Files
alknet/docs/architecture/questions/066-alknet-register-wire-protocol.md
T
deepseek-v4-pro e91d943857 docs: remove CallCredentials — dead field, dead from_call path, auth_token is per-request payload
ADR-091 amended 2026-07-17: CallCredentials removed (not retained in
alknet-call). Trace showed CallCredentials.auth_token had no reader
(connect() read only tls_identity + remote_identity; spawn_dispatch
takes no credentials; from_call's credentials_auth_token was a
different type, always None, never connected). auth_token is a
per-request payload field — browsers send it in the WS payload; the
HTTP gateway resolves bearer → Identity at its boundary.

from_call's credentials_auth_token dead path removed in the same pass
(OpSummary field, handler params, build_forwarded_payload param, and
the two tests asserting the never-exercised Some path).

ADR-089 §5 further amended, ADR-080 noted, all spec READMEs and
overview updated. Migration plan (findings.md) corrected: Phase 5
prune now includes CallCredentials removal + from_call dead-path
removal; test audit corrected (4 unchanged + 2 move to core, not 6
unchanged); integration-test split documented; all 'or' hedges
resolved.
2026-07-17 08:54:04 +00:00

5.5 KiB

OQ-66: alknet/register Wire Protocol

  • Origin: docs/architecture/decisions/089-alknetclient-native-dial-seam.md §6; docs/architecture/crates/client/README.md §"alknet/register".
  • Status: deferred(scope)
  • Door type: one-way (the wire protocol — once native workers and hubs exchange registration frames, the format is compatibility-locked)
  • Priority: medium
  • Impacts: Blocks native worker registration over QUIC/TCP+TLS without HTTP. A worker that has no HTTP client (a minimal native worker, an iroh-only deployment) cannot enroll its key with a hub until this is specced and implemented. The HTTP registration endpoint (OQ-58) remains the first implementation, so this does NOT block the first hub deployment (web + native uses HTTP registration for worker provisioning). It blocks the native-only registration path and the no-HTTP minimal-hub case.
  • Blocked on: OQ-58's token model (one-time vs. refresh, single-use vs. multi-use, rotation). The alknet/register wire protocol and the HTTP registration endpoint (OQ-58) share the enrollment semantics and the token model — they should converge on one model before either's wire format is locked. OQ-58 is open (resolvable now); this OQ is blocked on its resolution. The frame-format fork (reuse EventEnvelope vs. standalone) and the enrollment-trait shape (point 5) are independently workable but not independently decidable — they depend on the token model.
  • What is decided (ADR-089 §6): alknet/register is a dialable ALPN — an entry point (ADR-086 §2) accepted without an established peer identity. Two registration cases exist, both hub concerns and both optional:
    • Token registration — a freshly-provisioned worker (docker, vast.ai, runpod) generates its local identity, dials the hub on alknet/register, presents a one-time registration token, and enrolls its key. The hub creates a PeerEntry (mixed-fingerprint shape, ADR-034 §3) and returns a session credential.
    • No-token (open) registration — a hub that hosts public services over channels, or a relay/gateway, accepts registration without a token. The enrollment creates a PeerEntry with no token requirement. The dial is the same as any other ALPN (AlknetClient::dial_quic / dial_tcp_tls on b"alknet/register"); the difference is the handshake protocol on the resulting Connection.
  • What is open: the wire protocol — the handshake on the Connection after the dial. Specifically:
    1. Frame format — does alknet/register reuse the call protocol's EventEnvelope framing (length-prefixed JSON), or does it have its own minimal framing? Registration is a one-shot request/response (send public key + token, receive session credential), not a long-lived call session. Reusing EventEnvelope ties the register ALPN to alknet-call (a dependency); a minimal own-format keeps it standalone but adds a second wire format.
    2. Token model — one-time vs. refresh, single-use vs. multi-use, rotation. This is the same open question as OQ-58 (the HTTP registration endpoint's token model). The two paths should share the token model — a token issued by the hub works over both HTTP and alknet/register.
    3. No-token policy — who decides whether a hub accepts no-token registration? Is it a DynamicConfig flag, an IdentityProvider policy, or a hub-crate config? What PeerEntry shape does an open-registration enrollment produce (no auth_token_hash, fingerprint-only)?
    4. Session credential return — what does the hub return on successful registration? A PeerEntry? A session token? Both? How does the returned credential feed into the subsequent alknet/channels connection's ConnectionCredentials?
    5. Relationship to OQ-58 — the HTTP registration endpoint (OQ-58) and alknet/register share the enrollment semantics (create PeerEntry, return credential) but differ in transport (HTTP vs. raw ALPN). Should they share an enrollment trait in alknet-hub, with the HTTP endpoint and the alknet/register handler as two transport-specific front-ends? Or are they separate handlers that happen to call the same IdentityStore write path?
  • Resolution: Not yet decidable. The token model (point 2) is the shared dependency with OQ-58 — both paths should converge on one model. The frame format (point 1) is a genuine fork: reusing EventEnvelope adds an alknet-call dependency to the register path (which may be fine — the hub already depends on alknet-call); a standalone format keeps register minimal but diverges. The relationship to OQ-58 (point 5) is the shape question that determines whether the register handler lives in alknet-hub (alongside the HTTP endpoint) or in a separate crate. These need a dedicated ADR that works through the token model, the frame format, and the enrollment-trait shape together — they are not independently decidable.
  • Cross-references: ADR-089 (§6 — names the ALPN and its entry-point role; defers the wire protocol to this OQ), OQ-58 (worker registration flow — the HTTP path; shares the token model), ADR-086 (§2 — entry-point vs. endpoint ALPN distinction), ADR-034 (§3 — the mixed-fingerprint PeerEntry shape token registration creates), ADR-072 (channel 0 identity resolution — the path the session credential feeds into).