2.14 Abandon

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msg_type = 0x0004. Authority to source. No fields beyond the header.

Tells a source that a conversation will not continue: the client hung up, a limit was reached, or the authority terminated the logon for reasons of its own.

2.14.1 Why it exists #

Without it, a client that disconnects mid-prompt leaves the source holding conversation state forever. A source cannot detect this for itself — it is not party to the client's connection — so the authority has to say.

2.14.2 Rules #

  1. An authority MUST send Abandon for any conversation it opened that will not reach a terminal state, unless the connection itself is being torn down.
  2. A source MUST discard all state for the conversation on receipt, and MUST NOT reply.
  3. Abandon is not a terminal message from the source, and no Assertion or Refusal follows it. If one arrives anyway, the authority MUST ignore it — the conversation is gone, and a late answer to an abandoned question is at best stale.
  4. A source that receives Abandon for a conversation it does not know MUST ignore it. It has already cleaned up, which is the outcome the message wanted.

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