pi-tool-duration

Makes host-observed tool-call timing visible to the model without changing Pi's terminal output.

hi
[host tool-call elapsed: 5.0s]

Every completed tool result is annotated by default. An optional threshold limits successful-call annotations; failed calls are always annotated.

How it works

The extension measures from Pi's tool_execution_start through tool_execution_end using a monotonic clock. It saves the timing in a hidden session entry and appends one text block to the model-request copy of the result. Durations are rounded to tenths of a second.

The measurement includes preflight and result processing. In a parallel batch, it can include time spent preparing later siblings, but stops when this call finishes even if another call continues. For a tool that launches a background job, it measures the launch call. Parallel durations are not additive task elapsed time. On the maintained fork, a native async call that detaches and later resumes reports the sum of its observed active spans; time spent detached is not observed and is excluded.

Recorded tool content, details, images, and native terminal rendering stay unchanged. Timings survive reload, resume, forks, branch navigation, and retained compaction history. Request-time lookup walks backward only as far as the assistant messages that issued the visible results; older or unidentifiable results can require a longer walk.

Compaction input copies put timing before tool output so Pi's truncation preserves it in the summarizer's input. Generated summaries may omit individual timings. Native branch summaries exclude tool results. Historical markers keep their original text, and tool output resembling a marker is never removed or rewritten.

Scope: built-in and extension tools that emit Pi execution events. Direct ! / !! shell commands and RPC bash command messages are not tool results and are not annotated. On the maintained fork, a live WebSocket steering continuation sends an async result without running context hooks; the extension supplies the same marker through live_tool_result, so the first delivery and later requests match. Fork builds without that event send the first delivery unmarked.

Install

Requires Pi 0.87.0 or later on Node.js 24 or later. Tested against official Pi and the maintained fitchmultz/pi fork.

pi install npm:pi-tool-duration

For local development:

pi install .                         # global settings
pi install -l --approve .            # project settings
pi --no-extensions -e .              # try without installing

--no-extensions prevents a duplicate flag conflict when another copy is already installed. Restart Pi after updating extension code; /reload reinitializes the loaded code but does not replace it.

Configure

Default threshold: 0 ms, including fast calls.

# Restore slow/failed-only reporting:
PI_TOOL_DURATION_THRESHOLD_MS=1000 pi --no-extensions -e .

# CLI value takes precedence:
pi --no-extensions -e . --tool-duration-threshold-ms 500

Invalid CLI values fall through to the environment value; invalid environment values fall back to zero. A successful result below a configured threshold stays unchanged. Missing timing does not establish a zero-duration call.

GPT-6 Astra

Use Pi's native OpenAI or OpenAI Codex Responses provider. The extension uses context_with_system to preserve the positions of prompt and tool updates, allowing native caching and incremental requests to work.

Prefer Pi's built-in model definitions. To adjust a model's limits, use modelOverrides, which preserves native compatibility metadata. A same-ID entry in models replaces that metadata.

Transport selection, reasoning settings, asynchronous tool execution, and steering remain Pi's responsibility. The extension does not alter provider requests or add model instructions.

Verify

Ask Pi to run a tool, for example:

Use bash to run: sleep 1; echo hi

The model receives the output plus a host timing marker. Pi's terminal retains its native rendering.

Development

Run npm ci --ignore-scripts and npm run check on Node.js 24 for typechecking, unit/native runtime tests, and an installed npm package smoke test. There is no production build or prepare step. The development host is pinned to official 0.87.1; CI tests the current stable official release and current maintained fork on pull requests and weekly. The host-provided Pi peer stays wildcard and optional rather than bundling a runtime. The lockfile resolves every package from the public npm registry.

Runtime tests use the installed host's manifest bin.pi entry and a local scripted Responses provider in an isolated HOME. PI_HOST_CLI, PI_COMPAT_EXPECTED_VERSION, and PI_COMPAT_EXPECTED_PACKAGE_DIR can assert the selected graph.

The runtime and restoration tests use the installed host by default; PI_HOST_INDEX can select another host's absolute dist/index.js. They execute timed tools and verify reload plus separate-process disk restoration on both hosts. Native checkpoint restoration also runs when available and is required when PI_COMPAT_HOST=fork or PI_REQUIRE_CHECKPOINT=1. These tests use local scripted model completions without provider network calls or credentials.

License

MIT