fix(api): remove broken Coolify cron-worker auto-deploy (#389)

## Summary

The Coolify-based auto-deployment of a separate `cron` worker app after
every API deploy was never reliable. This PR removes the ~800 lines of
dead auto-deploy logic from `release_manager.php` while keeping the
underlying cron mechanism (`cron_worker.php`, `cron_scheduler.php`, the
docker-compose `cron-worker` service) intact.

## Changes

- **`release_manager.php`** (-818 lines)
- Removed 19 private methods: `deployCronWorker*`, `cronWorker*`,
`cronWorkerAutoprovision*`, etc.
- Removed 3 constants: `CRON_WORKER_APP`, `CRON_WORKER_START_COMMAND`,
`CRON_WORKER_DESIRED_COUNT`
- Kept `cronWorkerStatus()` but rewrote as a direct DB query (no Coolify
dependency)
- **`tests/Unit/ReleaseManager/ReleaseManagerTest.php`** (-208 lines,
removed 9 cron-worker tests)
- **`tests/Unit/Cron/CronWorkerWiringTest.php`** (rewritten — now
asserts removed wiring is GONE)
- **`docs/CRON_PLAN.md`** (new — comprehensive plan)

## What replaced the broken auto-deploy

- The cron worker runs as part of the main API docker-compose stack (the
`cron-worker` service is unchanged)
- New verification cron `1bb56ba8-2f3e-4bea-baa2-39801ea88ea8` runs
`/workspace/scripts/verify-api-cron.py` every 5 min
- Alerts to Slack #ai-daily (`C0AM3E43249`) if no fresh heartbeat in 10+
min

## Test results

- 4/4 cron tests pass
- 54/54 ReleaseManager tests pass
- Full Unit suite: **1279 passed** (same 7 pre-existing failures on
master, unchanged)
- `php -l` passes on all modified files

## Plan

See `docs/CRON_PLAN.md` for the full audit, plan, and acceptance
criteria.

🤖 Generated with [OpenClaw](https://docs.openclaw.ai)

---------

Co-authored-by: bugfix <bugfix@truckwash.local>
Co-authored-by: openhands <openhands@all-hands.dev>

services/nginx/app/tests/Unit/Cron/CronWorkerWiringTest.php

@@ -1,9 +1,14 @@
 <?php
 
+// Test that the cron mechanism is properly wired. The Coolify auto-deploy logic
+// was removed from release_manager.php 2026-08-17, so this test no longer asserts
+// anything about cron worker deployment. The actual cron mechanism
+// (cron_worker.php, cron_scheduler.php, cli.php, cronRoute.php) is unchanged.
+
 $cronAppRoot = dirname(__DIR__, 3);
 require_once $cronAppRoot . '/classes/cron_worker.php';
 
-it('wires cron workers through schema, CLI, scheduler, and superuser routes', function (): void {
+it('wires cron workers through schema, scheduler, CLI, and routes', function (): void {
     $appRoot = dirname(__DIR__, 3);
     $repoRoot = getenv('PLENO_REPO_ROOT_FOR_TESTS') ?: dirname($appRoot, 3);
     $schema = file_get_contents($appRoot . '/classes/cron_schema_bootstrap.php');
@@ -11,12 +16,6 @@ it('wires cron workers through schema, CLI, scheduler, and superuser routes', fu
     $scheduler = file_get_contents($appRoot . '/classes/cron_scheduler.php');
     $cli = file_get_contents($appRoot . '/cli.php');
     $route = file_get_contents($appRoot . '/routes/cronRoute.php');
-    $manager = file_get_contents($appRoot . '/classes/release_manager.php');
-    $composeFiles = [
-        $repoRoot . '/docker-compose.yml',
-        $repoRoot . '/docker-compose.example.yml',
-        $repoRoot . '/docker-compose.prod.standalone.yml',
-    ];
 
     expect($schema)->toContain('CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS cron_worker_state');
     expect($schema)->toContain('last_heartbeat_at');
@@ -47,29 +46,24 @@ it('wires cron workers through schema, CLI, scheduler, and superuser routes', fu
     expect($cli)->toContain('new \\classes\\cron_worker()');
 
     expect($route)->toContain('/superuser/cron/workers');
-    expect($route)->toContain('/superuser/cron/workers/deploy');
-    expect($route)->toContain('$response->success($result, 202)');
     expect($route)->toContain('queueTaskRun(');
     expect($route)->toContain('$response->success($run, 202)');
     expect($route)->toContain('superuser_cron_view');
     expect($route)->toContain('superuser_cron_manage');
-    expect($route)->toContain('superuser_coolify_manage');
+});
 
-    expect($manager)->toContain("private const CRON_WORKER_APP = 'cron'");
-    expect($manager)->toContain("private const CRON_WORKER_START_COMMAND = 'php index.php run cron-worker'");
-    expect($manager)->toContain('deployCronWorkerAfterApiDeployment');
-    expect($manager)->toContain('deployment_kind = \'cron_worker\'');
-    expect($manager)->toContain('createCronWorkerDeploymentRecord');
-    expect($manager)->toContain('waiting_for_heartbeat');
-    expect($manager)->toContain('cronWorkerAutoprovisionRequired');
-    expect($manager)->toContain('cron_worker_autoprovision_disabled');
-    expect($manager)->toContain('cron_worker_deploy_failed');
-    expect($manager)->toContain('auto_deploy = 0');
+it('starts the cron-worker service via the docker-compose entrypoint', function (): void {
+    $appRoot = dirname(__DIR__, 3);
+    $repoRoot = getenv('PLENO_REPO_ROOT_FOR_TESTS') ?: dirname($appRoot, 3);
+    $composeFiles = [
+        $repoRoot . '/docker-compose.yml',
+        $repoRoot . '/docker-compose.example.yml',
+        $repoRoot . '/docker-compose.prod.standalone.yml',
+    ];
 
     foreach ($composeFiles as $composeFile) {
         $compose = file_get_contents($composeFile);
         expect(str_contains($compose, 'command: ["php", "index.php", "run", "cron-worker"]'))->toBeTrue();
-        expect(str_contains($compose, 'while true; do php index.php run cron; sleep 60; done'))->toBeFalse();
     }
 });
 
@@ -104,3 +98,18 @@ it('reports consecutive scheduler loops as once-per-minute execution proof', fun
     $result = $publicWorker->invoke($worker, $row);
     expect($result['minute_cadence']['verified'])->toBeFalse();
 });
+
+it('exposes a cron status endpoint that no longer references Coolify auto-deploy', function (): void {
+    $appRoot = dirname(__DIR__, 3);
+    $manager = file_get_contents($appRoot . '/classes/release_manager.php');
+    // The Coolify auto-deploy constants and methods must be gone
+    expect($manager)->not->toContain("private const CRON_WORKER_APP = 'cron'");
+    expect($manager)->not->toContain("private const CRON_WORKER_START_COMMAND = 'php index.php run cron-worker'");
+    expect($manager)->not->toContain('function deployCronWorker');
+    expect($manager)->not->toContain('function deployCronWorkerAfterApiDeployment');
+    expect($manager)->not->toContain('function cronWorkerAutoprovision');
+    expect($manager)->not->toContain('function cronWorkerHealth');
+    // The cronWorkerStatus method should still exist as a thin DB wrapper
+    expect($manager)->toContain('public function cronWorkerStatus');
+    expect($manager)->toContain("'coolify_auto_deploy_enabled' => false");
+});