kandev/docs/specs/integrations/system-design/github-authentication-01.md

status, system, requirements, created, owners

status	system	requirements	created	owners
draft	integrations	REQ-INTEGRATIONS-GITHUB-AUTHENTICATION-001	2026-07-19	Kandev

Workspace GitHub Authentication System Design Part 1

Purpose and boundaries

This design preserves the technical source detail for REQ-INTEGRATIONS-GITHUB-AUTHENTICATION-001 during migration.

Requirement mapping

Requirement	Design section
REQ-INTEGRATIONS-GITHUB-AUTHENTICATION-001	Migrated source detail

Migrated source detail

Why

GitHub credentials must not silently cross workspace boundaries. A local workspace may only need a human PAT or a named gh CLI account, while unattended company automation benefits from a GitHub App's short-lived, repository-scoped installation tokens. Users also need to keep work and personal automation under different GitHub Apps without operating separate Kandev deployments.

What

• Every workspace chooses exactly one automation source: PAT, a named gh CLI account, a verified GitHub App installation, or the migration-only legacy_shared source.
• GitHub App registration is configured from the workspace GitHub settings flow. There is no singleton GitHub App settings page and no automatically active deployment App.
• A workspace may select a GitHub App registration already known to the Kandev deployment, import an existing GitHub App that the user owns, or create a new GitHub App through GitHub's App Manifest flow. Import and creation guide the user through ownership, callback, webhook, permission, visibility, and installation requirements.
• The deployment stores a catalog of GitHub App registrations because a user may intentionally reuse one App across workspaces. Each workspace still selects and installs an App independently. Selecting an existing registration never binds another workspace automatically.
• Users who require independent root credentials, bot identity, revocation, or ownership create a separate registration for each trust boundary. Work and personal workspaces can therefore use different Apps.
• Reusing one registration shares its App private key, client secret, webhook secret, permission policy, and bot identity. Installation tokens, workspace repository scope, connection generation, broker leases, health, and personal OAuth tokens remain workspace isolated.
• A newly created App defaults to private, meaning GitHub permits installation only on the account that owns it. The user may explicitly choose public when the same App must be installable on other GitHub accounts or organizations. Public does not list the App in Marketplace, reveal secrets, or grant repository access without installation approval.
• PAT and named CLI automation act as the verified human account. A separate My GitHub connection is only offered when workspace automation uses a GitHub App, because App installations are not people and cannot provide authenticated-viewer semantics.
• Named CLI account discovery accepts a successful gh auth status report from either stdout or stderr, while preserving non-empty stdout as the authoritative command result.
• User-triggered mutations prefer the workspace's verified personal connection, then a human PAT/CLI automation connection, then the App installation. The UI always identifies the effective actor and never labels an App mutation as human-attributed.
• Background watches, cleanup, repository discovery, and workflow sync always use the workspace automation connection. Personal credentials are never exposed to agents or executors.
• Task Git credential routing is a separate workspace policy. Managed workspace credentials gives attached GitHub repositories task/repository/generation-bound broker leases from the workspace automation connection. Inherit executor Git credentials injects no GitHub broker helper or gh shim: Local and Worktree tasks use host-visible Git/SSH credentials, while remote tasks use credentials configured in that executor.
• A task that is explicitly created for a pre-PR fork contribution under managed task credentials may carry one server-authored, versioned contribution_destination on its canonical repository attachment. Managed routing may issue one additional lease for that exact fork. The fork is a push destination only: canonical repository identity, origin, issue lookup, and pull-request targeting remain unchanged. Executor-owned identities are opaque and do not receive a workspace-authored destination binding.
• Every newly created workspace attempts to persist Inherit executor Git credentials as its initial task policy. After a successful settings write, if creation is performed by an internal trusted caller, an auth-disabled synthetic administrator, or a real administrator while host gh has an authenticated active account, Kandev also stores that exact host/login as the new workspace's named CLI automation connection. Non-admin member-created workspaces never receive the server operator's CLI identity automatically.
• If host gh is absent, unauthenticated, or cannot validate its active account, workspace creation still succeeds with executor task access and disconnected GitHub automation. If the executor settings write fails, creation still succeeds but the existing managed compatibility fallback remains until the workspace is configured or retried. Existing workspaces are never migrated to these defaults; their connection, persisted policy, and legacy missing/invalid policy fallback remain unchanged.
• Workspace settings present the automation identity and task Git credential routing as one Workspace GitHub access group. The page shows a compact read-only summary of both effective choices; the existing Change GitHub connection dialog contains the full controls for the automation method and task routing policy. The task policy remains independent in behavior and persistence even though the related choices share one configuration surface.
• The connection dialog has one Save changes action for local PAT or named CLI connection drafts and task Git access. Method-specific Connect token, Use account, and Save task access actions are not shown. GitHub App create, import, and install remain explicit workflow actions because they leave Kandev for GitHub rather than saving a local connection draft.
• For Kandev-managed GitHub checkouts used by Local and Worktree tasks, the selected task policy also controls the persisted origin transport. Managed routing uses canonical GitHub HTTPS. Executor inheritance resolves the current github.com protocol from host gh configuration at the clone or origin-reconciliation boundary. Resolution accepts the host-specific value first, then the global value, and defaults to SSH when neither scope supplies ssh or https. Launch and resume do not use a backend-startup snapshot, so a later host configuration change applies without restart. This makes Git conditional includes based on remote.*.url observe the same transport the task uses. Kandev never rewrites the remote of a repository registered as a user-managed local checkout.
• Repository preparation resolves each attached repository once per launch or resume and reuses that result for primary-repository configuration, multi-repository configuration, and credential routing. The clone-protocol resolver itself is stateless and injected at the repository URL construction boundary. The long-lived cloner and review-repository adapter do not store a resolved protocol. Origin reconciliation is serialized per managed checkout. It compares the current and desired canonical URLs, and performs no write when they already match.
• Every launch or resume entry point prepares repositories before the agent starts. This includes the prepared-workspace path that reuses a running executor. Repository preparation resolves each attached repository once for that operation. The full launch path reuses the result for primary and multi-repository configuration and credential routing. Origin reconciliation is serialized per managed checkout. It compares the current and desired canonical URLs and performs no write when they already match.
• Repository preparation validates any contribution destination before issuing credentials, adds a collision-resistant dedicated fork remote, and reconstructs it on launch and resume. It never accepts a fork inferred from the checkout's current remotes or a caller-provided repository name.
• Git failures while inspecting or reconciling a managed checkout preserve a bounded, credential-redacted diagnostic. Git's dubious-ownership failure is classified as a service/data ownership mismatch with guidance to restore the intended Kandev service account or reconcile the managed data owner. Kandev does not bypass Git's ownership protection with a broad safe.directory entry.
• Under managed routing, App installation tokens are minted for the requested repository and cached only in memory. PAT/CLI tokens retain their provider-granted scope once delivered to a trusted agent subprocess. GitHub HTTPS and the broker-aware gh shim fail closed rather than consulting another ambient helper after a managed-helper failure.
• A managed pre-PR fork destination must be writable by the same workspace automation source that supplies the task leases. Human PAT and named CLI automation actors may own or create their fork. An App installation without direct target write access is not silently paired with a user's personal fork or personal token.
• Managed Git helper execution does not depend on the post-startup PATH: Git resolves an absolute Kandev-owned agentctl executable published before the first managed Git operation. Local and Worktree preparation binds the helper to the standalone launcher's absolute executable before checkout or setup scripts run. Remote preparation binds it to the installed executor binary before cloning, and a running agentctl publishes its own executable for child processes. Non-interactive Unix login shells that replace their inherited PATH restore the managed CLI-shim directory after profile initialization for broker-enabled tasks, while preserving pre-existing Bash environment hooks, including hook paths containing $VAR or ${VAR} references from the effective child environment. Broker-disabled and executor-inheritance processes receive no shell hook or managed-tool path.
• Under managed routing, every authorized task execution surface receives the same current task-scoped Git environment: the agent subprocess, terminal shells, passthrough-agent PTYs, and task-scoped command processes. This includes the broker contract, managed indexed Git configuration, and the agentctl/gh shim-first PATH; it does not grant access to a browser client, an unrelated host shell, or another workspace's task environment.
• Kandev composes the indexed GIT_CONFIG_COUNT / GIT_CONFIG_KEY_<n> / GIT_CONFIG_VALUE_<n> protocol across host, executor, profile, task, and agentctl boundaries. Unrelated entries such as hooks, notes, safe-directory, and URL-rewrite settings survive in their original order; later Kandev credential entries affect only their intended GitHub credential keys. An already-forwarded suffix is not duplicated.
• Explicit executor-profile GITHUB_TOKEN or GH_TOKEN values remain unmanaged operator overrides and take precedence over the workspace broker when managed routing is selected.
• Every successful task launch or resume records a non-secret session snapshot of the selected policy, effective credential source, known method and actor, transport, executor, and capture time. Inherited and profile-token actors are labeled runtime-selected instead of being probed.
• The unpublished KANDEV_GITHUB_APP_* configuration introduced on this branch is removed. Setting those variables does not create or configure a registration; operators use the guided import flow for an App they already own.
• Existing released workspaces migrate to legacy_shared; upgrades do not rewrite their connection or task policy. New operator-authorized workspaces use the active authenticated host gh account when one can be validated, while member-created workspaces and workspaces created without usable host gh remain disconnected. Once a workspace leaves legacy mode it cannot return. The unpublished singleton registration schema on this branch is rewritten directly and receives no compatibility migration. A valid legacy connection supplies both the existing API client abstraction and an in-memory Git transport credential so provider-backed repositories can be rematerialized from legacy shared managed paths into workspace-isolated clone roots.
• Copying a workspace copies repository preferences but never copies a PAT, CLI account selection, App installation binding, registration secret, or personal identity.

Choosing A Method

Method	Use when	Benefits	Costs and limits
PAT	A local or simple workspace should act as one person	Fast setup; human attribution	Long-lived bearer secret; agents receive its full provider scope
Named gh CLI	The desired human account already exists in local gh auth	No token copied into Kandev; deterministic account selection	Depends on host CLI credentials; remote agents still use the brokered bearer token
GitHub App	An organization or unattended workspace needs managed automation	Short-lived repository-scoped tokens; independent revocation; App attribution	Requires App ownership, callback/webhook configuration, installation, and a public HTTPS URL for full lifecycle health

The workspace UI explains that an App is recommended for background jobs and managed agents, but it does not claim agents can only use the selected method. Explicit executor credentials and other unmanaged tools remain outside Kandev's workspace credential contract.

The automation method and task Git credential policy are independent. Selecting a named gh account does not inherit the host's Git configuration: in managed mode Kandev resolves that exact host/login and brokers its token to the task. Users who want traditional host or executor behavior select Inherit executor Git credentials explicitly.

Identity And Routing

Purpose	First choice	Fallback	Attribution
Background reads and writes	Workspace automation	None	Automation principal
Managed task git and gh access	Workspace automation	Explicit profile token	Automation principal, or runtime-selected override
Inherited task Git access	Executor-visible Git/SSH credentials	None	Runtime-selected
My GitHub reads	Personal connection	Human PAT/CLI automation	Human principal
User-triggered mutation	Personal connection	Human PAT/CLI, then App installation	Effective principal shown in UI

An App-only workspace without personal OAuth remains usable for automation and App-attributed mutations. My GitHub instead offers a personal connection created with the same App registration as the workspace installation.

GitHub App Policy

Kandev-created Apps request repository metadata read; contents read/write; pull requests read/write; issues read/write; checks, statuses, and Actions read; administration read; organization members read; and workflows write. The UI exposes this policy through a permissions button and dialog, not a row of chips. The App subscribes to the configurable push and check_run events. GitHub sends installation, installation_repositories, and github_app_authorization lifecycle events automatically, so they are handled but are not part of the requested event policy.

An imported App must meet the same callback, OAuth-on-install, webhook, event, and permission requirements. Kandev validates the App identity and reports missing capabilities after installation. It does not silently change an imported App's GitHub settings. The guide provides exact values and GitHub links for the user to apply.

Data Model

github_app_registrations

One row per GitHub App known to this Kandev deployment. Registration metadata is catalog state; workspace use is represented only by an explicit workspace connection.

Field	Type	Constraint
id	UUID text	Primary key; allocated before manifest creation
source	enum text	managed (manifest-created) or imported
display_name	text	Non-empty user-facing disambiguator
github_host	text	github.com in this feature
app_id	int64	Positive; unique with github_host
client_id	text	Non-secret App OAuth client identifier
slug	text	Verified App slug
owner_login	text	Verified App owner
owner_type	enum text	User or Organization
visibility	enum text	private or public
public_base_url	text	Canonical public HTTPS origin
created_for_workspace_id	text nullable	Provenance only; not an automatic binding
credential_generation	int64	Positive; cache and lease invalidation key
credential_secret_id	text	Non-empty encrypted bundle pointer
status	enum text	active or invalid
webhook_status	enum text	unverified, verified, or failing
last_webhook_at	timestamp nullable	Last correctly signed delivery for this registration
last_error	text nullable	Sanitized validation or runtime failure
created_at, updated_at	timestamp	Required

Managed and imported credentials are immutable encrypted bundles under github:app-registration:<registration-id>:g<generation>:<nonce>. A versioned bundle contains the private key, client secret, and webhook secret. Metadata points to the active bundle only after the bundle is durable. Every registration is represented by one verified catalog row and encrypted bundle; there is no synthetic, configuration-backed, or globally active registration.

github_app_registration_flows

Manifest flows store state_hash, preallocated registration_id, initiating workspace_id and user_id, owner type/login, display name, visibility, canonical public base URL, manifest revision, expiry, consumption time, and creation time. A new flow for the same workspace supersedes its older unconsumed flow. State is random, hashed at rest, single-use, and expires after one hour.

github_workspace_connections

One row per configured workspace automation identity. Existing fields remain, with:

Field	Type	Constraint
app_registration_id	UUID text nullable	Required only for github_app_installation; FK to github_app_registrations.id with delete restricted

For an App connection, installation_id, verified account login/type, and app_registration_id must all be present. PAT/CLI/legacy rows must have no registration ID.

github_workspace_settings

The non-secret operational settings row adds task_git_credentials_mode, with allowed values:

Value	Behavior
managed	Inject the workspace broker contract for attached GitHub repositories unless an explicit executor-profile token overrides it. Existing missing/invalid values continue to normalize here for upgrade compatibility.
executor	Default persisted for newly created workspaces. Inject no Kandev GitHub helper or gh shim; use credentials available where the selected executor runs.

Missing or invalid persisted values normalize to managed. Workspace-settings copy includes this policy because it is operational configuration, not authentication material.

Task-session credential snapshot

After a successful launch or resume, task-session metadata contains a versioned git_credential_snapshot with:

• selected policy (managed or executor);
• effective source (workspace, executor_profile, or executor);
• workspace method when known (pat, gh_cli, github_app_installation, or legacy_shared);
• a known human/App actor label, or runtime_selected when Kandev does not inspect the credential;
• transport (managed_https, profile_token, or executor_selected), executor type, and capture timestamp.

The snapshot contains no token, lease, helper path, credential-file path, or SSH key detail. A failed launch/resume does not replace the last successful snapshot.

github_user_connections

One optional personal identity per (workspace_id, user_id). Add required app_registration_id, which must equal the current workspace App connection's registration. Access and refresh tokens remain encrypted under workspace/user-derived keys. Switching away from that App deletes the old personal secrets and increments its generation before the new automation connection becomes visible.

github_auth_flows

Installation and personal OAuth flows include app_registration_id in addition to workspace, user, expected connection generation, PKCE material, expiry, and consumption state. A callback is valid only when both its route registration ID and stored registration ID match.

github_webhook_deliveries

The primary key is (app_registration_id, delivery_id). A delivery is claimed only after the registration-specific HMAC signature is verified. The row records event, terminal result, received time, and processed time without payload secrets or tokens.

Background PR, task, and review-watch records retain workspace_id; review watches also retain the verified target human login. Missing or contradictory ownership fails closed.

API Surface

All non-public endpoints require workspace authorization. The current trusted-single-user runtime maps this to default-user; mutually untrusted deployments require real workspace/admin roles before exposing registration management.

Registration catalog

• GET /api/v1/github/app/registrations?workspace_id=<id> returns accessible non-secret registrations, source, identity, visibility, callback URLs, health, whether each is selected by this workspace, and sharing implications. It never returns credentials.
• POST /api/v1/github/app/registrations/manifest/start accepts workspace_id, display_name, owner type/login, visibility, and public base URL. It returns the GitHub owner-specific manifest submission URL, generated manifest, state, registration ID, revision, and expiry.
• GET /api/v1/github/app/registrations/:registrationId/manifest/callback consumes state, converts the one-hour code, verifies identity and policy, commits an encrypted bundle plus metadata, and returns to that workspace's GitHub settings. It does not select or install the App automatically.
• POST /api/v1/github/app/registrations/import/prepare creates a short-lived, single-use import preparation for the initiating workspace. It returns registration_id, public_base_url, manifest_callback_url, install_callback_url, personal_callback_url, webhook_url, permissions, events, and expires_at so the user can configure the existing App before submitting any root credentials. The legacy setup_url response field is retained for client compatibility and is always empty because OAuth-on-install disables GitHub's Setup URL.
• POST /api/v1/github/app/registrations/import consumes the prepared registration_id and accepts the workspace context, label, App ID, client ID/secret, slug, private key, webhook secret, owner, and visibility. It verifies the App via GitHub before atomically persisting it. Duplicate (host, app_id) returns github_app_already_registered and the non-secret existing registration ID.
• PATCH /api/v1/github/app/registrations/:registrationId changes only display_name.
• DELETE /api/v1/github/app/registrations/:registrationId deletes a registration only when no workspace or personal connection references it.

Workspace automation

• GET /api/v1/github/status?workspace_id=<id> returns automation, personal identity, effective actors, App registration metadata, capabilities, missing permissions, and migration state.
• GET /api/v1/github/workspace-settings?workspace_id=<id> returns repository scope, saved preferences, and task_git_credentials_mode.
• PUT /api/v1/github/workspace-settings accepts a partial task_git_credentials_mode update and rejects unknown values without changing the prior policy.
• GET /api/v1/github/auth/gh-cli/accounts?workspace_id=<id> lists exact local host/login choices.
• PUT /api/v1/github/workspace-connection?workspace_id=<id> configures validated PAT or named CLI auth. App connections can only be committed by the verified installation callback.
• POST /api/v1/github/app/install/start accepts workspace_id and app_registration_id, stores a single-use flow, and returns the registration-specific GitHub installation URL.
• GET /api/v1/github/app/registrations/:registrationId/install/callback verifies state, App, installation, authorizing user, and owner association before atomically replacing workspace automation. Failure leaves the previous automation connection unchanged.
• DELETE /api/v1/github/workspace-connection?workspace_id=<id> removes workspace secret material and the App installation binding but never deletes or uninstalls the registration.
• POST /api/v1/github/app/registrations/:registrationId/webhook is public. It chooses exactly that registration's webhook secret, validates HMAC before parsing or claiming the delivery, and only mutates connections whose registration and installation both match.

Personal identity

• POST /api/v1/github/personal-connection/start uses the workspace's active App registration and returns its PKCE/state authorization URL.
• GET /api/v1/github/app/registrations/:registrationId/personal/callback validates route, state, PKCE, current workspace registration, and GitHub user before storing tokens.
• DELETE /api/v1/github/personal-connection?workspace_id=<id> deletes only the current user's workspace personal connection and secrets.

Existing /api/v1/github/token remains a one-release compatibility alias with mandatory workspace_id and a deprecation header.