# Workstream Flag (`--ws`)

## Overview

The `--ws <name>` flag scopes eCL operations to a specific workstream, enabling
parallel milestone work by multiple Claude Code instances on the same codebase.

## Resolution Priority

1. `--ws <name>` flag (explicit, highest priority)
2. `ECL_WORKSTREAM` environment variable (per-instance)
3. Session-scoped active workstream pointer in temp storage (per runtime session / terminal)
4. `.planning/active-workstream` file (legacy shared fallback when no session key exists)
5. `null` — flat mode (no workstreams)

## Why session-scoped pointers exist

The shared `.planning/active-workstream` file is fundamentally unsafe when multiple
Claude/Codex instances are active on the same repo at the same time. One session can
silently repoint another session's `STATE.md`, `ROADMAP.md`, and phase paths.

eCL now prefers a session-scoped pointer keyed by runtime/session identity
(`ECL_SESSION_KEY`, `CODEX_THREAD_ID`, `CLAUDE_CODE_SSE_PORT`, terminal session IDs,
or the controlling TTY). This keeps concurrent sessions isolated while preserving
legacy compatibility for runtimes that do not expose a stable session key.

## Session Identity Resolution

When eCL resolves the session-scoped pointer in step 3 above, it uses this order:

1. Explicit runtime/session env vars such as `ECL_SESSION_KEY`, `CODEX_THREAD_ID`,
   `CLAUDE_SESSION_ID`, `CLAUDE_CODE_SSE_PORT`, `OPENCODE_SESSION_ID`,
   `GEMINI_SESSION_ID`, `CURSOR_SESSION_ID`, `WINDSURF_SESSION_ID`,
   `TERM_SESSION_ID`, `WT_SESSION`, `TMUX_PANE`, and `ZELLIJ_SESSION_NAME`
2. `TTY` or `SSH_TTY` if the shell/runtime already exposes the terminal path
3. A single best-effort `tty` probe, but only when stdin is interactive

If none of those produce a stable identity, eCL does not keep probing. It falls
back directly to the legacy shared `.planning/active-workstream` file.

This matters in headless or stripped environments: when stdin is already
non-interactive, eCL intentionally skips shelling out to `tty` because that path
cannot discover a stable session identity and only adds avoidable failures on the
routing hot path.

## Pointer Lifecycle

Session-scoped pointers are intentionally lightweight and best-effort:

- Clearing a workstream for one session removes only that session's pointer file
- If that was the last pointer for the repo, eCL also removes the now-empty
  per-project temp directory
- If sibling session pointers still exist, the temp directory is left in place
- When a pointer refers to a workstream directory that no longer exists, eCL
  treats it as stale state: it removes that pointer file and resolves to `null`
  until the session explicitly sets a new active workstream again

eCL does not currently run a background garbage collector for historical temp
directories. Cleanup is opportunistic at the pointer being cleared or self-healed,
and broader temp hygiene is left to OS temp cleanup or future maintenance work.

## Routing Propagation

All workflow routing commands include `${ECL_WS}` which:
- Expands to `--ws <name>` when a workstream is active
- Expands to empty string in flat mode (backward compatible)

This ensures workstream scope chains automatically through the workflow:
`new-milestone → discuss-phase → plan-phase → execute-phase → transition`

## Directory Structure

```
.planning/
├── PROJECT.md          # Shared
├── config.json         # Shared
├── milestones/         # Shared
├── codebase/           # Shared
├── active-workstream   # Legacy shared fallback only
└── workstreams/
    ├── feature-a/      # Workstream A
    │   ├── STATE.md
    │   ├── ROADMAP.md
    │   ├── REQUIREMENTS.md
    │   └── phases/
    └── feature-b/      # Workstream B
        ├── STATE.md
        ├── ROADMAP.md
        ├── REQUIREMENTS.md
        └── phases/
```

## CLI Usage

```bash
# All ecl-sdk query commands accept --ws
ecl-sdk query state.json --ws feature-a
ecl-sdk query find-phase 3 --ws feature-b

# Session-local switching without --ws on every command
ECL_SESSION_KEY=my-terminal-a ecl-sdk query workstream.set feature-a
ECL_SESSION_KEY=my-terminal-a ecl-sdk query state.json
ECL_SESSION_KEY=my-terminal-b ecl-sdk query workstream.set feature-b
ECL_SESSION_KEY=my-terminal-b ecl-sdk query state.json

# Workstream CRUD
ecl-sdk query workstream.create <name>
ecl-sdk query workstream.list
ecl-sdk query workstream.status <name>
ecl-sdk query workstream.complete <name>
```
