Building a cTrader cBot or indicator often starts with a simple idea. As development progresses, new features are added, requirements change, and the project can grow beyond the original specification.
One of the biggest challenges for traders and developers is knowing whether the final code actually matches the intended functionality. To help with this, Xen AI now includes a new Requirements Validation feature.
This tool compares your requirements directly against the latest generated code and produces a validation report showing what has been implemented, what may be missing, and where potential issues exist.
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Why Requirements Validation Matters
Many development issues are not caused by coding errors. Instead, they occur because a feature was never implemented, was only partially implemented, or behaves differently from its original intent.
This is common when additional features are added over time, multiple revisions have been made, existing code has been modified repeatedly, or complex trading logic has evolved during the project.
In these situations, it becomes difficult to manually verify every requirement against hundreds or even thousands of lines of code. Requirements Validation automates this review process.
How It Works
After generating code in Xen, click the Validate Requirements button. A validation window opens where you can paste the original requirements, updated specification, feature requests, trading rules, design notes, or scope changes.
Xen compares the supplied requirements against the current cTrader code and performs a detailed analysis. The system uses GPT 5.3 Codex to review both the requirements and the source code before producing a structured validation report.
What Xen Checks
Implemented Features
Xen identifies requirements that appear to have been fully implemented and match the supplied specification.
Partial Implementations
Features that exist but may be incomplete are highlighted for review.
Missing Requirements
If a requirement cannot be found within the source code, Xen flags it as missing.
Logic Issues
Xen can identify situations where the code appears to behave differently from the stated requirement.
Trading Risks
Potential risks such as missing protections, incomplete validation, or unexpected trading behaviour are highlighted for further investigation.
Typical Use Cases
Requirements Validation is useful for a wide range of cTrader development projects, including cBots, indicators, trading panels, market dashboards, and existing projects that have been changed over time.
For cBots, it can help verify that entry rules, exit rules, filters, risk management, and position handling have been implemented correctly. For indicators, it can confirm that calculations, alerts, visual outputs, and parameter handling match the intended specification.
It is also useful for trading panels and dashboards where button actions, interface behaviour, displayed values, and workflow rules need to match the requested design.
Benefits for Traders
Using Requirements Validation before testing can save development time and reduce avoidable revisions. Instead of discovering missing functionality after a lengthy backtest or live trial, traders can verify the implementation before moving to the next stage.
- Identify missing features earlier.
- Reduce unnecessary revisions.
- Improve code quality.
- Catch implementation gaps before testing.
- Improve confidence before deployment.
Recommended Workflow
For best results, use Requirements Validation as part of the normal Xen development process. Build or modify your cTrader project, verify that the code compiles successfully, then validate the requirements before backtesting.
- Build or modify your cBot or indicator.
- Verify the code compiles successfully.
- Run Requirements Validation.
- Review the validation report.
- Apply any recommended improvements.
- Backtest the strategy.
- Use Xen Backtest Analysis for performance review.
Final Thoughts
Requirements Validation adds another layer of quality control to the Xen AI workflow. Rather than relying only on manual code reviews or memory of previous feature requests, traders can now check that their cTrader projects align with their intended requirements before investing time in optimisation, backtesting, or live deployment.
For larger projects with evolving specifications, this can significantly reduce development errors and improve overall project quality.
