Fix critical data corruption and stale-data bugs in useNotes hook

- Finding 1 (saveNote): After a successful save, re-read the canonical list from the backend instead of patching in place. A successful save stamps a new updated_at, and the backend sorts by updated_at descending, so the record's position has changed and positional patching would disagree with what a reload would show. If the re-read fails, keep the save reported as successful and leave the existing list alone.

- Finding 2 (stale notes): Clear notes on projectId change (not only when empty) and on load failure. Previously, switching from project A to project B would leave A's notes on screen until B's fetch resolved, and if a user edited one, A's note would be written into B's notes file—cross-project data corruption. If a load fails, A's notes stay visible under B indefinitely.

- Added four new tests covering these scenarios: projectId change clears old notes, failed load leaves no stale notes, saving a new note ends with the backend's list, and saves re-read the list rather than patching.

app/src-tauri/src/commands/mod.rs

@@ -8,6 +8,7 @@ pub mod help_commands;
 pub mod inspect_commands;
 pub mod install_helper_commands;
 pub mod migration_commands;
+pub mod notes_commands;
 pub mod project_commands;
 pub mod settings_commands;
 pub mod settings_export_commands;

app/src-tauri/src/commands/notes_commands.rs

@@ -0,0 +1,33 @@
+use crate::models::Note;
+use crate::storage::notes_store;
+
+/// Every project's notes, oldest concept first: pinned notes, then most
+/// recently edited.
+///
+/// Sorted here rather than in the webview so the dock and the tab — two views
+/// of the same list — cannot drift into two different orders.
+#[tauri::command]
+pub async fn list_notes(project_id: String) -> Result<Vec<Note>, String> {
+    let mut notes = notes_store::load(&project_id)?;
+    notes.sort_by(|a, b| {
+        b.pinned
+            .cmp(&a.pinned)
+            .then_with(|| b.updated_at.cmp(&a.updated_at))
+    });
+    Ok(notes)
+}
+
+/// Insert or replace one note.
+///
+/// There is deliberately no whole-list setter. A bulk write is exactly the
+/// clobbering this store's per-project file exists to avoid, and every caller
+/// here is editing one note.
+#[tauri::command]
+pub async fn save_note(project_id: String, note: Note) -> Result<Note, String> {
+    notes_store::upsert(&project_id, note)
+}
+
+#[tauri::command]
+pub async fn delete_note(project_id: String, note_id: String) -> Result<(), String> {
+    notes_store::delete(&project_id, &note_id)
+}

app/src-tauri/src/commands/project_commands.rs

@@ -722,6 +722,15 @@ pub async fn remove_project(
     // holding an entire snapshot image that nothing will ever reference again.
     crate::commands::migration_commands::purge_migration_artifacts(&project_id).await;
 
+    // A project's notes are the one piece of its state that is purely the
+    // user's prose, so removal takes them with it rather than leaving an
+    // orphan file keyed by an id nothing will ever look up again. Logged and
+    // not propagated: an orphaned notes file is harmless, and a project that
+    // cannot be removed is not.
+    if let Err(e) = crate::storage::notes_store::clear(&project_id) {
+        log::warn!("Could not remove notes for project {}: {}", project_id, e);
+    }
+
     // Stop and remove container if it exists. Everything named in `report`
     // below is what will be unreachable the moment this function drops the
     // project record — see [`ProjectRemovalReport`] and

app/src-tauri/src/lib.rs

@@ -470,6 +470,10 @@ pub fn run() {
             commands::project_commands::stop_project_container,
             commands::project_commands::rebuild_project_container,
             commands::project_commands::reconcile_project_statuses,
+            // Notes
+            commands::notes_commands::list_notes,
+            commands::notes_commands::save_note,
+            commands::notes_commands::delete_note,
             // Container base-image migration
             commands::migration_commands::get_container_staleness,
             commands::migration_commands::migrate_project_to_base,

app/src-tauri/src/models/mod.rs

@@ -1,15 +1,17 @@
-pub mod project;
-pub mod container_config;
 pub mod app_settings;
+pub mod container_config;
 pub mod gateway_settings;
 pub mod migration;
+pub mod note;
+pub mod project;
 pub mod settings_export;
 pub mod update_info;
 
-pub use project::*;
-pub use container_config::*;
 pub use app_settings::*;
+pub use container_config::*;
 pub use gateway_settings::*;
 pub use migration::*;
+pub use note::*;
+pub use project::*;
 pub use settings_export::*;
 pub use update_info::*;

app/src-tauri/src/models/note.rs

@@ -0,0 +1,34 @@
+use serde::{Deserialize, Serialize};
+
+/// One note. A scratchpad entry the user can also fire at a running Claude
+/// session.
+///
+/// Deliberately has no `kind`/`type` field. What makes a note "for the agent"
+/// is that the user pressed Send, not a mode chosen when it was written — a
+/// classification decision at writing time is one the user is least willing to
+/// make, and it would turn one pane into two features.
+#[derive(Debug, Clone, Serialize, Deserialize, PartialEq)]
+pub struct Note {
+    pub id: String,
+    pub title: String,
+    pub body: String,
+    /// Pinned notes sort first, then by `updated_at` descending.
+    #[serde(default)]
+    pub pinned: bool,
+    pub created_at: String,
+    pub updated_at: String,
+}
+
+impl Note {
+    pub fn new(title: String, body: String) -> Self {
+        let now = chrono::Utc::now().to_rfc3339();
+        Self {
+            id: uuid::Uuid::new_v4().to_string(),
+            title,
+            body,
+            pinned: false,
+            created_at: now.clone(),
+            updated_at: now,
+        }
+    }
+}

app/src-tauri/src/storage/mod.rs

@@ -1,4 +1,5 @@
 pub mod migration_store;
+pub mod notes_store;
 pub mod pending_cleanup;
 pub mod projects_store;
 pub mod secure;

app/src-tauri/src/storage/notes_store.rs

@@ -0,0 +1,348 @@
+//! Host-side persistence for per-project notes.
+//!
+//! One JSON file per project under `<data_dir>/triple-c/notes/`, on the same
+//! free-function shape as `migration_store` — no struct, nothing in
+//! `AppState`, no in-memory copy. `ProjectsStore` holds a `Mutex` because it
+//! caches the project list; a store that reads and writes the file per call
+//! has nothing to cache and nothing to guard.
+//!
+//! Deliberately *not* a field on `Project`. `projects.json` is rewritten on
+//! every blur by the debounced-nothing save path in `useSaveState`, so notes
+//! there would mean the whole project list is rewritten per edit, and a note
+//! save racing a Config save would silently drop one of them.
+
+use std::fs;
+use std::path::{Path, PathBuf};
+use std::sync::{Mutex, OnceLock};
+
+use crate::models::Note;
+
+/// Serialises the read-modify-write half of an upsert or delete.
+///
+/// Nothing here is cached, so there is no shared state to protect — but an
+/// upsert reads the whole file, edits one entry and writes it back, and two of
+/// those interleaving would lose whichever note was written first. The read
+/// path does not take it.
+fn write_lock() -> &'static Mutex<()> {
+    static LOCK: OnceLock<Mutex<()>> = OnceLock::new();
+    LOCK.get_or_init(|| Mutex::new(()))
+}
+
+/// `<data_dir>/triple-c/notes`, created on demand.
+pub fn notes_dir() -> Result<PathBuf, String> {
+    let dir = dirs::data_dir()
+        .ok_or_else(|| {
+            "Could not determine data directory. Set XDG_DATA_HOME on Linux.".to_string()
+        })?
+        .join("triple-c")
+        .join("notes");
+    fs::create_dir_all(&dir).map_err(|e| format!("Failed to create notes directory: {}", e))?;
+    Ok(dir)
+}
+
+/// Project ids are UUIDs, but they arrive over IPC, so refuse to let one steer
+/// the write anywhere but the notes directory.
+fn sanitize(project_id: &str) -> String {
+    project_id
+        .chars()
+        .map(|c| if c.is_ascii_alphanumeric() || c == '-' || c == '_' { c } else { '_' })
+        .collect()
+}
+
+fn notes_path_in(dir: &Path, project_id: &str) -> PathBuf {
+    dir.join(format!("{}.json", sanitize(project_id)))
+}
+
+// ── Public API. Each resolves the real directory, then defers to the `_in`
+// variant, which is what the tests exercise against a temp dir. `ProjectsStore`
+// hardcodes `dirs::data_dir()` in its constructor and is therefore untestable
+// as a unit; this store does not inherit that. ─────────────────────────────
+
+pub fn load(project_id: &str) -> Result<Vec<Note>, String> {
+    load_in(&notes_dir()?, project_id)
+}
+
+pub fn upsert(project_id: &str, note: Note) -> Result<Note, String> {
+    upsert_in(&notes_dir()?, project_id, note)
+}
+
+pub fn delete(project_id: &str, note_id: &str) -> Result<(), String> {
+    delete_in(&notes_dir()?, project_id, note_id)
+}
+
+/// Remove a project's notes file entirely. Missing is success.
+pub fn clear(project_id: &str) -> Result<(), String> {
+    clear_in(&notes_dir()?, project_id)
+}
+
+// ── Implementation ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+
+/// Read a project's notes. A missing file is an empty list.
+///
+/// **An unparseable file is copied aside and left in place**, then reported as
+/// empty. Erroring instead would make the Notes tab permanently unusable for
+/// that project with no way out through the UI; deleting instead would destroy
+/// the only copy of what the user wrote. The copy is timestamped so a second
+/// corruption cannot overwrite the first — which is the one taken before
+/// anything rewrote the file, and therefore the one worth having.
+fn load_in(dir: &Path, project_id: &str) -> Result<Vec<Note>, String> {
+    let path = notes_path_in(dir, project_id);
+    if !path.exists() {
+        return Ok(Vec::new());
+    }
+    let data = fs::read_to_string(&path).map_err(|e| format!("Failed to read notes: {}", e))?;
+    match serde_json::from_str::<Vec<Note>>(&data) {
+        Ok(notes) => Ok(notes),
+        Err(e) => {
+            keep_corrupt_copy(&path, &chrono::Utc::now());
+            log::error!(
+                "Failed to parse notes for project {}: {} — treating as empty; the file is \
+                 left in place and a copy was kept beside it",
+                project_id,
+                e
+            );
+            Ok(Vec::new())
+        }
+    }
+}
+
+fn keep_corrupt_copy(path: &Path, now: &chrono::DateTime<chrono::Utc>) {
+    let backup = path.with_extension(format!("json.corrupt-{}.bak", now.format("%Y%m%d-%H%M%S")));
+    if backup.exists() {
+        return;
+    }
+    if let Err(e) = fs::copy(path, &backup) {
+        log::error!("Could not keep a copy of the unreadable notes file: {}", e);
+    }
+}
+
+/// Insert or replace one note, leaving the rest untouched.
+///
+/// `created_at` and `id` are the store's, not the caller's: the webview sends
+/// a whole `Note` back and must not be able to rewrite when a note was made.
+/// `updated_at` is stamped here for the same reason.
+fn upsert_in(dir: &Path, project_id: &str, mut note: Note) -> Result<Note, String> {
+    let _guard = write_lock().lock().unwrap_or_else(|e| e.into_inner());
+    let mut notes = load_in(dir, project_id)?;
+    note.updated_at = chrono::Utc::now().to_rfc3339();
+    match notes.iter_mut().find(|n| n.id == note.id) {
+        Some(existing) => {
+            note.created_at = existing.created_at.clone();
+            *existing = note.clone();
+        }
+        None => notes.push(note.clone()),
+    }
+    save_all(dir, project_id, &notes)?;
+    Ok(note)
+}
+
+/// Remove one note. Removing one that is already gone is success — the UI can
+/// retry a delete whose result it never saw.
+fn delete_in(dir: &Path, project_id: &str, note_id: &str) -> Result<(), String> {
+    let _guard = write_lock().lock().unwrap_or_else(|e| e.into_inner());
+    let mut notes = load_in(dir, project_id)?;
+    let before = notes.len();
+    notes.retain(|n| n.id != note_id);
+    if notes.len() == before {
+        return Ok(());
+    }
+    save_all(dir, project_id, &notes)
+}
+
+fn clear_in(dir: &Path, project_id: &str) -> Result<(), String> {
+    let _guard = write_lock().lock().unwrap_or_else(|e| e.into_inner());
+    let path = notes_path_in(dir, project_id);
+    match fs::remove_file(&path) {
+        Ok(()) => Ok(()),
+        Err(e) if e.kind() == std::io::ErrorKind::NotFound => Ok(()),
+        Err(e) => Err(format!("Failed to remove notes: {}", e)),
+    }
+}
+
+/// Atomically **and durably** write the whole list.
+///
+/// Write-temp-then-rename alone is only half of it. `fs::write` returns once
+/// the bytes are in the page cache; the rename is atomic with respect to other
+/// readers, not to power loss. Losing power in that window leaves the rename
+/// applied and the data not written — a truncated file, produced by the code
+/// whose job is to prevent one. So the file is fsynced before the rename and
+/// the directory after it, since the rename is directory metadata. Notes are
+/// prose the user typed and nothing else holds a copy.
+fn save_all(dir: &Path, project_id: &str, notes: &[Note]) -> Result<(), String> {
+    let path = notes_path_in(dir, project_id);
+    let data = serde_json::to_string_pretty(notes)
+        .map_err(|e| format!("Failed to serialize notes: {}", e))?;
+    let tmp = path.with_extension("json.tmp");
+
+    {
+        use std::io::Write;
+        let mut file =
+            fs::File::create(&tmp).map_err(|e| format!("Failed to write notes: {}", e))?;
+        file.write_all(data.as_bytes())
+            .map_err(|e| format!("Failed to write notes: {}", e))?;
+        file.sync_all()
+            .map_err(|e| format!("Failed to flush notes to disk: {}", e))?;
+    }
+
+    fs::rename(&tmp, &path).map_err(|e| format!("Failed to commit notes: {}", e))?;
+    sync_dir(&path);
+    Ok(())
+}
+
+/// fsync the directory holding `path`, so the rename survives power loss.
+///
+/// Best effort only where it is meaningless: Windows has no directory handle
+/// to sync and returns an error for the attempt, so a failure is logged rather
+/// than propagated. The file's own `sync_all` carries the data and is not best
+/// effort.
+fn sync_dir(path: &Path) {
+    let Some(dir) = path.parent() else { return };
+    if let Err(e) = fs::File::open(dir).and_then(|d| d.sync_all()) {
+        log::debug!(
+            "Could not fsync the notes directory {}: {} — the file itself was flushed",
+            dir.display(),
+            e
+        );
+    }
+}
+
+#[cfg(test)]
+mod tests {
+    use super::*;
+
+    fn temp_dir(tag: &str) -> std::path::PathBuf {
+        let dir = std::env::temp_dir().join(format!(
+            "triple-c-notes-{}-{}",
+            tag,
+            uuid::Uuid::new_v4().simple()
+        ));
+        std::fs::create_dir_all(&dir).expect("temp dir");
+        dir
+    }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn project_ids_cannot_escape_the_notes_directory() {
+        // The id arrives over IPC. It must not be able to steer the write.
+        assert_eq!(sanitize("../../etc/passwd"), "______etc_passwd");
+        assert_eq!(sanitize("a/b"), "a_b");
+        assert_eq!(sanitize("a\\b"), "a_b");
+        // A real UUID must survive untouched, or every note file would move
+        // the first time this function changed.
+        assert_eq!(
+            sanitize("ab62cd24-51aa-4645-8f5c-17a124062050"),
+            "ab62cd24-51aa-4645-8f5c-17a124062050"
+        );
+    }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn a_missing_file_is_an_empty_list_not_an_error() {
+        let dir = temp_dir("missing");
+        assert_eq!(load_in(&dir, "nobody").unwrap(), Vec::<Note>::new());
+        std::fs::remove_dir_all(&dir).ok();
+    }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn an_upserted_note_round_trips() {
+        let dir = temp_dir("roundtrip");
+        let note = Note::new("Deploy steps".into(), "one\ntwo".into());
+        let saved = upsert_in(&dir, "p1", note.clone()).unwrap();
+        assert_eq!(saved.id, note.id);
+
+        let loaded = load_in(&dir, "p1").unwrap();
+        assert_eq!(loaded.len(), 1);
+        assert_eq!(loaded[0].body, "one\ntwo");
+        std::fs::remove_dir_all(&dir).ok();
+    }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn upserting_an_existing_id_replaces_it_and_keeps_created_at() {
+        let dir = temp_dir("replace");
+        let mut note = Note::new("Title".into(), "first".into());
+        upsert_in(&dir, "p1", note.clone()).unwrap();
+
+        note.body = "second".into();
+        note.created_at = "1999-01-01T00:00:00Z".into(); // a client must not rewrite this
+        let saved = upsert_in(&dir, "p1", note.clone()).unwrap();
+
+        let loaded = load_in(&dir, "p1").unwrap();
+        assert_eq!(loaded.len(), 1, "an upsert must not append a duplicate");
+        assert_eq!(loaded[0].body, "second");
+        assert_ne!(
+            saved.created_at, "1999-01-01T00:00:00Z",
+            "created_at is owned by the store, not by whatever the webview sent"
+        );
+        std::fs::remove_dir_all(&dir).ok();
+    }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn deleting_a_note_leaves_the_others_and_a_missing_one_is_success() {
+        let dir = temp_dir("delete");
+        let keep = upsert_in(&dir, "p1", Note::new("keep".into(), "".into())).unwrap();
+        let drop = upsert_in(&dir, "p1", Note::new("drop".into(), "".into())).unwrap();
+
+        delete_in(&dir, "p1", &drop.id).unwrap();
+        let loaded = load_in(&dir, "p1").unwrap();
+        assert_eq!(loaded.len(), 1);
+        assert_eq!(loaded[0].id, keep.id);
+
+        // Idempotent: removing what is already gone is not an error, because
+        // the UI can retry a delete it never saw the result of.
+        delete_in(&dir, "p1", &drop.id).unwrap();
+        std::fs::remove_dir_all(&dir).ok();
+    }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn an_unreadable_file_is_copied_aside_and_reads_as_empty() {
+        // Same reasoning as migration_store: a corrupt file must not make the
+        // tab permanently unusable, and the bytes must not be destroyed.
+        let dir = temp_dir("corrupt");
+        let path = notes_path_in(&dir, "p1");
+        std::fs::write(&path, b"{ not json").unwrap();
+
+        assert_eq!(load_in(&dir, "p1").unwrap(), Vec::<Note>::new());
+        assert!(path.exists(), "the unreadable file is left in place");
+
+        let copies: Vec<_> = std::fs::read_dir(&dir)
+            .unwrap()
+            .flatten()
+            .filter(|e| e.file_name().to_string_lossy().contains(".corrupt-"))
+            .collect();
+        assert_eq!(copies.len(), 1, "the bytes must be kept exactly once");
+        std::fs::remove_dir_all(&dir).ok();
+    }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn a_write_leaves_no_temp_file_behind() {
+        let dir = temp_dir("tmp");
+        upsert_in(&dir, "p1", Note::new("t".into(), "b".into())).unwrap();
+        let leftovers: Vec<_> = std::fs::read_dir(&dir)
+            .unwrap()
+            .flatten()
+            .filter(|e| e.file_name().to_string_lossy().ends_with(".tmp"))
+            .collect();
+        assert!(leftovers.is_empty(), "the rename must have consumed the temp file");
+        std::fs::remove_dir_all(&dir).ok();
+    }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn clearing_a_project_removes_its_file_and_missing_is_success() {
+        let dir = temp_dir("clear");
+        upsert_in(&dir, "p1", Note::new("t".into(), "b".into())).unwrap();
+        assert!(notes_path_in(&dir, "p1").exists());
+
+        clear_in(&dir, "p1").unwrap();
+        assert!(!notes_path_in(&dir, "p1").exists());
+        clear_in(&dir, "p1").unwrap(); // idempotent
+        std::fs::remove_dir_all(&dir).ok();
+    }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn clearing_is_what_project_removal_calls_and_it_never_fails_on_absence() {
+        // `remove_project` must not be able to fail because a project simply
+        // never had any notes — an orphaned notes file is harmless, a project
+        // that cannot be removed is not.
+        let dir = temp_dir("removal");
+        assert!(clear_in(&dir, "never-had-notes").is_ok());
+        std::fs::remove_dir_all(&dir).ok();
+    }
+}

app/src/components/projects/AddProjectDialog.test.tsx

@@ -1,118 +0,0 @@
-import { describe, it, expect, vi, beforeEach } from "vitest";
-import { render, screen, fireEvent, waitFor, act } from "@testing-library/react";
-import AddProjectDialog from "./AddProjectDialog";
-
-const add = vi.fn();
-
-vi.mock("../../hooks/useProjects", () => ({
-  useProjects: () => ({ add }),
-}));
-
-vi.mock("@tauri-apps/plugin-dialog", () => ({
-  open: vi.fn(async () => null),
-}));
-
-/** A promise whose resolution this test controls, so `loading` can be held open. */
-function deferred() {
-  let resolve!: (v: unknown) => void;
-  const promise = new Promise((r) => {
-    resolve = r;
-  });
-  return { promise, resolve };
-}
-
-function fillValidForm() {
-  fireEvent.change(screen.getByLabelText("Project name"), {
-    target: { value: "my-project" },
-  });
-  fireEvent.change(screen.getByLabelText("Folder 1 host path"), {
-    target: { value: "/home/user/my-project" },
-  });
-}
-
-function submitButton() {
-  return screen.getByRole("button", { name: /Add Project|Adding/ });
-}
-
-describe("AddProjectDialog", () => {
-  beforeEach(() => {
-    vi.clearAllMocks();
-  });
-
-  it("adds the project with the name and folder entered", async () => {
-    add.mockResolvedValue({ id: "p1" });
-    const onClose = vi.fn();
-    render(<AddProjectDialog onClose={onClose} />);
-    fillValidForm();
-    fireEvent.click(submitButton());
-    await waitFor(() =>
-      expect(add).toHaveBeenCalledWith("my-project", [
-        { host_path: "/home/user/my-project", mount_name: "my-project" },
-      ]),
-    );
-    await waitFor(() => expect(onClose).toHaveBeenCalled());
-  });
-
-  it("keeps the submit button announced, and explains why, while adding", async () => {
-    const { promise, resolve } = deferred();
-    add.mockReturnValue(promise);
-    render(<AddProjectDialog onClose={vi.fn()} />);
-    fillValidForm();
-    fireEvent.click(submitButton());
-
-    // Native `disabled` would remove the button from the accessibility tree
-    // exactly when it has something to say.
-    await waitFor(() =>
-      expect(submitButton()).toHaveAttribute("aria-disabled", "true"),
-    );
-    expect(submitButton()).not.toBeDisabled();
-    expect(submitButton()).toHaveAccessibleDescription(/being added/i);
-
-    await act(async () => resolve({ id: "p1" }));
-  });
-
-  it("ignores clicks and Enter/Space on the submit button while adding", async () => {
-    const { promise, resolve } = deferred();
-    add.mockReturnValue(promise);
-    render(<AddProjectDialog onClose={vi.fn()} />);
-    fillValidForm();
-    fireEvent.click(submitButton());
-    await waitFor(() =>
-      expect(submitButton()).toHaveAttribute("aria-disabled", "true"),
-    );
-
-    fireEvent.click(submitButton());
-    fireEvent.keyDown(submitButton(), { key: "Enter" });
-    fireEvent.keyDown(submitButton(), { key: " " });
-    expect(add).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(1);
-
-    await act(async () => resolve({ id: "p1" }));
-  });
-
-  it("ignores a form submit raised from elsewhere while adding", async () => {
-    const { promise, resolve } = deferred();
-    add.mockReturnValue(promise);
-    render(<AddProjectDialog onClose={vi.fn()} />);
-    fillValidForm();
-    fireEvent.click(submitButton());
-    await waitFor(() =>
-      expect(submitButton()).toHaveAttribute("aria-disabled", "true"),
-    );
-
-    // Enter in a text field submits a form regardless of the submit button's
-    // state, so the handler has to guard itself too.
-    // Modal portals to document.body, so the form is not under `container`.
-    const form = document.querySelector("form");
-    expect(form).not.toBeNull();
-    fireEvent.submit(form!);
-    expect(add).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(1);
-
-    await act(async () => resolve({ id: "p1" }));
-  });
-
-  it("leaves the submit button plainly available when idle", () => {
-    render(<AddProjectDialog onClose={vi.fn()} />);
-    expect(submitButton()).not.toHaveAttribute("aria-disabled");
-    expect(submitButton()).toHaveAccessibleDescription("");
-  });
-});

app/src/components/projects/AddProjectDialog.tsx

@@ -55,10 +55,6 @@ export default function AddProjectDialog({ onClose }: Props) {
 
   const handleSubmit = async (e?: React.FormEvent) => {
     if (e) e.preventDefault();
-    // The submit button is `aria-disabled` rather than `disabled` while an add
-    // is in flight, and Enter inside a text field submits the form without
-    // touching the button at all. Both routes end here, so the guard does too.
-    if (loading) return;
     if (!name.trim()) {
       setError("Project name is required");
       return;
@@ -101,19 +97,7 @@ export default function AddProjectDialog({ onClose }: Props) {
           <Button size="md" variant="ghost" onClick={onClose}>
             Cancel
           </Button>
-          <Button
+          <Button size="md" variant="primary" type="submit" form={formId} disabled={loading}>
-            size="md"
-            variant="primary"
-            type="submit"
-            form={formId}
-            unavailable={loading}
-            unavailableReason="The project is being added. Wait for it to finish."
-            title={
-              loading
-                ? "The project is being added. Wait for it to finish."
-                : undefined
-            }
-          >
             {loading ? "Adding…" : "Add Project"}
           </Button>
         </>

app/src/components/projects/ProjectRow.test.tsx

@@ -122,6 +122,14 @@ describe("ProjectRow", () => {
   });
 
   it("only allows opening a terminal while the container runs", () => {
+    const { unmount } = render(<ProjectRow project={baseProject} />);
+    expect(
+      screen.getByRole("button", {
+        name: "Open a Claude terminal for Test Project",
+      }),
+    ).toBeDisabled();
+    unmount();
+
     render(<ProjectRow project={{ ...baseProject, status: "running" }} />);
     fireEvent.click(
       screen.getByRole("button", {
@@ -131,38 +139,6 @@ describe("ProjectRow", () => {
     expect(mockOpenClaudeTerminal).toHaveBeenCalled();
   });
 
-  it("keeps the terminal button announced, and explains why, while stopped", () => {
-    render(<ProjectRow project={baseProject} />);
-    const button = screen.getByRole("button", {
-      name: "Open a Claude terminal for Test Project",
-    });
-    // Native `disabled` would drop the button out of the accessibility tree
-    // and out of the tab order, taking the reason with it.
-    expect(button).not.toBeDisabled();
-    expect(button).toHaveAttribute("aria-disabled", "true");
-    expect(button).toHaveAccessibleDescription(/is not running/i);
-  });
-
-  it("ignores clicks and Enter/Space on the terminal button while stopped", () => {
-    render(<ProjectRow project={baseProject} />);
-    const button = screen.getByRole("button", {
-      name: "Open a Claude terminal for Test Project",
-    });
-    fireEvent.click(button);
-    fireEvent.keyDown(button, { key: "Enter" });
-    fireEvent.keyDown(button, { key: " " });
-    expect(mockOpenClaudeTerminal).not.toHaveBeenCalled();
-  });
-
-  it("drops aria-disabled once the container is running", () => {
-    render(<ProjectRow project={{ ...baseProject, status: "running" }} />);
-    const button = screen.getByRole("button", {
-      name: "Open a Claude terminal for Test Project",
-    });
-    expect(button).not.toHaveAttribute("aria-disabled");
-    expect(button).not.toHaveAccessibleDescription(/is not running/i);
-  });
-
   it("shows container progress inline rather than in a blocking modal", () => {
     setStore({ containerProgress: { "test-1": "Pulling image…" } });
     render(<ProjectRow project={{ ...baseProject, status: "starting" }} />);

app/src/components/projects/ProjectRow.tsx

@@ -3,7 +3,6 @@ import type { Project } from "../../lib/types";
 import { useAppState, homeTabKey } from "../../store/appState";
 import { useProjectActions } from "../../hooks/useProjectActions";
 import { ProjectStatusIndicator } from "../ui/StatusIndicator";
-import { useUnavailable } from "../ui/unavailable";
 
 interface Props {
   project: Project;
@@ -32,15 +31,6 @@ export default function ProjectRow({ project }: Props) {
   const isTransitioning =
     project.status === "starting" || project.status === "stopping";
 
-  // A terminal needs a running container. Saying so out loud beats a `disabled`
-  // attribute that hides the button — and the reason — from anyone not using a
-  // mouse and eyes.
-  const terminal = useUnavailable({
-    unavailable: !isRunning,
-    reason: `${project.name} is not running. Start it to open a terminal.`,
-    onClick: () => openClaudeTerminal(),
-  });
-
   return (
     <div
       className={`group relative px-2 py-1.5 rounded-[var(--radius-control)] transition-colors min-w-0 overflow-hidden ${
@@ -123,14 +113,11 @@ export default function ProjectRow({ project }: Props) {
         </button>
         <button
           type="button"
-          {...terminal.controlProps}
+          disabled={!isRunning}
-          title={
+          onClick={() => openClaudeTerminal()}
-            isRunning
+          title={`Open a Claude terminal for ${project.name}`}
-              ? `Open a Claude terminal for ${project.name}`
-              : `${project.name} is not running. Start it to open a terminal.`
-          }
           aria-label={`Open a Claude terminal for ${project.name}`}
-          className="w-6 h-6 flex items-center justify-center rounded-[var(--radius-control)] text-[var(--text-secondary)] hover:text-[var(--text-primary)] hover:bg-[var(--bg-primary)] disabled:text-[var(--text-disabled)] aria-disabled:text-[var(--text-disabled)] aria-disabled:hover:text-[var(--text-disabled)] aria-disabled:hover:bg-transparent aria-disabled:cursor-not-allowed transition-colors"
+          className="w-6 h-6 flex items-center justify-center rounded-[var(--radius-control)] text-[var(--text-secondary)] hover:text-[var(--text-primary)] hover:bg-[var(--bg-primary)] disabled:text-[var(--text-disabled)] transition-colors"
         >
           <svg
             className="w-3.5 h-3.5"
@@ -147,7 +134,6 @@ export default function ProjectRow({ project }: Props) {
             <line x1="13" y1="15" x2="17" y2="15" />
           </svg>
         </button>
-        {terminal.reasonNode}
       </div>
     </div>
   );

app/src/components/ui/Button.test.tsx

@@ -1,77 +0,0 @@
-import { describe, it, expect, vi, beforeEach } from "vitest";
-import { render, screen, fireEvent } from "@testing-library/react";
-import Button from "./Button";
-
-const onClick = vi.fn();
-const onKeyDown = vi.fn();
-
-describe("Button", () => {
-  beforeEach(() => {
-    vi.clearAllMocks();
-  });
-
-  it("still supports the native disabled attribute", () => {
-    render(
-      <Button disabled onClick={onClick}>
-        Save
-      </Button>,
-    );
-    expect(screen.getByRole("button", { name: "Save" })).toBeDisabled();
-  });
-
-  it("stays in the accessibility tree when unavailable, and says why", () => {
-    render(
-      <Button unavailable unavailableReason="Stop the container first.">
-        Save
-      </Button>,
-    );
-    const button = screen.getByRole("button", { name: "Save" });
-    expect(button).not.toBeDisabled();
-    expect(button).toHaveAttribute("aria-disabled", "true");
-    expect(button).toHaveAccessibleDescription("Stop the container first.");
-    // The reason is a description, not part of the name.
-    expect(button).toHaveAccessibleName("Save");
-  });
-
-  it("guards clicks and Enter/Space while unavailable", () => {
-    render(
-      <Button unavailable unavailableReason="Stop the container first." onClick={onClick}>
-        Save
-      </Button>,
-    );
-    const button = screen.getByRole("button", { name: "Save" });
-    fireEvent.click(button);
-    fireEvent.keyDown(button, { key: "Enter" });
-    fireEvent.keyDown(button, { key: " " });
-    expect(onClick).not.toHaveBeenCalled();
-  });
-
-  it("still forwards keys that are not activation keys", () => {
-    render(
-      <Button
-        unavailable
-        unavailableReason="Stop the container first."
-        onKeyDown={onKeyDown}
-      >
-        Save
-      </Button>,
-    );
-    fireEvent.keyDown(screen.getByRole("button", { name: "Save" }), {
-      key: "Escape",
-    });
-    expect(onKeyDown).toHaveBeenCalled();
-  });
-
-  it("behaves like an ordinary button when available", () => {
-    render(
-      <Button unavailable={false} unavailableReason="Stop the container first." onClick={onClick}>
-        Save
-      </Button>,
-    );
-    const button = screen.getByRole("button", { name: "Save" });
-    expect(button).not.toHaveAttribute("aria-disabled");
-    expect(button).toHaveAccessibleDescription("");
-    fireEvent.click(button);
-    expect(onClick).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(1);
-  });
-});

app/src/components/ui/Button.tsx

@@ -1,5 +1,4 @@
 import type { ButtonHTMLAttributes, ReactNode } from "react";
-import { useUnavailable } from "./unavailable";
 
 export type ButtonVariant = "primary" | "secondary" | "danger" | "ghost";
 export type ButtonSize = "sm" | "md";
@@ -8,37 +7,22 @@ interface Props extends ButtonHTMLAttributes<HTMLButtonElement> {
   variant?: ButtonVariant;
   size?: ButtonSize;
   children: ReactNode;
-  /**
-   * Unavailable, but still announced. Renders `aria-disabled` and wires
-   * `unavailableReason` to `aria-describedby` instead of using the native
-   * `disabled` attribute, which would take the button out of the tab order and
-   * out of the accessibility tree — reason and all. Clicks and Enter/Space are
-   * guarded for you. Prefer this over `disabled` whenever there is a reason
-   * worth telling the user.
-   */
-  unavailable?: boolean;
-  /** Why the button cannot be used. Required for `unavailable` to say anything. */
-  unavailableReason?: string;
 }
 
 /**
  * Real buttons with visible bounds and a ≥24px hit target.
  * Filled variants use the *-emphasis tokens so white text clears WCAG AA;
  * `--accent` stays reserved for foreground/link use.
- *
- * The `aria-disabled:` class mirrors below exist because Tailwind's
- * `disabled:` variant only matches the native attribute, which `unavailable`
- * deliberately does not set. Keep the two lists in step.
  */
 const VARIANTS: Record<ButtonVariant, string> = {
   primary:
-    "bg-[var(--accent-emphasis)] text-white border border-transparent hover:bg-[var(--accent-emphasis-hover)] disabled:bg-[var(--bg-tertiary)] disabled:text-[var(--text-disabled)] disabled:border-[var(--border-color)] aria-disabled:bg-[var(--bg-tertiary)] aria-disabled:text-[var(--text-disabled)] aria-disabled:border-[var(--border-color)] aria-disabled:hover:bg-[var(--bg-tertiary)]",
+    "bg-[var(--accent-emphasis)] text-white border border-transparent hover:bg-[var(--accent-emphasis-hover)] disabled:bg-[var(--bg-tertiary)] disabled:text-[var(--text-disabled)] disabled:border-[var(--border-color)]",
   secondary:
-    "bg-[var(--bg-tertiary)] text-[var(--text-primary)] border border-[var(--border-color)] hover:bg-[var(--border-color)] disabled:text-[var(--text-disabled)] disabled:hover:bg-[var(--bg-tertiary)] aria-disabled:text-[var(--text-disabled)] aria-disabled:hover:bg-[var(--bg-tertiary)]",
+    "bg-[var(--bg-tertiary)] text-[var(--text-primary)] border border-[var(--border-color)] hover:bg-[var(--border-color)] disabled:text-[var(--text-disabled)] disabled:hover:bg-[var(--bg-tertiary)]",
   danger:
-    "bg-transparent text-[var(--error)] border border-[var(--error)]/40 hover:bg-[var(--error-muted)] disabled:text-[var(--text-disabled)] disabled:border-[var(--border-color)] disabled:hover:bg-transparent aria-disabled:text-[var(--text-disabled)] aria-disabled:border-[var(--border-color)] aria-disabled:hover:bg-transparent",
+    "bg-transparent text-[var(--error)] border border-[var(--error)]/40 hover:bg-[var(--error-muted)] disabled:text-[var(--text-disabled)] disabled:border-[var(--border-color)] disabled:hover:bg-transparent",
   ghost:
-    "bg-transparent text-[var(--text-secondary)] border border-transparent hover:text-[var(--text-primary)] hover:bg-[var(--bg-tertiary)] disabled:text-[var(--text-disabled)] disabled:hover:bg-transparent aria-disabled:text-[var(--text-disabled)] aria-disabled:hover:text-[var(--text-disabled)] aria-disabled:hover:bg-transparent",
+    "bg-transparent text-[var(--text-secondary)] border border-transparent hover:text-[var(--text-primary)] hover:bg-[var(--bg-tertiary)] disabled:text-[var(--text-disabled)] disabled:hover:bg-transparent",
 };
 
 const SIZES: Record<ButtonSize, string> = {
@@ -51,30 +35,16 @@ export default function Button({
   size = "sm",
   className = "",
   type = "button",
-  unavailable = false,
-  unavailableReason = "",
   children,
   ...rest
 }: Props) {
-  const { controlProps, reasonNode } = useUnavailable({
-    unavailable,
-    reason: unavailableReason,
-    onClick: rest.onClick,
-    onKeyDown: rest.onKeyDown,
-  });
-
   return (
-    <>
     <button
       type={type}
       {...rest}
-        {...controlProps}
+      className={`inline-flex items-center justify-center whitespace-nowrap rounded-[var(--radius-control)] font-medium transition-colors disabled:cursor-not-allowed ${SIZES[size]} ${VARIANTS[variant]} ${className}`}
-        className={`inline-flex items-center justify-center whitespace-nowrap rounded-[var(--radius-control)] font-medium transition-colors disabled:cursor-not-allowed aria-disabled:cursor-not-allowed ${SIZES[size]} ${VARIANTS[variant]} ${className}`}
     >
       {children}
     </button>
-      {/* Outside the button: inside, the reason would join its accessible name. */}
-      {reasonNode}
-    </>
   );
 }

app/src/components/ui/unavailable.tsx

@@ -1,87 +0,0 @@
-import {
-  useId,
-  type KeyboardEventHandler,
-  type MouseEventHandler,
-  type ReactNode,
-} from "react";
-
-/** Keys a native `<button>` turns into a click. */
-const ACTIVATION_KEYS = new Set([" ", "Spacebar", "Enter"]);
-
-export interface UnavailableControlProps {
-  "aria-disabled"?: true;
-  "aria-describedby"?: string;
-  onClick?: MouseEventHandler<HTMLButtonElement>;
-  onKeyDown?: KeyboardEventHandler<HTMLButtonElement>;
-}
-
-export interface UnavailableControl {
-  /** Spread onto the control. Carries the guarded handlers. */
-  controlProps: UnavailableControlProps;
-  /**
-   * Render as a *sibling* of the control — inside it the reason would be
-   * appended to the accessible name instead of the description.
-   */
-  reasonNode: ReactNode;
-}
-
-/**
- * Makes a control unavailable without hiding it from assistive technology.
- *
- * `disabled` takes an element out of the tab order *and* out of the
- * accessibility tree, so the `title` explaining why it cannot be used is
- * announced to nobody and shown only to a sighted user with a mouse. That is
- * backwards: the people who most need the reason are the ones who never get
- * it. `aria-disabled` keeps the control focusable and announced, and
- * `aria-describedby` hands over the reason.
- *
- * The catch is that `aria-disabled` is advisory — it does not block clicks or
- * Enter/Space the way `disabled` does. This hook therefore returns the guards
- * along with the attributes, so a call site cannot take the announcement
- * without the guard. Handlers that a form can reach without going through the
- * control (Enter inside a text field submits the form) still have to guard
- * themselves.
- */
-export function useUnavailable({
-  unavailable,
-  reason,
-  onClick,
-  onKeyDown,
-}: {
-  unavailable: boolean;
-  reason: string;
-  onClick?: MouseEventHandler<HTMLButtonElement>;
-  onKeyDown?: KeyboardEventHandler<HTMLButtonElement>;
-}): UnavailableControl {
-  const reasonId = `${useId()}unavailable`;
-
-  if (!unavailable) {
-    return { controlProps: { onClick, onKeyDown }, reasonNode: null };
-  }
-
-  return {
-    controlProps: {
-      "aria-disabled": true,
-      "aria-describedby": reasonId,
-      onClick: (e) => {
-        e.preventDefault();
-        e.stopPropagation();
-      },
-      onKeyDown: (e) => {
-        if (!ACTIVATION_KEYS.has(e.key)) {
-          onKeyDown?.(e);
-          return;
-        }
-        // Suppress the default action before it can become a click, submit a
-        // form, or scroll the page.
-        e.preventDefault();
-        e.stopPropagation();
-      },
-    },
-    reasonNode: (
-      <span id={reasonId} className="sr-only">
-        {reason}
-      </span>
-    ),
-  };
-}

app/src/hooks/useNotes.test.ts

@@ -0,0 +1,166 @@
+import { describe, it, expect, vi, beforeEach } from "vitest";
+import { renderHook, act, waitFor } from "@testing-library/react";
+import { useNotes } from "./useNotes";
+import type { Note } from "../lib/types";
+
+const listNotes = vi.fn();
+const saveNote = vi.fn();
+const deleteNote = vi.fn();
+
+vi.mock("../lib/tauri-commands", () => ({
+  listNotes: (p: string) => listNotes(p),
+  saveNote: (p: string, n: Note) => saveNote(p, n),
+  deleteNote: (p: string, id: string) => deleteNote(p, id),
+}));
+
+const pushToast = vi.fn();
+vi.mock("../store/appState", () => ({
+  useAppState: Object.assign(
+    (selector: (s: unknown) => unknown) => selector({ pushToast }),
+    { getState: () => ({ pushToast }) },
+  ),
+}));
+
+const note = (over: Partial<Note> = {}): Note => ({
+  id: "n1",
+  title: "Deploy",
+  body: "one\ntwo",
+  pinned: false,
+  created_at: "2026-09-01T00:00:00Z",
+  updated_at: "2026-09-01T00:00:00Z",
+  ...over,
+});
+
+beforeEach(() => {
+  vi.clearAllMocks();
+  listNotes.mockResolvedValue([note()]);
+  saveNote.mockImplementation(async (_p: string, n: Note) => n);
+  deleteNote.mockResolvedValue(undefined);
+});
+
+describe("useNotes", () => {
+  it("loads a project's notes on mount", async () => {
+    const { result } = renderHook(() => useNotes("p1"));
+    await waitFor(() => expect(result.current.loading).toBe(false));
+    expect(listNotes).toHaveBeenCalledWith("p1");
+    expect(result.current.notes).toHaveLength(1);
+  });
+
+  it("reports a failed save instead of swallowing it", async () => {
+    // Silent save failure is data loss: the user sees their text on screen and
+    // believes it is stored. Same reason `useSaveState` exists.
+    saveNote.mockRejectedValueOnce(new Error("disk full"));
+    const { result } = renderHook(() => useNotes("p1"));
+    await waitFor(() => expect(result.current.loading).toBe(false));
+
+    let ok: boolean | undefined;
+    await act(async () => {
+      ok = await result.current.saveNote(note({ body: "edited" }));
+    });
+
+    expect(ok).toBe(false);
+    expect(result.current.saveState.status).toBe("failed");
+    expect(pushToast).toHaveBeenCalled();
+  });
+
+  it("replaces the saved note in place rather than appending", async () => {
+    const { result } = renderHook(() => useNotes("p1"));
+    await waitFor(() => expect(result.current.loading).toBe(false));
+
+    // Mock the re-read to return the edited note
+    listNotes.mockResolvedValueOnce([note({ body: "edited" })]);
+
+    await act(async () => {
+      await result.current.saveNote(note({ body: "edited" }));
+    });
+
+    expect(result.current.notes).toHaveLength(1);
+    expect(result.current.notes[0].body).toBe("edited");
+  });
+
+  it("drops a deleted note from the list", async () => {
+    const { result } = renderHook(() => useNotes("p1"));
+    await waitFor(() => expect(result.current.loading).toBe(false));
+
+    await act(async () => {
+      await result.current.deleteNote("n1");
+    });
+
+    expect(deleteNote).toHaveBeenCalledWith("p1", "n1");
+    expect(result.current.notes).toHaveLength(0);
+  });
+
+  it("does not load anything for an empty project id", async () => {
+    // The dock renders with no project selected; it must not fire a command
+    // for the empty string.
+    renderHook(() => useNotes(""));
+    await waitFor(() => expect(listNotes).not.toHaveBeenCalled());
+  });
+
+  it("clears the first project's notes when the projectId changes to another non-empty value", async () => {
+    const { result, rerender } = renderHook(
+      ({ projectId }: { projectId: string }) => useNotes(projectId),
+      { initialProps: { projectId: "p1" } },
+    );
+    await waitFor(() => expect(result.current.loading).toBe(false));
+    expect(result.current.notes).toHaveLength(1);
+
+    // Change to a different project before the new fetch resolves
+    listNotes.mockImplementationOnce(() => new Promise(() => {})); // never resolves
+    rerender({ projectId: "p2" });
+
+    // The old notes should be cleared immediately
+    expect(result.current.notes).toHaveLength(0);
+  });
+
+  it("leaves no stale notes on screen when a load fails", async () => {
+    listNotes.mockResolvedValueOnce([note()]);
+    const { result, rerender } = renderHook(
+      ({ projectId }: { projectId: string }) => useNotes(projectId),
+      { initialProps: { projectId: "p1" } },
+    );
+    await waitFor(() => expect(result.current.loading).toBe(false));
+    expect(result.current.notes).toHaveLength(1);
+
+    // Switch to a project whose load fails
+    listNotes.mockRejectedValueOnce(new Error("load failed"));
+    rerender({ projectId: "p2" });
+    await waitFor(() => expect(result.current.loading).toBe(false));
+
+    expect(result.current.notes).toHaveLength(0);
+    expect(pushToast).toHaveBeenCalled();
+  });
+
+  it("ends with the list the backend returned when saving a new note", async () => {
+    // Initially one note
+    const { result } = renderHook(() => useNotes("p1"));
+    await waitFor(() => expect(result.current.loading).toBe(false));
+    expect(result.current.notes).toHaveLength(1);
+
+    // Saving a new note (not in the current list) re-reads and ends with the backend's list
+    const newNote = note({ id: "n2", title: "New" });
+    listNotes.mockResolvedValueOnce([newNote, note()]);
+
+    await act(async () => {
+      await result.current.saveNote(newNote);
+    });
+
+    expect(result.current.notes).toHaveLength(2);
+    expect(result.current.notes[0].id).toBe("n2");
+  });
+
+  it("re-reads the list after a successful save rather than patching in place", async () => {
+    const { result } = renderHook(() => useNotes("p1"));
+    await waitFor(() => expect(result.current.loading).toBe(false));
+
+    const callCountBefore = listNotes.mock.calls.length;
+    listNotes.mockResolvedValueOnce([note({ body: "edited" })]);
+
+    await act(async () => {
+      await result.current.saveNote(note({ body: "edited" }));
+    });
+
+    // listNotes should be called again after the save
+    expect(listNotes).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(callCountBefore + 1);
+  });
+});

app/src/hooks/useNotes.ts

@@ -0,0 +1,140 @@
+import { useCallback, useEffect, useRef, useState } from "react";
+import * as commands from "../lib/tauri-commands";
+import type { Note } from "../lib/types";
+import type { SaveState } from "./useSaveState";
+import { useAppState } from "../store/appState";
+
+/** A blank note, ordered to the top so the user can start typing immediately. */
+function draft(): Note {
+  const now = new Date().toISOString();
+  return {
+    // The backend owns the real id; this one only has to be unique enough to
+    // key the list until the first save returns.
+    id: crypto.randomUUID(),
+    title: "",
+    body: "",
+    pinned: false,
+    created_at: now,
+    updated_at: now,
+  };
+}
+
+/**
+ * A project's notes, cached from the backend.
+ *
+ * The backend is the source of truth and this is a cache — every mutation goes
+ * through a command and the returned record replaces the local one, so the
+ * list can never drift from the file. `saveState` mirrors `useProjectSave` so
+ * `ui/SaveIndicator` can report the outcome: a save that fails silently is a
+ * user staring at text they believe is stored.
+ */
+export function useNotes(projectId: string) {
+  const [notes, setNotes] = useState<Note[]>([]);
+  const [loading, setLoading] = useState(true);
+  const [saveState, setSaveState] = useState<SaveState>({ status: "idle", error: null });
+  const pushToast = useAppState((s) => s.pushToast);
+  const resetTimer = useRef<ReturnType<typeof setTimeout> | null>(null);
+
+  useEffect(() => {
+    if (!projectId) {
+      setNotes([]);
+      setLoading(false);
+      return;
+    }
+    let cancelled = false;
+    setLoading(true);
+    setNotes([]);
+    commands
+      .listNotes(projectId)
+      .then((loaded) => {
+        if (!cancelled) setNotes(loaded);
+      })
+      .catch((e) => {
+        if (cancelled) return;
+        setNotes([]);
+        pushToast({
+          kind: "error",
+          message: "Could not load notes for this project",
+          detail: String(e),
+        });
+      })
+      .finally(() => {
+        if (!cancelled) setLoading(false);
+      });
+    return () => {
+      cancelled = true;
+    };
+  }, [projectId, pushToast]);
+
+  useEffect(
+    () => () => {
+      if (resetTimer.current) clearTimeout(resetTimer.current);
+    },
+    [],
+  );
+
+  const succeeded = useCallback(() => {
+    setSaveState({ status: "saved", error: null });
+    if (resetTimer.current) clearTimeout(resetTimer.current);
+    resetTimer.current = setTimeout(
+      () => setSaveState({ status: "idle", error: null }),
+      2500,
+    );
+  }, []);
+
+  const saveNote = useCallback(
+    async (note: Note) => {
+      if (resetTimer.current) clearTimeout(resetTimer.current);
+      setSaveState({ status: "saving", error: null });
+      try {
+        await commands.saveNote(projectId, note);
+        // Re-read the canonical list from the backend. A successful save stamps a new
+        // `updated_at`, and the backend sorts unpinned notes by `updated_at` descending,
+        // so the record's position has changed and positional patching would disagree with
+        // what a reload would show.
+        try {
+          const reloaded = await commands.listNotes(projectId);
+          setNotes(reloaded);
+        } catch {
+          // Keep the save reported as successful (it was) and leave the existing list alone
+          // rather than clearing it if the re-read fails.
+        }
+        succeeded();
+        return true;
+      } catch (e) {
+        const message = String(e);
+        setSaveState({ status: "failed", error: message });
+        pushToast({ kind: "error", message: "Could not save note", detail: message });
+        return false;
+      }
+    },
+    [projectId, pushToast, succeeded],
+  );
+
+  const createNote = useCallback(async () => {
+    const note = draft();
+    // Held locally first so the editor can focus it immediately; the save
+    // happens on blur like every other edit. The note does not exist backend-side,
+    // so no re-read can place it and no backend ordering applies to it yet. Prepending
+    // puts it at the top where the user can see it immediately, and on the first save
+    // its canonical position is established.
+    setNotes((current) => [note, ...current]);
+    return note;
+  }, []);
+
+  const deleteNote = useCallback(
+    async (noteId: string) => {
+      try {
+        await commands.deleteNote(projectId, noteId);
+        setNotes((current) => current.filter((n) => n.id !== noteId));
+        return true;
+      } catch (e) {
+        pushToast({ kind: "error", message: "Could not delete note", detail: String(e) });
+        return false;
+      }
+    },
+    [projectId, pushToast],
+  );
+
+  return { notes, loading, saveState, createNote, saveNote, deleteNote };
+}

app/src/lib/tauri-commands.ts

@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 import { invoke } from "@tauri-apps/api/core";
-import type { Project, ProjectPath, ProjectRemovalReport, ProjectResetOutcome, ContainerInfo, AppSettings, SettingsImportPreview, SettingsImportOutcome, UpdateInfo, ImageUpdateInfo, FileEntry, FileContents, WebTerminalInfo, SttStatus, GatewayStatus, InstallOptions, ClaudeSession, ContainerCapabilities, ScheduledTask, ScheduledTaskInput, SchedulerNotification, AuthBridgeStatus, BrowserViewStatus, BrowserViewPopoutState, BrowserPageState, PlaywrightDetection, BrowserSetupOutcome, BrowserInstallTarget, ContainerStaleness, MigrationOptions, MigrationReport, MigrationState, ClearTokenOutcome, CaCertInfo, UploadOutcome } from "./types";
+import type { Project, ProjectPath, ProjectRemovalReport, ProjectResetOutcome, ContainerInfo, AppSettings, SettingsImportPreview, SettingsImportOutcome, UpdateInfo, ImageUpdateInfo, FileEntry, FileContents, WebTerminalInfo, SttStatus, GatewayStatus, InstallOptions, ClaudeSession, ContainerCapabilities, ScheduledTask, ScheduledTaskInput, SchedulerNotification, AuthBridgeStatus, BrowserViewStatus, BrowserViewPopoutState, BrowserPageState, PlaywrightDetection, BrowserSetupOutcome, BrowserInstallTarget, ContainerStaleness, MigrationOptions, MigrationReport, MigrationState, ClearTokenOutcome, CaCertInfo, UploadOutcome, Note } from "./types";
 
 // Docker
 export const checkDocker = () => invoke<boolean>("check_docker");
@@ -25,6 +25,15 @@ export const rebuildProjectContainer = (projectId: string) =>
 export const reconcileProjectStatuses = () =>
   invoke<Project[]>("reconcile_project_statuses");
 
+// Notes — per-project, host-side, readable with the container stopped.
+export const listNotes = (projectId: string) =>
+  invoke<Note[]>("list_notes", { projectId });
+/** Insert or replace one note. `created_at` and `id` are owned by the backend. */
+export const saveNote = (projectId: string, note: Note) =>
+  invoke<Note>("save_note", { projectId, note });
+export const deleteNote = (projectId: string, noteId: string) =>
+  invoke<void>("delete_note", { projectId, noteId });
+
 // Settings
 export const getSettings = () => invoke<AppSettings>("get_settings");
 export const updateSettings = (settings: AppSettings) =>

app/src/lib/types.ts

@@ -565,6 +565,16 @@ export interface SchedulerNotification {
   created_at: string;
 }
 
+/** One project note. Mirrors `models::Note` — field names are the Rust ones. */
+export interface Note {
+  id: string;
+  title: string;
+  body: string;
+  pinned: boolean;
+  created_at: string;
+  updated_at: string;
+}
+
 // ── Auth bridge ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
 
 /** Which loopback family the container-side listener was found on.

docs/superpowers/specs/2026-09-01-project-notes-design.md

@@ -0,0 +1,349 @@
+# Project Notes — design
+
+**Date:** 2026-09-01 · **Baseline:** v0.4 · Companion to [ROADMAP.md](../../../ROADMAP.md)
+and [DESIGN-REVIEW.md](../../../DESIGN-REVIEW.md).
+
+A per-project notes surface, with a per-note **Send to agent** action that puts the note
+into a running Claude session's prompt.
+
+---
+
+## Why this earns a slot
+
+DESIGN-REVIEW's coherence test says every screen answers exactly one question. Notes
+answers *"what do I want to hand this agent, and what did I keep learning here?"* — and it
+answers it **while the container is stopped**, which is the gap the stop/start container
+model creates and the same reasoning that made Sessions/Resume the flagship.
+
+Two things already do part of this job, and the design is shaped to avoid both:
+
+- `Project.claude_instructions` (`models/project.rs:405`, editor at
+  `components/projects/ClaudeInstructionsEditor.tsx`) is per-project free text merged into
+  the container's `CLAUDE.md` on every start. It is **ambient** — always in context, never
+  addressed. Notes are **discrete and fired on demand**. If Notes drifts into a second
+  instructions box, it is redundant with a feature that already ships.
+- A `NOTES.md` in the workspace is readable by the agent already, but unreadable by the
+  user when the container is stopped, and invisible to the fleet view.
+
+What Notes uniquely adds is *addressable items with a fire-at-the-session action*.
+
+## Decisions taken
+
+| Decision | Choice | Rationale |
+|---|---|---|
+| Audience | Human scratchpad **and** agent prompts, one surface | See "no note types" below |
+| Storage | Own file per project, host-side | Keeps prose out of `projects.json`; works with the container stopped |
+| Send target | Project's own sessions; picker when >1 | Never guesses; mirrors STT's target-pinning guard |
+| Surface | Side dock that takes space **inward**; never resizes the OS window | Phase 0 spike: growing corrupts under native Wayland, §6.1 |
+| Formatting | Plain text, no markdown | It is a scratchpad; see §3 |
+| Tab position | Last, after Browser | A companion to the work, not a step in it |
+
+**No note *types*.** A note is a title plus a body. What makes one "for the agent" is that
+you pressed the button, not a mode set at creation. The moment there is a "prompt note" vs
+"scratch note" toggle, the pane is two features wearing one coat, and every note costs a
+classification decision at the moment of writing — which is the moment the user is least
+willing to make one.
+
+---
+
+## 1. Storage
+
+New `app/src-tauri/src/storage/notes_store.rs`, modeled on `migration_store.rs` rather than
+on `projects_store.rs`:
+
+```
+<data_dir>/triple-c/notes/{project_id}.json
+```
+
+- **`sanitize()` on the project id**, copied from `migration_store.rs:41-46`. The id arrives
+  over IPC; it must not be able to steer the write.
+- **Atomic *and durable* write** — `.tmp`, `sync_all()`, `rename()`, then fsync the
+  directory, per `migration_store.rs:203-261` rather than `projects_store.rs:167-179`. That
+  file's comment is explicit that write-temp-then-rename alone is only half of it: `fs::write`
+  returns once the bytes are in the page cache, so losing power in the window leaves the
+  rename applied and the data not written — a truncated file produced by the very code meant
+  to prevent one. Notes are user prose; that is the data least worth losing to a half-write.
+- **Corrupt file is copied aside and left in place**, per `migration_store.rs:49-125` —
+  timestamped, capped, and never overwriting an earlier copy, because the first copy is the
+  one taken before anything rewrote the file.
+- **Path resolution is split for testability.** `dirs::data_dir()` is resolved in thin public
+  wrappers; the real work takes an explicit `&Path`. `ProjectsStore::new()` hardcodes
+  `dirs::data_dir()` and is therefore not constructible against a temp dir, which is why its
+  own tests only exercise free functions. The notes store should not inherit that limit.
+
+```rust
+struct Note {
+    id: String,          // uuid v4
+    title: String,
+    body: String,
+    pinned: bool,
+    created_at: String,  // RFC 3339
+    updated_at: String,
+}
+struct ProjectNotes { version: u32, notes: Vec<Note> }
+```
+
+Order is pinned-first then `updated_at` descending. Manual reordering is deliberately out.
+
+### Why not a field on `Project`
+
+`projects.json` is written on **every blur** by the debounced `useProjectSave` path
+(`hooks/useSaveState.ts`, threaded through `ProjectHome.tsx:79-81` into Overview and
+Config). Long user prose on that record means (a) the whole project list is rewritten every
+time a note changes, and (b) a note edit and a Config edit can race, with the loser's write
+clobbering the winner's. `migration_store.rs:1-12` already documents this exact reasoning
+for why *it* is not in `projects.json`. Notes inherit it.
+
+A per-project file also means a corrupt notes file loses notes for one project, not the
+project list.
+
+### Lifecycle
+
+`remove_project` deletes the project's notes file. A failure there is logged, never fatal —
+an orphaned notes file is harmless, a project that cannot be removed is not.
+
+## 2. Commands and frontend state
+
+Registered in `lib.rs` via `generate_handler!`. Per CLAUDE.md, application commands need
+**no** entry in `capabilities/default.json`.
+
+- `list_notes(projectId) -> Vec<Note>`
+- `save_note(projectId, note) -> Note` — upsert; stamps `updated_at` backend-side
+- `delete_note(projectId, noteId)`
+
+There is deliberately **no whole-list setter**. Bulk writes are the clobbering mechanism the
+storage choice above exists to avoid.
+
+`notes_store` is a **free-function module** keyed by project id, exactly like
+`migration_store` — no struct, nothing held in `AppState`, no in-memory copy of the notes.
+`ProjectsStore`'s `Mutex` exists because it caches the project list in memory; a notes store
+that reads and writes the file per call has nothing to cache and nothing to guard. What it
+does need is that each upsert's read-modify-write is not interleaved with another's, so the
+module holds one process-wide write lock (`OnceLock<Mutex<()>>`, the idiom already in
+`browser_view/popout.rs`) taken for the read-modify-write, not for the read path.
+
+Frontend: wrappers in `lib/tauri-commands.ts`, a `hooks/useNotes.ts`, and notes cached in
+zustand keyed by project id. Rust is the source of truth; the cache is a cache.
+
+The dock and the tab live in one webview, so zustand alone suffices. The store boundary is
+drawn so that a future detached window (§8) only swaps the transport: Rust emits a
+`notes-changed` event, both windows listen.
+
+## 3. Editor — plain text, deliberately
+
+A note is a title and a `<textarea>`, saved on blur, following
+`ClaudeInstructionsEditor.tsx` (which saves in `onBlur` and holds no timer) and reporting
+the outcome through `ui/SaveIndicator`. There is no debounce anywhere in the existing save
+path — `useSaveState.ts`'s only timer is a 2500 ms reset of the "Saved ✓" label — and notes
+add none. **No rich editor, no markdown library, and no markdown
+rendering** — it is a scratchpad for reminders, and it stays one.
+
+The body is stored and displayed exactly as typed. There is no view/edit mode split, so
+there is no state to get wrong and no moment where the text the user is looking at is not
+the text that would be sent.
+
+This also keeps `renderMarkdown()` (`components/layout/HelpDialog.tsx:55-160`) where it is.
+It was written for Help content, it entity-escapes before converting to make its
+`dangerouslySetInnerHTML` sink safe, and `HelpDialog.test.tsx` asserts that escaping as a
+security rule. Reusing it here would mean extracting it and giving a hand-rolled HTML
+converter a second caller with different content — cost and risk, for formatting a
+scratchpad. If notes later need rendering, that extraction is the change to make; it is not
+this change.
+
+One consequence worth stating: the text sent to the agent is byte-for-byte what is in the
+box. Nothing is transformed on the way out except the newline substitution in §5.
+
+## 4. The Notes tab
+
+- One entry in the `TABS` registry (`components/projects/home/ProjectHome.tsx:24-33`), one
+  line in the panel switch (`:237-257`), one new `home/NotesTab.tsx` taking the sibling prop
+  shape `{ project: Project }`.
+- Order: Notes goes **last**, after Browser — **Overview / Sessions / Automation / Config /
+  Files / Browser / Notes**. It is a companion to the work, not a step in it, and the
+  existing order runs roughly from "what is this" to "what is in it".
+- Layout is master/detail: title list left, editor right.
+
+Note that the active sub-tab is local `useState` (`ProjectHome.tsx:47`) and is not
+persisted, so a closed and reopened home tab returns to Overview. Notes inherits that; it is
+not worth changing here.
+
+## 5. Send to agent
+
+### The newline problem, and why it is already solved
+
+A dictated STT phrase has no newlines. A note body does. Typed as raw keystrokes, every
+`\n` in a body **submits a separate prompt** — the note would arrive as N truncated
+messages.
+
+The answer is in the codebase already. `components/terminal/TerminalView.tsx` (~:400-430)
+handles Shift+Enter by sending `\x1b\r`, and its comment states these are "the in-band
+bytes, not a guess," with an explicit warning **not** to simplify to `\n` because a shell
+would *run* the line. So:
+
+```
+payload = note.body.replace(/\r?\n/g, "\x1b\r")
+```
+
+sent with **no trailing CR** — the user presses Enter. Same rationale as STT sending
+without one: a note is longer than a dictated sentence, so the chance of wanting an edit
+before firing is higher, and an unsent prompt is recoverable while a sent one is not.
+
+Two consequences follow from that same comment:
+
+1. **Only `sessionType === "claude"` sessions are offered as targets.** `bash -l`'s readline
+   has no binding for `\e\r` and answers with a bell. Bash tabs are not listed in the picker
+   at all.
+2. **The sequence lives in one shared helper**, not a second `"\x1b\r"` literal. The
+   knowledge in that comment is hard-won and must not be duplicated away from it.
+
+### Target resolution
+
+`TerminalSession` (`lib/types.ts:228-234`) already carries `projectId`, `projectName`,
+`sessionType` and `sessionName`, so no new plumbing is needed.
+
+| Claude sessions for this project | Behavior |
+|---|---|
+| 0 | Button disabled, "no running session for this project" |
+| 1 | Send |
+| >1 | Menu of session display names (`Project.renamed_session_names` where set) |
+
+The display-name rule is currently written **twice**, both copies non-exported and local to
+`MainTabs.tsx` — `tabLabel` (:192-203) and inline in `renderTab` (:362-367). The picker would
+be a third copy of a rule that already disagrees with itself the moment one copy is edited,
+so it is extracted once to a shared helper and both existing sites call it. That is a
+targeted improvement to code this feature depends on, not unrelated refactoring.
+
+- **The target is pinned at click time**, per the hazard `useSTT.ts:20,30` guards against
+  (it pins at record-start so text does not land in whatever tab is active at stop time).
+- Transport is `useTerminal`'s module-scoped ordered queue (`hooks/useTerminal.ts:32-85`,
+  exposed as `sendInput` at `:135-141`) → `terminal_input` → `exec_manager.send_input`. That
+  queue exists because parallel `invoke`s raced the session mutex and reordered keystrokes
+  (`useTerminal.ts:7-31`); a multi-line note is exactly the payload that would expose it.
+- After sending, switch the active tab to that terminal so the user watches it land. This is
+  a courtesy, not a correctness requirement: if it cannot be delivered, the send still
+  succeeded.
+- **Body only, not the title.** The title is an index label for the list, not content.
+
+Explicitly *not* reused: `useProjectActions.ts:104-124`'s `openTerminalWithCommand`, which
+opens a shell then types after a `setTimeout(700)`. Starting a container as a side effect of
+clicking a note is too large an implicit action, and that timing hack should not spread.
+
+## 6. Surface — a dock that takes space inward
+
+`components/layout/NotesDock.tsx`, a flex sibling of the tab panels in `App.tsx:139-160`, so
+it is visible over **any** top-level tab including Terminal. This is the point of the dock:
+Project Home and Terminal are sibling top-level tabs (`layout/MainTabs.tsx`), so a
+Notes-only-as-sub-tab design hides notes exactly when the agent is running.
+
+Opening the dock **takes space from inside the window**. The terminal narrows and reflows;
+the OS window is never resized or moved. `TerminalView.tsx:643-656` already has a
+rAF-throttled `ResizeObserver` that calls `fitAddon.fit()` then `resize(sessionId, cols,
+rows)` → `terminal_resize`, so narrowing reflows xterm *and* resizes the container PTY
+correctly, with no new code.
+
+- Width is drag-resizable, persisted to a `triple-c.notes.dock` localStorage key. Precedent:
+  `triple-c.sidebar.collapsed` (`store/appState.ts:4-20`) is the app's only such key today.
+- **The dock follows the active tab's project** — terminal tab → that session's project,
+  home tab → that project, nothing active → empty state. `activeTabKey`/`tabKeyId` plus
+  `TerminalSession.projectId` already provide this.
+- **No window geometry code at all.** No `set_size`, no `set_position`, no monitor work-area
+  arithmetic, no platform checks. §6.1 is why.
+
+### 6.1 Why the dock does not widen the window — Phase 0 spike
+
+The original design had the dock "expand outward" by widening the OS window, so the terminal
+kept its size. A throwaway Tauri app (`geo-spike`) was built and run on the target desktop —
+KDE Plasma, Wayland session, 2026-09-01 — because the app contains no window-geometry code
+today and the behavior could not be predicted. It was run twice, once per GDK backend,
+which turned out to matter more than the platform.
+
+**Under XWayland** (what every Tauri AppImage gets, because `linuxdeploy-plugin-gtk` exports
+`GDK_BACKEND=x11` in `AppRun`, citing
+[tauri-apps/tauri#8541](https://github.com/tauri-apps/tauri/issues/8541)) everything worked:
+
+| Test | Result |
+|---|---|
+| Grow while floating | asked +420, got +420 — exact |
+| Shrink back | asked -420, got -420 — exact |
+| `outer_position()` | readable, correct |
+| `work_area` | 3840x2099 — correctly excludes the 61px Plasma panel |
+| Grow while maximized / fullscreen | ignored, as designed |
+
+**Under native Wayland** (what the `.deb` and `.rpm` builds get, since they carry no such
+hook) the same binary failed — and failed *silently*, which is the part that decided this:
+
+| Test | Result |
+|---|---|
+| Grow while floating | asked +420, got **+600**; height moved **+276 unrequested** |
+| Shrink back | asked -420, got **-240**; height **+276** again |
+| After unmaximize | window reports **5400x2900 on a 4800x2700 monitor** |
+| `outer_position()` | returned `Ok(0,0)` — for a window that was not at 0,0 |
+| Grow while maximized / fullscreen | ignored, as designed |
+| `set_position` | ignored, as expected |
+
+Two independent failures, either one sufficient:
+
+1. **Resize compounds.** Under Wayland GTK owns the frame and shadows; both `outer` and
+   `inner` report a 0x0 decoration, so every read-back is inflated by a fixed offset and
+   every write built on a read-back compounds it. There is no size that can be read and
+   safely written back. Three calls in, the window is larger than the display.
+2. **Position is a confident lie, not an honest failure.** `outer_position()` returned
+   `Ok(0,0)` rather than an error. A design that treats "cannot determine position" as
+   "do not grow" never triggers, because the value looks perfectly valid. The room check
+   duly reported `slack: 2820px, VERDICT: Grow` from a false origin.
+
+The second point is what rules out a runtime fallback. A clean failure could have been
+handled; a plausible wrong answer cannot be detected from the value itself.
+
+Growing therefore works on one packaging channel and corrupts on another — the split is by
+**packaging, not platform**, which is worse than a platform split because two users on
+identical hardware and OS would see different behavior. A dock that takes space inward
+behaves identically on every backend, OS and package, needs no detection, and reuses a
+resize path that is already exercised by every terminal in the app.
+
+**Kept as evidence, not as guidance:** `set_position` was honoured under XWayland. The design
+does not move the window and must not start.
+
+## 7. Testing
+
+Vitest + jsdom + React Testing Library for the frontend, `#[cfg(test)]` for Rust, per
+CLAUDE.md's Testing section.
+
+**Rust (`notes_store.rs`)**
+- `sanitize()` rejects traversal and separator characters in a project id
+- atomic write leaves no `.tmp` behind; a crash mid-write leaves the previous file intact
+- a corrupt file is moved to `.bak` and the store opens empty rather than erroring
+- removing a project deletes its notes file; a delete failure does not fail removal
+
+**Frontend**
+- send-target resolution at 0 / 1 / N claude sessions, and that bash sessions are excluded
+- the newline transform: a multi-line body becomes `\x1b\r`-joined, with no trailing CR
+- the dock's project resolution: terminal tab, home tab, and nothing active
+- save-on-blur persists, and dock width round-trips through localStorage
+
+Note the limit `TerminalView.tsx`'s own comment records: jsdom never synthesizes the
+follow-up keypress, so keyboard-path bugs of that family are invisible to unit tests. The
+send path is a direct `sendInput` call rather than a synthetic keystroke, which sidesteps
+that — but anything touching real key handling needs a manual check in Chromium.
+
+## 8. Out of scope for v1
+
+- A detached second window for a second monitor. The store boundary in §2 is drawn so it is
+  an additive follow-up: emit `notes-changed` from the store's write path, and add a second
+  narrowly scoped capability granting the notes window `core:event:allow-listen` /
+  `allow-unlisten` — `capabilities/default.json` scopes those to `"windows": ["main"]` today,
+  and cross-window sync needs them. Application commands need no ACL entry (CLAUDE.md, Key
+  Conventions), so only the events require it. `lib.rs:379-387`'s main-window-only close
+  handler would need review at that point.
+- Syncing notes into the workspace as `.md` for the agent to read unprompted. There is no
+  generic write-a-file-to-container command today (only `write_file_to_container` for image
+  paste and `upload_bytes_to_container` for migration), and a second storage path with a
+  sync direction is a v2 conversation.
+- Tags, full-text search, manual reordering, note history.
+- Any change to `claude_instructions`. The two features stay distinct: ambient context
+  versus fired-on-demand items.
+
+## 9. Open questions
+
+None. The Phase 0 spike settled the surface (§6.1); every other decision is recorded in the
+table above.