fix(copilot): add retry user feedback, move constant to module level, improve docstrings

- Add StreamStatus response type and emit "Optimizing conversation
  context..." before compaction retries so users get feedback during
  the 10-30s wait
- _MAX_STREAM_ATTEMPTS already at module level alongside
  _PROMPT_TOO_LONG_PATTERNS (reviewer item addressed)
- Expand docstrings for _messages_to_transcript and
  _transcript_to_messages in transcript.py

autogpt_platform/backend/backend/copilot/response_model.py

@@ -43,6 +43,7 @@ class ResponseType(str, Enum):
     ERROR = "error"
     USAGE = "usage"
     HEARTBEAT = "heartbeat"
+    STATUS = "status"
 
 
 class StreamBaseResponse(BaseModel):
@@ -232,3 +233,15 @@ class StreamHeartbeat(StreamBaseResponse):
     def to_sse(self) -> str:
         """Convert to SSE comment format to keep connection alive."""
         return ": heartbeat\n\n"
+
+
+class StreamStatus(StreamBaseResponse):
+    """Transient status notification shown to the user during long operations.
+
+    Used to provide feedback when the backend performs behind-the-scenes work
+    (e.g., compacting conversation context on a retry) that would otherwise
+    leave the user staring at an unexplained pause.
+    """
+
+    type: ResponseType = ResponseType.STATUS
+    message: str = Field(..., description="Human-readable status message")

autogpt_platform/backend/backend/copilot/sdk/service.py

@@ -52,6 +52,7 @@ from ..response_model import (
     StreamFinish,
     StreamHeartbeat,
     StreamStart,
+    StreamStatus,
     StreamTextDelta,
     StreamToolInputAvailable,
     StreamToolOutputAvailable,
@@ -1478,6 +1479,7 @@ async def stream_chat_completion_sdk(
                     _attempt + 1,
                     _MAX_STREAM_ATTEMPTS,
                 )
+                yield StreamStatus(message="Optimizing conversation context\u2026")
 
                 ctx = await _reduce_context(
                     transcript_content,

autogpt_platform/backend/backend/copilot/sdk/transcript.py

@@ -656,7 +656,21 @@ def _flatten_tool_result_content(blocks: list) -> str:
 
 
 def _transcript_to_messages(content: str) -> list[dict]:
-    """Convert JSONL transcript entries to message dicts for compress_context."""
+    """Convert JSONL transcript entries to plain message dicts for compression.
+
+    Parses each line of the JSONL *content*, skips strippable metadata entries
+    (progress, file-history-snapshot, etc.), and extracts the ``role`` and
+    flattened ``content`` from the ``message`` field of each remaining entry.
+
+    Structured content blocks (``tool_use``, ``tool_result``, images) are
+    flattened to plain text via ``_flatten_assistant_content`` and
+    ``_flatten_tool_result_content`` so that ``compress_context`` can
+    perform token counting and LLM summarization on uniform strings.
+
+    Returns:
+        A list of ``{"role": str, "content": str}`` dicts suitable for
+        ``compress_context``.
+    """
     messages: list[dict] = []
     for line in content.strip().split("\n"):
         if not line.strip():
@@ -685,7 +699,22 @@ def _transcript_to_messages(content: str) -> list[dict]:
 
 
 def _messages_to_transcript(messages: list[dict]) -> str:
-    """Convert compressed message dicts back to JSONL transcript format."""
+    """Convert compressed message dicts back to JSONL transcript format.
+
+    Rebuilds a minimal JSONL transcript from the ``{"role", "content"}``
+    dicts returned by ``compress_context``.  Each message becomes one JSONL
+    line with a fresh ``uuid`` / ``parentUuid`` chain so the CLI's
+    ``--resume`` flag can reconstruct a valid conversation tree.
+
+    Assistant messages are wrapped in the full ``message`` envelope
+    (``id``, ``model``, ``stop_reason``, structured ``content`` blocks)
+    that the CLI expects.  User messages use the simpler ``{role, content}``
+    form.
+
+    Returns:
+        A newline-terminated JSONL string, or an empty string if *messages*
+        is empty.
+    """
     lines: list[str] = []
     last_uuid: str = ""  # root entry uses empty string, not null
     for msg in messages: