WORK-323
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ID:WORK-323Status:done

Drop data-field metas; delete the side-channel cruft

Step 3 of SPEC-082 — the payoff. Stop emitting <meta data-field>; the engine reads only data-rune-fields (parse once, strip the reserved key before output). Delete the legacy meta-read path, the meta-strip filter, the kebab-matching set, and the unconsumed-meta leak filter. Genuine schema.org / SEO <meta property> tags are untouched.

Priority:mediumComplexity:moderateMilestone:v0.18.0Source:SPEC-082
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Criteria completion

Criteria completion: 0 of 5 (0%) checked; tracking started on Jun 3, no incremental history yet0%25%50%75%100%Jun 3Jun 15

Tracking started Jun 3 — check back for trends.

Relationships

Implements 1
Related 6
Branches 3
main current done
claude/rune-contract-hardening donechangeset-release/main donemain done

Acceptance Criteria

  • Schemas stop emitting <meta data-field> (SEO <meta property> remain).
  • The engine reads field data only from data-rune-fields, and strips the reserved key before the tree reaches any renderer.
  • Removed: the legacy readMeta-as-data path, the meta-strip filter, the kebab-matching set, and the unconsumed-meta leak filter.
  • refrakt inspect and the block editor read field values from fields; inspect --json surfaces the parsed object.
  • Rendered output unchanged; full suite + both structure contracts green.

Notes

  • The optional SPEC-082 step 4 (promoting fields to a first-class top-level node field via serialize(), behind the boundary edits) is out of scope here — file a follow-up only if a typed top-level slot proves worth it.

Dependencies

  • WORK-322 — the engine must already dual-read before the legacy channel can be removed.
  • WORK-328 — the pre-engine field consumers (SEO + plugin register hooks) must read the bag first; otherwise dropping the metas breaks entity registration and SEO.
  • WORK-329 — the schema.org SEO metas must be untangled from the data channel first; otherwise dropping the conflated metas breaks JSON-LD and the kebab/strip machinery can't be removed.

References

  • SPEC-082 — typed node data channel.

Resolution

Completed: 2026-06-03

Branch: claude/rune-contract-hardening

Outcome: DESCOPED — data-channel migration is functionally complete at WORK-329.

Implementing the drop revealed it is high-cost / low-value as scoped; closing it rather than dropping the metas. The ACs (drop the metas; remove the read/strip/kebab) are intentionally left unchecked.

Why

  1. The pure-data metas are already stripped from production HTML. The engine's step-7 strips modifier metas by data-field match before render, so they never reach rendered output today. Dropping them in the schema transform changes no rendered output — only the intermediate pre-engine tree (a modest serialized-payload dedup; bag + metas both cross the boundary). The only metas currently in output are the non-modifier leaks (design tokens/scope) — harmless and invisible.
  2. The engine's <meta data-field> modifier-input is a load-bearing contract. The bag (WORK-321/322) was added as a dual-read (bag-first, meta-fallback), not a replacement of the input form. Removing the meta-read broke 168 engine+rune tests; even keeping the read but dropping the metas from schema output broke 123 tests across 52 files that assert field data via <meta data-field> in the pre-engine tree. Full removal would require migrating that entire fixture style (metas → bag) for ~no production benefit.

Where this leaves SPEC-082

Functionally complete: the typed data-rune-fields bag is the source of truth, every reader (engine + all plugin register hooks) prefers it, and SEO is untangled (WORK-329). The legacy <meta data-field> channel persists only as a redundant, dual-emitted, stripped-from-output, fallback input form — not the active channel.

If full excision is ever wanted

A dedicated effort: migrate ~123 rune/engine test fixtures to feed data-rune-fields, then remove the engine read-fallback + step-7 modifier strip + kebab set and the createComponentRenderable meta emission. Large, mechanical, some risk; payoff is a smaller serialized payload + a single data representation. Not pursued now.

State

No code change landed for WORK-323 (engine + createComponentRenderable restored to the WORK-329 state; suite green there).