Verification

Contents

• What to run for which change
• Verifying a connection
• Verifying a plugin
• Verifying design changes
• Verifying release artifacts
• Verifying update handoff
• What cannot be verified here

Run the smallest check that actually exercises the change, then say what you ran and what you did not.

The root resolutions select patched Vite and esbuild versions because VitePress 1.6 and tsup 8.5 still request older ranges. Recheck upstream ranges before removing these overrides. Dependency updates must pass web tests, panel and documentation builds, release packaging tests, and a fresh vulnerability scan.

What to run for which change

Change	Run
Types, runtime, transport logic	script/test swift
Device panel cache, plugin loading, Mac app unit tests	script/test native (isolated storage; no app launch)
@necto/bridge, plugin sources	script/test web
Release packaging	script/test release
Update installation and relaunch ordering	swift test --package-path NectoMac --filter UpdateFinisherTests, then a pinned-Dock update
Built panel entry points and assets	node script/check-panel-assets.mjs
Tokens, NectoTheme, components.css	script/test native, then open the gallery in both appearances
Anything that reaches the app	script/build, then launch it
The SDK's public API	script/build with a simulator booted, including ExampleApp's SDK integration
Connection lifecycle or CLI device operations	script/test e2e
Contract change	Update fixtures in the same commit

script/test runs Swift and Vitest unit tests, native cache and WebView integration tests, package/release contracts and panel asset checks. Check layouts and localized copy in the plugin preview. Passing tests does not verify UI or transport changes; those also need checks in the app or on a device.

The NectoAppTests scheme runs Swift Testing without launching the Mac app. App sources under test belong to both targets. Tests use an in-memory approval store, temporary cache directories and per-test nonpersistent WebKit data stores. Storage isolation tests share one store across plugin pages so origin collisions remain observable. These tests cover isolation and retention across page recreation, not disk persistence across app launches. Run it in Xcode or directly:

xcodebuild -project Necto.xcodeproj -scheme NectoAppTests -destination 'platform=macOS' test

Verifying a connection

Automated simulator E2E

Quit Necto, then run script/test e2e. It builds the real Mac app, CLI and ExampleApp with separate test bundle IDs, selects an existing iPhone 17 Pro simulator, and runs the NectoE2ETests Xcode scheme. No company signing certificate or extra test tool is needed.

The test discovers the device and its plugins through the CLI, checks plugin help, writes and reads a unique UserDefaults value (once), and receives three performance events as JSONL (stream). It then terminates ExampleApp during a live subscription, checks that the CLI exits with an error and the target disappears, and relaunches ExampleApp to repeat both operations without restarting Necto.

Both CI and local runs use iPhone 17 Pro on the newest available iOS runtime that has one, regardless of boot state. If none exists, the test fails immediately. It waits for simctl bootstatus -b before installing the test ExampleApp (im.toss.necto.e2e.example), without opening Simulator.app. Boot and installation share a 10-minute preparation deadline, so first-boot services can finish without a separate 120-second installation cutoff. An interrupted run's installation is replaced; each test writes its own values. The app and temporary Mac home are removed afterward. The simulator is left booted; it is never erased or deleted, and other installed apps are left intact.

Launching ExampleApp and waiting for the Mac host's control socket each get a 120-second deadline for cold startup. Connection and plugin readiness checks retain their 30-second deadline. If the host exits during startup, the test fails immediately. Startup failures include the host output and the last CLI probe's output in the test log. Simulator preparation failures include both the boot and installation command output.

Other Necto instances must be closed because hosts share the SDK's loopback ports. Waits check observable state with deadlines, not fixed startup delays or performance thresholds. Build logs, command output and the test result bundle are in Build/E2E/Logs. E2E is opt-in locally and is not part of the default script/test run.

CI runs Simulator Connection & CLI E2E after the Mac and SDK jobs. The Mac job uploads the app, CLI and test bundle; the SDK job uploads ExampleApp. E2E downloads those artifacts from the same workflow run and uses test-without-building. Archives preserve executable permissions and bundle symlinks. To rerun locally without rebuilding, use script/test-e2e run after script/test e2e.

Failed E2E runs upload logs and test results. This covers the real GUI host, CLI and SDK transport path, not WebView interaction, layouts or USB.

Manual connection checks

Use a simulator for the loopback connection path.

xcrun simctl boot <device-id>
xcodebuild -project Necto.xcodeproj -scheme ExampleApp -destination "id=<device-id>" build
xcrun simctl install <device-id> Build/Products/Debug-iphonesimulator/ExampleApp.app
xcrun simctl launch <device-id> im.toss.necto.example

The app shows the listening port, and the Mac app lists it under the sidebar within a couple of seconds. lsof -nP -iTCP:9979-9986 -sTCP:LISTEN checks the default SDK port range when it does not appear. If you configured another base port, check that range instead.

For concurrent connections, launch SDK-enabled apps on two booted simulators. The SDK chooses a free port within the eight-port range and the Mac probes all eight. Confirm that both targets appear in the sidebar and necto-cli targets, then switch between them and call a device operation on each. If all eight ports are occupied, another SDK instance cannot start listening in that range.

For a device, attach it over USB and confirm it appears. A connectionRefused result means the tunnel reached the device but nothing was listening, which is the expected answer when the app is not running.

Verifying a plugin

For CLI lifecycle changes, click Install CLI in Settings → General → Command line tool, approve the macOS authentication prompt, and check necto --help, necto install --help, necto delete --help, and the necto-cli aliases. Check that mixed --local --remote flags and URLs passed with --local fail. Then check necto install <repo>, necto install <folder> --local, and necto delete <pluginID> --json against fixture plugins. Confirm install/update approval, cancel during transfer then immediately retry, and attempt a GUI update while a CLI request is active. The update must remain available when admission is refused. Deletion must move files to Trash, remove grants/registration, and stop a background panel. An unknown ID or device plugin must fail without changing files. Overlap Reload with CLI install/delete and repeat Reload: admission must be refused while another catalog operation owns the gate, and deleted rows must not reappear.

NectoProcessRunnerTests checks output, standard input, cancellation and deadlines, including pipes inherited by descendants. Release downloads and shell execution use that same runner. A cancelled transfer must close both output readers before admitting another installation, including when a credential helper still holds the write end.

For identity or installation changes, also check these with global Full Access off:

1. Import a desktop folder/ZIP and approve one harmless shell command. Update it with the same manifest ID: cancel first (old files and grants stay), then confirm (installation UUID and command approval stay; content hash changes).
2. Modify installed files outside Necto, then Reload. They must appear under Review required, not execute with existing permissions. Check both confirm and cancel.
3. Remove and reinstall the same ID: the installation UUID changes and the command is no longer approved. Duplicate folders and a wrong-ID targeted update are refused.
4. Update/reconnect a device plugin with the same app bundle ID and plugin ID: shell grants stay. Another app's same ID must not inherit them. The SDK rejects duplicate registration even with assertions disabled; unregister/register works.

For destructive lifecycle tests, use both a temporary CFFIXED_USER_HOME for plugin files and a separate test app bundle identifier for UserDefaults. The environment variable alone does not isolate the preferences domain. Create the temporary home directory before launching the app; otherwise macOS can disable preference writes for that process. Capture fresh Loupe reports before and after actions; a successful build is not UI evidence.

Build the web packages first, then the app: plugin output ships inside the bundle, so an app built before yarn build carries stale assets.

For a device plugin, reinstall and launch ExampleApp on the simulator being inspected. Building against another booted simulator updates that product but not the app already serving the panel.

Check the plugin in the app, not only in a browser. Two things only appear in the real host: the bridge, and the theme the window imposes.

Toggle System Settings between light and dark with the plugin open. Tokens should follow without a reload.

For background plugins, also verify in a built Necto:

1. Reopen the app and switch selected devices: plugin-wide preferences persist.
2. Use a fixture plugin to submit a notification while another panel and Settings are visible, and confirm background work continues across both selection changes.
3. Disable/remove/update the plugin: background work ends. Ordinary panels still cancel on selection changes. Closing the last window stops work.
4. Test notification permission denied, Focus suppression and app-foreground delivery.
5. User-activated HTTPS links open in the system browser and keep the plugin panel alive.
6. Open a second window with Command-N: background initialization occurs only once. Activate each window to move the same page, preserving its input. Disable it from either window and confirm it stops everywhere, including after that window closes.
7. Focus a plugin input, open Settings with Command-comma, and type. The hidden input must not change. Repeat with another panel and confirm its own inputs still work.
8. Close the first window, then install a fixture through the CLI. The remaining window must show the approval and complete both approval and cancellation.

Native storage coverage is in NectoStorageProviderTests. NectoShellProviderTests checks shell v2 standard input separately from approved commands. Actual WebView lifetime and on-screen notification delivery require manual verification.

script/test native also exercises browser-storage isolation in real WKWebViews: different app principals stay separate, approved updates retain values, and local reinstallation gets fresh storage. It checks main-document bridge access and iframe refusal, then loads the built Plugin Sample and verifies that provider error HTML is displayed as text rather than executed.

Registry tests hold a provider callback past its deadline and cancellation, verify that callers return promptly, and ensure a retry cannot accumulate unfinished work. They also verify that removing a plugin cancels its active subscriptions without stopping subscriptions on another connected device, and that a subscription still opening cannot outlive removal or caller cancellation. NectoWebViewRecoveryTests (in script/test native) loads real hidden WKWebViews and injects content-process termination delegate events. It checks reload, the retry limit, and cancellation on teardown. It does not force memory pressure or terminate the user's WebKit processes; actual OS-triggered recovery and long-duration operation remain separate runtime checks.

Verifying design changes

Open docs/design/index.html to preview the shipped stylesheets in both appearances and at both text sizes. Check readability in addition to contrast ratios.

Verifying release artifacts

Releasing from GitHub Actions

After the Check workflow succeeds on main, open Actions → Release → Run workflow, select main, and enter a version such as 0.1.0. Manual runs require repository write access. The workflow only runs in toss/necto from main. Building has read-only repository access; only the publishing job receives contents: write through GITHUB_TOKEN. No personal token is needed.

A new version uses the commit selected when the workflow was started. If its tag already exists, the workflow rebuilds that exact commit, which must be an ancestor of main with a successful main Check run. It never moves an existing tag. Packaging uses the workflow's release script while testing and building the tagged source, so releases from before this workflow was added can be completed.

The publishing job verifies the DMG checksum, creates the tag and a draft if needed, uploads all four files, and compares their sizes and SHA-256 digests before publishing. An existing published version is refused. Identical files in a draft are reused; conflicting files stop the run for review. An upload failure leaves the release unpublished. Use Re-run failed jobs to retry publishing with the same build artifacts, retained for seven days.

Local checks

script/test release runs the release script in temporary fixtures with build, signing and publishing tools replaced. It checks the generated artifacts, release attachments and dry-run isolation without building an app or contacting GitHub. It also checks bundle-version agreement, ad-hoc signing order and that failures stop before tagging or publishing. The Actions publication tests use simulated GitHub responses and cover tag/draft resumption, CI gating, asset verification and publication failures. It does not verify a real DMG, signing or an installed app's update flow.

The npm tarballs include LICENSE. The DMG and the app's Contents/Resources include THIRD_PARTY_NOTICES.txt, added before signing. yarn docs:build emits the same filename with licenses for the website's bundled dependencies and font. Missing dependency licenses fail the build. Inspect the notices in the actual artifacts before publishing.

swift test --package-path NectoMac --filter NectoAppReleaseTests checks release metadata, redirect policy, bundle/version matching and real ad-hoc signed app fixtures, including the embedded CLI. Valid updates must pass; unsigned or modified candidates must fail. Verify the full download/install flow separately on a Mac without gh, starting with a downloaded DMG and updating to a newer release. Modified apps, mismatched bundle IDs and wrong-version artifacts must not reach update handoff. NectoUpdateDownloadTests exercises HTTP failures, redirect refusal, streamed byte limits and cancellation against a loopback server; it does not replace a real GitHub HTTPS/CDN download test.

Both release modes ad-hoc sign and verify the embedded CLI and app before creating the DMG. No company certificate or notarization profile is required. --dry-run builds the artifacts without tagging or publishing. These signatures check integrity, not publisher identity; updates trust the fixed release repository.

The release argument sets MARKETING_VERSION; the script reads the built CFBundleShortVersionString and refuses a mismatch. Host info and update comparisons read this bundle value, not an independent source-code version.

Public CI uses GitHub-hosted runners. The Mac job ad-hoc signs its app and test bundle; the SDK job builds ExampleApp without signing. Check runs five jobs: Mac Build & Tests, SDK Build & Tests, Simulator Connection & CLI E2E, Web Plugins Build & Tests, and Documentation Build. Mac, SDK and E2E use Xcode 26.6 on macos-26; web and documentation builds use ubuntu-24.04. The four non-E2E jobs use Node 22.12.0, and web and documentation builds use Yarn 4.6.0. Documentation deployment remains a separate manual workflow. GitHub Pages must be configured to deploy from Actions. Workflow files alone do not prove a successful run on those machines.

script/release attaches the DMG, its .sha256 file and two developer-package tarballs. The checksum uses shasum -a 256 format with the DMG's filename, without a directory. The updater reads the version tag from a HEAD /releases/latest redirect, then fetches the checksum and DMG from that exact release. It does not call the GitHub API or use gh credentials. After publishing, verify the redirect and both versioned asset URLs without authentication. Missing or malformed checksums must fail; modified DMGs must be rejected before mounting. Verify same-version and older releases are not offered. Users moving from 0.4.x to the public 0.1.0 release must install it manually once; automatic updates never downgrade. Already-published assets are not changed by this script.

Verifying update handoff

swift test --package-path NectoMac --filter UpdateFinisherTests exercises the Swift handoff logic against temporary app directories. Process state, launch and injected failures are test doubles. It checks exit-before-install/open, unchanged bundle-root inode, replacement of all Contents, rollback and bounded waiting without launching Necto.

After a release build, verify that the signed necto-cli is included in the app. Pin a disposable test copy in the Dock and update it: the old PID must exit before the new one starts, the original Dock item must remain in its position, and no second icon may remain. This requires an actual macOS app run; the Swift tests do not prove Dock behavior or resource embedding. No Dock preferences are rewritten.

Successful handoffs remove their .necto-update-* staging directory beside the app. Failures retain install.log and any PreviousContents for recovery; never delete that backup if restoring it failed.

What cannot be verified here

• USB in a simulator. The simulator has no usbmuxd path; it uses loopback.
• Appearance without runtime evidence. Build and static-check results do not prove how the app looks. Use Loupe or an authorized capture path; report the gap if the required runtime access or screen recording permission is unavailable.