Add performance features: caching, cost tracking, retry, compaction, classification, scrubbing

Inspired by zeroclaw's lightweight patterns for slow hardware:
- Response cache (SQLite + SHA-256 keyed) to skip redundant LLM calls
- History compaction — LLM-summarize old messages when history exceeds 50
- Query classifier routes simple/research queries to cheaper models
- Credential scrubbing removes secrets from tool output before sending to LLM
- Cost tracker with daily/monthly budget enforcement (SQLite)
- Resilient provider with retry + exponential backoff + fallback provider
- Approval engine gains session "always allow" and audit log

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.6 <noreply@anthropic.com>

config.yaml

@@ -43,3 +43,12 @@ agents:
 orchestrator:
   max_concurrent: 5
   delegation_timeout: 120
+
+performance:
+  cache_ttl: 3600
+  daily_budget_usd: 5.0
+  monthly_budget_usd: 50.0
+  fallback_model: nvidia_nim/deepseek-ai/deepseek-v3.1
+  model_routing:
+    simple: nvidia_nim/deepseek-ai/deepseek-v3.1
+    research: nvidia_nim/moonshotai/kimi-k2.5

pyproject.toml

@@ -19,6 +19,7 @@ dependencies = [
     "json-repair>=0.30.0",
     "duckduckgo-search>=7.0.0",
     "pypdf>=5.0.0",
+    "aiosqlite>=0.20.0",
 ]
 
 [project.scripts]

xtrm_agent/cache.py

@@ -0,0 +1,100 @@
+"""Response cache — avoid redundant LLM calls for identical prompts."""
+
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+import hashlib
+import json
+import time
+from pathlib import Path
+
+import aiosqlite
+from loguru import logger
+
+
+class ResponseCache:
+    """SQLite-backed LLM response cache with TTL expiry."""
+
+    def __init__(self, db_path: str | Path = "data/cache.db", ttl: int = 3600) -> None:
+        self._db_path = str(db_path)
+        self._ttl = ttl
+        self._db: aiosqlite.Connection | None = None
+
+    async def setup(self) -> None:
+        """Create the cache table if it doesn't exist."""
+        Path(self._db_path).parent.mkdir(parents=True, exist_ok=True)
+        self._db = await aiosqlite.connect(self._db_path)
+        await self._db.execute("PRAGMA journal_mode=WAL")
+        await self._db.execute(
+            """
+            CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS response_cache (
+                key TEXT PRIMARY KEY,
+                response TEXT NOT NULL,
+                model TEXT NOT NULL,
+                created_at REAL NOT NULL,
+                hits INTEGER DEFAULT 0
+            )
+            """
+        )
+        await self._db.commit()
+
+    async def close(self) -> None:
+        if self._db:
+            await self._db.close()
+            self._db = None
+
+    @staticmethod
+    def _make_key(model: str, messages: list[dict]) -> str:
+        """SHA-256 hash of model + messages for cache key."""
+        raw = json.dumps({"model": model, "messages": messages}, sort_keys=True)
+        return hashlib.sha256(raw.encode()).hexdigest()
+
+    async def get(self, model: str, messages: list[dict]) -> str | None:
+        """Look up a cached response. Returns None on miss or expired."""
+        if not self._db:
+            return None
+        key = self._make_key(model, messages)
+        now = time.time()
+        async with self._db.execute(
+            "SELECT response, created_at FROM response_cache WHERE key = ?",
+            (key,),
+        ) as cursor:
+            row = await cursor.fetchone()
+        if not row:
+            return None
+        response, created_at = row
+        if now - created_at > self._ttl:
+            await self._db.execute("DELETE FROM response_cache WHERE key = ?", (key,))
+            await self._db.commit()
+            return None
+        # Bump hit count
+        await self._db.execute(
+            "UPDATE response_cache SET hits = hits + 1 WHERE key = ?", (key,)
+        )
+        await self._db.commit()
+        logger.debug(f"Cache hit for {model} (key={key[:12]}...)")
+        return response
+
+    async def put(self, model: str, messages: list[dict], response: str) -> None:
+        """Store a response in the cache."""
+        if not self._db:
+            return
+        key = self._make_key(model, messages)
+        await self._db.execute(
+            """
+            INSERT OR REPLACE INTO response_cache (key, response, model, created_at, hits)
+            VALUES (?, ?, ?, ?, 0)
+            """,
+            (key, response, model, time.time()),
+        )
+        await self._db.commit()
+
+    async def clear_expired(self) -> int:
+        """Remove expired entries. Returns count of deleted rows."""
+        if not self._db:
+            return 0
+        cutoff = time.time() - self._ttl
+        cursor = await self._db.execute(
+            "DELETE FROM response_cache WHERE created_at < ?", (cutoff,)
+        )
+        await self._db.commit()
+        return cursor.rowcount

xtrm_agent/classifier.py

@@ -0,0 +1,86 @@
+"""Query classifier — route queries to appropriate models."""
+
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+import re
+from dataclasses import dataclass
+from typing import Any
+
+
+@dataclass
+class ClassificationResult:
+    """Result of classifying a query."""
+
+    category: str  # "simple", "code", "research", "complex"
+    model_hint: str  # suggested model override, or "" to use default
+
+
+# Short, trivial queries — greetings, thanks, yes/no, etc.
+_SIMPLE_PATTERNS = [
+    re.compile(r"^(hi|hello|hey|thanks|thank you|ok|yes|no|sure|bye|good\s*(morning|evening|night))[\s!.?]*$", re.IGNORECASE),
+    re.compile(r"^(what time|what date|what day)[\s\S]{0,20}\??\s*$", re.IGNORECASE),
+]
+
+# Code-related queries
+_CODE_PATTERNS = [
+    re.compile(r"\b(function|class|def|import|const|let|var|return|async|await)\b"),
+    re.compile(r"\b(refactor|debug|fix|implement|code|compile|build|test|lint|deploy)\b", re.IGNORECASE),
+    re.compile(r"```"),
+    re.compile(r"\.(py|js|ts|rs|go|java|cpp|c|rb|php|swift|kt)\b"),
+]
+
+# Research / information queries
+_RESEARCH_PATTERNS = [
+    re.compile(r"\b(search|find|look\s*up|research|summarize|explain|compare|analyze)\b", re.IGNORECASE),
+    re.compile(r"\b(what is|how does|why does|can you explain)\b", re.IGNORECASE),
+]
+
+
+class QueryClassifier:
+    """Classify queries for model routing.
+
+    Configure with a mapping of category → model override.
+    Categories: "simple", "code", "research", "complex".
+    """
+
+    def __init__(self, model_map: dict[str, str] | None = None) -> None:
+        self._model_map = model_map or {}
+
+    def classify(self, query: str) -> ClassificationResult:
+        """Classify a query and suggest a model."""
+        query_stripped = query.strip()
+
+        # Very short queries are likely simple
+        if len(query_stripped) < 20:
+            for pattern in _SIMPLE_PATTERNS:
+                if pattern.match(query_stripped):
+                    return ClassificationResult(
+                        category="simple",
+                        model_hint=self._model_map.get("simple", ""),
+                    )
+
+        # Code patterns
+        code_score = sum(1 for p in _CODE_PATTERNS if p.search(query_stripped))
+        if code_score >= 2:
+            return ClassificationResult(
+                category="code",
+                model_hint=self._model_map.get("code", ""),
+            )
+
+        # Research patterns
+        research_score = sum(1 for p in _RESEARCH_PATTERNS if p.search(query_stripped))
+        if research_score >= 1:
+            return ClassificationResult(
+                category="research",
+                model_hint=self._model_map.get("research", ""),
+            )
+
+        # Long or complex queries
+        if len(query_stripped) > 500 or query_stripped.count("\n") > 5:
+            return ClassificationResult(
+                category="complex",
+                model_hint=self._model_map.get("complex", ""),
+            )
+
+        # Default — no override
+        return ClassificationResult(category="complex", model_hint="")

xtrm_agent/config.py

@@ -61,6 +61,16 @@ class MCPServerConfig(BaseModel):
     url: str = ""
 
 
+class PerformanceConfig(BaseModel):
+    """Performance tuning — caching, cost tracking, model routing."""
+
+    cache_ttl: int = 3600
+    daily_budget_usd: float = 0.0
+    monthly_budget_usd: float = 0.0
+    fallback_model: str = ""
+    model_routing: dict[str, str] = Field(default_factory=dict)
+
+
 class OrchestratorConfig(BaseModel):
     max_concurrent: int = 5
     delegation_timeout: int = 120
@@ -87,6 +97,7 @@ class Config(BaseModel):
     mcp_servers: dict[str, MCPServerConfig] = Field(default_factory=dict)
     agents: dict[str, str] = Field(default_factory=dict)
     orchestrator: OrchestratorConfig = Field(default_factory=OrchestratorConfig)
+    performance: PerformanceConfig = Field(default_factory=PerformanceConfig)
 
 
 def load_config(path: str | Path = "config.yaml") -> Config:

xtrm_agent/cost.py

@@ -0,0 +1,173 @@
+"""Cost tracking — monitor token usage and enforce budget limits."""
+
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+import time
+from dataclasses import dataclass, field
+from pathlib import Path
+
+import aiosqlite
+from loguru import logger
+
+
+# Pricing per 1M tokens (input, output) in USD
+MODEL_PRICING: dict[str, tuple[float, float]] = {
+    # Anthropic
+    "claude-sonnet-4-5-20250929": (3.0, 15.0),
+    "claude-haiku-4-5-20251001": (0.80, 4.0),
+    "claude-opus-4-6": (15.0, 75.0),
+    # NVIDIA NIM / LiteLLM
+    "nvidia_nim/deepseek-ai/deepseek-v3.1": (0.27, 1.10),
+    "nvidia_nim/moonshotai/kimi-k2.5": (0.35, 1.40),
+    "nvidia_nim/minimaxai/minimax-m2.1": (0.30, 1.10),
+    # Fallback
+    "_default": (1.0, 3.0),
+}
+
+
+def _get_pricing(model: str) -> tuple[float, float]:
+    """Get (input_price, output_price) per 1M tokens for a model."""
+    return MODEL_PRICING.get(model, MODEL_PRICING["_default"])
+
+
+@dataclass
+class CostRecord:
+    model: str
+    input_tokens: int
+    output_tokens: int
+    cost_usd: float
+    timestamp: float
+
+
+@dataclass
+class BudgetConfig:
+    daily_limit_usd: float = 0.0  # 0 = no limit
+    monthly_limit_usd: float = 0.0  # 0 = no limit
+    warning_threshold: float = 0.8  # warn at 80% of budget
+
+
+class CostTracker:
+    """Track LLM costs in SQLite and enforce budget limits."""
+
+    def __init__(
+        self,
+        db_path: str | Path = "data/costs.db",
+        budget: BudgetConfig | None = None,
+    ) -> None:
+        self._db_path = str(db_path)
+        self._budget = budget or BudgetConfig()
+        self._db: aiosqlite.Connection | None = None
+
+    async def setup(self) -> None:
+        Path(self._db_path).parent.mkdir(parents=True, exist_ok=True)
+        self._db = await aiosqlite.connect(self._db_path)
+        await self._db.execute("PRAGMA journal_mode=WAL")
+        await self._db.execute(
+            """
+            CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS cost_records (
+                id INTEGER PRIMARY KEY AUTOINCREMENT,
+                model TEXT NOT NULL,
+                input_tokens INTEGER NOT NULL,
+                output_tokens INTEGER NOT NULL,
+                cost_usd REAL NOT NULL,
+                timestamp REAL NOT NULL
+            )
+            """
+        )
+        await self._db.commit()
+
+    async def close(self) -> None:
+        if self._db:
+            await self._db.close()
+            self._db = None
+
+    async def record(self, model: str, usage: dict[str, int]) -> CostRecord:
+        """Record token usage and return the cost record."""
+        input_tokens = usage.get("input_tokens", 0)
+        output_tokens = usage.get("output_tokens", 0)
+        input_price, output_price = _get_pricing(model)
+        cost = (input_tokens * input_price + output_tokens * output_price) / 1_000_000
+
+        record = CostRecord(
+            model=model,
+            input_tokens=input_tokens,
+            output_tokens=output_tokens,
+            cost_usd=cost,
+            timestamp=time.time(),
+        )
+
+        if self._db:
+            await self._db.execute(
+                "INSERT INTO cost_records (model, input_tokens, output_tokens, cost_usd, timestamp) VALUES (?, ?, ?, ?, ?)",
+                (model, input_tokens, output_tokens, cost, record.timestamp),
+            )
+            await self._db.commit()
+
+        logger.debug(
+            f"Cost: {model} — {input_tokens}in/{output_tokens}out = ${cost:.6f}"
+        )
+        return record
+
+    async def check_budget(self) -> str:
+        """Check budget status. Returns 'ok', 'warning', or 'exceeded'."""
+        if not self._db:
+            return "ok"
+
+        now = time.time()
+
+        # Daily check
+        if self._budget.daily_limit_usd > 0:
+            day_start = now - (now % 86400)
+            daily_total = await self._sum_costs_since(day_start)
+            if daily_total >= self._budget.daily_limit_usd:
+                logger.warning(f"Daily budget EXCEEDED: ${daily_total:.4f} / ${self._budget.daily_limit_usd:.2f}")
+                return "exceeded"
+            if daily_total >= self._budget.daily_limit_usd * self._budget.warning_threshold:
+                logger.warning(f"Daily budget warning: ${daily_total:.4f} / ${self._budget.daily_limit_usd:.2f}")
+                return "warning"
+
+        # Monthly check
+        if self._budget.monthly_limit_usd > 0:
+            month_start = now - (now % (86400 * 30))
+            monthly_total = await self._sum_costs_since(month_start)
+            if monthly_total >= self._budget.monthly_limit_usd:
+                logger.warning(f"Monthly budget EXCEEDED: ${monthly_total:.4f} / ${self._budget.monthly_limit_usd:.2f}")
+                return "exceeded"
+            if monthly_total >= self._budget.monthly_limit_usd * self._budget.warning_threshold:
+                logger.warning(f"Monthly budget warning: ${monthly_total:.4f} / ${self._budget.monthly_limit_usd:.2f}")
+                return "warning"
+
+        return "ok"
+
+    async def get_summary(self) -> dict:
+        """Get a cost summary with per-model breakdown."""
+        if not self._db:
+            return {"total_usd": 0, "models": {}}
+
+        now = time.time()
+        day_start = now - (now % 86400)
+
+        rows: list = []
+        async with self._db.execute(
+            "SELECT model, SUM(input_tokens), SUM(output_tokens), SUM(cost_usd) FROM cost_records WHERE timestamp >= ? GROUP BY model",
+            (day_start,),
+        ) as cursor:
+            rows = await cursor.fetchall()
+
+        models = {}
+        total = 0.0
+        for model, inp, out, cost in rows:
+            models[model] = {"input_tokens": inp, "output_tokens": out, "cost_usd": cost}
+            total += cost
+
+        return {"total_usd": total, "models": models}
+
+    async def _sum_costs_since(self, since: float) -> float:
+        if not self._db:
+            return 0.0
+        async with self._db.execute(
+            "SELECT COALESCE(SUM(cost_usd), 0) FROM cost_records WHERE timestamp >= ?",
+            (since,),
+        ) as cursor:
+            row = await cursor.fetchone()
+        return row[0] if row else 0.0

xtrm_agent/engine.py

@@ -2,17 +2,45 @@
 
 from __future__ import annotations
 
+import asyncio
+import json
 from typing import Any
 
 from loguru import logger
 
+from xtrm_agent.cache import ResponseCache
+from xtrm_agent.classifier import ClassificationResult, QueryClassifier
 from xtrm_agent.config import AgentFileConfig
-import json
-
+from xtrm_agent.cost import CostTracker
 from xtrm_agent.llm.provider import LLMProvider, LLMResponse
+from xtrm_agent.scrub import scrub_credentials
 from xtrm_agent.tools.approval import ApprovalEngine
 from xtrm_agent.tools.registry import ToolRegistry
 
+# History compaction settings
+_MAX_HISTORY_MESSAGES = 50
+_KEEP_RECENT = 20
+_COMPACTION_PROMPT = (
+    "Summarize the following conversation history concisely. "
+    "Preserve key facts, decisions, tool results, and context needed to continue. "
+    "Be brief but complete."
+)
+
+# Retry settings
+_MAX_RETRIES = 3
+_RETRY_BACKOFF_BASE = 2.0
+_NON_RETRYABLE_KEYWORDS = [
+    "authentication",
+    "unauthorized",
+    "invalid api key",
+    "model not found",
+    "permission denied",
+    "invalid_api_key",
+    "401",
+    "403",
+    "404",
+]
+
 
 class Engine:
     """Runs one agent's LLM loop: messages → LLM → tool calls → loop → response."""
@@ -23,16 +51,33 @@ class Engine:
         provider: LLMProvider,
         tools: ToolRegistry,
         approval: ApprovalEngine,
+        cache: ResponseCache | None = None,
+        cost_tracker: CostTracker | None = None,
+        classifier: QueryClassifier | None = None,
+        fallback_provider: LLMProvider | None = None,
     ) -> None:
         self.config = agent_config
         self.provider = provider
         self.tools = tools
         self.approval = approval
+        self.cache = cache
+        self.cost_tracker = cost_tracker
+        self.classifier = classifier
+        self.fallback_provider = fallback_provider
 
     async def run(self, user_message: str) -> str:
         """Process a single user message through the agent loop."""
         messages = self._build_initial_messages(user_message)
-        return await self._agent_loop(messages)
+
+        # Query classification — override model if classifier suggests one
+        model_override = ""
+        if self.classifier:
+            result = self.classifier.classify(user_message)
+            if result.model_hint:
+                model_override = result.model_hint
+                logger.debug(f"[{self.config.name}] Classified as '{result.category}' → model={result.model_hint}")
+
+        return await self._agent_loop(messages, model_override=model_override)
 
     async def run_delegation(self, task: str) -> str:
         """Process a delegation task (no system prompt changes)."""
@@ -46,22 +91,45 @@ class Engine:
         messages.append({"role": "user", "content": user_message})
         return messages
 
-    async def _agent_loop(self, messages: list[dict[str, Any]]) -> str:
-        """Core agent iteration loop."""
+    async def _agent_loop(
+        self,
+        messages: list[dict[str, Any]],
+        model_override: str = "",
+    ) -> str:
+        """Core agent iteration loop with caching, cost tracking, retry, and compaction."""
         for iteration in range(self.config.max_iterations):
-            model = self.config.model or self.provider.get_default_model()
+            model = model_override or self.config.model or self.provider.get_default_model()
             tool_defs = self.tools.get_definitions() if self.tools.names() else None
 
-            response = await self.provider.complete(
+            # Budget check
+            if self.cost_tracker:
+                status = await self.cost_tracker.check_budget()
+                if status == "exceeded":
+                    return "(budget exceeded — please try again later)"
+
+            # Response cache check (only for first iteration — no tool calls yet)
+            if self.cache and iteration == 0 and not tool_defs:
+                cached = await self.cache.get(model, messages)
+                if cached:
+                    return cached
+
+            # LLM call with retry + fallback
+            response = await self._call_with_retry(
                 messages=messages,
                 tools=tool_defs,
                 model=model,
-                max_tokens=8192,
-                temperature=self.config.temperature,
             )
 
+            # Track cost
+            if self.cost_tracker and response.usage:
+                await self.cost_tracker.record(model, response.usage)
+
             if not response.has_tool_calls:
-                return response.content or "(no response)"
+                content = response.content or "(no response)"
+                # Cache the final response (only if no tool calls were used in the conversation)
+                if self.cache and iteration == 0:
+                    await self.cache.put(model, messages, content)
+                return content
 
             # Add assistant message with tool calls
             messages.append(self._assistant_message(response))
@@ -69,6 +137,8 @@ class Engine:
             # Execute each tool call
             for tc in response.tool_calls:
                 result = await self._execute_tool(tc.name, tc.arguments)
+                # Scrub credentials from tool output
+                result = scrub_credentials(result)
                 messages.append(
                     {
                         "role": "tool",
@@ -83,8 +153,121 @@ class Engine:
                 f"{len(response.tool_calls)} tool call(s)"
             )
 
+            # History compaction — summarize old messages if history is too long
+            messages = await self._compact_history(messages, model)
+
         return "(max iterations reached)"
 
+    async def _call_with_retry(
+        self,
+        messages: list[dict[str, Any]],
+        tools: list[dict[str, Any]] | None,
+        model: str,
+    ) -> LLMResponse:
+        """Call the LLM with retry and fallback."""
+        last_error: Exception | None = None
+
+        for attempt in range(_MAX_RETRIES):
+            try:
+                return await self.provider.complete(
+                    messages=messages,
+                    tools=tools,
+                    model=model,
+                    max_tokens=8192,
+                    temperature=self.config.temperature,
+                )
+            except Exception as e:
+                last_error = e
+                error_str = str(e).lower()
+
+                # Don't retry non-retryable errors
+                if any(kw in error_str for kw in _NON_RETRYABLE_KEYWORDS):
+                    logger.error(f"[{self.config.name}] Non-retryable error: {e}")
+                    break
+
+                wait = _RETRY_BACKOFF_BASE ** attempt
+                logger.warning(
+                    f"[{self.config.name}] Attempt {attempt + 1}/{_MAX_RETRIES} failed: {e} — retrying in {wait}s"
+                )
+                await asyncio.sleep(wait)
+
+        # Try fallback provider
+        if self.fallback_provider:
+            logger.info(f"[{self.config.name}] Trying fallback provider")
+            try:
+                return await self.fallback_provider.complete(
+                    messages=messages,
+                    tools=tools,
+                    model=self.fallback_provider.get_default_model(),
+                    max_tokens=8192,
+                    temperature=self.config.temperature,
+                )
+            except Exception as fallback_err:
+                logger.error(f"[{self.config.name}] Fallback also failed: {fallback_err}")
+
+        # All retries and fallback exhausted
+        return LLMResponse(
+            content=f"(error after {_MAX_RETRIES} retries: {last_error})",
+            finish_reason="error",
+        )
+
+    async def _compact_history(
+        self,
+        messages: list[dict[str, Any]],
+        model: str,
+    ) -> list[dict[str, Any]]:
+        """Compact old messages if history exceeds threshold."""
+        # Count non-system messages
+        non_system = [m for m in messages if m["role"] != "system"]
+        if len(non_system) <= _MAX_HISTORY_MESSAGES:
+            return messages
+
+        # Split: keep system messages, summarize old, keep recent
+        system_msgs = [m for m in messages if m["role"] == "system"]
+        old_msgs = non_system[:-_KEEP_RECENT]
+        recent_msgs = non_system[-_KEEP_RECENT:]
+
+        # Ask LLM to summarize the old messages
+        summary_messages = [
+            {"role": "system", "content": _COMPACTION_PROMPT},
+            {
+                "role": "user",
+                "content": json.dumps(
+                    [{"role": m["role"], "content": m.get("content", "")} for m in old_msgs],
+                    indent=None,
+                ),
+            },
+        ]
+
+        try:
+            summary_response = await self.provider.complete(
+                messages=summary_messages,
+                model=model,
+                max_tokens=2048,
+                temperature=0.1,
+            )
+            summary_text = summary_response.content or ""
+            logger.info(
+                f"[{self.config.name}] Compacted {len(old_msgs)} messages → "
+                f"{len(summary_text)} char summary"
+            )
+        except Exception as e:
+            logger.warning(f"[{self.config.name}] History compaction failed: {e}")
+            return messages
+
+        # Rebuild: system + summary + recent
+        compacted = list(system_msgs)
+        compacted.append({
+            "role": "user",
+            "content": f"[Conversation summary]\n{summary_text}",
+        })
+        compacted.append({
+            "role": "assistant",
+            "content": "Understood, I have the context from our previous conversation.",
+        })
+        compacted.extend(recent_msgs)
+        return compacted
+
     async def _execute_tool(self, name: str, arguments: dict[str, Any]) -> str:
         """Execute a tool with approval check."""
         approved = await self.approval.check(name, arguments)

xtrm_agent/orchestrator.py

@@ -10,7 +10,10 @@ from typing import Any
 from loguru import logger
 
 from xtrm_agent.bus import AgentMessage, InboundMessage, MessageBus, OutboundMessage
+from xtrm_agent.cache import ResponseCache
+from xtrm_agent.classifier import QueryClassifier
 from xtrm_agent.config import Config, AgentFileConfig, parse_agent_file
+from xtrm_agent.cost import BudgetConfig, CostTracker
 from xtrm_agent.engine import Engine
 from xtrm_agent.llm.anthropic import AnthropicProvider
 from xtrm_agent.llm.litellm import LiteLLMProvider
@@ -35,6 +38,8 @@ class Orchestrator:
         self._agent_configs: dict[str, AgentFileConfig] = {}
         self._mcp_stack = AsyncExitStack()
         self._running = False
+        self._cache: ResponseCache | None = None
+        self._cost_tracker: CostTracker | None = None
 
         # Channel defaults for routing
         channel_defaults = {}
@@ -53,6 +58,27 @@ class Orchestrator:
         workspace = Path(self.config.tools.workspace).resolve()
         workspace.mkdir(parents=True, exist_ok=True)
 
+        # Initialize shared response cache
+        self._cache = ResponseCache(
+            db_path=workspace / "cache.db",
+            ttl=self.config.performance.cache_ttl,
+        )
+        await self._cache.setup()
+
+        # Initialize cost tracker
+        budget = BudgetConfig(
+            daily_limit_usd=self.config.performance.daily_budget_usd,
+            monthly_limit_usd=self.config.performance.monthly_budget_usd,
+        )
+        self._cost_tracker = CostTracker(
+            db_path=workspace / "costs.db",
+            budget=budget,
+        )
+        await self._cost_tracker.setup()
+
+        # Initialize query classifier
+        classifier = QueryClassifier(model_map=self.config.performance.model_routing)
+
         # Parse all agent definitions
         for agent_name, agent_path in self.config.agents.items():
             p = Path(agent_path)
@@ -74,6 +100,10 @@ class Orchestrator:
         await self._mcp_stack.__aenter__()
         await connect_mcp_servers(self.config.mcp_servers, global_registry, self._mcp_stack)
 
+        # Create fallback provider (LiteLLM with a cheap model)
+        fallback_model = self.config.performance.fallback_model
+        fallback_provider = LiteLLMProvider(model=fallback_model) if fallback_model else None
+
         # Create one engine per agent
         agent_names = list(self._agent_configs.keys())
         for agent_name, agent_cfg in self._agent_configs.items():
@@ -107,6 +137,10 @@ class Orchestrator:
                 provider=provider,
                 tools=agent_registry,
                 approval=approval,
+                cache=self._cache,
+                cost_tracker=self._cost_tracker,
+                classifier=classifier,
+                fallback_provider=fallback_provider,
             )
             self._engines[agent_name] = engine
 
@@ -190,6 +224,10 @@ class Orchestrator:
 
     async def stop(self) -> None:
         self._running = False
+        if self._cache:
+            await self._cache.close()
+        if self._cost_tracker:
+            await self._cost_tracker.close()
         await self._mcp_stack.aclose()
         logger.info("Orchestrator stopped")
 

xtrm_agent/scrub.py

@@ -0,0 +1,46 @@
+"""Credential scrubbing — prevent secret leakage in tool output."""
+
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+import re
+
+# Patterns that match common secret formats
+_SECRET_PATTERNS = [
+    # Key=value patterns (API keys, tokens, passwords)
+    re.compile(
+        r"(?i)(api[_-]?key|token|password|passwd|secret|access[_-]?key|private[_-]?key|auth)"
+        r"[\s]*[=:]\s*['\"]?([^\s'\"]{8,})['\"]?",
+    ),
+    # Bearer tokens
+    re.compile(r"Bearer\s+[A-Za-z0-9\-._~+/]+=*", re.IGNORECASE),
+    # AWS access keys (AKIA...)
+    re.compile(r"AKIA[0-9A-Z]{16}"),
+    # AWS secret keys (40 char base64)
+    re.compile(r"(?i)aws[_-]?secret[_-]?access[_-]?key[\s]*[=:]\s*['\"]?([A-Za-z0-9/+=]{40})['\"]?"),
+    # GitHub tokens
+    re.compile(r"gh[pousr]_[A-Za-z0-9_]{36,}"),
+    # Generic long hex strings that look like secrets (32+ hex chars after key= or token=)
+    re.compile(r"(?i)(?:key|token|secret)[=:]\s*['\"]?([0-9a-f]{32,})['\"]?"),
+]
+
+_REDACTED = "[REDACTED]"
+
+
+def scrub_credentials(text: str) -> str:
+    """Scrub potential secrets from text, replacing with [REDACTED]."""
+    result = text
+    for pattern in _SECRET_PATTERNS:
+        result = pattern.sub(_redact_match, result)
+    return result
+
+
+def _redact_match(match: re.Match) -> str:
+    """Replace the secret value while keeping the key name visible."""
+    full = match.group(0)
+    # For key=value patterns, keep the key part
+    for sep in ("=", ":"):
+        if sep in full:
+            key_part = full[: full.index(sep) + 1]
+            return f"{key_part} {_REDACTED}"
+    # For standalone patterns (Bearer, AKIA, gh*_), redact the whole thing
+    return _REDACTED

xtrm_agent/tools/approval.py

@@ -2,6 +2,7 @@
 
 from __future__ import annotations
 
+import time
 from enum import Enum
 from typing import Any
 
@@ -15,7 +16,7 @@ class ApprovalPolicy(Enum):
 
 
 class ApprovalEngine:
-    """Deny-by-default tool approval."""
+    """Deny-by-default tool approval with session allowlist and audit log."""
 
     def __init__(
         self,
@@ -26,6 +27,8 @@ class ApprovalEngine:
         self._auto_approve = set(auto_approve or [])
         self._require_approval = set(require_approval or [])
         self._interactive = interactive
+        self._session_allowed: set[str] = set()
+        self._audit_log: list[dict[str, Any]] = []
 
     def get_policy(self, tool_name: str) -> ApprovalPolicy:
         """Get the approval policy for a tool."""
@@ -43,27 +46,54 @@ class ApprovalEngine:
         policy = self.get_policy(tool_name)
 
         if policy == ApprovalPolicy.AUTO_APPROVE:
+            self._log_decision(tool_name, arguments, "auto_approved")
+            return True
+
+        # Session-scoped "always allow"
+        if tool_name in self._session_allowed:
+            self._log_decision(tool_name, arguments, "session_allowed")
             return True
 
         if policy == ApprovalPolicy.DENY:
             logger.warning(f"Tool '{tool_name}' denied by policy")
+            self._log_decision(tool_name, arguments, "denied")
             return False
 
         # REQUIRE_APPROVAL
         if not self._interactive:
             logger.warning(f"Tool '{tool_name}' requires approval but running non-interactively — denied")
+            self._log_decision(tool_name, arguments, "denied_non_interactive")
             return False
 
         # In interactive mode, prompt the user
         logger.info(f"Tool '{tool_name}' requires approval. Args: {arguments}")
-        return await self._prompt_user(tool_name, arguments)
+        approved, always = await self._prompt_user(tool_name, arguments)
+        if approved and always:
+            self._session_allowed.add(tool_name)
+        self._log_decision(tool_name, arguments, "user_approved" if approved else "user_denied")
+        return approved
 
-    async def _prompt_user(self, tool_name: str, arguments: dict[str, Any]) -> bool:
-        """Prompt user for tool approval (interactive mode)."""
+    async def _prompt_user(self, tool_name: str, arguments: dict[str, Any]) -> tuple[bool, bool]:
+        """Prompt user for tool approval. Returns (approved, always_allow)."""
         print(f"\n[APPROVAL REQUIRED] Tool: {tool_name}")
         print(f"  Arguments: {arguments}")
         try:
-            answer = input("  Allow? [y/N]: ").strip().lower()
-            return answer in ("y", "yes")
+            answer = input("  Allow? [y/N/a(lways)]: ").strip().lower()
+            if answer in ("a", "always"):
+                return True, True
+            return answer in ("y", "yes"), False
         except (EOFError, KeyboardInterrupt):
-            return False
+            return False, False
+
+    def _log_decision(self, tool_name: str, arguments: dict[str, Any], decision: str) -> None:
+        """Record an approval decision in the audit log."""
+        self._audit_log.append({
+            "tool": tool_name,
+            "arguments": arguments,
+            "decision": decision,
+            "timestamp": time.time(),
+        })
+
+    def get_audit_log(self) -> list[dict[str, Any]]:
+        """Return the audit log for inspection."""
+        return list(self._audit_log)