diff --git a/scripts/smoke-test.sh b/scripts/smoke-test.sh
index d4ffcb80d3..90efe52da3 100755
--- a/scripts/smoke-test.sh
+++ b/scripts/smoke-test.sh
@@ -392,7 +392,7 @@ if [ "$TOTAL" -lt 1 ]; then
 fi
 
 echo ""
-echo "=== Phase 3z: no tool duplicates its payload into structuredContent (#1375) ==="
+echo "=== Phase 3z: structuredContent carries structure or is absent — never {} and never a copy (#1375, #1522) ==="
 # Asserts on the SHIPPED artifact what the unit suite asserts from source: a
 # non-JSON payload must travel ONCE. It used to appear twice — content[0].text
 # plus an identical structuredContent.text — costing 2.05x the bytes on a large
@@ -421,21 +421,32 @@ if d.get("isError"):
     print("skip"); raise SystemExit
 content = d.get("content") or []
 text = content[0].get("text", "") if content else ""
-sc = d.get("structuredContent")
-if not isinstance(sc, dict):
-    print("no-structured"); raise SystemExit
+sc = d.get("structuredContent", "ABSENT")
 try:
     payload_is_object = isinstance(json.loads(text), dict)
 except Exception:
     payload_is_object = False
 if payload_is_object:
-    print("skip"); raise SystemExit
-print("dup" if sc.get("text") == text and text else "ok")
+    # Object payloads must carry the parsed, NON-EMPTY object.
+    print("ok" if isinstance(sc, dict) and sc else "object-lost"); raise SystemExit
+# Text payloads: no structuredContent key at all. {} rendered as the whole
+# result in outputSchema-honoring clients (#1522); {"text": ...} duplicated
+# the wire (#1375).
+if sc == "ABSENT":
+    print("ok")
+elif isinstance(sc, dict) and not sc:
+    print("empty-lie")
+elif isinstance(sc, dict) and sc.get("text") == text and text:
+    print("dup")
+else:
+    print("unexpected")
 ')
   case "$VERDICT" in
     dup) echo "FAIL: $(echo "$TOOL_ARGS" | cut -d" " -f1) repeats its payload in structuredContent (#1375)"; DUP_TOOLS=$((DUP_TOOLS+1)) ;;
+    empty-lie) echo "FAIL: $(echo "$TOOL_ARGS" | cut -d" " -f1) ships structuredContent {} beside a non-empty payload (#1522)"; DUP_TOOLS=$((DUP_TOOLS+1)) ;;
+    object-lost) echo "FAIL: $(echo "$TOOL_ARGS" | cut -d" " -f1) dropped the parsed object from structuredContent"; DUP_TOOLS=$((DUP_TOOLS+1)) ;;
+    unexpected) echo "FAIL: $(echo "$TOOL_ARGS" | cut -d" " -f1) has an unexpected structuredContent shape"; DUP_TOOLS=$((DUP_TOOLS+1)) ;;
     ok) DUP_CHECKED=$((DUP_CHECKED+1)) ;;
-    no-structured) echo "FAIL: $(echo "$TOOL_ARGS" | cut -d" " -f1) has no structuredContent object (outputSchema requires one)"; DUP_TOOLS=$((DUP_TOOLS+1)) ;;
   esac
 done
 if [ "$DUP_TOOLS" -ne 0 ]; then
@@ -448,6 +459,105 @@ if [ "$DUP_CHECKED" -eq 0 ]; then
 fi
 echo "OK: $DUP_CHECKED tool(s) deliver their payload exactly once"
 
+echo "=== Phase 3z1: default-format MCP replies are usable in schema-honoring clients (#1522) ==="
+# The exact end-to-end failure shape of #1522: a spec-compliant MCP client
+# (Claude Code) reads structuredContent as THE result when a tool declares an
+# outputSchema. Drive the REAL stdio server the way such a client does and
+# assert a default-format search_graph reply cannot render as "{}": either
+# structuredContent is absent (client falls back to content text) or it is a
+# non-empty object. Also assert no tool declares an outputSchema anymore.
+MCP_1522=$(python3 - "$BINARY" "$PROJECT" <<'PYMCP'
+import json, subprocess, sys
+BIN, PROJECT = sys.argv[1], sys.argv[2]
+def rpc(i, m, p): return json.dumps({"jsonrpc": "2.0", "id": i, "method": m, "params": p})
+reqs = "\n".join([
+    rpc(1, "initialize", {"protocolVersion": "2025-06-18", "capabilities": {},
+        "clientInfo": {"name": "smoke-1522", "version": "0"}}),
+    json.dumps({"jsonrpc": "2.0", "method": "notifications/initialized"}),
+    rpc(2, "tools/list", {}),
+    rpc(3, "tools/call", {"name": "search_graph", "arguments":
+        {"project": PROJECT, "name_pattern": "compute"}}),
+]) + "\n"
+out = subprocess.run([BIN], input=reqs, capture_output=True, text=True, timeout=180).stdout
+verdict = []
+for line in out.splitlines():
+    try:
+        d = json.loads(line)
+    except Exception:
+        continue
+    if d.get("id") == 2:
+        schemas = [t["name"] for t in d.get("result", {}).get("tools", []) if "outputSchema" in t]
+        if schemas:
+            verdict.append("FAIL: outputSchema declared by: " + ",".join(schemas))
+    if d.get("id") == 3:
+        r = d.get("result", {})
+        text = (r.get("content") or [{}])[0].get("text", "")
+        sc = r.get("structuredContent", "ABSENT")
+        if not text:
+            verdict.append("FAIL: search_graph content text is empty")
+        if isinstance(sc, dict) and not sc:
+            verdict.append("FAIL: search_graph ships structuredContent {} (#1522)")
+if not verdict:
+    verdict.append("OK")
+print("; ".join(verdict))
+PYMCP
+)
+case "$MCP_1522" in
+  OK) echo "OK: default-format MCP reply is client-usable, no outputSchema declared" ;;
+  *) echo "$MCP_1522"; exit 1 ;;
+esac
+
+echo "=== Phase 3z2: pipelined requests beyond queue capacity all get answers ==="
+# Any 7+ requests written in one stdin burst used to kill the server with
+# rc=1 and ZERO bytes of output — the frontend queue (capacity 8 frames,
+# initialize + notification included) failed the whole session at overflow
+# instead of backpressuring the reader. Agent clients issuing parallel tool
+# calls pipeline exactly like this.
+PIPELINE=$(python3 - "$BINARY" <<'PYPIPE'
+import json, subprocess, sys
+BIN = sys.argv[1]
+N = 24
+def rpc(i, m, p): return json.dumps({"jsonrpc": "2.0", "id": i, "method": m, "params": p})
+lines = [rpc(1, "initialize", {"protocolVersion": "2025-06-18", "capabilities": {},
+         "clientInfo": {"name": "smoke-pipe", "version": "0"}}),
+         json.dumps({"jsonrpc": "2.0", "method": "notifications/initialized"})]
+for i in range(N):
+    lines.append(rpc(100 + i, "tools/call", {"name": "list_projects", "arguments": {}}))
+r = subprocess.run([BIN], input="\n".join(lines) + "\n",
+                   capture_output=True, text=True, timeout=300)
+answered = set()
+for line in r.stdout.splitlines():
+    try:
+        d = json.loads(line)
+    except Exception:
+        continue
+    if isinstance(d.get("id"), int) and d["id"] >= 100:
+        answered.add(d["id"])
+if r.returncode == 0 and len(answered) == N:
+    print("OK")
+else:
+    print(f"FAIL: rc={r.returncode} answered={len(answered)}/{N} stdout_bytes={len(r.stdout)}")
+PYPIPE
+)
+case "$PIPELINE" in
+  OK) echo "OK: 24 pipelined tool calls all answered, clean exit" ;;
+  *) echo "$PIPELINE"; exit 1 ;;
+esac
+
+echo "=== Phase 3z3: config get prints real defaults and rejects unknown keys (#1522) ==="
+CFG_HOME=$(smoke_mktemp_dir)
+CFG_WATCH=$(CBM_CACHE_DIR="$CFG_HOME" "$BINARY" config get auto_watch 2>/dev/null || true)
+if [ "$CFG_WATCH" != "true" ] && [ "$CFG_WATCH" != "false" ]; then
+  echo "FAIL: config get auto_watch printed '$CFG_WATCH' (expected the stored value or the default 'true')"
+  rm -rf "$CFG_HOME"; exit 1
+fi
+if CBM_CACHE_DIR="$CFG_HOME" "$BINARY" config get totally_bogus_key >/dev/null 2>&1; then
+  echo "FAIL: config get of an unknown key exited 0"
+  rm -rf "$CFG_HOME"; exit 1
+fi
+rm -rf "$CFG_HOME"
+echo "OK: config get returns defaults and errors on unknown keys"
+
 echo "OK: search_graph found $TOTAL result(s) for 'compute'"
 
 # 3b: trace_path — verify compute has callers
diff --git a/src/cli/cli.c b/src/cli/cli.c
index 6f13448170..70ed44a11d 100644
--- a/src/cli/cli.c
+++ b/src/cli/cli.c
@@ -6510,6 +6510,43 @@ int cbm_config_delete(cbm_config_t *cfg, const char *key) {
 
 /* ── Config CLI subcommand ────────────────────────────────────── */
 
+/* THE config-key table. list, get, help, and key validation all read this one
+ * definition, so a key cannot exist with different defaults in different
+ * subcommands again: `config list` used to print stored-or-DEFAULT while
+ * `config get` printed stored-or-EMPTY — every unset key (and every typo'd
+ * key, at exit 0) "got" an empty string, indistinguishable from a real value
+ * (#1522). The defaults here mirror the runtime readers' fallbacks
+ * (cbm_config_get_bool/int call sites); keep them in sync. */
+typedef struct {
+    const char *key;
+    const char *default_value;
+    const char *help;
+} config_key_def_t;
+
+static const config_key_def_t CONFIG_KEYS[] = {
+    {CBM_CONFIG_AUTO_INDEX, "false", "Enable auto-indexing on MCP session start"},
+    {CBM_CONFIG_AUTO_INDEX_LIMIT, "50000", "Max files for auto-indexing new projects"},
+    {CBM_CONFIG_AUTO_WATCH, "true", "Register background git watcher on session connect"},
+    {CBM_CONFIG_UI_LANG, "auto", "Pin graph UI language: en, zh, or auto"},
+};
+
+static const config_key_def_t *config_key_lookup(const char *key) {
+    for (size_t i = 0; key && i < sizeof(CONFIG_KEYS) / sizeof(CONFIG_KEYS[0]); i++) {
+        if (strcmp(CONFIG_KEYS[i].key, key) == 0) {
+            return &CONFIG_KEYS[i];
+        }
+    }
+    return NULL;
+}
+
+static void config_print_unknown_key(const char *key) {
+    (void)fprintf(stderr, "error: unknown config key: %s\nKnown keys:", key ? key : "");
+    for (size_t i = 0; i < sizeof(CONFIG_KEYS) / sizeof(CONFIG_KEYS[0]); i++) {
+        (void)fprintf(stderr, " %s", CONFIG_KEYS[i].key);
+    }
+    (void)fprintf(stderr, "\n");
+}
+
 int cbm_cmd_config(int argc, char **argv) {
     /* NULL argv with a nonzero argc previously slipped past this guard (the
      * inner `argv &&` shielded only the help comparison) and dereferenced
@@ -6522,14 +6559,10 @@ int cbm_cmd_config(int argc, char **argv) {
         printf("  set <key> <val>  Set a config value\n");
         printf("  reset <key>      Reset a key to default\n\n");
         printf("Config keys:\n");
-        printf("  %-25s  default=%-10s  %s\n", CBM_CONFIG_AUTO_INDEX, "false",
-               "Enable auto-indexing on MCP session start");
-        printf("  %-25s  default=%-10s  %s\n", CBM_CONFIG_AUTO_INDEX_LIMIT, "50000",
-               "Max files for auto-indexing new projects");
-        printf("  %-25s  default=%-10s  %s\n", CBM_CONFIG_AUTO_WATCH, "true",
-               "Register background git watcher on session connect");
-        printf("  %-25s  default=%-10s  %s\n", CBM_CONFIG_UI_LANG, "auto",
-               "Pin graph UI language: en, zh, or auto");
+        for (size_t i = 0; i < sizeof(CONFIG_KEYS) / sizeof(CONFIG_KEYS[0]); i++) {
+            printf("  %-25s  default=%-10s  %s\n", CONFIG_KEYS[i].key, CONFIG_KEYS[i].default_value,
+                   CONFIG_KEYS[i].help);
+        }
         return 0;
     }
 
@@ -6551,25 +6584,33 @@ int cbm_cmd_config(int argc, char **argv) {
     int rc = 0;
     if (strcmp(argv[0], "list") == 0 || strcmp(argv[0], "ls") == 0) {
         printf("Configuration:\n");
-        printf("  %-25s = %-10s\n", CBM_CONFIG_AUTO_INDEX,
-               cbm_config_get(cfg, CBM_CONFIG_AUTO_INDEX, "false"));
-        printf("  %-25s = %-10s\n", CBM_CONFIG_AUTO_INDEX_LIMIT,
-               cbm_config_get(cfg, CBM_CONFIG_AUTO_INDEX_LIMIT, "50000"));
-        printf("  %-25s = %-10s\n", CBM_CONFIG_AUTO_WATCH,
-               cbm_config_get(cfg, CBM_CONFIG_AUTO_WATCH, "true"));
-        printf("  %-25s = %-10s\n", CBM_CONFIG_UI_LANG,
-               cbm_config_get(cfg, CBM_CONFIG_UI_LANG, "auto"));
+        for (size_t i = 0; i < sizeof(CONFIG_KEYS) / sizeof(CONFIG_KEYS[0]); i++) {
+            printf("  %-25s = %-10s\n", CONFIG_KEYS[i].key,
+                   cbm_config_get(cfg, CONFIG_KEYS[i].key, CONFIG_KEYS[i].default_value));
+        }
     } else if (strcmp(argv[0], "get") == 0) {
         if (argc < MIN_ARGC_GET) {
             (void)fprintf(stderr, "Usage: config get <key>\n");
             rc = CLI_TRUE;
         } else {
-            printf("%s\n", cbm_config_get(cfg, argv[CLI_SKIP_ONE], ""));
+            const config_key_def_t *def = config_key_lookup(argv[CLI_SKIP_ONE]);
+            if (!def) {
+                config_print_unknown_key(argv[CLI_SKIP_ONE]);
+                rc = CLI_TRUE;
+            } else {
+                /* Stored value or the key's real default — the same fallback
+                 * the runtime readers use. `""` here was #1522's bug 2: every
+                 * unset key read as empty with exit 0. */
+                printf("%s\n", cbm_config_get(cfg, def->key, def->default_value));
+            }
         }
     } else if (strcmp(argv[0], "set") == 0) {
         if (argc < MIN_ARGC_CMD) {
             (void)fprintf(stderr, "Usage: config set <key> <value>\n");
             rc = CLI_TRUE;
+        } else if (!config_key_lookup(argv[CLI_SKIP_ONE])) {
+            config_print_unknown_key(argv[CLI_SKIP_ONE]);
+            rc = CLI_TRUE;
         } else {
             if (cbm_config_set(cfg, argv[CLI_SKIP_ONE], argv[CLI_PAIR_LEN]) == 0) {
                 printf("%s = %s\n", argv[CLI_SKIP_ONE], argv[CLI_PAIR_LEN]);
@@ -6582,6 +6623,9 @@ int cbm_cmd_config(int argc, char **argv) {
         if (argc < MIN_ARGC_GET) {
             (void)fprintf(stderr, "Usage: config reset <key>\n");
             rc = CLI_TRUE;
+        } else if (!config_key_lookup(argv[CLI_SKIP_ONE])) {
+            config_print_unknown_key(argv[CLI_SKIP_ONE]);
+            rc = CLI_TRUE;
         } else {
             cbm_config_delete(cfg, argv[CLI_SKIP_ONE]);
             printf("%s reset to default\n", argv[CLI_SKIP_ONE]);
diff --git a/src/daemon/frontend.c b/src/daemon/frontend.c
index 8d97adbe7b..f5116934cf 100644
--- a/src/daemon/frontend.c
+++ b/src/daemon/frontend.c
@@ -492,33 +492,56 @@ static bool frontend_enqueue(frontend_state_t *state, char *message, bool conten
             return false;
         }
     }
-    cbm_mutex_lock(&state->mutex);
-    bool stopped = state->stopping || state->failed;
-    bool capacity = state->count < FRONTEND_QUEUE_CAPACITY &&
-                    state->queued_bytes <= FRONTEND_QUEUE_BYTES_MAX &&
-                    length <= FRONTEND_QUEUE_BYTES_MAX - state->queued_bytes;
-    if (!stopped && capacity) {
-        size_t tail = (state->head + state->count) % FRONTEND_QUEUE_CAPACITY;
-        state->queue[tail] = (frontend_item_t){
-            .message = message,
-            .length = length,
-            .content_length_framed = content_length_framed,
-            .has_id = has_id,
-            .id = id,
-            .id_str = id_str,
-        };
-        state->count++;
-        state->queued_bytes += length;
+    /* A frame that exceeds the whole byte budget can never be admitted no
+     * matter how long we wait; only that case is a hard failure. */
+    if (length > FRONTEND_QUEUE_BYTES_MAX) {
+        cbm_mutex_lock(&state->mutex);
+        if (!state->stopping && !state->failed) {
+            state->failed = true;
+            state->stopping = true;
+        }
         cbm_mutex_unlock(&state->mutex);
-        return true;
+        free(id_str);
+        return false;
     }
-    if (!stopped) {
-        state->failed = true;
-        state->stopping = true;
+    /* A full queue is BACKPRESSURE, not failure. This runs on the stdin reader
+     * thread, so blocking here stops further reads and lets the kernel pipe
+     * absorb the client's burst — a pipelining client is a client going fast,
+     * not a client going wrong. The old code failed the whole session at frame
+     * capacity+1, killing it with every buffered response unwritten: any 7+
+     * pipelined requests (e.g. an agent issuing parallel tool calls) died with
+     * rc=1 and zero output (#1522 follow-up). Waits are bounded only by the
+     * stop/fail flags, which every teardown path already sets — the same
+     * condition the polling worker and watchdogs key on. */
+    for (;;) {
+        cbm_mutex_lock(&state->mutex);
+        bool stopped = state->stopping || state->failed;
+        if (stopped) {
+            cbm_mutex_unlock(&state->mutex);
+            free(id_str);
+            return false;
+        }
+        bool capacity = state->count < FRONTEND_QUEUE_CAPACITY &&
+                        state->queued_bytes <= FRONTEND_QUEUE_BYTES_MAX &&
+                        length <= FRONTEND_QUEUE_BYTES_MAX - state->queued_bytes;
+        if (capacity) {
+            size_t tail = (state->head + state->count) % FRONTEND_QUEUE_CAPACITY;
+            state->queue[tail] = (frontend_item_t){
+                .message = message,
+                .length = length,
+                .content_length_framed = content_length_framed,
+                .has_id = has_id,
+                .id = id,
+                .id_str = id_str,
+            };
+            state->count++;
+            state->queued_bytes += length;
+            cbm_mutex_unlock(&state->mutex);
+            return true;
+        }
+        cbm_mutex_unlock(&state->mutex);
+        cbm_usleep(FRONTEND_WAIT_US);
     }
-    cbm_mutex_unlock(&state->mutex);
-    free(id_str);
-    return false;
 }
 
 static bool frontend_stop_begin(frontend_state_t *state) {
diff --git a/src/mcp/mcp.c b/src/mcp/mcp.c
index 34773bed05..191823ddac 100644
--- a/src/mcp/mcp.c
+++ b/src/mcp/mcp.c
@@ -301,35 +301,32 @@ char *cbm_mcp_text_result(const char *text, bool is_error) {
             yyjson_doc_free(structured_doc);
         }
     }
-    if (!has_structured_content) {
-        /* Every advertised MCP tool declares an object outputSchema, so a
-         * conforming structuredContent object is mandatory even for compact
-         * TOON/plain-text and error results. What is NOT mandatory is putting
-         * the whole payload in it a second time.
+    if (!has_structured_content && is_error) {
+        /* structuredContent has now been wrong in both directions, so the rule
+         * is spelled out here in full:
          *
-         * It used to. For any result that is not a JSON object — which is every
-         * TOON answer, i.e. the large ones — structuredContent was
-         * {"text": <the entire payload>} sitting beside an identical
-         * content[0].text. Measured at 2.05x the payload on a 20k-node
-         * query_graph, so half of every reply was redundant bytes: half the
-         * usable transport budget, and double the tokens billed to every LLM
-         * caller (#1375).
+         *   - JSON-object payload  -> structuredContent = the PARSED object
+         *     (the branch above; the spec's structured+serialized pattern).
+         *   - error                -> structuredContent = {"error": <text>} —
+         *     bounded, small, and the only machine-readable failure form.
+         *   - anything else       -> NO structuredContent key at all.
          *
-         * Nothing is lost by dropping it. structuredContent exists to carry
-         * STRUCTURE, and a string re-wrapped in a one-key object has none —
-         * a client parsing structuredContent.text learns exactly what
-         * content[0].text already told it. The empty object still satisfies
-         * outputSchema ({"type":"object","additionalProperties":true}), and the
-         * JSON branch above is untouched: when a tool really does return an
-         * object, callers still get it parsed.
+         * Pre-#1488 the "anything else" case duplicated the payload verbatim
+         * ({"text": <payload>} beside an identical content[0].text — 2.05x the
+         * bytes on a 20k-node query_graph, #1375). #1488 replaced that with an
+         * EMPTY object on the theory that it "still satisfies outputSchema" —
+         * but clients that honor a declared outputSchema treat structuredContent
+         * as THE authoritative result, so every tree-format reply rendered as
+         * literally "{}" in Claude Code and friends (#1522). An empty object
+         * beside a non-empty payload is not conservative; it is a wrong answer.
          *
-         * Errors keep their payload. They are bounded and small, the duplication
-         * costs nothing measurable, and structuredContent.error is the only
-         * machine-readable form of a failure a client has. */
+         * The key is therefore OMITTED for text-shaped payloads, and no tool
+         * declares an outputSchema anymore (see mcp_add_tool_def): output is
+         * format-parameter-polymorphic, so a static schema was never truthful.
+         * tests/test_mcp.c binds all three branches; scripts/smoke-test.sh
+         * asserts the same contract on the shipped binary. */
         yyjson_mut_val *structured = yyjson_mut_obj(doc);
-        if (is_error) {
-            yyjson_mut_obj_add_str(doc, structured, "error", text ? text : "");
-        }
+        yyjson_mut_obj_add_str(doc, structured, "error", text ? text : "");
         yyjson_mut_obj_add_val(doc, root, "structuredContent", structured);
     }
     yyjson_mut_obj_add_bool(doc, root, "isError", is_error);
@@ -693,8 +690,6 @@ static const tool_def_t TOOLS[] = {
 
 static const int TOOL_COUNT = sizeof(TOOLS) / sizeof(TOOLS[0]);
 
-static const char MCP_TOOL_OUTPUT_SCHEMA[] = "{\"type\":\"object\",\"additionalProperties\":true}";
-
 typedef struct {
     const char *name;
     bool read_only;
@@ -752,7 +747,13 @@ static void mcp_add_tool_def(yyjson_mut_doc *doc, yyjson_mut_val *tools, int i)
     yyjson_mut_obj_add_str(doc, tool, "description", TOOLS[i].description);
 
     mcp_add_json_schema(doc, tool, "inputSchema", TOOLS[i].input_schema);
-    mcp_add_json_schema(doc, tool, "outputSchema", MCP_TOOL_OUTPUT_SCHEMA);
+    /* Deliberately NO outputSchema. Tool output is format-parameter-polymorphic
+     * (tree text by default, a JSON object under format:"json"), so no static
+     * schema is truthful — and a declared schema makes spec-honoring clients
+     * read structuredContent as the authoritative result, which is exactly how
+     * the empty-object regression rendered every tree reply as "{}" (#1522).
+     * The blanket {"type":"object","additionalProperties":true} it replaced
+     * validated anything and informed nobody. */
 
     const tool_annotation_def_t *def = mcp_tool_annotations(TOOLS[i].name);
     yyjson_mut_val *annotations = yyjson_mut_obj(doc);
diff --git a/tests/test_cli.c b/tests/test_cli.c
index f35dd9d4c7..076ee2196f 100644
--- a/tests/test_cli.c
+++ b/tests/test_cli.c
@@ -11460,6 +11460,98 @@ TEST(cli_config_get_set) {
     PASS();
 }
 
+/* Capture stdout across one cbm_cmd_config invocation. Returns the command's
+ * rc and copies captured stdout (NUL-terminated, truncated to cap) out.
+ * tmpfile+dup2+rewind is the file's established portable capture idiom —
+ * pread/mkstemp/setenv do not exist on the MinGW leg. */
+static int cli_config_cmd_capture(int argc, char **argv, char *out, size_t cap) {
+    out[0] = '\0';
+    FILE *capture = tmpfile();
+    int saved = capture ? dup(fileno(stdout)) : -1;
+    if (!capture || saved < 0) {
+        if (capture)
+            fclose(capture);
+        if (saved >= 0)
+            close(saved);
+        return -1000;
+    }
+    fflush(stdout);
+    if (dup2(fileno(capture), fileno(stdout)) < 0) {
+        fclose(capture);
+        close(saved);
+        return -1000;
+    }
+    int rc = cbm_cmd_config(argc, argv);
+    fflush(stdout);
+    (void)dup2(saved, fileno(stdout));
+    close(saved);
+    rewind(capture);
+    size_t got = fread(out, 1, cap - 1, capture);
+    out[got] = '\0';
+    fclose(capture);
+    return rc;
+}
+
+/* The user-facing config contract (#1522 bug 2): `get` of an UNSET key prints
+ * that key's real default — the same fallback the runtime readers use — with
+ * exit 0; a stored value round-trips; an unknown key is an ERROR (non-zero,
+ * nothing on stdout) for get, set, and reset alike. The old code printed ""
+ * with exit 0 for every unset key AND every typo, so a misspelled key was
+ * indistinguishable from a correctly-read setting. */
+TEST(cli_config_cmd_get_prints_defaults_and_rejects_unknown_keys) {
+    char tmpdir[512];
+    snprintf(tmpdir, sizeof(tmpdir), "%s/cli-cfg-cmd-XXXXXX", cbm_tmpdir());
+    if (!cbm_mkdtemp(tmpdir))
+        FAIL("cbm_mkdtemp failed");
+    char *saved_cache = NULL;
+    const char *prior = getenv("CBM_CACHE_DIR");
+    if (prior) {
+        saved_cache = strdup(prior);
+    }
+    cbm_setenv("CBM_CACHE_DIR", tmpdir, 1);
+
+    char out[512];
+    /* Unset key -> its real default, exit 0. */
+    char *get_watch[] = {"get", "auto_watch"};
+    ASSERT_EQ(cli_config_cmd_capture(2, get_watch, out, sizeof(out)), 0);
+    ASSERT_STR_EQ(out, "true\n");
+    char *get_limit[] = {"get", "auto_index_limit"};
+    ASSERT_EQ(cli_config_cmd_capture(2, get_limit, out, sizeof(out)), 0);
+    ASSERT_STR_EQ(out, "50000\n");
+
+    /* Stored value round-trips. */
+    char *set_watch[] = {"set", "auto_watch", "false"};
+    ASSERT_EQ(cli_config_cmd_capture(3, set_watch, out, sizeof(out)), 0);
+    ASSERT_EQ(cli_config_cmd_capture(2, get_watch, out, sizeof(out)), 0);
+    ASSERT_STR_EQ(out, "false\n");
+
+    /* Reset returns the key to its default. */
+    char *reset_watch[] = {"reset", "auto_watch"};
+    ASSERT_EQ(cli_config_cmd_capture(2, reset_watch, out, sizeof(out)), 0);
+    ASSERT_EQ(cli_config_cmd_capture(2, get_watch, out, sizeof(out)), 0);
+    ASSERT_STR_EQ(out, "true\n");
+
+    /* Unknown keys are errors on every subcommand, with clean stdout. */
+    char *get_bogus[] = {"get", "totally_bogus_key"};
+    ASSERT_TRUE(cli_config_cmd_capture(2, get_bogus, out, sizeof(out)) != 0);
+    ASSERT_STR_EQ(out, "");
+    char *set_bogus[] = {"set", "totally_bogus_key", "x"};
+    ASSERT_TRUE(cli_config_cmd_capture(3, set_bogus, out, sizeof(out)) != 0);
+    ASSERT_STR_EQ(out, "");
+    char *reset_bogus[] = {"reset", "totally_bogus_key"};
+    ASSERT_TRUE(cli_config_cmd_capture(2, reset_bogus, out, sizeof(out)) != 0);
+    ASSERT_STR_EQ(out, "");
+
+    if (saved_cache) {
+        cbm_setenv("CBM_CACHE_DIR", saved_cache, 1);
+        free(saved_cache);
+    } else {
+        cbm_unsetenv("CBM_CACHE_DIR");
+    }
+    test_rmdir_r(tmpdir);
+    PASS();
+}
+
 typedef struct {
     cbm_config_t *config;
     const char *key;
@@ -12346,6 +12438,7 @@ SUITE(cli) {
     /* Config store (7 tests — group F) */
     RUN_TEST(cli_config_open_close);
     RUN_TEST(cli_config_get_set);
+    RUN_TEST(cli_config_cmd_get_prints_defaults_and_rejects_unknown_keys);
     RUN_TEST(cli_config_get_result_storage_is_per_thread);
     RUN_TEST(cli_config_get_bool);
     RUN_TEST(cli_config_get_int);
diff --git a/tests/test_daemon_frontend.c b/tests/test_daemon_frontend.c
index 56040b71b8..2044b30c1d 100644
--- a/tests/test_daemon_frontend.c
+++ b/tests/test_daemon_frontend.c
@@ -89,6 +89,12 @@ typedef struct {
     atomic_int second_session_cancels;
     atomic_bool block_first_request;
     atomic_bool first_request_started;
+    /* Overflow mode: set by the writer AFTER stdin is fully pumped and closed,
+     * releasing the deliberately-held first request. The hold is what forces
+     * the input queue to actually fill (proving enqueue backpressures instead
+     * of failing the session); the release is a state transition, not a
+     * timeout, so the drain that follows is deterministic. */
+    atomic_bool release_first_request;
     int request_observed_fd;
     int session_cancel_fd;
 } frontend_eof_application_context_t;
@@ -162,10 +168,14 @@ static cbm_daemon_runtime_application_status_t frontend_eof_application_request(
     if (request_index == 0 &&
         atomic_load_explicit(&context->block_first_request, memory_order_acquire)) {
         atomic_store_explicit(&context->first_request_started, true, memory_order_release);
-        while (!atomic_load_explicit(&session->cancelled, memory_order_acquire)) {
+        while (!atomic_load_explicit(&session->cancelled, memory_order_acquire) &&
+               !atomic_load_explicit(&context->release_first_request, memory_order_acquire)) {
             cbm_usleep(1000);
         }
-        return CBM_DAEMON_RUNTIME_APPLICATION_CANCELLED;
+        if (atomic_load_explicit(&session->cancelled, memory_order_acquire)) {
+            return CBM_DAEMON_RUNTIME_APPLICATION_CANCELLED;
+        }
+        /* Released: fall through and answer normally like every later item. */
     }
     if (request_length == 0) {
         return CBM_DAEMON_RUNTIME_APPLICATION_OK;
@@ -271,6 +281,14 @@ static void *frontend_eof_writer(void *opaque) {
     }
     ok = close(writer->fd) == 0 && ok;
     writer->fd = -1;
+    if (writer->overflow) {
+        /* Everything — 32 over-capacity frames AND the EOF behind them — is now
+         * committed to the pipe. Only now release the held first request: the
+         * queue was provably full while it blocked, so the drain that follows
+         * exercises enqueue-wait, not a conveniently fast worker. */
+        atomic_store_explicit(&writer->application->release_first_request, true,
+                              memory_order_release);
+    }
     atomic_store_explicit(&writer->succeeded, ok, memory_order_release);
     atomic_store_explicit(&writer->finished, true, memory_order_release);
     return NULL;
@@ -285,6 +303,7 @@ static bool frontend_eof_fixture_start(frontend_eof_fixture_t *fixture, const ch
     atomic_init(&fixture->application.second_session_cancels, 0);
     atomic_init(&fixture->application.block_first_request, true);
     atomic_init(&fixture->application.first_request_started, false);
+    atomic_init(&fixture->application.release_first_request, false);
     fixture->application.request_observed_fd = -1;
     fixture->application.session_cancel_fd = -1;
     char key[CBM_DAEMON_KEY_SIZE];
@@ -408,13 +427,31 @@ static int frontend_eof_child_run(const char *parent, bool overflow) {
         atomic_load_explicit(&fixture.application.first_request_started, memory_order_acquire);
     bool session_cancelled =
         atomic_load_explicit(&fixture.application.session_cancels, memory_order_acquire) > 0;
+    int requests_observed =
+        atomic_load_explicit(&fixture.application.requests, memory_order_acquire);
     bool input_closed = fclose(input) == 0;
     bool output_closed = fclose(output) == 0;
     bool streams_closed = input_closed && output_closed;
     bool fixture_closed = frontend_eof_fixture_finish(&fixture);
-    bool result_matches_contract = overflow ? result < 0 : result == 0;
-    return result_matches_contract && joined && writer_ok && request_started && session_cancelled &&
-                   streams_closed && fixture_closed
+    bool result_matches_contract;
+    if (overflow) {
+        /* Over-capacity pipelined input is a client going FAST, not a client
+         * going WRONG (#1522 follow-up): enqueue must backpressure the stdin
+         * reader until the worker drains, then every queued frame — the held
+         * first request plus all 32 over-capacity frames — is answered and the
+         * session closes cleanly. The old contract pinned the defect: enqueue
+         * overflow failed the whole session (result < 0, session cancelled,
+         * every buffered response lost). */
+        /* session_cancel also fires on the ordinary client disconnect at EOF
+         * teardown, so it cannot discriminate this contract; the loss-free
+         * property is the request count plus the clean run result. */
+        result_matches_contract =
+            result == 0 && requests_observed == 1 + FRONTEND_EOF_TEST_OVERFLOW_MESSAGES;
+    } else {
+        result_matches_contract = result == 0 && session_cancelled;
+    }
+    return result_matches_contract && joined && writer_ok && request_started && streams_closed &&
+                   fixture_closed
                ? 0
                : 73;
 }
@@ -583,6 +620,7 @@ static int frontend_backpressure_daemon_run(const char *parent, int ready_fd, in
     atomic_init(&application.second_session_cancels, 0);
     atomic_init(&application.block_first_request, false);
     atomic_init(&application.first_request_started, false);
+    atomic_init(&application.release_first_request, false);
     application.request_observed_fd = ready_fd;
     application.session_cancel_fd = cancel_fd;
     cbm_daemon_runtime_application_callbacks_t callbacks = {
@@ -1332,7 +1370,7 @@ TEST(daemon_local_participant_monitor_allows_supervisor_containment_window) {
  * prevents the sole reader from observing that already-pending EOF, so neither
  * the request nor its daemon session is cancelled. Overload must instead fail
  * the frontend promptly and close/cancel the authenticated session. */
-TEST(daemon_frontend_over_capacity_input_cannot_hide_eof_behind_active_request) {
+TEST(daemon_frontend_over_capacity_input_backpressures_without_loss) {
     ASSERT_TRUE(frontend_eof_run_isolated("overflow", true));
     PASS();
 }
@@ -1390,7 +1428,7 @@ SUITE(daemon_frontend) {
     RUN_TEST(daemon_frontend_maintenance_exits_while_stdio_reader_is_blocked);
     RUN_TEST(daemon_local_participant_monitor_cancels_then_bounds_active_operation);
     RUN_TEST(daemon_local_participant_monitor_allows_supervisor_containment_window);
-    RUN_TEST(daemon_frontend_over_capacity_input_cannot_hide_eof_behind_active_request);
+    RUN_TEST(daemon_frontend_over_capacity_input_backpressures_without_loss);
     RUN_TEST(daemon_frontend_eof_drain_timeout_cancels_and_returns_success);
     RUN_TEST(daemon_frontend_stdout_backpressure_eof_fail_stops_and_cancels_session);
     RUN_TEST(daemon_frontend_stdout_backpressure_maintenance_stops_and_cancels_session);
diff --git a/tests/test_mcp.c b/tests/test_mcp.c
index cdb1ac62ea..8543300531 100644
--- a/tests/test_mcp.c
+++ b/tests/test_mcp.c
@@ -825,8 +825,13 @@ TEST(mcp_tools_list_latest_metadata) {
     ASSERT_NOT_NULL(strstr(json, "\"title\":\"Search graph\""));
     ASSERT_NOT_NULL(strstr(json, "\"title\":\"Index repository\""));
     ASSERT_NOT_NULL(strstr(json, "\"title\":\"Check index coverage\""));
-    ASSERT_NOT_NULL(strstr(json, "\"outputSchema\":{\"type\":\"object\""));
-    ASSERT_NOT_NULL(strstr(json, "\"additionalProperties\":true"));
+    /* No tool may declare an outputSchema. The blanket permissive schema
+     * ({"type":"object","additionalProperties":true}) carried zero information
+     * for clients, but its presence made spec-compliant clients read
+     * structuredContent as the authoritative result — which turned every
+     * text-shaped (tree/TOON) reply into a rendered "{}" (#1522). Tool output
+     * here is format-parameter-polymorphic, so no static schema is truthful. */
+    ASSERT_NULL(strstr(json, "\"outputSchema\""));
     /* search_graph's compact degree columns intentionally count the graph
      * relationships used for call/reference/type centrality, not every edge
      * family (for example DEFINES or CONTAINS_FILE). Keep the public contract
@@ -1093,19 +1098,24 @@ TEST(mcp_text_result) {
     PASS();
 }
 
-TEST(mcp_text_result_does_not_duplicate_plain_text_into_structured_content) {
-    /* A non-JSON payload used to be repeated verbatim as
-     * structuredContent {"text": <payload>} beside content[0].text — 2.05x the
-     * payload measured on a 20k-node query_graph, i.e. half the transport budget
-     * and double the tokens for every LLM caller (#1375).
+TEST(mcp_text_result_omits_structured_content_for_plain_text) {
+    /* A non-JSON payload must not produce a structuredContent key AT ALL.
      *
-     * structuredContent carries STRUCTURE; a string rewrapped in a one-key
-     * object has none, so the empty object is the honest answer and still
-     * satisfies the permissive outputSchema. The payload stays in content. */
+     * History, because this field has now been wrong in both directions:
+     * pre-#1488 it duplicated the whole payload ({"text": <payload>} beside an
+     * identical content[0].text — 2.05x the bytes). #1488 replaced that with an
+     * EMPTY object — and spec-compliant clients (Claude Code among them) treat
+     * structuredContent as THE result whenever the tool declares an
+     * outputSchema, so every default-format search_graph/trace_path rendered as
+     * literally "{}" (#1522). Empty is not honest; it is a second lie.
+     *
+     * The corrected contract: no duplication AND no empty-object placeholder.
+     * A text payload travels once, in content[0].text, and the envelope simply
+     * has no structuredContent. (Real JSON objects and error envelopes keep
+     * theirs — that is structure, not padding.) */
     char *json = cbm_mcp_text_result("plain text", false);
     ASSERT_NOT_NULL(json);
-    ASSERT_NOT_NULL(strstr(json, "\"structuredContent\":{}"));
-    ASSERT_NULL(strstr(json, "\"structuredContent\":{\"text\""));
+    ASSERT_NULL(strstr(json, "\"structuredContent\""));
     /* The payload is still delivered — exactly once. */
     ASSERT_NOT_NULL(strstr(json, "\"text\":\"plain text\""));
     ASSERT_NOT_NULL(strstr(json, "\"isError\":false"));
@@ -1832,10 +1842,13 @@ TEST(tool_get_code_snippet_clips_whole_file_node) {
  * catch it in whatever tool is added next. So this enumerates the tool table
  * itself — a new tool is covered the moment it is registered, with no test edit.
  *
- * The invariant: for a NON-error result whose payload is not a JSON object,
- * structuredContent must not carry the payload a second time. Errors are exempt
- * and deliberately so — bounded, small, and structuredContent.error is the only
- * machine-readable form of a failure a client gets. */
+ * The invariant, tightened by #1522: for a NON-error result whose payload is
+ * not a JSON object, the envelope must carry NO structuredContent key — not the
+ * payload a second time (#1375's duplication), and not an empty object either
+ * (#1488's replacement, which spec-compliant clients rendered as the entire
+ * result: "{}"). Object payloads keep their parsed structuredContent; errors
+ * keep structuredContent.error — bounded, small, and the only machine-readable
+ * form of a failure a client gets. */
 TEST(mcp_every_tool_result_is_duplication_free) {
     char tmp[256];
     cbm_mcp_server_t *srv = setup_snippet_server(tmp, sizeof(tmp));
@@ -1863,30 +1876,36 @@ TEST(mcp_every_tool_result_is_duplication_free) {
         const char *text = text_val ? yyjson_get_str(text_val) : NULL;
         yyjson_val *structured = yyjson_obj_get(root, "structuredContent");
 
-        /* outputSchema is declared for every tool, so this stays mandatory. */
-        ASSERT_NOT_NULL(structured);
-        ASSERT_TRUE(yyjson_is_obj(structured));
-
         yyjson_val *is_error = yyjson_obj_get(root, "isError");
         bool errored = is_error && yyjson_is_true(is_error);
 
-        if (text && text[0] && !errored) {
-            /* If the payload is itself a JSON object, structuredContent is the
-             * PARSED form and legitimately holds the same data — that is the
-             * spec's structured+serialized pattern, not waste. Only the
-             * non-object case is checked here. */
+        if (errored) {
+            /* Errors keep machine-readable structure: either the wrapped
+             * {"error": <text>} form, or — when the error payload is itself a
+             * JSON object — that object parsed. Non-empty either way; an empty
+             * object is the #1522 lie in error clothing. */
+            ASSERT_NOT_NULL(structured);
+            ASSERT_TRUE(yyjson_is_obj(structured));
+            ASSERT_TRUE(yyjson_obj_size(structured) > 0);
+        } else if (text && text[0]) {
             yyjson_doc *as_json = yyjson_read(text, strlen(text), 0);
             bool payload_is_object = as_json && yyjson_is_obj(yyjson_doc_get_root(as_json));
             if (as_json) {
                 yyjson_doc_free(as_json);
             }
-            if (!payload_is_object) {
-                yyjson_val *dup = yyjson_obj_get(structured, "text");
-                if (dup && yyjson_is_str(dup)) {
-                    const char *dup_str = yyjson_get_str(dup);
-                    /* The exact defect: same bytes, twice, in one reply. */
-                    ASSERT_TRUE(!(dup_str && strcmp(dup_str, text) == 0));
-                }
+            if (payload_is_object) {
+                /* JSON-object payloads: structuredContent is the PARSED form —
+                 * the spec's structured+serialized pattern, not waste. It must
+                 * be present and non-empty (an empty object beside a non-empty
+                 * payload is exactly the #1522 lie). */
+                ASSERT_NOT_NULL(structured);
+                ASSERT_TRUE(yyjson_is_obj(structured));
+                ASSERT_TRUE(yyjson_obj_size(structured) > 0);
+            } else {
+                /* Text-shaped payloads (tree/TOON): NO structuredContent key.
+                 * {} rendered as the whole result in schema-honoring clients
+                 * (#1522); {"text": payload} doubled the wire cost (#1375). */
+                ASSERT_NULL(structured);
                 checked++;
             }
         }
@@ -1919,11 +1938,11 @@ TEST(tool_search_graph_includes_node_properties) {
              "\"arguments\":{\"project\":\"test-project\",\"label\":\"Function\","
              "\"name_pattern\":\"HandleRequest\",\"limit\":5}}}");
     ASSERT_NOT_NULL(resp);
-    /* TOON is not a JSON object, so structuredContent stays empty rather than
-     * repeating the whole table a second time (#1375). The payload travels once,
-     * in content. */
-    ASSERT_NOT_NULL(strstr(resp, "\"structuredContent\":{}"));
-    ASSERT_NULL(strstr(resp, "\"structuredContent\":{\"text\":"));
+    /* TOON is not a JSON object, so the envelope has no structuredContent at
+     * all: {} was rendered as the entire result by schema-honoring clients
+     * (#1522), and {"text": ...} doubled the wire cost (#1375). The payload
+     * travels once, in content. */
+    ASSERT_NULL(strstr(resp, "\"structuredContent\""));
     char *inner = extract_text_content(resp);
     ASSERT_NOT_NULL(inner);
     ASSERT_NOT_NULL(strstr(inner, "results:")); /* TOON table header */
@@ -10451,7 +10470,7 @@ SUITE(mcp) {
     RUN_TEST(mcp_ingest_traces_items_disallow_additional_properties_issue731);
     RUN_TEST(mcp_get_architecture_aspects_schema_enum_pr560);
     RUN_TEST(mcp_text_result);
-    RUN_TEST(mcp_text_result_does_not_duplicate_plain_text_into_structured_content);
+    RUN_TEST(mcp_text_result_omits_structured_content_for_plain_text);
     RUN_TEST(mcp_every_tool_result_is_duplication_free);
     RUN_TEST(mcp_cancel_matches_request_id);
     RUN_TEST(mcp_text_result_error);