Pack Validate

Validate the target pack with the same parser and effective-field rules used at activation. Report what passed, what failed, and which compatibility checks remain manual. A child can inherit required policy blocks; an explicitly declared child block replaces its parent's whole block.

Workflow

1. Validate the effective manifest

pack_source_root="${LINTEL_SOURCE_ROOT:-${REPO_ROOT:-${LINTEL_HOME:-$HOME/.lintel}}}"
source "$pack_source_root/lib/pack-resolver.sh"
target="${1:-$(get_active_pack_name)}"
verdict=PASS
if validate_pack "$target"; then
  echo "PASS: manifest identity, required effective fields, extension fields and inheritance"
else
  verdict=FAIL
  audit_log pack-lifecycle pack_validated "name=$target" "verdict=$verdict"
  echo "FAIL: pack cannot be activated; correct the diagnostic above."
  exit 1
fi

Runtime validation covers nonempty name/version in each manifest, effective voice.default_tier, compliance.mode, navigation.default_workflow, required extension fields, missing parents, cycles and the ten-parent limit. It preserves legacy packs without schema_version or requires_lintel.

The shared parser supports indented and flow mappings, plain or quoted scalar values, and scalar lists in block or flow form. Mapping keys must be unquoted identifiers ([A-Za-z_][A-Za-z_0-9-]*); root mappings start in column one. Anchors, tags, multiline scalars and complex list items are unsupported. These are runtime contract checks, not a general YAML-schema certification. Double-quoted escapes supported by the parser are \\, \", \n, \r, and \t; use literal Unicode characters instead of Unicode escape sequences.

2. Report schema and version compatibility

chain=$(_resolve_extends_chain "$target")
schema=$(_pack_chain_field "$chain" schema_version) || schema=""
requires=$(_pack_chain_field "$chain" requires_lintel) || requires=""
echo "Declared schema: ${schema:-not declared (legacy)}"
echo "Required Lintel: ${requires:-not declared (legacy)}"
echo "Compatibility: NOT VERIFIED by runtime validation."
verdict=PASS_WITH_WARN

Read lib/pack-schema.yaml for the intended field contract and the installed plugin manifest for its actual version. If the pack declares a version range or schema unsupported by that installation, explain the mismatch before activation. Do not claim compatibility from a hardcoded version or a matching major-version prefix. This skill does not introduce a new version-enforcement policy.

3. Audit and return the result

audit_log pack-lifecycle pack_validated "name=$target" "verdict=$verdict"
echo "$verdict: runtime contract passed; review compatibility before activation."

Use FAIL for runtime rejection and PASS_WITH_WARN while compatibility is unverified. Record any completed manual compatibility review and its evidence. Never report an unexecuted gate as passing or activate a pack as a side effect.

Integration

Reads lib/pack-resolver.sh, lib/pack-schema.yaml, and the target ancestry. Writes the verdict to stdout and the operator's pack lifecycle audit log.