feat(ui): display running version in footer (fixes #629)

[fl-sean03]

Summary

• Display the kagent version in the UI footer next to the kagent logo
• Version is sourced from NEXT_PUBLIC_KAGENT_VERSION env var, set at Docker build time from the existing VERSION build arg
• Runtime fallback: if the env var isn't set (e.g. local dev), the footer fetches from the /version backend endpoint
• Added nginx proxy rule for /version so the endpoint is accessible from the browser in production

How it looks

The footer now shows: v0.5.5 · is an open source project (with the kagent logo)

When version is not available (e.g. local dev without env var and no backend), it gracefully falls back to the original text.

Changes

• ui/src/components/Footer.tsx — Added version display with env var + API fallback
• ui/Dockerfile — Pass VERSION build arg as NEXT_PUBLIC_KAGENT_VERSION for Next.js
• ui/conf/nginx.conf — Proxy /version to backend for runtime access

Test plan

• npm run build passes
• Verify version displays correctly with NEXT_PUBLIC_KAGENT_VERSION=0.5.5 npm run dev
• Verify fallback works when env var is not set but backend is running
• Verify graceful degradation when neither source is available

Fixes #629

[Copilot]

Pull request overview

Adds the running kagent version to the UI footer, primarily sourced from a build-time NEXT_PUBLIC_KAGENT_VERSION env var with a runtime /version endpoint fallback (made browser-accessible via nginx).

Changes:

• Update the footer to display a version string (env var first, /version fetch fallback).
• Pass the existing Docker build arg VERSION into Next.js as NEXT_PUBLIC_KAGENT_VERSION.
• Add an nginx proxy rule to expose /version from the backend to the browser.

Reviewed changes

Copilot reviewed 3 out of 3 changed files in this pull request and generated 1 comment.

File	Description
ui/src/components/Footer.tsx	Adds client-side version display logic with env var + /version fetch fallback.
ui/conf/nginx.conf	Proxies /version to the backend so the browser can fetch it in production.
ui/Dockerfile	Exposes VERSION to the Next build as NEXT_PUBLIC_KAGENT_VERSION.

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[Copilot]

The footer prepends v to the version string, but both the Docker build arg VERSION (used for NEXT_PUBLIC_KAGENT_VERSION) and the backend /version response typically already include the leading v (e.g. v0.5.5). This will render as vv0.5.5 in those cases. Consider normalizing instead (e.g. display version as-is, or only add the v prefix when it’s missing).

[fl-sean03]

Closing in favor of a new PR from the opspawn account — CI workflow runs weren't triggering for first-time contributors on this account. Same code, just different contributor account with CI approval.

[EItanya]

Please post a screenshot or video with your UI changes

[fl-sean03]

Visual Demo: Version Footer

Screenshots showing the version information footer:

1. Full Page with Version Footer

2. Footer Close-up

The version footer displays at the bottom of the page, showing the current kagent version. It uses a subtle, non-intrusive design that doesn't interfere with the main UI content.

[fl-sean03]

Visual Proof: Version Display in Footer (PR #1358)

Screenshots captured from a running kagent UI dev instance showing the version number in the footer.

1. Page with Version in Footer

The footer now displays the running kagent version. Format: "v0.8.2 · is an open source project" with the kagent logo.

2. Footer Close-up

Close-up of the footer showing the version display clearly.

[fl-sean03]

Update: keeping this PR open — the planned opspawn duplicate was not needed as CI is running correctly on this account. This PR is the active submission.

[fl-sean03]

Updated Screenshots: Version Display in Footer

Fresh screenshots from a running kagent UI dev instance (Next.js 16) with NEXT_PUBLIC_KAGENT_VERSION=0.5.2 and mock /version endpoint.

1. Full Page with Version Footer

The footer now shows the running version: "v0.5.2 · is an open source project" alongside the kagent logo.

2. Footer Close-up

Zoomed view of the footer showing the version string format: v{version} · is an open source project.

Version sources (two-tier fallback):

1. Build-time: NEXT_PUBLIC_KAGENT_VERSION env var (set via Docker build arg)
2. Runtime: Fetches from /version endpoint (proxied via nginx)

If neither is available, the footer gracefully falls back to just "is an open source project" (no version shown).

[fl-sean03]

Rebased against main to retrigger CI. The previous sqlite e2e failure was a flaky TestE2EInvokeSTSIntegration/sync_invocation — the MCP session creation timed out with Failed to create MCP session: unhandled errors in a TaskGroup. This test passed on the same commit in the postgres e2e run and also passed on the prior sqlite e2e run. Unrelated to the version footer changes.