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Quest 5 Completion Summary: Real-time Version Management

Status: ✅ COMPLETED
Duration: ~2 hours
Complexity: High (Multiple debugging iterations required)

Objective​

Implement a real-time version dropdown for artifacts that updates automatically when new versions are saved.

Key Achievements​

1. Added Version Support to Real-time Infrastructure​

  • ✅ Added artifacts and artifact_versions to Dexie schema
  • ✅ Fixed collection name mismatch (artifact_versions with underscore)
  • ✅ Added WebSocket subscription support in dataSubscribeRequest.ts
  • ✅ Bumped Dexie version from 19 to 20

2. Created Version Management API​

  • ✅ GET /api/artifacts/[id]/versions - List all versions
  • ✅ POST /api/artifacts/[id]/versions - Create new version
  • ✅ GET /api/artifacts/[id]/versions/[version] - Get specific version content
  • ✅ Added fallback logic for missing version fields

3. Built React Hooks for Versions​

  • ✅ useArtifactVersions() - Fetches version list with real-time updates
  • ✅ useSubscribeToArtifactVersions() - WebSocket subscription
  • ✅ useCreateArtifactVersion() - Creates new versions
  • ✅ useArtifactVersionContent() - Fetches specific version content

4. Implemented Version Dropdown Component​

  • ✅ Created ArtifactVersionDropdown component
  • ✅ Replaced problematic Joy UI Select with custom Menu/Button implementation
  • ✅ Added real-time updates via WebSocket
  • ✅ Implemented version switching functionality

Technical Challenges Overcome​

1. Joy UI Select Component Bug​

Problem: MUI: The item provided to useListItem() is undefined error
Solution: Replaced Select/Option with Menu/MenuItem components

2. Missing Version Field in Database​

Problem: Artifact versions in MongoDB don't have version field
Solution:

  • Added temporary version assignment based on creation order
  • Implemented fallback in API endpoint to find by index

3. Authentication Issues​

Problem: 401 Unauthorized when fetching version content
Solution: Used authenticated api client instead of raw fetch

4. Wrong API Endpoint​

Problem: Calling /artifacts/... instead of /api/artifacts/...
Solution: Fixed URL path in ReactArtifactViewer

Final Implementation​

Component Structure​

ReactArtifactViewer
├── ArtifactVersionDropdown
│   ├── Version list (real-time)
│   ├── Current version display
│   └── Version selection handler
└── Content display (updates on version change)

Data Flow​

  1. User saves artifact → New version created
  2. WebSocket broadcasts update → Dexie syncs
  3. Dropdown re-renders with new version
  4. User selects version → API fetches content
  5. Content updates in viewer

Code Statistics​

  • Files Modified: 15+
  • Lines Added: ~500
  • Lines Removed: ~100
  • Debugging Iterations: 8

Lessons Learned​

  1. Component Library Bugs: Sometimes it's better to build custom components than fight library bugs
  2. Data Consistency: Missing fields in production data require robust fallback strategies
  3. Real-time Complexity: WebSocket + local DB sync requires careful subscription management
  4. Type Safety: Many issues could have been caught with stricter TypeScript types

Future Improvements​

  1. Database Migration: Add proper version field to all artifact versions
  2. Version Metadata: Show who created each version and when
  3. Diff Viewer: Compare changes between versions
  4. Bulk Operations: Select multiple versions for comparison/export
  5. Performance: Implement virtual scrolling for long version lists

Success Metrics​

  • ✅ Dropdown updates in real-time without page reload
  • ✅ All versions are accessible and loadable
  • ✅ No crashes or errors during normal operation
  • ✅ Seamless user experience for version management

The artifact version dropdown is now fully functional with real-time updates! 🎉