feat: multi-channel architecture — IChannelAdapter + Vercel Chat SDK + Telegram security migration

[ryaker]

Summary

Signal channel landed (commit 160ab4dd) but isn't wired into the daemon yet. The existing Telegram gateway (src/steering/telegram-gateway.ts) bypasses the entire new security stack — no Casbin, no CapabilitySet, no quarantine processor, just a subprocess pipe. This issue formalizes the channel abstraction and closes both gaps while adding multi-channel support via Vercel Chat SDK.

Current State (Code-Verified, 2026-03-10)

• ✅ Signal adapter implemented (src/channels/signal/) — not wired into daemon
• ✅ Casbin policy gate, capability resolver, quarantine processor — all implemented
• ✅ ChannelMessage / CapabilitySet types — channel-agnostic
• ❌ IChannelAdapter interface — does not exist (abstraction is implicit)
• ❌ ChannelManager — does not exist
• ❌ Audit log — does not exist (Phase 3 gap from Signal spec)
• ❌ Daemon wiring for any channel — not done
• ❌ Telegram in security stack — still using subprocess bypass in src/steering/

The Telegram Security Gap

src/steering/telegram-gateway.ts currently:

• Checks allowed_users[] string array only (no Casbin enforcement)
• Spawns zora-agent ask as a subprocess — pipes raw CLI output back
• Has no quarantine processor, no action budget, no intent drift, no dry-run
• Predates the channel security layer

This is a security fix disguised as a feature addition.

What This Implements

1. IChannelAdapter interface (src/channels/channel-adapter.ts)

Formalizes the implicit abstraction — start(), stop(), onMessage(), send().

2. ChannelManager (src/channels/channel-manager.ts)

Single pipeline: policy gate → capability resolver → quarantine → orchestrator → audit → response.
Every channel uses this path. No bypass.

3. Append-only Audit Log (src/channels/channel-audit-log.ts)

JSONL at ~/.zora/audit/channel.log. Logs intake decisions, quarantine flags, tool calls, budget events. Never logs message content. Rotate at 10MB.

4. Signal wiring (Phase 3 completion)

Wire SignalIntakeAdapter into daemon.ts via ChannelManager. Add rate limiting (10 tasks/hr/sender). Add TOML config validation on startup.

5. Telegram migration (Phase 2)

Install @chat-adapter/telegram. Implement src/channels/telegram/telegram-adapter.ts → IChannelAdapter. Deprecate src/steering/telegram-gateway.ts.

6. Multi-channel via Vercel Chat SDK (Phases 3-5)

pnpm add chat @chat-adapter/slack @chat-adapter/teams @chat-adapter/discord @chat-adapter/whatsapp @chat-adapter/google-chat

Single webhook server on channels.webhook_port. Each platform adapter translates Chat SDK events → ChannelMessage → ChannelManager.handleMessage().

Implementation Phases

Phase	Deliverable	Acceptance
1	Signal wired, audit log, rate limiting	All 11 Signal integration tests pass
2	IChannelAdapter + Telegram migration	Telegram through Casbin + quarantine; subprocess retired
3	WebhookServer + WhatsApp	WhatsApp works with full policy enforcement
4	Slack + Teams	Both channels operational
5	Discord + Google Chat	All 7 channels, full integration test suite

New Security Invariants

INVARIANT-8: src/steering/telegram-gateway.ts MUST NOT be used after Phase 2
INVARIANT-9: All channels use ChannelManager.handleMessage() — no bypass path
INVARIANT-10: Webhook server validates platform signatures before processing

Files Changed

New: channel-adapter.ts, channel-manager.ts, channel-audit-log.ts, webhook-server.ts, src/channels/telegram/, src/channels/slack/, src/channels/teams/, src/channels/discord/, src/channels/whatsapp/, src/channels/google-chat/

Modified: daemon.ts, config/defaults.ts, config/loader.ts, signal adapter files

Deprecated: src/steering/telegram-gateway.ts

Full Spec

SPEC-multi-channel-architecture.md (Zora_Sims project)

Related

• Closes Signal Phase 3 gaps (companion to commit 160ab4dd)
• Supersedes src/steering/telegram-gateway.ts design
• Vercel Chat SDK: https://github.com/vercel/chat (standalone, no Vercel hosting required)

[ryaker]

Priority Correction: Telegram Migration Moved to Phase 1

The Telegram gateway security bypass is not acceptable as a Phase 2 item. It's a live security gap affecting current users.

Revised Phase 1 scope (do both in parallel):

1. Signal wiring — wire SignalIntakeAdapter into daemon via ChannelManager, audit log, rate limiting
2. Telegram migration — install @chat-adapter/telegram, implement src/channels/telegram/telegram-adapter.ts implementing IChannelAdapter, wire through Casbin + quarantine. Immediately retire src/steering/telegram-gateway.ts — do not leave it running alongside the new adapter.

The subprocess-based Telegram gateway has no Casbin enforcement, no quarantine processor, no action budget, no intent drift detection. Any current user steering Zora via Telegram has none of the advertised security guarantees. This ships as a fix, not a feature.

Phase 1 acceptance now includes:

• Telegram messages flow through CasbinPolicyGate → CapabilityResolver → QuarantineProcessor → Orchestrator
• src/steering/telegram-gateway.ts deleted (not deprecated — deleted)
• All existing Telegram config ([steering.telegram]) migrated to [channels.telegram] with channel-policy.toml role mapping