Live-verify the puppet DM path and expose the backend choice

CURRENT.md

@@ -38,10 +38,14 @@ mobile draft at 390px.
     by the Media tab. Live run 2026-09-16: scrape `...-20260916083401` fetched the 784 KB
     attachment; storage counted actual bytes.
   - [~] C9 live verification. Slopbot path verified live on 2026-09-16: login Slopbot#5775, guild
-    `177931418704281600`, test channel `1549681689222053988`. Links scrape `...-20260916075150`:
-    done, 1 page, 17 messages, 4 images + 13 videos, 0 errors. Download scrape `...-20260916083401`:
-    done, 1 file. Still owed: preview caching (C11), the puppet `message.fetch` field check, a real
-    429 observation, and pacing tuning.
+    `177931418704281600`. Test channel links scrape: 17 messages, 4 images + 13 videos, 0 errors;
+    download scrape fetched the 784 KB attachment. Large channel `gernal_chut`: 11 pages, 1088
+    messages, 96 images + 1 GIF + 203 videos, 0 errors (no 429 at the current pacing).     Puppet path
+    verified live on a group DM (`zıbb & fred`) and a 1:1 DM: backend `puppet`, done, 0 errors.
+    The puppet field check is done too: the group DM returned attachments plus mapped embeds
+    (YouTube, Instagram), and the large slopbot channel produced YouTube, Gfycat, Imgur, Steam,
+    and Twitch embeds alongside attachments. Still owed: preview caching (C11) and a stress walk
+    on the second guild (`559346566754729995`, channel `559346566754729997`).
 - Flextalk voice profile, end to end. The profile window is a movable panel that recenters on each
   open; it carries the character sliders with engine defaults and +/-2 snapping, five named
   presets, radio-kit effects (high-pass 40-400 Hz, echo 0-100, word mode with a gap in ms), and

docs/media.md

@@ -2,10 +2,13 @@
 
 Status: design approved 2026-09-16. The engine, the slopbot backend, the `scrape media` command,
 the `/api/media/*` routes, storage limits with retention, the Settings group, the MCP tools, and
-the byte downloader are implemented (C3-C8, C10). The Media and Bot tabs are C6. Live-verified on
-the test channel: links mode produced 17 messages (4 images, 13 videos) with no errors, and
-download mode fetched the attachment (784 KB) and served it locally. Remaining: preview caching
-(C11), the puppet `message.fetch` field check, and a 429 observation. Checkpoints live in
+the byte downloader are implemented (C3-C8, C10). The Media and Bot tabs are C6. Live-verified:
+
+- slopbot on the test channel: 17 messages (4 images, 13 videos), 0 errors.
+- slopbot on a larger channel: 11 pages, 1088 messages (96 images, 1 GIF, 203 videos), 0 errors.
+- puppet on a group DM and a 1:1 DM: done, 0 errors, backend `puppet`.
+
+Remaining: preview caching (C11) and a 429 observation on a very large walk. Checkpoints live in
 [CURRENT.md](../CURRENT.md).
 
 The media archive saves the media history of a channel. A trusted user runs `scrape media` in the

docs/webui.md

@@ -254,7 +254,7 @@ replaceable.
 | GET | `/api/media/scrapes` | none | Every scrape with state and counters |
 | GET | `/api/media/status` | none | Slopbot connection state and the scrape list |
 | GET | `/api/media/storage` | none | Usage against the limit, per-kind sizes, `nearLimit`; marks old scrapes when over |
-| POST | `/api/media/scrape` | `channelId`, `guildId?`, `mode?`, `confirm?` | Start a media scrape. Near the limit: `409` with code `MEDIA_LIMIT` unless `confirm: true` |
+| POST | `/api/media/scrape` | `channelId`, `guildId?`, `mode?`, `backend?`, `confirm?` | Start a media scrape. `backend` is `auto` (default), `slopbot`, or `puppet`. Near the limit: `409` with code `MEDIA_LIMIT` unless `confirm: true` |
 | POST | `/api/media/scrape/stop` | `id` | Stop a media scrape |
 | POST | `/api/media/clean` | `ids?` | Delete the given scrapes, or every scrape when `ids` is absent |
 | GET | `/api/logs` | `limit` | The persistent action log |

poc/public/media.js

@@ -95,6 +95,25 @@
                     });
                 }
             }
+
+            // DMs and group DMs: the bot cannot see them, so they always use the puppet.
+            try {
+                const dms = await window.VK.api.get("/api/dms?limit=50");
+                for (const dm of dms ?? []) {
+                    const names = (dm.recipients ?? [])
+                        .map(recipient => recipient.username)
+                        .filter(Boolean)
+                        .join(", ");
+                    state.channels.push({
+                        id: dm.id,
+                        guildId: null,
+                        label: `${dm.name || names || "DM"} (${dm.type === 3 ? "group DM" : "DM"})`
+                    });
+                }
+            } catch {
+                // no cached DMs yet
+            }
+
             state.loadedChannels = true;
         } catch {
             state.channels = [];

poc/src/control-bridge.ts

@@ -770,11 +770,15 @@ function buildServer(): McpServer {
                     .enum(["links", "download"])
                     .optional()
                     .describe("links indexes URLs (default); download fetches attachment bytes"),
+                backend: z
+                    .enum(["auto", "slopbot", "puppet"])
+                    .optional()
+                    .describe("auto (default) picks slopbot for its guilds, the client otherwise"),
                 confirm: z.boolean().optional().describe("Accept the near-limit warning")
             }
         },
-        async ({ channelId, guildId, mode, confirm }) =>
-            jsonText(await media.startScrape({ channelId, guildId: guildId ?? null, mode, confirm }))
+        async ({ channelId, guildId, mode, backend, confirm }) =>
+            jsonText(await media.startScrape({ channelId, guildId: guildId ?? null, mode, backend, confirm }))
     );
 
     server.registerTool(

poc/src/webui.ts

@@ -802,8 +802,11 @@ export function startWebUi(deps: WebUiDeps): WebUiHandle {
             const mode = req.body?.mode === "download" ? "download" : "links";
             const guildId = req.body?.guildId ? String(req.body.guildId) : null;
             const confirm = req.body?.confirm === true;
+            const requested = String(req.body?.backend ?? "auto");
+            const backend =
+                requested === "slopbot" || requested === "puppet" ? requested : "auto";
 
-            const scrape = await deps.media.startScrape({ channelId, guildId, mode, confirm });
+            const scrape = await deps.media.startScrape({ channelId, guildId, mode, confirm, backend });
             deps.getPuppet()?.appendAction({
                 type: "media",
                 action: "scrape",