[lyn1dev]

Problem

On Windows, revealing a file in File Explorer takes over 2 seconds, because every reveal starts a hidden PowerShell before Explorer. To reproduce on Windows: open a file in the file preview panel and press Open in File Explorer. Expected: Explorer shows the selected file about as fast as the OS allows.

Change

The desktop app reveals local drive-letter files with Electron's shell.showItemInFolder from the three reveal entry points (file preview, chat file links, file context menu). It declines and falls back to the existing server reveal for non-Windows, WSL/UNC paths, remote environments, older desktop builds, connections without the operate scope, and when reg.exe does not report the stock Directory\shell value of none, so replacement file managers (https://git.cafe/pingdotgg/t3code/pulls/19526) are unchanged.

The IPC and renderer changes are all needed for this one fix: the main process owns the native call, and each entry point has to try it before the server.

Scope and approval

Fixes #33063. No maintainer has reviewed the issue yet, so this has no explicit approval. I'm submitting it under the small, focused fix route in CONTRIBUTING.md: it addresses one defect, the PowerShell start on every Windows reveal. It adds no setting, workflow or UI, and does not change product defaults; the same reveal happens, faster, and every case it can't handle keeps today's server path. It spans desktop, contracts and web only because one native call has to cross the IPC boundary and be reached from each existing entry point. If maintainers would rather triage https://git.cafe/pingdotgg/t3code/issues/33063 first, its measurements stand on their own.

Verification

Windows (contributor's machine). Time until the file is selected in Explorer, Windows 11 26200, Core Ultra 7 255H, 4 runs each after a warm-up:

Route	Average	Range
main (PowerShell then explorer /select)	2,453 ms	2,247–2,643 ms
shell.showItemInFolder	1,279 ms	1,169–1,393 ms

Built desktop app from this branch, isolated T3 home, window.desktopBridge.revealItemInFolder called in the real renderer: 4/4 rounds returned true and selected the right file with Explorer in front (a folder, with=odd & names\report final,v2.txt; also spaces, apostrophes, &, Unicode, commas, equals signs). \\wsl.localhost\… and relative paths were declined.

cannot-verify windows: no maintainer Windows host ran this. Not recorded: pressing the on-screen controls on Windows, a live replacement file manager, registry variants, UNC/WSL on a real host, a stalled reg.exe (2 s timeout then server reveal). The decision rule is covered by mocked tests in window.test.ts.

Linux (desktop under Xvfb and web), before = main 4c36119, after = 93a2245. No visual change; each row is a scripted recording of the same interaction on both sides, with an on-screen trace of the new IPC call, the shell.openInEditor RPC and the stubbed Linux launcher. Linux Electron 44.10.1 under Xvfb and Chromium 148 for web; app 1440×1000 dark, DPR 1, 100% zoom, reduced motion, frozen client clock; fresh databases (T3CODE_DEV_SEED=0), synthetic data.

Row (1440×1000 dark)	Before 4c36119	After 93a2245	Outcome on both sides
Chat markdown file links, 11 link shapes	A01-before.mp4	A01-after.mp4	one reveal RPC each, same path; after: IPC false first
Preview picker, click and shortcut	A02-before.mp4	A02-after.mp4	one reveal per activation; choosing the editor launches nothing
File browser context menu, pointer and keyboard	A03-before.mp4	A03-after.mp4	4 RPCs, 4 launcher calls, identical
Changed-files card, root workspace	A04-root-before.mp4	A04-root-after.mp4	one RPC, one launcher call for other/a.ts
Changed-files card, nested workspace	A04-subdir-before.mp4	A04-subdir-after.mp4	identical
Diff headers, root and nested	A05-before.mp4 · nested	A05-after.mp4 · nested	identical
Plain web, no desktop bridge, all three entry points	A06-before.mp4	A06-after.mp4	one RPC each, no IPC
Read-only: chat link, picker, context menu	A09 · A10 · A11	A09 · A10 · A11	no native call; same disabled controls and same server rejection
Missing file in preview	A17-before.mp4	A17-after.mp4	same RPC path and launcher target
Real Linux IPC channel	H03-before.mp4	H03-after.mp4	after: POSIX and C:\… strings return false, a number payload is rejected

Labelled renderer harnesses, also before/after: older desktop without the method (A07), throwing or rejecting bridge (A08), bridge true suppresses the server reveal (H01), only boolean true counts and a delayed false still falls back once (H02), server reveal failure keeps the existing error (A23). Full index with every trace, narrated timestamps and before links: evidence-index.md, A04 root addendum, fixture matrix. Seed and driver scripts: seed-and-driver-scripts.tar.gz, A04 root drivers, REBUILD.md.

What else changed in the recordings: only capture labels, trace lines, generated IDs and timestamps, Replay durations, sidebar ages and pointer positions. Two behaviours appear identically before and after and are not from this PR: a nested-workspace reveal from the changed-files card or diff header repeats src in the path, and Ctrl+O on a read-only connection sends a directory open that the server rejects.

Verification log

• Branch merged with main at 4c36119 (captured head 93a2245), then again at 7171fdd for the final head 2d31484; that merge touches none of this PR's files. No conflicts, no code changes in this round.
• vp run check:changed passes on 2d31484.
• Tests: window.test.ts and DesktopApp.test.ts 20 passed; remoteOpen.test.ts 17 passed; ChatMarkdown and OpenInPicker browser tests 28 passed. vp run check:changed: format, lint, knip, typecheck (37 packages) and React compiler pass.
• Review round 1, two independent reviewers: no code regressions found; registry-output and drive-path regexes are linear (≤0.8 ms on 3000-token adversarial input). Open item: no recording on a real Windows host.
• Proof audit: two passes plus a recheck of the re-recorded changed-files card row; all Linux-reachable rows pass; one auditor rebuild reproduced the preview-picker trace.
• Unverified: windows.

AI-assisted; verified with the tests and tools listed above.

🤖 Generated with Claude Code

[macroscopeapp]

Approvability

Verdict: Needs Human Approval

Macroscope's review found this PR requires human approval — Windows file reveals gain a native Electron fast path with server fallback. The unresolved authorization finding identifies a context-menu path that can reveal files from read-only or revoked connections, requiring resolution of the intended access restriction.

Needs human approval because:

• 1 blocking correctness issue found at or above your repo's Minimum Blocking Severity

^{Adjust the Minimum Blocking Severity for this repo — including turning it Off — in Settings. You can add or adjust custom eligibility rules. Learn more.}

[coderabbitai]

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Walkthrough

The desktop app adds an IPC method that uses Electron to reveal eligible Windows paths. Web reveal actions try this method first and continue through their existing fallback paths when it is unavailable or returns false.

Changes: Folder reveal

Layer / File(s)	Summary
Desktop reveal IPC and Windows handling packages/contracts/src/ipc.ts, apps/desktop/src/ipc/channels.ts, apps/desktop/src/ipc/methods/window.ts, apps/desktop/src/ipc/DesktopIpcHandlers.ts, apps/desktop/src/preload.ts, apps/desktop/src/ipc/methods/window.test.ts, apps/desktop/src/app/DesktopApp.test.ts	The desktop bridge gains an optional reveal method and IPC channel. The handler queries the Windows directory shell verb and calls Electron’s reveal operation only for eligible paths. Tests cover platform, path, and registry-result cases.
Web reveal integration apps/web/src/remoteOpen.ts, apps/web/src/remoteOpen.test.ts, apps/web/src/components/ChatMarkdown.tsx, apps/web/src/components/chat/OpenInPicker.tsx, apps/web/src/fileContextMenu.ts	The web helper returns true only when the optional desktop method succeeds and the environment has the required scope. Chat markdown, the open picker, and the file context menu try desktop reveal before their existing fallback behavior.

Estimated code review effort: 3 (Moderate) | ~20 minutes

Change: Bug fix · Severity of issue fixed: Low

Sequence Diagram(s)

sequenceDiagram
  participant WebRevealAction
  participant revealInDesktopShell
  participant DesktopBridge
  participant DesktopIPC
  participant ChildProcessSpawner
  participant ElectronShell
  WebRevealAction->>revealInDesktopShell: Request reveal for path
  revealInDesktopShell->>DesktopBridge: Call revealItemInFolder(path)
  DesktopBridge->>DesktopIPC: Invoke reveal-item-in-folder channel
  DesktopIPC->>ChildProcessSpawner: Query Windows directory shell verb
  ChildProcessSpawner-->>DesktopIPC: Return registry result
  DesktopIPC->>ElectronShell: Reveal path when Windows checks pass
  DesktopIPC-->>DesktopBridge: Return true or false
  DesktopBridge-->>revealInDesktopShell: Return reveal result
  revealInDesktopShell-->>WebRevealAction: Return true or false

Loading

Possibly related issues

• pingdotgg/t3code#30285: The pull request changes the ChatMarkdown reveal handler used for file links, which relates to the issue’s file-chip reveal actions.

Possibly related PRs

• pingdotgg/t3code#31358: That PR makes same-home bearer environments resolve to local-exec, which is a condition for this pull request’s desktop reveal helper.

Suggested reviewers: maria-rcks, t3dotgg

Merge Risk: Minimal · previous review bf7a5

The faster Windows reveal path retains the existing fallback when it cannot be used. No concrete issue requiring a fix before merge is established.

Pre-merge checks: 4

Check name	Status	Explanation
Title check		The title clearly identifies the Windows file-reveal performance improvement and uses a conventional, concise format.
Description check		The description includes the required Problem, Change, Scope and approval, and Verification sections. It explains the small-fix scope and provides detailed test results; it names Claude Code but does …
Linked Issues check		Issue [#33063] asks the Windows preview action to select a file in Explorer without the PowerShell delay. revealItemInFolder uses Electron shell.showItemInFolder for supported Windows drive-letter…
Out of Scope Changes check		The IPC channel, preload bridge, contracts, renderer routing, registry check, and tests support issue [#33063]. The DesktopApp.test.ts service mock supports the new child-process service dependency.…

Full details: Description check

Explanation

The description includes the required Problem, Change, Scope and approval, and Verification sections. It explains the small-fix scope and provides detailed test results; it names Claude Code but does not specify the model and harness.

Full details: Linked Issues check

Explanation

Issue [#33063] asks the Windows preview action to select a file in Explorer without the PowerShell delay. revealItemInFolder uses Electron shell.showItemInFolder for supported Windows drive-letter paths when the stock folder verb is active. OpenInPicker tries this method for preview reveals. Chat-link and file-context-menu reveals use the same method. Unsupported cases keep the server reveal path. Tests cover native reveal, decline conditions, and desktop-bridge scope behavior.

Full details: Out of Scope Changes check

Explanation

The IPC channel, preload bridge, contracts, renderer routing, registry check, and tests support issue [#33063]. The DesktopApp.test.ts service mock supports the new child-process service dependency. No unrelated change is evident in the reviewed diff.

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[maria-rcks]

Note

Written by claude-opus-5-5 on behalf of Maria

Merged current main with a merge commit. The one conflict was an import line in apps/desktop/src/ipc/methods/window.test.ts, resolved by keeping both imports.

Macroscope's operate-scope finding is already handled: revealInDesktopShell checks AuthOrchestrationOperateScope before using the desktop bridge (7b8f1c4).

Passed: vp run check:changed (format, lint, knip, typecheck, tests, react compiler), including the window, DesktopApp, remoteOpen, OpenInPicker and ChatMarkdown tests. Windows runtime behavior is unverified here.

[juliusmarminge]

The automated pipeline stopped on this pull request and will not merge it:

the proof has no capture anyone can open:

• Base PowerShell startup delay and head native Explorer selection remain unverified because Windows was unavailable.
• File preview, chat file link, and file context menu reveal actions were not exercised on either commit.
• No captures or driver scripts were produced, so no ghdrop upload was attempted and no public evidence URLs exist.

It stays open for a person to finish or close.

[github-actions]

This PR conflicts with main. Rebase it or merge main into it. If it still conflicts after 7 days with no activity, it will be closed automatically.

See the conflict window.

[juliusmarminge]

The automated pipeline stopped on this pull request and will not merge it:

the fix is written and reviewed, but proving it needs something no worker has:

• Permanent blocker: an interactive Windows desktop session with visible T3 Code Electron and Explorer windows is required to record reveal-to-selection timing. The available Windows pool has no desktop session; the scenario runner cannot cover desktop shell behavior or this timing comparison.
• All three reveal entry points remain unverified on both base and head. The reported approximately 2.45-second delay and its removal were not observed.

It stays open for a person to finish or close.

[juliusmarminge]

The automated pipeline stopped on this pull request and will not merge it:

the capture step could not show the problem on the base commit, so there is nothing to prove fixed.

Prepared both builds and synthetic files. Launched head on two Windows leases and base on a third. All three leases went offline during desktop startup; SSH retries timed out. No file-preview, chat-link, or context-menu reveal was executed. No performance comparison was obtained.

It stays open for a person to finish or close.

[juliusmarminge]

Evidence

Windows Server 2025, real Electron, 1920×1080, light theme, stock Directory shell verb none. Reveal the same existing file from the preview, repeat the preview reveal, then reveal through the chat-link menu and file-tree context menu. Close Explorer between actions and wait for actual selection each time.

Before	After
Recording — 1a12c4afae	Recording — 8569263485

Base launched four PowerShell children, each launching Explorer. Head launched one registry query and four direct Explorer children, with no application PowerShell child; subsequent reveals reused the cached result. All four actions selected the file. Observed selection delays were 1.783/1.415/1.486/1.514 seconds on base and 1.348/1.149/1.169/1.230 seconds on head in this single pass.

Driver and seed fixture · Runtime evidence · Raw captures. Video headers use application-parent attribution from WMI observations; event delivery can batch or reorder timestamps.

Not shown:

• The issue's exact approximately 2.45-second delay was not reproduced; this environment showed the smaller selection delays reported above.
• Custom folder verbs, registry-query failure or timeout fallback, WSL, and unusual filename quoting were not exercised; this proof covers stock native Windows reveals.