Reworked contact system and fixed ack sending

config.example.toml

@@ -28,9 +28,12 @@ sqlite_path = "data/lorabot.db"
 # MeshCore MAX_PACKET_PAYLOAD is 184 bytes. Lower this if your text-frame
 # headers further constrain the usable payload on your device.
 max_bytes = 184
-# Seconds to wait for an ACK before treating a chunk as failed.
-ack_timeout_seconds = 30
-# How many times to retry a chunk after failure (0 = no retries).
+# Per-attempt ACK wait. 0 = trust the device's path-aware suggestion (recommended).
+# Set a positive value only if you need to override that suggestion.
+ack_timeout_seconds = 0
+# How many times to retry a chunk after failure (0 = no retries). Total attempts
+# = send_retries + 1. With send_retries >= 2 the third attempt onwards is sent as
+# a flood broadcast (multi-hop) instead of direct.
 send_retries = 1
 
 [web]
@@ -47,7 +50,7 @@ enabled          = true
 interval_seconds = 3600
 at_startup       = true
 # Flood = multi-hop advert across the mesh. False = zero-hop (neighbors only).
-flood            = false
+flood            = true
 
 # LLM tool calling. The weather tool (Open-Meteo, no key) is always on. Tools
 # in this section are optional and only registered when configured. Requires a

src/lorabot/bot.py

@@ -56,10 +56,17 @@ async def run(cfg: Settings | None = None) -> None:
         mc = await MeshCore.create_serial(cfg.meshcore.serial_port, cfg.meshcore.baud_rate)
         # Default is False: the lib only marks contacts dirty on ADVERTISEMENT and
         # waits for the caller to re-pull. Turn it on so a fresh advert is reflected
-        # in the local cache before the peer's first DM lands.
-        mc.auto_update_contacts = True
+        # in the local cache before the peer's first DM lands. Not needed anymore since we're tracking 
+        # contacts ourselves now.
+        # mc.auto_update_contacts = True
         await mc.ensure_contacts()
-        transport = MeshTransport(mc, ack_timeout=cfg.message.ack_timeout_seconds, send_retries=cfg.message.send_retries)
+        transport = MeshTransport(
+            mc,
+            db_conn,
+            ack_timeout=cfg.message.ack_timeout_seconds,
+            send_retries=cfg.message.send_retries,
+        )
+        transport.sync_contacts()
     except BaseException:
         state.set_connected(False)
         if web_task is not None:
@@ -102,6 +109,7 @@ async def run(cfg: Settings | None = None) -> None:
     )
 
     sub = mc.subscribe(EventType.CONTACT_MSG_RECV, on_dm)
+    sub_contacts = mc.subscribe(EventType.NEW_CONTACT, transport.on_new_contact)
     await mc.start_auto_message_fetching()
     log.info("lorabot listening on %s", cfg.meshcore.serial_port)
 
@@ -111,6 +119,7 @@ async def run(cfg: Settings | None = None) -> None:
         state.set_connected(False)
         state.set_advertise_callback(None)
         mc.unsubscribe(sub)
+        mc.unsubscribe(sub_contacts)
         await mc.stop_auto_message_fetching()
         await mc.disconnect()
         await llm.aclose()

src/lorabot/config.py

@@ -37,7 +37,13 @@ class StorageCfg(BaseModel):
 
 class MessageCfg(BaseModel):
     max_bytes: int = Field(default=184, gt=0)
-    ack_timeout_seconds: float = Field(default=30.0, gt=0)
+    # 0 = use the device's path-aware suggested timeout (recommended). Set a
+    # positive value to override per attempt — useful only when the device's
+    # suggestion is consistently wrong for your link conditions.
+    ack_timeout_seconds: float = Field(default=0.0, ge=0)
+    # Number of retries after the first attempt. Total attempts = send_retries + 1.
+    # With send_retries >= 2 the third attempt onwards is sent as a flood broadcast
+    # (multi-hop) instead of direct — see meshcore's send_msg_with_retry.
     send_retries: int = Field(default=1, ge=0)
 
 

src/lorabot/db.py

@@ -1,11 +1,19 @@
-"""SQLite persistence for per-sender conversation history."""
+"""SQLite persistence for conversation history and contacts."""
 
 from __future__ import annotations
 
+import json
 import sqlite3
 from pathlib import Path
 
 SCHEMA = """
+CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS contacts (
+    public_key  TEXT PRIMARY KEY,
+    adv_name    TEXT,
+    data        TEXT NOT NULL,
+    seen_at     TEXT NOT NULL DEFAULT (datetime('now'))
+);
+
 CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS conversations (
     public_key       TEXT PRIMARY KEY,
     contact_name     TEXT,
@@ -126,6 +134,28 @@ def set_thinking_enabled(conn: sqlite3.Connection, public_key: str, enabled: boo
     )
 
 
+def upsert_contact(conn: sqlite3.Connection, contact: dict) -> None:
+    conn.execute(
+        """
+        INSERT INTO contacts (public_key, adv_name, data)
+        VALUES (?, ?, ?)
+        ON CONFLICT(public_key) DO UPDATE SET
+            adv_name = excluded.adv_name,
+            data     = excluded.data,
+            seen_at  = datetime('now')
+        """,
+        (contact["public_key"], contact.get("adv_name"), json.dumps(contact)),
+    )
+
+
+def get_contact_by_key_prefix(conn: sqlite3.Connection, prefix: str) -> dict | None:
+    row = conn.execute(
+        "SELECT data FROM contacts WHERE public_key LIKE ? || '%'",
+        (prefix,),
+    ).fetchone()
+    return json.loads(row["data"]) if row is not None else None
+
+
 def clear_history(conn: sqlite3.Connection, public_key: str) -> None:
     """Bump the per-conversation watermark to the current max message id.
 

src/lorabot/handler.py

@@ -104,7 +104,7 @@ def build_dm_handler(
         if not prefix or not text:
             return
 
-        contact = await transport.resolve_contact(prefix)
+        contact = transport.resolve_contact(prefix)
         if contact is None:
             log.info("ignoring DM from unknown sender %s (no contact after refresh)", prefix)
             return

src/lorabot/transport.py

@@ -4,14 +4,17 @@ from __future__ import annotations
 
 import asyncio
 import logging
+import sqlite3
 from collections import defaultdict
 
 from meshcore import EventType, MeshCore
 
+from . import db
 from .messages import split_to_bytes
 
 log = logging.getLogger("lorabot")
 
+
 class MeshTransport:
     """Owns the MeshCore connection reference; handles contact resolution and
     reliable chunked message delivery.
@@ -19,28 +22,46 @@ class MeshTransport:
     Create one instance per MeshCore connection and pass it to build_dm_handler.
     """
 
-    def __init__(self, mc: MeshCore, ack_timeout: float = 30.0, send_retries: int = 1) -> None:
+    def __init__(
+        self,
+        mc: MeshCore,
+        db_conn: sqlite3.Connection,
+        ack_timeout: float = 0.0,
+        send_retries: int = 1,
+    ) -> None:
         self._mc = mc
+        self._db = db_conn
         self._ack_timeout = ack_timeout
         self._send_retries = send_retries
-        self._contacts_lock = asyncio.Lock()
         self._send_locks: defaultdict[str, asyncio.Lock] = defaultdict(asyncio.Lock)
 
-    async def resolve_contact(self, prefix: str):
-        """Look up a contact by pubkey prefix; re-pull contacts from the device on miss."""
-        contact = self._mc.get_contact_by_key_prefix(prefix)
-        if contact is not None:
-            return contact
-        async with self._contacts_lock:
-            contact = self._mc.get_contact_by_key_prefix(prefix)
-            if contact is not None:
-                return contact
-            try:
-                await self._mc.commands.get_contacts()
-            except Exception:
-                log.exception("get_contacts refresh failed")
-                return None
-            return self._mc.get_contact_by_key_prefix(prefix)
+    # ------------------------------------------------------------------
+    # Contact management
+    # ------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+    def sync_contacts(self) -> None:
+        """Bulk-upsert the device's current contact list into the DB.
+
+        Call once after the initial ensure_contacts() on connect.
+        """
+        for contact in self._mc.contacts.values():
+            db.upsert_contact(self._db, contact)
+        log.info("synced %d contacts to DB", len(self._mc.contacts))
+
+    async def on_new_contact(self, event) -> None:
+        """Subscriber for EventType.NEW_CONTACT — persists the contact to DB."""
+        contact = event.payload
+        db.upsert_contact(self._db, contact)
+        log.info("new contact stored: %s (%s)",
+                 contact.get("adv_name", ""), contact["public_key"][:12])
+
+    def resolve_contact(self, prefix: str):
+        """Look up a contact by pubkey prefix from the local DB."""
+        return db.get_contact_by_key_prefix(self._db, prefix)
+
+    # ------------------------------------------------------------------
+    # Chunked sending
+    # ------------------------------------------------------------------
 
     async def send_chunked(
         self,
@@ -74,27 +95,32 @@ class MeshTransport:
         return "".join(sent)
 
     async def _send_chunk(self, contact, chunk: str) -> bool:
-        """Send one chunk, retrying once on failure."""
-        for attempt in range(self._send_retries + 1):
-            if await self._attempt_send(contact, chunk):
-                return True
-            if attempt < self._send_retries:
-                log.info("retrying chunk for %s (attempt %d/%d)",
-                         contact["public_key"][:12], attempt + 2, self._send_retries + 1)
-        log.error("chunk delivery failed for %s after %d attempts",
-                  contact["public_key"][:12], self._send_retries + 1)
-        return False
+        """Send one chunk and wait for the recipient ACK.
 
-    async def _attempt_send(self, contact, chunk: str) -> bool:
-        """One send attempt. Returns True on ACK, False on device error or timeout."""
+        Delegates to ``send_msg_with_retry`` which correlates the ACK event by
+        ``expected_ack`` code and retries up to ``max_attempts`` times. Returns
+        ``None`` when no ACK arrives across all attempts.
+
+        Note on the library's default ``flood_after=2``: from the third attempt
+        onwards the library resets the path and re-sends as a flood broadcast.
+        This only kicks in when ``send_retries >= 2`` (max_attempts >= 3); with
+        the default ``send_retries=1`` we stay direct-only.
+        """
+        pk_short = contact["public_key"][:12]
         try:
-            result = await asyncio.wait_for(
-                self._mc.commands.send_msg(contact, chunk), timeout=self._ack_timeout
+            result = await self._mc.commands.send_msg_with_retry(
+                contact, chunk,
+                max_attempts=self._send_retries + 1,
+                timeout=self._ack_timeout,
             )
-            if result.type != EventType.ERROR:
-                return True
-            log.warning("send_msg error for %s: %s", contact["public_key"][:12], result.payload)
-        except asyncio.TimeoutError:
-            log.warning("ACK timeout for %s after %.1fs",
-                        contact["public_key"][:12], self._ack_timeout)
+        except Exception:
+            log.exception("send to %s raised", pk_short)
             return False
+        if result is None:
+            log.error("no ACK from %s after %d attempts",
+                      pk_short, self._send_retries + 1)
+            return False
+        if result.type == EventType.ERROR:
+            log.warning("send_msg error for %s: %s", pk_short, result.payload)
+            return False
+        return True

src/lorabot/web.py

@@ -58,6 +58,7 @@ class AppState:
             "last_advert_at": _iso(self.last_advert_at),
             "last_advert_ok": self.last_advert_ok,
             "advertise_available": self._advertise is not None,
+            "contact_count": self.db.execute("SELECT COUNT(*) FROM contacts").fetchone()[0],
         }
 
     def set_advertise_callback(self, cb: AdvertCallback | None) -> None:
@@ -145,6 +146,13 @@ def _list_conversations(db: sqlite3.Connection) -> list[dict]:
     return [dict(r) for r in rows]
 
 
+def _list_contacts(db: sqlite3.Connection) -> list[dict]:
+    rows = db.execute(
+        "SELECT public_key, adv_name, seen_at FROM contacts ORDER BY adv_name ASC"
+    ).fetchall()
+    return [dict(r) for r in rows]
+
+
 def _get_conversation(db: sqlite3.Connection, public_key: str) -> dict | None:
     conv = db.execute(
         "SELECT public_key, contact_name, cleared_at_id, created_at, updated_at "
@@ -173,6 +181,10 @@ async def _api_conversations(req: web.Request) -> web.Response:
     return web.json_response(_list_conversations(_state(req).db))
 
 
+async def _api_contacts(req: web.Request) -> web.Response:
+    return web.json_response(_list_contacts(_state(req).db))
+
+
 def _require_same_origin(req: web.Request) -> None:
     """Reject obvious cross-site browser requests on state-changing endpoints.
 
@@ -249,6 +261,7 @@ def build_app(state: AppState) -> web.Application:
     app.router.add_get("/", _index)
     app.router.add_get("/api/status", _api_status)
     app.router.add_get("/api/conversations", _api_conversations)
+    app.router.add_get("/api/contacts", _api_contacts)
     app.router.add_get("/api/conversations/{pk}", _api_conversation)
     app.router.add_get("/api/events", _api_events)
     app.router.add_post("/api/advertise", _api_advertise)
@@ -320,13 +333,34 @@ aside {
   overflow-y: auto;
   background: var(--bg-alt);
 }
-.aside-head {
-  padding: 8px 14px;
-  color: var(--dim);
+.tabs {
+  display: flex;
   border-bottom: 1px dashed var(--line);
-  text-transform: lowercase;
-  letter-spacing: 1px;
 }
+.tab-btn {
+  background: transparent;
+  color: var(--dim);
+  border: none;
+  border-right: 1px solid var(--line);
+  font: inherit;
+  font-size: 12px;
+  padding: 7px 12px;
+  cursor: pointer;
+  flex: 1;
+  text-align: left;
+  letter-spacing: 0.5px;
+  text-transform: lowercase;
+}
+.tab-btn:last-child { border-right: none; }
+.tab-btn.active { color: var(--accent); }
+.tab-btn:hover:not(.active) { color: var(--fg); }
+.contact {
+  padding: 8px 14px;
+  border-bottom: 1px solid var(--line);
+}
+.contact .cname { white-space: nowrap; overflow: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis; }
+.contact .cname::before { content: "@ "; color: var(--dim); }
+.contact .cdetail { color: var(--dim); font-size: 11px; display: flex; justify-content: space-between; gap: 8px; margin-top: 2px; }
 .conv {
   padding: 8px 14px;
   cursor: pointer;
@@ -410,7 +444,10 @@ section { display: flex; flex-direction: column; min-height: 0; }
 </header>
 <main>
   <aside>
-    <div class="aside-head">conversations</div>
+    <div class="tabs">
+      <button class="tab-btn active" id="tab-convs" type="button">conversations</button>
+      <button class="tab-btn" id="tab-contacts" type="button">contacts (<span id="contact-count">—</span>)</button>
+    </div>
     <div id="sidebar"><div class="empty">none yet<span class="cursor"></span></div></div>
   </aside>
   <section>
@@ -426,8 +463,10 @@ section { display: flex; flex-direction: column; min-height: 0; }
 "use strict";
 const $ = (id) => document.getElementById(id);
 let conversations = [];
+let contacts = [];
 let selectedKey = null;
 let connectedSince = null;
+let activeTab = "convs";
 
 function escapeHTML(s) {
   return (s == null ? "" : String(s)).replace(/[&<>"']/g, (c) => ({
@@ -565,6 +604,7 @@ function setStatus(s) {
   const btn = $("advert-btn");
   btn.disabled = !s.advertise_available;
   connectedSince = s.connected_since;
+  if (s.contact_count != null) $("contact-count").textContent = s.contact_count;
   tickUptime();
 }
 
@@ -592,6 +632,38 @@ function tickUptime() {
 }
 setInterval(tickUptime, 1000);
 
+function renderContacts() {
+  const el = $("sidebar");
+  if (!contacts.length) {
+    el.innerHTML = '<div class="empty">no contacts yet</div>';
+    return;
+  }
+  el.innerHTML = contacts.map((c) => `
+    <div class="contact">
+      <div class="cname">${escapeHTML(c.adv_name || "?")}</div>
+      <div class="cdetail">
+        <span>${escapeHTML(c.public_key.slice(0, 16))}…</span>
+        <span>${escapeHTML(fmtTime(c.seen_at))}</span>
+      </div>
+    </div>`).join("");
+}
+
+function setTab(tab) {
+  activeTab = tab;
+  $("tab-convs").classList.toggle("active", tab === "convs");
+  $("tab-contacts").classList.toggle("active", tab === "contacts");
+  if (tab === "convs") renderSidebar();
+  else refreshContacts();
+}
+
+async function refreshContacts() {
+  try {
+    contacts = await fetchJSON("/api/contacts");
+    $("contact-count").textContent = contacts.length;
+  } catch (e) { /* silently ignore */ }
+  if (activeTab === "contacts") renderContacts();
+}
+
 async function refreshList() {
   conversations = await fetchJSON("/api/conversations");
   renderSidebar();
@@ -633,6 +705,8 @@ function startStream() {
 
 (async function init() {
   $("advert-btn").addEventListener("click", sendAdvert);
+  $("tab-convs").addEventListener("click", () => setTab("convs"));
+  $("tab-contacts").addEventListener("click", () => setTab("contacts"));
   try {
     setStatus(await fetchJSON("/api/status"));
     await refreshList();