or presence.

[Hmbown]

Keeping this as useful audit signal, not closing it. It is too broad for v0.8.42 stabilization, and the existing implementation notes are enough for the next pass.

Moving to v0.8.43 where command/help/palette truth-surface work belongs. No behavior change should be bundled unless the audit finds an obvious bug with focused tests.

[chuck-ma]

I can take this one. I’m planning to work on it as a full slash-command surface audit: registry / aliases / usage / dispatcher / palette / /help / docs / tests parity, with behavior changes avoided unless there is an obvious bug.

I’ll include an audit matrix in the PR description and call out anything that should remain follow-up rather than changing behavior in this pass.