packet-validation

name	packet-validation
description	Add or run libcrafter packet behavior validation through oracle specs, backend adapters, offline checks, pcap checks, live checks, and artifacts. Use when packet behavior changes need validation coverage.

Packet Validation

Use this skill when a change affects packet behavior, including:

• new protocol layer
• new option kind
• new ICMP or ICMPv6 message type
• new flag or field semantics
• checksum behavior
• extension header
• encapsulation path
• malformed decode behavior
• pcap link type behavior
• live exchange pattern

Required Workflow

1. Update the relevant tools/oracle specs first so the expected behavior is data-driven before backend code changes.
2. Keep reference backend logic inside tools/oracle/engine/backends/. Do not add ad hoc backend snippets elsewhere.
3. Update backend materialization and normalization as needed so emitted bytes and decoded summaries cover the new case or feature. Backend capability changes belong in the oracle backend registry and adapter code.
4. Run offline validation for the new case or feature, for example: tools/oracle/run offline --profile <profile> --seed <seed> --count <count>.
5. Run pcap validation when framing, capture/file IO, link type, or persisted packet representation is affected.
6. Use live validation only through tools/oracle/run live, tools/probe/run, and lab-backed appliance providers. Start with local dry-run providers and then lab dry-runs for every provider involved:
   • tools/lab/run plan --provider <provider> --dry-run --profile smoke --seed 1 --role stimulus --role target
   • tools/oracle/run live --provider <provider> --dry-run --profile smoke --seed 1 --count 10
   • tools/probe/run --provider <provider> --dry-run --profile smoke --seed 1 --count 10 Inspect appliance_runtime metadata and request coarse profiles such as wan-raw, lan-raw, whad-serial, or dot11-monitor instead of protocol-specific endpoint capabilities. Use persistent asset leases for prepared dongle VMs before any whad-serial or dot11-monitor live path. Use lab-session for multi-endpoint provider-backed oracle/probe execution and lab-provider when provider capability contracts or adapters change. Preserve artifacts from any provider-backed run. Real provider execution requires protected manual confirmation.
7. Record any unsupported behavior, intentional mismatch, or required follow-up in the oracle artifacts or nearby docs.

Add packet behavior coverage through specs and backend adapters, not by creating standalone reference-backend code paths outside the oracle backend tree.