URL Dot Segment Event Trace

Trace RFC 3986 section 5.2.4 literal URL dot-segment removal, preserving meaningful empty slash segments. Percent-encoded dots and slashes remain opaque; not complete URI reference resolution, authorization or filesystem traversal protection.

Description

Literal URL dot-segment removal follows a path-component algorithm distinct from filesystem resolution. A trace makes each consumed segment visible.^[1]

When to use this tool

Prepare the supplied path fields for this operation.
Compare the complete example with the representation used by your own input before carrying the result into another step.

How to use the tool and how it works

Enter path. Use the exact text syntax, units and index conventions explained below.
Run the tool. If input validation fails, correct the supplied fields before interpreting any result.
Read result.normalizedPath, result.events. Interpret false, null and empty lists using the distinctions below; they can be valid outputs.

Reject query, fragment and NUL. Apply RFC 3986-style input/output-buffer rules for dot and parent segments, recording each action, segment and removed output component. Return normalizedPath and events.^[2]

Input field	Meaning and representation	Accepted input
path	path.	Text; at most 8,192 UTF-16 code units, subject to the grammar above

Output field	Interpretation
result	Object containing the named outputs below.
result.normalizedPath	The normalized path value under the stated formula or text convention.
result.events	The events list in the ordering and representation described above.

json

{
  "input": {
    "path": "/a/./b/../c"
  },
  "output": {
    "result": {
      "normalizedPath": "/a/c",
      "events": [
        {
          "action": "move",
          "segment": "/a",
          "removed": null
        },
        {
          "action": "remove-dot",
          "segment": "/.",
          "removed": null
        },
        {
          "action": "move",
          "segment": "/b",
          "removed": null
        },
        {
          "action": "remove-parent",
          "segment": "/..",
          "removed": "/b"
        },
        {
          "action": "move",
          "segment": "/c",
          "removed": null
        }
      ]
    }
  }
}

Limitations and assumptions

Percent-encoded dots remain opaque and repeated empty path segments are not indiscriminately collapsed. No URL base resolution or filesystem access occurs.
Every declared top-level field is required and unexpected fields are rejected. Numeric inputs must be finite; ordinary text fields are bounded to 8,192 UTF-16 code units, with tighter operation-specific limits where stated.
String lists have at most 128 entries of at most 128 code units; matrices have at most 128 rows and columns. Larger numeric lists and parsed JSON have separate bounded budgets. Nonfinite results and excessively large serialized outputs are rejected.
Indexes are zero-based and spans have an exclusive end unless explicitly stated otherwise. A valid false, null or empty-list result is distinct from malformed input.

Alternative or Complementary methods

Use a complete protocol or URL parser when interpreting a whole message or address. Preserve raw spelling when required and distinguish HTTP token grammar, URL path normalization and form-style query decoding.

References

RFC 3986: Remove dot segments — RFC Editor
Tool behavior and example: URL Dot Segment Event Trace — tool.io

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