Charon/docs/plans/current_spec.md

post_title, categories, tags, summary, post_date

post_title	categories	tags	summary	post_date
Current Spec: Resolve Proxy Host Hostname Validation Test Failures	actions testing backend	go proxyhost unit-tests validation	Focused plan to resolve failing TestProxyHostService_ValidateHostname malformed URL cases by aligning test expectations with intended validation behavior and validating via targeted service tests and coverage gate.	2026-02-22

Active Plan: Resolve Failing Hostname Validation Tests

Date: 2026-02-22 Status: Active and authoritative Scope Type: Backend test-failure remediation (service validation drift analysis) Authority: This is the only active authoritative plan section in this file.

Introduction

This plan resolves backend run failures in TestProxyHostService_ValidateHostname for malformed URL cases while preserving intended hostname validation behavior.

Primary objective:

• Restore green test execution in backend/internal/services with a minimal, low-risk change path.

Research Findings

Evidence Collected

• Failing command output confirms two failing subtests:
  • TestProxyHostService_ValidateHostname/malformed_https_URL
  • TestProxyHostService_ValidateHostname/malformed_http_URL
• Failure message for both cases: invalid hostname format.

Exact Files Involved

1. backend/internal/services/proxyhost_service_validation_test.go
   • Test function: TestProxyHostService_ValidateHostname
   • Failing cases currently expect wantErr: false for malformed URLs.
2. backend/internal/services/proxyhost_service.go
   • Service function: ValidateHostname(host string) error
   • Behavior: strips scheme, then validates hostname characters; malformed residual values containing : are rejected with invalid hostname format.

Root Cause Determination

• Root cause is test expectation drift, not runtime service regression.
• git blame shows malformed URL test cases were added on 2026-02-22 with permissive expectations, while validation behavior rejecting malformed host strings predates those additions.
• Existing behavior aligns with stricter hostname validation and should remain the default unless product requirements explicitly demand permissive handling of malformed host inputs.

Confidence Assessment

• Confidence score: 95% (High)
• Rationale: direct reproduction, targeted file inspection, and blame history converge on expectation drift.

Requirements (EARS)

• WHEN malformed http:// or https:// host strings are passed to ValidateHostname, THE SYSTEM SHALL return a validation error.
• WHEN service validation behavior is intentionally strict, THE TESTS SHALL assert rejection for malformed URL residual host strings.
• IF product intent is permissive for malformed inputs, THEN THE SYSTEM SHALL minimally relax parsing logic without weakening valid invalid-character checks.
• WHEN changes are completed, THE SYSTEM SHALL pass targeted service tests and the backend coverage gate script.

Technical Specification

Minimal Fix Path (Preferred)

Preferred path: test-only correction.

1. Update malformed URL table entries in backend/internal/services/proxyhost_service_validation_test.go:
   • malformed https URL -> wantErr: true
   • malformed http URL -> wantErr: true
2. Keep current service behavior in backend/internal/services/proxyhost_service.go unchanged.
3. Optional test hardening (still test-only): assert error contains invalid hostname format for those two cases.

Alternative Path (Only if Product Intent Differs)

Use only if maintainers explicitly confirm malformed URL inputs should pass:

1. Apply minimal service correction in ValidateHostname to normalize malformed scheme inputs before character validation.
2. Add or update tests to preserve strict rejection for truly invalid hostnames (e.g., $, @, %, &) so validation is not broadly weakened.

Decision default for this plan: Preferred path (test updates only).

Implementation Plan

Phase 1: Test-first Repro and Baseline

1. Confirm current failure (already reproduced).
2. Record failing subtests and error signatures as baseline evidence.

Phase 2: Minimal Remediation

1. Apply preferred test expectation update in backend/internal/services/proxyhost_service_validation_test.go.
2. Keep service code unchanged unless product intent is clarified otherwise.

Phase 3: Targeted Validation

Run in this order:

1. go test ./backend/internal/services -run TestProxyHostService_ValidateHostname -v
2. Related service package tests:
   • go test ./backend/internal/services -run TestProxyHostService -v
   • go test ./backend/internal/services -v
3. Final gate:
   • bash scripts/go-test-coverage.sh

Risk Assessment

Key Risks

1. Semantic risk (low): updating tests could mask an intended behavior change if malformed URL permissiveness was deliberate.
2. Coverage risk (low): test expectation changes may alter branch coverage marginally but should not threaten gate based on current context.
3. Regression risk (low): service runtime behavior remains unchanged in the preferred path.

Mitigations

• Keep change surgical to two table entries.
• Preserve existing invalid-character rejection coverage.
• Require full service package run plus coverage script before merge.

Rollback Plan

If maintainer/product decision confirms permissive malformed URL handling is required:

1. Revert the test expectation update commit.
2. Implement minimal service normalization change in backend/internal/services/proxyhost_service.go.
3. Add explicit tests documenting the accepted malformed-input behavior and retain strict negative tests for illegal hostname characters.
4. Re-run targeted validation commands and coverage gate.

PR Slicing Strategy

Decision: Single PR.

Rationale:

• Scope is tightly bounded to one service test suite and one failure cluster.
• Preferred remediation is test-only with low rollback complexity.
• Review surface is small and dependency-free.

Contingency split trigger:

• Only split if product intent forces service logic change, in which case:
  • PR-1: test expectation alignment rollback + service behavior decision record
  • PR-2: minimal service correction + adjusted tests

Config/Infra File Impact Review

Reviewed for required updates:

• .gitignore
• .dockerignore
• codecov.yml
• Dockerfile

Planned changes: None required for this focused backend test-remediation scope.

Acceptance Criteria

1. TestProxyHostService_ValidateHostname passes, including malformed URL subtests.
2. go test ./backend/internal/services -run TestProxyHostService -v passes.
3. go test ./backend/internal/services -v passes.
4. bash scripts/go-test-coverage.sh passes final gate.
5. Root cause is documented as expectation drift vs. service behavior drift, and chosen path is explicitly recorded.