docs(roadmap): name 0.7.12 as the current release

The Feed printed raw ISO timestamps on each row, in a request's detail, on a delivered update's "Delivered:" or "Accepted by bridge:" line, and in "Read at", while the header already drew times with displayTime in the configured zone (ui.timezone). The Feed now uses the same function and formats when the page is drawn, not when it's read, since the zone setting arrives after start-up. A delivered update's detail prints its time once, under the delivery label, instead of twice. A missing time reads "time unknown", as elsewhere in the TUI, and the default zone is unchanged.

ROADMAP.md

@@ -6,9 +6,9 @@ This isn't a schedule or a promise: we release often, and an item ships when a g
 To see what's being worked on, by release and theme, open the [OpenRig roadmap board](https://github.com/users/mvschwarz/projects/1).
 Issues labelled `good first issue` are also listed on the [contribute page](https://github.com/mvschwarz/openrig/contribute).
 
-## Released in 0.7.11
+## Released in 0.7.12
 
-[0.7.11 is published](https://github.com/mvschwarz/openrig/releases/tag/v0.7.11): OpenRig 0.7.11 is a patch for people running their own agent teams. An ordinary send or work notice now goes into a person's typed draft by default instead of being refused (see Behaviour that changed). See its release notes for what shipped, known issues, upgrade instructions and contributor credits.
+[0.7.12 is published](https://github.com/mvschwarz/openrig/releases/tag/v0.7.12): OpenRig 0.7.12 is a patch for people running their own agent teams. When you answer your team, by typing, clicking or qualifying an answer, the answer now goes to an agent that reads it with the question and decides. When no receiving agent is available, your answer waits. See its release notes for what shipped, known issues, upgrade instructions and contributor credits.
 
 ## How to help
 

docs/reference/getting-started.md

@@ -347,13 +347,8 @@ with `rig up kernel --existing`. A seat you stopped or unclaimed also stays down
 While the kernel's other seats are running, `rig up kernel --existing` refuses
 (it restores only a kernel with no live session), so start one stopped seat with
 `rig launch kernel <logical id>` (`--plan` first). It restores that seat from the
-kernel snapshot that restore ranks first: the newest usable automatic one (taken
-before `rig down`, on the periodic schedule, or at a runtime switch), even when a
-manual one is newer, and otherwise the newest usable one. `--plan` names the
-snapshot it picked and any newer usable one, and `--snapshot-id <id>` picks one
-yourself. Under the default restore policy, which the kernel's seats keep, it
-resumes the seat's saved conversation; a seat it can't resume is reported as
-waiting for a decision, not as started.
+kernel's latest restore-usable snapshot and resumes its saved conversation; a seat
+it can't resume is reported as waiting for a decision, not as started.
 `rig seat launch <seat> --fresh --reason "…"` instead starts a new conversation
 with no continuity source: use it only when you want a fresh occupant, since the
 seat's earlier conversation isn't carried.

docs/reference/hosted-members.md

@@ -112,6 +112,33 @@ OpenRig doesn't observe a hosted member between its calls, so it never reads idl
   - `lastWake`: its latest ring and the result, among its 50 most recent rows.
 - `rig roster show` and `find` show the last call; the last ring is in `rig_team`.
 
+### Check-in status
+
+A connected assistant (a roster member marked `hosted: true`) checks in each time it reads its own pending inbox (through the queue list, as the MCP list tool does
+when it lists the member's own work). Other calls it makes don't count yet. Its status compares its last check-in with
+what its roster entry states: a cadence (`check_in_minutes`), or that it checks in when a person asks it
+(`check_in_on_request: true`):
+
+| Status | Meaning |
+|---|---|
+| `checking-in` | its last check-in is no older than twice its stated cadence |
+| `check-in-overdue` | its last check-in is older than that: its schedule may be off or waiting for an approval |
+| `no-check-in-yet` | no check-in recorded for it on this daemon, whatever its entry states |
+| `on-request` | its entry says it checks in when a person asks it |
+| `disconnected` | reserved for a recorded revocation or removal of its connection. Nothing records one yet, so a revoked assistant reads overdue (or unknown, with no cadence) |
+| `unknown` | its entry states neither, its statement can't be used, or its check-ins couldn't be read; the reason says which, and its last check-in is shown. OpenRig assumes no cadence, so this never reads idle or overdue |
+
+Each place it's shown gives the evidence with it, for example `overdue: last check-in 2026-11-12T13:05:00Z, expected
+every 60 min; its schedule may be off or waiting for an approval`.
+
+A stated cadence is its person's statement: neither reading proves the assistant's own schedule ran, or that it picked
+anything up. It's a status only. Work addressed to a member that isn't checking in still queues and is rung as before, a check-in
+isn't pickup (pickup is its claim), and no check-in doesn't mean it's idle, failed or safe. `GET /api/queue/hosted-members`
+gives this daemon's host id and each member on this host with its status, last check-in and stated cadence (with the
+reason when it's unknown); `rig roster show` and `find` show it as `Check-in:`, for a team with or without terminal seats.
+When the member has unclaimed work, the standing notice described above states the same status in its `check-ins:`
+line; when that notice is filed doesn't change.
+
 ## Revoke
 
 `rig mcp token revoke grok` refuses its next request. The rows it worked, and their answers, stay.

docs/reference/rosters.md

@@ -92,3 +92,8 @@ A member marked `"hosted": true` is a hosted member: a tool outside the terminal
 `show` and `find` say it's hosted rather than unmatched. See [Hosted members](hosted-members.md).
 Its entry can declare `wake.webhook`, the secret names for a trigger OpenRig rings when work lands for it
 (see [Ring it when work lands](hosted-members.md#ring-it-when-work-lands)).
+It can also declare `check_in_minutes`, how often it's expected to check its queue (a positive whole number of minutes;
+an hourly schedule is `60`), or `check_in_on_request: true` when it checks in only when a person asks it. That's what
+its person set up, not something OpenRig observes. With neither, its check-in status reads unknown: OpenRig doesn't
+assume a cadence. A value that can't be used doesn't stop the roster loading: that member's check-in
+status reads unknown, with the reason. See [Check-in status](hosted-members.md#check-in-status).

packages/cli/src/commands/roster.ts

@@ -5,6 +5,10 @@ import { fileURLToPath } from "node:url";
 import { execFile } from "node:child_process";
 import { ConfigStore } from "../config-store.js";
 import { mcpPresenceFilePath, readPresence } from "../mcp-presence.js";
+import { CHECK_IN_DISPLAY, describeCheckIn, type CheckInStatus } from "@openrig/daemon/connection-contract";
+import { getDaemonStatus, getDaemonUrl } from "../daemon-lifecycle.js";
+import { DaemonClient } from "../client.js";
+import { realDeps } from "./daemon.js";
 import { parseRoster, readRosters, type Roster, type RosterMember, type RosterWake } from "@openrig/daemon/rosters";
 
 // One roster parser, shared with the daemon (a hosted member's wake route reads the same files).
@@ -17,6 +21,23 @@ export interface RosterInventory {
   sources: Row[];
   /** This host's id, from the local daemon's own nodes; null when it has none to read it from. */
   localHostId?: string | null;
+  /** The local daemon's hosted members with their check-in status, and that daemon's own host id (the host whose
+   *  check-ins these are); null when it couldn't be read. */
+  checkIns?: { hostId: string | null; members: Row[] } | null;
+}
+
+/** Each hosted member's check-in status, from the local daemon. Null when the daemon isn't running or doesn't answer
+ *  (an older daemon has no such read): every hosted member's status then reads unknown. */
+export async function readHostedCheckIns(): Promise<RosterInventory["checkIns"]> {
+  try {
+    const status = await getDaemonStatus(realDeps());
+    if (status.state !== "running") return null;
+    const res = await new DaemonClient(getDaemonUrl(status)).get<unknown>("/api/queue/hosted-members");
+    return res.status < 400 && object(res.data) && Array.isArray(res.data.members)
+      ? { hostId: text(res.data.hostId), members: res.data.members.filter(object) } : null;
+  } catch {
+    return null;
+  }
 }
 const object = (v: unknown): v is Row => !!v && typeof v === "object" && !Array.isArray(v);
 const text = (v: unknown): string | null => typeof v === "string" && v.trim() ? v : null;
@@ -49,7 +70,30 @@ export async function readRosterInventory(): Promise<RosterInventory> {
       sources.push({ scope, status: "unavailable", error: result.stderr.trim() || (error as Error).message });
     }
   }
-  return { readAt: new Date().toISOString(), nodes, sources, localHostId };
+  return { readAt: new Date().toISOString(), nodes, sources, localHostId, checkIns: await readHostedCheckIns() };
+}
+
+function hostedCheckIn(member: RosterMember, inventory: RosterInventory): Row {
+  const unknown = (reason: string) => ({ status: "unknown", lastCheckInAt: null, expectedMinutes: member.check_in_minutes ?? null,
+    onRequest: member.check_in_on_request === true, reason });
+  // The daemon names its own host with its check-ins, so a team with no terminal seat still matches its members.
+  if (!inventory.checkIns) return unknown("this host's daemon gave no check-in status");
+  if (!inventory.checkIns.hostId || member.host !== inventory.checkIns.hostId) return unknown("it's listed on another host, whose check-ins this host doesn't hold");
+  const row = inventory.checkIns.members.find((m) => m.seat === member.seat);
+  return row && typeof row.status === "string" && row.status in CHECK_IN_DISPLAY ? row
+    : unknown("this host's daemon gave no status for it");
+}
+
+/** A connected assistant's check-in in one human line with its evidence, in the daemon's own words
+ *  (`describeCheckIn`): "overdue: last check-in 13:05, expected every 60 min; its schedule may be off or waiting for an
+ *  approval". A status this CLI doesn't know reads unknown. */
+export function formatCheckIn(checkIn: Row): string {
+  const known = typeof checkIn.status === "string" && checkIn.status in CHECK_IN_DISPLAY;
+  return describeCheckIn({ status: known ? checkIn.status as CheckInStatus : "unknown",
+    lastCheckInAt: typeof checkIn.lastCheckInAt === "string" ? checkIn.lastCheckInAt : null,
+    expectedMinutes: typeof checkIn.expectedMinutes === "number" ? checkIn.expectedMinutes : null,
+    onRequest: checkIn.onRequest === true,
+    ...(known && typeof checkIn.reason === "string" ? { reason: checkIn.reason } : {}) });
 }
 
 export function enrichRosterMember(member: RosterMember, inventory: RosterInventory) {
@@ -93,6 +137,9 @@ export function enrichRosterMember(member: RosterMember, inventory: RosterInvent
     // is in rig_team.
     ...(member.hosted ? { lastCallAt: inventory.localHostId && member.host === inventory.localHostId
       ? readPresence(mcpPresenceFilePath())[member.seat]?.lastCallAt ?? null : null } : {}),
+    // Whether it's checking its queue, for a member on this host; another host's member, or a status this daemon
+    // couldn't give, reads unknown.
+    ...(member.hosted ? { checkIn: hostedCheckIn(member, inventory) } : {}),
   } };
 }
 
@@ -134,7 +181,7 @@ export function rosterCommand(deps: Deps = {}): Command {
         else {
           const members = (verb === "show" ? (result.roster as Row).members : result.matches) as Array<ReturnType<typeof enrichRosterMember> & { roster?: { id: string } }>;
           if (verb === "show") { const r = result.roster as Roster; console.log(`${r.name} — ${r.purpose}\nCurator: ${r.curator.seat} (${r.curator.host})`); }
-          for (const m of members) console.log(`${m.seat} (${m.host})${m.roster ? ` [${m.roster.id}]` : ""}\n  ${m.engagement.join(", ")}: ${m.capabilities.join(", ")}\n  When: ${m.use_when}\n  Why: ${m.why}${m.caveat ? `\n  Caveat: ${m.caveat}` : ""}\n  ${m.live.status}: runtime ${m.live.runtime ?? "unknown"}; configured model ${m.live.configuredModel ?? "unknown"}; last observed model ${formatModelObservation(m.live.modelObservation)}\n  Activity: ${m.live.agentActivity.state}; sampled ${m.live.agentActivity.sampledAt ?? "unknown"}${m.hosted ? `\n  Last call: ${m.live.lastCallAt ?? "unknown"}` : ""}\n  ${m.live.reason}`);
+          for (const m of members) console.log(`${m.seat} (${m.host})${m.roster ? ` [${m.roster.id}]` : ""}\n  ${m.engagement.join(", ")}: ${m.capabilities.join(", ")}\n  When: ${m.use_when}\n  Why: ${m.why}${m.caveat ? `\n  Caveat: ${m.caveat}` : ""}\n  ${m.live.status}: runtime ${m.live.runtime ?? "unknown"}; configured model ${m.live.configuredModel ?? "unknown"}; last observed model ${formatModelObservation(m.live.modelObservation)}\n  Activity: ${m.live.agentActivity.state}; sampled ${m.live.agentActivity.sampledAt ?? "unknown"}${m.hosted ? `\n  Last call: ${m.live.lastCallAt ?? "unknown"}\n  Check-in: ${formatCheckIn(m.live.checkIn ?? {})}` : ""}\n  ${m.live.reason}`);
           if (!members.length) console.log("No matching members.");
           const obs = result.observations as { sources: Row[] };
           for (const source of obs.sources) if (source.status !== "ok") console.error(`Observation gap (${source.scope}): ${source.warning ?? source.error ?? source.status}`);

packages/cli/test/roster.test.ts

@@ -5,7 +5,7 @@ import { tmpdir } from "node:os";
 import { join } from "node:path";
 import { execFile, execFileSync } from "node:child_process";
 import { promisify } from "node:util";
-import { enrichRosterMember, parseRoster, readRosters, rosterCommand, type RosterInventory } from "../src/commands/roster.js";
+import { enrichRosterMember, formatCheckIn, parseRoster, readRosters, rosterCommand, type RosterInventory } from "../src/commands/roster.js";
 
 const member = { seat: "editor@studio", host: "host-a", capabilities: ["colour grading"], engagement: ["consult"], use_when: "Choose a look", why: "Knows the footage", caveat: "Advice only" };
 const authored = { version: 1, id: "production", name: "Production", purpose: "Make a film", curator: { seat: "lead@studio", host: "host-a" }, updated_at: "2026-09-01", members: [member] };
@@ -133,3 +133,55 @@ it("does not choose the first duplicate route when activity observations conflic
   expect(enrichRosterMember(member, { readAt: "2026-10-01T00:00:02Z", nodes: [idle, unclocked], sources: [] }).live.agentActivity)
     .toEqual({ state: "idle", reason: null, sampledAt: null });
 });
+
+it("keeps any positive whole check-in cadence; one that can't be used still loads, with its reason and no cadence", () => {
+  const hourly = { ...member, seat: "bot@team", hosted: true, check_in_minutes: 60 };
+  expect(parseRoster({ ...authored, members: [hourly, { ...hourly, seat: "fast@team", check_in_minutes: 1 }] }).members)
+    .toEqual([hourly, { ...hourly, seat: "fast@team", check_in_minutes: 1 }]);
+  for (const bad of [{ ...hourly, check_in_minutes: 0 }, { ...hourly, check_in_minutes: 1.5 }, { ...hourly, check_in_minutes: "60" },
+    { ...member, check_in_minutes: 60 }]) {
+    const [loaded] = parseRoster({ ...authored, members: [bad] }).members;
+    expect(loaded).not.toHaveProperty("check_in_minutes");
+    expect(loaded!.check_in_problem).toMatch(/check_in_minutes/);
+  }
+});
+it("shows a hosted member's check-in status from this host's daemon; another host's member, or no answer, reads unknown", () => {
+  const bot = { ...member, seat: "bot@team", host: "host-a", hosted: true, check_in_minutes: 60 };
+  const checkIns = [{ seat: "bot@team", rung: false, status: "check-in-overdue", lastCheckInAt: "2026-11-12T09:00:00.000Z", expectedMinutes: 60, reporter: "openrig-observed" }];
+  const here = { ...inventory([]), localHostId: "host-a", checkIns: { hostId: "host-a", members: checkIns } };
+  expect(enrichRosterMember(bot, here).live.checkIn).toMatchObject({ status: "check-in-overdue", lastCheckInAt: "2026-11-12T09:00:00.000Z" });
+  expect(formatCheckIn(enrichRosterMember(bot, here).live.checkIn!))
+    .toBe("overdue: last check-in 2026-11-12T09:00:00.000Z, expected every 60 min; its schedule may be off or waiting for an approval");
+  for (const [missing, reason] of [[{ ...here, checkIns: null }, "this host's daemon gave no check-in status"],
+    [{ ...here, checkIns: { hostId: "host-b", members: checkIns } }, "it's listed on another host, whose check-ins this host doesn't hold"],
+    [{ ...here, checkIns: { hostId: null, members: checkIns } }, "it's listed on another host, whose check-ins this host doesn't hold"],
+    [{ ...here, checkIns: { hostId: "host-a", members: [{ ...checkIns[0], status: "invented" }] } }, "this host's daemon gave no status for it"]] as const) {
+    expect(enrichRosterMember(bot, missing).live.checkIn).toEqual({ status: "unknown", lastCheckInAt: null, expectedMinutes: 60, onRequest: false, reason });
+  }
+  // The roster line is the daemon's own sentence for each status.
+  expect(formatCheckIn({ status: "unknown", lastCheckInAt: null, expectedMinutes: null, reason: "its check-ins couldn't be read" }))
+    .toBe("unknown (its check-ins couldn't be read)");
+  expect(formatCheckIn({ status: "no-check-in-yet", lastCheckInAt: null, expectedMinutes: null })).toBe("no check-in yet; no check-in cadence declared");
+  expect(formatCheckIn({ status: "no-check-in-yet", lastCheckInAt: null, expectedMinutes: 60 })).toBe("no check-in yet; expected every 60 min");
+  expect(formatCheckIn({ status: "on-request", lastCheckInAt: "2026-11-12T09:00:00.000Z", expectedMinutes: null, onRequest: true }))
+    .toBe("on request: it checks its queue when a person asks it; last check-in 2026-11-12T09:00:00.000Z");
+  expect(formatCheckIn({ status: "invented", lastCheckInAt: null, expectedMinutes: null })).toBe("unknown (its check-in status couldn't be read)");
+  expect(enrichRosterMember(member, here).live).not.toHaveProperty("checkIn");
+});
+it("a team with no terminal seat still shows its members' check-ins: the daemon names its own host with them", () => {
+  const bot = { ...member, seat: "bot@team", host: "host-a", hosted: true, check_in_minutes: 60 };
+  const fresh = { seat: "bot@team", rung: false, status: "checking-in", lastCheckInAt: "2026-11-12T09:55:00.000Z", expectedMinutes: 60, reporter: "openrig-observed" };
+  const noSeats: RosterInventory = { ...inventory([]), localHostId: null, checkIns: { hostId: "host-a", members: [fresh] } };
+  expect(enrichRosterMember(bot, noSeats).live.checkIn).toMatchObject({ status: "checking-in", lastCheckInAt: fresh.lastCheckInAt });
+});
+it("keeps check_in_on_request: true; any other value, both statements at once, or a member not marked hosted loads with its reason", () => {
+  const asked = { ...member, seat: "bot@team", hosted: true, check_in_on_request: true };
+  expect(parseRoster({ ...authored, members: [asked] }).members).toEqual([asked]);
+  for (const [bad, reason] of [[{ ...asked, check_in_on_request: false }, /isn't true/], [{ ...asked, check_in_minutes: 60 }, /both/],
+    [{ ...member, check_in_on_request: true }, /connected assistant/]] as const) {
+    const [loaded] = parseRoster({ ...authored, members: [bad] }).members;
+    expect(loaded).not.toHaveProperty("check_in_on_request");
+    expect(loaded).not.toHaveProperty("check_in_minutes");
+    expect(loaded!.check_in_problem).toMatch(reason);
+  }
+});

packages/daemon/package.json

@@ -31,6 +31,10 @@
       "types": "./dist/rosters-surface.d.ts",
       "import": "./dist/rosters-surface.js"
     },
+    "./connection-contract": {
+      "types": "./dist/connection-contract-surface.d.ts",
+      "import": "./dist/connection-contract-surface.js"
+    },
     "./gateway-protocol": {
       "types": "./dist/gateway-protocol-surface.d.ts",
       "import": "./dist/gateway-protocol-surface.js"

packages/daemon/src/connection-contract-surface.ts

@@ -0,0 +1,3 @@
+// The `@openrig/daemon/connection-contract` surface: the shared outcome and status words, so the CLI and the daemon
+// read them from one place.
+export * from "./domain/connection-contract.js";

packages/daemon/src/domain/connection-contract.ts

@@ -42,6 +42,102 @@ export interface ReportedFact<F extends string> {
   reporter: Reporter;
 }
 
+/** Whether a member outside any terminal is checking its queue. It's a status, never a refusal: work addressed to the
+ *  member queues and is rung exactly as before, a check-in isn't pickup (pickup is a claim), and no check-in isn't
+ *  idle, failure or safe. */
+export type CheckInStatus =
+  /** Its last check-in is no older than twice its stated cadence (`CHECK_IN_OVERDUE_CADENCES`). */
+  | "checking-in"
+  /** Its last check-in is older than twice its stated cadence: its schedule may be off or waiting for an approval. */
+  | "check-in-overdue"
+  /** No check-in recorded for it. */
+  | "no-check-in-yet"
+  /** Its setup says it checks its queue when a person asks it (`check_in_on_request`), not on a schedule. */
+  | "on-request"
+  /** Its connection was revoked or removed, as recorded. Never inferred from silence. Nothing records a revocation yet,
+   *  so nothing emits it: a revoked member stops checking in and reads overdue. */
+  | "disconnected"
+  /** Its setup states no cadence, its stated one can't be used, or its check-ins couldn't be read (the reason says
+   *  which). Never idle and never overdue: with no stated cadence, OpenRig assumes none. */
+  | "unknown";
+
+/** How each check-in status reads to a person. */
+export const CHECK_IN_DISPLAY: Readonly<Record<CheckInStatus, string>> = {
+  "checking-in": "checking in",
+  "check-in-overdue": "overdue",
+  "no-check-in-yet": "no check-in yet",
+  "on-request": "on request",
+  "disconnected": "disconnected",
+  "unknown": "unknown",
+};
+
+/** The one rule for a stated cadence: a last check-in no older than this many cadences reads checking in, and an older
+ *  one overdue. One missed run, plus its schedule's own jitter, isn't overdue. A cadence is its person's statement, so
+ *  neither reading proves a vendor schedule or a pickup. */
+export const CHECK_IN_OVERDUE_CADENCES = 2;
+
+export interface MemberCheckIn {
+  status: CheckInStatus;
+  /** Its own latest read of its pending inbox, as OpenRig observed it. */
+  lastCheckInAt: string | null;
+  /** The cadence its person stated at setup; null when none was. */
+  expectedMinutes: number | null;
+  /** Its setup says it checks in when a person asks it. */
+  onRequest: boolean;
+  reporter: Reporter;
+  /** Why the status is unknown, when it is. */
+  reason?: string;
+}
+
+/** A connected assistant's check-in status from what its setup states (a cadence, or on request) and its last observed
+ *  check-in (`seen`, `never`, or `unknown` when the record can't be read). First match wins: disconnected, unknown (an
+ *  unusable statement or an unreadable record), no check-in yet, on request, then checking in or overdue by its cadence,
+ *  else unknown because it states none. Nothing passes `revokedAt` yet, so nothing reads disconnected. */
+export function memberCheckInStatus(input: {
+  checkInMinutes: number | null | undefined;
+  /** Its setup says it checks in on request rather than on a schedule. */
+  onRequest?: boolean;
+  /** Why the stated cadence can't be used, from the roster. */
+  cadenceProblem?: string | null;
+  checkIn: { state: "seen"; at: string } | { state: "never" } | { state: "unknown" };
+  revokedAt?: string | null;
+  now: Date;
+}): MemberCheckIn {
+  const expectedMinutes = input.checkInMinutes ?? null;
+  const lastCheckInAt = input.checkIn.state === "seen" ? input.checkIn.at : null;
+  const onRequest = input.onRequest === true;
+  const unknown = (reason: string): MemberCheckIn => ({ status: "unknown", lastCheckInAt, expectedMinutes, onRequest, reporter: "openrig-observed", reason });
+  const known = (status: CheckInStatus): MemberCheckIn => ({ status, lastCheckInAt, expectedMinutes, onRequest, reporter: "openrig-observed" });
+  if (input.revokedAt) return known("disconnected");
+  if (input.cadenceProblem) return unknown(input.cadenceProblem);
+  if (input.checkIn.state === "unknown") return unknown("its check-ins couldn't be read");
+  if (input.checkIn.state === "never") return known("no-check-in-yet");
+  if (onRequest) return known("on-request");
+  if (expectedMinutes === null) return unknown(NO_CADENCE_STATED);
+  const age = input.now.getTime() - Date.parse(input.checkIn.at);
+  if (!Number.isFinite(age)) return unknown("its last check-in's time couldn't be read");
+  return known(age <= expectedMinutes * CHECK_IN_OVERDUE_CADENCES * 60_000 ? "checking-in" : "check-in-overdue");
+}
+
+/** Why a connected assistant whose setup states neither a cadence nor on request reads unknown. */
+export const NO_CADENCE_STATED = "no check-in cadence declared";
+
+/** A connected assistant's check-in in one line for a person, with its evidence: "overdue: last check-in 13:05,
+ *  expected every 60 min; its schedule may be off or waiting for an approval". */
+export function describeCheckIn(c: Pick<MemberCheckIn, "status" | "lastCheckInAt" | "expectedMinutes" | "onRequest" | "reason">): string {
+  const last = c.lastCheckInAt ? `last check-in ${c.lastCheckInAt}` : null;
+  const expected = c.expectedMinutes !== null ? `expected every ${c.expectedMinutes} min`
+    : c.onRequest ? "checks in when a person asks it" : NO_CADENCE_STATED;
+  switch (c.status) {
+    case "checking-in": return `checking in: ${last}, ${expected}`;
+    case "check-in-overdue": return `overdue: ${last}, ${expected}; its schedule may be off or waiting for an approval`;
+    case "no-check-in-yet": return `no check-in yet; ${expected}`;
+    case "on-request": return `on request: it checks its queue when a person asks it${last ? `; ${last}` : ""}`;
+    case "disconnected": return "disconnected: its connection was revoked or removed";
+    case "unknown": return `unknown (${c.reason ?? "its check-in status couldn't be read"})${last ? `; ${last}` : ""}`;
+  }
+}
+
 /** The route a wake took. `none` means no route can carry it (a pull-only member, an address nothing holds). */
 export type WakeRoute = "terminal" | "gateway" | "hosted-trigger" | "none";
 

packages/daemon/src/domain/queue-repository.ts

@@ -85,7 +85,8 @@ import { parseReplyToChoice, parseReplyToThreadMissing, formatReplyToChoice, des
 import { classifyDestination, type DestinationClass } from "./gateway/destination-resolver.js";
 import { join } from "node:path";
 import { SettingsStore } from "./user-settings/settings-store.js";
-import { hostedWakeFor, isHostedMemberAt, type RosterWake } from "./rosters.js";
+import { hostedMembersAt, hostedWakeFor, isHostedMemberAt, type RosterMember, type RosterWake } from "./rosters.js";
+import { memberCheckInStatus, type MemberCheckIn } from "./connection-contract.js";
 import { hostedRingMayHaveArrived, ringHostedWake } from "./hosted-wake.js";
 import { effectiveGateRoles } from "./gate-predicate.js";
 import {
@@ -651,6 +652,16 @@ function defaultIsHostedMember(destination: string): boolean {
   }
 }
 
+/** The hosted members the authored rosters list on this host. Empty when the rosters or this host's id can't be read. */
+function defaultHostedMembers(): RosterMember[] {
+  try {
+    const root = new SettingsStore().resolveOne("workspace.root").value;
+    return typeof root === "string" && root ? hostedMembersAt(join(root, "rosters"), getSelfHostId()) : [];
+  } catch {
+    return [];
+  }
+}
+
 /** A session's latest read of its own pending inbox: when it was seen, never seen, or unknown (the record can't be read). */
 export type InboxCheckIn = { state: "seen"; at: string } | { state: "never" } | { state: "unknown" };
 
@@ -1098,6 +1109,7 @@ export class QueueRepository {
   private readonly hostedWakeFn: (destination: string) => RosterWake | null;
   /** Whether the rosters list an address as a hosted member, trigger or not. */
   private readonly hostedMemberFn: (destination: string) => boolean;
+  private readonly hostedMembersFn: () => RosterMember[];
   private readonly permissionDecider?: (ask: QueueItem, requester: string) => { session: string; describe?: string } | null;
   private readonly hostedWakeFetch: typeof fetch | undefined;
   /** When this process last wrote each session's inbox check-in, so a seat that polls often writes at most once a minute. */
@@ -1151,6 +1163,7 @@ export class QueueRepository {
       sharedChannels?: () => ReadonlyArray<{ address: string }>;
       hostedWake?: (destination: string) => RosterWake | null;
       isHostedMember?: (destination: string) => boolean;
+      hostedMembers?: () => RosterMember[];
       hostedWakeFetch?: typeof fetch;
       /** Who decides a runner's permission ask after its person answers, while the runner waits (startup wires the
        *  receiving-agent order, `permissionDeciderFor`). Absent, or null for an ask: the ask closes with the answer, as
@@ -1174,6 +1187,7 @@ export class QueueRepository {
     this.sharedChannelsFn = opts?.sharedChannels ?? (() => sharedChannelAddresses());
     this.hostedWakeFn = opts?.hostedWake ?? defaultHostedWake;
     this.hostedMemberFn = opts?.isHostedMember ?? defaultIsHostedMember;
+    this.hostedMembersFn = opts?.hostedMembers ?? defaultHostedMembers;
     this.permissionDecider = opts?.permissionDecider;
     this.hostedWakeFetch = opts?.hostedWakeFetch;
     this.hasTargetRepoColumn = detectQueueColumn(db, "target_repo");
@@ -5271,6 +5285,24 @@ export class QueueRepository {
     }
   }
 
+  /** Each hosted member on this host with its check-in status: its stated cadence against its own inbox reads. A status
+   *  only; nothing here changes how work reaches it. */
+  hostedMemberCheckIns(now: Date = new Date()): Array<{ seat: string; rung: boolean } & MemberCheckIn> {
+    return this.hostedMembersFn().map((m) => ({ seat: m.seat, rung: m.wake !== undefined,
+      ...memberCheckInStatus({ checkInMinutes: m.check_in_minutes, onRequest: m.check_in_on_request, cadenceProblem: m.check_in_problem,
+        checkIn: this.lastInboxCheckIn(m.seat), now }) }));
+  }
+
+  /** One member's check-in status, as `hostedMemberCheckIns` gives it. A seat the rosters don't list here (or can't be
+   *  read for) states no cadence, so it reads by its check-ins alone. */
+  hostedMemberCheckIn(seat: string, now: Date = new Date()): MemberCheckIn {
+    let member: RosterMember | undefined;
+    try { member = this.hostedMembersFn().find((m) => this.isSameSession(m.seat, seat)); } catch { member = undefined; }
+    // The roster's spelling of the seat, as the list read uses, so both read the same check-ins.
+    return memberCheckInStatus({ checkInMinutes: member?.check_in_minutes, onRequest: member?.check_in_on_request,
+      cadenceProblem: member?.check_in_problem, checkIn: this.lastInboxCheckIn(member?.seat ?? seat), now });
+  }
+
   /** This session's latest recorded check-in under any of its names. */
   lastInboxCheckIn(session: string): InboxCheckIn {
     try {

packages/daemon/src/domain/queue-stuck-sweep.ts

@@ -30,11 +30,11 @@ import { resolveOperatorSeat, resolveRecoveryAgentSeat, resolveSessionNodeId } f
 import { nodeExecutorStoppedReason } from "./node-inventory.js";
 import { isBoundTerminalSeat } from "./terminal-seat.js";
 import type Database from "better-sqlite3";
-import { createLinkedSuccessorLookup, deriveCrossHostSuccessorId, hasLinkedSuccessor, matchesRecordedHandoffTarget, QueueRepositoryError, type InboxCheckIn, type QueueItem, type QueueRepository } from "./queue-repository.js";
+import { createLinkedSuccessorLookup, deriveCrossHostSuccessorId, hasLinkedSuccessor, matchesRecordedHandoffTarget, QueueRepositoryError, type QueueItem, type QueueRepository } from "./queue-repository.js";
 import { stalledPickupFinding } from "./queue-pickup.js";
 import { SettingsStore } from "./user-settings/settings-store.js";
 import { loadHostRegistry } from "./hosts/hosts-registry-reader.js";
-import { readWakeOutcome } from "./connection-contract.js";
+import { describeCheckIn, readWakeOutcome, type MemberCheckIn } from "./connection-contract.js";
 
 export const STUCK_SWEEP_INTERVAL_KEY = "queue.stuck_sweep_interval_seconds";
 export const DEFAULT_STUCK_SWEEP_INTERVAL_SECONDS = 300;
@@ -621,20 +621,36 @@ function unclaimedBacklogText(seat: string, rows: BacklogRow[], thresholdMinutes
  *  and what to do. Its work's age runs from each row's own time, which a check-in never resets. Built from the rows' fixed
  *  facts and the member's check-in state, never a current check-in's exact time, so a pass rewrites it only when the rows
  *  or that state change. */
-function polledBacklogText(member: string, rows: BacklogRow[], thresholdMinutes: number, checkIn: InboxCheckIn,
+function polledBacklogText(member: string, rows: BacklogRow[], thresholdMinutes: number, checkIn: MemberCheckIn,
   now: Date): { summary: string; body: string } {
   const { sorted, listed, count } = backlogListing(rows);
-  const recent = checkIn.state === "seen" && now.getTime() - Date.parse(checkIn.at) <= thresholdMinutes * 60_000;
-  const checkIns = recent
-    ? `checking in: it read its own inbox within the last ${thresholdMinutes} min`
-    : checkIn.state === "seen"
-      ? `no check-in observed since ${checkIn.at}`
-      : checkIn.state === "never" ? "no check-in observed yet" : "unknown: its check-ins couldn't be read";
+  // The member's shared check-in status, in the same words `rig roster` uses (`describeCheckIn`). Only the words follow
+  // it; when this notice is filed doesn't. Where that line would carry the time of a check-in that keeps moving (checking
+  // in, on request, unknown), the notice says instead whether the member read its inbox within the threshold, so a
+  // check-in rewrites the notice only when it changes that, never its time alone. An overdue or never-seen member's line
+  // is fixed until it checks in, so it keeps its evidence.
+  const at = checkIn.lastCheckInAt;
+  const lately = at !== null && now.getTime() - Date.parse(at) <= thresholdMinutes * 60_000;
+  const recency = at === null ? "" : lately ? `; it read its own inbox within the last ${thresholdMinutes} min` : `; no check-in since ${at}`;
+  const recent = checkIn.status === "checking-in" || ((checkIn.status === "on-request" || checkIn.status === "unknown") && lately);
+  const checkIns = ((): string => {
+    switch (checkIn.status) {
+      case "checking-in": return `checking in: its last check-in is within twice its expected ${checkIn.expectedMinutes} min`;
+      case "on-request": return `on request: it checks its queue when a person asks it${recency}`;
+      case "unknown": return `unknown (${checkIn.reason ?? "its check-in status couldn't be read"})${recency}`;
+      case "check-in-overdue":
+      case "no-check-in-yet":
+      case "disconnected":
+        return describeCheckIn(checkIn);
+    }
+  })();
   const why = recent
-    ? "it's checking in, but this work is still unclaimed. Check whether it can do this work, or route it to another seat"
-    : checkIn.state === "unknown"
-      ? "nobody has claimed these rows, and whether it's reading its queue isn't known. Ask its owner, or route the work to another seat"
-      : "nobody has claimed these rows, and no read of its own inbox has been observed in that time. Ask its owner to check it's running, or route the work to another seat";
+    ? "it's reading its own inbox, but this work is still unclaimed. Check whether it can do this work, or route it to another seat"
+    : checkIn.status === "check-in-overdue"
+      ? "nobody has claimed these rows, and it hasn't checked in as often as its setup expects. Ask its owner to check its schedule or a pending approval, or route the work to another seat"
+      : checkIn.status === "unknown" && at === null
+        ? "nobody has claimed these rows, and whether it's reading its queue isn't known. Ask its owner, or route the work to another seat"
+        : "nobody has claimed these rows, and no read of its own inbox has been observed in that time. Ask its owner to check it's running, or route the work to another seat";
   return {
     summary: `Stuck sweep: unclaimed-backlog on ${member} (${count})`,
     body:
@@ -1495,7 +1511,7 @@ export async function runStuckSweep(deps: StuckSweepDeps): Promise<StuckSweepRes
       // A polling member's notice says whether it's checking in; an agent seat's names the route to add instead.
       const polled = rows.length > 0 ? rows.some(polledUnclaimed) : pollsForWork(seat);
       const backlogText = (standsFor: BacklogRow[]) => polled
-        ? polledBacklogText(seat, standsFor, ageMinutes, deps.queueRepo.lastInboxCheckIn(seat), now)
+        ? polledBacklogText(seat, standsFor, ageMinutes, deps.queueRepo.hostedMemberCheckIn(seat, now), now)
         : unclaimedBacklogText(seat, standsFor, ageMinutes, node);
       // A polling member's notice goes where its rows' findings went: the person, else their creator when they share one,
       // else the operator agent. With none, it stays with the member, which reads it when it next checks.

packages/daemon/src/domain/rosters.ts

@@ -26,6 +26,14 @@ export interface RosterMember extends Reference {
   hosted?: boolean;
   /** A hosted member's trigger, rung when a row lands for it. */
   wake?: RosterWake;
+  /** How often a hosted member is expected to check its queue, in minutes, as its person set it up (an hourly schedule
+   *  is 60). Stated, not observed: absent means it checks only when a person prompts it. */
+  check_in_minutes?: number;
+  /** Its person set it to check in when asked, not on a schedule. */
+  check_in_on_request?: true;
+  /** Why an authored `check_in_minutes` can't be used. The roster still loads; the member's check-in status reads
+   *  unknown with this reason. */
+  check_in_problem?: string;
 }
 export interface Roster {
   version: 1;
@@ -65,9 +73,19 @@ export function parseRoster(value: unknown): Roster {
         || (m.hosted !== undefined && typeof m.hosted !== "boolean")) {
       throw new Error("Each member needs seat, host, capabilities, engagement, use_when and why (optional caveat, and hosted: true or false)");
     }
+    // A cadence that can't be used never stops the roster loading: the member's check-in status reads unknown instead.
+    const cadence = m.check_in_minutes, onRequest = m.check_in_on_request;
+    const cadenceProblem = cadence === undefined && onRequest === undefined ? null
+      : m.hosted !== true ? "check_in_minutes and check_in_on_request are for a connected assistant (a member marked hosted: true)"
+        : onRequest !== undefined && onRequest !== true ? `check_in_on_request ${JSON.stringify(onRequest)} isn't true`
+          : onRequest === true && cadence !== undefined ? "it states both check_in_minutes and check_in_on_request"
+            : cadence !== undefined && (!Number.isInteger(cadence) || (cadence as number) <= 0) ? `check_in_minutes ${JSON.stringify(cadence)} isn't a positive whole number of minutes`
+              : null;
     return { seat: m.seat, host: m.host, capabilities: m.capabilities, engagement: m.engagement,
       use_when: m.use_when as string, why: m.why as string, ...(m.caveat === undefined ? {} : { caveat: m.caveat as string }),
-      ...(m.hosted === true ? { hosted: true } : {}), ...(m.wake === undefined ? {} : { wake: parseWake(m.wake) }) };
+      ...(m.hosted === true ? { hosted: true } : {}), ...(m.wake === undefined ? {} : { wake: parseWake(m.wake) }),
+      ...(cadenceProblem ? { check_in_problem: cadenceProblem }
+        : { ...(cadence === undefined ? {} : { check_in_minutes: cadence as number }), ...(onRequest === true ? { check_in_on_request: true as const } : {}) }) };
   });
   return { version: 1, id: value.id as string, name: value.name as string, purpose: value.purpose as string,
     curator: { seat: value.curator.seat, host: value.curator.host }, updated_at: value.updated_at as string, members };
@@ -103,6 +121,17 @@ export function hostedWakeFor(destination: string, folder: string, selfHostId: s
   return null;
 }
 
+/** The hosted members the rosters list on this host, one per seat: where two rosters list the same seat, the first by
+ *  file name wins. Empty when this host's id is unknown. */
+export function hostedMembersAt(folder: string, selfHostId: string | null): RosterMember[] {
+  if (!selfHostId) return [];
+  const bySeat = new Map<string, RosterMember>();
+  for (const roster of readRosters(folder).rosters) {
+    for (const m of roster.members) if (m.hosted === true && m.host === selfHostId && !bySeat.has(m.seat)) bySeat.set(m.seat, m);
+  }
+  return [...bySeat.values()];
+}
+
 /** Whether a roster on this host lists this address as a hosted member, with or without a trigger. */
 export function isHostedMemberAt(destination: string, folder: string, selfHostId: string | null): boolean {
   if (!selfHostId) return false;

packages/daemon/src/routes/queue.ts

@@ -1441,6 +1441,11 @@ export function queueRoutes(): Hono {
     return c.json(items);
   });
 
+  // Each connected assistant on this host and whether it's checking its queue, with this daemon's own host id: the check-ins
+  // are this host's, so a reader matches members to it without needing a terminal seat to learn it. A status only:
+  // work addressed to an assistant that isn't checking in still queues and is rung as before. Precedes /:qitemId.
+  app.get("/hosted-members", (c) => c.json({ hostId: getSelfHostId(), members: getRepo(c).hostedMemberCheckIns() }));
+
   // GET /undelivered — surfaces pending create-path nudge failures plus active
   // human-notification episodes whose gateway delivery ledger failed or never posted.
   // Rig-scoped + bounded + compact-by-default, mirroring /overdue.

packages/daemon/test/connection-contract.test.ts

@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 import { describe, it, expect } from "vitest";
-import { readWakeOutcome } from "../src/domain/connection-contract.js";
+import { describeCheckIn, memberCheckInStatus, readWakeOutcome } from "../src/domain/connection-contract.js";
 import { NUDGE_FAIL_PREFIX } from "../src/domain/policies/parked-owner-consumer.js";
 
 describe("readWakeOutcome: every recorded nudge result reads as a delivery fact", () => {
@@ -51,3 +51,73 @@ describe("readWakeOutcome: every recorded nudge result reads as a delivery fact"
     expect(readWakeOutcome(undefined)).toBeNull();
   });
 });
+
+describe("memberCheckInStatus: a hosted member's check-in status", () => {
+  const now = new Date("2026-11-12T12:00:00.000Z");
+  const seenAgo = (minutes: number) => ({ state: "seen" as const, at: new Date(now.getTime() - minutes * 60_000).toISOString() });
+  const status = (checkInMinutes: number | null, checkIn: Parameters<typeof memberCheckInStatus>[0]["checkIn"], revokedAt?: string) =>
+    memberCheckInStatus({ checkInMinutes, checkIn, now, ...(revokedAt ? { revokedAt } : {}) }).status;
+
+  it("with a stated cadence, one rule: checking in up to exactly twice it, overdue a moment after", () => {
+    const at = (ms: number) => ({ state: "seen" as const, at: new Date(now.getTime() - ms).toISOString() });
+    expect(status(60, seenAgo(5))).toBe("checking-in");
+    expect(status(60, seenAgo(90))).toBe("checking-in"); // past one cadence is not yet overdue
+    expect(status(60, at(2 * 60 * 60_000))).toBe("checking-in");
+    expect(status(60, at(2 * 60 * 60_000 + 1))).toBe("check-in-overdue");
+    expect(status(1, at(2 * 60_000 + 1))).toBe("check-in-overdue"); // any positive cadence works the same way
+  });
+
+  it("a stated cadence that can't be used reads unknown with its reason, ahead of every other reading", () => {
+    expect(memberCheckInStatus({ checkInMinutes: null, cadenceProblem: "check_in_minutes \"60\" isn't a positive whole number of minutes",
+      checkIn: seenAgo(5), now })).toMatchObject({ status: "unknown", reason: expect.stringContaining("check_in_minutes") });
+    expect(memberCheckInStatus({ checkInMinutes: 60, checkIn: { state: "unknown" }, now })).toMatchObject({ status: "unknown", reason: "its check-ins couldn't be read" });
+  });
+
+  it("with no stated cadence it reads unknown with its last check-in, never on request, idle or overdue", () => {
+    expect(memberCheckInStatus({ checkInMinutes: null, checkIn: seenAgo(5), now }))
+      .toMatchObject({ status: "unknown", reason: "no check-in cadence declared", lastCheckInAt: seenAgo(5).at });
+    expect(status(null, seenAgo(10_000))).toBe("unknown");
+  });
+
+  it("on request only when its setup says so, whatever its last check-in's age", () => {
+    const onRequest = (checkIn: Parameters<typeof memberCheckInStatus>[0]["checkIn"]) =>
+      memberCheckInStatus({ checkInMinutes: null, onRequest: true, checkIn, now });
+    expect(onRequest(seenAgo(5)).status).toBe("on-request");
+    expect(onRequest(seenAgo(10_000))).toMatchObject({ status: "on-request", onRequest: true });
+    expect(onRequest({ state: "never" }).status).toBe("no-check-in-yet");
+    expect(memberCheckInStatus({ checkInMinutes: undefined, checkIn: seenAgo(5), now })).toMatchObject({ lastCheckInAt: seenAgo(5).at, expectedMinutes: null });
+  });
+
+  it("no recorded check-in reads never, with or without a cadence; an unreadable record reads unknown, never idle or overdue", () => {
+    expect(status(60, { state: "never" })).toBe("no-check-in-yet");
+    expect(memberCheckInStatus({ checkInMinutes: null, checkIn: { state: "never" }, now })).toMatchObject({ status: "no-check-in-yet", expectedMinutes: null });
+    expect(status(60, { state: "unknown" })).toBe("unknown");
+    expect(status(60, { state: "seen", at: "not a time" })).toBe("unknown");
+  });
+
+  it("disconnected comes only from a recorded revocation, ahead of everything else; silence never produces it", () => {
+    expect(status(60, seenAgo(5), "2026-11-12T11:00:00.000Z")).toBe("disconnected");
+    expect(status(60, seenAgo(100_000))).toBe("check-in-overdue");
+    expect(status(null, { state: "never" })).not.toBe("disconnected");
+  });
+});
+
+describe("describeCheckIn: one line, with its evidence", () => {
+  const base = { lastCheckInAt: "2026-11-12T13:05:00.000Z", expectedMinutes: 60, onRequest: false };
+  it("overdue carries its last check-in, its expected cadence and the suspected reason", () => {
+    expect(describeCheckIn({ ...base, status: "check-in-overdue" }))
+      .toBe("overdue: last check-in 2026-11-12T13:05:00.000Z, expected every 60 min; its schedule may be off or waiting for an approval");
+    expect(describeCheckIn({ ...base, status: "checking-in" })).toBe("checking in: last check-in 2026-11-12T13:05:00.000Z, expected every 60 min");
+  });
+  it("names what setup says when there's no check-in, and gives an unknown its reason and last check-in", () => {
+    expect(describeCheckIn({ ...base, status: "no-check-in-yet", lastCheckInAt: null })).toBe("no check-in yet; expected every 60 min");
+    expect(describeCheckIn({ ...base, status: "no-check-in-yet", lastCheckInAt: null, expectedMinutes: null, onRequest: true }))
+      .toBe("no check-in yet; checks in when a person asks it");
+    expect(describeCheckIn({ ...base, status: "no-check-in-yet", lastCheckInAt: null, expectedMinutes: null }))
+      .toBe("no check-in yet; no check-in cadence declared");
+    expect(describeCheckIn({ ...base, status: "on-request", expectedMinutes: null, onRequest: true }))
+      .toBe("on request: it checks its queue when a person asks it; last check-in 2026-11-12T13:05:00.000Z");
+    expect(describeCheckIn({ ...base, status: "unknown", expectedMinutes: null, reason: "no check-in cadence declared" }))
+      .toBe("unknown (no check-in cadence declared); last check-in 2026-11-12T13:05:00.000Z");
+  });
+});

packages/daemon/test/queue-stuck-sweep-hosted-poll.test.ts

@@ -11,7 +11,7 @@ import { ALL_MIGRATIONS } from "../src/db/all-migrations.js";
 import { QueueRepository, type QueueItem } from "../src/domain/queue-repository.js";
 import { EventBus } from "../src/domain/event-bus.js";
 import { queueRoutes } from "../src/routes/queue.js";
-import type { RosterWake } from "../src/domain/rosters.js";
+import type { RosterMember, RosterWake } from "../src/domain/rosters.js";
 import { createStuckSweepStatus, runStuckSweep, STUCK_SWEEP_FINDING_TAG, unclaimedBacklogTag } from "../src/domain/queue-stuck-sweep.js";
 
 const MEMBER = "helper-a@hub";
@@ -23,12 +23,13 @@ describe("stuck sweep: a hosted member that polls for its work", () => {
   let repo: QueueRepository;
 
   function makeRepo(opts: { hostedWake?: (d: string) => RosterWake | null; resolveSessionAddresses?: (n: string) => string[];
-    validateRig?: (d: string) => boolean } = {}): QueueRepository {
+    validateRig?: (d: string) => boolean; hostedMembers?: () => RosterMember[] } = {}): QueueRepository {
     return new QueueRepository(db, bus, {
       validateRig: opts.validateRig ?? (() => true),
       loadHumanRegistry: () => ({ ok: true, entities: [] }),
       isHostedMember: (d) => d === MEMBER,
       hostedWake: opts.hostedWake ?? (() => null),
+      hostedMembers: opts.hostedMembers ?? (() => []),
       ...(opts.resolveSessionAddresses ? { resolveSessionAddresses: opts.resolveSessionAddresses } : {}),
     });
   }
@@ -114,16 +115,88 @@ describe("stuck sweep: a hosted member that polls for its work", () => {
     expect(more).toEqual([]);
     expect(notice!.destinationSession).toBe(PERSON);
     expect(notice!.sourceSession).toBe(MEMBER);
-    expect(notice!.body).toContain(`check-ins: no check-in observed since ${at.toISOString()}`);
+    expect(notice!.body).toContain(`check-ins: unknown (no check-in cadence declared); no check-in since ${at.toISOString()}`);
     expect(notice!.body).toContain("no read of its own inbox has been observed in that time. Ask its owner to check it's running, or route the work to another seat");
     for (const row of rows) expect(notice!.body).toContain(`- ${row.qitemId}, unclaimed since ${row.tsCreated}, from lead@hub: work for ${MEMBER}`);
     expect(notice!.body).not.toMatch(/dead/i);
   });
 
+  /** The member as its roster lists it, with the cadence its person stated at setup (or none). */
+  const asListed = (checkInMinutes?: number): RosterMember[] => [{ seat: MEMBER, host: "hub", capabilities: ["research"],
+    engagement: ["delegate"], use_when: "research", why: "it researches", hosted: true,
+    ...(checkInMinutes === undefined ? {} : { check_in_minutes: checkInMinutes }) }];
+
+  it("a stated cadence decides only the notice's check-in line, never when the notice is filed: overdue past twice it, checking in within it", async () => {
+    const at = new Date(Date.now() - 3 * 3_600_000);
+    repo = makeRepo({ hostedMembers: () => asListed(60) });
+    repo.recordInboxCheckIn(MEMBER, at);
+    await work(MEMBER, { ageMinutes: 61 });
+    await sweep();
+    expect(notices()[0]!.body).toContain(`check-ins: overdue: last check-in ${at.toISOString()}, expected every 60 min; its schedule may be off or waiting for an approval`);
+    expect(notices()[0]!.body).toContain("why: nobody has claimed these rows, and it hasn't checked in as often as its setup expects.");
+
+    // The same three-hour-old check-in is on time for a member expected every four hours, though older than the
+    // unclaimed age that judges a member with no stated cadence.
+    db.close();
+    db = new Database(":memory:");
+    migrate(db, ALL_MIGRATIONS);
+    bus = new EventBus(db);
+    repo = makeRepo({ hostedMembers: () => asListed(240) });
+    seedSeat("lead@hub");
+    repo.recordInboxCheckIn(MEMBER, at);
+    await work(MEMBER, { ageMinutes: 61 });
+    await sweep();
+    expect(notices()[0]!.body).toContain("check-ins: checking in: its last check-in is within twice its expected 240 min");
+  });
+
+  it("the notice says what the hosted-members read says: an unusable cadence reads unknown with its reason, even with a fresh check-in", async () => {
+    const member = { ...asListed()[0]!, check_in_problem: "check_in_minutes \"60\" isn't a positive whole number of minutes" };
+    repo = makeRepo({ hostedMembers: () => [member] });
+    repo.recordInboxCheckIn(MEMBER, new Date(Date.now() - 5 * 60_000));
+    await work(MEMBER, { ageMinutes: 61 });
+    await sweep();
+    expect(repo.hostedMemberCheckIns()[0]).toMatchObject({ status: "unknown", reason: member.check_in_problem });
+    expect(notices()[0]!.body).toContain(`check-ins: unknown (${member.check_in_problem}); it read its own inbox within the last 60 min`);
+    expect(notices()[0]!.body).not.toContain("checking in");
+  });
+
+  it("check-in status is a status, never a refusal: work for an overdue or never-seen member queues and is recorded as before", async () => {
+    repo = makeRepo({ hostedMembers: () => asListed(60) });
+    repo.recordInboxCheckIn(MEMBER, new Date(Date.now() - 5 * 3_600_000));
+    const overdue = await repo.create({ sourceSession: "lead@hub", destinationSession: MEMBER, body: "work", summary: "work" });
+    const unlisted = makeRepo();
+    const baseline = await unlisted.create({ sourceSession: "lead@hub", destinationSession: MEMBER, body: "work", summary: "work" });
+    expect(repo.getById(overdue.qitemId)).toMatchObject({ state: "pending", destinationSession: MEMBER });
+    expect(repo.getById(overdue.qitemId)!.lastNudgeResult).toBe(unlisted.getById(baseline.qitemId)!.lastNudgeResult);
+    expect(repo.hostedMemberCheckIns().map((m) => m.status)).toEqual(["check-in-overdue"]);
+  });
+
+  it("the hosted-members read gives each member's status, last check-in and stated cadence", async () => {
+    const members = [...asListed(60), { ...asListed()[0]!, seat: "helper-b@hub", check_in_on_request: true as const },
+      { ...asListed(30)[0]!, seat: "helper-c@hub" }, { ...asListed()[0]!, seat: "helper-d@hub" }];
+    repo = makeRepo({ hostedMembers: () => members });
+    const at = new Date(Date.now() - 10 * 60_000);
+    repo.recordInboxCheckIn(MEMBER, at);
+    repo.recordInboxCheckIn("helper-b@hub", at);
+    repo.recordInboxCheckIn("helper-d@hub", at);
+    const res = await appFor(repo).request("/api/queue/hosted-members");
+    expect(res.status).toBe(200);
+    const body = await res.json() as { hostId: unknown; members: unknown };
+    expect(body).toHaveProperty("hostId");
+    expect(body.members).toEqual([
+      { seat: MEMBER, rung: false, status: "checking-in", lastCheckInAt: at.toISOString(), expectedMinutes: 60, onRequest: false, reporter: "openrig-observed" },
+      { seat: "helper-b@hub", rung: false, status: "on-request", lastCheckInAt: at.toISOString(), expectedMinutes: null, onRequest: true, reporter: "openrig-observed" },
+      { seat: "helper-c@hub", rung: false, status: "no-check-in-yet", lastCheckInAt: null, expectedMinutes: 30, onRequest: false, reporter: "openrig-observed" },
+      // States neither a cadence nor on request: unknown, with its last check-in, never on request, idle or overdue.
+      { seat: "helper-d@hub", rung: false, status: "unknown", lastCheckInAt: at.toISOString(), expectedMinutes: null, onRequest: false,
+        reporter: "openrig-observed", reason: "no check-in cadence declared" },
+    ]);
+  });
+
   it("a member that never checked in says so", async () => {
     await work(MEMBER, { ageMinutes: 61 });
     await sweep();
-    expect(notices()[0]!.body).toContain("check-ins: no check-in observed yet");
+    expect(notices()[0]!.body).toContain("check-ins: no check-in yet; no check-in cadence declared");
   });
 
   it("polling without claiming: old work still surfaces, and the member's check-ins neither reset its age nor rewrite the notice", async () => {
@@ -132,8 +205,8 @@ describe("stuck sweep: a hosted member that polls for its work", () => {
     await poll();
     await sweep();
     const [notice] = notices();
-    expect(notice!.body).toContain("check-ins: checking in: it read its own inbox within the last 60 min");
-    expect(notice!.body).toContain("it's checking in, but this work is still unclaimed");
+    expect(notice!.body).toContain("check-ins: unknown (no check-in cadence declared); it read its own inbox within the last 60 min");
+    expect(notice!.body).toContain("it's reading its own inbox, but this work is still unclaimed");
     expect(notice!.body).toContain(`- ${old.qitemId}, unclaimed since ${old.tsCreated}`);
     expect(notice!.body).not.toContain(young.qitemId);
     expect(perRow()).toEqual([]);
@@ -186,7 +259,7 @@ describe("stuck sweep: a hosted member that polls for its work", () => {
     expect(errors.mock.calls.filter((call) => String(call[0]).includes("inbox check-in not recorded"))).toHaveLength(1);
     expect(repo.lastInboxCheckIn(MEMBER)).toEqual({ state: "unknown" });
     await sweep();
-    expect(notices()[0]!.body).toContain("check-ins: unknown: its check-ins couldn't be read");
+    expect(notices()[0]!.body).toContain("check-ins: unknown (its check-ins couldn't be read)");
   });
 
   it("after a restart the stale check-in is still known, and the first new read records at once", async () => {

packages/tui/src/attention/attention-model.ts

@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 import type { AttentionRead, AttentionItem } from "@openrig/daemon/attention";
 import type { Action, FleetSnapshot, ViewState } from "../types.js";
 import { listItem, wrapDetailLines, type ContentLine } from "../detail.js";
+import { displayTime } from "../time.js";
 
 /** The bounded, confirmed-delivery or bridge-acceptance projection served by S02; no client classification. */
 export interface DeliveredHumanUpdates {
@@ -11,6 +12,8 @@ export interface DeliveredHumanUpdates {
   truncated: boolean;
 }
 
+const BRIDGE_ACCEPTED_SCOPE = " · accepted by bridge";
+
 function isBridgeAcceptedUpdate(q: DeliveredHumanUpdates["items"][number]): boolean {
   return q.deliveryOutcome === "accepted" || q.deliveryReceipt.startsWith("relay-owner-notification-accepted");
 }
@@ -38,13 +41,13 @@ export function composeHumanUpdates(attention: AttentionRead | null, updates: De
     const baseScope = projects.length === 1 ? `project ${projects[0]} (queue tag)` : "instance · project unknown";
     const item: AttentionItem = { id: `human-update:${q.qitemId}`, kind: "update", summary: q.summary || q.body.trim().split(/\r?\n/).find(Boolean) || (accepted ? "Accepted by bridge" : "Delivered update"),
       recipient: q.destinationSession, urgency: "update", unblocks: null, at: q.deliveredAt,
-      scope: accepted ? `${baseScope} · accepted by bridge` : baseScope, project: null,
+      scope: accepted ? `${baseScope}${BRIDGE_ACCEPTED_SCOPE}` : baseScope, project: null,
       source: `/api/queue/${encodeURIComponent(q.qitemId)}` };
     if (!read.items.some(current => current.id === `queue-update:${q.qitemId}`)) read.items.push(item);
     if (wanted === item.id && read.detail?.item.id !== item.id) {
       read.detailError = null;
       read.detail = { item, lines: [q.body, ...(q.humanDetail ? ["Supplemental detail:", q.humanDetail] : []),
-        `From: ${q.sourceSession}`, accepted ? `Accepted by bridge: ${q.deliveredAt}` : `Delivered: ${q.deliveredAt}`, `Delivery receipt: ${q.deliveryReceipt}`, `Queue: ${q.qitemId}`, `Evidence: ${q.evidenceRef ?? "none recorded"}`],
+        `From: ${q.sourceSession}`, `Delivery receipt: ${q.deliveryReceipt}`, `Queue: ${q.qitemId}`, `Evidence: ${q.evidenceRef ?? "none recorded"}`],
         files: q.evidenceRef?.startsWith("/") ? [{ label: "Update evidence", path: q.evidenceRef }] : [] };
     }
   }
@@ -71,7 +74,10 @@ export function attentionLines(state: ViewState, snap: FleetSnapshot, width: num
       if (d.item.recipient) lines.push({ text: `To: ${d.item.recipient}` });
       if (d.item.id.startsWith("human-update:") || d.item.id.startsWith("queue-update:")) lines.push({ text: "No action needed" });
       if (d.item.unblocks) lines.push({ text: `Unblocks: ${d.item.unblocks}` });
-      lines.push({ text: `Scope: ${d.item.scope}` }, { text: `Observed: ${d.item.at ?? "unknown"}` });
+      // Times are drawn in the person's zone (ui.timezone), as the header's are; a delivered update's time is when it was
+      // delivered or accepted by the bridge.
+      const when = !d.item.id.startsWith("human-update:") ? "Observed" : d.item.scope.endsWith(BRIDGE_ACCEPTED_SCOPE) ? "Accepted by bridge" : "Delivered";
+      lines.push({ text: `Scope: ${d.item.scope}` }, { text: `${when}: ${displayTime(d.item.at, state.timeZone)}` });
       lines.push(...questionLines(d.item).map(text => ({ text })));
       lines.push(...d.lines.map(text => ({ text })));
       for (const f of d.files) lines.push(listItem(f.label, { type: "attention-source", path: f.path }));
@@ -124,10 +130,10 @@ export function attentionLines(state: ViewState, snap: FleetSnapshot, width: num
         if (i.humanQuestions?.length) lines.push({ text: `    Questions: ${i.humanQuestions.length}, ${unansweredCount(i)} unanswered` });
         if (i.id.startsWith("human-update:") || i.id.startsWith("queue-update:")) lines.push({ text: "    No action needed" });
         if (i.unblocks) lines.push({ text: `    Unblocks: ${i.unblocks}` });
-        lines.push({ text: `    ${i.scope} · ${i.at ?? "time unknown"}` });
+        lines.push({ text: `    ${i.scope} · ${displayTime(i.at, state.timeZone)}` });
       }
     }
-    lines.push({ text: "" }, { text: `Read at ${read.readAt}` }, ...read.sources.map(s => ({ text: `${s.source}: ${s.state} · ${s.detail}` })));
+    lines.push({ text: "" }, { text: `Read at ${displayTime(read.readAt, state.timeZone)}` }, ...read.sources.map(s => ({ text: `${s.source}: ${s.state} · ${s.detail}` })));
   }
   lines.push({ text: "" }, { text: "Viewing is not approval. Each request's detail says whether it went to Slack and where to answer it." });
   return wrapDetailLines(lines, width);

packages/tui/test/feed-open-human-updates.test.ts

@@ -50,6 +50,24 @@ it("renders an unsent local FYI without inventing an approval or a delivery rece
   expect(text).not.toContain("Delivery receipt:");
 });
 
+it("draws Feed times in the person's zone, as the header does, and redraws them when the zone changes", () => {
+  const item = current(), attention = read([item]);
+  attention.detail = { item, lines: ["Current queue body"], files: [] };
+  const merged = composeHumanUpdates(attention, delivered("other"), item.id)!;
+  const draw = (timeZone: string, attentionOpen: string | null) => attentionLines(
+    { ...createViewState({ instanceId: "owned-fixture", timeZone }).get(), section: "needs" as const, attentionOpen },
+    { ...emptySnapshot(), attentionRead: merged }, 140).map(l => l.text).join("\n");
+  const london = draw("Europe/London", null);
+  expect(london).toContain("instance · 2026-10-01 13:00:00 GMT+1");
+  expect(london).toContain("instance · project unknown · 2026-10-08 13:00:00 GMT+1");
+  expect(london).toContain("Read at 2026-10-09 13:00:00 GMT+1");
+  expect(london).not.toMatch(/\d{4}-\d{2}-\d{2}T\d{2}:/);
+  // The same read, drawn after the zone setting arrives: nothing is re-read, and nothing keeps the earlier zone.
+  const angeles = draw("America/Los_Angeles", item.id);
+  expect(angeles).toContain("Observed: 2026-10-01 05:00:00 PDT");
+  expect(angeles).not.toMatch(/\d{4}-\d{2}-\d{2}T\d{2}:|GMT\+1/);
+});
+
 it("does not retain delivered history beyond a successful empty receipt window when only current updates fail", () => {
   const prior = composeHumanUpdates(read([]), delivered())!;
   const failed = read([]);
@@ -155,8 +173,9 @@ it("labels relay bridge acceptance as accepted by the bridge rather than Deliver
     ],
   };
   const openedBridge = composeHumanUpdates(read([]), bridgeUpdates, "human-update:bridge-fyi")!;
-  const bridgeDetailLines = openedBridge.detail?.lines.join("\n") ?? "";
-  expect(bridgeDetailLines).toContain("Accepted by bridge: 2026-10-08T14:00:00Z");
+  const detailState = (id: string) => ({ ...createViewState({ instanceId: "owned-fixture", timeZone: "UTC" }).get(), section: "needs" as const, attentionOpen: id });
+  const bridgeDetailLines = attentionLines(detailState("human-update:bridge-fyi"), { ...emptySnapshot(), attentionRead: openedBridge }, 140).map(l => l.text).join("\n");
+  expect(bridgeDetailLines).toContain("Accepted by bridge: 2026-10-08 14:00:00 UTC");
   expect(bridgeDetailLines).not.toContain("Delivered:");
   expect(openedBridge.sources.find(s => s.source === "delivered updates")?.detail).toContain("accepted by the bridge");
   expect(openedBridge.sources.find(s => s.source === "delivered updates")?.detail).not.toContain("confirmed delivered updates");
@@ -168,8 +187,8 @@ it("labels relay bridge acceptance as accepted by the bridge rather than Deliver
 
   // Slack delivered wording remains unchanged
   const openedSlack = composeHumanUpdates(read([]), delivered("slack-fyi"), "human-update:slack-fyi")!;
-  const slackDetailLines = openedSlack.detail?.lines.join("\n") ?? "";
-  expect(slackDetailLines).toContain("Delivered: 2026-10-08T12:00:00Z");
+  const slackDetailLines = attentionLines(detailState("human-update:slack-fyi"), { ...emptySnapshot(), attentionRead: openedSlack }, 140).map(l => l.text).join("\n");
+  expect(slackDetailLines).toContain("Delivered: 2026-10-08 12:00:00 UTC");
   expect(slackDetailLines).not.toContain("Accepted by bridge:");
   expect(openedSlack.sources.find(s => s.source === "delivered updates")?.detail).toBe(
     "Latest 20 confirmed delivered updates; retained receipt window.",