{
  "source": "https://github.com/nesquena/hermes-webui/issues/6612",
  "symptom": "A stale WebUI tab overwrites a newer update-channel selection when the user changes any unrelated preference.",
  "sequence": [
    "Select Experimental and leave Tab A open; its settingsUpdateChannel control holds 'experimental'.",
    "In Tab B, select Stable and let that save complete.",
    "Without refreshing Tab A, toggle any unrelated preference there, such as TPS display or sidebar density.",
    "Tab A's generic Preferences autosave posts its full stale payload to /api/settings.",
    "save_settings() accepts the explicit allowed enum value, so the server silently switches back to Experimental."
  ],
  "stale_autosave_payload": {
    "update_channel": "experimental",
    "show_tps": true
  },
  "expected_persisted_channel_after_stale_autosave": "stable",
  "explicit_channel_payloads": [
    { "update_channel": "stable" },
    { "update_channel": "experimental" }
  ],
  "normalization_cases": [
    { "input": { "update_channel": "nightly" }, "expected": "experimental", "note": "invalid enum value is ignored; persisted value unchanged" },
    { "input": { "update_channel": "" }, "expected": "experimental", "note": "empty string is not a valid enum value; persisted value unchanged" },
    { "input": {}, "expected": "experimental", "note": "absent key leaves persisted value unchanged" }
  ],
  "acceptance_criteria": [
    "Tab A may hold a stale channel value while Tab B changes the persisted channel.",
    "Changing an unrelated preference in Tab A does not alter the persisted channel.",
    "An explicit channel change still persists and immediately drives channel-scoped check/apply state.",
    "A regression test exercises the two-client stale-value sequence.",
    "Unknown/invalid/missing channel values leave the persisted channel unchanged."
  ]
}