Core Contributor Path

What this page explains#

Turn the whole v1 guide into a source checking path for checking, modifying, reviewing, or documenting Kaspa-related code. This page sits in Core Contributor Guide. It gives the topic a plain-language handle first, then shows the working idea, the mechanism, the source trail, and any limits that still matter. This category gives contributors a repeatable source-review method. A strong page traces a claim through source owner, data structure, serialization, validation, tests, release context, and Open Questions.

The writing follows a simple Kaspa documentation pattern: answer the practical question first, then link outward for details. The closest public sources for this page are RK-REPO, KIPS-REPO, RK-TESTS, RK-UPSTREAM-TEST-GATE, RK-GHOSTDAG. Local notes can help choose what to explain, but public-facing references resolve to upstream websites, repositories, papers, release pages, or docs.

How to think about it#

The practical model starts by naming the layer that owns the topic: wallet use, node operation, consensus, transaction validation, Toccata script behavior, tooling, or research. From there, the page shows which public source can support the explanation and where the explanation becomes incomplete.

For Core Contributor Guide, the model is built around these anchors: Contribution begins by deciding which source can support which claim.; A reading order prevents source review from becoming a flat folder crawl.; The Source List groups Rusty Kaspa by responsibility: consensus, transaction validation, mining/mempool, P2P, RPC, indexes, wallet, database, txscript, and tests.; A field trace teaches how to follow one field such as compute budget, payload, or covenant ID through structs, serialization, hashing, signing, RPC, mempool, and tests.; The GHOSTDAG walkthrough turns consensus vocabulary into function-level review.. This model is useful, but it does not encode every constant, branch, error type, or edge case. Those details belong in the source path and the source notes.

How it works#

1. Contribution begins by deciding which source can support which claim.. This is a source checking path, so the explanation starts from the claim and follows ownership through the codebase. A contributor identifies the subsystem, reads the relevant data structures and serialization, traces validation or execution, checks tests and release context, and records what the source proves as well as what remains outside its scope.

2. A reading order prevents source review from becoming a flat folder crawl.. This is a source checking path, so the explanation starts from the claim and follows ownership through the codebase. A contributor identifies the subsystem, reads the relevant data structures and serialization, traces validation or execution, checks tests and release context, and records what the source proves as well as what remains outside its scope.

3. The Source List groups Rusty Kaspa by responsibility: consensus, transaction validation, mining/mempool, P2P, RPC, indexes, wallet, database, txscript, and tests.. This is a source checking path, so the explanation starts from the claim and follows ownership through the codebase. A contributor identifies the subsystem, reads the relevant data structures and serialization, traces validation or execution, checks tests and release context, and records what the source proves as well as what remains outside its scope.

4. A field trace teaches how to follow one field such as compute budget, payload, or covenant ID through structs, serialization, hashing, signing, RPC, mempool, and tests.. This is a source checking path, so the explanation starts from the claim and follows ownership through the codebase. A contributor identifies the subsystem, reads the relevant data structures and serialization, traces validation or execution, checks tests and release context, and records what the source proves as well as what remains outside its scope.

5. The GHOSTDAG walkthrough turns consensus vocabulary into function-level review.. This is a source checking path, so the explanation starts from the claim and follows ownership through the codebase. A contributor identifies the subsystem, reads the relevant data structures and serialization, traces validation or execution, checks tests and release context, and records what the source proves as well as what remains outside its scope.

This mechanism section turns the wiki into a review workflow: identify the claim class, find the subsystem, read the source, check tests and releases, then mark the remaining gap.

How to check it#

When using this page for source review, start with the claim class, then read the owner module, tests, KIP or release context, and any dependent interface. Record what the source proves and what it does not prove before strengthening wiki wording.

Expanded Category Guide#

This category carries source-level contribution paths. It should teach source checking order, function walkthroughs, test command evidence, and Checklists.

Use this category as a curated path. Start with the category README to understand the boundary, then read the mechanism pages, then follow source-path or open-gap pages for claims that need stronger evidence. If a page contains needs checking rows, keep those claims visibly unresolved until a reader reads the cited public source directly.

The category should not be treated as final authority by folder name alone. The authority comes from page Source Notes, Source Lists, public URLs, and the status labels attached to each claim.

Related Pages#

• core-contributor-guide
• source-priority

Topic pages#

• Source Priority: Contribution begins by deciding which source can support which claim.
• source checking Order: A reading order prevents source review from becoming a flat folder crawl.
• Rusty Kaspa Source List: The Source List groups Rusty Kaspa by responsibility: consensus, transaction validation, mining/mempool, P2P, RPC, indexes, wallet, database, txscript, and tests.
• Transaction Field Trace: A field trace teaches how to follow one field such as compute budget, payload, or covenant ID through structs, serialization, hashing, signing, RPC, mempool, and tests.
• GHOSTDAG Function Walkthrough: The GHOSTDAG walkthrough turns consensus vocabulary into function-level review.
• Virtual Processing And Accepted Transactions: Virtual processing walkthroughs show how accepted transactions and UTXO diffs become application-visible evidence.
• Transaction Validation Function Walkthrough: Transaction validation walkthroughs tie isolation, context, UTXO, script, and mass checks to source review.
• Toccata Internals Function Walkthrough: Toccata internals require cross-module review because transaction v1 touches identity, signing, resource accounting, scripts, covenants, and ZK.
• Exact Test Command Matrix: The test matrix records which commands or upstream gates support which class of claim.
• Checklists: Checklists keep source changes, guide changes, and claim labels aligned.
• Core Contributor Final Review: The final review page is the last evidence gate before a guide claim becomes stronger wording.

Topic notes#

This category is accepted when the subpages explain the actual topics, not merely the source links. Each subpage carries public source IDs, claim labels, Open Questions, and a path from first contact into source review.