Real‑World QA Test Plan

Use this printer‑friendly checklist to validate meshbbs behavior against a live Meshtastic device and the shared mesh. Keep a notes doc during testing with exact commands sent, observed responses, and relevant meshbbs.log snippets.

Tip for printing: Use your browser’s Print function to save this page as a PDF.

Setup

Prereqs

  • One Meshtastic device connected and configured to the same channel as your BBS
  • macOS Terminal (zsh)
  • Current repo builds and tests pass

Build and run

  • Build: cargo build --release
  • Start: ./target/release/meshbbs start
  • Confirm server logs show your Meshtastic port and that the device is connected

Data safety

  • Backup confirmed: config.toml and data/topics.json
  • config.toml contains a valid sysop name and password set (see meshbbs sysop-passwd)

Note: For any problem found, capture the exact command, what happened, and relevant excerpts from meshbbs.log.

Public channel (shared mesh) sanity

Note: Public commands use a configurable prefix. The default is ^. In the examples below, replace ^ with your configured prefix if different.

^HELP (from your Meshtastic client)

Expect:

  • A DM arrives with compact help guidance
  • A delayed public notice may appear after the DM (scheduler delay)

Check:

  • DM contains a concise help sentence (not verbose), fits in one frame with prompt
  • You see the prompt at the end of the DM: unauth> (if not logged in)

^LOGIN alice

Expect:

  • Public reply indicates login pending for alice
  • You’re told to open DM to continue

^WEATHER (optional)

Expect:

  • Either a broadcast weather message (if allowed/available), or a DM fallback

Check:

  • No floods; messages obey pacing. No rate‑limit errors in logs

Direct Message: Authentication

REGISTER alice secretPass1

Expect:

  • Success message; a welcome/unread summary that fits in one frame
  • Prompt changes to alice (lvl1)>

Check:

  • First HELP after login shows a single shortcuts line once: Shortcuts: M=areas U=user Q=quit

HELP (compact)

Expect:

  • Single‑frame compact help including:
    • ACCT: SETPASS, CHPASS, LOGOUT
    • MSG navigation hints (M topics; digits pick; +/-; F; READ/POST/TOPICS)
    • OTHER: WHERE | U | Q
  • Fits in 230 bytes including prompt

HELP+ (verbose)

Expect:

  • Multiple DM chunks; prompt appended to the last chunk only
  • Detailed sections for navigation, moderator/sysop, legacy commands

SETPASS newPassOnlyIfPasswordless (only if the account had no password)

Expect:

  • Success (or an explanatory message if already set)

CHPASS secretPass1 secretPass2

Expect:

  • Success; future logins require the new password on unbound nodes

LOGOUT then LOGIN alice secretPass2

Expect:

  • Login success; prompt is alice (lvl1)>
  • Wrong password attempt yields an error

WHERE (or W)

Expect:

  • Breadcrumb reporting where you are (Login/Main/Topics/etc)

Compact UI: Topics → Subtopics → Threads → Read

M (go to Topics)

Expect:

  • List of root topics only
  • Items with children show a › marker
  • Footer provides short instructions (L more, H help, X exit)

Select a topic with subtopics (press a digit)

Expect:

  • Subtopics view listing child topics (with › if nested)
  • U/B goes up one level; M returns to root Topics; L paginates

Select a leaf subtopic (press a digit)

Expect:

  • Threads list for that subtopic
  • Pinned threads show a 📌 icon
  • If the topic is locked, header shows [locked]
  • Footer: Reply: 1-9 read, N new, L more, B back, F <text> filter (if no filter applied)

N (create a new thread)

Expect:

  • Prompt for title (≤32)
  • Then prompt for body (single‑message)
  • Return to Threads with your new thread listed (title shown, truncated if needed)

F <text> (filter) and F (clear)

Expect:

  • Filter narrows visible thread titles; F with no text clears
  • L paginates filtered results if many

1 (read first thread)

Expect:

  • Read view shows [BBS][topic > title] … and body (truncated for space)
  • If a reply exists, last reply line preview is shown prefixed with —
  • Footer: + next, - prev, Y reply, B back, H help

Y (reply), then type a short reply

Expect:

  • Return to Read view; your reply is saved and previewed on subsequent displays

+ and - (navigate between threads)

Expect:

  • Moves to next/previous thread; prompt and headers update accordingly

B (from Read)

Expect:

  • Returns to Threads
  • Another B goes up (Threads → Subtopics; Subtopics → Topics); M always returns to Topics

X (exit)

Expect:

  • Ends the session (Goodbye! 73s) and prompt no longer updates

Legacy inline commands (still supported)

TOPICS / LIST

Expect:

  • A listing of topics and descriptions (respects read permissions)

READ general (or another topic)

Expect:

  • Lists recent messages from the topic (top N)
  • Format: author | timestamp, content … with separators

POST general Hello world!

Expect:

  • Posted to that topic immediately (unless locked or permission denied)

POST general (multi‑line)

Expect:

  • Instructions for multi‑line; end with a dot on its own line to post

Unknown command (e.g., NOPE)

Expect:

  • Terse reply: Invalid command "NOPE" followed by the prompt
  • Stays within frame limit

Moderator features (level ≥5)

Login as sysop and promote alice to moderator

As sysop (login as your configured sysop account), then:

  • PROMOTE alice
  • or G @alice=5 (equivalent)

Expect:

  • Confirmation; role changes reflected in subsequent HELP output for alice

Moderator in Threads: Pin/Unpin, Rename, Lock/Unlock

In Threads list:

  • P1 (toggle pinned for item 1)
  • R1 New Title (rename thread title; truncates to 32)
  • K (toggle lock state for current topic; also try LOCK and UNLOCK explicitly)

Expect:

  • Visual changes in list headers: 📌 appears; [locked] on header when locked
  • Posting while locked is denied; unlocking restores posting

Delete with confirmation

  • D1 (delete item 1) → Confirm delete? (Y/N)

Expect:

  • Y deletes and returns to Threads; N cancels
  • Deletion removes the message and logs to audit

Deletion audit log

  • DELLOG (and optionally DELLOG 2 for page 2)

Expect:

  • Entries including timestamp, topic/id, and actor

Admin/sysop dashboards and user admin (level ≥10)

USERS [pattern]

Expect:

  • List of users; optional filtering when pattern is provided

USERINFO alice

Expect:

  • Detailed info: level, posts, registered date

WHO / SESSIONS

Expect:

  • Basic summaries (if supported in your build; some are placeholders)

BROADCAST <message>

Expect:

  • Broadcast to public; DM fallback possible or admin‑log entry

SYSLOG INFO Hello mesh!

Expect:

  • Logged to security/audit log with the indicated level; success reply

ADMIN or DASHBOARD

Expect:

  • Quick metrics snapshot: total users, total messages, moderators, recent registrations, etc.

Permissions/denials

As a regular user (level 1)

Try moderator commands (DELETE, LOCK/UNLOCK, DELLOG) and sysop commands (PROMOTE/DEMOTE, SYSLOG, BROADCAST).

Expect:

  • “Permission denied.” for restricted commands; HELP hides these unless authorized

Size and prompt checks (sanity)

DM length checks (visual)

Observe that:

  • HELP fits in one frame with prompt
  • Registration/login banners are concise and never get cut mid‑character
  • HELP+: prompt only on last chunk

Persistence checks

Restart BBS

Stop and start the server.

Expect:

  • Topics, subtopics, locked states, and messages persist (data/topics.json and files under data/messages/…)
  • Users persist; logging back in works with saved password (if set)

Optional: Weather caching sanity

Send ^WEATHER multiple times

Expect:

  • Caching in effect; public broadcast or DM fallback; no spam; pacing respected

Optional: Negative/edge cases

Topic permission checks

Create a topic that requires higher read/post levels, then attempt actions as a lower‑level user.

Expect:

  • Topic hidden when below read_level; post denied when below post_level

Over‑long post content

Try to post a very long message via legacy POST (simulate >10KB) or with invalid characters.

Expect:

  • Error about invalid characters or size limit; no message stored

Invalid usernames on REGISTER/LOGIN

Expect:

  • Clear validation error with guidance; no user created

Operational tips

  • Use WHERE/W often for breadcrumb clarity at each level you test
  • For subtopics, verify multi‑level nesting by creating a child of a child, then navigating up with B/U/M
  • For moderator actions, verify that UI hints appear in HELP only when the role is high enough

Source on GitHub: This plan reflects the current implementation documented in the project README and command reference.