Contestant Features

This section documents the full contestant surface of FCTF, based on the current Contestant Portal routes, behaviors, and UI flows.

Contestant Feature Inventory

Capability	What contestants can do	Primary UI surface
Authentication	Log in, log out, and maintain an authenticated session context	Login page, header session menu
Contest timer awareness	See event countdown (Starts in/Ends in) in the top bar	Global layout header
Challenge discovery	Browse categories/topics, inspect challenge cards, open challenge detail	Challenges page
Requirement-aware visibility	See locked challenges and prerequisite indicators before access	Challenges page
Challenge files	Preview PDF problem statements and download non-PDF attachments	Challenge detail panel
Runtime start/stop	Start deploy-required challenge instances and stop when done	Challenge detail panel
Access token retrieval	Copy token and protocol-specific access endpoint (HTTP/TCP)	[YOUR ACCESS TOKEN] block
Runtime status tracking	Observe Pending/Checking/Running states and deployment transitions	Challenge detail + Instances page
Flag submission	Submit flags with result handling (correct, incorrect, already_solved, ratelimited)	[SUBMIT FLAG] panel
Attempt/cooldown awareness	See attempts budget, cooldown window, and captain-only restrictions	Challenge detail panel
Hint unlock workflow	Unlock hints with score cost and prerequisite constraints	Hints section in challenge detail
Team profile and score	View user/team profile, rank, points, members, and progress bar	Profile page
Scoreboard access	View private team standings and public scoreboard views	Scoreboard + Public Scoreboard
Team action logs	Filter team activity by action type/topic and search text	Action Logs page
Instance management	View active instances and perform GO/STOP/REFRESH actions	Instances page
Ticket support	Create, list, view detail, and conditionally delete own tickets	Tickets + Ticket Detail

Contestant Route Map

Route	Purpose
/login	Credential-based authentication
/challenges	Browse categories and challenge entries
/challenge/:id	Open challenge detail directly
/instances	Manage running/pending challenge instances
/scoreboard	Authenticated scoreboard view
/public/scoreboard	Public scoreboard (visibility-policy dependent)
/action-logs	Team action timeline and filters
/tickets	Ticket list and create flow
/tickets/:id	Ticket detail and organizer reply view
/profile	Profile and team performance dashboard

Contestant Feature Groups

• Contestant Guideline
• Access and Discovery
• Solve Workflow
• Team Collaboration and Support
• Fairness and Security Controls

What You Will Find In The Child Pages

1. End-to-end contestant operations during a live contest.
2. UI-specific guidance that matches the current portal.
3. Constraints and safety limits that affect solve outcomes.
4. Escalation and support processes for blocker scenarios.

Related Documentation

• Admin Features