From df29b281673cbcfd96bc12903c9a40cd58a56a23 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001
From: rob <robdickson444@hotmail.com>
Date: Mon, 26 Jan 2026 23:34:40 -0400
Subject: [PATCH] Improve cmdforge add UX for locally-installed tools

- Check if tool is already installed locally before trying registry
- Show clear message: "Already installed globally/locally: <tool>"
- Better error messages for VERSION_NOT_FOUND vs TOOL_NOT_FOUND
- Skip unnecessary registry calls when tool is already available

This fixes confusing UX where `cmdforge add` would show an error for
unpublished tools that were actually satisfied by local installation.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
---
 src/cmdforge/cli/project_commands.py | 44 ++++++++++++++++++----------
 1 file changed, 28 insertions(+), 16 deletions(-)

diff --git a/src/cmdforge/cli/project_commands.py b/src/cmdforge/cli/project_commands.py
index c5c469b..e197dcf 100644
--- a/src/cmdforge/cli/project_commands.py
+++ b/src/cmdforge/cli/project_commands.py
@@ -374,6 +374,9 @@ def cmd_add(args):
     parsed = ToolSpec.parse(tool_spec)
     full_name = parsed.full_name
 
+    # Check if already installed locally before trying registry
+    local_tool = find_tool(tool_spec)
+
     # Add dependency
     manifest.add_dependency(full_name, version)
 
@@ -383,23 +386,32 @@ def cmd_add(args):
 
     # Install if requested
     if not args.no_install:
-        print(f"Installing {full_name}...")
-        try:
-            resolved = install_from_registry(tool_spec, version if version != "*" else None)
-            print(f"Installed: {resolved.full_name}@{resolved.version}")
-        except RegistryError as e:
-            if e.code == "TOOL_NOT_FOUND":
-                print(f"Tool not found in registry.", file=sys.stderr)
-                print(f"It's been added to your dependencies - you can install it manually later.", file=sys.stderr)
-            elif e.code == "CONNECTION_ERROR":
-                print(f"Could not connect to registry.", file=sys.stderr)
-                print("Run 'cmdforge install' to try again later.", file=sys.stderr)
-            else:
-                print(f"Install failed: {e.message}", file=sys.stderr)
+        # If already installed locally, no need to fetch from registry
+        if local_tool:
+            source_label = "locally" if local_tool.source == "local" else "globally"
+            version_info = f"@{local_tool.version}" if local_tool.version else ""
+            print(f"Already installed {source_label}: {local_tool.full_name}{version_info}")
+        else:
+            print(f"Installing {full_name}...")
+            try:
+                resolved = install_from_registry(tool_spec, version if version != "*" else None)
+                print(f"Installed: {resolved.full_name}@{resolved.version}")
+            except RegistryError as e:
+                if e.code == "TOOL_NOT_FOUND":
+                    print(f"Not found in registry: {full_name}", file=sys.stderr)
+                    print(f"Dependency added - install manually or create the tool locally.", file=sys.stderr)
+                elif e.code == "VERSION_NOT_FOUND":
+                    print(f"No published version of '{full_name}' found in registry.", file=sys.stderr)
+                    print(f"Dependency added - publish the tool or install manually.", file=sys.stderr)
+                elif e.code == "CONNECTION_ERROR":
+                    print(f"Could not connect to registry.", file=sys.stderr)
+                    print("Run 'cmdforge install' to try again later.", file=sys.stderr)
+                else:
+                    print(f"Install failed: {e.message}", file=sys.stderr)
+                    print("Run 'cmdforge install' to try again.", file=sys.stderr)
+            except Exception as e:
+                print(f"Install failed: {e}", file=sys.stderr)
                 print("Run 'cmdforge install' to try again.", file=sys.stderr)
-        except Exception as e:
-            print(f"Install failed: {e}", file=sys.stderr)
-            print("Run 'cmdforge install' to try again.", file=sys.stderr)
 
     return 0