PR #60139: fix(discord): extract forwarded message text in thread starter resolution

• Repository: openclaw/openclaw
• Author: solavrc
• State: closed | merged: True
• Link: https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw/pull/60139

Description (problem / solution / changelog)

Summary

• Problem: resolveDiscordThreadStarter returns null for Discord Forwarded Messages because it only checks content and embeds, but FMs store their text in message_snapshots[0].message.content while content is empty ("")
• Why it matters: includeThreadStarter: true is broken for FM-based threads — the agent session receives zero context about what was forwarded. This blocks FM-based task dispatch workflows (Channel→Forward→Thread→Agent)
• What changed: Added a local resolveStarterForwardedText helper in threading.ts that extracts text from message_snapshots on the REST response object, used as a third fallback after content and embeds
• What did NOT change: No changes to message-utils.ts. No changes to how forwarded messages are handled in regular message processing (resolveDiscordMessageText). No export surface changes.

Change Type (select all)

• Bug fix

Scope (select all touched areas)

• Integrations

Linked Issue/PR

• Closes #60129
• This PR fixes a bug or regression

Root Cause / Regression History (if applicable)

• Root cause: resolveDiscordThreadStarter was written before Discord added the Forward feature (message_reference type 1). It only handles content and embeds, which covers normal messages and rich embeds but not forwarded messages where content is empty and the actual text is in message_snapshots.
• Missing detection / guardrail: No test case for forwarded message as thread starter.
• Prior context: The regular message path (resolveDiscordMessageText at L525) already handles message_snapshots correctly via resolveDiscordForwardedMessagesText. The thread starter path was simply never updated.
• Why this regressed now: Not a regression — it was never supported. Discord's Forward feature is relatively new.

Regression Test Plan (if applicable)

• Coverage level that should have caught this:
  • Unit test
• Target test or file: threading.starter.test.ts
• Scenario the test should lock in: Thread starter with empty content + populated message_snapshots → text extracted
• Why this is the smallest reliable guardrail: Unit test on resolveDiscordThreadStarter with mocked REST response covers the exact code path
• 3 new tests added:
  1. FM with content in message_snapshots → extracts text
  2. Normal message with content + snapshots → prefers content
  3. Empty content + empty snapshots → returns null

User-visible / Behavior Changes

When includeThreadStarter: true is configured and a thread is created on a Forwarded Message, the agent session now receives the forwarded text as context. Previously it received nothing.

Diagram (if applicable)

Before:
[FM as thread starter] -> resolveDiscordThreadStarter
  -> content="" -> embeds=[] -> return null ❌

After:
[FM as thread starter] -> resolveDiscordThreadStarter
  -> content="" -> embeds=[] -> message_snapshots[0].message.content="task text"
  -> return "[Forwarded message]\ntask text" ✅

Security Impact (required)

• New permissions/capabilities? No
• Secrets/tokens handling changed? No
• New/changed network calls? No
• Command/tool execution surface changed? No
• Data access scope changed? No

Repro + Verification

Environment

• OS: macOS (Darwin 25.4.0 arm64)
• Runtime: Node v22.17.0
• OpenClaw: latest npm (2026.4.3)
• Integration: Discord with includeThreadStarter: true

Steps

1. Forward a message to a Discord channel
2. Create a thread on the forwarded message (manual or autoThread)
3. Mention the bot in the thread

Expected

Session includes forwarded message text as thread starter context

Actual (before fix)

Thread starter is null, session has no FM context

Evidence

• Failing test/log before + passing after
• All 6 tests pass (3 existing + 3 new): vitest run threading.starter.test.ts
• Pre-commit hooks pass: pnpm check (tsgo, lint, all checks)
• Verified with live Discord API data: FM message has content: "", flags: 16416 (IS_FORWARD + HAS_THREAD), text in message_snapshots[0].message.content

Human Verification (required)

• Verified scenarios: Inspected live Discord API responses for forwarded messages, confirmed content is empty and message_snapshots contains the text. Ran full test suite locally.
• Edge cases checked: Empty snapshots array, snapshots with no message, normal messages with both content and snapshots (content takes priority)
• What I did NOT verify: End-to-end with a running OpenClaw instance (verified data structure against live API responses and unit tests only)

Review Conversations

• I replied to or resolved every bot review conversation I addressed in this PR.
• I left unresolved only the conversations that still need reviewer or maintainer judgment.

v1 had Greptile concerns about fragile as unknown as Message cast and unnecessary export of resolveDiscordMessageSnapshots. v2 addresses both: uses a self-contained local helper (resolveStarterForwardedText) that operates directly on the typed REST response, no cross-module imports or casts needed.

Compatibility / Migration

• Backward compatible? Yes
• Config/env changes? No
• Migration needed? No

Risks and Mitigations

• Risk: message_snapshots structure could change in future Discord API versions
  • Mitigation: The helper gracefully returns "" for any unexpected structure (missing array, missing message, missing content). Falls through to existing return null path.

AI-Assisted

• AI-assisted (OpenClaw agent authored the code with human direction and review)
• Fully tested (6 unit tests, pre-commit checks)
• Understand what the code does

Changed files

• extensions/discord/src/monitor/threading.starter.test.ts (modified, +93/-0)
• extensions/discord/src/monitor/threading.ts (modified, +38/-1)