fix(maestro): arbitrate pane size across clients

Every attached client pushed its own dimensions straight to
`tmux resize-window`, so two clients of different sizes resized the
shared window past each other on every report — 198 resizes in 90
seconds on a four-session daemon. Each flip repaints a full-screen agent
at a new height and orphans the rows it drew at the old one, leaving a
stale input box the operator types into and reads as a stuck pane.

The window now goes to the smallest attached client per axis, tmux's own
rule for multiple clients, and only when that size actually changes.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 5 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>

crates/maestro-daemon/src/attach.rs

@@ -26,11 +26,17 @@ pub(crate) async fn serve(
 ) -> Result<(), axum::Error> {
     let (mut sink, mut stream) = socket.split();
 
+    // This client's claim on the shared window size. Registered up front and
+    // released on every exit below, so a socket that dies mid-session stops
+    // constraining the size for the clients still attached.
+    let viewport = manager.attach_viewport();
+
     // NAP-229: send buffered scrollback up-front so the client sees the last
     // screenful immediately instead of a blank terminal. The replay lock the
     // bridge held during snapshot+subscribe guarantees no byte appears both
     // here and on the live receiver, and none is dropped at the seam.
     if !replay.is_empty() && sink.send(Message::Binary(replay)).await.is_err() {
+        manager.release_viewport(id, viewport).await;
         return Ok(());
     }
 
@@ -70,7 +76,7 @@ pub(crate) async fn serve(
                     if let Ok(ctrl) = serde_json::from_str::<ClientControl>(&text) {
                         match ctrl {
                             ClientControl::Resize { cols, rows } => {
-                                let _ = manager.resize(id, cols, rows).await;
+                                let _ = manager.set_viewport(id, viewport, cols, rows).await;
                             }
                             ClientControl::Ping => {
                                 let pong = serde_json::to_string(&ClientControl::Pong)
@@ -88,6 +94,8 @@ pub(crate) async fn serve(
         }
     }
 
+    manager.release_viewport(id, viewport).await;
+
     if session_ended {
         let _ = sink.send(Message::Close(None)).await;
     }

crates/maestro-daemon/src/lib.rs

@@ -30,6 +30,7 @@ pub mod spawn_history;
 #[cfg(feature = "web")]
 pub mod static_bundle;
 pub mod tmux;
+pub mod viewport;
 pub mod worktree;
 pub mod worktree_probe;
 

crates/maestro-daemon/src/session.rs

@@ -7,6 +7,7 @@
 
 use std::collections::{HashMap, HashSet};
 use std::path::PathBuf;
+use std::sync::atomic::{AtomicU64, Ordering};
 use std::sync::Arc;
 use std::time::Duration;
 
@@ -23,6 +24,7 @@ use crate::pty::{pipe_pane_command, PtyBridge};
 use crate::sidecar::{SidecarError, SidecarStore};
 use crate::spawn_history::{RecentDir, SpawnHistory, SpawnHistoryRecord};
 use crate::tmux::TmuxError;
+use crate::viewport::{ViewportId, Viewports};
 use crate::worktree::{WorktreeError, WorktreeManager};
 
 /// Capacity of the session-events broadcast channel. A subscriber that falls
@@ -166,6 +168,14 @@ struct Inner {
     report_ttl: Duration,
     sessions: Mutex<HashMap<Uuid, SessionRecord>>,
     events: broadcast::Sender<CatalogEvent>,
+    /// Sizes reported by the clients attached to each session, and what tmux
+    /// was last told. See [`crate::viewport`] for why the window is not simply
+    /// set to whatever arrived most recently.
+    viewports: Mutex<Viewports>,
+    /// Hands out [`ViewportId`]s. Monotonic for the daemon's lifetime, so a
+    /// client that reconnects never collides with the registration its
+    /// previous socket has not finished releasing.
+    next_viewport: AtomicU64,
 }
 
 impl SessionManager {
@@ -206,6 +216,8 @@ impl SessionManager {
                 report_ttl: crate::activity::REPORT_TTL,
                 sessions: Mutex::new(HashMap::new()),
                 events,
+                viewports: Mutex::new(Viewports::new()),
+                next_viewport: AtomicU64::new(0),
             }),
         }
     }
@@ -751,6 +763,52 @@ impl SessionManager {
             .map_err(SessionError::Tmux)
     }
 
+    /// Register a client that is about to start reporting its display size,
+    /// and hand back the handle it reports under.
+    ///
+    /// Cheap and infallible: the session it will report against is not
+    /// consulted until the first [`Self::set_viewport`].
+    pub fn attach_viewport(&self) -> ViewportId {
+        self.inner.next_viewport.fetch_add(1, Ordering::Relaxed)
+    }
+
+    /// A client reported the size it can display.
+    ///
+    /// The shared tmux window is resized only when the size arbitrated across
+    /// every attached client actually changes — see [`crate::viewport`]. Two
+    /// clients of different sizes used to resize the window past each other on
+    /// every report, which leaves a full-screen agent repainting into rows it
+    /// never clears and looking, to the operator, like a pane that has stopped
+    /// accepting input.
+    pub async fn set_viewport(
+        &self,
+        id: Uuid,
+        viewport: ViewportId,
+        cols: u16,
+        rows: u16,
+    ) -> Result<(), SessionError> {
+        let target = self
+            .inner
+            .viewports
+            .lock()
+            .await
+            .set(id, viewport, cols, rows);
+        match target {
+            Some((cols, rows)) => self.resize(id, cols, rows).await,
+            None => Ok(()),
+        }
+    }
+
+    /// Drop a detached client's claim on the window size, resizing to what the
+    /// clients still attached can display. Errors are the caller's to ignore:
+    /// a socket closing because its session died has nothing left to resize.
+    pub async fn release_viewport(&self, id: Uuid, viewport: ViewportId) {
+        let target = self.inner.viewports.lock().await.release(id, viewport);
+        if let Some((cols, rows)) = target {
+            let _ = self.resize(id, cols, rows).await;
+        }
+    }
+
     /// Rename a session (#125): set `metadata.name`, or clear it when the
     /// requested name is blank so the session falls back to its command.
     ///

crates/maestro-daemon/src/viewport.rs

@@ -0,0 +1,186 @@
+//! What size the shared tmux window should be, given every client watching it.
+//!
+//! A tmux window has one size, but a session can have several clients attached
+//! at once — two browser panes, a browser and the TUI. Each reports the size
+//! *it* can display, and applying whichever arrived last makes the window
+//! flip-flop. Every flip forces a full-screen application (Claude Code, vim) to
+//! repaint at a new height, and the rows it drew at the old height are never
+//! cleared: the operator ends up looking at a stale input box, types into a
+//! box that is not where the screen says it is, and concludes the pane is
+//! stuck.
+//!
+//! So the window is sized to the smallest attached client on each axis — the
+//! same rule tmux uses for its own multiple clients, and the only size every
+//! client can render without truncation. The size last handed to tmux is
+//! remembered, so a report that changes nothing costs no `tmux` fork at all.
+
+use std::collections::HashMap;
+
+use uuid::Uuid;
+
+/// One attached client within a session. Allocated by
+/// [`crate::session::SessionManager`] and opaque to everything else.
+pub type ViewportId = u64;
+
+/// Per-session client sizes, and what tmux was last told.
+#[derive(Debug, Default)]
+pub struct Viewports {
+    clients: HashMap<Uuid, HashMap<ViewportId, (u16, u16)>>,
+    applied: HashMap<Uuid, (u16, u16)>,
+}
+
+impl Viewports {
+    pub fn new() -> Self {
+        Self::default()
+    }
+
+    /// Record what `viewport` can display. Returns the size tmux must be set
+    /// to, or `None` when the window already has it.
+    pub fn set(
+        &mut self,
+        session: Uuid,
+        viewport: ViewportId,
+        cols: u16,
+        rows: u16,
+    ) -> Option<(u16, u16)> {
+        self.clients
+            .entry(session)
+            .or_default()
+            .insert(viewport, (cols, rows));
+        self.settle(session)
+    }
+
+    /// Drop a client that has detached. Returns the size tmux must be set to
+    /// now that it no longer constrains the window.
+    ///
+    /// The last client leaving settles nothing: the window keeps the size it
+    /// has rather than snapping to some remembered default no one is watching.
+    pub fn release(&mut self, session: Uuid, viewport: ViewportId) -> Option<(u16, u16)> {
+        let clients = self.clients.get_mut(&session)?;
+        clients.remove(&viewport);
+        if clients.is_empty() {
+            self.clients.remove(&session);
+            self.applied.remove(&session);
+            return None;
+        }
+        self.settle(session)
+    }
+
+    /// The smallest size every attached client can render, but only when it
+    /// differs from what tmux was last told.
+    ///
+    /// A zero on either axis is a client that cannot display anything yet — a
+    /// pane still laying out, a hidden tab — and must not drag the shared
+    /// window down with it, so it is held but left out of the arbitration.
+    fn settle(&mut self, session: Uuid) -> Option<(u16, u16)> {
+        let clients = self.clients.get(&session)?;
+        let mut cols = u16::MAX;
+        let mut rows = u16::MAX;
+        for &(c, r) in clients.values() {
+            if c == 0 || r == 0 {
+                continue;
+            }
+            cols = cols.min(c);
+            rows = rows.min(r);
+        }
+        if cols == u16::MAX || rows == u16::MAX {
+            return None;
+        }
+        let target = (cols, rows);
+        if self.applied.get(&session) == Some(&target) {
+            return None;
+        }
+        self.applied.insert(session, target);
+        Some(target)
+    }
+}
+
+#[cfg(test)]
+mod tests {
+    use super::*;
+
+    #[test]
+    fn the_first_report_settles_the_window() {
+        let mut v = Viewports::new();
+        let s = Uuid::new_v4();
+        assert_eq!(v.set(s, 1, 80, 24), Some((80, 24)));
+    }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn a_report_that_changes_nothing_costs_no_resize() {
+        let mut v = Viewports::new();
+        let s = Uuid::new_v4();
+        v.set(s, 1, 80, 24);
+        assert_eq!(v.set(s, 1, 80, 24), None);
+        assert_eq!(v.set(s, 1, 80, 24), None);
+    }
+
+    /// The bug this module exists for: two clients of different sizes used to
+    /// resize the window past each other on every report.
+    #[test]
+    fn two_clients_settle_on_the_smaller_instead_of_fighting() {
+        let mut v = Viewports::new();
+        let s = Uuid::new_v4();
+        assert_eq!(v.set(s, 1, 53, 46), Some((53, 46)));
+        assert_eq!(v.set(s, 2, 53, 20), Some((53, 20)));
+        // Whatever order they re-report in, the answer stays the smaller one.
+        assert_eq!(v.set(s, 1, 53, 46), None);
+        assert_eq!(v.set(s, 2, 53, 20), None);
+        assert_eq!(v.set(s, 1, 53, 46), None);
+    }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn each_axis_is_arbitrated_on_its_own() {
+        let mut v = Viewports::new();
+        let s = Uuid::new_v4();
+        v.set(s, 1, 200, 20);
+        assert_eq!(v.set(s, 2, 53, 46), Some((53, 20)));
+    }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn a_zero_sized_client_does_not_shrink_the_window() {
+        let mut v = Viewports::new();
+        let s = Uuid::new_v4();
+        assert_eq!(v.set(s, 1, 80, 24), Some((80, 24)));
+        assert_eq!(v.set(s, 2, 0, 0), None);
+        assert_eq!(v.set(s, 2, 0, 30), None);
+    }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn releasing_the_small_client_gives_the_window_back() {
+        let mut v = Viewports::new();
+        let s = Uuid::new_v4();
+        v.set(s, 1, 80, 46);
+        v.set(s, 2, 80, 20);
+        assert_eq!(v.release(s, 2), Some((80, 46)));
+    }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn releasing_the_last_client_settles_nothing() {
+        let mut v = Viewports::new();
+        let s = Uuid::new_v4();
+        v.set(s, 1, 80, 24);
+        assert_eq!(v.release(s, 1), None);
+        // ...and the session is forgotten, so a fresh attach settles again.
+        assert_eq!(v.set(s, 2, 80, 24), Some((80, 24)));
+    }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn releasing_an_unknown_viewport_is_harmless() {
+        let mut v = Viewports::new();
+        let s = Uuid::new_v4();
+        assert_eq!(v.release(s, 7), None);
+        v.set(s, 1, 80, 24);
+        assert_eq!(v.release(s, 7), None);
+    }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn sessions_do_not_arbitrate_against_each_other() {
+        let mut v = Viewports::new();
+        let a = Uuid::new_v4();
+        let b = Uuid::new_v4();
+        assert_eq!(v.set(a, 1, 80, 24), Some((80, 24)));
+        assert_eq!(v.set(b, 2, 53, 20), Some((53, 20)));
+        assert_eq!(v.set(a, 1, 80, 24), None);
+    }
+}

crates/maestro-daemon/tests/session_decisions.rs

@@ -555,3 +555,63 @@ async fn spawn_overrides_client_supplied_maestro_variables() {
         Some(&"http://127.0.0.1:7070".to_string())
     );
 }
+
+/// Two clients attached to one session used to resize the shared window past
+/// each other on every report they made. Every flip repaints a full-screen
+/// agent at a new height and orphans the rows it drew at the old one, which
+/// reads to the operator as a pane that has stopped taking input.
+#[tokio::test]
+async fn clients_of_different_sizes_do_not_resize_the_window_past_each_other() {
+    let fx = Fx::new();
+    let s = fx.manager.create(fx.request("bash")).await.expect("create");
+    let web = fx.manager.attach_viewport();
+    let tui = fx.manager.attach_viewport();
+
+    fx.manager.set_viewport(s.id, web, 53, 46).await.unwrap();
+    fx.manager.set_viewport(s.id, tui, 53, 20).await.unwrap();
+    // Both keep reporting, as a browser's ResizeObserver and the TUI's own
+    // redraw loop do. Neither report changes the arbitrated size.
+    for _ in 0..5 {
+        fx.manager.set_viewport(s.id, web, 53, 46).await.unwrap();
+        fx.manager.set_viewport(s.id, tui, 53, 20).await.unwrap();
+    }
+
+    let resizes: Vec<_> = fx
+        .fake
+        .calls()
+        .into_iter()
+        .filter_map(|c| match c {
+            Call::ResizeWindow { cols, rows, .. } => Some((cols, rows)),
+            _ => None,
+        })
+        .collect();
+    assert_eq!(
+        resizes,
+        vec![(53, 46), (53, 20)],
+        "the window was resized more than the arbitrated size actually changed"
+    );
+}
+
+/// The smaller client leaving hands the window back to the one still attached.
+#[tokio::test]
+async fn releasing_a_client_resizes_to_what_is_left() {
+    let fx = Fx::new();
+    let s = fx.manager.create(fx.request("bash")).await.expect("create");
+    let web = fx.manager.attach_viewport();
+    let tui = fx.manager.attach_viewport();
+    fx.manager.set_viewport(s.id, web, 80, 46).await.unwrap();
+    fx.manager.set_viewport(s.id, tui, 80, 20).await.unwrap();
+
+    fx.manager.release_viewport(s.id, tui).await;
+
+    let resizes: Vec<_> = fx
+        .fake
+        .calls()
+        .into_iter()
+        .filter_map(|c| match c {
+            Call::ResizeWindow { cols, rows, .. } => Some((cols, rows)),
+            _ => None,
+        })
+        .collect();
+    assert_eq!(resizes, vec![(80, 46), (80, 20), (80, 46)]);
+}

crates/maestro-tui/src/app.rs

@@ -1179,6 +1179,10 @@ impl App {
             sessions: snap.sessions.clone(),
             highlight: self.state.sidebar_highlight.clone(),
             attached,
+            // The active tab's session, not the displayed one: a preview is
+            // shown in the pane but never becomes what the operator picked,
+            // so it must not move this fill (`docs/PREVIEW.md`).
+            pane_session: self.state.active_session(),
         };
         let shown_sid = self.state.displayed_session();
         let previewing = self.state.preview.is_some();
@@ -1269,6 +1273,7 @@ fn visible_sidebar_order(
         sessions: snap.sessions.clone(),
         highlight: None,
         attached: HashSet::new(),
+        pane_session: None,
     }
     .rendered_items_with_collapsed(collapsed)
 }

crates/maestro-tui/src/palette.rs

@@ -813,6 +813,21 @@ impl Palette {
         }
     }
 
+    /// Background for the card whose session the pane is showing
+    /// (`docs/SIDEBAR.md`). It sits partway from the card surface to the
+    /// selection surface, so the sidebar reads as one ladder: unfilled, half
+    /// filled for the session in the pane, fully filled under the cursor.
+    ///
+    /// Blended rather than added as a third `Surface` — a new surface means
+    /// eight more colours hand-picked seventeen times — which is also why it
+    /// borrows the *selection* surface's foregrounds: those are the ones
+    /// already picked for a filled row. A preset whose colours the terminal
+    /// owns (`ansi`) has nothing to blend, so it keeps the card background and
+    /// says "in the pane" with the filled glyph alone.
+    pub fn pane_row_bg(&self) -> Color {
+        mix(self.card.bg, self.selection.bg, 0.55)
+    }
+
     /// Border style for a panel, by whether it holds focus.
     pub fn border_style(&self, focused: bool) -> Style {
         if focused {
@@ -873,6 +888,16 @@ pub fn active() -> Palette {
     *active_slot().read().expect("active palette lock poisoned")
 }
 
+/// Blend `amount` of `to` into `from`, in plain sRGB. Both must be RGB, or
+/// there is nothing to blend and `from` comes back unchanged.
+fn mix(from: Color, to: Color, amount: f64) -> Color {
+    let (Color::Rgb(fr, fg, fb), Color::Rgb(tr, tg, tb)) = (from, to) else {
+        return from;
+    };
+    let lerp = |a: u8, b: u8| (a as f64 + (b as f64 - a as f64) * amount).round() as u8;
+    Color::Rgb(lerp(fr, tr), lerp(fg, tg), lerp(fb, tb))
+}
+
 /// WCAG relative luminance of an RGB role. Non-RGB colours have no fixed
 /// luminance — they are whatever the terminal theme says — so they return
 /// `None` and cannot be contrast-checked.
@@ -937,6 +962,43 @@ mod tests {
         }
     }
 
+    /// The pane row is the middle rung: a visible fill against the card, still
+    /// a different surface from the cursor's, and carrying the selection
+    /// surface's foregrounds, which it borrows rather than shipping its own.
+    #[test]
+    fn the_pane_row_is_a_rung_between_the_card_and_the_selection() {
+        for (preset, p) in rgb_presets() {
+            let bg = p.pane_row_bg();
+            let from_card = contrast_ratio(p.card.bg, bg)
+                .unwrap_or_else(|| panic!("{preset}.pane_row_bg must be RGB"));
+            assert!(
+                from_card >= 1.15,
+                "{preset}: pane row {from_card:.2} from the card background is not a visible fill"
+            );
+            let from_selection =
+                contrast_ratio(p.selection.bg, bg).expect("selection.bg must be RGB");
+            assert!(
+                from_selection >= 1.15,
+                "{preset}: pane row {from_selection:.2} from the cursor's fill —                  the highlight would vanish on the session already in the pane"
+            );
+            for (role, color) in p.selection.roles() {
+                let ratio = contrast_ratio(bg, color).expect("selection role must be RGB");
+                let floor = if role == "dim" { 3.0 } else { 4.5 };
+                assert!(
+                    ratio >= floor,
+                    "{preset}.selection.{role} on the pane row is {ratio:.2}, below {floor}"
+                );
+            }
+        }
+    }
+
+    /// A preset the terminal themes has nothing to blend from.
+    #[test]
+    fn ansi_keeps_the_card_background_for_the_pane_row() {
+        let p = Palette::ANSI;
+        assert_eq!(p.pane_row_bg(), p.card.bg);
+    }
+
     #[test]
     fn every_preset_supplies_every_role() {
         for (name, p) in Palette::presets() {

crates/maestro-tui/src/render.rs

@@ -415,6 +415,7 @@ mod tests {
             sessions: Vec::new(),
             highlight: None,
             attached: HashSet::new(),
+            pane_session: None,
         };
         let help = HelpOverlay { lines: Vec::new() };
         let state = AppState::new();
@@ -511,6 +512,7 @@ mod tests {
             sessions: Vec::new(),
             highlight: None,
             attached: HashSet::new(),
+            pane_session: None,
         };
         let help = HelpOverlay { lines: Vec::new() };
         let inputs = RenderInputs {
@@ -561,6 +563,7 @@ mod tests {
             sessions: Vec::new(),
             highlight: None,
             attached: HashSet::new(),
+            pane_session: None,
         };
         let help = HelpOverlay { lines: Vec::new() };
         let draw_map = |focus| {
@@ -601,6 +604,7 @@ mod tests {
             sessions: Vec::new(),
             highlight: None,
             attached: HashSet::new(),
+            pane_session: None,
         };
         let help = HelpOverlay { lines: Vec::new() };
         let render = |focus| {

crates/maestro-tui/src/sidebar.rs

@@ -37,14 +37,39 @@ const META_INDENT: &str = "    ";
 /// both card rows, replacing the old inline dot glyph on the meta line.
 const RAIL: &str = "▌";
 
-/// Cards use the selection surface only while the sidebar owns focus. An
+/// Which fill a session card wears (docs/SIDEBAR.md). The cursor's fill wins
+/// on its own row: a highlight that lands on the session already in the pane
+/// still has to be visible.
+#[derive(Debug, Clone, Copy, PartialEq, Eq)]
+enum CardFill {
+    /// An ordinary card, on the card surface.
+    None,
+    /// The session the pane is showing.
+    Pane,
+    /// Under the cursor, with the sidebar holding the keyboard.
+    Cursor,
+}
+
+impl CardFill {
+    /// Both filled tiers carry the selection surface's foregrounds — those are
+    /// the colours picked for a filled row, and a colour chosen for the card
+    /// background is not legible on one.
+    fn filled(self) -> bool {
+        self != CardFill::None
+    }
+}
+
+/// Cards take the cursor's fill only while the sidebar owns focus. An
 /// unfocused highlight remains an edge-marked cursor without claiming the
 /// keyboard via a filled selection background.
-fn card_base(highlighted: bool, focused: bool) -> Style {
+fn card_base(fill: CardFill, focused: bool) -> Style {
     let palette = palette::active();
-    let mut style = palette.surface(highlighted && focused).text_style();
+    let mut style = palette.surface(fill.filled()).text_style();
-    if focused && !highlighted {
+    match fill {
-        style = style.bg(palette.sidebar_focus_bg);
+        CardFill::Cursor => {}
+        CardFill::Pane => style = style.bg(palette.pane_row_bg()),
+        CardFill::None if focused => style = style.bg(palette.sidebar_focus_bg),
+        CardFill::None => {}
     }
     style
 }
@@ -55,6 +80,9 @@ pub struct Sidebar {
     pub sessions: Vec<Session>,
     pub highlight: Option<SidebarItem>,
     pub attached: HashSet<Uuid>,
+    /// The session the active tab's pane is showing. It wears a fill of its
+    /// own, so "in the pane" is not carried by the ● glyph alone.
+    pub pane_session: Option<Uuid>,
 }
 
 #[derive(Debug, Clone, PartialEq, Eq)]
@@ -113,8 +141,7 @@ impl Sidebar {
             lines.push(Line::from(self.group_row(&group, width, focused, home)));
             if !group.collapsed {
                 for s in &group.sessions {
-                    let highlighted = self.highlight == Some(SidebarItem::Session(s.id));
+                    let base = card_base(self.card_fill(s, focused), focused);
-                    let base = card_base(highlighted, focused);
                     lines.push(Line::from(self.name_row(s, width, focused)));
                     let meta = self.meta_row(s, width, focused);
                     lines.push(Line::from(pad_to_width(meta, width, base)));
@@ -226,6 +253,18 @@ impl Sidebar {
         pad_to_width(spans, width, base)
     }
 
+    /// Which fill this session's card wears. The cursor wins on its own row,
+    /// so a highlight parked on the session already in the pane stays visible.
+    fn card_fill(&self, s: &Session, focused: bool) -> CardFill {
+        if focused && self.highlight == Some(SidebarItem::Session(s.id)) {
+            CardFill::Cursor
+        } else if self.pane_session == Some(s.id) {
+            CardFill::Pane
+        } else {
+            CardFill::None
+        }
+    }
+
     fn name_row(&self, s: &Session, width: usize, focused: bool) -> Vec<Span<'static>> {
         let glyph = match (s.status, self.attached.contains(&s.id)) {
             (SessionStatus::Dead, _) => "✗",
@@ -233,12 +272,13 @@ impl Sidebar {
             (SessionStatus::Running, false) => "○",
         };
         let highlighted = self.highlight == Some(SidebarItem::Session(s.id));
-        let base = card_base(highlighted, focused);
+        let fill = self.card_fill(s, focused);
+        let base = card_base(fill, focused);
         let prefix = 1 + INDENT.chars().count() + 2;
         let name_budget = width.saturating_sub(prefix);
 
         let edge = highlighted && !focused;
-        let rail_style = base.fg(activity_color(s.activity, highlighted, focused));
+        let rail_style = base.fg(activity_color(s.activity, fill));
         let mut spans: Vec<Span<'static>> = vec![
             Span::styled(RAIL, rail_style),
             Span::styled(
@@ -257,7 +297,7 @@ impl Sidebar {
         let name_style = if maestro_protocol::display::is_provisional_name(s) {
             base.patch(
                 palette::active()
-                    .surface(highlighted && focused)
+                    .surface(fill.filled())
                     .muted_style()
                     .bg(base.bg.unwrap_or(palette::active().chrome_bg)),
             )
@@ -283,11 +323,11 @@ impl Sidebar {
         let blocked = s.blocked_work.filter(|b| !b.is_clear());
         let dead = s.status == SessionStatus::Dead;
         let highlighted = self.highlight == Some(SidebarItem::Session(s.id));
-        let base = card_base(highlighted, focused);
+        let fill = self.card_fill(s, focused);
-        let rail_style =
+        let base = card_base(fill, focused);
-            base.patch(Style::default().fg(activity_color(s.activity, highlighted, focused)));
+        let rail_style = base.patch(Style::default().fg(activity_color(s.activity, fill)));
         let muted = palette::active()
-            .surface(highlighted && focused)
+            .surface(fill.filled())
             .muted_style()
             .bg(base.bg.unwrap_or(palette::active().chrome_bg));
         let edge = highlighted && !focused;
@@ -308,7 +348,7 @@ impl Sidebar {
         let mut tail: Vec<Span<'static>> = Vec::new();
         if let Some(b) = blocked {
             let palette = palette::active();
-            let surface = palette.surface(highlighted && focused);
+            let surface = palette.surface(fill.filled());
             for (kind, text) in b.stats() {
                 let style = match kind {
                     StatKind::Added => muted.fg(surface.active),
@@ -352,10 +392,8 @@ impl Sidebar {
 /// state word is never spelled out — this colour carries it. The highlighted
 /// card takes its state colours from the selection surface: a colour picked
 /// for the dark card background is not legible on the selection background.
-fn activity_color(state: ActivityState, highlighted: bool, focused: bool) -> Color {
+fn activity_color(state: ActivityState, fill: CardFill) -> Color {
-    palette::active()
+    palette::active().surface(fill.filled()).activity(state)
-        .surface(highlighted && focused)
-        .activity(state)
 }
 
 /// docs/SIDEBAR.md duration format — floored whole seconds / minutes / hours,
@@ -520,6 +558,7 @@ mod tests {
             sessions: vec![session_named(1, "claude"), session_named(2, "bash")],
             highlight: None,
             attached: Default::default(),
+            pane_session: None,
         };
         let rendered = render_to_string(&draw(&sb, 28, 12));
         assert!(
@@ -544,6 +583,7 @@ mod tests {
             sessions: vec![s],
             highlight: None,
             attached: Default::default(),
+            pane_session: None,
         })
         .groups(&HashSet::new());
         assert_eq!(groups[0].key, PathBuf::from("/home/u/repos/maestro"));
@@ -555,6 +595,7 @@ mod tests {
             sessions: Vec::new(),
             highlight: None,
             attached: Default::default(),
+            pane_session: None,
         };
         assert!(sidebar.groups(&HashSet::new()).is_empty());
         assert!(sidebar.rendered_items().is_empty());
@@ -566,6 +607,7 @@ mod tests {
             sessions: vec![session_named(1, "claude"), session_named(2, "bash")],
             highlight: None,
             attached: Default::default(),
+            pane_session: None,
         };
         let key = PathBuf::from("/tmp");
         let mut collapsed = HashSet::new();
@@ -590,6 +632,7 @@ mod tests {
             sessions: vec![session],
             highlight: None,
             attached: Default::default(),
+            pane_session: None,
         };
         let key = PathBuf::from("/very/long/project/path/extraordinarily-long-project-name");
         let collapsed = HashSet::from([key]);
@@ -620,6 +663,7 @@ mod tests {
             sessions: vec![session_named(1, "claude")],
             highlight: None,
             attached: Default::default(),
+            pane_session: None,
         };
         let all = rows(&draw(&sidebar, 40, 8));
         assert!(all[1].contains("/tmp"));
@@ -635,6 +679,7 @@ mod tests {
             sessions: vec![session_named(1, "claude")],
             highlight: None,
             attached: [sid].into_iter().collect(),
+            pane_session: None,
         };
         let all = rows(&draw(&sb, 28, 6));
         let line = row_containing(&all, "claude");
@@ -645,6 +690,87 @@ mod tests {
         );
     }
 
+    /// Whether any cell in the buffer is painted on `bg`.
+    fn any_cell_on(buf: &Buffer, bg: Color) -> bool {
+        (0..buf.area.height)
+            .any(|y| (0..buf.area.width).any(|x| buf[(x, y)].style().bg == Some(bg)))
+    }
+
+    /// docs/SIDEBAR.md: the session the pane is showing wears a fill, so it is
+    /// not the ● glyph alone carrying "this is the one on screen".
+    #[test]
+    fn the_session_in_the_pane_wears_the_pane_fill() {
+        let sid = Uuid::from_u128(1);
+        let p = palette::active();
+        let sb = Sidebar {
+            sessions: vec![session_named(1, "claude")],
+            highlight: None,
+            attached: [sid].into_iter().collect(),
+            pane_session: Some(sid),
+        };
+        assert!(any_cell_on(&draw(&sb, 28, 6), p.pane_row_bg()));
+
+        let none = Sidebar {
+            pane_session: None,
+            ..sb
+        };
+        assert!(!any_cell_on(&draw(&none, 28, 6), p.pane_row_bg()));
+    }
+
+    /// The cursor's fill wins on its own row: a highlight that lands on the
+    /// session already in the pane has to stay visible.
+    #[test]
+    fn the_cursor_outranks_the_pane_fill_on_its_own_row() {
+        let sid = Uuid::from_u128(1);
+        let p = palette::active();
+        let sb = Sidebar {
+            sessions: vec![session_named(1, "claude")],
+            highlight: Some(SidebarItem::Session(sid)),
+            attached: [sid].into_iter().collect(),
+            pane_session: Some(sid),
+        };
+        let buf = draw_with_focus(&sb, 28, 6, true);
+        assert!(any_cell_on(&buf, p.selection.bg), "cursor fill is missing");
+        assert!(
+            !any_cell_on(&buf, p.pane_row_bg()),
+            "the pane fill is showing through the cursor's own row"
+        );
+    }
+
+    /// A card the pane is showing is a filled row, so it takes the selection
+    /// surface's foregrounds — a colour picked for the card background is not
+    /// legible on a fill.
+    #[test]
+    fn the_pane_row_carries_selection_foregrounds() {
+        let sid = Uuid::from_u128(1);
+        let p = palette::active();
+        let mut sess = session_named(1, "claude");
+        sess.activity = ActivityState::AwaitingInput;
+        let sb = Sidebar {
+            sessions: vec![sess],
+            highlight: None,
+            attached: [sid].into_iter().collect(),
+            pane_session: Some(sid),
+        };
+        let buf = draw(&sb, 28, 6);
+        let on_pane_row = |fg: Color| {
+            (0..buf.area.height).any(|y| {
+                (0..buf.area.width).any(|x| {
+                    let st = buf[(x, y)].style();
+                    st.bg == Some(p.pane_row_bg()) && st.fg == Some(fg)
+                })
+            })
+        };
+        assert!(
+            on_pane_row(p.selection.activity(ActivityState::AwaitingInput)),
+            "the rail must carry the state in the filled surface's colours"
+        );
+        assert!(
+            !on_pane_row(p.card.activity(ActivityState::AwaitingInput)),
+            "a card surface colour is painted onto the pane fill"
+        );
+    }
+
     #[test]
     fn dead_session_uses_cross_glyph() {
         let mut sess = session_named(1, "claude");
@@ -653,6 +779,7 @@ mod tests {
             sessions: vec![sess],
             highlight: None,
             attached: Default::default(),
+            pane_session: None,
         };
         let buf = draw(&sb, 28, 6);
         let all = rows(&buf);
@@ -681,6 +808,7 @@ mod tests {
             sessions: vec![blocked, clear, unprobed],
             highlight: None,
             attached: Default::default(),
+            pane_session: None,
         };
         let all = rows(&draw(&sb, 44, 10));
 
@@ -727,6 +855,7 @@ mod tests {
             sessions: vec![generated, settled],
             highlight: None,
             attached: Default::default(),
+            pane_session: None,
         };
         let buf = draw(&sb, 44, 8);
         let palette = palette::active();
@@ -759,6 +888,7 @@ mod tests {
             sessions: vec![s],
             highlight: None,
             attached: Default::default(),
+            pane_session: None,
         };
         let buf = draw(&sb, 44, 8);
         let palette = palette::active();
@@ -785,6 +915,7 @@ mod tests {
             sessions: vec![s],
             highlight: None,
             attached: Default::default(),
+            pane_session: None,
         };
         let all = rows(&draw(&sb, 28, 8));
         assert_eq!(content(&all[0]), "sessions");
@@ -816,6 +947,7 @@ mod tests {
             sessions: vec![s],
             highlight: None,
             attached: Default::default(),
+            pane_session: None,
         };
         let all = rows(&draw(&sb, 28, 8));
         let idx = all.iter().position(|l| l.contains("claude")).unwrap();
@@ -855,6 +987,7 @@ mod tests {
                 sessions: vec![s],
                 highlight: None,
                 attached: Default::default(),
+                pane_session: None,
             };
             let buf = draw(&sb, 28, 8);
             let found = (0..buf.area.height)
@@ -883,6 +1016,7 @@ mod tests {
                 sessions: vec![s],
                 highlight: Some(SidebarItem::Session(Uuid::from_u128(1))),
                 attached: Default::default(),
+                pane_session: None,
             };
             let buf = draw(&sb, 28, 8);
             let on_selection = |fg: Color| {
@@ -922,6 +1056,7 @@ mod tests {
             sessions: vec![s],
             highlight: None,
             attached: Default::default(),
+            pane_session: None,
         };
         let all = rows(&draw(&sb, 28, 8));
         let idx = all.iter().position(|l| l.contains("claude")).unwrap();
@@ -941,6 +1076,7 @@ mod tests {
             sessions: vec![s],
             highlight: None,
             attached: Default::default(),
+            pane_session: None,
         };
         let all = rows(&draw(&sb, 60, 6));
         let meta = content(&all[3]);
@@ -969,6 +1105,7 @@ mod tests {
             sessions: vec![s],
             highlight: None,
             attached: Default::default(),
+            pane_session: None,
         };
         let all = rows(&draw(&sb, 28, 8));
         let idx = all.iter().position(|l| l.contains("claude")).unwrap();
@@ -998,6 +1135,7 @@ mod tests {
             sessions: vec![s],
             highlight: None,
             attached: Default::default(),
+            pane_session: None,
         };
         let all = rows(&draw(&sb, 40, 8));
         let idx = all.iter().position(|l| l.contains("claude")).unwrap();
@@ -1025,6 +1163,7 @@ mod tests {
             sessions: vec![s],
             highlight: None,
             attached: Default::default(),
+            pane_session: None,
         };
         let all = rows(&draw(&sb, 40, 8));
         let idx = all.iter().position(|l| l.contains("claude")).unwrap();
@@ -1053,6 +1192,7 @@ mod tests {
             sessions: vec![s],
             highlight: None,
             attached: Default::default(),
+            pane_session: None,
         };
         let all = rows(&draw(&sb, 42, 8));
         let idx = all.iter().position(|l| l.contains("claude")).unwrap();
@@ -1086,6 +1226,7 @@ mod tests {
             sessions: vec![legacy],
             highlight: None,
             attached: Default::default(),
+            pane_session: None,
         };
         let rendered = render_to_string(&draw(&sb, 40, 8));
         assert!(
@@ -1128,6 +1269,7 @@ mod tests {
             sessions: vec![s],
             highlight: None,
             attached: Default::default(),
+            pane_session: None,
         };
         let rendered = render_to_string(&draw(&sb, 28, 6));
         assert!(
@@ -1143,6 +1285,7 @@ mod tests {
             sessions: vec![s],
             highlight: None,
             attached: Default::default(),
+            pane_session: None,
         };
         let all = rows(&draw(&sb, 40, 6));
         assert!(
@@ -1164,6 +1307,7 @@ mod tests {
             sessions: vec![s],
             highlight: None,
             attached: Default::default(),
+            pane_session: None,
         };
         let all = rows(&draw(&sb, 9, 6));
         assert!(
@@ -1190,6 +1334,7 @@ mod tests {
             sessions: vec![s],
             highlight: None,
             attached: Default::default(),
+            pane_session: None,
         };
         let all = rows(&draw(&sb, 29, 6));
         assert!(all[3].contains("~1"), "{:?}", all[3]);
@@ -1214,6 +1359,7 @@ mod tests {
             sessions: vec![s],
             highlight: None,
             attached: Default::default(),
+            pane_session: None,
         };
         let all = rows(&draw(&sb, 40, 6));
         assert!(all[3].contains("~1"), "{:?}", all[3]);
@@ -1235,6 +1381,7 @@ mod tests {
             sessions: vec![highlighted],
             highlight: Some(SidebarItem::Session(Uuid::from_u128(1))),
             attached: Default::default(),
+            pane_session: None,
         };
         let buf = draw(&sb, 28, 8);
         for y in 0..buf.area.height {
@@ -1260,6 +1407,7 @@ mod tests {
             sessions: vec![one, two],
             highlight: Some(SidebarItem::Session(Uuid::from_u128(1))),
             attached: Default::default(),
+            pane_session: None,
         };
         let buf = draw(&sb, 28, 8);
         let all = rows(&buf);
@@ -1295,6 +1443,7 @@ mod tests {
             sessions: vec![session_named(1, "claude")],
             highlight: Some(SidebarItem::Session(Uuid::from_u128(1))),
             attached: Default::default(),
+            pane_session: None,
         };
         let buf = draw_with_focus(&sb, 28, 8, false);
         let y = (0..buf.area.height)
@@ -1314,6 +1463,7 @@ mod tests {
                 sessions: vec![session_named(1, "claude")],
                 highlight: None,
                 attached: Default::default(),
+                pane_session: None,
             },
             28,
             8,
@@ -1334,6 +1484,7 @@ mod tests {
             sessions: vec![s],
             highlight: None,
             attached: Default::default(),
+            pane_session: None,
         };
         let buf = draw(&sb, 28, 8);
         let y = buf.content.iter().position(|c| c.symbol() == "c").unwrap() as u16 / buf.area.width;
@@ -1352,6 +1503,7 @@ mod tests {
             sessions: vec![session_named(1, "claude")],
             highlight: Some(SidebarItem::Session(Uuid::from_u128(1))),
             attached: Default::default(),
+            pane_session: None,
         };
         let all = rows(&draw(&sb, 28, 8));
         let line = content(row_containing(&all, "claude"));
@@ -1369,6 +1521,7 @@ mod tests {
             sessions: vec![one, two],
             highlight: Some(SidebarItem::Session(Uuid::from_u128(1))),
             attached: Default::default(),
+            pane_session: None,
         };
         let all = rows(&draw(&sb, 28, 8));
         let line = row_containing(&all, "bash");
@@ -1388,6 +1541,7 @@ mod tests {
             sessions: vec![s],
             highlight: Some(SidebarItem::Session(Uuid::from_u128(1))),
             attached: Default::default(),
+            pane_session: None,
         };
         let all = rows(&draw(&sb, 28, 8));
         let line = row_containing(&all, "an-unreasonably");

docs/PREVIEW.md

@@ -46,12 +46,12 @@ Web client (`--preview` and friends in `web/src/styles.css`):
 | The previewed pane's titlebar | Tinted in the preview hue, at full strength, in place of the focused pane's accent tint. |
 | The canvas | A `preview` chip, top right, and a dashed inset ring. |
 | A throwaway tab | Dashed border, italic label. |
-| The sidebar row being previewed | Filled with the preview hue, over whatever open/focused state the row already had. |
+| The sidebar row being previewed | Filled with the preview hue, over whatever open state the row already had — but the row of the session already showing in the pane keeps its accent fill, since previewing it changes nothing on screen. |
 | A hovered sidebar row, and the keyboard cursor on a session | A lighter wash of the same hue, because both are what previews a row. |
 
-Rows say it with fill, not with an edge: the only ring left in the session list
+Rows say it with fill, not with an edge — see the tier ladder in
-is `.is-active`'s, which means "open in a pane". The dashed edges belong to the
+`docs/SIDEBAR.md`, which previewing sits at the bottom of. The dashed edges
-pane — the canvas ring and the throwaway tab.
+belong to the pane: the canvas ring and the throwaway tab.
 
 The hue is a palette token, not a fixed colour: a palette whose accent already
 sits on it moves it (`--preview-h`), so "previewing" and "picked" never collide.

docs/SIDEBAR.md

@@ -177,6 +177,38 @@ surface; a colour chosen for the card background is never painted onto the
 selection background. Contrast is a property of the palette (values are RGB)
 and is asserted in the palette's tests, not left to the terminal theme.
 
+## Which row is filled
+
+Both clients say every one of these with a **background fill**, never an edge.
+A row is usually several of them at once, so they form a ladder: the tier
+furthest down wins the paint.
+
+| Tier | Web | TUI |
+|---|---|---|
+| Alive | 6% accent wash | — (the rail carries it) |
+| Under the pointer or the keyboard walk | preview hue, light | selection surface, while the sidebar holds the keyboard |
+| Open in some pane, not the focused one | 6% accent wash (`.is-open`) | — (the `●` glyph carries it) |
+| Showing in the pane | `--accent-fill` | `pane_row_bg()` — partway from the card surface to the selection surface |
+| Previewing (`docs/PREVIEW.md`), unless that row is the one showing in the pane | `--preview-tint` | — (no preview colour role yet) |
+
+The web ladder is written as one ordered run of equal-specificity rules in
+`styles.css`, every qualifier inside `:where()`, so the order they appear in
+*is* the precedence. Add a tier where it belongs in that run, never by piling
+on another class to out-weigh the rule above it.
+
+The TUI's two filled tiers both carry the **selection** surface's foregrounds,
+since those are the colours picked for a filled row. `pane_row_bg()` is
+blended from the two surfaces rather than shipped as a third one — a third
+surface would mean eight more colours hand-picked seventeen times — and the
+palette tests assert it stays a visible step from both. The cursor's fill wins
+on its own row, so a highlight parked on the session already in the pane is
+still visible.
+
+The one edge left in either list is the TUI's `▏` marker, which stands in for
+the cursor's fill while the pane holds the keyboard, and the web's ring on a
+highlighted **folder** row — a folder previews nothing, so it has no fill to
+step up to.
+
 The duration text inherits its state's colour; the exited and command
 fragments use the surface's `muted` role, as do the diff stat's `~`, `?` and
 `↑` fragments. Only `+` and `-` step outside the surface's muted role, and they

web/src/styles.css

@@ -101,9 +101,11 @@
     oklch(0.99 0.005 var(--preview-h)),
     oklch(0.19 0.045 var(--preview-h))
   );
-  /* Opaque, not a wash: the previewed row reads as a fill, and a fill has to
+  /* Opaque, not a wash: session rows read as fills, and a fill has to land on
-     land on the same colour whatever tier the row was already painted. */
+     the same colour whatever tier the row was already painted. `--accent-fill`
+     is the same recipe on the accent, so the two tiers differ by hue alone. */
   --preview-tint: color-mix(in oklab, var(--preview) 30%, var(--surface-2));
+  --accent-fill: color-mix(in oklab, var(--accent) 30%, var(--surface-2));
   --preview-ring: light-dark(
     oklch(0.55 0.16 var(--preview-h) / 0.5),
     oklch(0.78 0.14 var(--preview-h) / 0.6)
@@ -1148,38 +1150,35 @@ textarea {
   transition: box-shadow var(--dur-fast) var(--ease-out);
 }
 
-/* "Alive" reads as a faint wash on the row itself — no per-row status icon. */
+/* Session-row tiers (docs/SIDEBAR.md). A row is usually several of these at
-.tree-leaf[data-status="running"] {
+   once, so every qualifier below sits in `:where()`: each rule is worth the
+   same specificity and the ladder is decided purely by the order they appear
+   in, latest wins. Add a tier where it belongs in that order, not by piling on
+   another class to out-weigh the rule above it. Each tier paints a background
+   and nothing else — the list says all of this with fill, never an edge. */
+
+/* 1. Alive. A faint wash on the row itself — no per-row status icon. */
+.tree-leaf:where([data-status="running"]) {
   background: color-mix(in oklab, var(--accent) 6%, transparent);
 }
 
-/* Hovering a row is what previews it (docs/PREVIEW.md), so hover reads in the
+/* 2. Under the pointer, or under the keyboard walk. Both are what previews a
-   preview hue — never the accent, which belongs to the row actually open. */
+   row (docs/PREVIEW.md), so both read in the preview hue — never the accent,
-.tree-leaf:hover {
+   which belongs to the row actually open. */
+.tree-leaf:where(:hover, .is-highlighted) {
   background: color-mix(in oklab, var(--preview) 12%, var(--surface-2));
 }
 
-.tree-leaf[data-status="running"]:hover {
+.tree-leaf:where([data-status="running"]):where(:hover, .is-highlighted) {
   background: color-mix(in oklab, var(--preview) 18%, var(--surface-2));
 }
 
-.tree-leaf:focus-visible {
+.tree-leaf:where(:focus-visible) {
   outline: none;
   background: color-mix(in oklab, var(--accent) 16%, var(--surface-2));
 }
 
-/* Where the keyboard walk (j/k) is standing. On a session row the cursor is
+/* A folder row previews nothing, so its cursor stays a ring. */
-   also what previews it, so it reads exactly like a hover — the preview hue,
-   deepening to the full fill once the preview lands. A folder row previews
-   nothing, so it keeps the plain cursor ring. */
-.tree-leaf.is-highlighted {
-  background: color-mix(in oklab, var(--preview) 12%, var(--surface-2));
-}
-
-.tree-leaf.is-highlighted[data-status="running"] {
-  background: color-mix(in oklab, var(--preview) 18%, var(--surface-2));
-}
-
 .tree-folder-header.is-highlighted {
   box-shadow: inset 0 0 0 2px var(--accent-ring);
 }
@@ -1188,25 +1187,26 @@ textarea {
   outline: none;
 }
 
-/* The session currently mounted in the content pane. */
+/* 3. Open in some pane, but not the focused one (issue #33). */
-.tree-leaf.is-active,
+.tree-leaf:where(.is-open) {
-.tree-leaf.is-active[data-status="running"] {
+  background: color-mix(in oklab, var(--accent) 6%, transparent);
-  background: var(--accent-tint);
+}
-  box-shadow: inset 0 0 0 1px var(--accent-ring);
+
+/* 4. The session currently mounted in the content pane. */
+.tree-leaf:where(.is-active) {
+  background: var(--accent-fill);
 }
 
 .tree-leaf.is-active .leaf-name {
   color: var(--ink);
 }
 
-/* The row the content pane is previewing right now — after `.is-active` so a
+/* 5. The row the content pane is previewing right now. Last, so previewing a
-   preview of an already-open session still reads as provisional. */
+   session that is already open still reads as provisional — except the session
-.tree-leaf.is-previewing,
+   already mounted in the pane (tier 4). Previewing that one changes nothing on
-.tree-leaf.is-previewing[data-status="running"],
+   screen, so its accent stays put instead of blinking out under the pointer. */
-.tree-leaf.is-previewing.is-active,
+.tree-leaf:where(.is-previewing):where(:not(.is-active)) {
-.tree-leaf.is-previewing.is-highlighted {
   background: var(--preview-tint);
-  box-shadow: none;
 }
 
 /* Exited sessions recede: dimmed name + an "exited" badge carry status, so it's
@@ -3178,13 +3178,6 @@ input.leaf-rename:focus {
   border-radius: var(--r-1);
 }
 
-/* sidebar two-tier highlight (issue #33).
-   .is-active = focused pane (loud, from existing rule); .is-open = open
-   elsewhere (quiet). */
-.tree-leaf.is-open {
-  background: color-mix(in oklab, var(--accent) 6%, transparent);
-}
-
 /* =========================================================================
    multi-view mobile (#35): below 860px only the focused pane is shown — no tab
    bar, no pane switcher; the sidebar drawer (☰) is the navigation.