fix(outbound): preserve channel registry during provider snapshots

src/commands/status.scan.ts

@@ -18,7 +18,10 @@ import {
   pickGatewaySelfPresence,
   resolveGatewayProbeAuthResolution,
 } from "./status.gateway-probe.js";
-import type { buildChannelsTable, collectChannelStatusIssues } from "./status.scan.runtime.js";
+import type {
+  buildChannelsTable as buildChannelsTableFn,
+  collectChannelStatusIssues as collectChannelStatusIssuesFn,
+} from "./status.scan.runtime.js";
 import { getStatusSummary } from "./status.summary.js";
 import { getUpdateCheckResult } from "./status.update.js";
 
@@ -164,9 +167,9 @@ export type StatusScanResult = {
   gatewayProbe: Awaited<ReturnType<typeof probeGateway>> | null;
   gatewayReachable: boolean;
   gatewaySelf: ReturnType<typeof pickGatewaySelfPresence>;
-  channelIssues: ChannelStatusIssues;
+  channelIssues: ReturnType<typeof collectChannelStatusIssuesFn>;
   agentStatus: Awaited<ReturnType<typeof getAgentLocalStatuses>>;
-  channels: ChannelsTable;
+  channels: Awaited<ReturnType<typeof buildChannelsTableFn>>;
   summary: Awaited<ReturnType<typeof getStatusSummary>>;
   memory: MemoryStatusSnapshot | null;
   memoryPlugin: MemoryPluginStatus;

src/infra/outbound/channel-resolution.test.ts

@@ -133,6 +133,23 @@ describe("outbound channel resolution", () => {
     expect(loadOpenClawPluginsMock).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(1);
   });
 
+  it("bootstraps when the active registry has other channels but not the requested one", async () => {
+    const plugin = { id: "telegram" };
+    getChannelPluginMock.mockReturnValueOnce(undefined).mockReturnValueOnce(plugin);
+    getActivePluginRegistryMock.mockReturnValue({
+      channels: [{ plugin: { id: "discord" } }],
+    });
+    const channelResolution = await importChannelResolution("bootstrap-missing-target");
+
+    expect(
+      channelResolution.resolveOutboundChannelPlugin({
+        channel: "telegram",
+        cfg: { channels: {} } as never,
+      }),
+    ).toBe(plugin);
+    expect(loadOpenClawPluginsMock).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(1);
+  });
+
   it("retries bootstrap after a transient load failure", async () => {
     getChannelPluginMock.mockReturnValue(undefined);
     loadOpenClawPluginsMock.mockImplementationOnce(() => {

src/infra/outbound/channel-resolution.ts

@@ -33,7 +33,10 @@ function maybeBootstrapChannelPlugin(params: {
   }
 
   const activeRegistry = getActivePluginRegistry();
-  if ((activeRegistry?.channels?.length ?? 0) > 0) {
+  const activeHasRequestedChannel = activeRegistry?.channels?.some(
+    (entry) => entry?.plugin?.id === params.channel,
+  );
+  if (activeHasRequestedChannel) {
     return;
   }
 

src/infra/outbound/deliver.ts

@@ -34,6 +34,7 @@ import { createSubsystemLogger } from "../../logging/subsystem.js";
 import { getAgentScopedMediaLocalRoots } from "../../media/local-roots.js";
 import { getGlobalHookRunner } from "../../plugins/hook-runner-global.js";
 import { throwIfAborted } from "./abort.js";
+import { resolveOutboundChannelPlugin } from "./channel-resolution.js";
 import { ackDelivery, enqueueDelivery, failDelivery } from "./delivery-queue.js";
 import type { OutboundIdentity } from "./identity.js";
 import type { DeliveryMirror } from "./mirror.js";
@@ -113,6 +114,13 @@ type ChannelHandlerParams = {
 
 // Channel docking: outbound delivery delegates to plugin.outbound adapters.
 async function createChannelHandler(params: ChannelHandlerParams): Promise<ChannelHandler> {
+  // Recover channel plugins the same way target resolution does so direct cron
+  // delivery still works when a prior test or lazy path left the active plugin
+  // registry empty.
+  resolveOutboundChannelPlugin({
+    channel: params.channel,
+    cfg: params.cfg,
+  });
   const outbound = await loadChannelOutboundAdapter(params.channel);
   const handler = createPluginHandler({ ...params, outbound });
   if (!handler) {

src/plugins/providers.test.ts

@@ -38,6 +38,8 @@ describe("resolvePluginProviders", () => {
       expect.objectContaining({
         workspaceDir: "/workspace/explicit",
         env,
+        cache: false,
+        activate: false,
       }),
     );
   });
@@ -59,6 +61,8 @@ describe("resolvePluginProviders", () => {
             allow: expect.arrayContaining(["openrouter", "google", "kilocode", "moonshot"]),
           }),
         }),
+        cache: false,
+        activate: false,
       }),
     );
   });
@@ -76,6 +80,8 @@ describe("resolvePluginProviders", () => {
             allow: expect.arrayContaining(["openai", "moonshot", "zai"]),
           }),
         }),
+        cache: false,
+        activate: false,
       }),
     );
   });

src/plugins/providers.ts

@@ -35,6 +35,7 @@ const BUNDLED_PROVIDER_ALLOWLIST_COMPAT_PLUGIN_IDS = [
   "venice",
   "vercel-ai-gateway",
   "volcengine",
+  "xai",
   "vllm",
   "xiaomi",
   "zai",
@@ -142,8 +143,8 @@ export function resolvePluginProviders(params: {
     workspaceDir: params.workspaceDir,
     env: params.env,
     onlyPluginIds: params.onlyPluginIds,
-    activate: params.activate,
-    cache: params.cache,
+    cache: params.cache ?? false,
+    activate: params.activate ?? false,
     logger: createPluginLoaderLogger(log),
   });