Fix toast notifications, require accept_connections for senders

- Rewrite NotificationToaster with max-ID watermark for reliable
  new-notification detection and faster unread count polling (15s)
- Block connection search and requests when sender has
  accept_connections disabled (backend + frontend gate)
- Remove duplicate sender_settings fetch in send_connection_request
- Show actionable error messages in toast respond failures

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.6 <noreply@anthropic.com>

backend/app/routers/connections.py

@@ -88,6 +88,11 @@ async def search_user(
     # Always sleep to prevent timing attacks
     await asyncio.sleep(0.05)
 
+    # Sender must have accept_connections enabled to search
+    sender_settings = await _get_settings_for_user(db, current_user.id)
+    if not sender_settings or not sender_settings.accept_connections:
+        return UmbralSearchResponse(found=False)
+
     # Don't find yourself
     if body.umbral_name == current_user.umbral_name:
         return UmbralSearchResponse(found=False)
@@ -132,7 +137,15 @@ async def send_connection_request(
     if target.id == current_user.id:
         raise HTTPException(status_code=400, detail="Cannot send a connection request to yourself")
 
-    # Check accept_connections
+    # Sender must have accept_connections enabled to participate
+    sender_settings = await _get_settings_for_user(db, current_user.id)
+    if not sender_settings or not sender_settings.accept_connections:
+        raise HTTPException(
+            status_code=403,
+            detail="You must enable 'Accept Connections' in your settings before sending requests",
+        )
+
+    # Check accept_connections on target
     target_settings = await _get_settings_for_user(db, target.id)
     if not target_settings or not target_settings.accept_connections:
         raise HTTPException(status_code=404, detail="User not found")
@@ -185,8 +198,7 @@ async def send_connection_request(
     db.add(conn_request)
     await db.flush()  # populate conn_request.id for source_id
 
-    # Create in-app notification for receiver
+    # Create in-app notification for receiver (sender_settings already fetched above)
-    sender_settings = await _get_settings_for_user(db, current_user.id)
     sender_display = (sender_settings.preferred_name if sender_settings else None) or current_user.umbral_name
 
     await create_notification(

frontend/src/components/connections/ConnectionSearch.tsx

@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 import { useState } from 'react';
-import { Search, UserPlus, Loader2, AlertCircle, CheckCircle } from 'lucide-react';
+import { Search, UserPlus, Loader2, AlertCircle, CheckCircle, Settings } from 'lucide-react';
 import { toast } from 'sonner';
+import { useNavigate } from 'react-router-dom';
 import {
   Dialog,
   DialogContent,
@@ -12,6 +13,7 @@ import { Input } from '@/components/ui/input';
 import { Button } from '@/components/ui/button';
 import { Label } from '@/components/ui/label';
 import { useConnections } from '@/hooks/useConnections';
+import { useSettings } from '@/hooks/useSettings';
 import { getErrorMessage } from '@/lib/api';
 
 interface ConnectionSearchProps {
@@ -21,10 +23,14 @@ interface ConnectionSearchProps {
 
 export default function ConnectionSearch({ open, onOpenChange }: ConnectionSearchProps) {
   const { search, isSearching, sendRequest, isSending } = useConnections();
+  const { settings } = useSettings();
+  const navigate = useNavigate();
   const [umbralName, setUmbralName] = useState('');
   const [found, setFound] = useState<boolean | null>(null);
   const [sent, setSent] = useState(false);
 
+  const acceptConnectionsEnabled = settings?.accept_connections ?? false;
+
   const handleSearch = async () => {
     if (!umbralName.trim()) return;
     setFound(null);
@@ -67,6 +73,24 @@ export default function ConnectionSearch({ open, onOpenChange }: ConnectionSearc
           </DialogDescription>
         </DialogHeader>
         <div className="space-y-4 pt-2">
+          {!acceptConnectionsEnabled ? (
+            <div className="flex flex-col items-center gap-3 py-4 text-center">
+              <AlertCircle className="h-8 w-8 text-amber-400" />
+              <p className="text-sm text-muted-foreground">
+                You need to enable <span className="text-foreground font-medium">Accept Connections</span> in your settings before you can send or receive connection requests.
+              </p>
+              <Button
+                size="sm"
+                variant="outline"
+                className="gap-1.5"
+                onClick={() => { handleClose(); navigate('/settings'); }}
+              >
+                <Settings className="h-3.5 w-3.5" />
+                Go to Settings
+              </Button>
+            </div>
+          ) : (
+          <>
           <div className="space-y-2">
             <Label htmlFor="umbral_search">Umbral Name</Label>
             <div className="flex gap-2">
@@ -135,6 +159,8 @@ export default function ConnectionSearch({ open, onOpenChange }: ConnectionSearc
               Connection request sent
             </div>
           )}
+          </>
+          )}
         </div>
       </DialogContent>
     </Dialog>

frontend/src/components/notifications/NotificationToaster.tsx

@@ -3,14 +3,15 @@ import { toast } from 'sonner';
 import { Check, X, Bell, UserPlus } from 'lucide-react';
 import { useQueryClient } from '@tanstack/react-query';
 import { useNotifications } from '@/hooks/useNotifications';
-import api from '@/lib/api';
+import api, { getErrorMessage } from '@/lib/api';
 import type { AppNotification } from '@/types';
 
 export default function NotificationToaster() {
-  const { notifications } = useNotifications();
+  const { notifications, unreadCount } = useNotifications();
   const queryClient = useQueryClient();
-  const seenIdsRef = useRef(new Set<number>());
+  const maxSeenIdRef = useRef(0);
   const initializedRef = useRef(false);
+  const prevUnreadRef = useRef(0);
 
   const handleConnectionRespond = useCallback(
     async (requestId: number, action: 'accept' | 'reject', toastId: string | number) => {
@@ -21,33 +22,45 @@ export default function NotificationToaster() {
         queryClient.invalidateQueries({ queryKey: ['connections'] });
         queryClient.invalidateQueries({ queryKey: ['people'] });
         queryClient.invalidateQueries({ queryKey: ['notifications'] });
-      } catch {
+      } catch (err) {
         toast.dismiss(toastId);
-        toast.error('Failed to respond to request');
+        toast.error(getErrorMessage(err, 'Failed to respond to request'));
       }
     },
     [queryClient],
   );
 
+  // Track unread count changes to force-refetch the list
   useEffect(() => {
-    if (!notifications.length && !initializedRef.current) return;
+    if (unreadCount > prevUnreadRef.current && initializedRef.current) {
+      queryClient.invalidateQueries({ queryKey: ['notifications', 'list'] });
+    }
+    prevUnreadRef.current = unreadCount;
+  }, [unreadCount, queryClient]);
 
-    // On first load, record all existing IDs without toasting
+  // Show toasts for new notifications (ID > max seen)
+  useEffect(() => {
+    if (!notifications.length) return;
+
+    // On first load, record the max ID without toasting
     if (!initializedRef.current) {
-      notifications.forEach((n) => seenIdsRef.current.add(n.id));
+      maxSeenIdRef.current = Math.max(...notifications.map((n) => n.id));
       initializedRef.current = true;
       return;
     }
 
-    // Find new notifications we haven't seen
+    // Find unread notifications with IDs higher than our watermark
     const newNotifications = notifications.filter(
-      (n) => !n.is_read && !seenIdsRef.current.has(n.id),
+      (n) => !n.is_read && n.id > maxSeenIdRef.current,
     );
 
-    // Record all current IDs
+    // Advance watermark
-    notifications.forEach((n) => seenIdsRef.current.add(n.id));
+    const maxCurrent = Math.max(...notifications.map((n) => n.id));
+    if (maxCurrent > maxSeenIdRef.current) {
+      maxSeenIdRef.current = maxCurrent;
+    }
 
-    // Show toasts for new notifications
+    // Show toasts
     newNotifications.forEach((notification) => {
       if (notification.type === 'connection_request' && notification.source_id) {
         showConnectionRequestToast(notification);
@@ -63,8 +76,6 @@ export default function NotificationToaster() {
 
   const showConnectionRequestToast = (notification: AppNotification) => {
     const requestId = notification.source_id!;
-    const senderName =
-      (notification.data as Record<string, string>)?.sender_umbral_name || 'Someone';
 
     toast.custom(
       (id) => (
@@ -76,7 +87,7 @@ export default function NotificationToaster() {
             <div className="flex-1 min-w-0">
               <p className="text-sm font-medium text-foreground">Connection Request</p>
               <p className="text-xs text-muted-foreground mt-0.5">
-                {notification.message || `${senderName} wants to connect with you`}
+                {notification.message || 'Someone wants to connect with you'}
               </p>
               <div className="flex items-center gap-2 mt-3">
                 <button

frontend/src/hooks/useNotifications.ts

@@ -6,7 +6,6 @@ import type { NotificationListResponse } from '@/types';
 export function useNotifications() {
   const queryClient = useQueryClient();
   const visibleRef = useRef(true);
-  const prevUnreadRef = useRef<number | undefined>(undefined);
 
   // Track tab visibility to pause polling when hidden
   useEffect(() => {
@@ -23,20 +22,10 @@ export function useNotifications() {
       const { data } = await api.get<{ count: number }>('/notifications/unread-count');
       return data.count;
     },
-    refetchInterval: () => (visibleRef.current ? 30_000 : false),
+    refetchInterval: () => (visibleRef.current ? 15_000 : false),
-    staleTime: 15_000,
+    staleTime: 10_000,
   });
 
-  // When unread count increases, immediately refetch the notification list
-  useEffect(() => {
-    const count = unreadQuery.data;
-    if (count === undefined) return;
-    if (prevUnreadRef.current !== undefined && count > prevUnreadRef.current) {
-      queryClient.invalidateQueries({ queryKey: ['notifications', 'list'] });
-    }
-    prevUnreadRef.current = count;
-  }, [unreadQuery.data, queryClient]);
-
   const listQuery = useQuery({
     queryKey: ['notifications', 'list'],
     queryFn: async () => {