fix(whatsapp-cloud): review follow-ups for #43921

- nous_subscription: gate the STT managed-default flip on openai-audio
  entitlement and skip when a local backend (faster-whisper or custom
  command) works; new _local_stt_backend_available() helper + tests
- whatsapp_cloud: WHATSAPP_CLOUD_{DM_POLICY,ALLOW_FROM,GROUP_POLICY,
  GROUP_ALLOW_FROM} env overrides so both adapters can run in parallel;
  normalize allowlist entries (JID/punctuation) to bare wa_id
- whatsapp_cloud: wrap per-message event build in try/except (dedup-marked
  wamids would be silently dropped on Meta's batch retry otherwise)
- whatsapp_cloud: validate media_id before URL/filename interpolation,
  delete transient .ogg after voice upload, FIFO-cap interactive-button
  state dicts and per-chat wamid cache
- whatsapp_common: '# **Title**' headers no longer double-wrap asterisks
- setup wizard: read access token / app secret via getpass on TTYs
- docs: new WHATSAPP_CLOUD_* gating env vars

gateway/platforms/whatsapp_cloud.py

@@ -47,6 +47,7 @@ import hmac
 import logging
 import mimetypes
 import os
+import re
 import shutil
 import uuid
 from collections import OrderedDict
@@ -93,6 +94,9 @@ GRAPH_API_BASE = "https://graph.facebook.com"
 # delivery within minutes, not days. 5000 entries with FIFO eviction is
 # plenty for normal traffic and bounds memory.
 WAMID_DEDUP_CACHE_SIZE = 5000
+# Cap for the interactive-button state dicts and the per-chat last-wamid
+# cache. Generous for any realistic number of in-flight prompts / chats.
+INTERACTIVE_STATE_CACHE_SIZE = 1000
 
 # Per-type size caps documented by Meta for the Cloud API /media endpoint.
 # These are the hard limits; we refuse uploads above them with a clean
@@ -211,22 +215,36 @@ class WhatsAppCloudAdapter(WhatsAppBehaviorMixin, BasePlatformAdapter):
         self._api_version: str = str(extra.get("api_version", DEFAULT_API_VERSION))
 
         # Behavior-mixin contract: these names are read by the mixin's
-        # gating methods. Derived from env / config the same way the
+        # gating methods. WHATSAPP_CLOUD_* env vars take precedence so the
-        # Baileys adapter derives them.
+        # two adapters can run in parallel with independent policies; the
+        # shared WHATSAPP_* names remain as fallback for single-adapter
+        # setups.
         import os
 
         self._reply_prefix: Optional[str] = extra.get("reply_prefix")
         self._dm_policy: str = str(
-            extra.get("dm_policy") or os.getenv("WHATSAPP_DM_POLICY", "open")
+            extra.get("dm_policy")
+            or os.getenv("WHATSAPP_CLOUD_DM_POLICY")
+            or os.getenv("WHATSAPP_DM_POLICY", "open")
         ).strip().lower()
-        self._allow_from: set[str] = self._coerce_allow_list(
+        self._allow_from: set[str] = self._normalize_allow_ids(
-            extra.get("allow_from") or extra.get("allowFrom")
+            self._coerce_allow_list(
+                extra.get("allow_from")
+                or extra.get("allowFrom")
+                or os.getenv("WHATSAPP_CLOUD_ALLOW_FROM")
+            )
         )
         self._group_policy: str = str(
-            extra.get("group_policy") or os.getenv("WHATSAPP_GROUP_POLICY", "open")
+            extra.get("group_policy")
+            or os.getenv("WHATSAPP_CLOUD_GROUP_POLICY")
+            or os.getenv("WHATSAPP_GROUP_POLICY", "open")
         ).strip().lower()
-        self._group_allow_from: set[str] = self._coerce_allow_list(
+        self._group_allow_from: set[str] = self._normalize_allow_ids(
-            extra.get("group_allow_from") or extra.get("groupAllowFrom")
+            self._coerce_allow_list(
+                extra.get("group_allow_from")
+                or extra.get("groupAllowFrom")
+                or os.getenv("WHATSAPP_CLOUD_GROUP_ALLOW_FROM")
+            )
         )
         self._mention_patterns = self._compile_mention_patterns()
 
@@ -249,21 +267,25 @@ class WhatsAppCloudAdapter(WhatsAppBehaviorMixin, BasePlatformAdapter):
         # threading an extra kwarg through the gateway's base contract.
         # In-memory only; on gateway restart the next inbound message
         # repopulates it.
-        self._last_inbound_wamid_by_chat: Dict[str, str] = {}
+        self._last_inbound_wamid_by_chat: "OrderedDict[str, str]" = OrderedDict()
 
         # Interactive-button state. Each maps a short id (embedded in the
         # outbound button payload) → the session/correlation key needed
         # by the gateway's resolver. See ``_handle_interactive_reply`` for
-        # the dispatch table.
+        # the dispatch table. Entries are popped when the user taps a
+        # button; ignored prompts would otherwise accumulate forever, so
+        # each dict is FIFO-capped via _bounded_put (oldest pending prompt
+        # evicted first — an evicted button tap degrades to the plain-text
+        # fallback path, same as after a gateway restart).
         #   _clarify_state:        clarify_id → session_key (resolves via
         #                          tools.clarify_gateway.resolve_gateway_clarify)
         #   _exec_approval_state:  approval_id → session_key (resolves via
         #                          tools.approval.resolve_gateway_approval)
         #   _slash_confirm_state:  confirm_id → session_key (resolves via
         #                          tools.slash_confirm.resolve)
-        self._clarify_state: Dict[str, str] = {}
+        self._clarify_state: "OrderedDict[str, str]" = OrderedDict()
-        self._exec_approval_state: Dict[str, str] = {}
+        self._exec_approval_state: "OrderedDict[str, str]" = OrderedDict()
-        self._slash_confirm_state: Dict[str, str] = {}
+        self._slash_confirm_state: "OrderedDict[str, str]" = OrderedDict()
 
         # Runtime
         self._runner = None
@@ -281,6 +303,13 @@ class WhatsAppCloudAdapter(WhatsAppBehaviorMixin, BasePlatformAdapter):
             path = path[1:]
         return f"{GRAPH_API_BASE}/{self._api_version}/{self._phone_number_id}/{path}"
 
+    @staticmethod
+    def _bounded_put(cache: "OrderedDict[str, str]", key: str, value: str) -> None:
+        """Insert into a FIFO-capped OrderedDict, evicting oldest entries."""
+        cache[key] = value
+        while len(cache) > INTERACTIVE_STATE_CACHE_SIZE:
+            cache.popitem(last=False)
+
     def _effective_reply_prefix(self) -> str:
         """Cloud API has no self-chat concept — never prepend a reply prefix.
 
@@ -291,6 +320,30 @@ class WhatsAppCloudAdapter(WhatsAppBehaviorMixin, BasePlatformAdapter):
             return self._reply_prefix.replace("\\n", "\n")
         return ""
 
+    @staticmethod
+    def _normalize_allow_ids(ids: set[str]) -> set[str]:
+        """Normalize allowlist entries to bare wa_id form.
+
+        The Cloud API identifies users by bare wa_id (digits, no JID
+        suffix), while Baileys uses ``<digits>@s.whatsapp.net`` JIDs.
+        Users sharing an allowlist between both adapters (or pasting a
+        JID/phone number with ``+`` or separators) should still match,
+        so strip any ``@...`` suffix and non-digit characters.
+        """
+        normalized: set[str] = set()
+        for entry in ids:
+            bare = entry.split("@", 1)[0]
+            digits = re.sub(r"\D", "", bare)
+            normalized.add(digits or entry)
+        return normalized
+
+    def _is_dm_allowed(self, sender_id: str) -> bool:
+        """Allowlist check against the normalized bare wa_id."""
+        if self._dm_policy == "allowlist":
+            bare = re.sub(r"\D", "", str(sender_id).split("@", 1)[0])
+            return (bare or sender_id) in self._allow_from
+        return super()._is_dm_allowed(sender_id)
+
     # ------------------------------------------------------------------ lifecycle
     async def connect(self) -> bool:
         if not check_whatsapp_cloud_requirements():
@@ -687,7 +740,7 @@ class WhatsAppCloudAdapter(WhatsAppBehaviorMixin, BasePlatformAdapter):
 
         result = await self._post_interactive(chat_id, interactive, reply_to=reply_to)
         if result.success:
-            self._clarify_state[clarify_id] = session_key
+            self._bounded_put(self._clarify_state, clarify_id, session_key)
         return result
 
     async def send_exec_approval(
@@ -740,7 +793,7 @@ class WhatsAppCloudAdapter(WhatsAppBehaviorMixin, BasePlatformAdapter):
 
         result = await self._post_interactive(chat_id, interactive, reply_to=reply_to)
         if result.success:
-            self._exec_approval_state[approval_id] = session_key
+            self._bounded_put(self._exec_approval_state, approval_id, session_key)
         return result
 
     async def send_slash_confirm(
@@ -788,7 +841,7 @@ class WhatsAppCloudAdapter(WhatsAppBehaviorMixin, BasePlatformAdapter):
 
         result = await self._post_interactive(chat_id, interactive, reply_to=reply_to)
         if result.success:
-            self._slash_confirm_state[confirm_id] = session_key
+            self._bounded_put(self._slash_confirm_state, confirm_id, session_key)
         return result
 
     @staticmethod
@@ -1061,9 +1114,21 @@ class WhatsAppCloudAdapter(WhatsAppBehaviorMixin, BasePlatformAdapter):
         if is_local_mp3:
             opus_path = await self._convert_to_opus(audio_path)
             if opus_path:
-                source = opus_path
+                try:
-                mime_type = "audio/ogg; codecs=opus"
+                    result = await self._send_media_from_path_or_link(
-            else:
+                        chat_id, opus_path, "audio",
+                        caption=caption, reply_to=reply_to,
+                        mime_type="audio/ogg; codecs=opus",
+                    )
+                finally:
+                    # The .ogg is a transient conversion artifact next to
+                    # the source MP3 — clean it up after upload so voice
+                    # sends don't leak a file per message.
+                    try:
+                        os.unlink(opus_path)
+                    except OSError:
+                        pass
+                return result
             # Will deliver as MP3 attachment, not voice bubble.
             # Warn-once is logged inside _convert_to_opus.
             mime_type = "audio/mpeg"
@@ -1159,6 +1224,16 @@ class WhatsAppCloudAdapter(WhatsAppBehaviorMixin, BasePlatformAdapter):
         """
         if self._http_client is None:
             return None, None
+        # Defense in depth: media_id comes from the (signature-verified)
+        # webhook payload, but it's interpolated into both a Graph URL and
+        # a cache filename below — refuse anything that isn't a plain
+        # Meta-style media id so a hostile payload can't traverse paths.
+        media_id = str(media_id).strip()
+        if not re.fullmatch(r"[A-Za-z0-9._-]+", media_id):
+            logger.warning(
+                "[whatsapp_cloud] refusing malformed media id %r", media_id[:64]
+            )
+            return None, None
         headers = {"Authorization": f"Bearer {self._access_token}"}
 
         # Step 1 — metadata (gives us a temporary signed URL + mime)
@@ -1436,9 +1511,21 @@ class WhatsAppCloudAdapter(WhatsAppBehaviorMixin, BasePlatformAdapter):
                             wamid,
                         )
                         continue
+                    try:
                         event = await self._build_message_event_from_cloud(
                             raw_message, contacts_by_waid, metadata
                         )
+                    except Exception:
+                        # Build errors must not bubble out either: the wamid
+                        # is already dedup-marked above, so a 500 here would
+                        # make Meta retry the batch and every message in it
+                        # (including this one) would be silently dropped as
+                        # a duplicate. Log and move on to the next message.
+                        logger.exception(
+                            "[whatsapp_cloud] failed to build event for wamid %s",
+                            wamid,
+                        )
+                        continue
                     if event is None:
                         continue
                     self._accepted_count += 1
@@ -1855,7 +1942,7 @@ class WhatsAppCloudAdapter(WhatsAppBehaviorMixin, BasePlatformAdapter):
             # to this message. Done HERE (after _should_process_message
             # gating) so filtered messages don't leak typing on
             # unwanted inbound traffic.
-            self._last_inbound_wamid_by_chat[chat_id] = wamid
+            self._bounded_put(self._last_inbound_wamid_by_chat, chat_id, wamid)
 
         return MessageEvent(
             text=body,

gateway/platforms/whatsapp_common.py

@@ -342,8 +342,18 @@ class WhatsAppBehaviorMixin:
         # _text_ is already WhatsApp italic — leave as-is
 
         # --- 4. Convert markdown headers to bold text ---
-        # # Header → *Header*
+        # # Header → *Header*. Strip any *...* wrapping already produced
-        result = re.sub(r"^#{1,6}\s+(.+)$", r"*\1*", result, flags=re.MULTILINE)
+        # by step 3 (e.g. "# **Title**" → "*Title*", not "**Title**",
+        # which WhatsApp renders with literal asterisks).
+        def _header_to_bold(m: re.Match) -> str:
+            inner = m.group(1).strip()
+            while len(inner) > 1 and inner.startswith("*") and inner.endswith("*"):
+                inner = inner[1:-1].strip()
+            return f"*{inner}*"
+
+        result = re.sub(
+            r"^#{1,6}\s+(.+)$", _header_to_bold, result, flags=re.MULTILINE
+        )
 
         # --- 5. Convert markdown links: [text](url) → text (url) ---
         result = re.sub(r"\[([^\]]+)\]\(([^)]+)\)", r"\1 (\2)", result)

hermes_cli/nous_subscription.py

@@ -226,6 +226,24 @@ def _stt_label(current_provider: str) -> str:
     return mapping.get(current_provider or "local", current_provider or "Local faster-whisper")
 
 
+def _local_stt_backend_available() -> bool:
+    """Whether a local STT backend could serve transcription right now.
+
+    True when faster-whisper is importable or a custom local STT command
+    is configured. Used both for feature detection and to stop
+    ``apply_nous_managed_defaults`` from flipping a working local setup
+    to the managed gateway.
+    """
+    if get_env_value("HERMES_LOCAL_STT_COMMAND"):
+        return True
+    try:
+        from tools.transcription_tools import _HAS_FASTER_WHISPER
+
+        return bool(_HAS_FASTER_WHISPER)
+    except Exception:
+        return False
+
+
 def _resolve_browser_feature_state(
     *,
     browser_tool_enabled: bool,
@@ -772,10 +790,22 @@ def apply_nous_managed_defaults(
     # (requires `pip install faster-whisper`); for Nous subscribers we
     # flip it to "openai" so the managed audio gateway handles transcription
     # via the same auth as TTS. Skipped when the user has explicitly
-    # configured STT or has direct credentials for a non-managed provider.
+    # configured STT, has direct credentials for a non-managed provider,
-    if not features.stt.explicit_configured and not (
+    # has a working local backend (faster-whisper installed or a custom
-        get_env_value("GROQ_API_KEY")
+    # local command — strong intent signal that "local" was a choice, not
+    # just the DEFAULT_CONFIG seed), or isn't entitled to the managed
+    # "openai-audio" category (flipping would point at a gateway that
+    # refuses them, silently breaking voice transcription).
+    if (
+        not features.stt.explicit_configured
+        and not _local_stt_backend_available()
+        and not (
+            resolve_openai_audio_api_key()
+            or get_env_value("GROQ_API_KEY")
             or get_env_value("MISTRAL_API_KEY")
+        )
+        and features.account_info is not None
+        and features.account_info.tool_gateway_entitled_for("openai-audio")
     ):
         stt_cfg["provider"] = "openai"
         changed.add("stt")

hermes_cli/setup_whatsapp_cloud.py

@@ -162,16 +162,24 @@ def _validate_access_token(value: str) -> tuple[bool, Optional[str]]:
 # ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
 
-def _prompt(message: str, default: Optional[str] = None) -> str:
+def _prompt(message: str, default: Optional[str] = None, secret: bool = False) -> str:
     """Read one line of input. Returns "" on EOF / Ctrl+C / empty input.
 
     The ``default`` parameter is shown to the user but NOT auto-applied
     on empty input — callers handle the "user kept existing" case
     explicitly so they can distinguish between a real value and a
     display preview (e.g. ``"abc12345..."`` for masked secrets).
+
+    ``secret=True`` reads via ``getpass`` so credentials are not echoed
+    to the terminal (or left in scrollback).
     """
     try:
         suffix = f" [{default}]" if default else ""
+        if secret and sys.stdin.isatty():
+            import getpass
+
+            raw = getpass.getpass(f"{message}{suffix} (input hidden): ").strip()
+        else:
             raw = input(f"{message}{suffix}: ").strip()
     except (EOFError, KeyboardInterrupt):
         print()
@@ -185,6 +193,7 @@ def _prompt_validated(
     *,
     current: Optional[str] = None,
     help_text: Optional[str] = None,
+    secret: bool = False,
 ) -> Optional[str]:
     """Repeat the prompt until the user enters a valid value or aborts.
 
@@ -198,7 +207,7 @@ def _prompt_validated(
     attempts = 0
     while True:
         attempts += 1
-        value = _prompt(f"  → {message}", default=current)
+        value = _prompt(f"  → {message}", default=current, secret=secret)
         if not value:
             return None
         ok, reason = validator(value)
@@ -295,6 +304,7 @@ def run_whatsapp_cloud_setup() -> int:
         "Access Token",
         _validate_access_token,
         current=current_display,
+        secret=True,
         help_text=(
             "Two options for getting one:\n\n"
             "  (a) TEMP — App Dashboard → WhatsApp → API Setup →\n"
@@ -335,6 +345,7 @@ def run_whatsapp_cloud_setup() -> int:
         "App Secret",
         _validate_app_secret,
         current=current_secret_display,
+        secret=True,
         help_text=(
             "Found in: App Dashboard → Settings → Basic →\n"
             "'App secret' field (click 'Show', enter your Facebook password).\n\n"

tests/gateway/test_whatsapp_cloud.py

@@ -2248,3 +2248,74 @@ class TestSendTyping:
         await adapter.send_typing("15551234567")
         headers = adapter._http_client.post.call_args.kwargs["headers"]
         assert headers["Authorization"] == "Bearer my-test-token"
+
+
+# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+# Allowlist normalization + env decoupling (salvage follow-up)
+# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+class TestAllowlistNormalization:
+    def test_normalize_allow_ids_strips_jid_suffix_and_punctuation(self):
+        from gateway.platforms.whatsapp_cloud import WhatsAppCloudAdapter
+
+        ids = {"15551234567@s.whatsapp.net", "+1 (555) 765-4321", "15550000000"}
+        normalized = WhatsAppCloudAdapter._normalize_allow_ids(ids)
+        assert normalized == {"15551234567", "15557654321", "15550000000"}
+
+    def test_dm_allowlist_matches_bare_wa_id_against_jid_entry(self):
+        """A Baileys-style JID in the allowlist must match the Cloud API's
+        bare wa_id sender — users share allowlists between both adapters."""
+        from gateway.platforms.whatsapp_cloud import WhatsAppCloudAdapter
+
+        adapter = _make_adapter()
+        adapter._dm_policy = "allowlist"
+        adapter._allow_from = WhatsAppCloudAdapter._normalize_allow_ids(
+            {"15551234567@s.whatsapp.net"}
+        )
+        assert adapter._is_dm_allowed("15551234567") is True
+        assert adapter._is_dm_allowed("19998887777") is False
+
+    def test_cloud_env_overrides_take_precedence(self, monkeypatch):
+        """WHATSAPP_CLOUD_DM_POLICY wins over the shared WHATSAPP_DM_POLICY
+        so both adapters can run in parallel with independent policies."""
+        from gateway.platforms.whatsapp_cloud import WhatsAppCloudAdapter
+
+        monkeypatch.setenv("WHATSAPP_DM_POLICY", "allowlist")
+        monkeypatch.setenv("WHATSAPP_CLOUD_DM_POLICY", "open")
+        monkeypatch.setenv("WHATSAPP_CLOUD_ALLOW_FROM", "+1 555 123 4567")
+
+        config = MagicMock()
+        config.extra = {
+            "phone_number_id": "123",
+            "access_token": "tok",
+        }
+        adapter = WhatsAppCloudAdapter(config)
+        assert adapter._dm_policy == "open"
+        assert adapter._allow_from == {"15551234567"}
+
+
+class TestBoundedInteractiveState:
+    def test_bounded_put_evicts_oldest(self):
+        from collections import OrderedDict
+
+        from gateway.platforms.whatsapp_cloud import (
+            INTERACTIVE_STATE_CACHE_SIZE,
+            WhatsAppCloudAdapter,
+        )
+
+        cache: OrderedDict = OrderedDict()
+        for i in range(INTERACTIVE_STATE_CACHE_SIZE + 10):
+            WhatsAppCloudAdapter._bounded_put(cache, f"id-{i}", "sess")
+        assert len(cache) == INTERACTIVE_STATE_CACHE_SIZE
+        assert "id-0" not in cache
+        assert f"id-{INTERACTIVE_STATE_CACHE_SIZE + 9}" in cache
+
+
+class TestMediaIdValidation:
+    @pytest.mark.asyncio
+    async def test_traversal_media_id_refused(self):
+        adapter = _make_adapter()
+        adapter._http_client = MagicMock()  # would be used if not refused
+        path, mime = await adapter._download_media_to_cache("../../etc/passwd")
+        assert path is None and mime is None
+        adapter._http_client.get.assert_not_called()

tests/gateway/test_whatsapp_formatting.py

@@ -91,6 +91,13 @@ class TestFormatMessage:
         assert adapter.format_message("## Subtitle") == "*Subtitle*"
         assert adapter.format_message("### Deep") == "*Deep*"
 
+    def test_bold_header_does_not_double_wrap(self):
+        """"# **Title**" must become *Title*, not **Title** (WhatsApp would
+        render the doubled asterisks literally)."""
+        adapter = _make_adapter()
+        assert adapter.format_message("# **Title**") == "*Title*"
+        assert adapter.format_message("## __Strong__") == "*Strong*"
+
     def test_links_converted(self):
         adapter = _make_adapter()
         result = adapter.format_message("[click here](https://example.com)")

tests/hermes_cli/test_nous_subscription.py

@@ -723,6 +723,10 @@ def test_apply_nous_managed_defaults_flips_stt_provider_to_openai_for_nous_users
     gateway transcribes their voice notes without needing faster-whisper
     installed."""
     monkeypatch.setattr(ns, "get_env_value", lambda name: "")
+    monkeypatch.setattr(ns, "resolve_openai_audio_api_key", lambda: "")
+    # CI installs [all] extras, so faster-whisper is importable there —
+    # force the "no local backend" case this test is about.
+    monkeypatch.setattr(ns, "_local_stt_backend_available", lambda: False)
     # Avoid the heavy real probing in get_nous_subscription_features.
     monkeypatch.setattr(
         ns,
@@ -751,6 +755,66 @@ def test_apply_nous_managed_defaults_flips_stt_provider_to_openai_for_nous_users
     assert config["stt"]["provider"] == "openai"
 
 
+def _stt_features_stub(*, account_info):
+    return ns.NousSubscriptionFeatures(
+        subscribed=True,
+        nous_auth_present=True,
+        provider_is_nous=True,
+        account_info=account_info,
+        features={
+            key: ns.NousFeatureState(
+                key=key, label=key, included_by_default=True,
+                available=False, active=False, managed_by_nous=False,
+                direct_override=False, toolset_enabled=False,
+                explicit_configured=False,
+            )
+            for key in ("web", "image_gen", "video_gen", "tts", "stt", "browser", "modal")
+        },
+    )
+
+
+def test_apply_nous_managed_defaults_keeps_local_stt_when_backend_works(monkeypatch):
+    """A working local backend (faster-whisper installed or custom command)
+    is a strong intent signal — never flip it to the managed gateway."""
+    monkeypatch.setattr(ns, "get_env_value", lambda name: "")
+    monkeypatch.setattr(ns, "resolve_openai_audio_api_key", lambda: "")
+    monkeypatch.setattr(ns, "_local_stt_backend_available", lambda: True)
+    monkeypatch.setattr(
+        ns,
+        "get_nous_subscription_features",
+        lambda config, **kw: _stt_features_stub(
+            account_info=_account(logged_in=True, paid=True)
+        ),
+    )
+
+    config = {"stt": {"provider": "local"}}
+    changed = ns.apply_nous_managed_defaults(config, enabled_toolsets=[])
+
+    assert "stt" not in changed
+    assert config["stt"]["provider"] == "local"
+
+
+def test_apply_nous_managed_defaults_skips_stt_when_not_entitled(monkeypatch):
+    """A subscriber whose tool pool doesn't cover openai-audio must not be
+    pointed at a managed gateway that will refuse them."""
+    monkeypatch.setattr(ns, "get_env_value", lambda name: "")
+    monkeypatch.setattr(ns, "resolve_openai_audio_api_key", lambda: "")
+    monkeypatch.setattr(ns, "_local_stt_backend_available", lambda: False)
+    monkeypatch.setattr(
+        ns,
+        "get_nous_subscription_features",
+        lambda config, **kw: _stt_features_stub(
+            account_info=_account(logged_in=True, paid=False)
+        ),
+    )
+
+    config = {"stt": {"provider": "local"}}
+    changed = ns.apply_nous_managed_defaults(config, enabled_toolsets=[])
+
+    assert "stt" not in changed
+    assert config["stt"]["provider"] == "local"
+
+
 def test_apply_nous_managed_defaults_skips_stt_when_groq_key_present(monkeypatch):
     """Don't override a user who explicitly set up Groq for STT."""
     env = {"GROQ_API_KEY": "groq-key"}

website/docs/reference/environment-variables.md

@@ -313,6 +313,10 @@ For cloud sandbox backends, persistence is filesystem-oriented. `TERMINAL_LIFETI
 | `WHATSAPP_CLOUD_WEBHOOK_PATH` | URL path Meta posts inbound messages to (default `/whatsapp/webhook`) |
 | `WHATSAPP_CLOUD_API_VERSION` | Meta Graph API version to call (default `v20.0`) |
 | `WHATSAPP_CLOUD_HOME_CHANNEL` | `wa_id` to use as the bot's home channel (for cron jobs etc.) |
+| `WHATSAPP_CLOUD_DM_POLICY` | DM gating for the Cloud adapter (`open`/`allowlist`/`disabled`); falls back to `WHATSAPP_DM_POLICY` when unset |
+| `WHATSAPP_CLOUD_ALLOW_FROM` | Comma-separated senders allowed when `dm_policy: allowlist` (bare `wa_id`s; Baileys-style JIDs are normalized) |
+| `WHATSAPP_CLOUD_GROUP_POLICY` | Group gating for the Cloud adapter (`open`/`allowlist`/`disabled`); falls back to `WHATSAPP_GROUP_POLICY` when unset |
+| `WHATSAPP_CLOUD_GROUP_ALLOW_FROM` | Comma-separated group chat IDs allowed when `group_policy: allowlist` |
 | `SIGNAL_HTTP_URL` | signal-cli daemon HTTP endpoint (for example `http://127.0.0.1:8080`) |
 | `SIGNAL_ACCOUNT` | Bot phone number in E.164 format |
 | `SIGNAL_ALLOWED_USERS` | Comma-separated E.164 phone numbers or UUIDs |