docs(install): record the two trust/portability assumptions in install_node

Comment-only, no behaviour change. Both raised by scooby in the #1229 review
as non-blocking findings worth writing down rather than fixing here.

F-A: the SHASUMS256.txt check gives integrity, not authenticity. TLS to
$NODE_DIST_BASE is the whole trust root, and MOSAIC_NODE_DIST_BASE widens it
to any mirror with no signature backstop. GPG-verifying SHASUMS256.txt.sig is
filed as its own follow-up so it gets its own review.

F-C: the uname map pulls the glibc build, so musl hosts fail — visibly, via
node_is_suitable, not silently.

REPORT-A1207.md

@@ -0,0 +1,71 @@
+# REPORT A1207
+
+Date: 2026-08-13
+Branch: `fix/869-lease-probe-timeout`
+Starting head: `2373a5ad345fb316ad2460f6390baab1f45ba08f`
+Base: `216cd72226cd9ee17eea461cfe7cd0e010a22f02`
+
+## What changed
+
+- Added Python behavior tests using isolated temporary directories and marker-writing fake `mosaic` executables. They prove that the supplied `PATH` wins over ambient `os.environ["PATH"]`, and that absent or empty supplied `PATH` values do not search ambient paths, platform defaults, or the current directory.
+- Bound Python override behavior with executable fakes: a valid `MOSAIC_LEASE_VERSION_PROBE_COMMAND` wins over supplied and ambient `PATH`; an invalid override returns `None` without PATH fallback.
+- Added a Python runner binding test that captures kwargs and requires `timeout=10.0`. Existing timeout, transport-error, and nonzero-exit checks remain fail-closed with `None`.
+- Added the optional TypeScript dependency-injection seam `CapabilityProbeExecFile`, defaulting to the existing real `execFileSync` implementation. Production callers have no behavior change.
+- Added TypeScript tests that capture child-process options and require exactly `timeout: 10_000`. Injected timeout, spawn-error, nonzero-exit, unparseable JSON, and malformed-object cases all return `null`.
+- Removed the ambient no-dependency TypeScript smoke case that could execute a built checkout's real CLI. Default resolver and supervisor behavior retain their isolated tests, while capability transport tests now use an isolated artifact or the injected transport.
+
+No Python production code changed relative to `2373a5ad`. The only production delta is the optional TypeScript child-process injection seam.
+
+## Hermeticity incident and correction
+
+An initial ambient-lookup mutation run exposed that the pre-existing Python "not resolvable" test left ambient process PATH uncontrolled. On this host, that mutation resolved and executed the host `mosaic` capability probe. A post-build intermediate TypeScript run also let the pre-existing no-dependency smoke case execute the checkout's built `dist/cli.js` capability probe. No `claude` process was run. I then isolated the Python test's ambient PATH, removed the TypeScript ambient smoke case, repeated the PATH mutation using only marker-writing temporary fakes, and repeated the final suites without either real probe path.
+
+## Mutation evidence
+
+Each mutation was applied independently, its focused suite was run, and the production source was restored before the final run.
+
+| Mutation                                                                                   | Result              | Reddened test name(s)                                                                                                                                                                                                      |
+| ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ | ------------------- | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
+| `shutil.which("mosaic", path=environ.get("PATH", ""))` to ambient `shutil.which("mosaic")` | RED, three failures | `ProbeActivationCapabilityTest.test_supplied_path_wins_over_ambient_process_path`; `ProbeActivationCapabilityTest.test_absent_or_empty_supplied_path_never_falls_back_or_executes` for both absent and empty PATH subtests |
+| Python `PROBE_TIMEOUT_SECONDS: 10.0` to `2.0`                                              | RED, one failure    | `ProbeActivationCapabilityTest.test_probe_passes_ten_second_timeout_to_runner`                                                                                                                                             |
+| TypeScript `LEASE_CAPABILITY_PROBE_TIMEOUT_MS: 10_000` to `2_000`                          | RED, one failure    | `defaultCapabilityProbe > passes the exact ten-second timeout to the injected child-process transport`                                                                                                                     |
+
+## Final test run
+
+Dependencies were installed first with `pnpm install --frozen-lockfile`. Workspace dependencies were then built with `pnpm --filter '@mosaicstack/mosaic...' run build` so package type declarations were available.
+
+```text
+$ cd packages/mosaic && python3 src/mutator-gate/version_coupling_unittest.py
+...................
+----------------------------------------------------------------------
+Ran 19 tests in 0.007s
+
+OK
+
+$ pnpm exec vitest run src/commands/lease-activation-probe.spec.ts
+✓ src/commands/lease-activation-probe.spec.ts (20 tests) 80ms
+Test Files  1 passed (1)
+Tests       20 passed (20)
+```
+
+```text
+$ pnpm exec prettier --check packages/mosaic/src/commands/lease-activation-probe.ts packages/mosaic/src/commands/lease-activation-probe.spec.ts
+Checking formatting...
+All matched files use Prettier code style!
+
+$ pnpm --filter @mosaicstack/mosaic lint
+> eslint src
+
+$ pnpm --filter @mosaicstack/mosaic typecheck
+> tsc --noEmit
+
+$ python3 -m py_compile packages/mosaic/src/mutator-gate/version_coupling_unittest.py packages/mosaic/framework/tools/lease-broker/activation_version_gate.py
+
+$ git diff --check
+```
+
+All commands above exited zero.
+
+## Ambiguities skipped
+
+None.

packages/mosaic/__tests__/platform/detect.test.ts

@@ -0,0 +1,74 @@
+import { describe, it, expect, vi, beforeEach, afterEach } from 'vitest';
+
+// homedir/platform are read at call time, so they can be stubbed per case.
+vi.mock('node:os', async (importOriginal) => {
+  const actual = await importOriginal<typeof import('node:os')>();
+  return {
+    ...actual,
+    homedir: () => '/home/tester',
+    platform: () => mockPlatform,
+  };
+});
+
+let mockPlatform: NodeJS.Platform = 'linux';
+
+const { getShellProfilePath, detectShell } = await import('../../src/platform/detect.js');
+
+describe('getShellProfilePath', () => {
+  const originalShell = process.env['SHELL'];
+  const originalZdotdir = process.env['ZDOTDIR'];
+
+  beforeEach(() => {
+    mockPlatform = 'linux';
+    delete process.env['ZDOTDIR'];
+  });
+
+  afterEach(() => {
+    if (originalShell === undefined) delete process.env['SHELL'];
+    else process.env['SHELL'] = originalShell;
+    if (originalZdotdir === undefined) delete process.env['ZDOTDIR'];
+    else process.env['ZDOTDIR'] = originalZdotdir;
+  });
+
+  // The regression this guards: setupPath() in stages/finalize.ts appends the
+  // PATH export to whatever this returns. A line written to ~/.bashrc is
+  // unreachable to `bash -lc`, systemd units and agent seats, because Debian's
+  // default .bashrc returns early for non-interactive shells — so an install
+  // reported success and left `mosaic: command not found`. Same for .zshrc,
+  // which zsh only reads for interactive shells.
+  it('never targets an interactive-only rc file', () => {
+    for (const shell of ['/bin/bash', '/usr/bin/zsh']) {
+      process.env['SHELL'] = shell;
+      const profile = getShellProfilePath();
+      expect(profile).not.toMatch(/\.bashrc$/);
+      expect(profile).not.toMatch(/\.zshrc$/);
+    }
+  });
+
+  it('uses ~/.profile for bash', () => {
+    process.env['SHELL'] = '/bin/bash';
+    expect(getShellProfilePath()).toBe('/home/tester/.profile');
+  });
+
+  it('uses ~/.zshenv for zsh', () => {
+    process.env['SHELL'] = '/usr/bin/zsh';
+    expect(getShellProfilePath()).toBe('/home/tester/.zshenv');
+  });
+
+  it('honours ZDOTDIR for zsh', () => {
+    process.env['SHELL'] = '/usr/bin/zsh';
+    process.env['ZDOTDIR'] = '/custom/zdot';
+    expect(getShellProfilePath()).toBe('/custom/zdot/.zshenv');
+  });
+
+  it('falls back to ~/.profile for an unknown shell', () => {
+    process.env['SHELL'] = '/bin/somethingelse';
+    expect(detectShell()).toBe('unknown');
+    expect(getShellProfilePath()).toBe('/home/tester/.profile');
+  });
+
+  it('still routes fish to its own config', () => {
+    process.env['SHELL'] = '/usr/bin/fish';
+    expect(getShellProfilePath()).toBe('/home/tester/.config/fish/config.fish');
+  });
+});

packages/mosaic/framework/tools/lease-broker/activation_version_gate.py

@@ -62,7 +62,14 @@ EXPECTED_ACTIVATION_CAPABILITY: Final[ActivationCapability] = {
 # capability as compact JSON.
 LEASE_CAPABILITY_PROBE_COMMAND: Final = "__lease-capability"
 
-PROBE_TIMEOUT_SECONDS: Final = 2.0
+# Budget for the out-of-process `mosaic __lease-capability` probe. The CLI
+# is a Node program whose cold start alone measures 2.2-2.3s on a mid-range
+# workstation (sb-it-1-dt, 2026-08-13), so a 2s budget made every launch on
+# such hosts fail closed with the #869 skew message even though the
+# capability matched. The timeout only bounds the pathological hang case —
+# the happy path returns as soon as the probe exits — so a generous budget
+# costs nothing on healthy hosts.
+PROBE_TIMEOUT_SECONDS: Final = 10.0
 
 # Override hook: a full shell-style command line (parsed with `shlex.split`)
 # to run INSTEAD of resolving `mosaic` on PATH and appending the probe
@@ -88,7 +95,13 @@ def _resolve_probe_command(environ: Mapping[str, str]) -> list[str] | None:
     if override:
         parsed = shlex.split(override)
         return parsed or None
-    resolved = shutil.which("mosaic")
+    # Resolve against the PROVIDED environment's PATH, not the ambient
+    # os.environ. Before this, a test passing a hermetic environ still
+    # resolved (and spawned) the host's real `mosaic` — masked only on hosts
+    # where the real probe happened to exceed the old 2s timeout. No PATH in
+    # the provided environment means nothing is resolvable (fail-closed),
+    # matching the probe's overall contract.
+    resolved = shutil.which("mosaic", path=environ.get("PATH", ""))
     if resolved is None:
         return None
     return [resolved, LEASE_CAPABILITY_PROBE_COMMAND]

packages/mosaic/src/commands/lease-activation-probe.spec.ts

@@ -7,11 +7,13 @@ import { fileURLToPath } from 'node:url';
 import {
   LEASE_ACTIVATION_CAPABILITY,
   LEASE_CAPABILITY_PROBE_COMMAND,
+  LEASE_CAPABILITY_PROBE_TIMEOUT_MS,
   defaultCapabilityProbe,
   defaultResolveCliEntry,
   defaultSupervisorProbe,
   leaseEnforcementActivatable,
   registerLeaseCapabilityProbe,
+  type CapabilityProbeExecFile,
   type LeaseActivationCapability,
   type SupervisorProbeResult,
 } from './lease-activation-probe.js';
@@ -35,6 +37,17 @@ const presentSupervisor: SupervisorProbeResult = {
   socketPath: '/run/user/1000/mosaic-lease/broker.sock',
 };
 
+function withScratchCli<T>(run: (cliPath: string) => T): T {
+  const scratchDir = mkdtempSync(join(tmpdir(), 'mosaic-lease-capability-probe-'));
+  try {
+    const cliPath = join(scratchDir, 'cli.js');
+    writeFileSync(cliPath, '// isolated fake; injected execFile means this is never executed\n');
+    return run(cliPath);
+  } finally {
+    rmSync(scratchDir, { recursive: true, force: true });
+  }
+}
+
 describe('leaseEnforcementActivatable', () => {
   it('is false when the activation capability is absent (null)', () => {
     const result = leaseEnforcementActivatable({
@@ -100,15 +113,6 @@ describe('leaseEnforcementActivatable', () => {
     });
     expect(result).toBe(true);
   });
-
-  it('uses the real default probes when no deps are injected (does not throw)', () => {
-    // No live broker / built CLI is guaranteed in a test environment, so this
-    // only asserts the predicate degrades to a safe boolean rather than
-    // throwing — the fail-closed behavior itself is covered by the injected
-    // cases above.
-    expect(() => leaseEnforcementActivatable()).not.toThrow();
-    expect(typeof leaseEnforcementActivatable()).toBe('boolean');
-  });
 });
 
 describe('defaultCapabilityProbe', () => {
@@ -127,6 +131,61 @@ describe('defaultCapabilityProbe', () => {
     expect(result).toBeNull();
   });
 
+  it('passes the exact ten-second timeout to the injected child-process transport', () => {
+    withScratchCli((cliPath) => {
+      let captured:
+        | {
+            file: string;
+            args: string[];
+            options: Parameters<CapabilityProbeExecFile>[2];
+          }
+        | undefined;
+      const execFile: CapabilityProbeExecFile = (file, args, options) => {
+        captured = { file, args, options };
+        return JSON.stringify(LEASE_ACTIVATION_CAPABILITY);
+      };
+
+      const result = defaultCapabilityProbe({ resolveCliEntry: () => cliPath, execFile });
+
+      expect(result).toEqual(LEASE_ACTIVATION_CAPABILITY);
+      expect(captured).toEqual({
+        file: process.execPath,
+        args: [cliPath, LEASE_CAPABILITY_PROBE_COMMAND],
+        options: {
+          encoding: 'utf-8',
+          timeout: 10_000,
+          stdio: ['ignore', 'pipe', 'ignore'],
+        },
+      });
+      expect(captured?.options.timeout).toBe(LEASE_CAPABILITY_PROBE_TIMEOUT_MS);
+    });
+  });
+
+  it.each([
+    ['timeout', Object.assign(new Error('timed out'), { code: 'ETIMEDOUT' })],
+    ['spawn error', Object.assign(new Error('spawn failed'), { code: 'ENOENT' })],
+    ['nonzero exit', Object.assign(new Error('child exited 1'), { status: 1 })],
+  ])('returns null (fail-closed) on child-process %s', (_failure, error) => {
+    withScratchCli((cliPath) => {
+      const execFile: CapabilityProbeExecFile = () => {
+        throw error;
+      };
+
+      expect(defaultCapabilityProbe({ resolveCliEntry: () => cliPath, execFile })).toBeNull();
+    });
+  });
+
+  it.each([
+    ['unparseable JSON', 'not-json'],
+    ['malformed object', JSON.stringify({ name: LEASE_ACTIVATION_CAPABILITY.name })],
+  ])('returns null (fail-closed) on %s output', (_failure, output) => {
+    withScratchCli((cliPath) => {
+      const execFile: CapabilityProbeExecFile = () => output;
+
+      expect(defaultCapabilityProbe({ resolveCliEntry: () => cliPath, execFile })).toBeNull();
+    });
+  });
+
   describe('positive path — injected resolver, isolated scratch dir (never the real dist/)', () => {
     // A prior version of this test staged the stub cli.js at the package's
     // REAL resolved dist/ path and relied on afterEach to clean up "only

packages/mosaic/src/commands/lease-activation-probe.ts

@@ -55,6 +55,19 @@ export const LEASE_ACTIVATION_CAPABILITY: LeaseActivationCapability = {
 /** Hidden CLI probe subcommand name — wired via {@link registerLeaseCapabilityProbe}. */
 export const LEASE_CAPABILITY_PROBE_COMMAND = '__lease-capability';
 
+/**
+ * Budget for the out-of-process capability probe. The probe launches a fresh
+ * Node process on the built CLI entrypoint, whose cold start alone measures
+ * 2.2-2.3s on a mid-range workstation (sb-it-1-dt, 2026-08-13) — so the
+ * previous 2s budget made the probe time out and report NO capability on
+ * such hosts, failing every launch with the #869 skew message even though
+ * the capability matched. The timeout only bounds the pathological hang
+ * case; the happy path returns as soon as the probe exits. Mirrors
+ * PROBE_TIMEOUT_SECONDS in the enforcement half
+ * (framework/tools/lease-broker/activation_version_gate.py).
+ */
+export const LEASE_CAPABILITY_PROBE_TIMEOUT_MS = 10_000;
+
 function capabilityMatches(candidate: LeaseActivationCapability | null): boolean {
   return (
     candidate !== null &&
@@ -110,12 +123,28 @@ export function defaultResolveCliEntry(
   return join(dirname(mainEntry), 'cli.js');
 }
 
+/** Narrow injectable seam for the synchronous child process used by the
+ * capability probe. */
+export type CapabilityProbeExecFile = (
+  file: string,
+  args: string[],
+  options: {
+    encoding: BufferEncoding;
+    timeout: number;
+    stdio: ['ignore', 'pipe', 'ignore'];
+  },
+) => string;
+
 /** Injectable inputs for {@link defaultCapabilityProbe}. */
 export interface CapabilityProbeDeps {
   /** Resolve the CLI entrypoint (`cli.js`) to probe. Defaults to
    * {@link defaultResolveCliEntry}. Inject to point at an isolated scratch
    * location in tests — never at the real package's `dist/`. */
   resolveCliEntry?: () => string;
+  /** Execute the resolved CLI entrypoint. Defaults to the real
+   * `execFileSync`. Inject so transport behavior and options can be tested
+   * without spawning a process. */
+  execFile?: CapabilityProbeExecFile;
 }
 
 /**
@@ -139,9 +168,10 @@ export function defaultCapabilityProbe(
     const cliEntry = resolveCliEntry();
     if (!existsSync(cliEntry)) return null;
 
-    const output = execFileSync(process.execPath, [cliEntry, LEASE_CAPABILITY_PROBE_COMMAND], {
+    const execFile: CapabilityProbeExecFile = deps.execFile ?? execFileSync;
+    const output = execFile(process.execPath, [cliEntry, LEASE_CAPABILITY_PROBE_COMMAND], {
       encoding: 'utf-8',
-      timeout: 2000,
+      timeout: LEASE_CAPABILITY_PROBE_TIMEOUT_MS,
       stdio: ['ignore', 'pipe', 'ignore'],
     });
 

packages/mosaic/src/mutator-gate/version_coupling_unittest.py

@@ -24,11 +24,15 @@ from __future__ import annotations
 
 import importlib.util
 import io
+import os
+import shlex
 import subprocess
 import sys
+import tempfile
 import unittest
 from contextlib import redirect_stderr
 from pathlib import Path
+from unittest import mock
 
 
 TOOLS_DIR = Path(__file__).parents[2] / "framework/tools/lease-broker"
@@ -57,6 +61,20 @@ def matching_capability() -> dict[str, object]:
     return dict(VERSION_GATE.EXPECTED_ACTIVATION_CAPABILITY)
 
 
+def write_fake_mosaic(directory: Path, marker: Path) -> Path:
+    directory.mkdir(parents=True, exist_ok=True)
+    executable = directory / "mosaic"
+    executable.write_text(
+        "#!/bin/sh\n"
+        f"printf '%s\\n' executed >> {shlex.quote(str(marker))}\n"
+        "printf '%s\\n' "
+        "'{\"name\":\"lease-runtime-activation\",\"version\":1}'\n",
+        encoding="utf-8",
+    )
+    executable.chmod(0o755)
+    return executable
+
+
 class AssertActivationCapabilityMatchesTest(unittest.TestCase):
     """Unit-level coverage of `activation_version_gate.py`'s own assertion,
     isolated from the launch-runtime.py seam it is wired into below."""
@@ -110,11 +128,102 @@ class ProbeActivationCapabilityTest(unittest.TestCase):
     handling — never spawns a real `mosaic` process."""
 
     def test_returns_none_when_mosaic_is_not_resolvable_on_path(self) -> None:
-        result = VERSION_GATE.default_probe_activation_capability(
-            {"PATH": "/nonexistent-bin-dir-for-869-c4-test"}
-        )
+        # Keep even a deliberate ambient-lookup mutation away from any host
+        # installation. The dedicated hermeticity tests below provide fake
+        # ambient executables and markers.
+        with mock.patch.dict(
+            os.environ, {"PATH": "/nonexistent-ambient-bin-dir-for-869-c4-test"}
+        ):
+            result = VERSION_GATE.default_probe_activation_capability(
+                {"PATH": "/nonexistent-bin-dir-for-869-c4-test"}
+            )
         self.assertIsNone(result)
 
+    def test_supplied_path_wins_over_ambient_process_path(self) -> None:
+        with tempfile.TemporaryDirectory() as temporary:
+            root = Path(temporary)
+            supplied_marker = root / "supplied.marker"
+            ambient_marker = root / "ambient.marker"
+            supplied_bin = root / "supplied-bin"
+            ambient_bin = root / "ambient-bin"
+            write_fake_mosaic(supplied_bin, supplied_marker)
+            write_fake_mosaic(ambient_bin, ambient_marker)
+
+            with mock.patch.dict(os.environ, {"PATH": str(ambient_bin)}):
+                result = VERSION_GATE.default_probe_activation_capability(
+                    {"PATH": str(supplied_bin)}
+                )
+
+            self.assertEqual(result, matching_capability())
+            self.assertTrue(supplied_marker.exists())
+            self.assertFalse(ambient_marker.exists())
+
+    def test_absent_or_empty_supplied_path_never_falls_back_or_executes(self) -> None:
+        with tempfile.TemporaryDirectory() as temporary:
+            root = Path(temporary)
+            ambient_marker = root / "ambient.marker"
+            current_directory_marker = root / "current-directory.marker"
+            ambient_bin = root / "ambient-bin"
+            current_directory = root / "current-directory"
+            write_fake_mosaic(ambient_bin, ambient_marker)
+            write_fake_mosaic(current_directory, current_directory_marker)
+            original_directory = Path.cwd()
+
+            try:
+                os.chdir(current_directory)
+                with mock.patch.dict(os.environ, {"PATH": str(ambient_bin)}):
+                    for supplied_environment in ({}, {"PATH": ""}):
+                        with self.subTest(environ=supplied_environment):
+                            result = VERSION_GATE.default_probe_activation_capability(
+                                supplied_environment
+                            )
+                            self.assertIsNone(result)
+                            self.assertFalse(ambient_marker.exists())
+                            self.assertFalse(current_directory_marker.exists())
+            finally:
+                os.chdir(original_directory)
+
+    def test_valid_override_wins_and_invalid_override_does_not_fall_back_to_path(
+        self,
+    ) -> None:
+        with tempfile.TemporaryDirectory() as temporary:
+            root = Path(temporary)
+            supplied_marker = root / "supplied.marker"
+            ambient_marker = root / "ambient.marker"
+            override_marker = root / "override.marker"
+            supplied_bin = root / "supplied-bin"
+            ambient_bin = root / "ambient-bin"
+            override_bin = root / "override-bin"
+            write_fake_mosaic(supplied_bin, supplied_marker)
+            write_fake_mosaic(ambient_bin, ambient_marker)
+            override_executable = write_fake_mosaic(override_bin, override_marker)
+
+            with mock.patch.dict(os.environ, {"PATH": str(ambient_bin)}):
+                result = VERSION_GATE.default_probe_activation_capability(
+                    {
+                        "PATH": str(supplied_bin),
+                        VERSION_GATE.MOSAIC_COMMAND_OVERRIDE_VAR: str(override_executable),
+                    }
+                )
+                self.assertEqual(result, matching_capability())
+                self.assertTrue(override_marker.exists())
+                self.assertFalse(supplied_marker.exists())
+                self.assertFalse(ambient_marker.exists())
+
+                override_marker.unlink()
+                result = VERSION_GATE.default_probe_activation_capability(
+                    {
+                        "PATH": str(supplied_bin),
+                        VERSION_GATE.MOSAIC_COMMAND_OVERRIDE_VAR: str(
+                            root / "invalid-override" / "mosaic"
+                        ),
+                    }
+                )
+                self.assertIsNone(result)
+                self.assertFalse(override_marker.exists())
+                self.assertFalse(supplied_marker.exists())
+                self.assertFalse(ambient_marker.exists())
+
     def test_override_command_is_parsed_and_the_probe_subcommand_is_not_double_appended(
         self,
     ) -> None:
@@ -135,6 +244,29 @@ class ProbeActivationCapabilityTest(unittest.TestCase):
         self.assertEqual(result, {"name": "lease-runtime-activation", "version": 1})
         self.assertEqual(captured, [["/fake/mosaic", "__lease-capability"]])
 
+    def test_probe_passes_ten_second_timeout_to_runner(self) -> None:
+        captured_argv: list[str] = []
+        captured_kwargs: dict[str, object] = {}
+
+        class FakeCompleted:
+            returncode = 0
+            stdout = '{"name": "lease-runtime-activation", "version": 1}'
+
+        def fake_run(argv: list[str], **kwargs: object) -> FakeCompleted:
+            captured_argv.extend(argv)
+            captured_kwargs.update(kwargs)
+            return FakeCompleted()
+
+        result = VERSION_GATE.default_probe_activation_capability(
+            {VERSION_GATE.MOSAIC_COMMAND_OVERRIDE_VAR: "/fake/mosaic"},
+            run=fake_run,
+        )
+
+        self.assertEqual(result, matching_capability())
+        self.assertEqual(captured_argv, ["/fake/mosaic"])
+        self.assertEqual(captured_kwargs["timeout"], 10.0)
+        self.assertEqual(captured_kwargs["check"], False)
+
     def test_fails_closed_on_nonzero_exit_malformed_json_and_missing_fields(self) -> None:
         class NonZeroExit:
             returncode = 1
@@ -174,7 +306,7 @@ class ProbeActivationCapabilityTest(unittest.TestCase):
 
     def test_fails_closed_on_timeout_and_transport_error(self) -> None:
         def timeout_run(*_args: object, **_kwargs: object) -> None:
-            raise subprocess.TimeoutExpired(cmd="mosaic", timeout=2.0)
+            raise subprocess.TimeoutExpired(cmd="mosaic", timeout=10.0)
 
         def oserror_run(*_args: object, **_kwargs: object) -> None:
             raise OSError("no such file or directory")

packages/mosaic/src/platform/detect.ts

@@ -1,4 +1,3 @@
-import { existsSync } from 'node:fs';
 import { join } from 'node:path';
 import { homedir, platform } from 'node:os';
 
@@ -22,15 +21,18 @@ export function getShellProfilePath(): string | null {
 
   const shell = detectShell();
   switch (shell) {
+    // Both of these deliberately avoid the interactive-only rc files.
+    // Debian's default .bashrc returns early for non-interactive shells, so a
+    // PATH line appended to it never runs for `bash -lc`, systemd units, or
+    // agent seats — an install could report success and still leave `mosaic`
+    // unreachable. .profile is read by login shells and sources .bashrc for
+    // interactive ones, so one line covers both; .zshenv is zsh's equivalent.
     case 'zsh': {
       const zdotdir = process.env['ZDOTDIR'] ?? home;
-      return join(zdotdir, '.zshrc');
+      return join(zdotdir, '.zshenv');
     }
-    case 'bash': {
-      const bashrc = join(home, '.bashrc');
-      if (existsSync(bashrc)) return bashrc;
+    case 'bash':
       return join(home, '.profile');
-    }
     case 'fish':
       return join(home, '.config', 'fish', 'config.fish');
     default:

tools/install.sh

@@ -309,6 +309,87 @@ require_cmd() {
   fi
 }
 
+# True if any shell rc file already puts $1 on PATH.
+#
+# Each file is tested for existence first and grepped one at a time, rather than
+# handed to a single `grep -qs ... "${rc_files[@]}"`. Handing grep a missing file
+# makes the exit status implementation-defined: GNU grep 3.11 returns 0 when -q
+# matched an earlier file, ugrep 7.5 returns 2 for the missing one regardless.
+# On the 2 path the caller reads "not present yet" and appends a duplicate PATH
+# line on every single install.
+path_entry_exists() {
+  local dir="$1" rc_file
+  for rc_file in "$HOME/.profile" "$HOME/.zshenv" "$HOME/.zshrc" "$HOME/.bashrc"; do
+    if [[ -f "$rc_file" ]] && grep -qF "$dir" "$rc_file"; then
+      return 0
+    fi
+  done
+  return 1
+}
+
+# Append `export PATH="$1:$PATH"` to the shell profile so $1 survives this
+# process. An `export` here reaches only the installer; every directory the
+# install leaves behind has to be written down somewhere a later shell reads.
+#
+# Deliberately NOT ~/.bashrc: Debian's default .bashrc returns early for
+# non-interactive shells, so a PATH line appended to the bottom of it is
+# unreachable to `bash -lc`, to systemd units, and to every agent seat — the
+# exact consumers that need these binaries. ~/.profile is read by login shells
+# and Debian's .profile sources .bashrc for interactive ones, so a single line
+# there reaches both. For zsh the always-sourced file is .zshenv, not .zshrc.
+#
+# $1 = directory to add, $2 = label for the comment line.
+# Returns 1 (having warned) if the profile could not be written.
+persist_on_path() {
+  local dir="$1" label="$2" profile
+
+  if path_entry_exists "$dir"; then
+    return 0
+  fi
+
+  if [[ -n "${ZSH_VERSION:-}" ]] || [[ "$(basename "${SHELL:-}")" == "zsh" ]]; then
+    profile="$HOME/.zshenv"
+  else
+    profile="$HOME/.profile"
+  fi
+
+  # Probe writability in a subshell. A redirection failure on a special built-in
+  # aborts the shell it runs in, so it has to be a child; and the redirection on
+  # the subshell is what silences the "Permission denied" the shell would
+  # otherwise print ahead of our own message.
+  if ! ( : >>"$profile" ) 2>/dev/null; then
+    warn "$dir is not on your PATH and $profile could not be written"
+    dim "  Add to your shell rc:  export PATH=\"$dir:\$PATH\""
+    return 1
+  fi
+
+  {
+    echo ""
+    echo "# $label"
+    echo "export PATH=\"$dir:\$PATH\""
+  } >>"$profile"
+  ok "Added $dir to PATH in $profile"
+  return 0
+}
+
+# Persist $PREFIX/bin on PATH instead of only warning about it.
+#
+# The warning it replaces was the last step of an otherwise successful install,
+# so the installer reported success and left `mosaic: command not found` — an
+# unattended install had no operator to read the advice and act on it.
+ensure_prefix_on_path() {
+  if [[ ":$PATH:" == *":$PREFIX/bin:"* ]]; then
+    return
+  fi
+
+  if path_entry_exists "$PREFIX/bin"; then
+    warn "$PREFIX/bin is in your shell profile but not in this shell"
+  elif ! persist_on_path "$PREFIX/bin" "Mosaic CLI"; then
+    return
+  fi
+  dim "  Run:  export PATH=\"$PREFIX/bin:\$PATH\"   (or start a new login shell)"
+}
+
 installed_cli_version() {
   local json
   json="$(npm ls -g --depth=0 --json --prefix="$PREFIX" 2>/dev/null)" || true
@@ -516,8 +597,175 @@ install_next_cli_from_registry() {
   ok "Installed @next packages: CLI ${installed_cli}, gateway ${installed_gateway}"
 }
 
+# ─── node bootstrap ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+#
+# Nothing on a greenfield host installs Node.js, yet this installer and the CLI
+# it installs both hard-require it. Measured on a clean Debian 13 image: the
+# installer stopped at `require_cmd node` with "Required command not found" and
+# nothing was installed, with no hint of how to proceed.
+#
+# Inlined rather than factored into a sibling file on purpose: this script is
+# fetched standalone by curl and has nothing to source.
+#
+# No-op when a suitable node is already on PATH, so it never fights an
+# operator's nvm/fnm/distro node.
+
+NODE_ROOT="${MOSAIC_NODE_ROOT:-$HOME/.mosaic/node}"
+NODE_BOOTSTRAP_VERSION="${MOSAIC_NODE_VERSION:-v22.23.2}"
+NODE_MIN_MAJOR="${MOSAIC_NODE_MIN_MAJOR:-20}"
+NODE_DIST_BASE="${MOSAIC_NODE_DIST_BASE:-https://nodejs.org/dist}"
+
+# Major version of the node at $1, or empty if it will not run.
+node_major_of() {
+  local candidate="$1" version
+  version="$("$candidate" -e 'process.stdout.write(process.versions.node)' 2>/dev/null)" || return 0
+  printf '%s' "${version%%.*}"
+}
+
+node_is_suitable() {
+  local major
+  major="$(node_major_of "$1")"
+  [[ -n "$major" ]] && [[ "$major" -ge "$NODE_MIN_MAJOR" ]]
+}
+
+install_node() {
+  local node_os node_arch tarball release_url work_dir extracted target node_bin
+
+  case "$(uname -s)" in
+    Linux)  node_os="linux" ;;
+    Darwin) node_os="darwin" ;;
+    *) fail "Unsupported OS '$(uname -s)'. Install Node.js >= $NODE_MIN_MAJOR manually."; return 1 ;;
+  esac
+
+  # Linux here means glibc. Node's official linux-x64 build is dynamically
+  # linked against glibc, so on musl (Alpine) the binary will not exec — but it
+  # fails visibly: node_is_suitable rejects it and ensure_node exits with
+  # "install Node.js manually". No silent breakage, just a wasted download.
+  # A musl host needs the unofficial build, which is out of scope here.
+  case "$(uname -m)" in
+    x86_64|amd64)  node_arch="x64" ;;
+    aarch64|arm64) node_arch="arm64" ;;
+    armv7l)        node_arch="armv7l" ;;
+    *) fail "Unsupported architecture '$(uname -m)'. Install Node.js >= $NODE_MIN_MAJOR manually."; return 1 ;;
+  esac
+
+  # .tar.gz rather than the smaller .tar.xz: gzip is universally present, xz is
+  # not, and a minimal image is exactly the case this exists to handle.
+  tarball="node-${NODE_BOOTSTRAP_VERSION}-${node_os}-${node_arch}.tar.gz"
+  release_url="${NODE_DIST_BASE}/${NODE_BOOTSTRAP_VERSION}"
+
+  work_dir="$(mktemp -d "${TMPDIR:-/tmp}/mosaic-node-XXXXXX")"
+
+  info "Installing Node.js $NODE_BOOTSTRAP_VERSION ($node_os-$node_arch) to $NODE_ROOT…"
+
+  if ! curl -fsSL "${release_url}/${tarball}" -o "$work_dir/$tarball"; then
+    fail "Download failed: ${release_url}/${tarball}"
+    rm -rf "$work_dir"; return 1
+  fi
+
+  # Trust assumption, stated so nobody has to infer it: this verifies INTEGRITY
+  # (the tarball matches the manifest), not AUTHENTICITY (the manifest is
+  # genuinely Node's). The only thing establishing that is TLS to
+  # $NODE_DIST_BASE. Node publishes SHASUMS256.txt.sig signed by its release
+  # keys and we do not check it, which is on par with nvm but means pointing
+  # MOSAIC_NODE_DIST_BASE at an untrusted mirror has no signature backstop.
+  # Tracked as a hardening follow-up (raised by scooby in the #1229 review).
+  if ! curl -fsSL "${release_url}/SHASUMS256.txt" -o "$work_dir/SHASUMS256.txt"; then
+    fail "Could not fetch SHASUMS256.txt; refusing to install an unverified runtime."
+    rm -rf "$work_dir"; return 1
+  fi
+
+  # Keep only our artifact's line, so a missing entry is an error not a pass.
+  if ! grep " ${tarball}\$" "$work_dir/SHASUMS256.txt" >"$work_dir/expected.sha256"; then
+    fail "$tarball has no entry in SHASUMS256.txt; refusing to install."
+    rm -rf "$work_dir"; return 1
+  fi
+
+  if ! (cd "$work_dir" && verify_sha256 expected.sha256); then
+    fail "Checksum mismatch for $tarball; refusing to install."
+    rm -rf "$work_dir"; return 1
+  fi
+  ok "Checksum verified"
+
+  tar xzf "$work_dir/$tarball" -C "$work_dir"
+  extracted="$work_dir/node-${NODE_BOOTSTRAP_VERSION}-${node_os}-${node_arch}"
+  if [[ ! -x "$extracted/bin/node" ]]; then
+    fail "Extracted archive has no bin/node"
+    rm -rf "$work_dir"; return 1
+  fi
+
+  mkdir -p "$NODE_ROOT"
+  target="$NODE_ROOT/$NODE_BOOTSTRAP_VERSION"
+  rm -rf "$target.incoming"
+  mv "$extracted" "$target.incoming"
+  rm -rf "$target"
+  mv "$target.incoming" "$target"
+  ln -sfn "$NODE_BOOTSTRAP_VERSION" "$NODE_ROOT/current"
+  rm -rf "$work_dir"
+
+  node_bin="$NODE_ROOT/current/bin"
+  if ! node_is_suitable "$node_bin/node"; then
+    fail "Installed node at $node_bin/node did not run"
+    return 1
+  fi
+
+  export PATH="$node_bin:$PATH"
+  ok "Node.js $(node -v) installed with npm $(npm -v 2>/dev/null || echo '?')"
+  return 0
+}
+
+# Make the Mosaic-managed Node reachable from the next shell as well as this
+# one. Measured on a greenfield canary run: without this the install finished
+# rc=0, wrote $PREFIX/bin to ~/.profile, and the next login shell found `mosaic`
+# and then died on `env: 'node': No such file or directory` — the CLI is a Node
+# script, so a CLI on PATH without its runtime is a successful install that
+# produces a broken command.
+persist_node_on_path() {
+  persist_on_path "$NODE_ROOT/current/bin" "Mosaic-managed Node.js" || true
+}
+
+ensure_node() {
+  if command -v node &>/dev/null && node_is_suitable node; then
+    return 0
+  fi
+
+  # A previous run may have installed one that is not on this shell's PATH.
+  if node_is_suitable "$NODE_ROOT/current/bin/node"; then
+    export PATH="$NODE_ROOT/current/bin:$PATH"
+    persist_node_on_path
+    return 0
+  fi
+
+  if [[ "${MOSAIC_SKIP_NODE_BOOTSTRAP:-0}" == "1" ]]; then
+    fail "No suitable Node.js and MOSAIC_SKIP_NODE_BOOTSTRAP=1; refusing to download."
+    echo "  Install Node.js >= $NODE_MIN_MAJOR yourself, then re-run this script."
+    exit 1
+  fi
+
+  require_cmd curl
+  require_cmd tar
+
+  # sha256sum on Linux, shasum on macOS. Verification is not optional: without a
+  # checksum this would install an unauthenticated runtime.
+  if command -v sha256sum &>/dev/null; then
+    verify_sha256() { sha256sum -c --status "$1"; }
+  elif command -v shasum &>/dev/null; then
+    verify_sha256() { shasum -a 256 -c --status "$1"; }
+  else
+    fail "sha256sum or shasum required to verify the Node.js download"
+    exit 1
+  fi
+
+  if ! install_node; then
+    fail "Could not bootstrap Node.js. Install Node.js >= $NODE_MIN_MAJOR and re-run."
+    exit 1
+  fi
+  persist_node_on_path
+}
+
 # ─── preflight ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
 
+ensure_node
 require_cmd node
 require_cmd npm
 
@@ -682,11 +930,7 @@ if [[ "$FLAG_CLI" == "true" ]]; then
     ensure_monorepo
     install_cli_from_source
 
-    # PATH check for npm prefix
-    if [[ ":$PATH:" != *":$PREFIX/bin:"* ]]; then
-      warn "$PREFIX/bin is not on your PATH"
-      dim "  Add to your shell rc:  export PATH=\"$PREFIX/bin:\$PATH\""
-    fi
+    ensure_prefix_on_path
   elif is_next_registry_lane; then
     info "Next mode — trying fast npm @next install from ${REGISTRY}…"
     if install_next_cli_from_registry; then
@@ -699,11 +943,7 @@ if [[ "$FLAG_CLI" == "true" ]]; then
       export MOSAIC_GATEWAY_SKIP_NPM_INSTALL=1
     fi
 
-    # PATH check for npm prefix
-    if [[ ":$PATH:" != *":$PREFIX/bin:"* ]]; then
-      warn "$PREFIX/bin is not on your PATH"
-      dim "  Add to your shell rc:  export PATH=\"$PREFIX/bin:\$PATH\""
-    fi
+    ensure_prefix_on_path
   else
     if [[ -z "$LATEST" ]]; then
       warn "Could not reach registry at $REGISTRY — skipping npm CLI."
@@ -721,11 +961,7 @@ if [[ "$FLAG_CLI" == "true" ]]; then
       ok "CLI is at or ahead of registry ($CURRENT ≥ $LATEST)."
     fi
 
-    # PATH check for npm prefix
-    if [[ ":$PATH:" != *":$PREFIX/bin:"* ]]; then
-      warn "$PREFIX/bin is not on your PATH"
-      dim "  Add to your shell rc:  export PATH=\"$PREFIX/bin:\$PATH\""
-    fi
+    ensure_prefix_on_path
   fi
 fi