d04b05b5c8
* fix(memory): detach retained CI and terminal tails from oversized strings * fix(terminal): detach retained error and reattach string slices * fix(terminal): release oversized recent-output backing strings * fix(terminal): release backing strings held by PTY detectors * fix(memory): own bounded Claude background task labels * fix: detach retained terminal mode scan tails * fix: own retained plugin worker output strings * fix: own incomplete OSC 133 carry strings --------- Co-authored-by: m4air <m4air@Mac.localdomain> Co-authored-by: m4air <m4air@m4airs-MacBook-Air.local>
Retained PTY detector input
The advertised-URL watcher keeps a 4,096-character carry for each bound PTY and 16,384 characters for each of at most 32 unbound PTYs. The Command Code status detector keeps 300 characters before its agent-specific prefilter, including for ordinary shell, Claude, and Codex output. Each could keep the whole original input alive through a V8 sliced string.
The fix uses the existing ownRetainedString copier when dropping oversized
input. It preserves URL reconstruction, status detection, UTF-16 code units,
binding/unbinding, cache limits, and remote/local authority. These are three
additional boundaries in #20960.
Reproduce
ORCA_BACKGROUND_LAUNCH=1 node --expose-gc docs/audits/pty-detector-retention/reproduce.mjs
The script bundles the actual detector and watcher. The baseline removes only the three copy calls in memory. Each input has its own live owner; URL cases use separate watcher instances to isolate each carry. Heap is measured after GC, before completing the partial URLs and verifying cleanup. Results include owner overhead, not just text. Bundle hashes and measurements.
| Case | Input per owner | Owners | Heap before | Heap after |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Status detector | 64 Ki characters | 32 | 2,112,688 | 41,400 |
| Bound URL carry | 64 Ki characters | 32 | 2,173,848 | 204,112 |
| URL pending binding | 64 Ki characters | 32 | 2,148,824 | 575,512 |
| Status detector | 4 Mi characters | 8 | 33,557,144 | 6,504 |
| Bound URL carry | 4 Mi characters | 8 | 33,569,168 | 47,112 |
| URL pending binding | 4 Mi characters | 8 | 33,568,936 | 144,504 |
Captured with Node v26.6.0 on macOS. Three GC regression tests failed before the fix, retaining about 32 MiB each, and pass afterward. The five-suite run passes 164 tests including existing URL/status behavior and copier Unicode/fallback tests.
Scope and limits
Main feeds both observers before renderer batching. Default daemon bulk output
frames are at most 64 Ki UTF-16 characters; main's later 16 Ki-character batching
does not bound these readers. The 4 Mi-character cases demonstrate the retaining
mechanism under larger inputs, not normal daemon frame size. Both implementations
also exist in v1.4.198.
Transformed frames bypass ordinary chunk slicing but still face the daemon's
16 MiB encoded-line limit. Native fallback output has no application chunk cap;
this audit does not establish multi-MiB native reads. Ordinary relay chunks are
16 Ki characters. The actual main feed is orca-runtime-on-pty-data.ts and the
ordinary daemon bound is in daemon-stream-data-batcher.ts.
These are per-owner last-input costs, not unbounded growth for a fixed set of PTYs and fixed-size frames. Owners consuming the same input can share the same backing string, so the three measurements must not be added as independent process costs. Unbind removes URL buffers and pending entries. This improves memory proportional to active owners; it does not establish the cause or growth rate of #19831 or #19768. Copy work is bounded by the small retained tails.