Null/undefined checks, optional chaining, and non-null assertions must reflect the actual type contract and runtime invariants — not an assumed one.
?., ??, or !== undefined checks for values the type system already guarantees are present. If AssistantMessage.provider is typed as required, message.provider !== undefined is dead code that obscures intent; if SegmentContext.options is non-optional, use ctx.options.usage ?? {} instead of ctx.options?.usage ?? {}. When a fixture or test forces an invalid shape via as unknown as T, fix the fixture instead of weakening production code.this.#persist!.foo) unless the invariant truly holds on every call path. If some callers can reach the code without the field being set (e.g., a memory-only instance with no persist), guard explicitly or set a flag that already accounts for that state, rather than asserting and crashing with TypeError: undefined is not an object.?? into a shared key, cache slot, or default, verify the fallback can’t be confused with a real value from a different context. sessionId ?? "" makes every session-less caller share one cooldown key; scope the fallback (e.g., per-instance state) so distinct “absent” cases don’t collide.parseServiceTier()) over re-implementing null/undefined/empty-string handling by hand — they already encode the correct absent-vs-falsy semantics and stay in sync when the underlying union changes.Example:
// Bad: type already guarantees `provider` is defined — this check is dead and misleading
const failingModel = message.provider !== undefined && registry.find(message.provider);
// Good: trust the type, let `find()` signal "not resolvable" via its own return value
const failingModel = registry.find(message.provider);
// Bad: asserts an invariant that doesn't hold on every call path
async #ensureLoaded(): Promise<void> {
this.#indexLoadPromise ??= this.#loadIndex(this.#persist!.indexPath);
}
// Good: guard for the case where the invariant doesn't apply
async #ensureLoaded(): Promise<void> {
if (!this.#persist) return;
this.#indexLoadPromise ??= this.#loadIndex(this.#persist.indexPath);
}