PR #65772: fix(cli): keep nodes list aligned with nodes status

• Repository: openclaw/openclaw
• Author: skainguyen1412
• State: open | merged: False
• Link: https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw/pull/65772

Description (problem / solution / changelog)

Summary

• Problem: openclaw nodes status used the effective node.list view, while openclaw nodes list still used raw node.pair.list, so the two commands could disagree about which nodes were paired.
• Why it matters: operators could see Paired: 0 in nodes list even when nodes status showed paired nodes, and scripts consuming nodes list --json needed the existing pairing metadata to remain stable.
• What changed: nodes list now uses node.list as the effective paired-node source when available, keeps pending from node.pair.list, falls back to pairing-only data for compatibility when unfiltered node.list is unavailable, and preserves raw pairing metadata in --json.
• What did NOT change (scope boundary): this PR does not change gateway methods, method scopes, pairing storage, or the meaning of pending approval data; filtered modes still depend on node.list because they need live node state.

Change Type (select all)

• Bug fix
• Feature
• Refactor required for the fix
• Docs
• Security hardening
• Chore/infra

Scope (select all touched areas)

• Gateway / orchestration
• Skills / tool execution
• Auth / tokens
• Memory / storage
• Integrations
• API / contracts
• UI / DX
• CI/CD / infra

Linked Issue/PR

• Closes #65706
• Related #
• This PR fixes a bug or regression

Root Cause (if applicable)

• Root cause: the CLI had two different sources of truth for “paired nodes.” nodes status used the newer effective node catalog from node.list, while nodes list still used the raw node-pairing store from node.pair.list.
• Missing detection / guardrail: there was no test locking in that nodes list and nodes status should stay aligned, and no test protecting the nodes list --json output contract.
• Contributing context (if known): earlier changes intentionally made node.list a more accurate effective view of available nodes, but nodes list was not updated in sync with that behavior.

Regression Test Plan (if applicable)

• Coverage level that should have caught this:
  • Unit test
  • Seam / integration test
  • End-to-end test
  • Existing coverage already sufficient
• Target test or file: src/cli/program.nodes-basic.e2e.test.ts
• Scenario the test should lock in: nodes list should show effective paired nodes from node.list, preserve pairing-only fallback when unfiltered node.list is unavailable, and keep raw pairing metadata in --json.
• Why this is the smallest reliable guardrail: the bug lives in CLI command wiring and output shaping across two gateway methods, so a command-level test is more reliable than a narrow helper unit test.
• Existing test that already covers this (if any): existing nodes list --connected / nodes status --last-connected tests covered parts of the command flow, but not the source-of-truth mismatch or JSON compatibility.
• If no new test is added, why not: N/A

User-visible / Behavior Changes

• openclaw nodes list now stays aligned with openclaw nodes status for effective paired nodes.
• openclaw nodes list without filters keeps working for pairing-scope callers and older gateways by falling back when node.list is unavailable.
• openclaw nodes list --json preserves existing pairing metadata instead of returning a reduced display-only shape.

Diagram (if applicable)

Before:
[nodes status] -> [node.list effective view] -> [paired nodes shown]
[nodes list]   -> [node.pair.list raw store] -> [could show 0 paired]

After:
[nodes status] -> [node.list effective view] -> [paired nodes shown]
[nodes list]   -> [prefer node.list effective view]
               -> [fallback to node.pair.list when needed]
               -> [consistent human output + compatible JSON output]

## Changed files

- `src/cli/nodes-cli/register.status.ts` (modified, +110/-32)
- `src/cli/program.nodes-basic.e2e.test.ts` (modified, +107/-2)