wr-itil: upstream-cache-staleness helper misfires on a declined-permanently (empty channels) config

[tompahoward]

Description

The AFK work-problems Step 0b pre-flight (upstream-cache-staleness helper) treats a missing upstream-cache as "never checked" and dispatches a review-problems subprocess — but when an adopter repo's upstream-channels config is a declined-permanently stub (empty channels list), review-problems short-circuits and the cache is NEVER written. Every loop invocation therefore dispatches a review-problems subprocess that is a guaranteed no-op for the inbound-discovery axis.

Symptoms

• Step 0b returns first-run-cache-absent on every loop invocation in a declined-channels repo.
• A recurring no-op review-problems dispatch per loop.

Affected plugin / component

@windyroad/itil — check-upstream-cache-staleness helper + review-problems Step 4.5.

Fix direction

A present-but-empty channels config should return a no-channels-config silent-pass (downstream-adopter non-obligation) instead of falling through to first-run-cache-absent.

Cross-reference

Reported from a downstream adopter; tracked locally as P099.

Versions

• Local plugin: @windyroad/* (cache: itil 0.57.1)
• Claude Code CLI: 2.1.201 (Claude Code)
• Node: v22.17.1
• OS: Darwin 25.3.0 x86_64