fix(web): keep the right panel open when its last tab closes - #7732
Conversation
Closing the last tab in the right panel collapsed the whole panel instead of falling back to the empty-state picker. The panel already has a first-class "open with no surfaces" state: it renders RightPanelEmptyState, and RightPanelTabs hides the add-surface "+" button at zero surfaces because the picker cards replace it. Toggling the panel on a thread with no tabs is exactly that state today. But the store's close paths set isOpen to false once the last surface went away, so the same empty panel reached by closing a tab collapsed instead. It is most visible with files, because openFile deliberately replaces the standalone explorer surface with the file tab: open the explorer, open a file, close it, and the panel disappears even though the explorer was never dismissed. Closing a lone terminal, diff or browser tab did the same. Panel visibility is now owned by close/toggleVisibility, not by tab count. The pull-request list's shared panel keeps its old behaviour, since it only renders while a change request is selected and has no empty state to fall back to. Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 5 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
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ApprovabilityVerdict: Not approved Macroscope's review found this PR not approvable — This PR changes user-facing behavior: the right panel now stays open when its last tab closes instead of closing. While the change is well-tested and self-contained, significant UI behavior changes warrant human review to validate the UX decision. You can add or adjust custom eligibility rules. Learn more. |
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What Changed
Closing the last tab in the right panel no longer collapses the panel. It now falls back to the empty-state picker, which is the same state the panel already shows when you toggle it open on a thread that has no tabs yet.
The change is in
apps/web/src/rightPanelStore.ts.closeSurface,closeTerminal, andcloseAllSurfaceseach forcedisOpento false once the last surface was removed. They now go through one helper,isOpenAfterClose, so panel visibility is owned bycloseandtoggleVisibilityrather than by tab count.Fixes #7727.
Why
The empty state this falls back to already exists and is fully built:
RightPanelEmptyStateinapps/web/src/components/RightPanelTabs.tsx, added in #6258.RightPanelTabseven hides the add-surface+button when there are no surfaces, because the picker cards replace it, and the panel is gated only onisOpenand not on surface count. The UI already supported this state; the store was the only thing preventing a closed tab from reaching it.It is most noticeable with files, because
openFiledeliberately replaces the standalone explorer surface with the file tab (tested inrightPanelStore.test.ts). Open the explorer, open a file, close it, and the panel disappears even though you never dismissed the explorer yourself. Closing a lone terminal, diff, or browser tab did the same.Two deliberate boundaries:
reconcileFileSurfacesstill closes the panel when the workspace goes away. That path reacts to surfaces becoming invalid, not to a user closing a tab.isOpenAfterCloseexcludes it via the existingisPullRequestsPanelKeycheck.Three existing tests asserted the old collapse behavior and are updated here. They predate #6258, which built the empty state but did not revisit the store. Three tests are added: closing a file opened from the explorer, the pull-request panel exception, and a hidden panel staying hidden.
This is client state in
apps/webwith no platform branching, so it applies to the browser app and to the desktop app on Windows, macOS, and Linux.apps/mobiledoes not use this store.UI Changes
Before, a file open in the right panel:
Closing that one tab removes the entire panel:
After, same starting point:
Closing the same tab now lands on the picker:
Testing
apps/webunit suite: 2653 tests across 270 files passtsgo --noEmitonapps/webpassesvp lintandvp fmt --checkpass on both changed filesChecklist
Note
Low Risk
Client-only panel visibility in the right-panel store; no auth, persistence version, or data-handling changes. Hidden panels and the PR-list exception are covered by tests.
Overview
Closing the last right-panel tab no longer collapses the panel.
closeSurface,closeTerminal, andcloseAllSurfacesnow keepisOpenwhen a thread panel is emptied, so users land on the existing empty-state picker instead of losing the panel.Visibility is centralized in
isOpenAfterClose: a hidden panel stays hidden, and the pull-request list’s shared panel still closes when its last tab is gone (it has no picker). Workspace invalidation viareconcileFileSurfacesis unchanged.Reviewed by Cursor Bugbot for commit 4edfc7a. Bugbot is set up for automated code reviews on this repo. Configure here.
Note
Keep right panel open when its last tab closes
isOpenAfterClosehelper in rightPanelStore.ts and applies it tocloseTerminal,closeSurface, andcloseAllSurfaceshandlers.closeAllSurfacesno longer unconditionally setsisOpen=false; regular panels remain open. Reviewers should verify callers relying on panel auto-close now handle the empty state.Macroscope summarized 4edfc7a.