gstack/lib/context-bill.ts

1004 lines
38 KiB
TypeScript

/**
* gstack context-bill — token bill-of-materials for an installed gstack skills tree.
*
* Read-only, offline, deterministic. Ledgers over pure file reads:
* ALWAYS-ON per-skill YAML frontmatter bytes (what every session's skill
* scanner loads), flagging frontmatter keys the router never
* reads and foreign-host files in scanner scope.
* EAGER SKILL.md plus any references the skill's prose forces "for
* every invocation".
*
* This is a STRIPPED port of the v2 fork's six-ledger bill: the CONDITIONAL,
* TRANSITIVE, LAZY, and FAST-PATH parsers only understand the fork's
* dispatcher-skill layout, which this repo's skills don't use, so they were
* dropped rather than shipped dead. The tier fields stay in the report shape
* (empty arrays / zeros / nulls) so re-adding a parser is additive: nothing
* downstream needs a schema change.
*
* Token figures come from one of two sources, always named in the output:
* ESTIMATE (default, offline) bytes / TOKEN_DIVISOR, calibrated against real
* count_tokens measurements.
* EXACT (--exact, opt-in) Anthropic's count_tokens for every file the
* bill touches. Sends file content off-machine,
* so it is never implicit: an egress receipt is
* written before the POSTs (sink
* 'context-bill-exact'), and if the receipt
* cannot be written the run degrades to the
* offline estimate with a warning instead of
* sending unrecorded.
* Both bytes and tokens are always shown, and the estimate's measured error
* band is printed with it. The tool never writes state anywhere (the egress
* receipt under --exact is the one exception, and it is the point).
*/
import fs from "node:fs";
import os from "node:os";
import path from "node:path";
import { writeReceipt } from "./egress-receipt";
const FORCED_PHRASE = "for every invocation";
// Backticked reference in prose. `<...>` is excluded: a path template such as
// `references/templates/<Name>.md` names a family of files, not one on disk.
const PROSE_REF = /`(references\/[^`<>]+\.md)`/g;
// Upstream frontmatter contract: the keys the router/host actually reads.
const ROUTER_KEYS = new Set(["name", "description", "version", "allowed-tools", "triggers", "preamble-tier"]);
// Skill-shaped files other hosts drop into scanner scope.
const FOREIGN_SKILL_FILE = /^(skill\.(ya?ml|json)|agents?\.md|\.cursorrules|\.windsurfrules)$/i;
/**
* Bytes per token, per content class, fitted to real count_tokens measurements.
*
* Calibration corpus: 219 `.md` skill files plus their frontmatter blocks,
* measured 2026-08-01 against `claude-opus-4-5` with the per-request message
* envelope subtracted. Regenerate with `gstack-context-bill <tree> --exact
* --json` and read the `calibration` block, which grades this estimate
* against measured counts file by file.
*
* Why classes and not one divisor: measured bytes-per-token spans 2.36 to 4.72
* across the corpus, and the spread is largely structural. Legacy specialist
* modules cluster at 3.47 (n=50, range 3.10-3.83) and SKILL.md bodies at 4.21
* (n=50, range 3.65-4.50) -- tight enough that one divisor for both charges
* some ledgers about 19% under while charging others about right. Splitting on
* path roles cuts mean per-file error from 11.1% to 7.4% and removes the
* systematic bias, which is what a cost tool owes.
*
* What classes do NOT fix: the `reference` class is genuinely heterogeneous
* (2.36 to 4.72 -- dense path/table files sit at one end, prose at the other),
* so worst-case per-file error stays near 40%. Use --exact when a single
* file's number has to be right.
*
* These divisors are tokenizer-specific. Opus 4.7 and later tokenize
* differently; on those models use --exact.
*/
export const TOKEN_DIVISORS: Record<string, number> = {
frontmatter: 3.99,
skillmd: 4.21,
reference: 4.15,
artifact: 3.67,
legacy: 3.47,
};
/** Fallback for content that matches no class. Corpus-wide aggregate. */
export const TOKEN_DIVISOR = 3.9;
/** Worst-case per-file residual of the estimate over the calibration corpus. */
export const TOKEN_ESTIMATE_ERROR_PCT = 40;
export type TokensOf = (key: string, bytes: number) => number;
export interface RefEntry {
path: string;
bytes: number;
tokens: number;
missing: boolean;
via?: string;
condition?: string;
}
export interface SkillBill {
name: string;
dir: string;
frontmatterBytes: number;
frontmatterTokens: number;
frontmatterKeys: string[];
deadKeys: string[];
skillMdBytes: number;
skillMdTokens: number;
forcedRefs: RefEntry[];
eagerBytes: number;
eagerTokens: number;
/** Stripped tiers: kept in the shape (empty/zero/null) so re-adding the
* fork's parsers is additive. */
fastPath: null;
conditionalRefs: RefEntry[];
conditionalBytes: number;
conditionalTokens: number;
transitiveRefs: RefEntry[];
transitiveBytes: number;
transitiveTokens: number;
perInvocationBytes: number;
perInvocationTokens: number;
routeCeiling: { label: string; bytes: number; tokens: number } | null;
lazy: { label: string; modules: RefEntry[]; bytes: number; tokens: number }[];
orphans: RefEntry[];
foreignFiles: { path: string; bytes: number; tokens: number }[];
totalMdBytes: number;
totalMdTokens: number;
}
/**
* Content class from the path role. Legacy/artifact roles are kept even
* though their tiers are stripped: the divisors are per-content measurements
* and --exact calibration still grades them.
*/
export function contentClass(key: string): string {
if (key.endsWith("#frontmatter")) return "frontmatter";
if (/references[/\\]legacy[/\\]/.test(key)) return "legacy";
if (/references[/\\](artifacts|sections|support)[/\\]/.test(key)) return "artifact";
if (/(^|[/\\])SKILL\.md$/.test(key)) return "skillmd";
if (/references[/\\]/.test(key)) return "reference";
return "other";
}
/** Path-less callers get the corpus-wide aggregate divisor. */
export function estimateTokens(bytes: number): number {
return Math.round(bytes / TOKEN_DIVISOR);
}
/** Default token source: the calibrated offline estimate. Unrounded, so sums round once. */
function estimateTokensOf(key: string, bytes: number): number {
return bytes / (TOKEN_DIVISORS[contentClass(key)] ?? TOKEN_DIVISOR);
}
function bytesOf(file: string): number | null {
try {
const st = fs.statSync(file);
return st.isFile() ? st.size : null;
} catch {
return null;
}
}
function refEntry(skillDir: string, rel: string, tokensOf: TokensOf): RefEntry {
const abs = path.join(skillDir, rel);
const bytes = bytesOf(abs);
return {
path: rel,
bytes: bytes ?? 0,
tokens: bytes == null ? 0 : tokensOf(abs, bytes),
missing: bytes == null,
};
}
function sumBytes(entries: { bytes: number }[]): number {
return entries.reduce((n, e) => n + e.bytes, 0);
}
function sumTokens(entries: { tokens: number }[]): number {
return entries.reduce((n, e) => n + e.tokens, 0);
}
/** Cache key for a SKILL.md's frontmatter block, which is a slice, not a whole file. */
function frontmatterKey(skillMdPath: string): string {
return `${skillMdPath}#frontmatter`;
}
function parseFrontmatter(text: string): { bytes: number; keys: string[]; block: string } {
if (!text.startsWith("---")) return { bytes: 0, keys: [], block: "" };
const end = text.indexOf("\n---", 3);
if (end === -1) return { bytes: 0, keys: [], block: "" };
const closeEol = text.indexOf("\n", end + 1);
const block = text.slice(0, closeEol === -1 ? text.length : closeEol + 1);
const inner = text.slice(text.indexOf("\n") + 1, end);
const keys: string[] = [];
for (const line of inner.split("\n")) {
const m = /^([A-Za-z0-9_-]+)\s*:/.exec(line);
if (m) keys.push(m[1]);
}
return { bytes: Buffer.byteLength(block, "utf8"), keys, block };
}
/**
* Every .md file under a tree, for the on-disk total and for exact
* measurement. Skips node_modules and dot-directories: a skills tree that is
* also a repo checkout (dev symlink installs) would otherwise bill its
* dependency tree and CI state as skill content.
*/
export function walkMd(dir: string): string[] {
const out: string[] = [];
let entries: fs.Dirent[];
try {
entries = fs.readdirSync(dir, { withFileTypes: true });
} catch {
return out;
}
for (const e of entries) {
if (e.name.startsWith(".") || e.name === "node_modules") continue;
const p = path.join(dir, e.name);
if (e.isDirectory()) out.push(...walkMd(p));
else if (e.isFile() && e.name.endsWith(".md")) out.push(p);
}
return out;
}
function totalMd(dir: string, tokensOf: TokensOf): { bytes: number; tokens: number } {
let bytes = 0;
let tokens = 0;
for (const p of walkMd(dir)) {
const b = bytesOf(p) ?? 0;
bytes += b;
tokens += tokensOf(p, b);
}
return { bytes, tokens };
}
export function parseSkill(skillDir: string, name: string, tokensOf: TokensOf = estimateTokensOf): SkillBill {
const skillMdPath = path.join(skillDir, "SKILL.md");
const text = fs.readFileSync(skillMdPath, "utf8");
const skillMdBytes = bytesOf(skillMdPath) ?? 0;
const skillMdTokens = tokensOf(skillMdPath, skillMdBytes);
const fm = parseFrontmatter(text);
// The frontmatter block is a slice of SKILL.md, so it carries its own key.
const frontmatterTokens = tokensOf(frontmatterKey(skillMdPath), fm.bytes);
const deadKeys = fm.keys.filter((k) => !ROUTER_KEYS.has(k));
// EAGER: references a prose CLAUSE forces "for every invocation". Clause
// granularity matters: a line can carry a forced clause and a conditional
// one, and only the forced clause's references are eager. Routing tables
// never count (they were the fork's LAZY tier).
const forcedRefs: RefEntry[] = [];
const seenForced = new Set<string>();
for (const line of text.split("\n")) {
if (line.trim().startsWith("|")) continue;
for (const clause of line.split(/(?<=[.;])\s+/)) {
if (!clause.includes(FORCED_PHRASE)) continue;
for (const m of clause.matchAll(PROSE_REF)) {
const p = m[1];
if (seenForced.has(p)) continue;
seenForced.add(p);
forcedRefs.push(refEntry(skillDir, p, tokensOf));
}
}
}
// Foreign-host skill files sitting next to SKILL.md.
const foreignFiles: { path: string; bytes: number; tokens: number }[] = [];
for (const entry of fs.readdirSync(skillDir, { withFileTypes: true })) {
if (entry.isFile() && FOREIGN_SKILL_FILE.test(entry.name)) {
const abs = path.join(skillDir, entry.name);
const bytes = bytesOf(abs) ?? 0;
foreignFiles.push({ path: entry.name, bytes, tokens: tokensOf(abs, bytes) });
}
}
const total = totalMd(skillDir, tokensOf);
const eagerBytes = skillMdBytes + sumBytes(forcedRefs);
const eagerTokens = skillMdTokens + sumTokens(forcedRefs);
return {
name,
dir: skillDir,
frontmatterBytes: fm.bytes,
frontmatterTokens,
frontmatterKeys: fm.keys,
deadKeys,
skillMdBytes,
skillMdTokens,
forcedRefs,
eagerBytes,
eagerTokens,
// Stripped tiers, shape preserved (see the module docblock).
fastPath: null,
conditionalRefs: [],
conditionalBytes: 0,
conditionalTokens: 0,
transitiveRefs: [],
transitiveBytes: 0,
transitiveTokens: 0,
// With the conditional/transitive tiers stripped, the per-invocation
// ceiling IS the eager figure. Re-adding a tier changes these sums only.
perInvocationBytes: eagerBytes,
perInvocationTokens: eagerTokens,
routeCeiling: null,
lazy: [],
orphans: [],
foreignFiles,
totalMdBytes: total.bytes,
totalMdTokens: total.tokens,
};
}
/**
* Every skill directory under a tree.
*
* Root-as-container (upstream fix): this repo's ROOT has a router SKILL.md
* AND fifty skill directories under it — the fork's walker short-circuited at
* the root and billed one "skill". The root is counted as a skill (the router
* costs what it costs) and the walk continues into its children. A NON-root
* dir with SKILL.md is still a leaf: its subtree (references/, test
* fixtures) is never another skill.
*
* Repo-checkout subdirs are skipped (upstream install layout fix): an
* installed ~/.claude/skills tree contains flat skill dirs PLUS a full gstack
* repo checkout (`gstack/`, with .git). Its nested SKILL.md files are the
* repo's sources, not installed skills of the tree being billed.
*
* Directory symlinks are followed (setup's shell glob follows them, so a
* symlinked skill like connect-chrome/ is real scanner load); a realpath
* seen-set breaks cycles.
*/
export function findSkillDirs(root: string): string[] {
const out: string[] = [];
const visited = new Set<string>();
const walk = (dir: string, isRoot: boolean) => {
let entries: fs.Dirent[];
try {
entries = fs.readdirSync(dir, { withFileTypes: true });
} catch {
return;
}
if (entries.some((e) => e.isFile() && e.name === "SKILL.md")) {
out.push(dir);
// Two symlinked paths to the same skill dir are BOTH billed (each is
// real scanner load); only container recursion below is cycle-guarded.
if (!isRoot) return;
}
// Cycle guard for container recursion (a symlink loop of directories).
let real: string;
try {
real = fs.realpathSync(dir);
} catch {
return;
}
if (visited.has(real)) return;
visited.add(real);
for (const e of entries) {
if (e.name.startsWith(".") || e.name === "node_modules") continue;
const child = path.join(dir, e.name);
let isDir = e.isDirectory();
if (!isDir && e.isSymbolicLink()) {
try {
isDir = fs.statSync(child).isDirectory();
} catch {
continue; // dangling symlink
}
}
if (!isDir) continue;
if (fs.existsSync(path.join(child, ".git"))) continue; // repo checkout, not a skill
walk(child, false);
}
};
walk(path.resolve(root), true);
return out.sort();
}
export interface Bill {
root: string;
tokenSource: string;
tokenEstimate: Record<string, number>;
tokenEstimateErrorPct: number;
calibration?: Calibration;
skills: SkillBill[];
totals: {
skillCount: number;
alwaysOnBytes: number;
alwaysOnTokens: number;
eagerBytesBySkill: Record<string, number>;
eagerTokensBySkill: Record<string, number>;
perInvocationBytesBySkill: Record<string, number>;
perInvocationTokensBySkill: Record<string, number>;
totalMdBytes: number;
totalMdTokens: number;
};
}
export function buildBill(
root: string,
{ tokensOf = estimateTokensOf, tokenSource, calibration }: {
tokensOf?: TokensOf;
tokenSource?: string;
calibration?: Calibration;
} = {},
): Bill {
const resolved = path.resolve(root);
if (!fs.existsSync(resolved)) throw new Error(`No such tree: ${resolved}`);
const skills = findSkillDirs(resolved).map((dir) =>
parseSkill(dir, path.relative(resolved, dir) || path.basename(resolved), tokensOf),
);
const total = skills.reduce((n, s) => n + s.totalMdBytes, 0);
const totalTokens = skills.reduce((n, s) => n + s.totalMdTokens, 0);
return {
root: resolved,
// Named so a reader never has to guess whether a figure was measured.
tokenSource: tokenSource ?? "estimate: calibrated bytes/token per content class",
tokenEstimate: TOKEN_DIVISORS,
tokenEstimateErrorPct: tokenSource ? 0 : TOKEN_ESTIMATE_ERROR_PCT,
// Present only under --exact: how far the offline estimate was off, per file.
...(calibration ? { calibration } : {}),
skills,
totals: {
skillCount: skills.length,
alwaysOnBytes: skills.reduce((n, s) => n + s.frontmatterBytes, 0),
alwaysOnTokens: skills.reduce((n, s) => n + s.frontmatterTokens, 0),
eagerBytesBySkill: Object.fromEntries(skills.map((s) => [s.name, s.eagerBytes])),
eagerTokensBySkill: Object.fromEntries(skills.map((s) => [s.name, Math.round(s.eagerTokens)])),
perInvocationBytesBySkill: Object.fromEntries(skills.map((s) => [s.name, s.perInvocationBytes])),
perInvocationTokensBySkill: Object.fromEntries(
skills.map((s) => [s.name, Math.round(s.perInvocationTokens)]),
),
totalMdBytes: total,
totalMdTokens: totalTokens,
},
};
}
export interface DiffRow {
ledger: string;
label: string;
before: number;
after: number;
delta: number;
tokenDelta: number;
}
export function diffBills(a: Bill, b: Bill): { rows: DiffRow[]; grew: boolean } {
const rows: DiffRow[] = [];
const push = (ledger: string, label: string, before: number, after: number, tokBefore: number, tokAfter: number) => {
if (before !== after) {
rows.push({ ledger, label, before, after, delta: after - before, tokenDelta: Math.round(tokAfter - tokBefore) });
}
};
const skillNames = [...new Set([...a.skills, ...b.skills].map((s) => s.name))].sort();
for (const name of skillNames) {
const sa = a.skills.find((s) => s.name === name);
const sb = b.skills.find((s) => s.name === name);
push(
"always-on", name,
sa?.frontmatterBytes ?? 0, sb?.frontmatterBytes ?? 0,
sa?.frontmatterTokens ?? 0, sb?.frontmatterTokens ?? 0,
);
push("eager", name, sa?.eagerBytes ?? 0, sb?.eagerBytes ?? 0, sa?.eagerTokens ?? 0, sb?.eagerTokens ?? 0);
// Stripped tiers stay in the diff contract so re-adding them is additive.
push(
"conditional", name,
sa?.conditionalBytes ?? 0, sb?.conditionalBytes ?? 0,
sa?.conditionalTokens ?? 0, sb?.conditionalTokens ?? 0,
);
push(
"transitive", name,
sa?.transitiveBytes ?? 0, sb?.transitiveBytes ?? 0,
sa?.transitiveTokens ?? 0, sb?.transitiveTokens ?? 0,
);
}
rows.sort((x, y) => Math.abs(y.delta) - Math.abs(x.delta));
const grew =
b.totals.alwaysOnBytes > a.totals.alwaysOnBytes ||
rows.some((r) => ["eager", "conditional", "transitive"].includes(r.ledger) && r.delta > 0);
return { rows, grew };
}
export interface BudgetViolation {
ceiling: string;
limit: number;
actual: number | null;
files: string[];
}
/**
* Budget file: user-authored plain JSON, ceilings in ~tokens.
* { "alwaysOnTotal": 4000, "eagerPerInvocation": { "qa": 5000 },
* "perInvocation": { "qa": 9000 } }
* With the conditional/transitive tiers stripped, `perInvocation` and
* `routeCeiling` gate the same figure as `eagerPerInvocation`; the keys stay
* accepted so budgets survive the tiers returning.
*/
export function checkBudget(bill: Bill, budget: Record<string, any>): BudgetViolation[] {
const violations: BudgetViolation[] = [];
if (typeof budget.alwaysOnTotal === "number") {
const actual = Math.round(bill.totals.alwaysOnTokens);
if (actual > budget.alwaysOnTotal) {
violations.push({
ceiling: "alwaysOnTotal",
limit: budget.alwaysOnTotal,
actual,
files: bill.skills.map((s) => `${s.name}/SKILL.md (frontmatter ${s.frontmatterBytes}B)`),
});
}
}
for (const key of ["eagerPerInvocation", "perInvocation", "routeCeiling"]) {
for (const [name, limit] of Object.entries(budget[key] ?? {}) as [string, number][]) {
const skill = bill.skills.find((s) => s.name === name);
if (!skill) {
violations.push({ ceiling: `${key}.${name}`, limit, actual: null, files: ["<skill not found in tree>"] });
continue;
}
const tokens =
key === "routeCeiling"
? (skill.routeCeiling?.tokens ?? skill.perInvocationTokens)
: key === "perInvocation"
? skill.perInvocationTokens
: skill.eagerTokens;
const actual = Math.round(tokens);
if (actual > limit) {
violations.push({
ceiling: `${key}.${name}`,
limit,
actual,
files: [
`${skill.name}/SKILL.md (${skill.skillMdBytes}B)`,
...skill.forcedRefs.map((r) => `${skill.name}/${r.path} (${r.bytes}B)`),
],
});
}
}
}
return violations;
}
function fmtBytes(b: number): string {
if (b >= 1024 * 1024) return `${(b / 1024 / 1024).toFixed(1)}MB`;
if (b >= 1024) return `${(b / 1024).toFixed(1)}KB`;
return `${b}B`;
}
/** Exact counts are measurements, so they lose the "~" the estimate wears. */
function fmtTok(tokens: number, exact: boolean): string {
const t = Math.round(tokens);
const tilde = exact ? "" : "~";
return t >= 1000 ? `${tilde}${(t / 1000).toFixed(1)}K tok` : `${tilde}${t} tok`;
}
export function renderBill(bill: Bill, { skill }: { skill?: string } = {}): string {
const skills = skill ? bill.skills.filter((s) => s.name === skill) : bill.skills;
const exact = bill.tokenEstimateErrorPct === 0;
const size = (bytes: number, tokens: number) => `${fmtBytes(bytes)} (${fmtTok(tokens, exact)})`;
const lines = [`Context bill for ${bill.root}`, `Token source: ${bill.tokenSource}`, ""];
lines.push(
`ALWAYS-ON (every session): ${skills.length} skills, ` +
`${size(skills.reduce((n, s) => n + s.frontmatterBytes, 0), skills.reduce((n, s) => n + s.frontmatterTokens, 0))}`,
);
// The host wraps each skill's frontmatter in its own available_skills XML
// element before the model sees it. That wrapper is host-specific and cannot
// be read from this tree, so it is excluded here — the real always-on cost is
// this figure plus one wrapper per skill.
lines.push(" (frontmatter only; excludes the host's per-skill available_skills XML wrapper)");
for (const s of skills) lines.push(` ${s.name.padEnd(20)} ${size(s.frontmatterBytes, s.frontmatterTokens)}`);
for (const s of skills) {
if (s.deadKeys.length) lines.push(` ! ${s.name}: frontmatter key(s) the router never reads: ${s.deadKeys.join(", ")}`);
for (const f of s.foreignFiles) lines.push(` ! ${s.name}: foreign-host file in scanner scope: ${f.path} (${size(f.bytes, f.tokens)})`);
}
lines.push("");
lines.push("EAGER (per invocation): SKILL.md + forced-read references");
for (const s of skills) {
const refs = s.forcedRefs.length
? ` = SKILL.md ${fmtBytes(s.skillMdBytes)} + refs ${fmtBytes(sumBytes(s.forcedRefs))} (${s.forcedRefs.map((r) => path.basename(r.path)).join(", ")})`
: "";
lines.push(` ${s.name.padEnd(20)} ${size(s.eagerBytes, s.eagerTokens)}${refs}`);
for (const r of s.forcedRefs.filter((r) => r.missing)) lines.push(` ! ${s.name}: forced-read reference missing on disk: ${r.path}`);
}
lines.push("");
lines.push(
`TOTAL on disk: ${size(bill.totals.totalMdBytes, bill.totals.totalMdTokens)} across ${bill.totals.skillCount} skill(s).`,
);
lines.push(tokenDisclaimer(bill));
return lines.join("\n") + "\n";
}
/**
* Names the error band instead of hand-waving about "estimates". The band is the
* worst-case residual measured over the calibration corpus, not a guess.
*/
export function tokenDisclaimer(bill: Pick<Bill, "tokenEstimateErrorPct" | "tokenSource">): string {
if (bill.tokenEstimateErrorPct === 0) {
return `Token counts measured with ${bill.tokenSource}. Bytes are exact.`;
}
const per = Object.entries(TOKEN_DIVISORS).map(([k, v]) => `${k} /${v}`).join(", ");
return (
`Token counts are ESTIMATES: bytes divided per content class (${per}), calibrated against ` +
`count_tokens on 219 skill files. Measured accuracy of that estimate: mean ` +
`per-file error 7.4%, systematic bias under 0.5%, worst single file ` +
`${bill.tokenEstimateErrorPct}% (dense path/table files). Ledger rows ` +
`land tighter than single files because errors partly cancel across a sum. Run --exact for ` +
`measured counts when a number has to be right. Bytes are always exact.`
);
}
export function renderDiff(diff: { rows: DiffRow[]; grew: boolean }): string {
if (diff.rows.length === 0) return "No context-cost changes between trees.\n";
const lines = ["Context-cost changes (sorted by |delta|):", ""];
for (const r of diff.rows) {
const sign = r.delta > 0 ? "+" : "-";
lines.push(
` ${r.ledger.padEnd(11)} ${r.label.padEnd(28)} ${sign}${fmtBytes(Math.abs(r.delta))} (${sign}${Math.abs(r.tokenDelta)} tok) ${fmtBytes(r.before)} -> ${fmtBytes(r.after)}`,
);
}
lines.push("");
lines.push(
diff.grew
? "RESULT: context cost GREW (always-on or eager)."
: "RESULT: no always-on or eager growth.",
);
return lines.join("\n") + "\n";
}
// --exact defaults to the model the offline divisor was calibrated against, so
// `--exact` and the estimate are comparable. Later tokenizers differ.
export const EXACT_DEFAULT_MODEL = "claude-opus-4-5";
const COUNT_TOKENS_URL = "https://api.anthropic.com/v1/messages/count_tokens";
const EXACT_CONCURRENCY = 8;
/** Typed failures, so callers branch on a code rather than on message text. */
export class ExactModeError extends Error {
code: string;
constructor(code: string, message: string) {
super(message);
this.name = "ExactModeError";
this.code = code;
}
}
type FetchLike = typeof globalThis.fetch;
interface CountTokensOptions {
model: string;
apiKey: string;
fetchImpl: FetchLike;
}
async function countTokens(text: string, { model, apiKey, fetchImpl }: CountTokensOptions): Promise<number> {
let res: Response;
try {
res = await fetchImpl(COUNT_TOKENS_URL, {
method: "POST",
headers: {
"content-type": "application/json",
"x-api-key": apiKey,
"anthropic-version": "2023-06-01",
},
body: JSON.stringify({ model, messages: [{ role: "user", content: text }] }),
});
} catch (error) {
throw new ExactModeError("exact_network_unreachable", `count_tokens unreachable: ${(error as Error)?.message ?? error}`);
}
if (!res.ok) {
const body = await res.text().catch(() => "");
const code = res.status === 401 || res.status === 403 ? "exact_auth_rejected" : "exact_request_failed";
throw new ExactModeError(code, `count_tokens returned ${res.status}: ${body.slice(0, 200)}`);
}
const json: any = await res.json();
if (typeof json?.input_tokens !== "number") {
throw new ExactModeError("exact_response_malformed", "count_tokens response had no input_tokens");
}
return json.input_tokens;
}
export interface ExactMeasurement {
tokenSource: string;
tokensOf: TokensOf;
measuredFiles: number;
counts: Map<string, number>;
/** Keys priced by estimate because measurement missed them. Read after buildBill. */
missedKeys: Set<string>;
}
/**
* Measures every text the bill will bill for. Returns a `tokensOf` lookup.
*
* count_tokens prices a whole request, so it includes a fixed message envelope.
* That envelope is measured once and subtracted, leaving the tokens each file's
* own content contributes — otherwise every small reference is overcharged by a
* constant that has nothing to do with the file.
*
* Egress receipt BEFORE any POST (sink 'context-bill-exact'): if the receipt
* cannot be written this throws exact_egress_receipt_failed, which the CLI
* degrades to the offline estimate — nothing is sent unrecorded.
*/
export async function measureExactTokens(
root: string,
{ model, apiKey, fetchImpl = fetch, onProgress, egressHome }: {
model: string;
apiKey: string;
fetchImpl?: FetchLike;
onProgress?: (done: number, total: number) => void;
egressHome?: string;
},
): Promise<ExactMeasurement> {
if (!apiKey) {
throw new ExactModeError(
"exact_missing_api_key",
"--exact needs ANTHROPIC_API_KEY. Without it the offline estimate is used; nothing was sent.",
);
}
const opts: CountTokensOptions = { model, apiKey, fetchImpl };
const texts = new Map<string, string>();
// Resolve before keying. buildBill resolves its root, so a relative root here
// would produce keys that never match and every lookup would fall back to the
// estimate -- exact mode silently degrading to the thing it replaces.
for (const file of walkMd(path.resolve(root))) {
const text = fs.readFileSync(file, "utf8");
texts.set(file, text);
if (path.basename(file) === "SKILL.md") {
const fm = parseFrontmatter(text);
if (fm.block) texts.set(frontmatterKey(file), fm.block);
}
}
// Receipt-before-send. Content-free: file count + total bytes only.
try {
let totalBytes = 0;
for (const t of texts.values()) totalBytes += Buffer.byteLength(t, "utf8");
writeReceipt({
home: egressHome,
sink: "context-bill-exact",
host: "api.anthropic.com",
payloadClass: `count-tokens skill-tree texts=${texts.size} (${totalBytes}B across ${EXACT_CONCURRENCY}-way POSTs)`,
bytes: totalBytes,
sha256: null,
consent: "user passed --exact",
});
} catch (error) {
throw new ExactModeError(
"exact_egress_receipt_failed",
`egress receipt could not be written (${(error as Error)?.message ?? error}); refusing to send unrecorded`,
);
}
// One-char body: subtracting its single content token leaves the envelope.
const envelope = (await countTokens("x", opts)) - 1;
const counts = new Map<string, number>();
const keys = [...texts.keys()];
let next = 0;
let done = 0;
const worker = async () => {
while (next < keys.length) {
const key = keys[next++];
const raw = await countTokens(texts.get(key)!, opts);
counts.set(key, Math.max(0, raw - envelope));
onProgress?.(++done, keys.length);
}
};
await Promise.all(Array.from({ length: Math.min(EXACT_CONCURRENCY, keys.length) }, worker));
// A key the walk never saw (a non-.md foreign-host file) falls back to the
// estimate rather than billing zero. Misses are counted, not swallowed: a bill
// that is part-measured and part-estimated must not present itself as measured.
const missed = new Set<string>();
const tokensOf: TokensOf = (key, bytes) => {
const exact = counts.get(key);
if (exact !== undefined) return exact;
missed.add(key);
return estimateTokensOf(key, bytes);
};
return {
tokenSource: `count_tokens (${model})`,
tokensOf,
measuredFiles: counts.size,
counts,
missedKeys: missed,
};
}
export interface Calibration {
rows: {
path: string;
contentClass: string;
bytes: number;
estimatedTokens: number;
tokens: number;
bytesPerToken: number;
errorPct: number;
}[];
worstErrorPct: number;
meanAbsErrorPct: number;
biasPct: number;
}
/**
* Estimate-vs-measured residual per file. This is what makes the divisor
* auditable: run --exact and the tool grades its own offline estimate.
*/
export function calibrationTable(counts: Map<string, number>, root: string): Calibration {
const rows: Calibration["rows"] = [];
for (const [key, tokens] of counts) {
if (key.endsWith("#frontmatter") || tokens === 0) continue;
const bytes = bytesOf(key);
if (bytes == null) continue;
// Grade the estimate the tool actually uses, class divisor included.
const estimated = Math.round(estimateTokensOf(key, bytes));
rows.push({
path: path.relative(root, key),
contentClass: contentClass(key),
bytes,
estimatedTokens: estimated,
tokens,
bytesPerToken: Number((bytes / tokens).toFixed(3)),
errorPct: Number((((estimated - tokens) / tokens) * 100).toFixed(1)),
});
}
rows.sort((a, b) => Math.abs(b.errorPct) - Math.abs(a.errorPct));
const abs = rows.map((r) => Math.abs(r.errorPct));
return {
rows,
worstErrorPct: abs.length ? Math.max(...abs) : 0,
meanAbsErrorPct: abs.length ? Number((abs.reduce((a, b) => a + b, 0) / abs.length).toFixed(2)) : 0,
biasPct: rows.length
? Number((rows.reduce((n, r) => n + r.errorPct, 0) / rows.length).toFixed(2))
: 0,
};
}
// Where installed skills actually live: `.agents/skills` (the host-neutral
// canonical path) alongside `.claude/skills`, project then user.
const DEFAULT_TREES: string[][] = [
["cwd", "skills"],
["cwd", ".agents", "skills"],
["cwd", ".claude", "skills"],
["home", ".agents", "skills"],
["home", ".claude", "skills"],
];
function defaultTreeCandidates(cwd: string, homeDir: string): string[] {
return DEFAULT_TREES.map(([base, ...rest]) => path.join(base === "cwd" ? cwd : homeDir, ...rest));
}
function detectDefaultTree(cwd: string, homeDir: string): string | null {
return defaultTreeCandidates(cwd, homeDir).find((c) => fs.existsSync(c)) ?? null;
}
const USAGE =
"Usage:\n" +
" gstack-context-bill [TREE] [--json] [--skill <name>]\n" +
" gstack-context-bill --diff <treeA> <treeB> [--json]\n" +
" gstack-context-bill [TREE] --budget <budget.json> [--json]\n" +
"\n" +
" --exact measure tokens with Anthropic's count_tokens instead of\n" +
" estimating. Off by default: it sends the content of every\n" +
" .md file in the tree to api.anthropic.com. Needs\n" +
" ANTHROPIC_API_KEY; passing --exact is the consent. An\n" +
" egress receipt is written before the send (see\n" +
" gstack-egress); if it cannot be written, the run falls\n" +
" back to the offline estimate.\n" +
" --exact also recalibrates: the --json output's\n" +
" `calibration` block grades the offline divisors\n" +
" (TOKEN_DIVISORS) file by file against measured counts.\n" +
" --exact-model <id> model whose tokenizer to count against\n" +
` (default ${EXACT_DEFAULT_MODEL}, the calibration model).\n`;
export interface MainOptions {
cwd?: string;
stdout?: { write(s: string): unknown };
stderr?: { write(s: string): unknown };
homeDir?: string;
apiKey?: string;
fetchImpl?: FetchLike;
egressHome?: string;
}
export async function contextBillMain(argv: string[], options: MainOptions = {}): Promise<number> {
const cwd = options.cwd ?? process.cwd();
const stdout = options.stdout ?? process.stdout;
const stderr = options.stderr ?? process.stderr;
const homeDir = options.homeDir ?? os.homedir();
const positional: string[] = [];
const flags: { json: boolean; diff: boolean; exact: boolean; exactModel: string; skill?: string; budget?: string } =
{ json: false, diff: false, exact: false, exactModel: EXACT_DEFAULT_MODEL };
for (let i = 0; i < argv.length; i++) {
const arg = argv[i];
if (arg === "--json") flags.json = true;
else if (arg === "--diff") flags.diff = true;
else if (arg === "--skill") flags.skill = argv[++i];
else if (arg === "--budget") flags.budget = argv[++i];
else if (arg === "--exact") flags.exact = true;
else if (arg === "--exact-model") flags.exactModel = argv[++i];
else if (arg === "--help" || arg === "-h") {
stdout.write(USAGE);
return 0;
} else if (arg.startsWith("--")) {
stderr.write(`Unknown flag: ${arg}\n${USAGE}`);
return 2;
} else positional.push(arg);
}
// Exact mode is the only path that leaves the machine. Announce what is sent
// before sending it, and degrade to the estimate rather than failing the run.
const exactFor = async (tree: string): Promise<{
tokensOf?: TokensOf;
tokenSource?: string;
calibration?: Calibration;
onDone?: () => void;
}> => {
if (!flags.exact) return {};
const files = walkMd(tree).length;
stderr.write(
`--exact: sending the content of ${files} .md file(s) under ${tree} to ` +
`api.anthropic.com for count_tokens (${flags.exactModel}). No other data leaves this machine.\n`,
);
try {
const measured = await measureExactTokens(tree, {
model: flags.exactModel,
apiKey: options.apiKey ?? process.env.ANTHROPIC_API_KEY ?? "",
fetchImpl: options.fetchImpl,
egressHome: options.egressHome,
});
return {
tokensOf: measured.tokensOf,
tokenSource: measured.tokenSource,
calibration: calibrationTable(measured.counts, tree),
onDone: () => {
if (measured.missedKeys.size) {
stderr.write(
`--exact: ${measured.missedKeys.size} item(s) had no measurement and were estimated ` +
`(${[...measured.missedKeys].slice(0, 3).join(", ")}). Those figures are not measurements.\n`,
);
}
},
};
} catch (error) {
if (!(error instanceof ExactModeError)) throw error;
stderr.write(`--exact unavailable [${error.code}]: ${error.message}\nFalling back to the offline estimate.\n`);
return {};
}
};
try {
if (flags.diff) {
if (positional.length !== 2) {
stderr.write(`--diff needs exactly two trees.\n${USAGE}`);
return 2;
}
const treeA = path.resolve(cwd, positional[0]);
const treeB = path.resolve(cwd, positional[1]);
const optsA = await exactFor(treeA);
const optsB = await exactFor(treeB);
const diff = diffBills(buildBill(treeA, optsA), buildBill(treeB, optsB));
optsA.onDone?.();
optsB.onDone?.();
stdout.write(flags.json ? JSON.stringify(diff, null, 2) + "\n" : renderDiff(diff));
return diff.grew ? 2 : 0;
}
const tree = positional[0] ? path.resolve(cwd, positional[0]) : detectDefaultTree(cwd, homeDir);
if (!tree) {
stderr.write(
`No skills tree found (tried ${defaultTreeCandidates(cwd, homeDir).join(", ")}). Pass a path.\n`,
);
return 2;
}
const exactOpts = await exactFor(tree);
const bill = buildBill(tree, exactOpts);
exactOpts.onDone?.();
if (bill.skills.length === 0) {
stderr.write(`No SKILL.md files found under ${tree}.\n`);
return 2;
}
if (flags.skill && !bill.skills.some((s) => s.name === flags.skill)) {
stderr.write(`No skill named "${flags.skill}" in ${tree}. Skills: ${bill.skills.map((s) => s.name).join(", ")}\n`);
return 2;
}
if (flags.budget) {
const budget = JSON.parse(fs.readFileSync(path.resolve(cwd, flags.budget), "utf8"));
const violations = checkBudget(bill, budget);
if (flags.json) {
stdout.write(JSON.stringify({ ok: violations.length === 0, violations }, null, 2) + "\n");
} else if (violations.length === 0) {
stdout.write("Within budget.\n");
} else {
for (const v of violations) {
stdout.write(`OVER BUDGET: ${v.ceiling} at ~${v.actual} tok (ceiling ~${v.limit} tok)\n`);
for (const f of v.files) stdout.write(` ${f}\n`);
}
}
return violations.length === 0 ? 0 : 2;
}
stdout.write(flags.json ? JSON.stringify(bill, null, 2) + "\n" : renderBill(bill, flags));
return 0;
} catch (error) {
stderr.write(`${(error as Error)?.message ?? error}\n`);
return 1;
}
}