Netalertx Code Standards

Code Standards

• ask me to review before going to each next step (mention n step out of x) (AI only)
• before starting, prepare implementation plan (AI only)
• ask me to review it and ask any clarifying questions first
• add test creation as last step - follow repo architecture patterns - do not place in the root of /test
• code has to be maintainable, no duplicate code
• follow DRY principle - maintainability of code is more important than speed of implementation
• code files should be less than 500 LOC for better maintainability
• DB columns must not contain underscores, use camelCase instead (e.g., deviceInstanceId, not device_instance_id)
• treat DB as temporary storage for stats, long-term configuration should be stored in the /config folder, the /config folder should allow you to restore most of your functionality (excluding historical data)
• never access DB directly from application layers, always use helper functions in server/db/db_helper.py and implement new functionality in handlers (e.g., DeviceInstance in server/models/device_instance.py)
• always validate and normalize MAC addresses before writing to DB (use normalize_mac from plugin_helper.py)
• all subprocess calls must set explicit timeouts
• use timeNowUTC from utils.datetime_utils for all time-related operations and DB timestamps (store all timestamps in UTC)
• use sanitizers from server/helper.py for user input before storing in DB
• reuse shared mocks and factories from test/db_test_helpers.py for tests, never redefine them locally
• use environment variables for runtime paths, never hardcode paths or use relative paths
• follow existing code style and structure, and ensure backward compatibility with existing installations when submitting PRs
• all code needs to be scalable to handle large networks with thousands of devices (10k+) without performance degradation
• no inline imports, all imports must be at the top of the file
• when using server/logger.py mylog(), only use valid levels: none, minimal, verbose, debug, trace; invalid levels silently degrade to none
• every Python function/method needs a succinct docstring describing its current use and behavior — not what changed or why (see Docstrings section below)
• before adding a new frontend language string, search front/php/templates/language/en_us.json for an existing key with the same text/purpose and reuse it — don't add a near-duplicate key just because it's needed on a new page (see Language Strings section below)

File Length

Keep code files under 500 lines. Split larger files into modules.

DRY Principle

Do not re-implement functionality. Reuse existing methods or refactor to create shared methods.

Database Access

• Never access DB directly from application layers
• Use server/db/db_helper.py functions (e.g., get_table_json)
• Implement new functionality in handlers (e.g., DeviceInstance in server/models/device_instance.py)

MAC Address Handling

Always validate and normalize MACs before DB writes:

from plugin_helper import normalize_mac

mac = normalize_mac(raw_mac)

Subprocess Safety

MANDATORY: All subprocess calls must set explicit timeouts.

result = subprocess.run(cmd, timeout=60)  # Minimum 60s

Nested subprocess calls need their own timeout—outer timeout won't save you.

Time Utilities

from utils.datetime_utils import timeNowUTC

timestamp = timeNowUTC()

This is the ONLY function that calls datetime.datetime.now() in the entire codebase.

⚠️ CRITICAL: ALL database timestamps MUST be stored in UTC This is the SINGLE SOURCE OF TRUTH for current time in NetAlertX Use timeNowUTC() for DB writes (returns UTC string by default) Use timeNowUTC(as_string=False) for datetime operations (scheduling, comparisons, logging)

String Sanitization

Use sanitizers from server/helper.py before storing user input. MAC addresses are always lowercased and normalized. IP addresses should be validated.

Docstrings

Every Python function/method gets a docstring — one or two sentences, describing what it does and how it's used right now. Not a changelog:

# Correct
def count_children_by_parent_mac(devices):
    """Return {parentMac: childCount} for the given device list, keyed by devParentMAC."""

# Wrong — narrates the diff instead of the current behavior
def count_children_by_parent_mac(devices):
    """Replaces the old get_number_of_children() to fix the O(n^2) scan."""

That history belongs in the commit message or PR description, not the docstring — it rots the moment the next change lands. Keep it succinct; only go past a couple of lines when the contract genuinely needs it (non-obvious return shape, units, a caller-visible side effect).

Language Strings — Reuse Before Adding (DRY)

Before adding a new key to front/php/templates/language/en_us.json, grep it for an existing key with the same text or purpose and reuse that key instead of adding a near-duplicate:

grep -n "\"Gen_" front/php/templates/language/en_us.json   # generic, reusable strings
grep -n "Next\|Previous\|Showing" front/php/templates/language/en_us.json

Prefer the generic Gen_* keys (e.g. Gen_Prev, Gen_Next) over a page-scoped name (Presence_Page_Prev) for genuinely generic UI text — a future page needing the same label should find it already there. Only add a new key when nothing existing fits; only that one file needs the addition — getString()/lang() fall back to the English string for any locale missing a key, so the other ~23 locale files don't need touching.

Devcontainer Constraints

• Never chmod or chown during operations
• Everything is already writable
• If permissions needed, fix .devcontainer/scripts/setup.sh

Test Helpers — No Duplicate Mocks

Reuse shared mocks and factories from test/db_test_helpers.py. Never redefine DummyDB, make_db, or inline DDL in individual test files.

import sys, os
sys.path.insert(0, os.path.join(os.path.dirname(__file__), ".."))
from db_test_helpers import make_db, DummyDB, insert_device, minutes_ago

If a helper you need doesn't exist yet, add it to db_test_helpers.py — not locally in the test file.

Stubbing Modules in Standalone-Capable Tests

If a test stubs NetAlertX modules into sys.modules so a script can be imported outside the container (see test/plugins/test_ntfy_custom_headers.py), pop each stubbed name back out of sys.modules right after the one-time import that needed it. Otherwise the fake module leaks into every other test file collected in the same pytest session and shadows the real module (see testing-workflow skill for the full pattern and reproduction steps).

MAC Literals in Tests — ALWAYS Lowercase

MANDATORY: Every MAC address literal used in test fixtures, parametrize decorators, assertions, or comments must be lowercase hex:

# Correct
make_device_dict("aa:bb:cc:dd:ee:01", ...)

# Wrong — will be rejected in review
make_device_dict("AA:BB:CC:DD:EE:01", ...)
make_device_dict("Aa:Bb:Cc:Dd:Ee:01", ...)

This applies to hardcoded strings in assert, pytest.mark.parametrize, docstrings, and comments too. There are no exceptions.

Path Hygiene

• Use environment variables for runtime paths
• /data for persistent config/db
• /tmp for runtime logs/api/nginx state
• Never hardcode /data/db or use relative paths