test: remove vacuous diagnostic assertions

docs/reviews/2026-08-18-r3-test-truth-ledger.md

@@ -38,7 +38,7 @@ pwsh ./tools/audit-test-inventory.ps1
 The generated JSON lives under ignored `artifacts/test-audit/`; it is not a
 second 6.8 MB checked-in source of truth. The script and this reviewed ledger
 are durable, while paths and line numbers regenerate after every batch. The
-inventory refreshed for Batch G reports:
+inventory refreshed for Batch L reports:
 
 | Syntax signal | Current count |
 |---|---:|
@@ -50,7 +50,9 @@ inventory refreshed for Batch G reports:
 | Empty-return sites | 143 |
 | Direct / same-file-helper prerequisite-return candidates | 2 / 1 |
 | Mechanical output-only candidates | 2 |
-| Reviewed diagnostic methods | 51 |
+| Constant-truth assertion methods / sites | 0 / 0 |
+| Reviewed syntactic self-comparison methods / sites | 4 / 5 |
+| Reviewed diagnostic methods | 57 |
 | Methods directly using `Thread.Sleep` / `Task.Delay` | 15 / 23 |
 | Cancellable-infinite-only / elapsed-time methods | 5 / 33 |
 | Methods directly reading environment variables | 47 |
@@ -63,15 +65,19 @@ the inventory now fails explicitly inside its selected non-hermetic lane. The
 remaining 143 empty returns are behavioral control flow, callback exits, or
 the three platform branches; they are not missing-prerequisite passes.
 
-The output-only classifier follows same-file helper calls, but it cannot decide
-whether an assertion merely establishes probe setup. The reviewed diagnostic
-set is therefore 51 methods: the 47 mechanical candidates plus
-`OptionsPanelLiveMountProbeTests.ProbeLiveMountShapes`,
-`DoorSetupGfxObjInspectionTests.HoltburgCottage_CellPortals_DatInspection`, and
-the two already classified tower diagnostics. Relative to T-011's historical
-51-method table, delete the removed PVS scaffold and add
-`TowerAscentReplayTests.Diagnostic_TowerAscent_PerStepTable`; all other entries
-remain. Those 51 methods expand to 70 discovered cases (28 App, 42 Core).
+The output-only classifier follows same-file helper calls, so an assertion used
+only while constructing a probe can prevent an otherwise diagnostic method from
+appearing in its two-candidate result. The reviewed `Purpose=Diagnostic` set is
+therefore the authority: Batch C's 51 methods plus six artifact/report writers
+reconciled in Batch L, for 57 methods and 76 discovered cases (28 App, 48 Core).
+Their investigative output and historical rationale remain executable outside
+the release total.
+
+The five syntactic self-comparisons are reviewed, not vacuous: two call a hash
+twice to assert determinism, one reads the singleton twice, and two read the
+same Runtime owner's properties twice to assert stable identity. The inventory
+keeps these candidates visible separately from the now-zero constant-truth
+assertions.
 
 ## Exact 77-skip reconciliation
 
@@ -130,10 +136,10 @@ identifiable in the lane report.
 | T-005 unreachable panel stack | requires production reachability proof | Do not delete 52 meaningful tests until the dead presentation surface and any supported plugin compatibility promise are verified together. |
 | T-006 misleading installed-DAT reason | resolved in batch B | Shared opt-in is now `ACDREAM_RUN_INSTALLED_DAT_TESTS=1` (legacy switch retained), the reason names the lane, and all nine owners carry `Lane=InstalledDat`. |
 | T-007 271 silent passing gates | resolved in batch G | All 280 directly found gates plus three later-reconciled sites now fail explicitly when their selected lane lacks its prerequisite. The only three syntax candidates left are reviewed cross-platform branch false positives. |
-| T-008 incapable-of-failing diagnostics | batch A plus diagnostic lane work | Delete the literal wiring smoke test; repair the GPU contract tautology; later re-home output-only apparatus. |
+| T-008 incapable-of-failing diagnostics | resolved in batches A, C, and L | The literal wiring smoke test was deleted, the GPU contract tautology was repaired, and the six remaining constant-truth diagnostic assertions were removed after their output was preserved under `Purpose=Diagnostic`. |
 | T-009 wall-clock double-click tests | resolved in batch E | Four sleeps were replaced by a deterministic test clock behind an internal factory overload. The production factory still reads `Environment.TickCount64` exactly as before. |
 | T-010 two useless cases | high-confidence cleanup batch A | Delete `SmokeTest.TestProject_IsWired` and `ChaseCameraTests.ImplementsICamera`; compilation already proves both claims. |
-| T-011 51 output-only methods | classified in batch C | The reviewed current set is 51 methods / 70 cases. All carry `Purpose=Diagnostic`, preserving the apparatus while removing it from release pass totals. Contract-shaped names remain explicitly flagged until a stable oracle exists. |
+| T-011 output-only methods | classified in batches C and L | The reviewed current set is 57 methods / 76 cases. All carry `Purpose=Diagnostic`, preserving the apparatus while removing it from release pass totals. Contract-shaped names remain explicitly flagged until a stable oracle exists. |
 | T-012 source-text freezes | replacement map complete in batch I; 46 implementation-shape facts remain staged | Twelve whole-tree architecture rules and five cross-artifact contracts stay. The other 46 are campaign-era literal implementation freezes; retire each only beside its semantic/behavioral replacement, with user approval for owner/lifecycle assertions that have no equivalent yet. |
 | T-013 controller self-comparison | high-confidence cleanup batch A | Capture the first controller next to the first body and compare every retry with that reference. |
 | T-014 seven load-sensitive tests | six mechanisms repaired in batch F; one product defect classified | Virtual/wall-clock mixing, tiered-JIT allocation noise, a live controller clock, and a ThreadPool-start timing oracle were removed without weakening behavioral contracts. `DatSoundCache` #321 is a real in-flight-entry race and now runs as `Status=KnownFailure` pending a product fix. |
@@ -143,6 +149,7 @@ identifiable in the lane report.
 | T-018 stderr observer race | resolved in R2 | Live reader shares writes/deletes; 25 focused repetitions plus the complete gate. |
 | T-019 remaining explicit waits | classified in batch H; nine fixed-delay negative oracles need cleanup | Five of the 38 methods are deterministic cancellation stubs, not wall-clock tests. Preserve four intentional real-time contracts and bounded integration polling; replace the nine tests that infer “still blocked” from a fixed delay with observable synchronization state. |
 | T-020 exact duplicate bodies/data | resolved in batch K | Four redundant executions were removed. The remaining 11 body-equivalent groups are intentionally split theories with disjoint, meaningfully named datasets; the inventory enforces zero repeated rows within a theory or across body-equivalent theories. |
+| T-021 suspicious assertion shapes | resolved in batch L | The inventory enforces zero `Assert.True(true)` / `Assert.False(false)` sites and reports syntactic self-comparisons for review. All five current self-comparisons assert meaningful determinism or stable identity. |
 
 ## Preserved rationale for removals in batch A
 
@@ -579,3 +586,47 @@ complete 44-project Release build reports zero warnings and zero errors. The
 no-retry complete hermetic Release gate passed 14,387/14,387 with zero skips or
 failures across all 12 test assemblies. The four-case reduction is exactly the
 three duplicate facts and one duplicate theory row removed above.
+
+## Batch L vacuous diagnostic assertions
+
+Six investigation methods still ended in an unconditional green assertion:
+
+- three cellar-lip trajectory/replay artifact writers in
+  `CellarLipWedgeTests`;
+- two cellar-ascent trajectory reports in `CellarUpTrajectoryReplayTests`; and
+- the installed-DAT front-approach probe in `DoorCollisionApparatusTests`.
+
+These were useful tools but not regression tests. Batch L adds
+`Purpose=Diagnostic`, removes the six `Assert.True(true, ...)` calls, preserves
+the two reports that previously existed only as assertion messages by writing
+them to captured console output, and leaves the existing `%TEMP%` artifacts and
+probe logs intact. No historical investigation notes, fixtures, or probe logic
+were deleted.
+
+The durable inventory now recognizes `File.WriteAll*` / `File.AppendAll*` as
+diagnostic-output signals and reports high-confidence constant-truth assertions
+separately from syntactic self-comparisons. It reports zero constant-truth sites.
+The five self-comparison sites were individually reviewed and retained:
+
+- `Hash32Tests.Calculate_IsDeterministic` and
+  `PacketHeaderTests.CalculateHeaderHash32_DeterministicForSameInput` execute
+  the calculation twice and compare the results;
+- `NullCommandBusTests.Instance_IsSingleton` reads the singleton twice; and
+- `RuntimeEntityObjectLifetimeTests.Owner_ConstructsOneExactDirectoryAndObjectTablePerInstance`
+  verifies repeated access to both owned objects returns the same instances.
+
+Batch L verification:
+
+- all six affected diagnostic methods pass, including the installed-DAT door
+  probe;
+- the refreshed inventory reports 11,447 attributed methods, 57 diagnostic
+  methods, zero constant-truth assertions, and five reviewed self-comparison
+  sites across four methods;
+- the complete 44-project Release build reports zero warnings and zero errors;
+  and
+- the no-retry complete hermetic Release gate passed 14,382/14,382 with zero
+  skips or failures across all 12 test assemblies.
+
+The five-case reduction from Batch K is exact: five formerly hermetic diagnostic
+facts are now excluded by `Purpose=Diagnostic`; the sixth was already outside
+the portable lane because its class requires installed DATs.