refactor(ghost): consistent CLI exit-code contract#198
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Normalize exit codes so an agent can branch on them. Unexpected errors exit 1; caller mistakes exit 2. The wrinkle was that several genuine usage errors are surfaced by throwing from deep helpers (path validation, byte budgets, overwrite guards, bad --agent/--template), so a flat catch code mislabels them. Introduce a typed UsageError (ghost-core) carrying exitCode 2 and a shared failFromError() that exits with a thrown error's exitCode or 1 otherwise, then route every command catch through it. A missing package now throws UsageError with a 'ghost init' hint instead of leaking a raw ENOENT, and the exit-code contract is documented in the CLI reference.
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Stacked on
ghost/08-search-and-grounding.A focused cleanup of the CLI exit-code contract, prompted by the gather-ranking work in #197: an agent that branches on exit codes needs them to mean one thing.
The problem
The per-command
catchblocks had drifted — the same "something threw" event exited1ingather/checks/migratebut2ininit/skill/review/fingerprint. Worse, several genuine usage errors are surfaced bythrowfrom deep helpers (path validation,--max-diff-bytes, overwrite guards, bad--agent/--template), so any single catch code mislabels them: flat1calls a bad flag a crash; flat2calls a crash a usage error.The fix
UsageError(inghost-core, reachable from thescanlayer) carriesexitCode: 2. The genuine "you called it wrong" throw sites now throw it.failFromError()(shared) reports the message and exits with the error'sexitCode, or1otherwise. Every command catch routes through it, so the contract can't drift again.UsageErrorwith aghost inithint (exit2) instead of leaking a rawENOENT.Net contract:
0success ·1ran-but-unhappy (validate findings, or unexpected error) ·2called-wrong ·3command-specific refusal (skill already installed). Documented as a table in the CLI reference, including the deliberate split where reporting commands (validate/scan/signals) treat a missing package as a state to report rather than a usage error.Verification
pnpm test(115 passing; +2 contract tests: a thrown usage error exits 2, a missing package exits 2 with guidance)pnpm checkgreenpatchchangeset added.