CycloneDX 2.0 - Constrain Properties to Applicable Types #638
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Description
Problem
In CycloneDX 1.x, several properties are loosely defined and may appear on types where they are semantically invalid. For example:
cryptoPropertiesis intended only for cryptographic assets (e.g. cryptographic libraries, keys, algorithms), but is currently allowed on anycomponent.modelCard,evaluationMeasures, and other AI/ML-specific metadata may appear on non-AI components.
This flexibility was useful during schema evolution, but introduces:
- Semantic ambiguity
- Inconsistent SBOM usage
- Misleading tool or ecosystem behavior
Goal for 2.0
Enforce contextual constraints on properties by:
- Restricting
cryptoPropertiesto cryptographic asset types (e.g.library,firmware,machine-learning-model, etc.) - Limiting AI/ML-specific fields (
modelCard,evaluationMeasures,datasets, etc.) to components oftype: machine-learning-model - This ticket is not limited to
cryptoPropertiesormodelCardand may be applicable to other properties in v1.6 or which will be introduced in v1.7.
Proposal
Update the CycloneDX 2.0 schema to:
- Apply
oneOforif/then/elseconstraints where schema logic permits - Scope optional fields to valid
component.typeorservice.categoryvalues
As written, this is not a breaking change and the documentation in the current specification clearly states the purpose and when to use these properties. This ticket is for the enforcement of that behavior through minor changes in schema structure.
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jkowalleck commentedon Aug 15, 2026
i have a different approach: create a
baseCompoentn, have special component types inheriting from it,have the
componentbe aoneOfof these special component types.see #1024
Your current approach makes the spec messy with all those constraints glued on the thing.
Better give them names and extend from a base, instead of using conditional restrictions.