[Feature] Add --dry-run flag to humane-proxy start

[gautamapurva]

hey @Vishisht16 ,
Operators have no way to validate a full deployment config before going live. A --dry-run flag on humane-proxy start should: parse humane_proxy.yaml, verify Stage 3 API keys with a lightweight probe, send a test ping to configured webhooks, and print the resolved active pipeline config — then exit without binding a port. Lives depend on correct configuration; this makes misconfiguration visible before it matters.

[Vishisht16]

@gautamapurva thanks for the suggestion. A validation idea is reasonable but a couple things don't fit here. You can't really send actual webshook pings or probe LLM APIs for a 'dry run' since there is actual cost associated with it.
I think a good dry run flag could parse and validate the schema of humane_proxy.yaml and check for API keys when stage 3 is enabled and then print the resolved config.

First, may I know if you're a GSSoC contributor wanting to work on this?

[gautamapurva]

"Hi @Vishisht16, thanks for the feedback! That makes perfect sense—avoiding unnecessary API costs and external dependencies for a dry-run is the right approach for maintaining a lightweight tool.

I’ve updated my plan to focus exclusively on:
Schema Validation: Parsing humane_proxy.yaml against a Pydantic model to ensure all required fields are present and correctly typed.
Environment Check: verifying that essential environment variables (like API keys when Stage 3 is enabled) are present.
Config Resolution: Printing the fully resolved configuration to the console so the operator can verify their settings before startup.
This approach keeps the command fast and zero-cost, effectively catching misconfigurations before they reach the runtime environment.

Yes, I am participating in GSSOC and would love to work on this issue! If you're happy with this scoped-down approach, I’ll get started on the implementation."

[Vishisht16]

@gautamapurva are you using AI to write your responses?

[aanyabansal-22]

Hi maintainer,

I would like to work on this issue under GSSoC'26 if it is available.

Planned fix:
• Add a --dry-run flag to humane-proxy start.
• Validate the humane_proxy.yaml configuration.
• Check for required API keys/environment variables when Stage 3 is enabled.
• Display the resolved configuration and validation results.
• Exit without starting the proxy or binding any ports.

Please assign this issue to me if it's unassigned. Thank you!