feat(blackboard): add local Redis-backed coordination layer

Create the "Blackboard" for multi-agent coordination:
- infrastructure/redis/docker-compose.yml for local Redis deployment
- src/timmy/blackboard.py: Redis pub/sub + key-value store with in-memory fallback
- config.yaml: add blackboard configuration section
- tests/test_blackboard.py: smoke tests for KV and pub/sub

Agents can now write/read shared state and subscribe to events.
Deploy with: cd infrastructure/redis && docker-compose up -d

Closes #459

config.yaml

@@ -169,6 +169,14 @@ _config_version: 9
 session_reset:
   mode: none
   idle_minutes: 0
+blackboard:
+  enabled: true
+  redis:
+    url: redis://localhost:6379/0
+    password: ""
+  keyspace_prefix: timmy
+  ttl_seconds: 3600
+  fallback_to_memory: true
 custom_providers:
 - name: Local Ollama
   base_url: http://localhost:11434/v1

infrastructure/redis/README.md

@@ -0,0 +1,19 @@
+# Local Redis Blackboard for Agent Coordination
+
+This directory contains the Redis deployment for the Timmy Home "Blackboard" — a
+shared coordination layer for multi-agent orchestration.
+
+## Quick Start
+
+```bash
+docker-compose up -d
+```
+
+Redis will be available at `redis://localhost:6379` with persistence enabled.
+
+## Stop
+
+```bash
+docker-compose down        # Stop, keep data
+docker-compose down -v     # Stop and delete data
+```

infrastructure/redis/docker-compose.yml

@@ -0,0 +1,18 @@
+version: '3.8'
+
+services:
+  redis:
+    image: redis:7-alpine
+    container_name: timmy-redis
+    restart: unless-stopped
+    ports:
+      - "6379:6379"
+    volumes:
+      - ./data:/data
+    command: ["redis-server", "--appendonly", "yes"]
+    networks:
+      - timmy-network
+
+networks:
+  timmy-network:
+    driver: bridge

src/timmy/blackboard.py

@@ -0,0 +1,311 @@
+#!/usr/bin/env python3
+"""
+Blackboard — Redis-backed shared coordination layer.
+
+Agents write thoughts/observations to the blackboard; other agents subscribe
+to specific keys to trigger reasoning cycles. This is the sovereign coordination
+mechanism for the local-first multi-agent mesh.
+
+Design: Minimal, synchronous Redis client with graceful fallback to in-memory
+when Redis is unavailable (e.g., during local dev without Docker).
+
+SOUL.md: "Sovereignty and service always." The blackboard lives entirely on
+the sovereign's machine — no cloud dependencies.
+"""
+
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+import json
+import logging
+import os
+import time
+from dataclasses import dataclass, asdict
+from datetime import datetime, timezone
+from pathlib import Path
+from typing import Any, Callable, Iterable, Optional
+
+logger = logging.getLogger(__name__)
+
+# Lazy import to keep redis optional
+_redis = None
+_redis_import_error = None
+
+try:
+    import redis
+    _redis = redis
+except ImportError as e:
+    _redis_import_error = e
+
+
+@dataclass
+class BlackboardConfig:
+    """Configuration for the Blackboard."""
+    enabled: bool = True
+    redis_url: str = "redis://localhost:6379/0"
+    redis_password: str | None = None
+    keyspace_prefix: str = "timmy"
+    ttl_seconds: int | None = None  # None = no expiration
+    fallback_to_memory: bool = True  # Use dict if Redis unavailable
+
+
+class _MemoryBackend:
+    """Simple in-memory fallback when Redis is not available."""
+    def __init__(self):
+        self._store: dict[str, str] = {}
+        self._subscribers: dict[str, list[Callable[[str, Any], None]]] = {}
+
+    def get(self, key: str) -> str | None:
+        return self._store.get(key)
+
+    def set(self, key: str, value: str, ttl: int | None = None) -> bool:
+        self._store[key] = value
+        return True
+
+    def publish(self, channel: str, message: Any) -> int:
+        count = 0
+        for cb in self._subscribers.get(channel, []):
+            try:
+                # Pass the original object (do not serialize)
+                cb(channel, message)
+                count += 1
+            except Exception as e:
+                logger.warning("MemoryBackend subscriber error: %s", e)
+        return count
+
+    def subscribe(self, channel: str, callback: Callable[[str, Any], None]) -> None:
+        self._subscribers.setdefault(channel, []).append(callback)
+
+    def unsubscribe(self, channel: str, callback: Callable[[str, Any], None]) -> None:
+        if channel in self._subscribers:
+            self._subscribers[channel].remove(callback)
+
+    def keys(self, pattern: str = "*") -> list[str]:
+        # Simple fnmatch-style pattern matching
+        import fnmatch
+        return fnmatch.filter(list(self._store.keys()), pattern)
+
+
+class Blackboard:
+    """
+    Shared coordination layer backed by Redis (with in-memory fallback).
+
+    Usage:
+        bb = Blackboard()
+        bb.set("agent:timmy:thought", "checking queue...")
+        value = bb.get("agent:timmy:thought")
+
+        def on_event(channel, message):
+            print(f"Event on {channel}: {message}")
+        bb.subscribe("dispatch:new", on_event)
+        bb.publish("dispatch:new", {"issue": 123, "action": "comment"})
+    """
+
+    def __init__(self, config: BlackboardConfig | None = None):
+        cfg = config or BlackboardConfig()
+        self.enabled = cfg.enabled
+        self.prefix = cfg.keyspace_prefix
+        self.ttl = cfg.ttl_seconds
+        self._backend: _MemoryBackend | Any
+
+        if not _redis:
+            if cfg.fallback_to_memory:
+                logger.warning(
+                    "redis-py not installed; using in-memory fallback. "
+                    "Install with: pip install redis"
+                )
+                self._backend = _MemoryBackend()
+            else:
+                raise ImportError("redis-py is required but not installed") from _redis_import_error
+        else:
+            try:
+                self._backend = _redis.from_url(
+                    cfg.redis_url,
+                    password=cfg.redis_password,
+                    decode_responses=True,
+                )
+                # Test connection
+                self._backend.ping()
+                logger.info("Blackboard connected to Redis at %s", cfg.redis_url)
+            except Exception as e:
+                if cfg.fallback_to_memory:
+                    logger.warning("Redis connection failed (%s); falling back to in-memory", e)
+                    self._backend = _MemoryBackend()
+                else:
+                    raise
+
+    # ─────────────────────────────────────────────
+    # Key-value operations
+    # ─────────────────────────────────────────────
+
+    def _prefixed(self, key: str) -> str:
+        """Apply keyspace prefix to a key."""
+        return f"{self.prefix}:{key}" if self.prefix else key
+
+    def get(self, key: str) -> str | None:
+        """Get a value from the blackboard."""
+        return self._backend.get(self._prefixed(key))
+
+    def set(self, key: str, value: str | dict, ttl: int | None = None) -> bool:
+        """
+        Set a value on the blackboard.
+
+        Args:
+            key: Key without prefix (prefix is added automatically)
+            value: String or JSON-serializable dict
+            ttl: Override default TTL (seconds); None = use default
+
+        Returns:
+            True on success
+        """
+        if isinstance(value, dict):
+            value = json.dumps(value, sort_keys=True)
+        elif not isinstance(value, str):
+            value = str(value)
+
+        expire = ttl if ttl is not None else self.ttl
+        result = self._backend.set(self._prefixed(key), value, expire)
+        return bool(result)
+
+    def delete(self, key: str) -> bool:
+        """Delete a key."""
+        try:
+            return bool(self._backend.delete(self._prefixed(key)))
+        except AttributeError:
+            # MemoryBackend
+            k = self._prefixed(key)
+            if k in self._backend._store:
+                del self._backend._store[k]
+                return True
+            return False
+
+    def keys(self, pattern: str = "*") -> list[str]:
+        """List keys matching a pattern (without prefix)."""
+        full_pattern = self._prefixed(pattern)
+        raw_keys = self._backend.keys(full_pattern)
+        # Strip prefix
+        prefix_len = len(self.prefix) + 1 if self.prefix else 0
+        return [k[prefix_len:] if k.startswith(f"{self.prefix}:") else k for k in raw_keys]
+
+    def exists(self, key: str) -> bool:
+        """Check if a key exists."""
+        try:
+            return bool(self._backend.exists(self._prefixed(key)))
+        except AttributeError:
+            # MemoryBackend
+            return self._prefixed(key) in self._backend._store
+
+    # ─────────────────────────────────────────────
+    # Pub/sub operations
+    # ─────────────────────────────────────────────
+
+    def publish(self, channel: str, message: Any) -> int:
+        """
+        Publish a message to a channel.
+
+        Args:
+            channel: Channel name (without prefix)
+            message: JSON-serializable object or string
+
+        Returns:
+            Number of subscribers that received the message
+        """
+        # For Redis, must send string/bytes. For MemoryBackend, pass object.
+        if isinstance(self._backend, _MemoryBackend):
+            payload = message  # Pass through
+        else:
+            payload = json.dumps(message, sort_keys=True) if not isinstance(message, str) else message
+
+        return self._backend.publish(self._prefixed(channel), payload)
+
+    def subscribe(
+        self,
+        channel: str,
+        callback: Callable[[str, Any], None],
+        *,
+        block: bool = False,
+        timeout: float | None = None,
+    ) -> None:
+        """
+        Subscribe to a channel.
+
+        Args:
+            channel: Channel name (without prefix)
+            callback: Function(channel, message) called for each message
+            block: If True, block and listen forever (or until timeout)
+            timeout: Max seconds to listen when blocking
+        """
+        prefixed = self._prefixed(channel)
+        # Check if this is a real Redis client (has pubsub method)
+        if hasattr(self._backend, 'pubsub') and callable(getattr(self._backend, 'pubsub', None)):
+            # Real Redis pub/sub
+            import threading
+            pubsub = self._backend.pubsub()
+            pubsub.subscribe(prefixed)
+
+            def listener():
+                for msg in pubsub.listen():
+                    if msg['type'] == 'message':
+                        try:
+                            data = json.loads(msg['data'])
+                        except (json.JSONDecodeError, TypeError):
+                            data = msg['data']
+                        callback(channel, data)
+
+            if block:
+                t = threading.Thread(target=listener, daemon=True)
+                t.start()
+                if timeout:
+                    t.join(timeout)
+                else:
+                    t.join()
+            else:
+                # Fire-and-forget thread
+                threading.Thread(target=listener, daemon=True).start()
+        else:
+            # MemoryBackend — synchronous callback registration
+            self._backend.subscribe(prefixed, callback)
+
+    def unsubscribe(self, channel: str, callback: Callable[[str, Any], None]) -> None:
+        """Unsubscribe from a channel."""
+        try:
+            self._backend.unsubscribe(self._prefixed(channel), callback)
+        except AttributeError:
+            pass  # MemoryBackend supports it
+
+    # ─────────────────────────────────────────────
+    # Helpers
+    # ─────────────────────────────────────────────
+
+    def clear_namespace(self, pattern: str = "*") -> int:
+        """Delete all keys matching pattern in this namespace."""
+        full = self._prefixed(pattern)
+        try:
+            keys = self._backend.keys(full)
+            if keys:
+                return self._backend.delete(*keys)
+            return 0
+        except AttributeError:
+            store_keys = list(self._backend._store.keys())
+            import fnmatch
+            matched = fnmatch.filter(store_keys, full)
+            for k in matched:
+                del self._backend._store[k]
+            return len(matched)
+
+    def __repr__(self) -> str:
+        return f"<Blackboard prefix={self.prefix!r} backend={type(self._backend).__name__}>"
+
+
+# ─────────────────────────────────────────────
+# Convenience singleton for global use
+# ─────────────────────────────────────────────
+
+_default_blackboard: Blackboard | None = None
+
+
+def get_blackboard(config: BlackboardConfig | None = None) -> Blackboard:
+    """Get or create the global Blackboard singleton."""
+    global _default_blackboard
+    if _default_blackboard is None:
+        _default_blackboard = Blackboard(config)
+    return _default_blackboard

tests/test_blackboard.py

@@ -0,0 +1,194 @@
+"""
+Smoke tests for Blackboard — ensures the Redis-backed coordination layer
+works with both real Redis and in-memory fallback.
+"""
+
+import json
+import time
+
+import pytest
+
+from src.timmy.blackboard import Blackboard, BlackboardConfig, _MemoryBackend
+
+
+class TestBlackboardBasics:
+    """Test core key-value operations."""
+
+    def test_kv_memory_backend(self):
+        """KV operations work using in-memory backend."""
+        bb = Blackboard(BlackboardConfig(fallback_to_memory=True, enabled=True))
+
+        # Set and get
+        assert bb.set("test:key", "hello") is True
+        assert bb.get("test:key") == "hello"
+
+        # Dict serialization
+        assert bb.set("test:obj", {"a": 1, "b": 2}) is True
+        val = bb.get("test:obj")
+        assert json.loads(val) == {"a": 1, "b": 2}
+
+        # Exists
+        assert bb.exists("test:key") is True
+        assert bb.exists("missing") is False
+
+        # Delete
+        assert bb.delete("test:key") is True
+        assert bb.get("test:key") is None
+
+        # Keys with prefix
+        bb.set("agent:timmy:state", "ready")
+        bb.set("agent:ezra:state", "idle")
+        keys = bb.keys("agent:*:state")
+        assert len(keys) == 2
+        assert "timmy" in keys[0] or "ezra" in keys[0]
+
+        # Clear namespace
+        assert bb.clear_namespace("agent:*") == 2
+        assert bb.keys("agent:*") == []
+
+
+class TestBlackboardPubSub:
+    """Test pub/sub coordination patterns."""
+
+    def test_pubsub_memory_backend(self):
+        """Publish/subscribe works using in-memory backend."""
+        bb = Blackboard(BlackboardConfig(fallback_to_memory=True, enabled=True))
+
+        received = []
+
+        def callback(channel, message):
+            received.append((channel, message))
+
+        bb.subscribe("dispatch:new", callback)
+
+        # Publish
+        count = bb.publish("dispatch:new", {"issue": 123, "action": "comment"})
+        assert count == 1
+        assert len(received) == 1
+        ch, msg = received[0]
+        assert ch == "dispatch:new"
+        assert msg == {"issue": 123, "action": "comment"}
+
+        bb.unsubscribe("dispatch:new", callback)
+        bb.publish("dispatch:new", {"should": "not arrive"})
+        assert len(received) == 1  # no new messages
+
+    def test_publish_without_subscribers(self):
+        """Publish returns 0 when no subscribers."""
+        bb = Blackboard(BlackboardConfig(fallback_to_memory=True, enabled=True))
+        count = bb.publish("empty:channel", {"msg": 1})
+        assert count == 0
+
+
+class TestBlackboardConfig:
+    """Test configuration parsing and validation."""
+
+    def test_default_config(self):
+        cfg = BlackboardConfig()
+        assert cfg.enabled is True
+        assert cfg.redis_url == "redis://localhost:6379/0"
+        assert cfg.keyspace_prefix == "timmy"
+        assert cfg.ttl_seconds == 3600
+        assert cfg.fallback_to_memory is True
+
+    def test_custom_config(self):
+        cfg = BlackboardConfig(
+            enabled=False,
+            redis_url="redis://192.168.1.10:6379/1",
+            keyspace_prefix="myagent",
+            ttl_seconds=1800,
+            fallback_to_memory=False,
+        )
+        assert cfg.enabled is False
+        assert cfg.redis_url == "redis://192.168.1.10:6379/1"
+        assert cfg.keyspace_prefix == "myagent"
+        assert cfg.ttl_seconds == 1800
+        assert cfg.fallback_to_memory is False
+
+
+class TestKeyspacePrefix:
+    """Test that keys are correctly prefixed."""
+
+    def test_prefixed_keys(self):
+        bb = Blackboard(BlackboardConfig(keyspace_prefix="myagent", fallback_to_memory=True))
+        bb.set("thought", "test")
+        # Internal key should be "myagent:thought"
+        # We can verify by checking keys()
+        keys = bb.keys("*")
+        assert any("myagent:thought" in k for k in keys)
+
+
+class TestBlackboardIntegration:
+    """Integration pattern: agent thought cycle."""
+
+    def test_agent_thought_cycle(self):
+        """Simulate Timmy writing a thought and Ezra reading it."""
+        bb = Blackboard(BlackboardConfig(fallback_to_memory=True, enabled=True))
+
+        # Agent A writes observation
+        bb.set("agent:timmy:observation", "Gitea queue has 12 open issues")
+
+        # Agent B reads
+        obs = bb.get("agent:timmy:observation")
+        assert obs == "Gitea queue has 12 open issues"
+
+        # Agent B writes analysis
+        bb.set("agent:ezra:analysis", "Prioritize critical bugs first")
+
+        # Event-driven pattern
+        events = []
+
+        def on_plan(channel, message):
+            events.append(message)
+
+        bb.subscribe("fleet:plan", on_plan)
+        bb.publish("fleet:plan", {"phase": "triaging", "lead": "ezra"})
+
+        assert len(events) == 1
+        assert events[0]["phase"] == "triaging"
+
+
+class TestTTL:
+    """Test TTL handling (where supported)."""
+
+    def test_ttl_set_in_config(self):
+        cfg = BlackboardConfig(ttl_seconds=60, fallback_to_memory=True)
+        bb = Blackboard(cfg)
+        assert bb.ttl == 60
+        # Setting a value uses TTL from config
+        bb.set("temp:key", "expiring value")
+        # In memory backend ignores TTL, but value is set
+        assert bb.get("temp:key") == "expiring value"
+
+
+# ─────────────────────────────────────────────
+# CLI smoke — can be called directly: python -m tests.test_blackboard
+# ─────────────────────────────────────────────
+
+if __name__ == "__main__":
+    import sys
+
+    print("Running Blackboard smoke tests...")
+
+    suite = [
+        TestBlackboardBasics().test_kv_memory_backend,
+        TestBlackboardPubSub().test_pubsub_memory_backend,
+        TestBlackboardConfig().test_default_config,
+        TestBlackboardIntegration().test_agent_thought_cycle,
+    ]
+
+    failures = 0
+    for test in suite:
+        name = test.__name__
+        try:
+            test()
+            print(f"  ✓ {name}")
+        except AssertionError as e:
+            print(f"  ✗ {name}: {e}")
+            failures += 1
+        except Exception as e:
+            print(f"  ✗ {name}: ERROR — {e}")
+            failures += 1
+
+    print(f"\nRan {len(suite)} tests, {failures} failures")
+    sys.exit(failures)