feat: stable conversation emoji in shared metadata + invite payloads

[yewreeka]

Summary

Adds a conversation-level emoji to shared XMTP metadata so all members see the same default emoji. Stacked on top of PR #683 (profile emoji avatars).

Problem

Currently, the default conversation emoji is derived from clientConversationId, which differs between the creator (who has a draft-... ID) and other members (who use the stable XMTP group ID). This means:

• Creator sees one emoji, other members see a different one
• The emoji can't be included in invites because it's not shared

Solution

New shared field: ConversationCustomMetadata.emoji

• Added optional string emoji = 6 to conversation_custom_metadata.proto
• Creator generates emoji once from their clientConversationId seed at creation time
• Stored in shared XMTP group appData via ensureConversationEmoji(seed:)
• All members read the same emoji from shared metadata
• No flip for the creator (seed matches their local draft ID)

Invite payload support

• Added optional string emoji = 10 to invite.proto
• Restored missing invite.proto source file (was omitted during package extraction)
• InviteSlugOptions.emoji threaded through invite creation
• SignedInvite.emoji accessor for invite preview rendering

Avatar priority (conversation-level)

1. Custom conversation image
2. Conversation emoji from shared metadata
3. Profile/cluster member fallback
4. Generated fallback (only if no stored emoji)

Database

• Added conversationEmoji column to DBConversation
• Migration: addConversationEmoji (guarded for idempotency)
• Hydrated into Conversation model

Files changed

Schema (protobuf)

• ConvosAppData/.../conversation_custom_metadata.proto — new field
• ConvosAppData/.../conversation_custom_metadata.pb.swift — regenerated
• ConvosInvites/.../invite.proto — new field + restored source
• ConvosInvites/.../invite.pb.swift — regenerated

Core

• XMTPGroup+CustomMetadata.swift — read/write helpers
• ConversationWriter.swift — ensures emoji at creation, placeholder support
• DBConversation.swift — new column
• Conversation.swift — avatar priority, defaultEmoji fallback
• SharedDatabaseMigrator.swift — migration
• DBConversationDetails+Conversation.swift — hydration
• MessagesRepository.swift — conversation hydration
• UnusedConversationCache.swift — new field in constructors
• ModelMocks.swift — updated mocks

Invites

• InvitePayloadExtensions.swift — emoji in options/payload/accessors
• SignedInvite+Signing.swift — threads emoji into invite creation

Backward compatibility

• Old conversations without stored emoji fall back to the existing local derivation
• Old invite payloads without emoji field decode cleanly (protobuf optional)
• Migration is guarded against duplicate column addition

Testing

• swift build --package-path ConvosInvites ✅
• swift build --package-path ConvosCore ✅
• Full app build via xcodebuild ✅
• Launched on two fresh simulators ✅

Still needed

• Invite preview UI to render signedInvite.emoji when no image
• Tests for emoji metadata round-trip, avatar priority, invite encoding
• End-to-end validation: create convo on sim A, join on sim B, verify same emoji

Note

Add stable conversation emoji to shared metadata and invite payloads

• Adds an emoji field to ConversationCustomMetadata proto and InvitePayload proto, persisted via a new conversationEmoji database column on DBConversation and exposed on the Conversation model.
• When creating or joining a group, the state machine seeds a stable emoji via ensureConversationEmoji(seed:) so the same emoji appears consistently across invite slugs, invite cards, and conversation avatars.
• Invite slugs now include the emoji in InviteSlugOptions, and MessageInviteView/ReplyReferenceInvitePreview render it when no custom image is set.
• Replaces ComposerInvitePreviewCard with ComposerSideConvoCard, which lets users edit the side-convo name, pick a cover image, and configure an explode duration before sending; explosion scheduling is deferred to send time instead of being applied immediately on selection.
• Adds insertPendingInvite/finalizeInvite APIs on OutgoingMessageWriter so the invite message is created locally first and updated in-place when sent, avoiding a UI flash.
• Behavioral Change: GlobalConvoDefaults.includeInfoWithInvites and includeInfoInPublicPreview now default to true instead of false.

^{Macroscope summarized c4a6c7f.}

[claude]

Claude finished @yewreeka's task —— View job

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Code Review Complete ✅

Reviewed PR #686: stable conversation emoji in shared metadata + invite payloads

Summary

This PR successfully implements stable conversation emojis by storing them in shared XMTP metadata and including them in invite payloads. The implementation is well-structured with proper database migrations, protobuf schema updates, and UI integration. Macroscope has already identified and you've fixed most critical issues. However, there are a few remaining concerns and recommendations.

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Critical Issues 🔴

None remaining - all critical issues identified by Macroscope have been resolved.

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High Priority Issues 🟠

1. Missing Verification in ensureConversationEmoji

Location: ConvosCore/Sources/ConvosCore/Invites & Custom Metadata/XMTPGroup+CustomMetadata.swift:61-76

The verification closure at line 72 checks metadata.hasEmoji && !metadata.emoji.isEmpty, which is correct for verifying an emoji exists, but the implementation could be clearer about intent. The verify closure ensures any emoji is set, not necessarily the specific generatedEmoji.

Current behavior: If a concurrent caller sets a different emoji between read and write, the verify will pass (correctly), but this is an "ensure exists" operation, not "ensure this specific value" operation.

Recommendation: The current implementation is actually correct for idempotent "ensure" semantics. Consider adding a comment clarifying this is intentional:

// Verify that *an* emoji exists (not necessarily the generated one,
// as another client may have set a different emoji concurrently)
} verify: { metadata in
    metadata.hasEmoji && !metadata.emoji.isEmpty
}

---

Medium Priority Issues 🟡

2. Fallback Emoji Logic Inconsistency

Location: ConvosCore/Sources/ConvosCore/Storage/Models/Conversation.swift:78-83

The defaultEmoji property returns conversationEmoji if non-empty, else generates one from clientConversationId. However, in avatarType (lines 85-99), there's duplicate logic checking conversationEmoji again.

Issue: The logic is correct but duplicated. If conversationEmoji is an empty string "", defaultEmoji correctly falls through to generation (line 82), but avatarType checks again at line 89.

Recommendation: Consider consolidating the logic:

var avatarType: ConversationAvatarType {
    if imageURL != nil {
        return .customImage
    }
    if !defaultEmoji.isEmpty {  // Use defaultEmoji instead of checking conversationEmoji again
        return .emoji(defaultEmoji)
    }
    // ... rest of logic
}

This eliminates the duplicate check and centralizes the emoji priority logic.

3. Error Handling in finalizeSideConvo

Location: Convos/Conversation Detail/ConversationViewModel.swift:1128-1137

The fallback error handler at line 1132 uses try await messageWriter.finalizeInvite() wrapped in a do-catch, but if this fallback also fails, the function returns (inviteURL, nil) which sets finalInviteURL = nil in the caller (line 1051 in onSendMessage).

Issue: When both the image upload path and the fallback path fail, the invite message is never sent. The pending message remains in the database in an unfinalized state.

Recommendation: Consider either:

1. Queueing a retry mechanism for failed finalization
2. Marking the pending message as failed and notifying the user
3. Documenting this edge case behavior

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Low Priority / Code Quality 🟢

4. Test Coverage Gaps

Current tests:

• DefaultConversationDisplayTests.swift covers emoji selector, avatar type, and display logic ✅
• QA test plan 34-side-convo-stable-emoji.md covers end-to-end flow ✅

Missing tests:

• ensureConversationEmoji() metadata round-trip (concurrent updates)
• MessageInvite.from(text:) with emoji field
• DBMessage.with(text:invite:) contentType update (fixed per Macroscope review)
• Database migration idempotency for addConversationEmoji
• Invite payload encoding/decoding with emoji field

Recommendation: Add unit tests for the protobuf round-trip and metadata operations to ensure the emoji field is correctly preserved across serialization boundaries.

5. Database Migration Safety

Location: ConvosCore/Sources/ConvosCore/Storage/SharedDatabaseMigrator.swift:479-487

The migration correctly checks for column existence before adding:

let hasConversationEmoji = columns.contains(where: { $0.name == "conversationEmoji" })
guard !hasConversationEmoji else { return }

This is good defensive programming. ✅

Recommendation: Consider adding a test that runs the migration twice to verify idempotency (though this is covered by the guard).

6. Accessibility Label Priority Mismatch (Fixed)

Location: Convos/Conversation Detail/Messages/Messages View Controller/View Controller/Views/MessagesInputView.swift:504

Per Macroscope review, the accessibility label now correctly prioritizes convoImage over resolvedEmoji, matching the visual display order. ✅ This is resolved.

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Security Considerations 🔒

Protobuf Emoji Field:

• The emoji field in both ConversationCustomMetadata and InvitePayload is marked optional ✅
• No length validation on emoji input (could be a very long string)

Recommendation: Consider adding validation in EmojiSelector.emoji(for:) callers to ensure the stored emoji is a single valid emoji character. Currently, if a malicious actor sets metadata.emoji = "A".repeat(10000), it would be stored and displayed.

Suggested fix:

// In ensureConversationEmoji or wherever emoji is set from user input
let validatedEmoji = generatedEmoji.prefix(10)  // or use proper emoji validation
metadata.emoji = String(validatedEmoji)

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Performance Considerations ⚡

Image Caching

The cacheAfterUpload call at ConversationViewModel.swift:1109 correctly pre-caches the invite image. ✅

Metadata Updates

The atomicUpdateMetadata pattern in ensureConversationEmoji uses optimistic locking with retry, which is appropriate for distributed consensus. ✅

No performance concerns identified.

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Backward Compatibility ✅

• Old conversations without conversationEmoji fall back to local derivation ✅
• Old invite payloads decode cleanly (protobuf optional field) ✅
• Migration is guarded for idempotency ✅

All backward compatibility requirements met.

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Documentation & Code Quality

Positive Observations:

• Clear separation of concerns (proto, core, UI layers)
• Proper use of protocols for testability
• Good error logging throughout
• QA test plan is thorough and well-structured

Suggestions:

• Add inline comments for the emoji priority logic in Conversation.avatarType
• Document the "ensure exists" semantics in ensureConversationEmoji
• Consider extracting ComposerSideConvoCard emoji resolution logic into a computed property for clarity

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Open Macroscope Comments Status

All Macroscope review comments marked "No longer relevant" have been properly addressed:

• ✅ with(text:invite:) now sets contentType: .invite
• ✅ finalizeInvite uses clientMessageId column lookup
• ✅ publishText uses raw SQL UPDATE for ID changes
• ✅ Accessibility label priority fixed
• ✅ selectedPhotoItem reset after loading
• ✅ operation parameter added to atomicUpdateMetadata

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Recommendations Summary

Must fix before merge:

• None - all critical issues resolved

Should fix:

1. Add emoji length/validation to prevent malicious extremely long emoji strings
2. Clarify error handling in finalizeSideConvo fallback path
3. Add unit tests for protobuf emoji field round-trip

Nice to have:

1. Consolidate emoji fallback logic in Conversation.avatarType
2. Add comments clarifying "ensure exists" semantics
3. Extract emoji resolution logic in ComposerSideConvoCard

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Final Verdict

Approvable with minor improvements. The core implementation is solid, backward compatible, and properly tested at the integration level. The remaining issues are primarily around edge case error handling, validation hardening, and unit test coverage. None are blocking.

Great work on the comprehensive implementation spanning proto schemas, database migrations, core business logic, and UI integration! 🎉

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• Branch: jarod/stable-conversation-emoji

[macroscopeapp]

Approvability

Verdict: Needs human review

This PR introduces a new feature for stable conversation emoji across devices, including protobuf schema changes, a database migration, new UI components for side convo editing, and a default behavior change for invite metadata. The scope and nature of these changes—new user-facing functionality, schema impacts, and default behavior modification—warrant human review.

^{You can customize Macroscope's approvability policy. Learn more.}