Relax source grounding and pin owner Codex model

.env.example

@@ -41,6 +41,7 @@ ENABLED_PROVIDERS=owner_codex
 OWNER_CODEX_MODE=local_exec_owner_only
 CODEX_EXECUTABLE=codex
 CODEX_EXEC_ARGS=
+CODEX_MODEL=gpt-5.4
 CODEX_MODEL_REASONING_EFFORT=low
 CODEX_EXEC_TIMEOUT_MS=120000
 STYLE_PACK_PATH=styles/void-default.md

README.md

@@ -213,7 +213,7 @@ npm run dev:worker
 
 If `DISCORD_APPLICATION_ID` and `DISCORD_GUILD_ID` are set, the bot registers slash commands into that guild on startup.
 
-For `owner_codex`, the worker also needs a working local Codex CLI. If plain `codex` is not invokable from Node on your machine, point `CODEX_EXECUTABLE` and `CODEX_EXEC_ARGS` at the actual install.
+For `owner_codex`, the worker also needs a working local Codex CLI. If plain `codex` is not invokable from Node on your machine, point `CODEX_EXECUTABLE` and `CODEX_EXEC_ARGS` at the actual install. `CODEX_MODEL` pins the owner Discord lane to a specific model; the default is `gpt-5.4` so older local Codex installs do not faceplant on `gpt-5.5`.
 
 ## Example Questions
 
@@ -262,7 +262,7 @@ The `local_llm` provider uses Ollama chat completion plus a bounded host-managed
 
 Unlike the owner Codex lane, this is not MCP. It is a tighter host-controlled loop and deliberately excludes side-effecting tools.
 
-Project, repo, and lore questions are now source-grounded by policy: if the prompt matches indexed repo/project cues, Void must touch the source-side lookup tools before answering confidently.
+Project, repo, and lore questions should lean on the source-side lookup tools when the answer depends on indexed repo or lore facts. The providers now treat source-grounding hints as advisory instead of letting a dumb lexical hall monitor veto the whole reply before the model can think.
 
 ## Discord, Repo, And Lore Indexing
 

apps/bot/src/discord-bot-support.ts

@@ -288,7 +288,7 @@ export function inferSourceGroundingHint(
   }
 
   return {
-    required: reasons.size > 0,
+    required: false,
     reasons: [...reasons],
     matchedRepoNames: [...matchedRepoNames].sort(),
   };

apps/bot/src/discord-bot.ts

@@ -149,6 +149,7 @@ export async function startBot(): Promise<void> {
       mode: config.ownerCodexMode,
       executable: config.codexExecutable,
       executableArgs: config.codexExecArgs,
+      model: config.codexModel,
       reasoningEffort: config.codexModelReasoningEffort,
       timeoutMs: config.codexExecTimeoutMs,
       workingDirectory: process.cwd(),

apps/worker/src/index.ts

@@ -136,6 +136,7 @@ async function buildProviderRegistry(systemMessagesCatalog: SystemMessageCatalog
       mode: config.ownerCodexMode,
       executable: config.codexExecutable,
       executableArgs: config.codexExecArgs,
+      model: config.codexModel,
       reasoningEffort: config.codexModelReasoningEffort,
       timeoutMs: config.codexExecTimeoutMs,
       workingDirectory: process.cwd(),

notes/fresh-workspace-handoff.md

@@ -32,6 +32,7 @@ Git history and smoke artifacts carry routine proof. `state/evidence.jsonl` shou
 - The stack has a dedicated logon startup task path now, so a reboot does not have to mean manual necromancy for bot and worker.
 - The operations watchdog now supports ignored local extension checks, so adjacent-service fire signals can ride the same owner DM alert path without hardcoding private project gossip into the public repo.
 - Source repo discovery now reconciles automatically during `npm run stack:start` and through the watchdog path, so new repos under `SOURCE_REPO_ROOT` stop waiting for manual hook folklore before they get indexed.
+- Source-grounding hints are advisory now; the owner and local lanes can decide when repo or lore tool use is actually warranted instead of obeying a lexical front-door veto.
 - The new state/notes surfaces are now the continuity spine for future nontrivial work.
 
 ## Likely Next Bounded Move

packages/config/src/index.ts

@@ -86,6 +86,7 @@ const envSchema = z.object({
   OWNER_CODEX_MODE: z.string().min(1).default("local_exec_owner_only"),
   CODEX_EXECUTABLE: z.string().min(1).default("codex"),
   CODEX_EXEC_ARGS: z.string().default(""),
+  CODEX_MODEL: z.string().min(1).default("gpt-5.4"),
   CODEX_MODEL_REASONING_EFFORT: z.enum(["low", "medium", "high", "xhigh"]).default("low"),
   CODEX_EXEC_TIMEOUT_MS: z.coerce.number().int().positive().default(120000),
   STYLE_PACK_PATH: z.string().min(1).default("styles/void-default.md"),
@@ -116,6 +117,7 @@ export interface AppConfig {
   ownerCodexMode: OwnerCodexMode;
   codexExecutable: string;
   codexExecArgs: string[];
+  codexModel: string;
   codexModelReasoningEffort: "low" | "medium" | "high" | "xhigh";
   codexExecTimeoutMs: number;
   stylePackPath: string;
@@ -285,6 +287,7 @@ export function loadConfig(env: NodeJS.ProcessEnv = process.env): AppConfig {
     ownerCodexMode: parseOwnerCodexMode(parsed.OWNER_CODEX_MODE),
     codexExecutable: parsed.CODEX_EXECUTABLE,
     codexExecArgs: parseList(parsed.CODEX_EXEC_ARGS),
+    codexModel: parsed.CODEX_MODEL,
     codexModelReasoningEffort: parsed.CODEX_MODEL_REASONING_EFFORT,
     codexExecTimeoutMs: parsed.CODEX_EXEC_TIMEOUT_MS,
     stylePackPath: resolve(parsed.STYLE_PACK_PATH),

packages/providers/src/local-llm-provider.ts

@@ -10,9 +10,7 @@ import {
 import {
   buildArtifacts,
   buildPrompt,
-  buildSourceGroundingReminder,
   buildSystemPrompt,
-  didUseSourceGrounding,
 } from "./local-llm-render";
 import {
   executeToolCall,
@@ -20,7 +18,6 @@ import {
   normalizeAssistantMessage,
 } from "./local-llm-tools";
 import {
-  MAX_SOURCE_GROUNDING_RETRIES,
   MAX_TOOL_TURNS,
   type LocalLlmProviderOptions,
   type OllamaChatMessage,
@@ -96,8 +93,6 @@ export class LocalLlmProvider implements ProviderAdapter {
     const tools = this.options.toolbox ? buildToolDefinitions() : undefined;
     const toolTrace: ToolTraceRecord[] = [];
     const thinkingTrace: string[] = [];
-    const sourceGroundingRequired = Boolean(request.contextBundle.sourceGrounding?.required);
-    let sourceGroundingReminderCount = 0;
 
     try {
       let finalPayload: OllamaChatResponse | undefined;
@@ -147,25 +142,6 @@ export class LocalLlmProvider implements ProviderAdapter {
         if (toolCalls.length === 0) {
           const candidateOutput = normalizeModelText(assistantMessage.content);
 
-          if (
-            sourceGroundingRequired &&
-            !didUseSourceGrounding(toolTrace) &&
-            this.options.toolbox
-          ) {
-            if (sourceGroundingReminderCount < MAX_SOURCE_GROUNDING_RETRIES) {
-              sourceGroundingReminderCount += 1;
-              messages.push({
-                role: "user",
-                content: buildSourceGroundingReminder(request.contextBundle),
-              });
-              continue;
-            }
-
-            finalOutputText =
-              "This request needs actual source grounding before I can answer it cleanly. Ask again after I pull from the indexed repos, or use the deeper Codex lane.";
-            break;
-          }
-
           finalOutputText = candidateOutput;
           break;
         }

packages/providers/src/local-llm-render.ts

@@ -79,18 +79,6 @@ export function buildPrompt(context: ContextBundle): string {
   ].join("\n");
 }
 
-export function buildSourceGroundingReminder(context: ContextBundle): string {
-  return `${renderSourceGroundingInstructions(context, true)} Answer again only after using the source-side tools.`;
-}
-
-export function didUseSourceGrounding(toolTrace: ToolTraceRecord[]): boolean {
-  return toolTrace.some((trace) =>
-    trace.tool === "list_indexed_repos" ||
-    trace.tool === "search_sources" ||
-    trace.tool === "get_source_context",
-  );
-}
-
 export function buildArtifacts(input: LocalLlmArtifactsInput): ProviderArtifact[] {
   return buildBaseArtifacts(input);
 }
@@ -140,16 +128,12 @@ function renderSourceGroundingInstructions(
   context: ContextBundle,
   reminder: boolean,
 ): string {
-  if (!context.sourceGrounding?.required) {
-    return "Source-side grounding is optional here; use it when it clearly helps.";
-  }
-
   const matchedRepos =
-    context.sourceGrounding.matchedRepoNames.length > 0
+    context.sourceGrounding?.matchedRepoNames && context.sourceGrounding.matchedRepoNames.length > 0
       ? ` Matched repos/projects: ${context.sourceGrounding.matchedRepoNames.join(", ")}.`
       : "";
   const reasons =
-    context.sourceGrounding.reasons.length > 0
+    context.sourceGrounding?.reasons && context.sourceGrounding.reasons.length > 0
       ? ` Reasons: ${context.sourceGrounding.reasons.join(", ")}.`
       : "";
   const retry =
@@ -157,5 +141,13 @@ function renderSourceGroundingInstructions(
       ? " The previous answer attempt was discarded because it did not touch the source-side tools."
       : "";
 
-  return `This prompt requires source-grounded evidence before you answer. Use list_indexed_repos, search_sources, or get_source_context first.${matchedRepos}${reasons}${retry}`;
+  if (
+    !context.sourceGrounding ||
+    (context.sourceGrounding.matchedRepoNames.length === 0 &&
+      context.sourceGrounding.reasons.length === 0)
+  ) {
+    return "Source-side grounding is optional here; use it when it clearly helps.";
+  }
+
+  return `This prompt may benefit from source-side grounding. Use list_indexed_repos, search_sources, or get_source_context if repo, lore, or source evidence would sharpen the answer.${matchedRepos}${reasons}${retry}`;
 }

packages/providers/src/local-llm-shared.ts

@@ -5,7 +5,6 @@ import {
 
 export type OllamaThinkMode = boolean | "low" | "medium" | "high";
 export const MAX_TOOL_TURNS = 4;
-export const MAX_SOURCE_GROUNDING_RETRIES = 1;
 export const MAX_TOOL_RESULTS = MAX_RETRIEVAL_RESULT_LIMIT;
 export const MAX_CONTEXT_WINDOW = 20;
 

packages/providers/src/owner-codex-provider.ts

@@ -11,10 +11,8 @@ import type {
 import {
   buildDefaultHandoffNotice,
   buildRequestPayload,
-  didUseSourceGrounding,
   type HistoryLookupTool,
   MAX_HISTORY_TOOL_CALLS,
-  MAX_SOURCE_GROUNDING_RETRIES,
   type OwnerCodexProviderOptions,
   type ToolCallRecord,
 } from "./owner-codex-shared";
@@ -176,25 +174,18 @@ export class OwnerCodexProvider implements ProviderAdapter {
     const artifacts: ProviderArtifact[] = [...baseArtifacts];
     const turnResults = [];
     let result;
-    let sourceGroundingReminderCount = 0;
-    const sourceGroundingRequired = Boolean(
-      request.contextBundle.sourceGrounding?.required,
-    );
 
-    for (
-      let turn = 0;
-      turn <= MAX_HISTORY_TOOL_CALLS + MAX_SOURCE_GROUNDING_RETRIES;
-      turn += 1
-    ) {
+    for (let turn = 0; turn <= MAX_HISTORY_TOOL_CALLS; turn += 1) {
       const codexPrompt = buildDiscordReplyPrompt(
         request.contextBundle,
         toolCalls,
-        sourceGroundingReminderCount > 0,
+        false,
       );
 
       result = await runCodexExec({
         executable: this.options.executable,
         executableArgs: this.options.executableArgs,
+        model: this.options.model,
         reasoningEffort: this.options.reasoningEffort,
         timeoutMs: this.options.timeoutMs,
         workingDirectory: this.options.workingDirectory,
@@ -246,16 +237,6 @@ export class OwnerCodexProvider implements ProviderAdapter {
       }
 
       if (!result.toolRequest) {
-        if (sourceGroundingRequired && !didUseSourceGrounding(result.traceEvents)) {
-          if (sourceGroundingReminderCount < MAX_SOURCE_GROUNDING_RETRIES) {
-            sourceGroundingReminderCount += 1;
-            continue;
-          }
-
-          result.handoffReason =
-            "This question needed source-grounded evidence, but the reply lane never used the source tools.";
-        }
-
         break;
       }
 

packages/providers/src/owner-codex-render.ts

@@ -333,7 +333,11 @@ function renderSourceGroundingInstructions(
   context: ContextBundle,
   reminder: boolean,
 ): string {
-  if (!context.sourceGrounding?.required) {
+  if (
+    !context.sourceGrounding ||
+    (context.sourceGrounding.matchedRepoNames.length === 0 &&
+      context.sourceGrounding.reasons.length === 0)
+  ) {
     return "- Source-side grounding is optional here; use it when it clearly helps.";
   }
 
@@ -349,7 +353,7 @@ function renderSourceGroundingInstructions(
     ? " The previous answer attempt was discarded because it did not touch the source-side tools."
     : "";
 
-  return `- This prompt requires source-grounded evidence before you answer. Use list_indexed_repos, search_sources, or get_source_context first.${matchedRepos}${reasons}${retry}`;
+  return `- This prompt may benefit from source-side grounding. Use list_indexed_repos, search_sources, or get_source_context if repo, lore, or source evidence would sharpen the answer.${matchedRepos}${reasons}${retry}`;
 }
 
 function renderAgentMessageTrace(events: CodexTraceEvent[]): string {

packages/providers/src/owner-codex-runtime.ts

@@ -42,6 +42,7 @@ const MAX_HISTORY_LIMIT = MAX_RETRIEVAL_RESULT_LIMIT;
 export async function runCodexExec(input: {
   executable: string;
   executableArgs: string[];
+  model: string;
   reasoningEffort: "low" | "medium" | "high" | "xhigh";
   timeoutMs: number;
   workingDirectory: string;
@@ -54,6 +55,8 @@ export async function runCodexExec(input: {
     const args = [
       ...input.executableArgs,
       "exec",
+      "-m",
+      input.model,
       "-c",
       'approval_policy="never"',
       "-c",

packages/providers/src/owner-codex-shared.ts

@@ -12,7 +12,6 @@ export const HANDOFF_SENTINEL = "VOIDBOT_HANDOFF_REQUIRED:";
 export const OWNER_NOTIFY_SENTINEL = "VOIDBOT_OWNER_NOTIFY:";
 export const TOOL_REQUEST_SENTINEL = "VOIDBOT_TOOL_REQUEST:";
 export const MAX_HISTORY_TOOL_CALLS = 4;
-export const MAX_SOURCE_GROUNDING_RETRIES = 1;
 export const MAX_NOTIFICATION_MESSAGE_LENGTH = 400;
 
 export interface CodexUsageSnapshot {
@@ -35,6 +34,7 @@ export interface OwnerCodexProviderOptions {
   mode: OwnerCodexMode;
   executable: string;
   executableArgs: string[];
+  model: string;
   reasoningEffort: "low" | "medium" | "high" | "xhigh";
   timeoutMs: number;
   workingDirectory: string;
@@ -133,16 +133,6 @@ export function buildDefaultHandoffNotice(jobId: string): string {
   return `This request needs the fuller local Codex flow. Check \`.voidbot/artifacts/${jobId}/handoff.md\` and \`.voidbot/artifacts/${jobId}/debug-trace.md\` in the local workspace.`;
 }
 
-export function didUseSourceGrounding(events: CodexTraceEvent[]): boolean {
-  return events.some(
-    (event) =>
-      event.kind === "mcp_tool_completed" &&
-      (event.tool === "list_indexed_repos" ||
-        event.tool === "search_sources" ||
-        event.tool === "get_source_context"),
-  );
-}
-
 export function extractLatestUsage(
   events: CodexTraceEvent[],
 ): CodexUsageSnapshot | undefined {

state/evidence.jsonl

@@ -19,3 +19,4 @@
 {"ts":"2026-05-02T14:05:54Z","type":"implementation","status":"ok","note":"Scheduled-task helpers must anchor repo-relative scripts, dotenv loading, and path resolution to the VoidBot root; relying on cwd keeps sending System32 in to eat them."}
 {"ts":"2026-05-02T17:34:02Z","type":"implementation","status":"ok","note":"Layered private system message catalogs over the tracked base, deferred slow slash replies before provider execution, and chunked Discord output so missing keys and overlong local_llm replies stop failing live interactions."}
 {"ts":"2026-05-02T17:39:46Z","type":"implementation","status":"ok","note":"Source-grounding alias matching now ignores overly short repo components so social prompts mentioning Void stop tripping fake repo-evidence requirements, and direct messages intentionally count as prompts without requiring a mention."}
+{"ts":"2026-05-02T18:28:04Z","type":"implementation","status":"ok","note":"Pinned the owner Codex lane to a configurable CODEX_MODEL defaulting to gpt-5.4 because the local CLI still faceplants on gpt-5.5, and relaxed source-grounding from a lexical hard gate into an advisory hint so the model can decide when repo/lore tool use is actually needed."}

state/map.yaml

@@ -30,7 +30,7 @@ invariants:
   - Scratch is temporary and disposable.
   - Evidence is durable and distilled; routine activity proof belongs in git history, commits, smoke artifacts, or targeted logs.
   - Jobs, audit events, interaction memory, and rate-limit state live in Postgres; vectors live in Qdrant; archives, artifacts, logs, and backups remain under `.voidbot/`.
-  - Source, repo, and lore answers must be grounded through source-side retrieval instead of vibes.
+  - Source, repo, and lore answers should use source-side retrieval when the reply depends on indexed facts; the hinting is advisory, not a lexical veto.
   - When GameCult history, repo, or lore retrieval can answer the question, use the VoidBot MCP surfaces before raw repo spelunking.
 
 data_flow:
@@ -75,7 +75,7 @@ landed_baseline:
     - Local and offsite backups, watchdogs, and the operations dashboard are live.
     - The stack now has a dedicated logon startup task path so bot and worker can come back after a reboot without waiting for manual resurrection.
     - Interaction memory and behavioral profiling are live.
-    - Source-grounding enforcement and tool-driven retrieval are live.
+    - Tool-driven retrieval is live, and source-grounding hints now bias the reply lanes instead of hard-gating them with a lexical pre-classifier.
   - The operations watchdog can now load ignored local extension checks, so adjacent-service fire signals can piggyback on the owner DM path without turning the public repo into cross-project gossip.
   - The owner Codex lane is now split into orchestration, runtime/parsing, shared helpers, and rendering modules instead of one swollen provider file.
   - The local Ollama lane is now split into orchestration, prompt/render helpers, tool-loop helpers, and shared types/constants instead of one swollen provider file.