feat(desktop): track catalog provenance on a copied persona

Adding another member's shared agent minted a fresh local persona with a new
UUID and no link back to the publication it came from, so the catalog had no
way to tell an already-added entry from a new one and every click added
another copy.

A copied persona now carries the publication's coordinate — publisher pubkey
plus the persona's d-tag — through create_persona and the unified agent
store, which is enough for the catalog to answer "already added" for a
foreign entry. The coordinate is normalized at the command boundary because
a value that cannot match a publication silently restores the duplicate it
exists to prevent. Absent on every non-catalog path, and skipped when
serializing, so existing records neither break nor gain a null key.

The create path moves to personas/create.rs, mirroring the edit-path split,
and CatalogSource to its own module to keep both files under the size cap.

Co-authored-by: Will Pfleger <pfleger.will@gmail.com>
Signed-off-by: Will Pfleger <pfleger.will@gmail.com>

desktop/scripts/check-file-sizes.mjs

@@ -94,10 +94,10 @@ const overrides = new Map([
   // 3-phase (stage/stop/commit) + commit_cascade_agents injectable helper for
   // retry-safety. Load-bearing reviewer-required change; queued to split.
   // Consolidation removed the legacy persona-card import/export codecs.
-  // Retired-in-place ratchet: the edit path moved to personas/update.rs,
-  // taking mod.rs from 1003 to 779. Kept as a ratchet so the edit-path split
-  // cannot silently refill.
-  ["src-tauri/src/commands/personas/mod.rs", 779],
+  // Retired-in-place ratchet: the edit path moved to personas/update.rs and
+  // the create path to personas/create.rs, taking mod.rs from 1003 to 719.
+  // Kept as a ratchet so neither split can silently refill.
+  ["src-tauri/src/commands/personas/mod.rs", 719],
   // #1418 read-path fix: get_thread_replies' blocker fix (shared TIMELINE_KINDS
   // const + build_thread_replies_filter helper, mirroring the channel sibling so
   // the two p-gate filters can't drift) plus two guard unit tests. The file was
@@ -381,7 +381,9 @@ const overrides = new Map([
   // Available both-present AND adapter-present/CLI-absent — the selectability
   // regression guard), bound to an injectable resolver so the tests stay
   // PATH-independent.
-  ["src-tauri/src/managed_agents/discovery/tests.rs", 1871],
+  // +2 (1871 -> 1873): the AgentDefinition and ManagedAgentRecord fixtures each
+  // set the new mandatory `catalog_source` field.
+  ["src-tauri/src/managed_agents/discovery/tests.rs", 1873],
   // identity-import-keyring: the identity resolution state machine's behavioral
   // matrix (46 tests over FakeIdentityStore — probe × marker × file cells,
   // adoption / read-back-corruption / marker-failure arms, recovery-mode
@@ -576,7 +578,9 @@ const overrides = new Map([
   // computing had_* so stale materialized snapshot bytes can never be tagged
   // BuzzExplicit and shadow the definition/global fallthrough; the dead
   // persona-model re-tag branch replaced; two new regression tests added.
-  ["src-tauri/src/commands/agent_config.rs", 1110],
+  // +2 (1110 -> 1112): the agent_record and persona_with_model test fixtures
+  // each set the new mandatory `catalog_source` field.
+  ["src-tauri/src/commands/agent_config.rs", 1112],
   // codex-install-auto-restart review-fixes: should_restart_after_install
   // takes pid_alive:bool (pure predicate, no OS-dependent call); 3 racy
   // cache tests replaced with 6 pure availability_drift predicate tests;

desktop/src-tauri/src/commands/agent_config.rs

@@ -687,6 +687,7 @@ mod tests {
             shared: false,
             source_team: None,
             source_team_persona_slug: None,
+            catalog_source: None,
             definition_respond_to: None,
             definition_respond_to_allowlist: Vec::new(),
             definition_parallelism: None,
@@ -712,6 +713,7 @@ mod tests {
             shared: false,
             source_team: None,
             source_team_persona_slug: None,
+            catalog_source: None,
             env_vars: Default::default(),
             respond_to: None,
             respond_to_allowlist: Vec::new(),

desktop/src-tauri/src/commands/agent_models_tests.rs

@@ -397,6 +397,7 @@ fn model_discovery_ignores_stale_record_for_linked_agent() {
         shared: false,
         source_team: None,
         source_team_persona_slug: None,
+        catalog_source: None,
         env_vars: BTreeMap::new(),
         respond_to: None,
         respond_to_allowlist: Vec::new(),

desktop/src-tauri/src/commands/agents.rs

@@ -938,6 +938,7 @@ pub async fn create_managed_agent(
             shared: false,
             source_team: None,
             source_team_persona_slug: None,
+            catalog_source: None,
             definition_respond_to: None,
             definition_respond_to_allowlist: Vec::new(),
             definition_parallelism: None,

desktop/src-tauri/src/commands/agents_tests.rs

@@ -56,6 +56,7 @@ fn bare_agent_record(
         shared: false,
         source_team: None,
         source_team_persona_slug: None,
+        catalog_source: None,
         relay_mesh: None,
         auto_restart_on_config_change: false,
         definition_respond_to: None,
@@ -79,6 +80,7 @@ fn persona_record(id: &str, model: Option<&str>, provider: Option<&str>) -> Agen
         shared: false,
         source_team: None,
         source_team_persona_slug: None,
+        catalog_source: None,
         env_vars: BTreeMap::new(),
         respond_to: None,
         respond_to_allowlist: vec![],

desktop/src-tauri/src/commands/personas/create.rs

@@ -0,0 +1,85 @@
+//! The persona creation command surface, split from `mod.rs` (file-size cap)
+//! as the sibling of [`super::update`].
+
+use tauri::AppHandle;
+use uuid::Uuid;
+
+use crate::{
+    app_state::AppState,
+    managed_agents::{
+        apply_persona_behavior, load_personas, save_personas, try_regenerate_nest, AgentDefinition,
+        CatalogSource, CreatePersonaRequest,
+    },
+    util::now_iso,
+};
+
+use super::{pending, retain_persona_pending, trim_optional, trim_required};
+
+#[tauri::command]
+pub async fn create_persona(
+    input: CreatePersonaRequest,
+    app: AppHandle,
+) -> Result<AgentDefinition, String> {
+    use tauri::Manager;
+    tokio::task::spawn_blocking(move || {
+        let state = app.state::<AppState>();
+        let display_name = trim_required(&input.display_name, "Display name")?;
+        // System prompt optional: core memory is auto-injected. Empty is valid.
+        let system_prompt = input.system_prompt.trim().to_string();
+        let avatar_url = trim_optional(input.avatar_url);
+        let runtime = trim_optional(input.runtime);
+        let model = trim_optional(input.model);
+        let provider = trim_optional(input.provider);
+        // Normalized before the store is touched: a coordinate that can't match
+        // a publication is worse than no coordinate, because it silently
+        // re-enables the duplicate add it exists to prevent.
+        let catalog_source = input
+            .catalog_source
+            .map(CatalogSource::normalized)
+            .transpose()?;
+        let now = now_iso();
+        let _store_guard = state
+            .managed_agents_store_lock
+            .lock()
+            .map_err(|error| error.to_string())?;
+        let mut personas = load_personas(&app)?;
+        pending::project_active_persona_sharing(&app, &state, &mut personas);
+        let name_pool: Vec<String> = input
+            .name_pool
+            .into_iter()
+            .map(|s| s.trim().to_string())
+            .filter(|s| !s.is_empty())
+            .collect();
+        crate::managed_agents::validate_user_env_keys(&input.env_vars)?;
+        let mut persona = AgentDefinition {
+            id: Uuid::new_v4().to_string(),
+            display_name,
+            avatar_url,
+            system_prompt,
+            runtime,
+            model,
+            provider,
+            name_pool,
+            is_builtin: false,
+            is_active: true,
+            shared: false,
+            source_team: None,
+            source_team_persona_slug: None,
+            catalog_source,
+            env_vars: input.env_vars,
+            respond_to: None,
+            respond_to_allowlist: Vec::new(),
+            parallelism: None,
+            created_at: now.clone(),
+            updated_at: now,
+        };
+        apply_persona_behavior(&mut persona, input.behavior)?;
+        personas.push(persona.clone());
+        save_personas(&app, &personas)?;
+        retain_persona_pending(&app, &state, &persona);
+        try_regenerate_nest(&app);
+        Ok(persona)
+    })
+    .await
+    .map_err(|e| format!("spawn_blocking failed: {e}"))?
+}

desktop/src-tauri/src/commands/personas/delete_cascade_tests.rs

@@ -64,6 +64,7 @@ fn make_agent(
         shared: false,
         source_team: None,
         source_team_persona_slug: None,
+        catalog_source: None,
         relay_mesh: None,
         auto_restart_on_config_change: false,
         definition_respond_to: None,

desktop/src-tauri/src/commands/personas/inbound_tests.rs

@@ -23,6 +23,7 @@ fn local_in_app() -> AgentDefinition {
         shared: false,
         source_team: Some("team-1".to_string()),
         source_team_persona_slug: None,
+        catalog_source: None,
         env_vars: BTreeMap::from([("API_KEY".to_string(), "secret".to_string())]),
         respond_to: None,
         respond_to_allowlist: Vec::new(),
@@ -49,6 +50,7 @@ fn inbound_for(d_tag: &str, display_name: &str) -> AgentDefinition {
         shared: false,
         source_team: None,
         source_team_persona_slug: Some(d_tag.to_string()),
+        catalog_source: None,
         env_vars: BTreeMap::new(),
         respond_to: None,
         respond_to_allowlist: Vec::new(),
@@ -208,6 +210,7 @@ fn local_agent() -> ManagedAgentRecord {
         shared: false,
         source_team: None,
         source_team_persona_slug: None,
+        catalog_source: None,
         definition_respond_to: None,
         definition_respond_to_allowlist: Vec::new(),
         definition_parallelism: None,

desktop/src-tauri/src/commands/personas/mod.rs

@@ -1,15 +1,14 @@
 use tauri::{AppHandle, Emitter, Manager};
-use uuid::Uuid;
 
 use crate::{
     app_state::AppState,
     managed_agents::{
-        agent_events::ManagedAgentEventContent, apply_persona_behavior, current_instance_id,
-        delete_agent_key, load_managed_agents, load_personas, load_teams,
-        persona_events::persona_d_tag, save_managed_agents, save_personas,
-        stop_managed_agent_process, sync_managed_agent_processes, team_events::TeamEventContent,
-        try_regenerate_nest, validate_persona_activation_change, validate_persona_deletion,
-        AgentDefinition, CreatePersonaRequest, ManagedAgentRecord, TeamRecord,
+        agent_events::ManagedAgentEventContent, current_instance_id, delete_agent_key,
+        load_managed_agents, load_personas, load_teams, persona_events::persona_d_tag,
+        save_managed_agents, save_personas, stop_managed_agent_process,
+        sync_managed_agent_processes, team_events::TeamEventContent, try_regenerate_nest,
+        validate_persona_activation_change, validate_persona_deletion, AgentDefinition,
+        ManagedAgentRecord, TeamRecord,
     },
     util::now_iso,
 };
@@ -32,6 +31,8 @@ fn trim_optional(value: Option<String>) -> Option<String> {
 mod pending;
 pub(in crate::commands) use pending::retain_persona_pending;
 pub(super) use pending::tombstone_persona_pending;
+mod create;
+pub use create::create_persona;
 mod sharing;
 pub use sharing::set_persona_shared;
 pub use sharing::update_persona_and_publish;
@@ -55,67 +56,6 @@ pub async fn list_personas(app: AppHandle) -> Result<Vec<AgentDefinition>, Strin
     .map_err(|e| format!("spawn_blocking failed: {e}"))?
 }
 
-#[tauri::command]
-pub async fn create_persona(
-    input: CreatePersonaRequest,
-    app: AppHandle,
-) -> Result<AgentDefinition, String> {
-    use tauri::Manager;
-    tokio::task::spawn_blocking(move || {
-        let state = app.state::<AppState>();
-        let display_name = trim_required(&input.display_name, "Display name")?;
-        // System prompt optional: core memory is auto-injected. Empty is valid.
-        let system_prompt = input.system_prompt.trim().to_string();
-        let avatar_url = trim_optional(input.avatar_url);
-        let runtime = trim_optional(input.runtime);
-        let model = trim_optional(input.model);
-        let provider = trim_optional(input.provider);
-        let now = now_iso();
-        let _store_guard = state
-            .managed_agents_store_lock
-            .lock()
-            .map_err(|error| error.to_string())?;
-        let mut personas = load_personas(&app)?;
-        pending::project_active_persona_sharing(&app, &state, &mut personas);
-        let name_pool: Vec<String> = input
-            .name_pool
-            .into_iter()
-            .map(|s| s.trim().to_string())
-            .filter(|s| !s.is_empty())
-            .collect();
-        crate::managed_agents::validate_user_env_keys(&input.env_vars)?;
-        let mut persona = AgentDefinition {
-            id: Uuid::new_v4().to_string(),
-            display_name,
-            avatar_url,
-            system_prompt,
-            runtime,
-            model,
-            provider,
-            name_pool,
-            is_builtin: false,
-            is_active: true,
-            shared: false,
-            source_team: None,
-            source_team_persona_slug: None,
-            env_vars: input.env_vars,
-            respond_to: None,
-            respond_to_allowlist: Vec::new(),
-            parallelism: None,
-            created_at: now.clone(),
-            updated_at: now,
-        };
-        apply_persona_behavior(&mut persona, input.behavior)?;
-        personas.push(persona.clone());
-        save_personas(&app, &personas)?;
-        retain_persona_pending(&app, &state, &persona);
-        try_regenerate_nest(&app);
-        Ok(persona)
-    })
-    .await
-    .map_err(|e| format!("spawn_blocking failed: {e}"))?
-}
-
 #[cfg(test)]
 mod delete_cascade_tests;
 #[cfg(test)]

desktop/src-tauri/src/commands/personas/pending.rs

@@ -267,6 +267,7 @@ mod tests {
             shared: false,
             source_team: None,
             source_team_persona_slug: None,
+            catalog_source: None,
             env_vars: BTreeMap::new(),
             respond_to: None,
             respond_to_allowlist: Vec::new(),

desktop/src-tauri/src/commands/personas/sharing.rs

@@ -156,6 +156,7 @@ mod tests {
             shared: false,
             source_team: None,
             source_team_persona_slug: None,
+            catalog_source: None,
             env_vars: BTreeMap::new(),
             respond_to: None,
             respond_to_allowlist: Vec::new(),

desktop/src-tauri/src/commands/personas/snapshot/import.rs

@@ -427,6 +427,7 @@ pub async fn confirm_agent_snapshot_import(
             shared: false,
             source_team: None,
             source_team_persona_slug: None,
+            catalog_source: None,
             env_vars: std::collections::BTreeMap::new(),
             respond_to: respond_to_wire.clone(),
             respond_to_allowlist: minted.respond_to_allowlist.clone(),
@@ -496,6 +497,7 @@ pub async fn confirm_agent_snapshot_import(
             shared: false,
             source_team: None,
             source_team_persona_slug: None,
+            catalog_source: None,
             definition_respond_to: respond_to_wire.clone(),
             definition_respond_to_allowlist: minted.respond_to_allowlist.clone(),
             definition_parallelism: minted_parallelism,

desktop/src-tauri/src/commands/personas/snapshot/tests.rs

@@ -68,6 +68,7 @@ fn make_definition(slug: &str) -> ManagedAgentRecord {
         shared: false,
         source_team: None,
         source_team_persona_slug: None,
+        catalog_source: None,
         definition_respond_to: None,
         definition_respond_to_allowlist: vec![],
         definition_parallelism: None,

desktop/src-tauri/src/commands/personas/update/name_propagation_tests.rs

@@ -53,6 +53,7 @@ fn agent(persona_id: &str, name: &str, display_name: Option<&str>) -> ManagedAge
         shared: false,
         source_team: None,
         source_team_persona_slug: None,
+        catalog_source: None,
         definition_respond_to: None,
         definition_respond_to_allowlist: vec![],
         definition_parallelism: None,

desktop/src-tauri/src/commands/team_snapshot.rs

@@ -132,6 +132,7 @@ fn definition_from_snapshot(
         shared: false,
         source_team: None,
         source_team_persona_slug: None,
+        catalog_source: None,
         env_vars: Default::default(),
         respond_to,
         respond_to_allowlist: behavior.respond_to_allowlist,
@@ -603,6 +604,7 @@ pub async fn confirm_team_snapshot_import(
             shared: false,
             source_team: None,
             source_team_persona_slug: None,
+            catalog_source: None,
             definition_respond_to: respond_to_wire.clone(),
             definition_respond_to_allowlist: definition.respond_to_allowlist.clone(),
             definition_parallelism: minted_parallelism,

desktop/src-tauri/src/commands/team_snapshot/tests.rs

@@ -68,6 +68,7 @@ fn team_export_round_trip_preserves_team_and_excludes_member_memory() {
             shared: false,
             source_team: None,
             source_team_persona_slug: None,
+            catalog_source: None,
             env_vars: Default::default(),
             respond_to: None,
             respond_to_allowlist: vec![],
@@ -89,6 +90,7 @@ fn team_export_round_trip_preserves_team_and_excludes_member_memory() {
             shared: false,
             source_team: None,
             source_team_persona_slug: None,
+            catalog_source: None,
             env_vars: Default::default(),
             respond_to: None,
             respond_to_allowlist: vec![],
@@ -151,6 +153,7 @@ fn team_export_with_instance_and_memory_level_uses_supplied_entries() {
         shared: false,
         source_team: None,
         source_team_persona_slug: None,
+        catalog_source: None,
         env_vars: Default::default(),
         respond_to: None,
         respond_to_allowlist: vec![],
@@ -221,6 +224,7 @@ fn team_export_with_instance_and_memory_level_uses_supplied_entries() {
         shared: false,
         source_team: None,
         source_team_persona_slug: None,
+        catalog_source: None,
         definition_respond_to: None,
         definition_respond_to_allowlist: vec![],
         definition_parallelism: None,

desktop/src-tauri/src/managed_agents/agent_events.rs

@@ -211,6 +211,7 @@ mod tests {
             shared: false,
             source_team: None,
             source_team_persona_slug: None,
+            catalog_source: None,
             definition_respond_to: None,
             definition_respond_to_allowlist: Vec::new(),
             definition_parallelism: None,

desktop/src-tauri/src/managed_agents/agent_snapshot.rs

@@ -539,6 +539,7 @@ mod tests {
             source_team: Some("team-id-123".to_string()), // MUST NOT appear
             source_team_persona_slug: Some("lep".to_string()), // MUST NOT appear
             definition_respond_to: Some("allowlist".to_string()),
+            catalog_source: None,
             definition_respond_to_allowlist: vec!["abc123def".to_string()],
             definition_parallelism: Some(4),
             relay_mesh: None,

desktop/src-tauri/src/managed_agents/config_bridge/reader_tests.rs

@@ -109,6 +109,7 @@ fn test_record() -> ManagedAgentRecord {
         shared: false,
         source_team: None,
         source_team_persona_slug: None,
+        catalog_source: None,
         definition_respond_to: None,
         definition_respond_to_allowlist: Vec::new(),
         definition_parallelism: None,

desktop/src-tauri/src/managed_agents/discovery/tests.rs

@@ -286,6 +286,7 @@ fn persona_with_runtime(id: &str, runtime: Option<&str>) -> crate::managed_agent
         shared: false,
         source_team: None,
         source_team_persona_slug: None,
+        catalog_source: None,
         env_vars: std::collections::BTreeMap::new(),
         respond_to: None,
         respond_to_allowlist: Vec::new(),
@@ -361,6 +362,7 @@ fn record_with(
         shared: false,
         source_team: None,
         source_team_persona_slug: None,
+        catalog_source: None,
         definition_respond_to: None,
         definition_respond_to_allowlist: Vec::new(),
         definition_parallelism: None,

desktop/src-tauri/src/managed_agents/effective_config/tests.rs

@@ -21,6 +21,7 @@ fn definition(
         shared: false,
         source_team: None,
         source_team_persona_slug: None,
+        catalog_source: None,
         env_vars: BTreeMap::new(),
         respond_to: None,
         respond_to_allowlist: vec![],
@@ -85,6 +86,7 @@ fn record(
         shared: false,
         source_team: None,
         source_team_persona_slug: None,
+        catalog_source: None,
         relay_mesh: None,
         auto_restart_on_config_change: false,
         definition_respond_to: None,

desktop/src-tauri/src/managed_agents/global_config/tests.rs

@@ -346,6 +346,7 @@ fn bare_record() -> ManagedAgentRecord {
         shared: false,
         source_team: None,
         source_team_persona_slug: None,
+        catalog_source: None,
         relay_mesh: None,
         auto_restart_on_config_change: false,
         definition_respond_to: None,
@@ -369,6 +370,7 @@ fn persona(id: &str, model: Option<&str>, provider: Option<&str>) -> AgentDefini
         shared: false,
         source_team: None,
         source_team_persona_slug: None,
+        catalog_source: None,
         env_vars: BTreeMap::new(),
         respond_to: None,
         respond_to_allowlist: vec![],
@@ -629,6 +631,7 @@ fn record_runtime_wins_over_persona_runtime_for_command_resolution() {
         shared: false,
         source_team: None,
         source_team_persona_slug: None,
+        catalog_source: None,
         env_vars: BTreeMap::new(),
         respond_to: None,
         respond_to_allowlist: vec![],

desktop/src-tauri/src/managed_agents/nest/tests.rs

@@ -425,6 +425,7 @@ fn make_persona(id: &str, display_name: &str) -> AgentDefinition {
         shared: false,
         source_team: None,
         source_team_persona_slug: None,
+        catalog_source: None,
         env_vars: std::collections::BTreeMap::new(),
         respond_to: None,
         respond_to_allowlist: Vec::new(),
@@ -484,6 +485,7 @@ fn make_agent(name: &str, persona_id: Option<&str>) -> ManagedAgentRecord {
         shared: false,
         source_team: None,
         source_team_persona_slug: None,
+        catalog_source: None,
         definition_respond_to: None,
         definition_respond_to_allowlist: Vec::new(),
         definition_parallelism: None,

desktop/src-tauri/src/managed_agents/persona_events.rs

@@ -195,6 +195,7 @@ pub fn persona_from_event(event: &nostr::Event) -> Result<AgentDefinition, Strin
         shared: persona_event_is_shared(event),
         source_team: None,
         source_team_persona_slug: Some(d_tag),
+        catalog_source: None,
         env_vars: BTreeMap::new(),
         respond_to: content.respond_to,
         respond_to_allowlist: content.respond_to_allowlist,

desktop/src-tauri/src/managed_agents/persona_events/tests.rs

@@ -53,6 +53,7 @@ fn sample_record() -> ManagedAgentRecord {
         shared: false,
         source_team: None,
         source_team_persona_slug: None,
+        catalog_source: None,
         definition_respond_to: None,
         definition_respond_to_allowlist: Vec::new(),
         definition_parallelism: None,
@@ -153,6 +154,7 @@ fn sample_persona() -> AgentDefinition {
         shared: false,
         source_team: None,
         source_team_persona_slug: Some("test-slug".to_string()),
+        catalog_source: None,
         env_vars: BTreeMap::from([("KEY".to_string(), "value".to_string())]),
         respond_to: None,
         respond_to_allowlist: Vec::new(),
@@ -379,6 +381,7 @@ fn content_matches_nip_ap_vector() {
         shared: false,
         source_team: None,
         source_team_persona_slug: None,
+        catalog_source: None,
         env_vars: BTreeMap::new(),
         respond_to: None,
         respond_to_allowlist: Vec::new(),
@@ -409,6 +412,7 @@ fn round_trip_minimal_persona() {
         shared: false,
         source_team: Some("team-1".to_string()),
         source_team_persona_slug: None,
+        catalog_source: None,
         env_vars: BTreeMap::new(),
         respond_to: None,
         respond_to_allowlist: Vec::new(),
@@ -505,6 +509,7 @@ fn quad_absent_definition_hash_stable_across_activation() {
         shared: false,
         source_team: None,
         source_team_persona_slug: None,
+        catalog_source: None,
         env_vars: BTreeMap::new(),
         respond_to: None,
         respond_to_allowlist: Vec::new(),
@@ -548,6 +553,7 @@ fn persona_from_event_content_for_test(content: PersonaEventContent) -> AgentDef
         shared: false,
         source_team: None,
         source_team_persona_slug: None,
+        catalog_source: None,
         env_vars: BTreeMap::new(),
         respond_to: content.respond_to,
         respond_to_allowlist: content.respond_to_allowlist,

desktop/src-tauri/src/managed_agents/personas.rs

@@ -124,6 +124,7 @@ fn built_in_persona_records(now: &str) -> Vec<AgentDefinition> {
             shared: false,
             source_team: None,
             source_team_persona_slug: None,
+            catalog_source: None,
             env_vars: std::collections::BTreeMap::new(),
             respond_to: None,
             respond_to_allowlist: Vec::new(),

desktop/src-tauri/src/managed_agents/personas/tests.rs

@@ -21,6 +21,7 @@ fn custom_persona(id: &str, display_name: &str) -> AgentDefinition {
         shared: false,
         source_team: None,
         source_team_persona_slug: None,
+        catalog_source: None,
         env_vars: std::collections::BTreeMap::new(),
         respond_to: None,
         respond_to_allowlist: Vec::new(),

desktop/src-tauri/src/managed_agents/readiness.rs

@@ -1513,6 +1513,7 @@ mod tests {
             shared: false,
             source_team: None,
             source_team_persona_slug: None,
+            catalog_source: None,
             definition_respond_to: None,
             definition_respond_to_allowlist: Vec::new(),
             definition_parallelism: None,

desktop/src-tauri/src/managed_agents/runtime/tests.rs

@@ -176,6 +176,7 @@ fn fixture(
         shared: false,
         source_team: None,
         source_team_persona_slug: None,
+        catalog_source: None,
         definition_respond_to: None,
         definition_respond_to_allowlist: Vec::new(),
         definition_parallelism: None,
@@ -296,6 +297,7 @@ fn persona_with_provider(
         shared: false,
         source_team: None,
         source_team_persona_slug: None,
+        catalog_source: None,
         env_vars: std::collections::BTreeMap::new(),
         respond_to: None,
         respond_to_allowlist: Vec::new(),

desktop/src-tauri/src/managed_agents/spawn_hash/tests.rs

@@ -52,6 +52,7 @@ fn record() -> ManagedAgentRecord {
         shared: false,
         source_team: None,
         source_team_persona_slug: None,
+        catalog_source: None,
         definition_respond_to: None,
         definition_respond_to_allowlist: Vec::new(),
         definition_parallelism: None,
@@ -74,6 +75,7 @@ fn persona(id: &str, runtime: Option<&str>, prompt: &str) -> AgentDefinition {
         shared: false,
         source_team: None,
         source_team_persona_slug: None,
+        catalog_source: None,
         env_vars: BTreeMap::new(),
         respond_to: None,
         respond_to_allowlist: Vec::new(),

desktop/src-tauri/src/managed_agents/team_snapshot.rs

@@ -305,6 +305,7 @@ mod tests {
             source_team: Some("SENTINEL_SOURCE_TEAM".to_string()), // MUST NOT appear
             source_team_persona_slug: Some("SENTINEL_SLUG".to_string()), // MUST NOT appear
             definition_respond_to: None,
+            catalog_source: None,
             definition_respond_to_allowlist: vec![],
             definition_parallelism: None,
             relay_mesh: None,

desktop/src-tauri/src/managed_agents/teams_tests.rs

@@ -211,6 +211,7 @@ fn managed_agent(name: &str) -> ManagedAgentRecord {
         shared: false,
         source_team: None,
         source_team_persona_slug: None,
+        catalog_source: None,
         relay_mesh: None,
         definition_respond_to: None,
         definition_respond_to_allowlist: vec![],

desktop/src-tauri/src/managed_agents/types.rs

@@ -64,6 +64,13 @@ pub struct AgentDefinition {
         alias = "source_pack_persona_slug"
     )]
     pub source_team_persona_slug: Option<String>,
+    /// Provenance of a persona copied from another owner's shared catalog.
+    ///
+    /// Set only on the copy, never on the original. It is what makes
+    /// "already added" answerable for a foreign catalog entry: the copy carries
+    /// a new local id, so the only link back to the publication is this pair.
+    #[serde(default, skip_serializing_if = "Option::is_none")]
+    pub catalog_source: Option<CatalogSource>,
     /// Harness-level configuration passed to the agent subprocess as environment variables.
     /// Opaque to Buzz — keys and values are runtime-specific.
     ///
@@ -141,6 +148,7 @@ impl AgentDefinition {
             shared: false,
             source_team: self.source_team,
             source_team_persona_slug: self.source_team_persona_slug,
+            catalog_source: self.catalog_source,
             definition_respond_to: self.respond_to,
             definition_respond_to_allowlist: self.respond_to_allowlist,
             definition_parallelism: self.parallelism,
@@ -174,6 +182,7 @@ impl ManagedAgentRecord {
             shared: false,
             source_team: self.source_team.clone(),
             source_team_persona_slug: self.source_team_persona_slug.clone(),
+            catalog_source: self.catalog_source.clone(),
             env_vars: self.env_vars.clone(),
             respond_to: self.definition_respond_to.clone(),
             respond_to_allowlist: self.definition_respond_to_allowlist.clone(),
@@ -396,6 +405,10 @@ pub struct ManagedAgentRecord {
     /// definition's slug within its source team.
     #[serde(default, skip_serializing_if = "Option::is_none")]
     pub source_team_persona_slug: Option<String>,
+    /// Absorbed from `AgentDefinition.catalog_source` — the publication this
+    /// definition was copied from, when it came from another owner's catalog.
+    #[serde(default, skip_serializing_if = "Option::is_none")]
+    pub catalog_source: Option<CatalogSource>,
     /// NIP-AP definition-level behavioral defaults, absorbed from
     /// `AgentDefinition` in WIRE shape (kebab-case string / optional u32),
     /// distinct from the instance-side `respond_to`/`respond_to_allowlist`/
@@ -972,6 +985,8 @@ pub fn resolve_mint_behavioral_defaults(
     })
 }
 
+mod catalog_source;
+pub use catalog_source::CatalogSource;
 mod requests;
 pub use requests::*;
 

desktop/src-tauri/src/managed_agents/types/catalog_source.rs

@@ -0,0 +1,52 @@
+//! The catalog-provenance coordinate carried on a copied persona
+//! definition, split from `types.rs` (file-size cap).
+
+use serde::{Deserialize, Serialize};
+
+/// Where a persona copy came from in another owner's shared catalog.
+///
+/// The pair is the publication's NIP-AP coordinate minus the kind: the owner
+/// who published it and the `d`-tag identifying the persona within that
+/// owner's catalog. A copy carries a fresh local `id`, so this pair is the
+/// only thing that can answer "is this catalog entry already added".
+///
+/// Field casing follows [`super::RelayMeshConfig`]: persisted records use snake_case
+/// and the camelCase `alias`es accept the create payload the frontend sends
+/// (`rename_all` on the request does not recurse into nested structs).
+#[derive(Debug, Clone, Serialize, Deserialize, PartialEq, Eq)]
+pub struct CatalogSource {
+    #[serde(alias = "ownerPubkey")]
+    pub owner_pubkey: String,
+    #[serde(alias = "personaId")]
+    pub persona_id: String,
+}
+
+impl CatalogSource {
+    /// Normalize a coordinate arriving from the frontend.
+    ///
+    /// "Already added" is decided by comparing this pair against a
+    /// publication's author and `d`-tag, so an un-normalized value silently
+    /// fails to match and mints another copy — the exact duplicate the field
+    /// exists to prevent. Owner pubkey: 64 hex, any case in, lowercase out
+    /// (same contract as [`super::validate_respond_to_allowlist`]). Persona id: the
+    /// publication's `d`-tag, trimmed and required.
+    pub fn normalized(self) -> Result<Self, String> {
+        let owner_pubkey = self.owner_pubkey.trim().to_ascii_lowercase();
+        if owner_pubkey.len() != 64 || !owner_pubkey.chars().all(|c| c.is_ascii_hexdigit()) {
+            return Err(format!(
+                "invalid catalog source owner pubkey: '{owner_pubkey}' (must be 64 hex chars)"
+            ));
+        }
+        let persona_id = self.persona_id.trim().to_string();
+        if persona_id.is_empty() {
+            return Err("catalog source persona id is required".to_string());
+        }
+        Ok(Self {
+            owner_pubkey,
+            persona_id,
+        })
+    }
+}
+
+#[cfg(test)]
+mod tests;

desktop/src-tauri/src/managed_agents/types/catalog_source/tests.rs

@@ -0,0 +1,62 @@
+use super::CatalogSource;
+
+fn source(owner_pubkey: &str, persona_id: &str) -> CatalogSource {
+    CatalogSource {
+        owner_pubkey: owner_pubkey.to_string(),
+        persona_id: persona_id.to_string(),
+    }
+}
+
+#[test]
+fn normalized_lowercases_and_trims_the_owner_pubkey() {
+    // "Already added" compares this against a publication's author hex, which
+    // is always lowercase — a mixed-case value from the UI must not miss.
+    let normalized = source(&format!("  {}  ", "A".repeat(64)), " helper ")
+        .normalized()
+        .expect("64 hex chars with surrounding space is valid");
+    assert_eq!(normalized.owner_pubkey, "a".repeat(64));
+    assert_eq!(normalized.persona_id, "helper");
+}
+
+#[test]
+fn normalized_rejects_a_short_owner_pubkey() {
+    let err = source("abc123", "helper").normalized().unwrap_err();
+    assert!(err.contains("64 hex"), "error must name the rule: {err}");
+}
+
+#[test]
+fn normalized_rejects_a_non_hex_owner_pubkey() {
+    let err = source(&"z".repeat(64), "helper").normalized().unwrap_err();
+    assert!(err.contains("64 hex"), "error must name the rule: {err}");
+}
+
+#[test]
+fn normalized_rejects_a_blank_persona_id() {
+    let err = source(&"a".repeat(64), "   ").normalized().unwrap_err();
+    assert!(
+        err.contains("persona id"),
+        "error must name the field: {err}"
+    );
+}
+
+#[test]
+fn deserializes_the_camel_case_payload_the_frontend_sends() {
+    // `rename_all` on CreatePersonaRequest does not recurse into this struct,
+    // so without the aliases the copy request fails at the Tauri boundary.
+    let parsed: CatalogSource =
+        serde_json::from_str(r#"{"ownerPubkey":"abc","personaId":"helper"}"#)
+            .expect("camelCase payload from TS should deserialize");
+    assert_eq!(parsed, source("abc", "helper"));
+}
+
+#[test]
+fn round_trips_persisted_snake_case() {
+    let value = source(&"a".repeat(64), "helper");
+    let json = serde_json::to_string(&value).unwrap();
+    assert!(json.contains("owner_pubkey"), "persisted shape: {json}");
+    assert_eq!(
+        serde_json::from_str::<CatalogSource>(&json).unwrap(),
+        value,
+        "the camelCase alias must not break the stored-record round trip"
+    );
+}

desktop/src-tauri/src/managed_agents/types/requests.rs

@@ -7,7 +7,7 @@ use serde::Deserialize;
 
 use super::{
     default_start_on_app_launch, validate_respond_to_allowlist, AgentDefinition, BackendKind,
-    RelayMeshConfig, RespondTo,
+    CatalogSource, RelayMeshConfig, RespondTo,
 };
 
 /// The NIP-AP behavioral group as one grouped request field.
@@ -91,6 +91,10 @@ pub struct CreatePersonaRequest {
     /// NIP-AP behavioral group. Absent = behavior group stays unset.
     #[serde(default)]
     pub behavior: Option<PersonaBehaviorRequest>,
+    /// Set when this persona is a copy of another owner's shared catalog entry,
+    /// so the catalog can tell an already-added foreign persona from a new one.
+    #[serde(default)]
+    pub catalog_source: Option<CatalogSource>,
 }
 
 #[derive(Debug, Deserialize)]
@@ -278,6 +282,7 @@ mod tests {
             shared: false,
             source_team: None,
             source_team_persona_slug: None,
+            catalog_source: None,
             env_vars: BTreeMap::new(),
             respond_to: None,
             respond_to_allowlist: Vec::new(),
@@ -429,4 +434,37 @@ mod tests {
         .unwrap();
         assert_eq!(record.parallelism, Some(8));
     }
+
+    /// The catalog copy path is the only caller that sends this field, and it
+    /// sends camelCase from TS. Without it deserializing, the copy silently
+    /// lands with no provenance and duplicate-add returns.
+    #[test]
+    fn create_request_deserializes_camel_case_catalog_source() {
+        let request: CreatePersonaRequest = serde_json::from_str(
+            r#"{
+                "displayName": "Copy",
+                "avatarUrl": null,
+                "systemPrompt": "Prompt",
+                "catalogSource": { "ownerPubkey": "abc", "personaId": "helper" }
+            }"#,
+        )
+        .expect("camelCase catalogSource payload from TS should deserialize");
+        assert_eq!(
+            request.catalog_source,
+            Some(CatalogSource {
+                owner_pubkey: "abc".to_string(),
+                persona_id: "helper".to_string(),
+            })
+        );
+    }
+
+    /// Ordinary agent creation never sends the field.
+    #[test]
+    fn create_request_without_catalog_source_is_not_a_catalog_copy() {
+        let request: CreatePersonaRequest = serde_json::from_str(
+            r#"{ "displayName": "Fresh", "avatarUrl": null, "systemPrompt": "Prompt" }"#,
+        )
+        .expect("a create payload without provenance should deserialize");
+        assert_eq!(request.catalog_source, None);
+    }
 }

desktop/src-tauri/src/managed_agents/types/tests.rs

@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-use super::{AgentDefinition, ManagedAgentRecord};
+use super::{AgentDefinition, CatalogSource, ManagedAgentRecord};
 use std::path::PathBuf;
 
 #[test]
@@ -485,6 +485,7 @@ fn sample_persona() -> AgentDefinition {
         shared: false,
         source_team: Some("team-1".to_string()),
         source_team_persona_slug: Some("helper".to_string()),
+        catalog_source: None,
         env_vars: [("K".to_string(), "v".to_string())].into_iter().collect(),
         respond_to: None,
         respond_to_allowlist: Vec::new(),
@@ -494,6 +495,49 @@ fn sample_persona() -> AgentDefinition {
     }
 }
 
+#[test]
+fn persona_record_without_catalog_source_deserializes_and_omits_it() {
+    // Every persona already on disk predates the field — an old record must
+    // load as "not a catalog copy" and must not gain a null key on save.
+    let record: AgentDefinition = serde_json::from_str(
+        r#"{
+            "id": "persona-1",
+            "display_name": "Test",
+            "avatar_url": null,
+            "system_prompt": "Prompt",
+            "created_at": "2026-01-01T00:00:00Z",
+            "updated_at": "2026-01-01T00:00:00Z"
+        }"#,
+    )
+    .expect("pre-catalog-source persona should deserialize");
+
+    assert_eq!(record.catalog_source, None);
+    let json = serde_json::to_string(&record).unwrap();
+    assert!(
+        !json.contains("catalog_source"),
+        "absent provenance must stay absent on disk: {json}"
+    );
+}
+
+#[test]
+fn persona_catalog_source_survives_the_agent_store_fold() {
+    // Provenance is only useful if it is still there on the next launch, and
+    // `save_personas` funnels every definition through `into_agent_record`.
+    let mut persona = sample_persona();
+    persona.catalog_source = Some(CatalogSource {
+        owner_pubkey: "a".repeat(64),
+        persona_id: "helper".to_string(),
+    });
+
+    let view = persona
+        .clone()
+        .into_agent_record()
+        .to_definition_view()
+        .expect("slugged record must present a persona view");
+
+    assert_eq!(view.catalog_source, persona.catalog_source);
+}
+
 #[test]
 fn persona_into_agent_record_is_keyless_and_slugged() {
     let record = sample_persona().into_agent_record();

desktop/src-tauri/src/mesh_llm/recovery.rs

@@ -412,6 +412,7 @@ mod tests {
             is_active: true,
             source_team: None,
             source_team_persona_slug: None,
+            catalog_source: None,
             env_vars: std::collections::BTreeMap::from([
                 ("BUZZ_AGENT_PROVIDER".to_string(), "openai".to_string()),
                 (

desktop/src-tauri/src/migration_avatar_tests.rs

@@ -38,6 +38,7 @@ fn refresh_builtin_agent_avatars_updates_seeded_values_and_preserves_customizati
         shared: false,
         source_team: None,
         source_team_persona_slug: None,
+        catalog_source: None,
         env_vars: Default::default(),
         respond_to: None,
         respond_to_allowlist: Vec::new(),