feat(levelcode): drop sessions search, cap the list at 30

With sessions bounded to a small working set there's nothing to search
through, so remove the search field from both surfaces (the /sessions modal
and the Sessions sidebar) and the now-orphaned sessMatch helper from the
byte-shared SESSIONS-PURE block — the drift test keeps the two deletions
identical. Simpler, quieter, more like VS Code's own history.

- media/chat.html, media/sessionsView.html: remove the search input + its
  CSS, the sessQuery state + input listeners, and the "nothing matches" empty
  branch; drop sessMatch from the pure block on both sides.
- extension.js: sessionList() now caps the displayed index at the 30
  most-recently-touched sessions, with pinned sessions exempt (a pin is never
  dropped for being old). Older/archived work fades from the list (still
  reachable by resume later).
- test/sessionsUi.test.js: drop the MATCH test + the sessMatch extraction; add
  a CAP invariant (≤30, pinned exempt, no search field on either surface).

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 <noreply@anthropic.com>

Author: ndemianc

extensions/levelcode-ai/extension.js

@@ -669,8 +669,20 @@ function sessionsManager() {
 	} catch (e) { dbg('sessions.init.error', { msg: String((e && e.message) || e) }); return null; }
 	return _sessionsMgr;
 }
-/** The session index for the current workspace (what the panel/view list). Empty, never throws. */
-function sessionList() { const m = sessionsManager(); return m ? m.list() : []; }
+// The sessions shown in the /sessions modal + the sidebar: the 30 most-recently-touched, plus any pinned
+// session (a pin is never dropped just for being old). Capped because the surfaces carry no search — 30 is
+// a comfortable working set; older/archived work fades out (and stays reachable by resume later).
+const SESSIONS_SHOWN = 30;
+function sessionList() {
+	const m = sessionsManager(); if (!m) { return []; }
+	const all = m.list();
+	if (all.length <= SESSIONS_SHOWN) { return all; }
+	const recent = all.slice().sort((a, b) => String(b.updatedAt || '').localeCompare(String(a.updatedAt || '')));
+	const shown = recent.slice(0, SESSIONS_SHOWN);
+	const have = new Set(shown.map((e) => e.id));
+	for (const e of recent.slice(SESSIONS_SHOWN)) { if (e.pinned && !have.has(e.id)) { shown.push(e); } }
+	return shown;
+}
 
 function newChat() {
 	// Seal the outgoing session (its terminal state + a final index row) BEFORE the transcript is cleared,

extensions/levelcode-ai/media/chat.html

@@ -1071,8 +1071,6 @@
     --cc-warn: var(--vscode-editorWarning-foreground, var(--vscode-foreground)); --cc-danger: var(--vscode-errorForeground); }
   .sesspanel .sessbar { display: flex; align-items: center; gap: 9px; padding: 12px 14px 10px; border-bottom: 1px solid var(--cc-line); }
   .sesspanel .sesstitle { font-weight: 600; font-size: 14px; }
-  .sesspanel .sesssearch { margin: 10px 12px 6px; display: flex; align-items: center; gap: 7px; padding: 7px 10px; background: var(--cc-bg); border: 1px solid var(--cc-line); border-radius: 6px; color: var(--cc-text3); }
-  .sesspanel .sesssearch input { flex: 1; background: transparent; border: none; outline: none; color: var(--cc-text); font: inherit; font-size: 12.5px; font-family: var(--vscode-editor-font-family, ui-monospace, monospace); }
   .sesspanel .sesslist { flex: 1 1 auto; overflow-y: auto; padding: 2px 12px 14px; }
   .sesspanel .sessbucket { font-family: var(--vscode-editor-font-family, ui-monospace, monospace); font-size: 10px; letter-spacing: .1em; text-transform: uppercase; color: var(--cc-text3); margin: 12px 4px 7px; }
   .sesspanel .sessempty { padding: 44px 18px; text-align: center; color: var(--cc-text3); font-size: 13px; line-height: 1.6; }
@@ -1224,7 +1222,6 @@
     <div class="sesspanel" role="dialog" aria-modal="true" aria-label="Sessions">
       <button class="ovclose" id="sessClose" title="Close" aria-label="Close">&#10005;</button>
       <div class="sessbar"><span class="sesstitle">Sessions</span></div>
-      <div class="sesssearch"><span aria-hidden="true">&#8981;</span><input id="sessSearch" type="text" placeholder="Search sessions, files…" aria-label="Search sessions" /></div>
       <div class="sesslist" id="sessList"></div>
     </div>
   </div>
@@ -3298,13 +3295,6 @@
     if (days <= 7) { return 'This week'; }
     return 'Earlier';
   }
-  function sessMatch(entry, q){
-    if (!q) { return true; }
-    const s = String(q).toLowerCase();
-    if (String(entry.title || '').toLowerCase().indexOf(s) >= 0) { return true; }
-    if (String(entry.preview || '').toLowerCase().indexOf(s) >= 0) { return true; }
-    return (entry.filesEdited || []).some((f) => String(f).toLowerCase().indexOf(s) >= 0);
-  }
   function sessModelShort(m){ const s = String(m || ''); const i = s.lastIndexOf('/'); return i >= 0 ? s.slice(i + 1) : s; }
   function sessSparkSvg(spark){
     const a = (Array.isArray(spark) ? spark : []).map((x) => Math.max(0, Number(x) || 0));
@@ -3344,12 +3334,12 @@
     { id: 's2', title: 'Debug the flaky payment webhook test', createdAt: '2026-07-28T05:00:00Z', updatedAt: '2026-07-28T05:30:00Z', turns: 12, model: 'moonshotai/kimi-k2.7-code', state: 'interrupted', lifecycle: 'active', pinned: false, filesEdited: ['webhook_spec.rb'], spark: [2, 6, 3, 1] },
     { id: 's3', title: 'Tidy the CHANGELOG for v1.0.4', createdAt: '2026-07-27T12:00:00Z', updatedAt: '2026-07-27T12:20:00Z', turns: 6, model: 'anthropic/claude-opus-5', state: 'done', lifecycle: 'active', pinned: false, filesEdited: ['RELEASE-NOTES.md'], spark: [1, 2, 1] }
   ];
-  let sessData = null, sessQuery = '';
+  let sessData = null;
   function renderSessions(){
     const list = document.getElementById('sessList'); if (!list) { return; }
-    const entries = (sessData || []).filter((e) => (e.lifecycle || 'active') === 'active' && sessMatch(e, sessQuery));
+    const entries = (sessData || []).filter((e) => (e.lifecycle || 'active') === 'active');
     if (!entries.length){
-      list.innerHTML = '<div class="sessempty">' + (sessQuery ? 'Nothing matches “' + esc(sessQuery) + '”.' : 'Every chat you have is saved here — automatically, on your machine.') + '</div>';
+      list.innerHTML = '<div class="sessempty">Every chat you have is saved here — automatically, on your machine.</div>';
       return;
     }
     const now = Date.now(); let html = '';
@@ -3362,15 +3352,12 @@
   function openSessions(){
     const ov = document.getElementById('sessOverlay'); if (!ov) { return; }
     if (sessData == null) { vscode.postMessage({ type: 'listSessions' }); sessData = MOCK_SESSIONS.slice(); }  // TODO(adapter): drop the mock once extension.js posts 'sessions'
-    sessQuery = ''; const inp = document.getElementById('sessSearch'); if (inp) { inp.value = ''; }
     renderSessions(); ov.style.display = 'flex';
-    if (inp && inp.focus) { try { inp.focus(); } catch (e) {} }
   }
   function closeSessions(){ const ov = document.getElementById('sessOverlay'); if (ov) { ov.style.display = 'none'; } }
   (function wireSessions(){
     const close = document.getElementById('sessClose'); if (close) { close.onclick = closeSessions; }
     const ov = document.getElementById('sessOverlay'); if (ov) { ov.addEventListener('click', (e) => { if (e.target === ov) { closeSessions(); } }); }
-    const inp = document.getElementById('sessSearch'); if (inp) { inp.addEventListener('input', () => { sessQuery = inp.value; renderSessions(); }); }
     const list = document.getElementById('sessList');
     if (list) { list.addEventListener('click', (e) => {
       const card = e.target.closest && e.target.closest('.sesscard'); if (!card) { return; }

extensions/levelcode-ai/media/sessionsView.html

@@ -16,9 +16,6 @@
   html, body { height: 100%; }
   body { margin: 0; background: var(--cc-surface); color: var(--cc-text); font-family: var(--vscode-font-family); font-size: var(--vscode-font-size); font-variant-numeric: tabular-nums; }
   .sessview { display: flex; flex-direction: column; height: 100vh; }
-  .sesstoolbar { padding: 8px 10px 4px; }
-  .sesstoolbar input { width: 100%; background: var(--cc-bg); border: 1px solid var(--cc-line); border-radius: 6px; padding: 6px 9px; color: var(--cc-text); font: inherit; font-size: 12px; outline: none; font-family: var(--vscode-editor-font-family, ui-monospace, monospace); }
-  .sesstoolbar input:focus { border-color: var(--cc-accent); }
   .sessnew { margin: 2px 10px 8px; padding: 7px 10px; background: var(--cc-bg); border: 1px solid var(--cc-line); border-radius: 6px; color: var(--cc-text); font: inherit; font-size: 12.5px; cursor: pointer; text-align: center; }
   .sessnew:hover { border-color: var(--cc-accent); }
   .sesslist { flex: 1 1 auto; overflow-y: auto; padding: 0 10px 12px; }
@@ -51,7 +48,6 @@
 </head>
 <body>
   <div class="sessview">
-    <div class="sesstoolbar"><input id="svSearch" type="text" placeholder="Search sessions, files…" aria-label="Search sessions"></div>
     <button id="svNew" class="sessnew" type="button">New Session</button>
     <div class="sesslist" id="svList"></div>
   </div>
@@ -79,13 +75,6 @@
     if (days <= 7) { return 'This week'; }
     return 'Earlier';
   }
-  function sessMatch(entry, q){
-    if (!q) { return true; }
-    const s = String(q).toLowerCase();
-    if (String(entry.title || '').toLowerCase().indexOf(s) >= 0) { return true; }
-    if (String(entry.preview || '').toLowerCase().indexOf(s) >= 0) { return true; }
-    return (entry.filesEdited || []).some((f) => String(f).toLowerCase().indexOf(s) >= 0);
-  }
   function sessModelShort(m){ const s = String(m || ''); const i = s.lastIndexOf('/'); return i >= 0 ? s.slice(i + 1) : s; }
   function sessSparkSvg(spark){
     const a = (Array.isArray(spark) ? spark : []).map((x) => Math.max(0, Number(x) || 0));
@@ -126,12 +115,12 @@
     { id: 's2', title: 'Debug the flaky payment webhook test', createdAt: new Date(D - 5 * 3600e3).toISOString(), updatedAt: new Date(D - 5 * 3600e3).toISOString(), turns: 12, model: 'moonshotai/kimi-k2.7-code', state: 'interrupted', lifecycle: 'active', pinned: false, filesEdited: ['webhook_spec.rb'], spark: [2, 6, 3, 1] },
     { id: 's3', title: 'Tidy the CHANGELOG for v1.0.4', createdAt: new Date(D - 2 * 86400e3).toISOString(), updatedAt: new Date(D - 2 * 86400e3).toISOString(), turns: 6, model: 'anthropic/claude-opus-5', state: 'done', lifecycle: 'active', pinned: false, filesEdited: ['RELEASE-NOTES.md'], spark: [1, 2, 1] }
   ];
-  let sessData = MOCK_SESSIONS.slice(), sessQuery = '';
+  let sessData = MOCK_SESSIONS.slice();
   function renderSessions(){
     const list = document.getElementById('svList'); if (!list) { return; }
-    const entries = (sessData || []).filter((e) => (e.lifecycle || 'active') === 'active' && sessMatch(e, sessQuery));
+    const entries = (sessData || []).filter((e) => (e.lifecycle || 'active') === 'active');
     if (!entries.length){
-      list.innerHTML = '<div class="sessempty">' + (sessQuery ? 'Nothing matches \u201c' + esc(sessQuery) + '\u201d.' : 'Your saved chats will appear here.') + '</div>';
+      list.innerHTML = '<div class="sessempty">Your saved chats will appear here.</div>';
       return;
     }
     const now = Date.now(); let out = '';
@@ -141,7 +130,6 @@
     }
     list.innerHTML = out;
   }
-  document.getElementById('svSearch').addEventListener('input', (e) => { sessQuery = e.target.value; renderSessions(); });
   document.getElementById('svNew').addEventListener('click', () => vscode.postMessage({ type: 'newSession' }));
   document.getElementById('svList').addEventListener('click', (e) => {
     const card = e.target.closest && e.target.closest('.sesscard'); if (!card) { return; }

extensions/levelcode-ai/test/sessionsUi.test.js

@@ -16,7 +16,7 @@ const path = require('path');
 const html = fs.readFileSync(path.join(__dirname, '..', 'media', 'chat.html'), 'utf8');
 const block = html.slice(html.indexOf('// [SESSIONS-PURE-START]'), html.indexOf('// [SESSIONS-PURE-END]'));
 // eslint-disable-next-line no-new-func
-const P = new Function(block + '; return { sessRelTime, sessBucket, sessMatch, sessModelShort, sessSparkSvg, sessGroup, sessCardHtml };')();
+const P = new Function(block + '; return { sessRelTime, sessBucket, sessModelShort, sessSparkSvg, sessGroup, sessCardHtml };')();
 
 let n = 0;
 function test(name, fn) { fn(); n++; console.log('  ok - ' + name); }
@@ -45,15 +45,6 @@ test('BUCKET: today / yesterday / this week / earlier by local calendar day', ()
 	assert.strictEqual(P.sessBucket(msAgo(20 * 86400), NOW), 'Earlier');
 });
 
-test('MATCH: search hits title, files, and preview; empty query matches all', () => {
-	const e = { title: 'Refund retries', filesEdited: ['refund.rb'], preview: 'add idempotency' };
-	assert.ok(P.sessMatch(e, ''));
-	assert.ok(P.sessMatch(e, 'refund'), 'title');
-	assert.ok(P.sessMatch(e, 'refund.rb'), 'file — the lead over Cursor');
-	assert.ok(P.sessMatch(e, 'idempotency'), 'preview');
-	assert.ok(!P.sessMatch(e, 'zzz'));
-});
-
 test('GROUP: pinned floats to its own bucket above the time buckets', () => {
 	const g = P.sessGroup([
 		{ id: 'p', pinned: true, updatedAt: msAgo(10 * 86400) },
@@ -162,6 +153,12 @@ test('VIEW: extension.js registers the provider and builds the HTML with a nonce
 	assert.match(view, /nonce="__NONCE__"/);
 });
 
+test('CAP: the surfaces list at most 30 sessions (no search → a bounded working set), pinned exempt', () => {
+	assert.match(ext, /SESSIONS_SHOWN\s*=\s*30/, 'the displayed list is capped at 30');
+	assert.match(ext, /function sessionList\(\)[\s\S]{0,400}pinned/, 'and a pinned session is never dropped for being old');
+	assert.ok(!/id="sessSearch"|id="svSearch"/.test(html + view), 'neither surface still ships a search field');
+});
+
 test('VIEW: theme-true across the three kinds and reduced-motion-safe', () => {
 	assert.match(view, /:root\s*\{[^}]*--cc-accent:\s*#7d6bff/, 'One Dark defaults');
 	assert.match(view, /body\.vscode-light\s*\{[^}]*--cc-accent:\s*#5b3fd6/, 'One Light');