pty ls: lean output by default, full tags behind a flag

[schickling-assistant]

Problem

pty ls prints the full per-session tag set (every #key=value: runtime-profile paths, skills/manifest paths, process.state.*, resume keys, etc.) inline for every session by default. On a host with many sessions this is very large, and consumers that only need the essentials — id | label | status | command | uptime — have to wade through, or parse around, the full metadata block. Programmatic/agent consumers that pipe pty ls into their working set pay for all of it, every call.

Proposal — lean by default, verbose on demand

Adopt the docker ps / kubectl get convention:

• Default pty ls → a compact table: id | label | status | command | uptime (+ host where relevant).
• pty ls --full / --tags / -o json → the current full tag metadata.

Why

• Keeps the common case ("what's running?") readable and cheap to consume.
• Tags are debug/machine metadata; they shouldn't be the default payload.
• Helps both humans scanning sessions and tools/scripts ingesting the list.

Note

pty ls --json today also embeds the full tags; a lean default there (tags behind an explicit --tags/--full) would help scripted consumers the most.

Posted on behalf of @schickling

field	value
agent_name	⭐ cl2-aster
agent_session_id	21f45f1e-6144-52e0-99b6-307c546a8370
agent_tool	Claude Code
agent_tool_version	2.1.201
agent_runtime	Claude Code 2.1.201
agent_model	claude-opus-4-8
runtime_profile	/nix/store/5bkm466h121236vcc4sx467hsan9382j-coding-agent-runtime-profile/share/coding-agents/profile.json
skills_manifest	/nix/store/fvj9gyni5y0kypcna51kb0bwns7z2kcc-agent-skills-corpus/share/agent-skills/manifest.json
worktree	smalltalk-md
machine	dev3
tooling_profile	dotfiles@e9a23d3