CI enforcement

Continuous Integration (CI) is not optional in Strata. It is the mechanism that enforces truth.

Every commit, in every language, is validated against the same immutable rules.

If CI fails, the change does not exist.

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Why CI is mandatory

Strata makes strong guarantees:

• Canonical encoding

• Stable hashing

• Cross-language determinism

• Explicit failure semantics

These guarantees are meaningless without automated enforcement.

CI is the system that ensures no regression ever ships.

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What CI enforces

CI enforces all of the following, on every pull request and push:

• Golden vector correctness

• Semantic correctness

• Negative failure behavior

• Cross-language parity

• Northstar guarantees

No human review can override this.

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Golden vector enforcement

CI runs tests that:

• Encode Strata Text vectors

• Compare produced .scb bytes exactly

• Compare produced hashes exactly

• Reject any deviation

Vectors are loaded directly from the /vectors directory.

If an implementation disagrees with vectors, the implementation is wrong.

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Positive vector enforcement

CI verifies that:

• Valid inputs parse successfully

• Valid values encode canonically

• Valid hashes match expected outputs

• Roundtrips preserve structure

These tests ensure normal behavior is correct.

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Negative vector enforcement

CI verifies failure behavior.

For malformed inputs, tests assert:

• The exact error kind

• The exact byte offset

• The exact failure mode

Silently accepting invalid data is forbidden.

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Semantic vector enforcement

CI enforces semantic correctness by asserting that:

• Equivalent syntax produces identical values

• Ordering differences normalize correctly

• Shorthand syntax resolves deterministically

• Duplicate keys follow defined overwrite rules

Parsing behavior is locked down permanently.

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Northstar enforcement

CI runs Northstar tests as independent pipelines.

Each Northstar tier validates a stronger guarantee:

• T1: Canonical bytes survive structured wire transfer

• T2: Raw bytes survive unstructured transport

• T3: Framed streaming does not mutate payloads

If any Northstar test fails, the build fails.

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Cross-language CI matrix

CI runs independently for:

• Rust implementation

• JavaScript implementation

• Northstar wire tests (Rust ↔ JS)

All implementations must pass against the same vectors.

There is no “reference implementation” exemption.

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No conditional skips

CI does not allow:

• Ignoring failing tests

• Skipping vector checks

• Allowing warnings for determinism failures

Any failure is a hard stop.

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Versioned enforcement

CI is version-aware.

• Existing vectors must always pass

• New vectors may only be added with a new Northstar

• Old vectors are never removed or altered

Breaking changes require explicit version bumps and documentation.

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Human role in CI

Humans may:

• Propose changes

• Add new vectors

• Define new Northstars

Humans may not:

• Override CI failures

• Redefine existing vector meaning

• Merge failing code

CI is final.

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Summary

CI is the guardian of Strata’s guarantees.

• Code can lie

• Documentation can drift

• Humans can make mistakes

CI does not.

If CI passes, the change is valid. If CI fails, the change does not exist.