diff --git a/lib/gbrain-sources.ts b/lib/gbrain-sources.ts
index c8ffbad5a..ad9e44530 100644
--- a/lib/gbrain-sources.ts
+++ b/lib/gbrain-sources.ts
@@ -11,6 +11,7 @@
 
 import { execFileSync, spawnSync } from "child_process";
 import { withErrorContext } from "./gstack-memory-helpers";
+import { execGbrainJson } from "./gbrain-exec";
 
 export interface SourceState {
   /** "absent" — id not registered. "match" — id at expected path. "drift" — id at different path. */
@@ -182,3 +183,60 @@ export function sourcePageCount(id: string, env?: NodeJS.ProcessEnv): number | n
     return null;
   }
 }
+
+/**
+ * Whether a source's call graph has been built.
+ *
+ *   "completed" — `gbrain dream` has run a full maintenance cycle, so the
+ *                 brain-global `resolve_symbol_edges` phase populated this
+ *                 source's call graph (`gbrain code-callers`/`code-callees`
+ *                 return edges).
+ *   "never"     — a cycle has provably NOT completed for this source.
+ *   "unknown"   — doctor is unavailable, unparseable, or reports a failure
+ *                 that doesn't name this source. Callers MUST treat unknown
+ *                 conservatively (the orchestrator skips auto-dream and WARNs
+ *                 rather than launch a ~35-min cycle on a flaky-doctor signal —
+ *                 see the `gbrain-doctor-overstrict` learning).
+ */
+export type CycleStatus = "completed" | "never" | "unknown";
+
+interface DoctorCheck {
+  name?: string;
+  status?: string;
+  message?: string;
+}
+interface DoctorReport {
+  checks?: DoctorCheck[];
+}
+
+/**
+ * Read `gbrain doctor --json --fast` and decide whether <sourceId>'s call
+ * graph is built, by inspecting the `cycle_freshness` check.
+ *
+ * Decision table (cycle_freshness.status / message):
+ *   - ok                                        → "completed"
+ *   - fail|warn AND message names <sourceId>    → "never"
+ *   - fail|warn AND message omits <sourceId>    → "unknown"  (a real failure
+ *       about OTHER sources must not be silently read as completed for us)
+ *   - check absent / doctor null / other status → "unknown"
+ *
+ * `sourceId` is matched as a LITERAL substring (not a regex) so an id with
+ * regex metacharacters can never misfire. Routes through `execGbrainJson` so
+ * DATABASE_URL is seeded from gbrain's config (consistent with every other
+ * gstack-side gbrain call). `env` is the caller's base env (tests inject a
+ * shim on PATH).
+ */
+export function cycleCompleted(sourceId: string, env?: NodeJS.ProcessEnv): CycleStatus {
+  const report = execGbrainJson<DoctorReport>(["doctor", "--json", "--fast"], { baseEnv: env });
+  if (!report || !Array.isArray(report.checks)) return "unknown";
+
+  const check = report.checks.find((c) => c.name === "cycle_freshness");
+  if (!check) return "unknown";
+
+  if (check.status === "ok") return "completed";
+  if (check.status === "fail" || check.status === "warn") {
+    const msg = check.message || "";
+    return msg.includes(sourceId) ? "never" : "unknown";
+  }
+  return "unknown";
+}
diff --git a/test/gbrain-cycle-completed.test.ts b/test/gbrain-cycle-completed.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..2c9009bf2
--- /dev/null
+++ b/test/gbrain-cycle-completed.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,132 @@
+/**
+ * Unit tests for cycleCompleted() in lib/gbrain-sources.ts.
+ *
+ * cycleCompleted reads `gbrain doctor --json --fast` and decides whether a
+ * source's call graph (the brain-global resolve_symbol_edges phase) has been
+ * built. We put a fake `gbrain` on PATH that emits canned doctor JSON so the
+ * decision table can be exercised without a live brain. Same PATH-injection
+ * trick as test/gbrain-sources.test.ts (Bun's spawn caches PATH at process
+ * start; explicit env is the only reliable redirect).
+ */
+
+import { describe, it, expect } from "bun:test";
+import { mkdtempSync, writeFileSync, mkdirSync, rmSync, chmodSync } from "fs";
+import { tmpdir } from "os";
+import { join } from "path";
+
+import { cycleCompleted } from "../lib/gbrain-sources";
+
+interface FakeSetup {
+  env: NodeJS.ProcessEnv;
+  cleanup: () => void;
+}
+
+/**
+ * Fake `gbrain`:
+ *   doctor --json --fast   → echo $DOCTOR_JSON (or exit $DOCTOR_EXIT if set)
+ *   anything else          → exit 1
+ * The doctor payload is baked into the script so each test gets its own shim.
+ */
+function makeFakeGbrain(opts: { doctorJson?: string; doctorExit?: number }): FakeSetup {
+  const tmp = mkdtempSync(join(tmpdir(), "gbrain-cycle-test-"));
+  const bindir = join(tmp, "bin");
+  mkdirSync(bindir, { recursive: true });
+
+  const exit = opts.doctorExit ?? 0;
+  // Single-quote the JSON for the heredoc-free echo; escape embedded single quotes.
+  const payload = (opts.doctorJson ?? "").replace(/'/g, "'\\''");
+  const fake = `#!/bin/sh
+case "$1 $2 $3" in
+  "doctor --json --fast")
+    if [ ${exit} -ne 0 ]; then exit ${exit}; fi
+    printf '%s' '${payload}'
+    exit 0
+    ;;
+esac
+echo "fake gbrain: unknown command: $@" >&2
+exit 1
+`;
+  const fakePath = join(bindir, "gbrain");
+  writeFileSync(fakePath, fake);
+  chmodSync(fakePath, 0o755);
+
+  const env: NodeJS.ProcessEnv = { ...process.env, PATH: `${bindir}:${process.env.PATH || ""}` };
+  return { env, cleanup: () => rmSync(tmp, { recursive: true, force: true }) };
+}
+
+const SRC = "gstack-code-gstack-c5994d95";
+
+function doctor(check: { name: string; status: string; message?: string } | null): string {
+  return JSON.stringify({ checks: check ? [check] : [] });
+}
+
+describe("cycleCompleted", () => {
+  it("returns 'completed' when cycle_freshness is ok", () => {
+    const fake = makeFakeGbrain({
+      doctorJson: doctor({ name: "cycle_freshness", status: "ok", message: "all sources fresh" }),
+    });
+    expect(cycleCompleted(SRC, fake.env)).toBe("completed");
+    fake.cleanup();
+  });
+
+  it("returns 'never' when cycle_freshness fails AND names this source", () => {
+    const fake = makeFakeGbrain({
+      doctorJson: doctor({
+        name: "cycle_freshness",
+        status: "fail",
+        message: `Source '${SRC}' has never completed a full cycle. Run gbrain dream.`,
+      }),
+    });
+    expect(cycleCompleted(SRC, fake.env)).toBe("never");
+    fake.cleanup();
+  });
+
+  it("returns 'unknown' when cycle_freshness fails but names only OTHER sources", () => {
+    const fake = makeFakeGbrain({
+      doctorJson: doctor({
+        name: "cycle_freshness",
+        status: "fail",
+        message: "Source 'some-other-source' has never completed a full cycle.",
+      }),
+    });
+    // A real failure that doesn't mention us must NOT be read as completed.
+    expect(cycleCompleted(SRC, fake.env)).toBe("unknown");
+    fake.cleanup();
+  });
+
+  it("returns 'unknown' when the cycle_freshness check is absent", () => {
+    const fake = makeFakeGbrain({
+      doctorJson: doctor({ name: "engine_health", status: "ok" }),
+    });
+    expect(cycleCompleted(SRC, fake.env)).toBe("unknown");
+    fake.cleanup();
+  });
+
+  it("returns 'unknown' when doctor exits non-zero", () => {
+    const fake = makeFakeGbrain({ doctorExit: 1 });
+    expect(cycleCompleted(SRC, fake.env)).toBe("unknown");
+    fake.cleanup();
+  });
+
+  it("returns 'unknown' when doctor emits non-JSON", () => {
+    const fake = makeFakeGbrain({ doctorJson: "not json at all" });
+    expect(cycleCompleted(SRC, fake.env)).toBe("unknown");
+    fake.cleanup();
+  });
+
+  it("matches the source id as a LITERAL substring (regex metachars are inert)", () => {
+    // An id containing regex metachars must match literally, not as a pattern.
+    const metaId = "gstack-code-a.b+c";
+    const fake = makeFakeGbrain({
+      doctorJson: doctor({
+        name: "cycle_freshness",
+        status: "warn",
+        message: `Source '${metaId}' has never completed a full cycle.`,
+      }),
+    });
+    expect(cycleCompleted(metaId, fake.env)).toBe("never");
+    // A different id that a regex 'a.b+c' would also match must NOT match literally.
+    expect(cycleCompleted("gstack-code-aXbc", fake.env)).toBe("unknown");
+    fake.cleanup();
+  });
+});