test(e2e): define native runtime activation qualification

[ericksoa]

Summary

This PR adds a dormant, runtime-neutral activation qualification contract for a native container-runtime candidate. It makes the complete Podman release scope compile-time mandatory without registering Podman, changing production selection, or advertising support.

Related Issue

Part of #7744.

Changes

• Compile a 24-case protected-E2E matrix covering OpenClaw, Hermes, and DCode on Linux amd64 and arm64, with CPU Ollama plus NVIDIA CDI GPU Ollama, NIM, and vLLM.
• Require the release installer to run with Docker unavailable in every case.
• Require onboarding, an agent turn, stop/start, snapshot/restore, rebuild, restart/reconciliation, and exact cleanup; missing cases or obligations fail compilation instead of becoming skips.
• Validate the configured protected workflow, one aggregate head/base pair, and exact repository, run, job, attempt, installer, managed-image digest, operation-artifact, runtime-identity, and CDI evidence.
• Prove an MXC-style provider can compile through the same open provider seam without Podman-specific central switches.
• Document the dormant activation boundary for E2E maintainers. No canonical target or workflow consumes this contract yet.

Type of Change

• Code change (feature, bug fix, or refactor)
• Code change with doc updates
• Doc only (prose changes, no code sample modifications)
• Doc only (includes code sample changes)

Quality Gates

• Tests added or updated for changed behavior
• Existing tests cover changed behavior — justification:
• Tests not applicable — justification:
• Docs updated for user-facing behavior changes
• Docs not applicable — justification: The changed E2E-maintainer documentation describes an inert test contract; this slice does not change user-visible behavior or support.
• Sensitive paths changed (security, policy, credentials, preflight, onboarding, inference, runner, sandbox, or messaging)
• Sensitive-path review completed or maintainer-approved waiver recorded — reviewer/approval link/justification:
• Non-success, skipped, or missing CI check accepted by maintainer — check name, approval link, and follow-up issue:

Documentation Writer Review

• Documentation writer subagent reviewed the completed changes
• Result: docs-updated
• Evidence: test/e2e/docs/NATIVE_RUNTIME_QUALIFICATION.md and the native-runtime qualification note in test/e2e/docs/README.md match the dormant implementation boundary, use the project terms, and make no support claim.
• Agent: Codex Desktop

DGX Station Hardware Evidence

• Tested on DGX Station
• Tested commit:
• Station profile/scenario:
• Result:
• Supporting evidence:

Verification

• PR description includes a Signed-off-by: line and every commit appears as Verified in GitHub
• Normal pre-commit, commit-msg, and pre-push hooks passed, or npm run validate:pr passed after refreshing origin/main when hooks were skipped or unavailable
• Targeted behavior tests pass for the current change set, or tests are marked not applicable above — command/result or justification: CLI build and typecheck passed; the focused E2E-support file passed 7/7 tests, including exact workflow and aggregate head/base failures, on d70120a47.
• Applicable broad gate passed — npm test for broad runtime/test-harness changes; npm run check for repo-wide validation/coverage changes — command/result:
• Quality Gates section completed with required justifications or waivers
• No secrets, API keys, or credentials committed
• npm run docs builds without warnings (doc changes only)
• Doc pages follow the style guide (doc changes only)
• New doc pages include SPDX header and frontmatter (new pages only)

---

Signed-off-by: Aaron Erickson aerickson@nvidia.com

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[github-code-quality]

Code Coverage Overview

Languages: TypeScript

TypeScript / code-coverage/plugin

The overall coverage in commit ddb4e57 in the feat/native-runtime-... branch remains at 96%, unchanged from commit 5cd29cc in the feat/host-local-infe... branch.

---

_{Updated August 01, 2026 15:34 UTC}

[github-actions]

PR Review Advisor — No blocking findings reported

Advisor assessment: No blocking advisor findings reported
Next action: Review the warnings below.
Findings: 0 blockers · 2 warnings · 0 suggestions

Model lanes

• GPT-5.6 Terra (primary): Completed · high confidence · 0 blockers · 2 warnings · 0 suggestions
• Nemotron 3 Ultra (second opinion): Completed · high confidence · 0 blockers · 0 warnings · 0 suggestions
• Model comparison: normalized findings differ; normalized E2E selections match; Nemotron reported the same number of blockers, 2 fewer warnings, the same number of suggestions.

Second-opinion E2E selections are advisory. They do not change the primary assessment or E2E / PR Gate.

E2E guidance

Advisory only. E2E / PR Gate selects and runs jobs independently.

Recommended E2E: cloud-inference, cloud-onboard, security-posture

2 warnings · 0 suggestions

Warnings

Warnings do not block.

PRA-1 Warning — Remove or connect the dormant qualification subsystem to a current consumer

• Location: test/e2e/registry/activation-qualification.ts:1
• Category: architecture
• Problem: The PR adds a qualification compiler and evidence validator, but no executable adapter, workflow, registry, or production path consumes it. Its only current consumer is a support-test fixture.
• Impact: The repository gains a large unsupported contract that can drift from the eventual runtime adapter and protected workflow, while its test coverage proves only self-consistency.
• Recommendation: Delete the dormant qualification subsystem from this PR, or add one named current consumer that enforces the compiled contract at its supported activation boundary and a contract test for that consumer.
• Verification: Trace imports of `activation-qualification.ts` and confirm whether any non-test runtime, registry, or workflow path enforces `assertNativeRuntimeQualificationEvidence`.
• Test coverage: If retained with a current consumer, add a contract test that sends the consumer incomplete or mismatched qualification evidence and verifies it rejects activation.
• Simplification (yagni): Remove The dormant compiler, fixtures, support tests, and qualification documentation.; use Keep the qualification requirements in the future activation implementation that has a provider adapter and protected-workflow consumer.. Net: -928 lines.
• Keep: Do not remove existing production runtime or E2E trust-boundary validation; this recommendation applies only to the new unconsumed dormant subsystem.
• Evidence: test/e2e/registry/activation-qualification.ts:1 adds the standalone qualification compiler and validator. test/e2e/support/native-runtime-qualification-fixtures.ts:97-103 exports a compiled dormant fixture. test/e2e/support/e2e-native-runtime-qualification.test.ts:1-275 is the only checked-in consumer shown in this PR. test/e2e/docs/NATIVE_RUNTIME_QUALIFICATION.md:48-56 states that executable adapters, production registry wiring, and workflow dispatch are separate future work.

PRA-2 Warning — Bind qualification receipts to trusted PR source context

• Location: test/e2e/registry/activation-qualification.ts:401
• Category: security
• Problem: The evidence validator accepts a self-reported repository, workflow, run/job IDs, and head/base pair. It checks that receipts agree with each other and configured strings, but it does not receive or verify the intended PR source pair or a trusted run/job identity.
• Impact: A future caller that treats this validator as an activation gate can accept replayed or fabricated, internally consistent evidence for another commit or run, bypassing the protected-workflow and intended-PR binding.
• Recommendation: Require the trusted activation/controller boundary to provide the expected repository, protected workflow, and PR head/base pair. Resolve and verify the run/job and artifacts through that trusted boundary before accepting structural receipts.
• Verification: Review the eventual activation caller and verify it supplies the target PR source identifiers and verifies the referenced workflow run/job before calling the structural receipt validator.
• Test coverage: Add a controller-bound contract test that provides complete, structurally valid evidence from a different head/base pair or untrusted run and verifies qualification is rejected.
• Evidence: test/e2e/registry/activation-qualification.ts:401-437 builds `sourcePairs` only from receipt fields and accepts any single valid pair. test/e2e/registry/activation-qualification.ts:330-355 compares `protectedRun.repository` and `.workflow` only with definition strings and validates field formats. test/e2e/registry/activation-qualification.ts:108-114 defines the evidence input as self-reported run, job, and source identifiers. test/e2e/support/e2e-native-runtime-qualification.test.ts:204-274 tests malformed and mixed receipt fields but not a coherent receipt from a different PR source pair.

Workflow run details

This automated review informs maintainers. Warnings and suggestions do not require a response. A maintainer decides whether to merge.

[cv]

Reviewed commit ddb4e5766e in bottom-up stack order. This PR depends on draft PR #8069, which is not approval-ready. The qualification contract is behind the draft parent and its CLI and E2E checks fail. Review remains blocked until the parent is reconstructed or repaired, this branch is restacked on the accepted parent commit, and current CI, security, and documentation evidence passes for the resulting commit. No approval is granted for the current branch.

[cv]

Two architecture and security changes are required. Remove the dormant qualification subsystem or connect it to one accepted executable consumer that enforces the contract. At that trusted controller boundary, supply the expected repository, protected workflow, and PR head/base identities and verify the referenced run, job, and artifacts; self-reported internally consistent receipts are replayable. Add a rejection test for a valid receipt from the wrong head/base pair. Restack onto a passing parent and clear the failing E2E and CLI checks.