Architecture: Share with Everyone

Date: 2026-03-03

Decision

Activate the existing is_public boolean field end-to-end rather than introducing a new sharing mechanism. This approach:

• Requires zero schema migration (field already exists with default false)
• Maintains backward compatibility
• Follows the same API pattern as user/team sharing

Alternative	Pros	Cons	Decision
Activate is_public field	No migration, simple, consistent	Binary (all or nothing)	Chosen
"Organization" pseudo-team	Reuses team model	Requires special team management, confusing UX	Rejected
Separate public endpoint	Clean separation	API duplication, extra routes to maintain	Rejected

Access Level Decision

Public access grants the same full access (read + write) as user/team sharing. Users who access a public conversation can both view messages and send new ones. Read-only enforcement for public viewers was considered but deferred — the current design matches the existing shared conversation behavior where all shared users can participate.

Solution Architecture

Access Check Flow

requireConversationAccess(conversationId, userId)
  │
  ├─ Owner? ──────────────── ✅ GRANT
  │
  ├─ is_public? ─────────── ✅ GRANT (new)
  │
  ├─ shared_with user? ──── ✅ GRANT
  │
  ├─ shared_with_teams? ─── ✅ GRANT (if member)
  │
  ├─ sharing_access? ────── ✅ GRANT (if record exists)
  │
  └─ ────────────────────── ❌ DENY

API Changes

POST /api/chat/conversations/[id]/share

New: accepts is_public as a standalone sharing action:

{ "is_public": true }

Previously required user_emails or team_ids with permission. Now accepts any combination of:

• is_public (standalone toggle)
• user_emails + permission
• team_ids + permission

Query Changes

Both conversation listing and shared listing endpoints add a public condition:

// GET /api/chat/conversations
const ownershipConditions = [
  { owner_id: user.email },
  { 'sharing.shared_with': user.email },
  { 'sharing.is_public': true },           // ← new
  // + team conditions if applicable
];

// GET /api/chat/shared
const sharedConditions = [
  { 'sharing.shared_with': user.email },
  { 'sharing.is_public': true },           // ← new
  // + team conditions if applicable
];

UI Changes

ShareDialog — New toggle switch between the copy-link section and the people/teams search:

┌─────────────────────────────────────────┐
│  Share Conversation                     │
│  My Conversation Title                  │
├─────────────────────────────────────────┤
│  Share Link  [https://...] [Copy]       │
├─────────────────────────────────────────┤
│  🌐 Share with everyone         [━━●]   │  ← new toggle
│     Anyone in the organization...       │
├─────────────────────────────────────────┤
│  People, Teams                          │
│  [Search by email or team name...]      │
├─────────────────────────────────────────┤
│  Access (Everyone)                      │
│  🌐 Everyone — All org members  Can view│  ← new entry
│  👤 user@example.com           [🗑]     │
│  👥 Platform Engineering       [🗑]     │
└─────────────────────────────────────────┘

Sidebar — Differentiated sharing indicator:

• Public: Green Globe icon with "Shared with everyone" tooltip
• Private share: Blue Users icon with "Shared conversation" tooltip

Components Changed

File	Change
ui/src/types/mongodb.ts	Added is_public?: boolean to ShareConversationRequest
ui/src/lib/api-middleware.ts	requireConversationAccess checks is_public after owner check
ui/src/app/api/chat/conversations/[id]/share/route.ts	Handles is_public toggle; relaxed validation for standalone toggle
ui/src/app/api/chat/conversations/route.ts	Added { 'sharing.is_public': true } to $or conditions
ui/src/app/api/chat/shared/route.ts	Added { 'sharing.is_public': true } to $or conditions
ui/src/components/chat/ShareDialog.tsx	Toggle switch, handleTogglePublic, "Everyone" access entry
ui/src/components/layout/Sidebar.tsx	Globe icon (green) for public, Users icon (blue) for private sharing
ui/src/app/api/__tests__/chat-sharing-teams.test.ts	Updated expectations for new is_public query condition
ui/src/app/api/__tests__/chat-sharing-public.test.ts	New — 19 tests for public sharing

Migration Notes

• No migration required — is_public already exists in the schema with default false
• Backward compatible — existing sharing with users and teams is unchanged
• Gradual adoption — public sharing is opt-in per conversation by the owner

Related

• Spec: spec.md