## Thinking Path
> - Paperclip is the open source app people use to manage AI agents for
work
> - Instances expose ~23 experimental feature settings, all declared in
one shared zod schema and toggled per instance
> - Deployment tooling and hosting control planes have no
machine-readable list of those feature keys for a given release — the
schema is only reachable from code that imports the package
> - Any external system that references feature keys therefore does so
as free text, and typos drift silently
> - This pull request derives a versioned `feature-catalog.json` build
artifact from the schema, with a compiler-checked metadata map so the
schema stays the single source of truth
> - The benefit is a stable contract external tooling can validate
feature-key references against, with zero runtime behavior change
## Linked Issues or Issue Description
No public issue exists; `feature_request` template fields:
**Problem or motivation:**
External deployment tooling cannot enumerate or validate an instance's
feature keys per release; free-text references fail silently when keys
are renamed or removed.
**Proposed solution:**
A metadata map keyed by the settings schema's own keys (compiler flags
drift) plus a build step emitting `feature-catalog.json` (keys, tiers,
defaults, `catalogVersion`) as a release artifact.
**Alternatives considered:**
A hand-maintained catalog file (drifts from the schema); serving the
schema from a runtime API (requires a running instance at validation
time — a build artifact works offline and pins to a release).
**Roadmap alignment:**
Supports the in-progress "Cloud deployments" milestone in `ROADMAP.md`.
## What Changed
Adds a metadata map (title, description, tier, cloud/self-hosted
defaults) keyed by the keys of `instanceExperimentalSettingsSchema`, so
the schema stays the single source of truth and the compiler flags any
drift. A new build step (`build:feature-catalog --version <v>`) emits
`feature-catalog.json` — all 23 feature keys, their tiers, and a
`catalogVersion` — as a release artifact that managed-hosting control
planes can validate feature-flag writes against. No runtime behavior
changes.
- New `packages/shared/src/feature-catalog.ts`: per-flag metadata map
keyed by a type derived from the settings schema
(adding/removing/renaming a flag without updating the map is a compile
error), plus `featureCatalogArtifactSchema` and
`buildFeatureCatalogArtifact`/`renderFeatureCatalogArtifact` for the
artifact
- New `scripts/generate-feature-catalog.ts` wired as `pnpm
build:feature-catalog --version <v>`
- `scripts/create-github-release.sh` generates the artifact and uploads
it as a GitHub Release asset (with a dry-run preview line)
- Tests in `packages/shared/src/feature-catalog.test.ts`
## Verification
- `vitest run packages/shared/src/feature-catalog.test.ts` — 9 tests:
schema-key coverage, drift detection, artifact shape
- `pnpm --filter @paperclipai/shared typecheck`
- Artifact generation run end-to-end: `pnpm build:feature-catalog
--version 0.0.0-test` emits 23 keys with `catalogVersion`
## Risks
Low risk — no runtime behavior changes; the change is metadata, a build
script, and a release-artifact emission step only.
## Model Used
Claude Fable 5 (`claude-fable-5`), extended thinking, agentic tool use;
independently peer-reviewed by a second AI agent before push
## Checklist
- [x] I have included a thinking path that traces from project context
to this change
- [x] I have specified the model used (with version and capability
details)
- [x] I have checked ROADMAP.md and confirmed this PR does not duplicate
planned core work
- [x] I have searched GitHub for duplicate or related PRs and linked
them above
- [x] I have either (a) linked existing issues with `Fixes: #` / `Closes
#` / `Refs #` OR (b) described the issue in-PR following the relevant
issue template
- [x] I have not referenced internal/instance-local Paperclip issues or
links (only public GitHub `#NNN` / `github.com/paperclipai/paperclip`
URLs)
- [x] My branch name describes the change (e.g. `docs/...`, `fix/...`)
and contains no internal Paperclip ticket id or instance-derived details
- [x] I have run tests locally and they pass
- [x] I have added or updated tests where applicable
- [x] I have updated relevant documentation to reflect my changes
- [x] I have considered and documented any risks above
- [ ] All Paperclip CI gates are green
- [ ] Greptile is 5/5 with no open P2s, recommendations, or follow-ups
- [x] I will address all Greptile and reviewer comments before
requesting merge
---------
Co-authored-by: Paperclip <noreply@paperclip.ing>
Devin Foley