# rag-retrieval-evaluation Specification ## Purpose Provide a repeatable offline evaluation baseline for RAG retrieval behavior, so L0, query augmentation, evidence post-processing, and vector store changes can be checked against fixed golden retrieval cases before they affect Agent diagnosis quality. ## Requirements ### Requirement: Retrieval evaluation SHALL define fixed golden cases The system SHALL provide a fixed set of RAG retrieval golden cases that can be evaluated deterministically. #### Scenario: Golden case includes expected retrieval evidence - **WHEN** a retrieval golden case is defined - **THEN** it SHALL include a case id, query, expected document identifiers or labels, and expected evidence keywords or breadcrumbs #### Scenario: Golden case distinguishes scenario type - **WHEN** a retrieval golden case is defined - **THEN** it SHALL indicate whether it covers Chat-style knowledge lookup, AIOps alert diagnosis retrieval, or another explicit retrieval scenario type ### Requirement: Retrieval evaluation SHALL run offline against fixtures The evaluator SHALL run without requiring live MySQL, Redis, Milvus, LLM, or Spring Boot services. #### Scenario: Fixture evaluation - **WHEN** the evaluator is run with a golden case file and retrieval fixture directory - **THEN** it SHALL evaluate each case against its matching fixture file - **AND** it SHALL not call external services #### Scenario: Missing fixture is reported - **WHEN** a golden case has no matching retrieval fixture - **THEN** the evaluator SHALL report the case as failed or not run with a clear reason ### Requirement: Retrieval evaluation SHALL classify hit quality The evaluator SHALL classify each case into a deterministic hit level. #### Scenario: Strong hit classification - **WHEN** retrieved candidates include an expected document and satisfy expected breadcrumb or evidence keyword coverage - **THEN** the evaluator SHALL classify the case as `strong` #### Scenario: Medium hit classification - **WHEN** retrieved candidates include an expected document but do not satisfy expected breadcrumb or evidence keyword coverage - **THEN** the evaluator SHALL classify the case as `medium` #### Scenario: Miss classification - **WHEN** retrieved candidates do not include expected documents or expected evidence - **THEN** the evaluator SHALL classify the case as `miss` ### Requirement: Retrieval evaluation SHALL report ranking signals The evaluator SHALL report ranking and aggregate retrieval signals suitable for future regression checks. #### Scenario: Per-case ranking output - **WHEN** a case is evaluated - **THEN** the report SHALL include hit level, first expected document rank when available, top candidate labels, and failed checks #### Scenario: Aggregate metrics output - **WHEN** multiple cases are evaluated - **THEN** the report SHALL include case count, strong hit count, medium hit count, miss count, recall at configured K, and average first hit rank when available ### Requirement: Retrieval evaluation SHALL preserve baseline reports The system SHALL preserve generated baseline reports in JSON and Markdown formats. #### Scenario: Baseline report generation - **WHEN** the baseline evaluator is run for the fixed golden case set - **THEN** it SHALL write a JSON report and a Markdown report under the retrieval evaluation documentation area #### Scenario: Baseline regeneration is documented - **WHEN** a developer changes golden cases, fixtures, or evaluator logic - **THEN** the repository SHALL explain how to regenerate the retrieval baseline reports ### Requirement: Retrieval evaluation SHALL compare current and sidecar retrieval paths The retrieval evaluation system SHALL provide an opt-in comparison between the existing retrieval path and the Spring AI sidecar retrieval path. #### Scenario: Sidecar comparison report - **WHEN** sidecar comparison is run for the golden case set - **THEN** the report SHALL include per-case current-path top candidates and sidecar top candidates - **AND** it SHALL highlight source, breadcrumb, category, rank, and score-label differences #### Scenario: Offline baseline remains unchanged - **WHEN** the fixture-based offline baseline evaluator is run - **THEN** it SHALL not require live Milvus, Spring Boot, or Spring AI sidecar configuration ### Requirement: Retrieval evaluation SHALL make sidecar readiness visible The sidecar comparison report SHALL show whether the Spring AI sidecar was runnable for the current environment. #### Scenario: Sidecar unavailable - **WHEN** sidecar comparison is requested but the sidecar is disabled or unavailable - **THEN** the report SHALL mark sidecar status as unavailable - **AND** it SHALL keep current-path baseline results available for review