fix: decouple Discord inbound worker timeout from listener timeout (#36602) (thanks @dutifulbob) (#36602)

Co-authored-by: Onur Solmaz <2453968+osolmaz@users.noreply.github.com>
2026-03-12 07:20:45 +00:00 · 2026-03-06 00:09:14 +01:00
parent 97ea9df57f
commit 063e493d3d
17 changed files with 1047 additions and 253 deletions
--- a/CHANGELOG.md
+++ b/CHANGELOG.md
@@ -144,6 +144,7 @@ Docs: https://docs.openclaw.ai
 - Agents/failover service-unavailable handling: stop treating bare proxy/CDN `service unavailable` errors as provider overload while keeping them retryable via the timeout/failover path, so transient outages no longer show false rate-limit warnings or block fallback. (#36646) thanks @jnMetaCode.
 - Agents/current-time UTC anchor: append a machine-readable UTC suffix alongside local `Current time:` lines in shared cron-style prompt contexts so agents can compare UTC-stamped workspace timestamps without doing timezone math. (#32423) thanks @jriff.
 - TUI/webchat command-owner scope alignment: treat internal-channel gateway sessions with `operator.admin` as owner-authorized in command auth, restoring cron/gateway/connector tool access for affected TUI/webchat sessions while keeping external channels on identity-based owner checks. (from #35666, #35673, #35704) Thanks @Naylenv, @Octane0411, and @Sid-Qin.
+- Discord/inbound timeout isolation: separate inbound worker timeout tracking from listener timeout budgets so queued Discord replies are no longer dropped when listener watchdog windows expire mid-run. (#36602) Thanks @dutifulbob.

 ## 2026.3.2

--- a/docs/channels/discord.md
+++ b/docs/channels/discord.md
@@ -1102,12 +1102,19 @@ openclaw logs --follow

    - `Listener DiscordMessageListener timed out after 30000ms for event MESSAGE_CREATE`
    - `Slow listener detected ...`
+    - `discord inbound worker timed out after ...`

-    Canonical knob:
+    Listener budget knob:

    - single-account: `channels.discord.eventQueue.listenerTimeout`
    - multi-account: `channels.discord.accounts.<accountId>.eventQueue.listenerTimeout`

+    Worker run timeout knob:
+
+    - single-account: `channels.discord.inboundWorker.runTimeoutMs`
+    - multi-account: `channels.discord.accounts.<accountId>.inboundWorker.runTimeoutMs`
+    - default: `1800000` (30 minutes); set `0` to disable
+
    Recommended baseline:

 ```json5
@@ -1119,6 +1126,9 @@ openclaw logs --follow
          eventQueue: {
            listenerTimeout: 120000,
          },
+          inboundWorker: {
+            runTimeoutMs: 1800000,
+          },
        },
      },
    },
@@ -1126,7 +1136,8 @@ openclaw logs --follow
 }
 ```

-    Tune this first before adding alternate timeout controls elsewhere.
+    Use `eventQueue.listenerTimeout` for slow listener setup and `inboundWorker.runTimeoutMs`
+    only if you want a separate safety valve for queued agent turns.

  </Accordion>

@@ -1177,7 +1188,8 @@ High-signal Discord fields:
 - startup/auth: `enabled`, `token`, `accounts.*`, `allowBots`
 - policy: `groupPolicy`, `dm.*`, `guilds.*`, `guilds.*.channels.*`
 - command: `commands.native`, `commands.useAccessGroups`, `configWrites`, `slashCommand.*`
- event queue: `eventQueue.listenerTimeout` (canonical), `eventQueue.maxQueueSize`, `eventQueue.maxConcurrency`
+- event queue: `eventQueue.listenerTimeout` (listener budget), `eventQueue.maxQueueSize`, `eventQueue.maxConcurrency`
+- inbound worker: `inboundWorker.runTimeoutMs`
 - reply/history: `replyToMode`, `historyLimit`, `dmHistoryLimit`, `dms.*.historyLimit`
 - delivery: `textChunkLimit`, `chunkMode`, `maxLinesPerMessage`
 - streaming: `streaming` (legacy alias: `streamMode`), `draftChunk`, `blockStreaming`, `blockStreamingCoalesce`
--- a/docs/experiments/plans/discord-async-inbound-worker.md
+++ b/docs/experiments/plans/discord-async-inbound-worker.md
@@ -0,0 +1,337 @@
+---
+summary: "Status and next steps for decoupling Discord gateway listeners from long-running agent turns with a Discord-specific inbound worker"
+owner: "openclaw"
+status: "in_progress"
+last_updated: "2026-03-05"
+title: "Discord Async Inbound Worker Plan"
+---
+
+# Discord Async Inbound Worker Plan
+
+## Objective
+
+Remove Discord listener timeout as a user-facing failure mode by making inbound Discord turns asynchronous:
+
+1. Gateway listener accepts and normalizes inbound events quickly.
+2. A Discord run queue stores serialized jobs keyed by the same ordering boundary we use today.
+3. A worker executes the actual agent turn outside the Carbon listener lifetime.
+4. Replies are delivered back to the originating channel or thread after the run completes.
+
+This is the long-term fix for queued Discord runs timing out at `channels.discord.eventQueue.listenerTimeout` while the agent run itself is still making progress.
+
+## Current status
+
+This plan is partially implemented.
+
+Already done:
+
+- Discord listener timeout and Discord run timeout are now separate settings.
+- Accepted inbound Discord turns are enqueued into `src/discord/monitor/inbound-worker.ts`.
+- The worker now owns the long-running turn instead of the Carbon listener.
+- Existing per-route ordering is preserved by queue key.
+- Timeout regression coverage exists for the Discord worker path.
+
+What this means in plain language:
+
+- the production timeout bug is fixed
+- the long-running turn no longer dies just because the Discord listener budget expires
+- the worker architecture is not finished yet
+
+What is still missing:
+
+- `DiscordInboundJob` is still only partially normalized and still carries live runtime references
+- command semantics (`stop`, `new`, `reset`, future session controls) are not yet fully worker-native
+- worker observability and operator status are still minimal
+- there is still no restart durability
+
+## Why this exists
+
+Current behavior ties the full agent turn to the listener lifetime:
+
+- `src/discord/monitor/listeners.ts` applies the timeout and abort boundary.
+- `src/discord/monitor/message-handler.ts` keeps the queued run inside that boundary.
+- `src/discord/monitor/message-handler.process.ts` performs media loading, routing, dispatch, typing, draft streaming, and final reply delivery inline.
+
+That architecture has two bad properties:
+
+- long but healthy turns can be aborted by the listener watchdog
+- users can see no reply even when the downstream runtime would have produced one
+
+Raising the timeout helps but does not change the failure mode.
+
+## Non-goals
+
+- Do not redesign non-Discord channels in this pass.
+- Do not broaden this into a generic all-channel worker framework in the first implementation.
+- Do not extract a shared cross-channel inbound worker abstraction yet; only share low-level primitives when duplication is obvious.
+- Do not add durable crash recovery in the first pass unless needed to land safely.
+- Do not change route selection, binding semantics, or ACP policy in this plan.
+
+## Current constraints
+
+The current Discord processing path still depends on some live runtime objects that should not stay inside the long-term job payload:
+
+- Carbon `Client`
+- raw Discord event shapes
+- in-memory guild history map
+- thread binding manager callbacks
+- live typing and draft stream state
+
+We already moved execution onto a worker queue, but the normalization boundary is still incomplete. Right now the worker is "run later in the same process with some of the same live objects," not a fully data-only job boundary.
+
+## Target architecture
+
+### 1. Listener stage
+
+`DiscordMessageListener` remains the ingress point, but its job becomes:
+
+- run preflight and policy checks
+- normalize accepted input into a serializable `DiscordInboundJob`
+- enqueue the job into a per-session or per-channel async queue
+- return immediately to Carbon once the enqueue succeeds
+
+The listener should no longer own the end-to-end LLM turn lifetime.
+
+### 2. Normalized job payload
+
+Introduce a serializable job descriptor that contains only the data needed to run the turn later.
+
+Minimum shape:
+
+- route identity
+  - `agentId`
+  - `sessionKey`
+  - `accountId`
+  - `channel`
+- delivery identity
+  - destination channel id
+  - reply target message id
+  - thread id if present
+- sender identity
+  - sender id, label, username, tag
+- channel context
+  - guild id
+  - channel name or slug
+  - thread metadata
+  - resolved system prompt override
+- normalized message body
+  - base text
+  - effective message text
+  - attachment descriptors or resolved media references
+- gating decisions
+  - mention requirement outcome
+  - command authorization outcome
+  - bound session or agent metadata if applicable
+
+The job payload must not contain live Carbon objects or mutable closures.
+
+Current implementation status:
+
+- partially done
+- `src/discord/monitor/inbound-job.ts` exists and defines the worker handoff
+- the payload still contains live Discord runtime context and should be reduced further
+
+### 3. Worker stage
+
+Add a Discord-specific worker runner responsible for:
+
+- reconstructing the turn context from `DiscordInboundJob`
+- loading media and any additional channel metadata needed for the run
+- dispatching the agent turn
+- delivering final reply payloads
+- updating status and diagnostics
+
+Recommended location:
+
+- `src/discord/monitor/inbound-worker.ts`
+- `src/discord/monitor/inbound-job.ts`
+
+### 4. Ordering model
+
+Ordering must remain equivalent to today for a given route boundary.
+
+Recommended key:
+
+- use the same queue key logic as `resolveDiscordRunQueueKey(...)`
+
+This preserves existing behavior:
+
+- one bound agent conversation does not interleave with itself
+- different Discord channels can still progress independently
+
+### 5. Timeout model
+
+After cutover, there are two separate timeout classes:
+
+- listener timeout
+  - only covers normalization and enqueue
+  - should be short
+- run timeout
+  - optional, worker-owned, explicit, and user-visible
+  - should not be inherited accidentally from Carbon listener settings
+
+This removes the current accidental coupling between "Discord gateway listener stayed alive" and "agent run is healthy."
+
+## Recommended implementation phases
+
+### Phase 1: normalization boundary
+
+- Status: partially implemented
+- Done:
+  - extracted `buildDiscordInboundJob(...)`
+  - added worker handoff tests
+- Remaining:
+  - make `DiscordInboundJob` plain data only
+  - move live runtime dependencies to worker-owned services instead of per-job payload
+  - stop rebuilding process context by stitching live listener refs back into the job
+
+### Phase 2: in-memory worker queue
+
+- Status: implemented
+- Done:
+  - added `DiscordInboundWorkerQueue` keyed by resolved run queue key
+  - listener enqueues jobs instead of directly awaiting `processDiscordMessage(...)`
+  - worker executes jobs in-process, in memory only
+
+This is the first functional cutover.
+
+### Phase 3: process split
+
+- Status: not started
+- Move delivery, typing, and draft streaming ownership behind worker-facing adapters.
+- Replace direct use of live preflight context with worker context reconstruction.
+- Keep `processDiscordMessage(...)` temporarily as a facade if needed, then split it.
+
+### Phase 4: command semantics
+
+- Status: not started
+  Make sure native Discord commands still behave correctly when work is queued:
+
+- `stop`
+- `new`
+- `reset`
+- any future session-control commands
+
+The worker queue must expose enough run state for commands to target the active or queued turn.
+
+### Phase 5: observability and operator UX
+
+- Status: not started
+- emit queue depth and active worker counts into monitor status
+- record enqueue time, start time, finish time, and timeout or cancellation reason
+- surface worker-owned timeout or delivery failures clearly in logs
+
+### Phase 6: optional durability follow-up
+
+- Status: not started
+  Only after the in-memory version is stable:
+
+- decide whether queued Discord jobs should survive gateway restart
+- if yes, persist job descriptors and delivery checkpoints
+- if no, document the explicit in-memory boundary
+
+This should be a separate follow-up unless restart recovery is required to land.
+
+## File impact
+
+Current primary files:
+
+- `src/discord/monitor/listeners.ts`
+- `src/discord/monitor/message-handler.ts`
+- `src/discord/monitor/message-handler.preflight.ts`
+- `src/discord/monitor/message-handler.process.ts`
+- `src/discord/monitor/status.ts`
+
+Current worker files:
+
+- `src/discord/monitor/inbound-job.ts`
+- `src/discord/monitor/inbound-worker.ts`
+- `src/discord/monitor/inbound-job.test.ts`
+- `src/discord/monitor/message-handler.queue.test.ts`
+
+Likely next touch points:
+
+- `src/auto-reply/dispatch.ts`
+- `src/discord/monitor/reply-delivery.ts`
+- `src/discord/monitor/thread-bindings.ts`
+- `src/discord/monitor/native-command.ts`
+
+## Next step now
+
+The next step is to make the worker boundary real instead of partial.
+
+Do this next:
+
+1. Move live runtime dependencies out of `DiscordInboundJob`
+2. Keep those dependencies on the Discord worker instance instead
+3. Reduce queued jobs to plain Discord-specific data:
+   - route identity
+   - delivery target
+   - sender info
+   - normalized message snapshot
+   - gating and binding decisions
+4. Reconstruct worker execution context from that plain data inside the worker
+
+In practice, that means:
+
+- `client`
+- `threadBindings`
+- `guildHistories`
+- `discordRestFetch`
+- other mutable runtime-only handles
+
+should stop living on each queued job and instead live on the worker itself or behind worker-owned adapters.
+
+After that lands, the next follow-up should be command-state cleanup for `stop`, `new`, and `reset`.
+
+## Testing plan
+
+Keep the existing timeout repro coverage in:
+
+- `src/discord/monitor/message-handler.queue.test.ts`
+
+Add new tests for:
+
+1. listener returns after enqueue without awaiting full turn
+2. per-route ordering is preserved
+3. different channels still run concurrently
+4. replies are delivered to the original message destination
+5. `stop` cancels the active worker-owned run
+6. worker failure produces visible diagnostics without blocking later jobs
+7. ACP-bound Discord channels still route correctly under worker execution
+
+## Risks and mitigations
+
+- Risk: command semantics drift from current synchronous behavior
+  Mitigation: land command-state plumbing in the same cutover, not later
+
+- Risk: reply delivery loses thread or reply-to context
+  Mitigation: make delivery identity first-class in `DiscordInboundJob`
+
+- Risk: duplicate sends during retries or queue restarts
+  Mitigation: keep first pass in-memory only, or add explicit delivery idempotency before persistence
+
+- Risk: `message-handler.process.ts` becomes harder to reason about during migration
+  Mitigation: split into normalization, execution, and delivery helpers before or during worker cutover
+
+## Acceptance criteria
+
+The plan is complete when:
+
+1. Discord listener timeout no longer aborts healthy long-running turns.
+2. Listener lifetime and agent-turn lifetime are separate concepts in code.
+3. Existing per-session ordering is preserved.
+4. ACP-bound Discord channels work through the same worker path.
+5. `stop` targets the worker-owned run instead of the old listener-owned call stack.
+6. Timeout and delivery failures become explicit worker outcomes, not silent listener drops.
+
+## Remaining landing strategy
+
+Finish this in follow-up PRs:
+
+1. make `DiscordInboundJob` plain-data only and move live runtime refs onto the worker
+2. clean up command-state ownership for `stop`, `new`, and `reset`
+3. add worker observability and operator status
+4. decide whether durability is needed or explicitly document the in-memory boundary
+
+This is still a bounded follow-up if kept Discord-only and if we continue to avoid a premature cross-channel worker abstraction.
--- a/src/config/schema.help.ts
+++ b/src/config/schema.help.ts
@@ -1,3 +1,7 @@
+import {
+  DISCORD_DEFAULT_INBOUND_WORKER_TIMEOUT_MS,
+  DISCORD_DEFAULT_LISTENER_TIMEOUT_MS,
+} from "../discord/monitor/timeouts.js";
 import { MEDIA_AUDIO_FIELD_HELP } from "./media-audio-field-metadata.js";
 import { IRC_FIELD_HELP } from "./schema.irc.js";

@@ -1451,8 +1455,8 @@ export const FIELD_HELP: Record<string, string> = {
  "channels.discord.retry.maxDelayMs": "Maximum retry delay cap in ms for Discord outbound calls.",
  "channels.discord.retry.jitter": "Jitter factor (0-1) applied to Discord retry delays.",
  "channels.discord.maxLinesPerMessage": "Soft max line count per Discord message (default: 17).",
-  "channels.discord.eventQueue.listenerTimeout":
-    "Canonical Discord listener timeout control in ms for gateway event handlers. Default is 120000 in OpenClaw; set per account via channels.discord.accounts.<id>.eventQueue.listenerTimeout.",
+  "channels.discord.inboundWorker.runTimeoutMs": `Optional queued Discord inbound worker timeout in ms. This is separate from Carbon listener timeouts; defaults to ${DISCORD_DEFAULT_INBOUND_WORKER_TIMEOUT_MS} and can be disabled with 0. Set per account via channels.discord.accounts.<id>.inboundWorker.runTimeoutMs.`,
+  "channels.discord.eventQueue.listenerTimeout": `Canonical Discord listener timeout control in ms for gateway normalization/enqueue handlers. Default is ${DISCORD_DEFAULT_LISTENER_TIMEOUT_MS} in OpenClaw; set per account via channels.discord.accounts.<id>.eventQueue.listenerTimeout.`,
  "channels.discord.eventQueue.maxQueueSize":
    "Optional Discord EventQueue capacity override (max queued events before backpressure). Set per account via channels.discord.accounts.<id>.eventQueue.maxQueueSize.",
  "channels.discord.eventQueue.maxConcurrency":
--- a/src/config/schema.labels.ts
+++ b/src/config/schema.labels.ts
@@ -722,6 +722,7 @@ export const FIELD_LABELS: Record<string, string> = {
  "channels.discord.retry.maxDelayMs": "Discord Retry Max Delay (ms)",
  "channels.discord.retry.jitter": "Discord Retry Jitter",
  "channels.discord.maxLinesPerMessage": "Discord Max Lines Per Message",
+  "channels.discord.inboundWorker.runTimeoutMs": "Discord Inbound Worker Timeout (ms)",
  "channels.discord.eventQueue.listenerTimeout": "Discord EventQueue Listener Timeout (ms)",
  "channels.discord.eventQueue.maxQueueSize": "Discord EventQueue Max Queue Size",
  "channels.discord.eventQueue.maxConcurrency": "Discord EventQueue Max Concurrency",
--- a/src/config/types.discord.ts
+++ b/src/config/types.discord.ts
@@ -330,11 +330,21 @@ export type DiscordAccountConfig = {
  activityType?: 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5;
  /** Streaming URL (Twitch/YouTube). Required when activityType=1. */
  activityUrl?: string;
+  /**
+   * In-process worker settings for queued inbound Discord runs.
+   * This is separate from Carbon's eventQueue listener budget.
+   */
+  inboundWorker?: {
+    /**
+     * Max time (ms) a queued inbound run may execute before OpenClaw aborts it.
+     * Defaults to 1800000 (30 minutes). Set 0 to disable the worker-owned timeout.
+     */
+    runTimeoutMs?: number;
+  };
  /**
   * Carbon EventQueue configuration. Controls how Discord gateway events are processed.
-   * The most important option is `listenerTimeout` which defaults to 30s in Carbon --
-   * too short for LLM calls with extended thinking. Set a higher value (e.g. 120000)
-   * to prevent the event queue from killing long-running message handlers.
+   * `listenerTimeout` only covers gateway listener work such as normalization and enqueue.
+   * It does not control the lifetime of queued inbound agent turns.
   */
  eventQueue?: {
    /** Max time (ms) a single listener can run before being killed. Default: 120000. */
--- a/src/config/zod-schema.providers-core.ts
+++ b/src/config/zod-schema.providers-core.ts
@@ -528,6 +528,12 @@ export const DiscordAccountSchema = z
      .union([z.literal(0), z.literal(1), z.literal(2), z.literal(3), z.literal(4), z.literal(5)])
      .optional(),
    activityUrl: z.string().url().optional(),
+    inboundWorker: z
+      .object({
+        runTimeoutMs: z.number().int().nonnegative().optional(),
+      })
+      .strict()
+      .optional(),
    eventQueue: z
      .object({
        listenerTimeout: z.number().int().positive().optional(),
--- a/src/discord/monitor/inbound-job.test.ts
+++ b/src/discord/monitor/inbound-job.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,148 @@
+import { Message } from "@buape/carbon";
+import { describe, expect, it } from "vitest";
+import { buildDiscordInboundJob, materializeDiscordInboundJob } from "./inbound-job.js";
+import { createBaseDiscordMessageContext } from "./message-handler.test-harness.js";
+
+describe("buildDiscordInboundJob", () => {
+  it("keeps live runtime references out of the payload", async () => {
+    const ctx = await createBaseDiscordMessageContext({
+      message: {
+        id: "m1",
+        channelId: "thread-1",
+        timestamp: new Date().toISOString(),
+        attachments: [],
+        channel: {
+          id: "thread-1",
+          isThread: () => true,
+        },
+      },
+      data: {
+        guild: { id: "g1", name: "Guild" },
+        message: {
+          id: "m1",
+          channelId: "thread-1",
+          timestamp: new Date().toISOString(),
+          attachments: [],
+          channel: {
+            id: "thread-1",
+            isThread: () => true,
+          },
+        },
+      },
+      threadChannel: {
+        id: "thread-1",
+        name: "codex",
+        parentId: "forum-1",
+        parent: {
+          id: "forum-1",
+          name: "Forum",
+        },
+        ownerId: "user-1",
+      },
+    });
+
+    const job = buildDiscordInboundJob(ctx);
+
+    expect("runtime" in job.payload).toBe(false);
+    expect("client" in job.payload).toBe(false);
+    expect("threadBindings" in job.payload).toBe(false);
+    expect("discordRestFetch" in job.payload).toBe(false);
+    expect("channel" in job.payload.message).toBe(false);
+    expect("channel" in job.payload.data.message).toBe(false);
+    expect(job.runtime.client).toBe(ctx.client);
+    expect(job.runtime.threadBindings).toBe(ctx.threadBindings);
+    expect(job.payload.threadChannel).toEqual({
+      id: "thread-1",
+      name: "codex",
+      parentId: "forum-1",
+      parent: {
+        id: "forum-1",
+        name: "Forum",
+      },
+      ownerId: "user-1",
+    });
+    expect(() => JSON.stringify(job.payload)).not.toThrow();
+  });
+
+  it("re-materializes the process context with an overridden abort signal", async () => {
+    const ctx = await createBaseDiscordMessageContext();
+    const job = buildDiscordInboundJob(ctx);
+    const overrideAbortController = new AbortController();
+
+    const rematerialized = materializeDiscordInboundJob(job, overrideAbortController.signal);
+
+    expect(rematerialized.runtime).toBe(ctx.runtime);
+    expect(rematerialized.client).toBe(ctx.client);
+    expect(rematerialized.threadBindings).toBe(ctx.threadBindings);
+    expect(rematerialized.abortSignal).toBe(overrideAbortController.signal);
+    expect(rematerialized.message).toEqual(job.payload.message);
+    expect(rematerialized.data).toEqual(job.payload.data);
+  });
+
+  it("preserves Carbon message getters across queued jobs", async () => {
+    const ctx = await createBaseDiscordMessageContext();
+    const message = new Message(
+      ctx.client as never,
+      {
+        id: "m1",
+        channel_id: "c1",
+        content: "hello",
+        attachments: [{ id: "a1", filename: "note.txt" }],
+        timestamp: new Date().toISOString(),
+        author: {
+          id: "u1",
+          username: "alice",
+          discriminator: "0",
+          avatar: null,
+        },
+        referenced_message: {
+          id: "m0",
+          channel_id: "c1",
+          content: "earlier",
+          attachments: [],
+          timestamp: new Date().toISOString(),
+          author: {
+            id: "u2",
+            username: "bob",
+            discriminator: "0",
+            avatar: null,
+          },
+          type: 0,
+          tts: false,
+          mention_everyone: false,
+          pinned: false,
+          flags: 0,
+        },
+        type: 0,
+        tts: false,
+        mention_everyone: false,
+        pinned: false,
+        flags: 0,
+      } as ConstructorParameters<typeof Message>[1],
+    );
+    const runtimeChannel = { id: "c1", isThread: () => false };
+    Object.defineProperty(message, "channel", {
+      value: runtimeChannel,
+      configurable: true,
+      enumerable: true,
+      writable: true,
+    });
+
+    const job = buildDiscordInboundJob({
+      ...ctx,
+      message,
+      data: {
+        ...ctx.data,
+        message,
+      },
+    });
+    const rematerialized = materializeDiscordInboundJob(job);
+
+    expect(job.payload.message).toBeInstanceOf(Message);
+    expect("channel" in job.payload.message).toBe(false);
+    expect(rematerialized.message.content).toBe("hello");
+    expect(rematerialized.message.attachments).toHaveLength(1);
+    expect(rematerialized.message.timestamp).toBe(message.timestamp);
+    expect(rematerialized.message.referencedMessage?.content).toBe("earlier");
+  });
+});
--- a/src/discord/monitor/inbound-job.ts
+++ b/src/discord/monitor/inbound-job.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,111 @@
+import type { DiscordMessagePreflightContext } from "./message-handler.preflight.types.js";
+
+type DiscordInboundJobRuntimeField =
+  | "runtime"
+  | "abortSignal"
+  | "guildHistories"
+  | "client"
+  | "threadBindings"
+  | "discordRestFetch";
+
+export type DiscordInboundJobRuntime = Pick<
+  DiscordMessagePreflightContext,
+  DiscordInboundJobRuntimeField
+>;
+
+export type DiscordInboundJobPayload = Omit<
+  DiscordMessagePreflightContext,
+  DiscordInboundJobRuntimeField
+>;
+
+export type DiscordInboundJob = {
+  queueKey: string;
+  payload: DiscordInboundJobPayload;
+  runtime: DiscordInboundJobRuntime;
+};
+
+export function resolveDiscordInboundJobQueueKey(ctx: DiscordMessagePreflightContext): string {
+  const sessionKey = ctx.route.sessionKey?.trim();
+  if (sessionKey) {
+    return sessionKey;
+  }
+  const baseSessionKey = ctx.baseSessionKey?.trim();
+  if (baseSessionKey) {
+    return baseSessionKey;
+  }
+  return ctx.messageChannelId;
+}
+
+export function buildDiscordInboundJob(ctx: DiscordMessagePreflightContext): DiscordInboundJob {
+  const {
+    runtime,
+    abortSignal,
+    guildHistories,
+    client,
+    threadBindings,
+    discordRestFetch,
+    message,
+    data,
+    threadChannel,
+    ...payload
+  } = ctx;
+
+  const sanitizedMessage = sanitizeDiscordInboundMessage(message);
+  return {
+    queueKey: resolveDiscordInboundJobQueueKey(ctx),
+    payload: {
+      ...payload,
+      message: sanitizedMessage,
+      data: {
+        ...data,
+        message: sanitizedMessage,
+      },
+      threadChannel: normalizeDiscordThreadChannel(threadChannel),
+    },
+    runtime: {
+      runtime,
+      abortSignal,
+      guildHistories,
+      client,
+      threadBindings,
+      discordRestFetch,
+    },
+  };
+}
+
+export function materializeDiscordInboundJob(
+  job: DiscordInboundJob,
+  abortSignal?: AbortSignal,
+): DiscordMessagePreflightContext {
+  return {
+    ...job.payload,
+    ...job.runtime,
+    abortSignal: abortSignal ?? job.runtime.abortSignal,
+  };
+}
+
+function sanitizeDiscordInboundMessage<T extends object>(message: T): T {
+  const descriptors = Object.getOwnPropertyDescriptors(message);
+  delete descriptors.channel;
+  return Object.create(Object.getPrototypeOf(message), descriptors) as T;
+}
+
+function normalizeDiscordThreadChannel(
+  threadChannel: DiscordMessagePreflightContext["threadChannel"],
+): DiscordMessagePreflightContext["threadChannel"] {
+  if (!threadChannel) {
+    return null;
+  }
+  return {
+    id: threadChannel.id,
+    name: threadChannel.name,
+    parentId: threadChannel.parentId,
+    parent: threadChannel.parent
+      ? {
+          id: threadChannel.parent.id,
+          name: threadChannel.parent.name,
+        }
+      : undefined,
+    ownerId: threadChannel.ownerId,
+  };
+}
--- a/src/discord/monitor/inbound-worker.ts
+++ b/src/discord/monitor/inbound-worker.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,105 @@
+import { createRunStateMachine } from "../../channels/run-state-machine.js";
+import { danger } from "../../globals.js";
+import { formatDurationSeconds } from "../../infra/format-time/format-duration.ts";
+import { KeyedAsyncQueue } from "../../plugin-sdk/keyed-async-queue.js";
+import { materializeDiscordInboundJob, type DiscordInboundJob } from "./inbound-job.js";
+import type { RuntimeEnv } from "./message-handler.preflight.types.js";
+import { processDiscordMessage } from "./message-handler.process.js";
+import type { DiscordMonitorStatusSink } from "./status.js";
+import { normalizeDiscordInboundWorkerTimeoutMs, runDiscordTaskWithTimeout } from "./timeouts.js";
+
+type DiscordInboundWorkerParams = {
+  runtime: RuntimeEnv;
+  setStatus?: DiscordMonitorStatusSink;
+  abortSignal?: AbortSignal;
+  runTimeoutMs?: number;
+};
+
+export type DiscordInboundWorker = {
+  enqueue: (job: DiscordInboundJob) => void;
+  deactivate: () => void;
+};
+
+function formatDiscordRunContextSuffix(job: DiscordInboundJob): string {
+  const channelId = job.payload.messageChannelId?.trim();
+  const messageId = job.payload.data?.message?.id?.trim();
+  const details = [
+    channelId ? `channelId=${channelId}` : null,
+    messageId ? `messageId=${messageId}` : null,
+  ].filter((entry): entry is string => Boolean(entry));
+  if (details.length === 0) {
+    return "";
+  }
+  return ` (${details.join(", ")})`;
+}
+
+async function processDiscordInboundJob(params: {
+  job: DiscordInboundJob;
+  runtime: RuntimeEnv;
+  lifecycleSignal?: AbortSignal;
+  runTimeoutMs?: number;
+}) {
+  const timeoutMs = normalizeDiscordInboundWorkerTimeoutMs(params.runTimeoutMs);
+  const contextSuffix = formatDiscordRunContextSuffix(params.job);
+  await runDiscordTaskWithTimeout({
+    run: async (abortSignal) => {
+      await processDiscordMessage(materializeDiscordInboundJob(params.job, abortSignal));
+    },
+    timeoutMs,
+    abortSignals: [params.job.runtime.abortSignal, params.lifecycleSignal],
+    onTimeout: (resolvedTimeoutMs) => {
+      params.runtime.error?.(
+        danger(
+          `discord inbound worker timed out after ${formatDurationSeconds(resolvedTimeoutMs, {
+            decimals: 1,
+            unit: "seconds",
+          })}${contextSuffix}`,
+        ),
+      );
+    },
+    onErrorAfterTimeout: (error) => {
+      params.runtime.error?.(
+        danger(`discord inbound worker failed after timeout: ${String(error)}${contextSuffix}`),
+      );
+    },
+  });
+}
+
+export function createDiscordInboundWorker(
+  params: DiscordInboundWorkerParams,
+): DiscordInboundWorker {
+  const runQueue = new KeyedAsyncQueue();
+  const runState = createRunStateMachine({
+    setStatus: params.setStatus,
+    abortSignal: params.abortSignal,
+  });
+
+  return {
+    enqueue(job) {
+      void runQueue
+        .enqueue(job.queueKey, async () => {
+          if (!runState.isActive()) {
+            return;
+          }
+          runState.onRunStart();
+          try {
+            if (!runState.isActive()) {
+              return;
+            }
+            await processDiscordInboundJob({
+              job,
+              runtime: params.runtime,
+              lifecycleSignal: params.abortSignal,
+              runTimeoutMs: params.runTimeoutMs,
+            });
+          } finally {
+            runState.onRunEnd();
+          }
+        })
+        .catch((error) => {
+          params.runtime.error?.(danger(`discord inbound worker failed: ${String(error)}`));
+        });
+    },
+    deactivate: runState.deactivate,
+  };
+}
--- a/src/discord/monitor/listeners.ts
+++ b/src/discord/monitor/listeners.ts
@@ -34,6 +34,7 @@ import { resolveDiscordChannelInfo } from "./message-utils.js";
 import { setPresence } from "./presence-cache.js";
 import { isThreadArchived } from "./thread-bindings.discord-api.js";
 import { closeDiscordThreadSessions } from "./thread-session-close.js";
+import { normalizeDiscordListenerTimeoutMs, runDiscordTaskWithTimeout } from "./timeouts.js";

 type LoadedConfig = ReturnType<typeof import("../../config/config.js").loadConfig>;
 type RuntimeEnv = import("../../runtime.js").RuntimeEnv;
@@ -70,16 +71,8 @@ type DiscordReactionRoutingParams = {
 };

 const DISCORD_SLOW_LISTENER_THRESHOLD_MS = 30_000;
-const DISCORD_DEFAULT_LISTENER_TIMEOUT_MS = 120_000;
 const discordEventQueueLog = createSubsystemLogger("discord/event-queue");

-function normalizeDiscordListenerTimeoutMs(raw: number | undefined): number {
-  if (!Number.isFinite(raw) || (raw ?? 0) <= 0) {
-    return DISCORD_DEFAULT_LISTENER_TIMEOUT_MS;
-  }
-  return Math.max(1_000, Math.floor(raw!));
-}
-
 function formatListenerContextValue(value: unknown): string | null {
  if (value === undefined || value === null) {
    return null;
@@ -138,57 +131,44 @@ async function runDiscordListenerWithSlowLog(params: {
  logger: Logger | undefined;
  listener: string;
  event: string;
-  run: (abortSignal: AbortSignal) => Promise<void>;
+  run: (abortSignal: AbortSignal | undefined) => Promise<void>;
  timeoutMs?: number;
  context?: Record<string, unknown>;
  onError?: (err: unknown) => void;
 }) {
  const startedAt = Date.now();
  const timeoutMs = normalizeDiscordListenerTimeoutMs(params.timeoutMs);
-  let timedOut = false;
-  let timeoutHandle: ReturnType<typeof setTimeout> | null = null;
  const logger = params.logger ?? discordEventQueueLog;
-  const abortController = new AbortController();
-  const runPromise = params.run(abortController.signal).catch((err) => {
-    if (timedOut) {
-      const errorName =
-        err && typeof err === "object" && "name" in err ? String(err.name) : undefined;
-      if (abortController.signal.aborted && errorName === "AbortError") {
+  let timedOut = false;
+
+  try {
+    timedOut = await runDiscordTaskWithTimeout({
+      run: params.run,
+      timeoutMs,
+      onTimeout: (resolvedTimeoutMs) => {
+        logger.error(
+          danger(
+            `discord handler timed out after ${formatDurationSeconds(resolvedTimeoutMs, {
+              decimals: 1,
+              unit: "seconds",
+            })}${formatListenerContextSuffix(params.context)}`,
+          ),
+        );
+      },
+      onAbortAfterTimeout: () => {
        logger.warn(
          `discord handler canceled after timeout${formatListenerContextSuffix(params.context)}`,
        );
-        return;
-      }
-      logger.error(
-        danger(
-          `discord handler failed after timeout: ${String(err)}${formatListenerContextSuffix(params.context)}`,
-        ),
-      );
-      return;
-    }
-    throw err;
-  });
-
-  try {
-    const timeoutPromise = new Promise<"timeout">((resolve) => {
-      timeoutHandle = setTimeout(() => resolve("timeout"), timeoutMs);
-      timeoutHandle.unref?.();
+      },
+      onErrorAfterTimeout: (err) => {
+        logger.error(
+          danger(
+            `discord handler failed after timeout: ${String(err)}${formatListenerContextSuffix(params.context)}`,
+          ),
+        );
+      },
    });
-    const result = await Promise.race([
-      runPromise.then(() => "completed" as const),
-      timeoutPromise,
-    ]);
-    if (result === "timeout") {
-      timedOut = true;
-      abortController.abort();
-      logger.error(
-        danger(
-          `discord handler timed out after ${formatDurationSeconds(timeoutMs, {
-            decimals: 1,
-            unit: "seconds",
-          })}${formatListenerContextSuffix(params.context)}`,
-        ),
-      );
+    if (timedOut) {
      return;
    }
  } catch (err) {
@@ -198,9 +178,6 @@ async function runDiscordListenerWithSlowLog(params: {
    }
    throw err;
  } finally {
-    if (timeoutHandle) {
-      clearTimeout(timeoutHandle);
-    }
    if (!timedOut) {
      logSlowDiscordListener({
        logger: params.logger,
--- a/src/discord/monitor/message-handler.process.ts
+++ b/src/discord/monitor/message-handler.process.ts
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-import { ChannelType } from "@buape/carbon";
+import { ChannelType, type RequestClient } from "@buape/carbon";
 import { resolveAckReaction, resolveHumanDelayConfig } from "../../agents/identity.js";
 import { EmbeddedBlockChunker } from "../../agents/pi-embedded-block-chunker.js";
 import { resolveChunkMode } from "../../auto-reply/chunk.js";
@@ -161,15 +161,17 @@ export async function processDiscordMessage(ctx: DiscordMessagePreflightContext)
      }),
    );
  const statusReactionsEnabled = shouldAckReaction();
+  // Discord outbound helpers expect Carbon's request client shape explicitly.
+  const discordRest = client.rest as unknown as RequestClient;
  const discordAdapter: StatusReactionAdapter = {
    setReaction: async (emoji) => {
      await reactMessageDiscord(messageChannelId, message.id, emoji, {
-        rest: client.rest as never,
+        rest: discordRest,
      });
    },
    removeReaction: async (emoji) => {
      await removeReactionDiscord(messageChannelId, message.id, emoji, {
-        rest: client.rest as never,
+        rest: discordRest,
      });
    },
  };
--- a/src/discord/monitor/message-handler.queue.test.ts
+++ b/src/discord/monitor/message-handler.queue.test.ts
@@ -4,6 +4,7 @@ import { createNoopThreadBindingManager } from "./thread-bindings.js";

 const preflightDiscordMessageMock = vi.hoisted(() => vi.fn());
 const processDiscordMessageMock = vi.hoisted(() => vi.fn());
+const eventualReplyDeliveredMock = vi.hoisted(() => vi.fn());

 vi.mock("./message-handler.preflight.js", () => ({
  preflightDiscordMessage: preflightDiscordMessageMock,
@@ -26,7 +27,7 @@ function createDeferred<T = void>() {
 function createHandlerParams(overrides?: {
  setStatus?: (patch: Record<string, unknown>) => void;
  abortSignal?: AbortSignal;
-  listenerTimeoutMs?: number;
+  workerRunTimeoutMs?: number;
 }) {
  const cfg: OpenClawConfig = {
    channels: {
@@ -65,7 +66,7 @@ function createHandlerParams(overrides?: {
    threadBindings: createNoopThreadBindingManager("default"),
    setStatus: overrides?.setStatus,
    abortSignal: overrides?.abortSignal,
-    listenerTimeoutMs: overrides?.listenerTimeoutMs,
+    workerRunTimeoutMs: overrides?.workerRunTimeoutMs,
  };
 }

@@ -85,6 +86,19 @@ function createMessageData(messageId: string, channelId = "ch-1") {

 function createPreflightContext(channelId = "ch-1") {
  return {
+    data: {
+      channel_id: channelId,
+      message: {
+        id: `msg-${channelId}`,
+        channel_id: channelId,
+        attachments: [],
+      },
+    },
+    message: {
+      id: `msg-${channelId}`,
+      channel_id: channelId,
+      attachments: [],
+    },
    route: {
      sessionKey: `agent:main:discord:channel:${channelId}`,
    },
@@ -169,7 +183,7 @@ describe("createDiscordMessageHandler queue behavior", () => {
    });
  });

-  it("applies listener timeout to queued runs so stalled runs do not block the queue", async () => {
+  it("applies explicit inbound worker timeout to queued runs so stalled runs do not block the queue", async () => {
    vi.useFakeTimers();
    try {
      preflightDiscordMessageMock.mockReset();
@@ -191,7 +205,7 @@ describe("createDiscordMessageHandler queue behavior", () => {
          createPreflightContext(params.data.channel_id),
      );

-      const params = createHandlerParams({ listenerTimeoutMs: 50 });
+      const params = createHandlerParams({ workerRunTimeoutMs: 50 });
      const handler = createDiscordMessageHandler(params);

      await expect(
@@ -211,7 +225,50 @@ describe("createDiscordMessageHandler queue behavior", () => {
        | undefined;
      expect(firstCtx?.abortSignal?.aborted).toBe(true);
      expect(params.runtime.error).toHaveBeenCalledWith(
-        expect.stringContaining("discord queued run timed out after"),
+        expect.stringContaining("discord inbound worker timed out after"),
+      );
+    } finally {
+      vi.useRealTimers();
+    }
+  });
+
+  it("does not time out queued runs when the inbound worker timeout is disabled", async () => {
+    vi.useFakeTimers();
+    try {
+      preflightDiscordMessageMock.mockReset();
+      processDiscordMessageMock.mockReset();
+      eventualReplyDeliveredMock.mockReset();
+
+      processDiscordMessageMock.mockImplementationOnce(
+        async (ctx: { abortSignal?: AbortSignal }) => {
+          await new Promise<void>((resolve) => {
+            setTimeout(() => {
+              if (!ctx.abortSignal?.aborted) {
+                eventualReplyDeliveredMock();
+              }
+              resolve();
+            }, 80);
+          });
+        },
+      );
+      preflightDiscordMessageMock.mockImplementation(
+        async (params: { data: { channel_id: string } }) =>
+          createPreflightContext(params.data.channel_id),
+      );
+
+      const params = createHandlerParams({ workerRunTimeoutMs: 0 });
+      const handler = createDiscordMessageHandler(params);
+
+      await expect(
+        handler(createMessageData("m-1") as never, {} as never),
+      ).resolves.toBeUndefined();
+
+      await vi.advanceTimersByTimeAsync(80);
+      await Promise.resolve();
+
+      expect(eventualReplyDeliveredMock).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(1);
+      expect(params.runtime.error).not.toHaveBeenCalledWith(
+        expect.stringContaining("discord inbound worker timed out after"),
      );
    } finally {
      vi.useRealTimers();
--- a/src/discord/monitor/message-handler.ts
+++ b/src/discord/monitor/message-handler.ts
@@ -3,18 +3,13 @@ import {
  createChannelInboundDebouncer,
  shouldDebounceTextInbound,
 } from "../../channels/inbound-debounce-policy.js";
-import { createRunStateMachine } from "../../channels/run-state-machine.js";
 import { resolveOpenProviderRuntimeGroupPolicy } from "../../config/runtime-group-policy.js";
 import { danger } from "../../globals.js";
-import { formatDurationSeconds } from "../../infra/format-time/format-duration.ts";
-import { KeyedAsyncQueue } from "../../plugin-sdk/keyed-async-queue.js";
+import { buildDiscordInboundJob } from "./inbound-job.js";
+import { createDiscordInboundWorker } from "./inbound-worker.js";
 import type { DiscordMessageEvent, DiscordMessageHandler } from "./listeners.js";
 import { preflightDiscordMessage } from "./message-handler.preflight.js";
-import type {
-  DiscordMessagePreflightContext,
-  DiscordMessagePreflightParams,
-} from "./message-handler.preflight.types.js";
-import { processDiscordMessage } from "./message-handler.process.js";
+import type { DiscordMessagePreflightParams } from "./message-handler.preflight.types.js";
 import {
  hasDiscordMessageStickers,
  resolveDiscordMessageChannelId,
@@ -28,154 +23,13 @@ type DiscordMessageHandlerParams = Omit<
 > & {
  setStatus?: DiscordMonitorStatusSink;
  abortSignal?: AbortSignal;
-  listenerTimeoutMs?: number;
+  workerRunTimeoutMs?: number;
 };

 export type DiscordMessageHandlerWithLifecycle = DiscordMessageHandler & {
  deactivate: () => void;
 };

-const DEFAULT_DISCORD_RUN_TIMEOUT_MS = 120_000;
-const MAX_DISCORD_TIMEOUT_MS = 2_147_483_647;
-
-function normalizeDiscordRunTimeoutMs(timeoutMs?: number): number {
-  if (typeof timeoutMs !== "number" || !Number.isFinite(timeoutMs) || timeoutMs <= 0) {
-    return DEFAULT_DISCORD_RUN_TIMEOUT_MS;
-  }
-  return Math.max(1, Math.min(Math.floor(timeoutMs), MAX_DISCORD_TIMEOUT_MS));
-}
-
-function isAbortError(error: unknown): boolean {
-  if (typeof error !== "object" || error === null) {
-    return false;
-  }
-  return "name" in error && String((error as { name?: unknown }).name) === "AbortError";
-}
-
-function formatDiscordRunContextSuffix(ctx: DiscordMessagePreflightContext): string {
-  const eventData = ctx as {
-    data?: {
-      channel_id?: string;
-      message?: {
-        id?: string;
-      };
-    };
-  };
-  const channelId = ctx.messageChannelId?.trim() || eventData.data?.channel_id?.trim();
-  const messageId = eventData.data?.message?.id?.trim();
-  const details = [
-    channelId ? `channelId=${channelId}` : null,
-    messageId ? `messageId=${messageId}` : null,
-  ].filter((entry): entry is string => Boolean(entry));
-  if (details.length === 0) {
-    return "";
-  }
-  return ` (${details.join(", ")})`;
-}
-
-function mergeAbortSignals(signals: Array<AbortSignal | undefined>): AbortSignal | undefined {
-  const activeSignals = signals.filter((signal): signal is AbortSignal => Boolean(signal));
-  if (activeSignals.length === 0) {
-    return undefined;
-  }
-  if (activeSignals.length === 1) {
-    return activeSignals[0];
-  }
-  if (typeof AbortSignal.any === "function") {
-    return AbortSignal.any(activeSignals);
-  }
-  const fallbackController = new AbortController();
-  for (const signal of activeSignals) {
-    if (signal.aborted) {
-      fallbackController.abort();
-      return fallbackController.signal;
-    }
-  }
-  const abortFallback = () => {
-    fallbackController.abort();
-    for (const signal of activeSignals) {
-      signal.removeEventListener("abort", abortFallback);
-    }
-  };
-  for (const signal of activeSignals) {
-    signal.addEventListener("abort", abortFallback, { once: true });
-  }
-  return fallbackController.signal;
-}
-
-async function processDiscordRunWithTimeout(params: {
-  ctx: DiscordMessagePreflightContext;
-  runtime: DiscordMessagePreflightParams["runtime"];
-  lifecycleSignal?: AbortSignal;
-  timeoutMs?: number;
-}) {
-  const timeoutMs = normalizeDiscordRunTimeoutMs(params.timeoutMs);
-  const timeoutAbortController = new AbortController();
-  const combinedSignal = mergeAbortSignals([
-    params.ctx.abortSignal,
-    params.lifecycleSignal,
-    timeoutAbortController.signal,
-  ]);
-  const processCtx =
-    combinedSignal && combinedSignal !== params.ctx.abortSignal
-      ? { ...params.ctx, abortSignal: combinedSignal }
-      : params.ctx;
-  const contextSuffix = formatDiscordRunContextSuffix(params.ctx);
-  let timedOut = false;
-  let timeoutHandle: ReturnType<typeof setTimeout> | null = null;
-  const processPromise = processDiscordMessage(processCtx).catch((error) => {
-    if (timedOut) {
-      if (timeoutAbortController.signal.aborted && isAbortError(error)) {
-        return;
-      }
-      params.runtime.error?.(
-        danger(`discord queued run failed after timeout: ${String(error)}${contextSuffix}`),
-      );
-      return;
-    }
-    throw error;
-  });
-
-  try {
-    const timeoutPromise = new Promise<"timeout">((resolve) => {
-      timeoutHandle = setTimeout(() => resolve("timeout"), timeoutMs);
-      timeoutHandle.unref?.();
-    });
-    const result = await Promise.race([
-      processPromise.then(() => "completed" as const),
-      timeoutPromise,
-    ]);
-    if (result === "timeout") {
-      timedOut = true;
-      timeoutAbortController.abort();
-      params.runtime.error?.(
-        danger(
-          `discord queued run timed out after ${formatDurationSeconds(timeoutMs, {
-            decimals: 1,
-            unit: "seconds",
-          })}${contextSuffix}`,
-        ),
-      );
-    }
-  } finally {
-    if (timeoutHandle) {
-      clearTimeout(timeoutHandle);
-    }
-  }
-}
-
-function resolveDiscordRunQueueKey(ctx: DiscordMessagePreflightContext): string {
-  const sessionKey = ctx.route.sessionKey?.trim();
-  if (sessionKey) {
-    return sessionKey;
-  }
-  const baseSessionKey = ctx.baseSessionKey?.trim();
-  if (baseSessionKey) {
-    return baseSessionKey;
-  }
-  return ctx.messageChannelId;
-}
-
 export function createDiscordMessageHandler(
  params: DiscordMessageHandlerParams,
 ): DiscordMessageHandlerWithLifecycle {
@@ -188,39 +42,13 @@ export function createDiscordMessageHandler(
    params.discordConfig?.ackReactionScope ??
    params.cfg.messages?.ackReactionScope ??
    "group-mentions";
-  const runQueue = new KeyedAsyncQueue();
-  const runState = createRunStateMachine({
+  const inboundWorker = createDiscordInboundWorker({
+    runtime: params.runtime,
    setStatus: params.setStatus,
    abortSignal: params.abortSignal,
+    runTimeoutMs: params.workerRunTimeoutMs,
  });

-  const enqueueDiscordRun = (ctx: DiscordMessagePreflightContext) => {
-    const queueKey = resolveDiscordRunQueueKey(ctx);
-    void runQueue
-      .enqueue(queueKey, async () => {
-        if (!runState.isActive()) {
-          return;
-        }
-        runState.onRunStart();
-        try {
-          if (!runState.isActive()) {
-            return;
-          }
-          await processDiscordRunWithTimeout({
-            ctx,
-            runtime: params.runtime,
-            lifecycleSignal: params.abortSignal,
-            timeoutMs: params.listenerTimeoutMs,
-          });
-        } finally {
-          runState.onRunEnd();
-        }
-      })
-      .catch((err) => {
-        params.runtime.error?.(danger(`discord process failed: ${String(err)}`));
-      });
-  };
-
  const { debouncer } = createChannelInboundDebouncer<{
    data: DiscordMessageEvent;
    client: Client;
@@ -279,7 +107,7 @@ export function createDiscordMessageHandler(
        if (!ctx) {
          return;
        }
-        enqueueDiscordRun(ctx);
+        inboundWorker.enqueue(buildDiscordInboundJob(ctx));
        return;
      }
      const combinedBaseText = entries
@@ -324,7 +152,7 @@ export function createDiscordMessageHandler(
          ctxBatch.MessageSidLast = ids[ids.length - 1];
        }
      }
-      enqueueDiscordRun(ctx);
+      inboundWorker.enqueue(buildDiscordInboundJob(ctx));
    },
    onError: (err) => {
      params.runtime.error?.(danger(`discord debounce flush failed: ${String(err)}`));
@@ -352,7 +180,7 @@ export function createDiscordMessageHandler(
    }
  };

-  handler.deactivate = runState.deactivate;
+  handler.deactivate = inboundWorker.deactivate;

  return handler;
 }
--- a/src/discord/monitor/provider.test.ts
+++ b/src/discord/monitor/provider.test.ts
@@ -22,6 +22,7 @@ const {
  clientConstructorOptionsMock,
  createDiscordAutoPresenceControllerMock,
  createDiscordNativeCommandMock,
+  createDiscordMessageHandlerMock,
  createNoopThreadBindingManagerMock,
  createThreadBindingManagerMock,
  reconcileAcpThreadBindingsOnStartupMock,
@@ -49,6 +50,14 @@ const {
    clientFetchUserMock: vi.fn(async (_target: string) => ({ id: "bot-1" })),
    clientGetPluginMock: vi.fn<(_name: string) => unknown>(() => undefined),
    createDiscordNativeCommandMock: vi.fn(() => ({ name: "mock-command" })),
+    createDiscordMessageHandlerMock: vi.fn(() =>
+      Object.assign(
+        vi.fn(async () => undefined),
+        {
+          deactivate: vi.fn(),
+        },
+      ),
+    ),
    createNoopThreadBindingManagerMock: vi.fn(() => {
      const manager = { stop: vi.fn() };
      createdBindingManagers.push(manager);
@@ -248,7 +257,7 @@ vi.mock("./listeners.js", () => ({
 }));

 vi.mock("./message-handler.js", () => ({
-  createDiscordMessageHandler: () => ({ handle: vi.fn() }),
+  createDiscordMessageHandler: createDiscordMessageHandlerMock,
 }));

 vi.mock("./native-command.js", () => ({
@@ -346,6 +355,14 @@ describe("monitorDiscordProvider", () => {
      refresh: vi.fn(),
      runNow: vi.fn(),
    }));
+    createDiscordMessageHandlerMock.mockClear().mockImplementation(() =>
+      Object.assign(
+        vi.fn(async () => undefined),
+        {
+          deactivate: vi.fn(),
+        },
+      ),
+    );
    clientFetchUserMock.mockClear().mockResolvedValue({ id: "bot-1" });
    clientGetPluginMock.mockClear().mockReturnValue(undefined);
    createDiscordNativeCommandMock.mockClear().mockReturnValue({ name: "mock-command" });
@@ -629,6 +646,63 @@ describe("monitorDiscordProvider", () => {
    expect(eventQueue?.listenerTimeout).toBe(300_000);
  });

+  it("does not reuse eventQueue.listenerTimeout as the queued inbound worker timeout", async () => {
+    const { monitorDiscordProvider } = await import("./provider.js");
+
+    resolveDiscordAccountMock.mockImplementation(() => ({
+      accountId: "default",
+      token: "cfg-token",
+      config: {
+        commands: { native: true, nativeSkills: false },
+        voice: { enabled: false },
+        agentComponents: { enabled: false },
+        execApprovals: { enabled: false },
+        eventQueue: { listenerTimeout: 50_000 },
+      },
+    }));
+
+    await monitorDiscordProvider({
+      config: baseConfig(),
+      runtime: baseRuntime(),
+    });
+
+    expect(createDiscordMessageHandlerMock).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(1);
+    const firstCall = createDiscordMessageHandlerMock.mock.calls.at(0) as
+      | [{ workerRunTimeoutMs?: number; listenerTimeoutMs?: number }]
+      | undefined;
+    const params = firstCall?.[0];
+    expect(params?.workerRunTimeoutMs).toBeUndefined();
+    expect("listenerTimeoutMs" in (params ?? {})).toBe(false);
+  });
+
+  it("forwards inbound worker timeout config to the Discord message handler", async () => {
+    const { monitorDiscordProvider } = await import("./provider.js");
+
+    resolveDiscordAccountMock.mockImplementation(() => ({
+      accountId: "default",
+      token: "cfg-token",
+      config: {
+        commands: { native: true, nativeSkills: false },
+        voice: { enabled: false },
+        agentComponents: { enabled: false },
+        execApprovals: { enabled: false },
+        inboundWorker: { runTimeoutMs: 300_000 },
+      },
+    }));
+
+    await monitorDiscordProvider({
+      config: baseConfig(),
+      runtime: baseRuntime(),
+    });
+
+    expect(createDiscordMessageHandlerMock).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(1);
+    const firstCall = createDiscordMessageHandlerMock.mock.calls.at(0) as
+      | [{ workerRunTimeoutMs?: number }]
+      | undefined;
+    const params = firstCall?.[0];
+    expect(params?.workerRunTimeoutMs).toBe(300_000);
+  });
+
  it("registers plugin commands as native Discord commands", async () => {
    const { monitorDiscordProvider } = await import("./provider.js");
    listNativeCommandSpecsForConfigMock.mockReturnValue([
--- a/src/discord/monitor/provider.ts
+++ b/src/discord/monitor/provider.ts
@@ -600,8 +600,9 @@ export async function monitorDiscordProvider(opts: MonitorDiscordOpts = {}) {
    if (voiceEnabled) {
      clientPlugins.push(new VoicePlugin());
    }
-    // Pass eventQueue config to Carbon so the listener timeout can be tuned.
-    // Default listenerTimeout is 120s (Carbon defaults to 30s which is too short for LLM calls).
+    // Pass eventQueue config to Carbon so the gateway listener budget can be tuned.
+    // Default listenerTimeout is 120s (Carbon defaults to 30s, which is too short for some
+    // Discord normalization/enqueue work).
    const eventQueueOpts = {
      listenerTimeout: 120_000,
      ...discordCfg.eventQueue,
@@ -683,7 +684,7 @@ export async function monitorDiscordProvider(opts: MonitorDiscordOpts = {}) {
      runtime,
      setStatus: opts.setStatus,
      abortSignal: opts.abortSignal,
-      listenerTimeoutMs: eventQueueOpts.listenerTimeout,
+      workerRunTimeoutMs: discordCfg.inboundWorker?.runTimeoutMs,
      botUserId,
      guildHistories,
      historyLimit,
--- a/src/discord/monitor/timeouts.ts
+++ b/src/discord/monitor/timeouts.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,120 @@
+const MAX_DISCORD_TIMEOUT_MS = 2_147_483_647;
+
+export const DISCORD_DEFAULT_LISTENER_TIMEOUT_MS = 120_000;
+export const DISCORD_DEFAULT_INBOUND_WORKER_TIMEOUT_MS = 30 * 60_000;
+
+function clampDiscordTimeoutMs(timeoutMs: number, minimumMs: number): number {
+  return Math.max(minimumMs, Math.min(Math.floor(timeoutMs), MAX_DISCORD_TIMEOUT_MS));
+}
+
+export function normalizeDiscordListenerTimeoutMs(raw: number | undefined): number {
+  if (!Number.isFinite(raw) || (raw ?? 0) <= 0) {
+    return DISCORD_DEFAULT_LISTENER_TIMEOUT_MS;
+  }
+  return clampDiscordTimeoutMs(raw!, 1_000);
+}
+
+export function normalizeDiscordInboundWorkerTimeoutMs(
+  raw: number | undefined,
+): number | undefined {
+  if (raw === 0) {
+    return undefined;
+  }
+  if (typeof raw !== "number" || !Number.isFinite(raw) || raw < 0) {
+    return DISCORD_DEFAULT_INBOUND_WORKER_TIMEOUT_MS;
+  }
+  return clampDiscordTimeoutMs(raw, 1);
+}
+
+export function isAbortError(error: unknown): boolean {
+  if (typeof error !== "object" || error === null) {
+    return false;
+  }
+  return "name" in error && String((error as { name?: unknown }).name) === "AbortError";
+}
+
+export function mergeAbortSignals(
+  signals: Array<AbortSignal | undefined>,
+): AbortSignal | undefined {
+  const activeSignals = signals.filter((signal): signal is AbortSignal => Boolean(signal));
+  if (activeSignals.length === 0) {
+    return undefined;
+  }
+  if (activeSignals.length === 1) {
+    return activeSignals[0];
+  }
+  if (typeof AbortSignal.any === "function") {
+    return AbortSignal.any(activeSignals);
+  }
+  const fallbackController = new AbortController();
+  for (const signal of activeSignals) {
+    if (signal.aborted) {
+      fallbackController.abort();
+      return fallbackController.signal;
+    }
+  }
+  const abortFallback = () => {
+    fallbackController.abort();
+    for (const signal of activeSignals) {
+      signal.removeEventListener("abort", abortFallback);
+    }
+  };
+  for (const signal of activeSignals) {
+    signal.addEventListener("abort", abortFallback, { once: true });
+  }
+  return fallbackController.signal;
+}
+
+export async function runDiscordTaskWithTimeout(params: {
+  run: (abortSignal: AbortSignal | undefined) => Promise<void>;
+  timeoutMs?: number;
+  abortSignals?: Array<AbortSignal | undefined>;
+  onTimeout: (timeoutMs: number) => void;
+  onAbortAfterTimeout?: () => void;
+  onErrorAfterTimeout?: (error: unknown) => void;
+}): Promise<boolean> {
+  const timeoutAbortController = params.timeoutMs ? new AbortController() : undefined;
+  const mergedAbortSignal = mergeAbortSignals([
+    ...(params.abortSignals ?? []),
+    timeoutAbortController?.signal,
+  ]);
+
+  let timedOut = false;
+  let timeoutHandle: ReturnType<typeof setTimeout> | null = null;
+  const runPromise = params.run(mergedAbortSignal).catch((error) => {
+    if (!timedOut) {
+      throw error;
+    }
+    if (timeoutAbortController?.signal.aborted && isAbortError(error)) {
+      params.onAbortAfterTimeout?.();
+      return;
+    }
+    params.onErrorAfterTimeout?.(error);
+  });
+
+  try {
+    if (!params.timeoutMs) {
+      await runPromise;
+      return false;
+    }
+    const timeoutPromise = new Promise<"timeout">((resolve) => {
+      timeoutHandle = setTimeout(() => resolve("timeout"), params.timeoutMs);
+      timeoutHandle.unref?.();
+    });
+    const result = await Promise.race([
+      runPromise.then(() => "completed" as const),
+      timeoutPromise,
+    ]);
+    if (result === "timeout") {
+      timedOut = true;
+      timeoutAbortController?.abort();
+      params.onTimeout(params.timeoutMs);
+      return true;
+    }
+    return false;
+  } finally {
+    if (timeoutHandle) {
+      clearTimeout(timeoutHandle);
+    }
+  }
+}