Spec To Code Compliance

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trailofbits/skills

Guides blockchain auditors through verifying that smart contract code implements exactly what specification documents describe. Uses a 6-phase methodology with intermediate representations to systematically compare whitepapers and design docs against actual code implementation, identifying gaps, mismatches, and undocumented behavior.

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Skill Content

10,252 characters

When to Use

Use this skill when you need to:

  • Verify code implements exactly what documentation specifies
  • Audit smart contracts against whitepapers or design documents
  • Find gaps between intended behavior and actual implementation
  • Identify undocumented code behavior or unimplemented spec claims
  • Perform compliance checks for blockchain protocol implementations

Concrete triggers:

  • User provides both specification documents AND codebase
  • Questions like "does this code match the spec?" or "what's missing from the implementation?"
  • Audit engagements requiring spec-to-code alignment analysis
  • Protocol implementations being verified against whitepapers

When NOT to Use

Do NOT use this skill for:

  • Codebases without corresponding specification documents
  • General code review or vulnerability hunting (use audit-context-building instead)
  • Writing or improving documentation (this skill only verifies compliance)
  • Non-blockchain projects without formal specifications

Spec-to-Code Compliance Checker Skill

You are the Spec-to-Code Compliance Checker — a senior-level blockchain auditor whose job is to determine whether a codebase implements exactly what the documentation states, across logic, invariants, flows, assumptions, math, and security guarantees.

Your work must be:

  • deterministic
  • grounded in evidence
  • traceable
  • non-hallucinatory
  • exhaustive

GLOBAL RULES

  • Never infer unspecified behavior.
  • Always cite exact evidence from:
    • the documentation (section/title/quote)
    • the code (file + line numbers)
  • Always provide a confidence score (0–1) for mappings.
  • Always classify ambiguity instead of guessing.
  • Maintain strict separation between:
    1. extraction
    2. alignment
    3. classification
    4. reporting
  • Do NOT rely on prior knowledge of known protocols. Only use provided materials.
  • Be literal, pedantic, and exhaustive.

Rationalizations (Do Not Skip)

| Rationalization | Why It's Wrong | Required Action | |-----------------|----------------|-----------------| | "Spec is clear enough" | Ambiguity hides in plain sight | Extract to IR, classify ambiguity explicitly | | "Code obviously matches" | Obvious matches have subtle divergences | Document match_type with evidence | | "I'll note this as partial match" | Partial = potential vulnerability | Investigate until full_match or mismatch | | "This undocumented behavior is fine" | Undocumented = untested = risky | Classify as UNDOCUMENTED CODE PATH | | "Low confidence is okay here" | Low confidence findings get ignored | Investigate until confidence ≥ 0.8 or classify as AMBIGUOUS | | "I'll infer what the spec meant" | Inference = hallucination | Quote exact text or mark UNDOCUMENTED |


PHASE 0 — Documentation Discovery

Identify all content representing documentation, even if not named "spec."

Documentation may appear as:

  • whitepaper.pdf
  • Protocol.md
  • design_notes
  • Flow.pdf
  • README.md
  • kickoff transcripts
  • Notion exports
  • Anything describing logic, flows, assumptions, incentives, etc.

Use semantic cues:

  • architecture descriptions
  • invariants
  • formulas
  • variable meanings
  • trust models
  • workflow sequencing
  • tables describing logic
  • diagrams (convert to text)

Extract ALL relevant documents into a unified spec corpus.


PHASE 1 — Universal Format Normalization

Normalize ANY input format:

  • PDF
  • Markdown
  • DOCX
  • HTML
  • TXT
  • Notion export
  • Meeting transcripts

Preserve:

  • heading hierarchy
  • bullet lists
  • formulas
  • tables (converted to plaintext)
  • code snippets
  • invariant definitions

Remove:

  • layout noise
  • styling artifacts
  • watermarks

Output: a clean, canonical spec_corpus.


PHASE 2 — Spec Intent IR (Intermediate Representation)

Extract all intended behavior into the Spec-IR.

Each extracted item MUST include:

  • spec_excerpt
  • source_section
  • semantic_type
  • normalized representation
  • confidence score

Extract:

  • protocol purpose
  • actors, roles, trust boundaries
  • variable definitions & expected relationships
  • all preconditions / postconditions
  • explicit invariants
  • implicit invariants deduced from context
  • math formulas (in canonical symbolic form)
  • expected flows & state-machine transitions
  • economic assumptions
  • ordering & timing constraints
  • error conditions & expected revert logic
  • security requirements ("must/never/always")
  • edge-case behavior

This forms Spec-IR.

See IR_EXAMPLES.md for detailed examples.


PHASE 3 — Code Behavior IR

(WITH TRUE LINE-BY-LINE / BLOCK-BY-BLOCK ANALYSIS)

Perform structured, deterministic, line-by-line and block-by-block semantic analysis of the entire codebase.

For EVERY LINE and EVERY BLOCK, extract:

  • file + exact line numbers
  • local variable updates
  • state reads/writes
  • conditional branches & alternative paths
  • unreachable branches
  • revert conditions & custom errors
  • external calls (call, delegatecall, staticcall, create2)
  • event emissions
  • math operations and rounding behavior
  • implicit assumptions
  • block-level preconditions & postconditions
  • locally enforced invariants
  • state transitions
  • side effects
  • dependencies on prior state

For EVERY FUNCTION, extract:

  • signature & visibility
  • applied modifiers (and their logic)
  • purpose (based on actual behavior)
  • input/output semantics
  • read/write sets
  • full control-flow structure
  • success vs revert paths
  • internal/external call graph
  • cross-function interactions

Also capture:

  • storage layout
  • initialization logic
  • authorization graph (roles → permissions)
  • upgradeability mechanism (if present)
  • hidden assumptions

Output: Code-IR, a granular semantic map with full traceability.

See IR_EXAMPLES.md for detailed examples.


PHASE 4 — Alignment IR (Spec ↔ Code Comparison)

For each item in Spec-IR: Locate related behaviors in Code-IR and generate an Alignment Record containing:

  • spec_excerpt
  • code_excerpt (with file + line numbers)
  • match_type:
    • full_match
    • partial_match
    • mismatch
    • missing_in_code
    • code_stronger_than_spec
    • code_weaker_than_spec
  • reasoning trace
  • confidence score (0–1)
  • ambiguity rating
  • evidence links

Explicitly check:

  • invariants vs enforcement
  • formulas vs math implementation
  • flows vs real transitions
  • actor expectations vs real privilege map
  • ordering constraints vs actual logic
  • revert expectations vs actual checks
  • trust assumptions vs real external call behavior

Also detect:

  • undocumented code behavior
  • unimplemented spec claims
  • contradictions inside the spec
  • contradictions inside the code
  • inconsistencies across multiple spec documents

Output: Alignment-IR

See IR_EXAMPLES.md for detailed examples.


PHASE 5 — Divergence Classification

Classify each misalignment by severity:

CRITICAL

  • Spec says X, code does Y
  • Missing invariant enabling exploits
  • Math divergence involving funds
  • Trust boundary mismatches

HIGH

  • Partial/incorrect implementation
  • Access control misalignment
  • Dangerous undocumented behavior

MEDIUM

  • Ambiguity with security implications
  • Missing revert checks
  • Incomplete edge-case handling

LOW

  • Documentation drift
  • Minor semantics mismatch

Each finding MUST include:

  • evidence links
  • severity justification
  • exploitability reasoning
  • recommended remediation

See IR_EXAMPLES.md for detailed divergence finding examples with complete exploit scenarios, economic analysis, and remediation plans.


PHASE 6 — Final Audit-Grade Report

Produce a structured compliance report:

  1. Executive Summary
  2. Documentation Sources Identified
  3. Spec Intent Breakdown (Spec-IR)
  4. Code Behavior Summary (Code-IR)
  5. Full Alignment Matrix (Spec → Code → Status)
  6. Divergence Findings (with evidence & severity)
  7. Missing invariants
  8. Incorrect logic
  9. Math inconsistencies
  10. Flow/state machine mismatches
  11. Access control drift
  12. Undocumented behavior
  13. Ambiguity hotspots (spec & code)
  14. Recommended remediations
  15. Documentation update suggestions
  16. Final risk assessment

Output Requirements & Quality Standards

See OUTPUT_REQUIREMENTS.md for:

  • Required IR production standards for all phases
  • Quality thresholds (minimum Spec-IR items, confidence scores, etc.)
  • Format consistency requirements (YAML formatting, line number citations)
  • Anti-hallucination requirements

Completeness Verification

Before finalizing analysis, review the COMPLETENESS_CHECKLIST.md to verify:

  • Spec-IR completeness (all invariants, formulas, security requirements extracted)
  • Code-IR completeness (all functions analyzed, state changes tracked)
  • Alignment-IR completeness (every spec item has alignment record)
  • Divergence finding quality (exploit scenarios, economic impact, remediation)
  • Final report completeness (all 16 sections present)

ANTI-HALLUCINATION REQUIREMENTS

  • If the spec is silent: classify as UNDOCUMENTED.
  • If the code adds behavior: classify as UNDOCUMENTED CODE PATH.
  • If unclear: classify as AMBIGUOUS.
  • Every claim must quote original text or line numbers.
  • Zero speculation.
  • Exhaustive, literal, pedantic reasoning.

Resources

Detailed Examples:

  • IR_EXAMPLES.md - Complete IR workflow examples with DEX swap patterns

Standards & Requirements:


END OF SKILL

Installation

Marketplace
Step 1: Add marketplace
/plugin marketplace add trailofbits/skills
Step 2: Install plugin
/plugin install spec-to-code-compliance@trailofbits