From 56a5d1d56f84a0204aacff1f6e5a4de9d7c6557d Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001
From: Rune Olsen <rune@rune.pm>
Date: Wed, 19 Aug 2026 14:30:16 +0200
Subject: [PATCH] Trigger the Mail consent prompt via a real Apple Event, not
 the pre-flight API
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit

Rune's log capture proved the theory wrong: AEDeterminePermissionToAutomate-
Target(askUserIfNeeded: true) returned -1743 in ~9ms — far too fast for any
real dialog to have been shown and answered — and the very next passive
status check still reported -1744 (not yet determined), meaning the OS
never actually recorded a decision despite the "denied" return. That's the
pre-flight API misbehaving, not a threading issue (both previous fixes
addressed threading and neither helped).

requestAccess() now attempts a real, harmless Apple Event (listAccounts)
via the same runHandler path mail_list_accounts/testConnection() already
use — sending an actual Apple Event is the standard, proven mechanism for
triggering macOS's first-time Automation consent prompt, and this path is
already confirmed working (it's what correctly reported "not authorized"
in the first live test).
---
 oAI/Services/AppleMailService.swift | 39 +++++++++++++++++------------
 1 file changed, 23 insertions(+), 16 deletions(-)

diff --git a/oAI/Services/AppleMailService.swift b/oAI/Services/AppleMailService.swift
index 9b57161..edb1343 100644
--- a/oAI/Services/AppleMailService.swift
+++ b/oAI/Services/AppleMailService.swift
@@ -79,24 +79,31 @@ final class AppleMailService {
     /// Triggers the real macOS "Confab wants to control Mail" Automation permission prompt if
     /// the user hasn't been asked yet (a no-op if already granted or denied).
     ///
-    /// First attempt just called this synchronously from an `async` method, reasoning that
-    /// `-default-isolation=MainActor` makes it run on the main actor anyway — it didn't work live
-    /// (button flashed, no dialog, no state change, confirmed still broken even after a
-    /// `tccutil reset`). Being "MainActor-isolated" inside Swift's structured-concurrency/Task
-    /// execution model is NOT the same as a classic synchronous AppKit call — this blocking,
-    /// modal-dialog-presenting legacy C API needs to run from a genuine `DispatchQueue.main.async`
-    /// dispatch (the same execution shape as a normal button target-action), not from inside a
-    /// suspended `Task` continuation frame, to correctly nest its own run loop for the prompt.
+    /// Two earlier attempts used `AEDeterminePermissionToAutomateTarget(askUserIfNeeded: true)` —
+    /// first called directly (relying on implicit MainActor isolation), then wrapped in
+    /// `DispatchQueue.main.async`. Neither worked live: logs showed it returning -1743 in ~9ms,
+    /// far too fast for any real human response, immediately followed by the passive status check
+    /// (`askUserIfNeeded: false`) still reporting -1744 ("would need to ask") — i.e. the OS never
+    /// actually recorded a decision despite the "denied" return. That points at
+    /// `AEDeterminePermissionToAutomateTarget` itself misbehaving in this context (possibly a
+    /// macOS 27 beta issue — this project has hit other real TCC/permission regressions on this
+    /// beta before, see CLAUDE.md's Personal Data Tools Apple Feedback note), not a threading bug.
+    ///
+    /// Switched strategy entirely: attempt a real, harmless Apple Event via the same `runHandler`
+    /// path `mail_list_accounts`/`testConnection()` already use — sending an actual Apple Event is
+    /// the standard, well-proven way macOS shows the first-time "X wants to control Y" Automation
+    /// prompt, and this exact path is already confirmed working (it's what correctly reported
+    /// "not authorized" in the very first live test).
     @discardableResult
     func requestAccess() async -> Bool {
-        Log.mail.info("requestAccess: called")
-        return await withCheckedContinuation { continuation in
-            DispatchQueue.main.async {
-                Log.mail.info("requestAccess: about to call AEDeterminePermissionToAutomateTarget(askUserIfNeeded: true)")
-                let status = Self.checkMailAutomationPermission(askUserIfNeeded: true)
-                Log.mail.info("requestAccess: AEDeterminePermissionToAutomateTarget(askUserIfNeeded: true) returned \(status)")
-                continuation.resume(returning: status == 0)
-            }
+        Log.mail.info("requestAccess: called — attempting a real Apple Event (listAccounts) to trigger the OS consent prompt")
+        switch await runHandler("listAccounts", arguments: []) {
+        case .success:
+            Log.mail.info("requestAccess: real Apple Event succeeded — access granted")
+            return true
+        case .failure(let error):
+            Log.mail.info("requestAccess: real Apple Event failed — \(String(describing: error))")
+            return false
         }
     }