Log Argument Key Glossary

This glossary defines canonical log argument keys for machine consumers. It complements docs/specifications/log-args-coherency.md.

Contract version:

  • v1.1 (documentation version, not emitted in runtime args)

Scope:

  • Normative for all tags following the coherency contract.
  • Migration is complete; all engine emitters use canonical keys.

Core Identity Keys

KeyTypeMeaningNotes
nsstringNameserver name (FQDN string).Name only. Never name/ip.
addressstringSingle nameserver IP address.Use together with ns when both are known.
domainstringDomain name in testcase-specific contexts.Keep testcase meaning explicit.
mnamestringSOA MNAME hostname.Hostname only.

Query Identity Keys

KeyTypeMeaningNotes
query_namestringDNS owner name queried.
query_typestringDNS RR type queried.Uppercase form (for example SOA).
query_classstringDNS class queried.Usually IN.

Structured Collection Keys

KeyTypeMeaningNotes
serversarray<object>Endpoint list for machine use.Items use { "ns": "...", "address": "..." }.
addressesarray<string>IP address list.
asnsarray<int>ASN list.Integer ASN values.
prefixesarray<string>CIDR prefix list.
ptr_namesarray<string>PTR hostname list from reverse-DNS checks.Used for PTR mismatch detail payloads.
mail_targetsarray<string>MX target hostname list.Replaces mailtarget_list.

Temporal Keys

KeyTypeMeaningNotes
datestringHuman-visible timestamp argument in tag-specific contexts.Use UTC RFC3339 (ISO 8601 profile).

Role-Specific Collection Variants

Use role-specific server collections where needed, with the same endpoint item shape as servers:

  • parent_servers
  • child_servers
  • failing_servers

Retired Legacy Keys

These keys are no longer emitted by the engine. If encountered in historical outputs or external adapters, they are non-canonical:

  • ip (replaced by address)
  • name, server (replaced by ns or context-specific keys)
  • nsname, ns_ip (replaced by ns + address)
  • ns_list, ns_ip_list, nsname_list (replaced by servers)
  • asn_list (replaced by asns)
  • query aliases type, class, rrtype (replaced by query_name, query_type, query_class)
  • delimiter-packed identity fields (; or ,) without typed counterparts

CI guardrails reject reintroduction of these patterns.