ask_operator: ttl_seconds auto-cancel + remaining-time chip

manager can pass ttl_seconds to ask_operator. on submit, host
stores deadline_at = now + ttl in operator_questions (new column,
migrated via existing pragma_table_info pattern), spawns a tokio
task that sleeps until the deadline then resolves the question with
answer '[expired]' and fires the same OperatorAnswered helper event.
already-resolved races no-op silently.

dashboard renders a '⏳ MM:SS' chip on the question row when
deadline_at is set. format collapses seconds → s, < 1h → m s, ≥ 1h
→ h m. heartbeat refresh (5s) keeps the chip current; the operator
sees it tick down.

manager prompt + mcp tool description updated. journald viewer per
container queued in todo (separate task).

TODO.md

@@ -68,13 +68,6 @@ Pick anything from here when relevant. Cross-cutting design notes live in
 
 ## Manager → operator question channel
 
-- **TTL on `ask_operator`.** Manual cancel via dashboard already
-  ships (✗ CANC3L button resolves the question with answer
-  `[cancelled]` and fires `OperatorAnswered` so the manager sees a
-  terminal state). Still missing: per-question `ttl_seconds` that
-  auto-cancels after a deadline. Spawn a tokio task per submitted
-  question that calls the same cancel path after the ttl expires
-  (cheap; rare). Surface remaining time on the dashboard.
 
 ## Spawn flow
 
@@ -114,6 +107,17 @@ Pick anything from here when relevant. Cross-cutting design notes live in
 
 ## Lifecycle / reliability
 
+- **journald viewer per container in the dashboard.** Surface the
+  equivalent of `journalctl -M h-coder -b` in the dashboard so the
+  operator can see container logs without ssh-ing in. Optional
+  filter by hive-specific systemd unit (`hive-ag3nt.service`,
+  `hive-m1nd.service`). Implementation: backend shells out to
+  `journalctl -M <container> -b --output=short-iso --no-pager`
+  (optionally `-u <unit>`), streams or paginates the result over a
+  new dashboard endpoint. Could be a `<details>` per container row
+  or a dedicated page. Honest journalctl, not the in-container
+  events stream — those are different surfaces (events = claude turn
+  loop; journalctl = systemd-wide logs incl. boot, network, etc.).
 - **Container crash events.** Watch `container@*.service` via D-Bus, push
   `HelperEvent::ContainerCrash` to the manager's inbox so the manager can
   react (restart, escalate, etc.).

hive-ag3nt/prompts/manager.md

@@ -9,7 +9,7 @@ Tools (hyperhive surface):
 - `mcp__hyperhive__start(name)` — start a stopped sub-agent. No approval required.
 - `mcp__hyperhive__restart(name)` — stop + start a sub-agent. No approval required.
 - `mcp__hyperhive__request_apply_commit(agent, commit_ref)` — submit a config change for any agent (`hm1nd` for self) for operator approval.
-- `mcp__hyperhive__ask_operator(question, options?, multi?)` — surface a question on the dashboard. Returns immediately with a question id; the operator's answer arrives later as a system `operator_answered` event in your inbox. Options are advisory: the dashboard always lets the operator type a free-text answer in addition. Set `multi: true` to render options as checkboxes (operator can pick multiple); the answer comes back as `, `-separated. Do not poll inside the same turn — finish the current work and react when the event lands.
+- `mcp__hyperhive__ask_operator(question, options?, multi?, ttl_seconds?)` — surface a question on the dashboard. Returns immediately with a question id; the operator's answer arrives later as a system `operator_answered` event in your inbox. Options are advisory: the dashboard always lets the operator type a free-text answer in addition. Set `multi: true` to render options as checkboxes (operator can pick multiple); the answer comes back as `, `-separated. Set `ttl_seconds` to auto-cancel after a deadline — useful when the decision becomes moot if the operator hasn't responded in time; on expiry the answer is `[expired]`. Do not poll inside the same turn — finish the current work and react when the event lands.
 
 Approval boundary: lifecycle ops on *existing* sub-agents (`kill`, `start`, `restart`) are at your discretion — no operator approval. *Creating* a new agent (`request_spawn`) and *changing* any agent's config (`request_apply_commit`) still go through the approval queue. The operator only signs off on changes; you run the day-to-day.
 

hive-ag3nt/src/mcp.rs

@@ -240,6 +240,12 @@ pub struct AskOperatorArgs {
     /// selections joined by ", ". Ignored when `options` is empty.
     #[serde(default)]
     pub multi: bool,
+    /// Optional auto-cancel after `ttl_seconds`. On expiry the question
+    /// resolves with answer `[expired]` and the manager receives the
+    /// usual `operator_answered` system event. `None` (default) =
+    /// wait indefinitely.
+    #[serde(default)]
+    pub ttl_seconds: Option<u64>,
 }
 
 #[derive(Debug, serde::Deserialize, schemars::JsonSchema)]
@@ -380,7 +386,9 @@ impl ManagerServer {
         request, policy call, scope clarification). `options` is advisory: pass a short \
         fixed-choice list when applicable, otherwise leave empty for free text. Set \
         `multi: true` to let the operator pick multiple options (checkboxes); the answer \
-        comes back as a comma-separated string."
+        comes back as a comma-separated string. Set `ttl_seconds` to auto-cancel a \
+        no-longer-relevant question instead of blocking forever — on expiry the answer \
+        is `[expired]` and the same `operator_answered` event fires."
     )]
     async fn ask_operator(&self, Parameters(args): Parameters<AskOperatorArgs>) -> String {
         let log = format!("{args:?}");
@@ -390,6 +398,7 @@ impl ManagerServer {
                     question: args.question,
                     options: args.options,
                     multi: args.multi,
+                    ttl_seconds: args.ttl_seconds,
                 })
                 .await;
             match resp {

hive-c0re/assets/app.js

@@ -237,14 +237,23 @@
     const ul = el('ul', { class: 'questions' });
     for (const q of s.questions) {
       const li = el('li', { class: 'question' });
-      li.append(
+      const head = el('div', { class: 'q-head' },
-        el('div', { class: 'q-head' },
         el('span', { class: 'msg-ts' }, fmt(q.asked_at)), ' ',
         el('span', { class: 'msg-from' }, q.asker), ' ',
         el('span', { class: 'msg-sep' }, 'asks:'),
-        ),
-        el('div', { class: 'q-body' }, q.question),
       );
+      if (q.deadline_at) {
+        const remaining = q.deadline_at - Math.floor(Date.now() / 1000);
+        let txt;
+        if (remaining <= 0) txt = 'expiring…';
+        else if (remaining < 60) txt = '⏳ ' + remaining + 's';
+        else if (remaining < 3600) txt = '⏳ ' + Math.floor(remaining / 60) + 'm '
+          + (remaining % 60) + 's';
+        else txt = '⏳ ' + Math.floor(remaining / 3600) + 'h '
+          + Math.floor((remaining % 3600) / 60) + 'm';
+        head.append(' ', el('span', { class: 'q-ttl' }, txt));
+      }
+      li.append(head, el('div', { class: 'q-body' }, q.question));
       const f = el('form', {
         method: 'POST', action: '/answer-question/' + q.id,
         class: 'qform', 'data-async': '',

hive-c0re/assets/dashboard.css

@@ -296,6 +296,12 @@ summary:hover { color: var(--purple); }
 }
 .questions li.question:last-child { border-bottom: 0; }
 .questions .q-head { font-size: 0.9em; }
+.questions .q-ttl {
+  color: var(--amber);
+  margin-left: 0.4em;
+  font-size: 0.95em;
+  letter-spacing: 0.05em;
+}
 .questions .q-body {
   color: var(--fg);
   margin: 0.3em 0;

hive-c0re/src/manager_server.rs

@@ -72,7 +72,7 @@ async fn serve(stream: UnixStream, coord: Arc<Coordinator>) -> Result<()> {
 const MANAGER_RECV_LONG_POLL: std::time::Duration = std::time::Duration::from_secs(30);
 
 #[allow(clippy::too_many_lines)]
-async fn dispatch(req: &ManagerRequest, coord: &Coordinator) -> ManagerResponse {
+async fn dispatch(req: &ManagerRequest, coord: &Arc<Coordinator>) -> ManagerResponse {
     match req {
         ManagerRequest::Send { to, body } => match coord.broker.send(&Message {
             from: MANAGER_AGENT.to_owned(),
@@ -198,14 +198,26 @@ async fn dispatch(req: &ManagerRequest, coord: &Coordinator) -> ManagerResponse
             question,
             options,
             multi,
+            ttl_seconds,
         } => {
-            tracing::info!(%question, ?options, multi, "manager: ask_operator");
+            tracing::info!(%question, ?options, multi, ?ttl_seconds, "manager: ask_operator");
+            let deadline_at = ttl_seconds.and_then(|s| {
+                let now = std::time::SystemTime::now()
+                    .duration_since(std::time::UNIX_EPOCH)
+                    .ok()
+                    .and_then(|d| i64::try_from(d.as_secs()).ok())
+                    .unwrap_or(0);
+                i64::try_from(s).ok().map(|s| now + s)
+            });
             match coord
                 .questions
-                .submit(MANAGER_AGENT, question, options, *multi)
+                .submit(MANAGER_AGENT, question, options, *multi, deadline_at)
             {
                 Ok(id) => {
-                    tracing::info!(%id, "operator question queued");
+                    tracing::info!(%id, ?deadline_at, "operator question queued");
+                    if let Some(ttl) = *ttl_seconds {
+                        spawn_question_watchdog(coord, id, ttl);
+                    }
                     ManagerResponse::QuestionQueued { id }
                 }
                 Err(e) => ManagerResponse::Err {
@@ -227,3 +239,28 @@ async fn dispatch(req: &ManagerRequest, coord: &Coordinator) -> ManagerResponse
         }
     }
 }
+
+/// On `AskOperator { ttl_seconds: Some(n) }`, sleep n seconds and then
+/// try to resolve the question with `[expired]`. If the operator (or
+/// any other path) already answered it, `answer()` returns Err and
+/// we no-op silently. Otherwise fire the usual `OperatorAnswered`
+/// helper event so the manager sees a terminal state.
+const TTL_SENTINEL: &str = "[expired]";
+
+fn spawn_question_watchdog(coord: &Arc<Coordinator>, id: i64, ttl_secs: u64) {
+    let coord = coord.clone();
+    tokio::spawn(async move {
+        tokio::time::sleep(std::time::Duration::from_secs(ttl_secs)).await;
+        // `answer` returns Err if already resolved — that's the
+        // normal path when the operator responded before the ttl
+        // fired, so no-op silently.
+        if let Ok(question) = coord.questions.answer(id, TTL_SENTINEL) {
+            tracing::info!(%id, "operator question expired (ttl)");
+            coord.notify_manager(&hive_sh4re::HelperEvent::OperatorAnswered {
+                id,
+                question,
+                answer: TTL_SENTINEL.to_owned(),
+            });
+        }
+    });
+}

hive-c0re/src/operator_questions.rs

@@ -25,17 +25,29 @@ CREATE INDEX IF NOT EXISTS idx_operator_questions_pending
     ON operator_questions (id) WHERE answered_at IS NULL;
 ";
 
-/// Add the `multi` column to pre-existing databases. `ALTER TABLE ADD COLUMN`
+/// Add late-added columns to pre-existing databases. `ALTER TABLE
-/// has no `IF NOT EXISTS` form in sqlite, so we check `pragma_table_info` first.
+/// ADD COLUMN` has no `IF NOT EXISTS` form in sqlite, so we check
-fn ensure_multi_column(conn: &Connection) -> Result<()> {
+/// `pragma_table_info` first per column.
+fn ensure_columns(conn: &Connection) -> Result<()> {
+    for (name, sql) in [
+        (
+            "multi",
+            "ALTER TABLE operator_questions ADD COLUMN multi INTEGER NOT NULL DEFAULT 0;",
+        ),
+        (
+            "deadline_at",
+            "ALTER TABLE operator_questions ADD COLUMN deadline_at INTEGER;",
+        ),
+    ] {
         let has: bool = conn
-        .prepare("SELECT 1 FROM pragma_table_info('operator_questions') WHERE name = 'multi'")?
+            .prepare(&format!(
+                "SELECT 1 FROM pragma_table_info('operator_questions') WHERE name = '{name}'"
+            ))?
             .exists([])?;
         if !has {
-        conn.execute_batch(
+            conn.execute_batch(sql)
-            "ALTER TABLE operator_questions ADD COLUMN multi INTEGER NOT NULL DEFAULT 0;",
+                .with_context(|| format!("add operator_questions.{name} column"))?;
-        )
+        }
-        .context("add operator_questions.multi column")?;
     }
     Ok(())
 }
@@ -49,6 +61,10 @@ pub struct OpQuestion {
     pub options: Vec<String>,
     pub multi: bool,
     pub asked_at: i64,
+    /// Absolute unix-seconds deadline after which a watchdog auto-
+    /// resolves the question with answer `[expired]`. `None` = no
+    /// expiry. Surfaced on the dashboard as a remaining-time chip.
+    pub deadline_at: Option<i64>,
     pub answered_at: Option<i64>,
     pub answer: Option<String>,
 }
@@ -68,7 +84,7 @@ impl OperatorQuestions {
             .with_context(|| format!("open operator_questions db {}", path.display()))?;
         conn.execute_batch(SCHEMA)
             .context("apply operator_questions schema")?;
-        ensure_multi_column(&conn).context("migrate operator_questions.multi")?;
+        ensure_columns(&conn).context("migrate operator_questions columns")?;
         Ok(Self {
             conn: Mutex::new(conn),
         })
@@ -80,13 +96,22 @@ impl OperatorQuestions {
         question: &str,
         options: &[String],
         multi: bool,
+        deadline_at: Option<i64>,
     ) -> Result<i64> {
         let conn = self.conn.lock().unwrap();
         let options_json = serde_json::to_string(options).unwrap_or_else(|_| "[]".into());
         conn.execute(
-            "INSERT INTO operator_questions (asker, question, options_json, multi, asked_at)
+            "INSERT INTO operator_questions
-             VALUES (?1, ?2, ?3, ?4, ?5)",
+               (asker, question, options_json, multi, deadline_at, asked_at)
-            params![asker, question, options_json, i64::from(multi), now_unix()],
+             VALUES (?1, ?2, ?3, ?4, ?5, ?6)",
+            params![
+                asker,
+                question,
+                options_json,
+                i64::from(multi),
+                deadline_at,
+                now_unix(),
+            ],
         )?;
         Ok(conn.last_insert_rowid())
     }
@@ -119,7 +144,7 @@ impl OperatorQuestions {
     pub fn get(&self, id: i64) -> Result<Option<OpQuestion>> {
         let conn = self.conn.lock().unwrap();
         conn.query_row(
-            "SELECT id, asker, question, options_json, multi, asked_at, answered_at, answer
+            "SELECT id, asker, question, options_json, multi, asked_at, answered_at, answer, deadline_at
                FROM operator_questions WHERE id = ?1",
             params![id],
             row_to_question,
@@ -131,7 +156,7 @@ impl OperatorQuestions {
     pub fn pending(&self) -> Result<Vec<OpQuestion>> {
         let conn = self.conn.lock().unwrap();
         let mut stmt = conn.prepare(
-            "SELECT id, asker, question, options_json, multi, asked_at, answered_at, answer
+            "SELECT id, asker, question, options_json, multi, asked_at, answered_at, answer, deadline_at
                FROM operator_questions
               WHERE answered_at IS NULL
               ORDER BY id ASC",
@@ -155,6 +180,7 @@ fn row_to_question(row: &rusqlite::Row<'_>) -> rusqlite::Result<OpQuestion> {
         asked_at: row.get(5)?,
         answered_at: row.get(6)?,
         answer: row.get(7)?,
+        deadline_at: row.get(8)?,
     })
 }
 

hive-sh4re/src/lib.rs

@@ -323,12 +323,18 @@ pub enum ManagerRequest {
     /// - `multi=true` lets the operator pick multiple options (rendered
     ///   as checkboxes). The answer is returned as a single string with
     ///   selections joined by ", ".
+    /// - `ttl_seconds`: optional auto-cancel after that many seconds. On
+    ///   expiry the question is resolved with answer `[expired]` and the
+    ///   manager gets the usual `OperatorAnswered` event. None = wait
+    ///   forever for an operator answer (or manual cancel).
     AskOperator {
         question: String,
         #[serde(default)]
         options: Vec<String>,
         #[serde(default)]
         multi: bool,
+        #[serde(default)]
+        ttl_seconds: Option<u64>,
     },
 }