From c51e32d6a68425cc95810d860662e7210115fc84 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001
From: =?UTF-8?q?Thomas=20M=C3=BCller?= <thomas.mi.iller.gitea.tmu@gmail.com>
Date: Thu, 17 Sep 2026 13:23:29 +0000
Subject: [PATCH] :memo: Record the test-helper home decision
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development/testing.md § Test helpers: why name beats path under
import/no-relative-parent-imports, why the key needs `#`, why the
`__tests__` folder name, and what was rejected (flat placement, tsconfig
paths, rule exemptions).
---
 development/testing.md | 48 ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
 1 file changed, 48 insertions(+)

diff --git a/development/testing.md b/development/testing.md
index 5c674d5..7b6629e 100644
--- a/development/testing.md
+++ b/development/testing.md
@@ -63,6 +63,54 @@ separated by a blank line; an empty block drops its label.
 - Unlabeled ordering (bare blank lines): the seams still have to be found by
   reading; the labels cost nothing.
 
+## Test helpers
+
+The rule is enforced by `import/no-relative-parent-imports`; this section records
+why the mechanism is shaped like this.
+
+#### Decision (2026-09)
+
+A shared test helper — code that scattered `*.test.ts` files import to do their
+testing — lives under `src/util/__tests__/` and is addressed by the
+`#test-utils/…` self-reference (`package.json#imports`:
+`"#test-utils/*": "./src/util/__tests__/*"`), never by a relative path:
+
+```ts
+import { LspSession } from "#test-utils/lsp-completion.ts";
+```
+
+#### Why
+
+- The lint rule bans upward (`../`) imports, and a cross-cutting helper can
+  always be placed above _some_ scattered consumer, wherever it goes. Name
+  beats path: a `#test-utils/…` specifier has no direction, so the rule never
+  fires and file moves only touch the one mapping in `package.json`.
+- `#…` is Node's reserved prefix for _private_ subpath imports: publishing
+  `package.json` leaks nothing and resolves nothing for consumers.
+- `__tests__` as the folder name is not about tests living there; it is the
+  directory pattern `tsconfig.build.json` already excludes, so a helper can
+  never be emitted into `dist/` and shipped by accident.
+- Node's own resolver handles `#…` under `--strip-types`, and `tsc` resolves it
+  via the same `imports` field — one mechanism for runtime and type gate, no
+  loader needed.
+- The helper uses `node:` builtins (it drives a language server), so
+  `import/no-nodejs-modules` is off for `src/util/__tests__/**` in
+  `.oxlintrc.json` — the same exception the old `scripts/**` scope carried.
+
+#### Rejected
+
+- A helper beside the tests (`src/util/test.ts`, flat `src/`): composes only
+  while `src/` stays flat; the first nested test reaching it reintroduces the
+  banned upward import.
+- Bare `~/…` specifier: not valid in `imports` (keys must start with `#`) —
+  resolution fails at runtime with `ERR_MODULE_NOT_FOUND`. A `#~/…` “home”
+  shorthand was dropped in review; `#test-utils/…` states what it is.
+- tsconfig `paths` alias: resolves for `tsc` but not for plain
+  `node --test --strip-types` (no loader hook), breaking the fast tier.
+- Turning `import/no-relative-parent-imports` off for test files: the rule
+  still guards non-test helpers importing each other, and the exemption is
+  only needed for the one specifier the mapping already solves cleanly.
+
 ## Known issues
 
 - The type-aware linter misidentifies `expectTypeOf()` as a floating promise, so