feat(desktop): open new sessions in compact windows

Add the Electron IPC bridge and rebindable shortcut for opening an unkeyed scratch window on the new-session draft.

apps/desktop/src/app/hooks/use-keybinds.ts

@@ -37,6 +37,7 @@ import {
   switcherActive,
   switcherJustClosed
 } from '@/store/session-switcher'
+import { openNewSessionInNewWindow } from '@/store/windows'
 import { useTheme } from '@/themes/context'
 
 import { requestComposerFocus } from '../chat/composer/focus'
@@ -132,6 +133,7 @@ export function useKeybinds(deps: KeybindRuntimeDeps): void {
       deps.startFreshSession()
       window.dispatchEvent(new CustomEvent('hermes:new-session-shortcut'))
     },
+    'session.newWindow': () => void openNewSessionInNewWindow(),
     'session.next': () => stepSession(1),
     'session.prev': () => stepSession(-1),
     ...sessionSlotHandlers,

apps/desktop/src/global.d.ts

@@ -24,6 +24,8 @@ declare global {
       // a spectator window (lazy resume — no agent build) for live-streaming
       // a running subagent's session.
       openSessionWindow: (sessionId: string, opts?: { watch?: boolean }) => Promise<{ ok: boolean; error?: string }>
+      // Open (or focus) a compact secondary window on the new-session draft.
+      openNewSessionWindow: () => Promise<{ ok: boolean; error?: string }>
       getBootProgress: () => Promise<DesktopBootProgress>
       getConnectionConfig: (profile?: null | string) => Promise<DesktopConnectionConfig>
       saveConnectionConfig: (payload: DesktopConnectionConfigInput) => Promise<DesktopConnectionConfig>

apps/desktop/src/i18n/en.ts

@@ -189,6 +189,7 @@ export const en: Translations = {
       'nav.cron': 'Open scheduled jobs',
       'nav.agents': 'Open agents',
       'session.new': 'New session',
+      'session.newWindow': 'New session in window',
       'session.next': 'Next session',
       'session.prev': 'Previous session',
       'session.slot.1': 'Switch to recent session 1',

apps/desktop/src/i18n/zh.ts

@@ -185,6 +185,7 @@ export const zh: Translations = {
       'nav.cron': '打开定时任务',
       'nav.agents': '打开智能体',
       'session.new': '新建会话',
+      'session.newWindow': '在新窗口中新建会话',
       'session.next': '下一个会话',
       'session.prev': '上一个会话',
       'session.slot.1': '切换到最近会话 1',

apps/desktop/src/lib/keybinds/actions.ts

@@ -66,6 +66,7 @@ export const KEYBIND_ACTIONS: readonly KeybindActionMeta[] = [
 
   // ── Session ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
   { id: 'session.new', category: 'session', defaults: ['mod+n', 'shift+n'] },
+  { id: 'session.newWindow', category: 'session', defaults: ['mod+shift+n'] },
   // ⌃Tab / ⌃⇧Tab — the universal tab-cycle chord. Literally Control, not Cmd
   // (macOS reserves Cmd+Tab for app switching); see `ctrl` in combo.ts.
   { id: 'session.next', category: 'session', defaults: ['ctrl+tab'] },

apps/desktop/src/store/windows.test.ts

@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 import { afterEach, beforeEach, describe, expect, it, vi } from 'vitest'
 
-import { canOpenSessionWindow, openSessionInNewWindow } from './windows'
+import { canOpenSessionWindow, openNewSessionInNewWindow, openSessionInNewWindow } from './windows'
 
 const desktopWindow = window as unknown as { hermesDesktop?: Window['hermesDesktop'] }
 const initialHermesDesktop = desktopWindow.hermesDesktop
@@ -11,9 +11,13 @@ vi.mock('./notifications', () => ({
   notifyError: (...args: unknown[]) => notifyError(...args)
 }))
 
-function installBridge(openSessionWindow?: Window['hermesDesktop']['openSessionWindow']) {
+function installBridge(
+  openSessionWindow?: Window['hermesDesktop']['openSessionWindow'],
+  openNewSessionWindow?: Window['hermesDesktop']['openNewSessionWindow']
+) {
   desktopWindow.hermesDesktop = {
-    ...(openSessionWindow ? { openSessionWindow } : {})
+    ...(openSessionWindow ? { openSessionWindow } : {}),
+    ...(openNewSessionWindow ? { openNewSessionWindow } : {})
   } as unknown as Window['hermesDesktop']
 }
 
@@ -101,3 +105,39 @@ describe('openSessionInNewWindow', () => {
     expect(notifyError).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(1)
   })
 })
+
+describe('openNewSessionInNewWindow', () => {
+  it('no-ops gracefully when the bridge is absent (web fallback)', async () => {
+    delete desktopWindow.hermesDesktop
+
+    await openNewSessionInNewWindow()
+
+    expect(notifyError).not.toHaveBeenCalled()
+  })
+
+  it('no-ops when openNewSessionWindow is missing', async () => {
+    installBridge(vi.fn().mockResolvedValue({ ok: true }))
+
+    await openNewSessionInNewWindow()
+
+    expect(notifyError).not.toHaveBeenCalled()
+  })
+
+  it('invokes the bridge', async () => {
+    const openNew = vi.fn().mockResolvedValue({ ok: true })
+    installBridge(vi.fn().mockResolvedValue({ ok: true }), openNew)
+
+    await openNewSessionInNewWindow()
+
+    expect(openNew).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(1)
+    expect(notifyError).not.toHaveBeenCalled()
+  })
+
+  it('notifies on an ok:false result', async () => {
+    installBridge(vi.fn().mockResolvedValue({ ok: true }), vi.fn().mockResolvedValue({ ok: false, error: 'nope' }))
+
+    await openNewSessionInNewWindow()
+
+    expect(notifyError).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(1)
+  })
+})

apps/desktop/src/store/windows.ts

@@ -6,6 +6,7 @@ import { notifyError } from './notifications'
 // never from the router. A "secondary" window renders a single chat without the
 // global session sidebar or the install / onboarding overlays.
 const SECONDARY_WINDOW_FLAG = 'secondary'
+const NEW_SESSION_WINDOW_FLAG = '1'
 
 let secondaryWindowCache: boolean | null = null
 
@@ -27,6 +28,26 @@ export function isSecondaryWindow(): boolean {
   return result
 }
 
+let newSessionWindowCache: boolean | null = null
+
+export function isNewSessionWindow(): boolean {
+  if (newSessionWindowCache !== null) {
+    return newSessionWindowCache
+  }
+
+  let result = false
+
+  try {
+    result = new URLSearchParams(window.location.search).get('new') === NEW_SESSION_WINDOW_FLAG
+  } catch {
+    result = false
+  }
+
+  newSessionWindowCache = result
+
+  return result
+}
+
 let watchWindowCache: boolean | null = null
 
 // A "watch" window spectates a session that is being driven elsewhere (a
@@ -57,6 +78,22 @@ export function canOpenSessionWindow(): boolean {
   return typeof window !== 'undefined' && typeof window.hermesDesktop?.openSessionWindow === 'function'
 }
 
+type WindowOpenResult = { ok: boolean; error?: string } | undefined
+
+// Run a window-open bridge call, surfacing any failure as a toast. Shared by the
+// session pop-out and the new-session pop-out.
+async function openWindow(call: () => Promise<WindowOpenResult>, failMessage: string): Promise<void> {
+  try {
+    const result = await call()
+
+    if (!result?.ok) {
+      notifyError(new Error(result?.error || 'unknown error'), failMessage)
+    }
+  } catch (err) {
+    notifyError(err, failMessage)
+  }
+}
+
 // Open (or focus) a standalone OS window for a single chat session. No-ops
 // gracefully outside Electron so callers can wire it unconditionally.
 // `watch: true` opens a spectator window (lazy resume, live-mirror stream).
@@ -65,13 +102,14 @@ export async function openSessionInNewWindow(sessionId: string, opts?: { watch?:
     return
   }
 
-  try {
-    const result = await window.hermesDesktop.openSessionWindow(sessionId, opts)
+  await openWindow(() => window.hermesDesktop.openSessionWindow(sessionId, opts), 'Could not open chat in a new window')
+}
 
-    if (!result?.ok) {
-      notifyError(new Error(result?.error || 'unknown error'), 'Could not open chat in a new window')
-    }
-  } catch (err) {
-    notifyError(err, 'Could not open chat in a new window')
+// Open a fresh compact window on the new-session draft.
+export async function openNewSessionInNewWindow(): Promise<void> {
+  if (!canOpenSessionWindow() || typeof window.hermesDesktop.openNewSessionWindow !== 'function') {
+    return
   }
+
+  await openWindow(() => window.hermesDesktop.openNewSessionWindow(), 'Could not open new session window')
 }