Overhaul the Dench web app with a comprehensive visual redesign and several
major feature additions across the chat interface, workspace, and agent
runtime layer.
Theme & Design System
- Replace the dark-only palette with a full light/dark theme system that
respects system preference via localStorage + inline script (no FOUC).
- Introduce new design tokens: glassmorphism surfaces, semantic colors
(success/warning/error/info), object-type chip palettes, and a tiered
shadow scale (sm/md/lg/xl).
- Add Instrument Serif + Inter via Google Fonts for a refined typographic
hierarchy; headings use the serif face, body uses Inter.
- Rebrand UI from "Ironclaw" to "Dench" across the landing page and
metadata.
Chat & Chain-of-Thought
- Rewrite the chain-of-thought component with inline media detection and
rendering — images, video, audio, and PDFs referenced in agent output
are now displayed directly in the conversation thread.
- Add status indicator parts (e.g. "Preparing response...",
"Optimizing session context...") that render as subtle activity badges
instead of verbose reasoning blocks.
- Integrate react-markdown with remark-gfm for proper markdown rendering
in assistant messages (tables, strikethrough, autolinks, etc.).
- Improve report-block splitting and lazy-loaded ReportCard rendering.
Workspace
- Introduce @tanstack/react-table for the object table, replacing the
hand-rolled table with full column sorting, fuzzy filtering via
match-sorter-utils, row selection, and bulk actions.
- Add a new media viewer component for in-workspace image/video/PDF
preview.
- New API routes: bulk-delete entries, field management (CRUD + reorder),
raw-file serving endpoint for media assets.
- Redesign workspace sidebar, empty state, and entry detail modal with
the new theme tokens and improved layout.
Agent Runtime
- Switch web agent execution from --local to gateway-routed mode so
concurrent chat threads share the gateway's lane-based concurrency
system, eliminating cross-process file-lock contention.
- Advertise "tool-events" capability during WebSocket handshake so the
gateway streams tool start/update/result events to the UI.
- Add new agent callback hooks: onLifecycleStart, onCompactionStart/End,
and onToolUpdate for richer real-time feedback.
- Forward media URLs emitted by agent events into the chat stream.
Dependencies
- Add @tanstack/match-sorter-utils and @tanstack/react-table to the web
app.
Published as ironclaw@2026.2.10-1.
Co-authored-by: Cursor <cursoragent@cursor.com>
Add virtual folder system that surfaces Skills, Memories, and Chat sessions
in the workspace sidebar alongside real dench files. Rearchitect the home
page into a landing hub and move the ChatPanel into the workspace as the
default view.
New API route — virtual-file:
- apps/web/app/api/workspace/virtual-file/route.ts: new GET/POST API that
resolves virtual paths (~skills/*, ~memories/*) to absolute filesystem
paths in ~/.openclaw/skills/ d ~/.openclaw/workspace/. Includes path
traversal protection and directory allowlisting.
Tree API — virtual folder builders:
- apps/web/app/api/workspace/tree/route.ts: add `virtual` field to TreeNode
type. Add ildSkillsVirtualFolder() scanning ~/.openclaw/skills/ and
~/.openclaw/workspace/skills/ with SKILL.md frontmatter parsing (name +
emoji). Add buildMemoriesVirtualFolder() scanning MEMORY.md and daily
logs from ~/.openclaw/workspace/memory/. Virtual folders are appended
after real workspace entries and are also returned when no dench root
exists.
File manager tree — virtual node awareness:
- apps/web/app/components/workspace/file-manager-tree.tsx: add isVirtualNode()
helper and RESERVED_FOLDER_NAMES set (Chats, Skills, Memories). Virtual
nodes show a lock badge, disable drag-and-drop, block rename/delete, and
reject reserved names during create/rename. Add ChatBubbleIcon for ~chats/
paths.
Markdown editor — virtual path routing:
- apps/web/app/components/workspace/markdown-editor.tsx: save to
/api/workspace/virtual-file for paths starting with ~ instead of the
regular /api/workspace/file endpoint.
Home page redesign:
- apps/web/app/page.tsx: replace the chat-first layout (SidebarhatPanel)
with a branded landing page showing the OpenClaw Dench heading, tagline,
and a single "Open Workspace" CTA linking to /workspace.
Workspace page — unified layout with integrated chat:
- apps/web/app/workspace/page.tsx: ChatPanel is now the default main view
when no file is selected. Add session fetching from /api/web-sessions and
build an enhanced tree with a virtual "Chats" folder listing all sessions.
Clicking ~chats/<id> loads the session; clicking ~chats starts a new one.
Add isVirtualPath()/fileApiUrl() helpers for virtual file reads. Add a
"Back to chat" button in the top bar alongside the chat sidebar toggle.
Sidebar + empty-state cosmetic updates:
- apps/web/app/components/workspace/workspace-sidebar.tsx: rename BackIcon
to HomeIcon (house SVG), change label from "Back to Chat" to "Home".
- apps/web/app/components/workspace/empty-state.tsx: update link text from
"Back to Chat" to "Back to Home".
