--- name: nanocoai/add-imessage source: https://app.decimal.ai/s/nanocoai-add-imessage@1/SKILL.md source_sha256: 57e35a80a839 --- # Add iMessage NanoClaw talks to iMessage through a single **`imessage`** channel with two pluggable backends: - **Local (this Mac)** — the Chat SDK bridge over `chat-adapter-imessage`, reading this Mac's signed-in iMessage account (`chat.db`). macOS only; the Node binary needs Full Disk Access. - **Hosted iMessage (via photon.codes)** — a native adapter over Photon's `spectrum-ts` gRPC stream. The hosted service owns the iMessage line, so there's no Mac relay, webhook, or public URL. Works on any OS, and a device-login flow provisions everything for you. Both register the same `imessage` channel type; only one runs per install. NanoClaw doesn't ship channels in trunk — this skill copies the unified `imessage` adapter in from the `channels` branch. Full reference: [docs/imessage.md](docs.md). The mechanical steps under **Apply** carry `nc:` directive fences: an agent reads the prose and applies them, and a parser can apply them deterministically from the same document. Every directive is idempotent, so the whole skill is safe to re-run; anything a parser can't apply falls back to the prose beside it. ## Apply ### 1. Choose a backend Pick the backend first — it decides which package gets installed and which walkthrough runs below (the other backend's steps are skipped): ```nc:prompt backend validate:^(local|hosted)$ How should iMessage run — `local` (this Mac's signed-in iMessage account; macOS only, needs Full Disk Access) or `hosted` (a managed line via photon.codes; works on any OS)? ``` The local backend only works on a Mac — it reads this machine's iMessage `chat.db` directly, and there is no such database off macOS. On any other OS, stop here and choose `hosted` instead; otherwise you'd write a local config that can never receive a message: ```nc:run effect:check when:backend=local [ "$(uname)" = Darwin ] ``` ### 2. Copy the adapter Fetch the `channels` branch and copy the unified iMessage adapter and its tests into `src/channels/`: ```nc:copy from-branch:channels src/channels/imessage.ts src/channels/imessage.test.ts src/channels/imessage-registration.test.ts ``` ### 3. Register the adapter Append the self-registration import to the channel barrel (skipped if the line is already present). This one line is the skill's only reach-in into core: ```nc:append to:src/channels/index.ts import './imessage.js'; ``` ### 4. Install the chosen backend's package Pinned to an exact version — the supply-chain policy rejects ranges and `latest`. Install only the chosen backend's package. **Local** — the Chat SDK iMessage adapter: ```nc:dep when:backend=local chat-adapter-imessage@0.1.1 ``` **Hosted** — Photon's Spectrum SDK: ```nc:dep when:backend=hosted spectrum-ts@11.0.0 ``` > Pin exactly. `spectrum-ts` ships breaking majors (v11 is what the adapter > targets); don't `@latest`. NanoClaw's pnpm gate (`minimumReleaseAge`) requires > a version ≥3 days old — both pins clear it. A fresher pin needs human sign-off > before a `minimumReleaseAgeExclude` entry (CLAUDE.md → Supply Chain Security). ### 5. Build and validate Build guards the typed `createChatSdkBridge(...)` core call used by the local backend, and the registration test proves the channel is wired: ```nc:run effect:build pnpm run build ``` ```nc:run effect:test pnpm exec vitest run src/channels/imessage-registration.test.ts ``` Both must be clean. `imessage-registration.test.ts` imports the real channel barrel and asserts the registry contains `imessage` — it goes red if the `import './imessage.js';` line is missing or the barrel fails to evaluate. The adapter loads neither backend's SDK at import (hosted `spectrum-ts` only in `setup()`, local `chat-adapter-imessage` only in the factory), so the test needs no package. For the hosted backend, also run the full adapter suite — it includes an integration block that exercises the real installed `spectrum-ts` (version, exports, builders) and auto-skips when the package is absent: ```nc:run effect:test when:backend=hosted pnpm exec vitest run src/channels/imessage.test.ts ``` ## Local backend: Full Disk Access (macOS) The adapter reads this Mac's `chat.db`, which requires Full Disk Access granted to the Node binary the host runs under. The Node path is buried deep (e.g. `~/.nvm/versions/node/v22.x.x/bin/node`), so open its folder in Finder to make the drag-and-drop target obvious. Harmless off a desktop (SSH/headless) — it just no-ops: ```nc:run effect:external when:backend=local open "$(dirname "$(which node)")" 2>/dev/null || true ``` Then tell the user: ```nc:operator when:backend=local Grant Full Disk Access to Node so iMessage can read your chat history: 1. Open System Settings > Privacy & Security > Full Disk Access. 2. Click +, then drag the "node" file from the Finder window that just opened. 3. Toggle it on, then come back here. ``` Stop and wait for the user to confirm Full Disk Access is granted before continuing. Now select the local backend in `.env`. The configure script owns this upsert-and-remove (a plain set-if-absent env write can neither replace a stale value nor delete a key, and a lingering hosted selector would shadow the choice): ```nc:run effect:external when:backend=local bash setup/channels/imessage-configure.sh local ``` ## Hosted backend: device login (via photon.codes) The provisioning flow needs the phone number you send iMessages from — it registers that number with your project so the hosted line recognises you: ```nc:prompt owner_handle normalize:trim validate:^\+\d{8,15}$ when:backend=hosted The phone number you iMessage from, in E.164 format — + followed by country code and number, no spaces or dashes (e.g. +14155551234). ``` Tell the user what's about to happen: ```nc:operator when:backend=hosted Connect your hosted iMessage line (photon.codes): 1. A login URL and a short code will print below. 2. Open the URL in a browser, approve the device, and enter the code. 3. Setup then asks for one dashboard step: add your number as a user in the Photon dashboard and accept the invite that arrives on your phone. Numbers only receive messages after that invite. 4. Once the opt-in lands, setup finishes on its own and prints your agent's iMessage number. ``` Run the device-login flow. It provisions the project, reuses its current secret (regenerating only when the API returns none), walks you through the dashboard Add-user + invite step (waiting until your number is opted in), and surfaces the iMessage number you'll text — writing `PHOTON_PROJECT_ID` + `PHOTON_PROJECT_SECRET` to `.env` and the assigned number to `data/photon-auth.json`: ```nc:run effect:step when:backend=hosted pnpm exec tsx scripts/photon-setup.ts setup --phone {{owner_handle}} --embedded ``` If the login times out, the code expired (~30 min) — re-run the step; a stored token is reused. Check state any time with `pnpm exec tsx scripts/photon-setup.ts status`. Then select the hosted backend in `.env` — the Photon credentials already imply hosted, but the explicit selector avoids ambiguity if local keys linger: ```nc:run effect:external when:backend=hosted bash setup/channels/imessage-configure.sh hosted ``` ## Restart Restart the service so it loads the iMessage adapter and the backend config you just wrote, and wait for its CLI socket before wiring: ```nc:run effect:restart bash setup/lib/restart.sh ``` For the hosted backend, confirm the connection came up: `grep "Photon channel connected" logs/nanoclaw.log | tail -1`. ## Resolve your iMessage handle The agent greets you in the iMessage conversation tied to the handle you message from — that handle is both your identity and the conversation address. The hosted flow already collected it above; for the local backend, resolve it now (email works too — whatever iMessage recognises): ```nc:prompt owner_handle validate:^(\+\d{8,15}|[^\s@]+@[^\s@]+\.[^\s@]+)$ when:backend=local The phone number or email you iMessage from — a +E.164 number (e.g. +14155551234) or an email / Apple ID (e.g. you@icloud.com). ``` **Hosted first contact:** text your agent's iMessage number once (it was printed above; also stored in `data/photon-auth.json`) before expecting any message from it. This first text is required, not just convenient — the hosted line can only message numbers that have already texted it (cold outbound is rejected with `Target not allowed for this project`). Tell the user: ```nc:operator when:backend=hosted Send one text — anything — from your phone to your agent's iMessage number (printed above). The hosted line can only reply to numbers that have texted it first, so its welcome message needs yours to arrive first. ``` iMessage is a native channel: it sends the raw handle as the conversation address, with no channel prefix — so the messaging-group platform id is that handle as-is: ```nc:run capture:platform_id echo "{{owner_handle}}" ``` `owner_handle` and `platform_id` are what the owner-wiring step needs. The welcome iMessage goes out through the adapter once the service is running — on the local backend that needs Full Disk Access granted (above); on the hosted backend it goes out via your photon.codes line after your first text. ## Next Steps If you're in the middle of `/setup`, return to the setup flow now. Otherwise `/init-first-agent` stands up an agent on your iMessage DM, or `/manage-channels` wires it to an existing agent group. ## Channel Info - **type**: `imessage` (one channel; the backend is local or hosted) - **terminology**: iMessage has 1:1 "chats" (DMs) and group chats. Photon (hosted) calls each conversation a "space". - **platform-id-format**: DM = your bare handle (E.164 phone, or email for local) — direct-addressable; the user id is `imessage:`. Group (hosted) = the opaque Spectrum space id. - **how-to-find-id**: DMs use the counterpart's phone/email. Groups (hosted) are discovered on first message — `pnpm exec tsx scripts/q.ts data/v2.db "SELECT platform_id, name FROM messaging_groups WHERE channel_type='imessage'"` - **supports-threads**: no - **typical-use**: Interactive 1:1 chat — personal messaging - **default-isolation**: One agent per install. Multiple DMs with the same operator can share an agent group; groups with other people should typically use `isolated` session mode. ### Hosted features Markdown (native; `PHOTON_MARKDOWN=false` for plain text), file attachments in and out (inbound staged into the session inbox, capped by `PHOTON_MAX_INLINE_ATTACHMENT_BYTES`, default 20 MB), tapback reactions, read receipts, typing indicators, and `ask_user_question` via `/approve` / `/reject` slash replies. Optional `.env`: `PHOTON_MARKDOWN`, `PHOTON_TELEMETRY`, `PHOTON_MAX_INLINE_ATTACHMENT_BYTES`, `PHOTON_DASHBOARD_HOST`, `PHOTON_SPECTRUM_HOST`. Full table in [docs/imessage.md](docs.md). ## Troubleshooting **The backend answer is rejected.** It must be exactly `local` or `hosted`, lowercase. Local only exists on macOS — it reads this Mac's `chat.db` directly — so on any other OS the platform check stops you and hosted is the only path. **Local: outgoing works but nothing ever arrives.** Full Disk Access wasn't granted to the *actual* Node binary the service runs under — with nvm the path changes per Node version (`~/.nvm/versions/node/v22.x.x/bin/node`), so an old grant silently stops covering a new binary. Re-open System Settings → Privacy & Security → Full Disk Access, add the binary at `$(which node)`, then restart the service. **`spectrum-ts` not installed** (hosted) — re-run step 4 (`pnpm install spectrum-ts@11.0.0`) and restart. **Device login times out** (hosted) — the code expires in ~30 min; re-run the login step (a stored token is reused). **`Target not allowed for this project`** (hosted) — intended: the line only messages numbers that have texted it first. Text the agent's number once, then retry (a welcome DM queued before that first text simply fails delivery). **Your handle is rejected at the resolve step.** It must be a bare +E.164 number (`+14155551234` — no spaces, dashes, or parentheses) or, on the local backend, an email/Apple ID. Use the exact handle you actually send iMessages from — a number-vs-email mismatch means your messages never map to the wired conversation. **Adapter installed but silent.** Run `pnpm exec vitest run src/channels/imessage-registration.test.ts` — red means the barrel import or the package install drifted, so re-run the Apply steps. If green, confirm the backend connected (hosted: `grep "Photon channel connected" logs/nanoclaw.log`), restart the service (`bash setup/lib/restart.sh`), then check `logs/nanoclaw.error.log`. More in [docs/imessage.md](docs.md). ## Upgrading spectrum-ts (hosted) `spectrum-ts` is pinned exactly because it ships breaking majors. To upgrade, read the [release notes](https://github.com/photon-hq/spectrum-ts/releases) for every version between the pins, bump the pin, reconcile `src/channels/imessage.ts` against the new typings, then `pnpm run build` and `pnpm exec vitest run src/channels/imessage.test.ts`. See [docs/imessage.md](docs.md).