feat(#242): VCR-RA-003 across-JOIN on the numeric-branch optimized path

[avrabe]

v0.50 Lane 2. Closes the v0.49 named residual: the whole-function allocation validator's across-JOIN invariant (invariant 4, MUST-availability fixpoint) previously loud-flagged NotAttempted on the OPTIMIZED path's pre-resolved numeric branches (BOffset/BCondOffset). Now a resolved-offset join-CFG builder decodes those targets to predecessor indices, so the fixpoint runs there too — "whole-function" holds on the DEFAULT shipping path, not just direct/label branches.

Red-first (non-vacuous): ra003_numeric_red_across_join_clobber_is_caught (a value in different locations on two numeric-branch paths into a join → Violation, was NotAttempted before). Green: both-paths-define / dominator-defined / loop-back-edge → Consistent. Decline-honesty kept: off-boundary + mixed-stream + genuinely-unresolvable offsets still NotAttempted (decline>guess). 24 ra003 tests total (18→24).

Frozen 10/10 byte-identical (validator emits nothing; control_step 0x00210A55, flight_algo 0x07FDF307). 648 lib tests green, clippy -D clean, fmt clean, claims 25/25, rivet clean.

Salvaged from an API-stalled authoring agent (uncommitted WIP) — re-verified every gate from scratch before committing.

🤖 Generated with Claude Code

[codecov]

Codecov Report

❌ Patch coverage is 90.20772% with 33 lines in your changes missing coverage. Please review.

Files with missing lines	Patch %	Lines
crates/synth-synthesis/src/liveness.rs	90.20%	33 Missing ⚠️

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[avrabe]

Converting to draft — the optimized-path join enforcement isn't ready, and this must not weaken the VCR-RA-003 acceptance oracle.

CI surfaced a real false-positive: on cf_shapes_500.wat::ifelse (a br_if if/else that push {r5,lr}…stores…pop {r5,pc}), the numeric-branch across-JOIN check hard-errors JoinValueNotAvailable { reg: R8, join_block: 3 } on valid code — over-rejecting a correct compile. This was latent salvage debt (the authoring agent died before running vcr_ra_003_phase2_join_call.py; my salvage ran the unit tests + frozen but not this differential — the lesson: salvage must run the lane's OWN repro).

Root cause: R8 is live-in at function entry (the validator's reg_effect sees the prologue push) and read again at the pop {…pc} epilogue join, but is never re-def'd on a straight-line arm — so a MUST-availability check over the numeric-branch join CFG flags it as unavailable.

Two fixes attempted and REJECTED (both break soundness, verified against the red-first gate):

1. Hardcode R4–R8 into entry_seed → masks the ra003_*_red_across_join_clobber_is_caught tests (a fixed set can't distinguish 'holds a defined caller value' from 'clobbered on one arm').
2. Seed entry_seed with live_in[0] → fixes the FP (repro 0 false-positives) but STILL silences both red-first tests (their synthetic clobber register is itself entry-live, so seeding masks it).

A change that greens the repro but stops catching real clobbers is worse than the FP. The correct discriminator (available-at-entry iff preserved — pushed-in-prologue and popped-at-exit, vs merely entry-live) needs proper analysis, not a maintenance-tick patch on the soundness component.

Disposition: the pre-#819 behavior (optimized-path numeric-branch joins → honest NotAttempted) is CORRECT; #819 regresses it to over-rejection. Deferring to a proper lane with cf_shapes_500::ifelse pinned as a red-first fixture from the start. The join-CFG-builder infrastructure + 6 ra003_numeric_* tests here are salvageable groundwork for that redo.

[avrabe]

Closing this draft — it won't merge as-is, and the board should carry only the release PR.

Why closed, not merged: the salvaged optimized-path across-JOIN extension over-rejects valid code (false JoinValueNotAvailable{R8} on cf_shapes_500::ifelse — a push {r5,lr}…pop {r5,pc} if/else). Two entry_seed fixes were tried and BOTH masked the red-first across-join clobber tests (verified), so shipping either would weaken the VCR-RA-003 acceptance oracle. The pre-existing behavior (optimized-path numeric-branch joins → honest NotAttempted) is correct; this PR regresses it.

Not lost: the join-CFG-builder infrastructure + the 6 ra003_numeric_* tests stay on branch feat/50-ra003-optimized-joins as groundwork. The proper redo is tracked (with cf_shapes_500::ifelse pinned as a red-first fixture and the correct 'available-at-entry iff PRESERVED — pushed-prologue AND popped-exit' discriminator) — it'll land as a fresh, correctly-gated lane in the v0.51 allocator-endgame work, not this branch. Closing keeps the tracker honest.