diff --git a/modules/mesh-delivery-checker/internal/check/examiner_test.go b/modules/mesh-delivery-checker/internal/check/examiner_test.go
index e708dbb..c8f5b13 100644
--- a/modules/mesh-delivery-checker/internal/check/examiner_test.go
+++ b/modules/mesh-delivery-checker/internal/check/examiner_test.go
@@ -180,7 +180,6 @@ func newBench(t testing.TB) *bench {
 	b := &bench{steps: &fakeSteps{}, kept: newMemKV(), prev: newMemKV()}
 	b.fetch = captured[Fetched](t, "go-fetch-clean")
 	b.fetch.Modules, b.fetch.Changed, b.fetch.Trees = []string{"."}, []string{"README.md"}, nil
-	b.fetch.Programs = &[]ProgramFile{} // the build module reports it (issue 1577)
 	one := captured[Digested](t, "go-digest")
 	b.digest = map[string]Digested{
 		delivery.LevelUnit:        {Level: "unit", Packages: map[string]string{"fixture/slow": digA}},
diff --git a/modules/mesh-delivery-checker/internal/check/testdata/captured/README b/modules/mesh-delivery-checker/internal/check/testdata/captured/README
index 58a30ed..253863c 100644
--- a/modules/mesh-delivery-checker/internal/check/testdata/captured/README
+++ b/modules/mesh-delivery-checker/internal/check/testdata/captured/README
@@ -10,7 +10,7 @@ TestFetchWithABaseMergesAndAnswersThePreview and TestFetchWithAConflictEndsPasse
 into a throwaway test that wrote them out, at mesh-catalog feat/r4c5-checker d5804927 (the git commands are the test's fake,
 so the shas are its constants; the shape and the field names are the module's own marshalling). node-fetch-clean.json is the
 FetchResult json.Marshal of mesh-build-node's fetch (fetch.go, preview.go) in its test TestFetchWithABaseMergesAndAnswersThePreview
-(cmd/mesh-build-node/preview_test.go) at the same commit. Captured on 2026-10-21 for issue 1679.
+(cmd/mesh-build-node/preview_test.go) at the same commit. Captured on 2026-10-21 for issue 1679. Both clean fetches carry `"programs":[]`, which a merging fetch of the build modules answers since issue 1577 (mesh-sdk buildstep.MergeInto's Programs), added by hand to the captured bytes: a fixture without it is an older build module's, and its line warns that no compiled program is refused.
 
 forge-get-file-go-mod.json is the answer of the forge's gitea_get_file (mesh-catalog modules/gitea, tools/index.ts) for modules/mesh-delivery-builder/go.mod of
 novox/mesh-delivery at main, and forge-compare-trunk.json the answer of gitea_compare for novox/mesh-sdk base main, head cb54756c3865 (a commit on the
diff --git a/modules/mesh-delivery-checker/internal/check/testdata/captured/go-fetch-clean.json b/modules/mesh-delivery-checker/internal/check/testdata/captured/go-fetch-clean.json
index ce2e947..a87c222 100644
--- a/modules/mesh-delivery-checker/internal/check/testdata/captured/go-fetch-clean.json
+++ b/modules/mesh-delivery-checker/internal/check/testdata/captured/go-fetch-clean.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"workspace":"mvii1iwu5414e4","commit":"0123456789abcdef0123456789abcdef01234567","modules":["."],"base":"abcdef0123456789abcdef0123456789abcdef01","merge":"fedcba9876543210fedcba9876543210fedcba98","changed":["a.go","modules/m/main.go"],"trees":{"modules/m":{"tree":"1111111111111111111111111111111111111111","manifest":"ca3d163bab055381827226140568f3bef7eaac187cebd76878e0b63e9e442356","locks":{"go.sum":"c5fc83c01e92404452b986527d239140ccf9a48b88e0c268fbf38c2e1429e9c9"}}}}
+{"workspace":"mvii1iwu5414e4","commit":"0123456789abcdef0123456789abcdef01234567","modules":["."],"base":"abcdef0123456789abcdef0123456789abcdef01","merge":"fedcba9876543210fedcba9876543210fedcba98","changed":["a.go","modules/m/main.go"],"programs":[],"trees":{"modules/m":{"tree":"1111111111111111111111111111111111111111","manifest":"ca3d163bab055381827226140568f3bef7eaac187cebd76878e0b63e9e442356","locks":{"go.sum":"c5fc83c01e92404452b986527d239140ccf9a48b88e0c268fbf38c2e1429e9c9"}}}}
diff --git a/modules/mesh-delivery-checker/internal/check/testdata/captured/node-fetch-clean.json b/modules/mesh-delivery-checker/internal/check/testdata/captured/node-fetch-clean.json
index 4c8eedb..55ecfec 100644
--- a/modules/mesh-delivery-checker/internal/check/testdata/captured/node-fetch-clean.json
+++ b/modules/mesh-delivery-checker/internal/check/testdata/captured/node-fetch-clean.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"workspace":"mvii1sxt979f67","commit":"0123456789abcdef0123456789abcdef01234567","modules":["modules/m"],"installed":[],"refused":[],"base":"abcdef0123456789abcdef0123456789abcdef01","merge":"0123456789abcdef0123456789abcdef01234567","changed":["modules/m/package.json"],"trees":{"modules/m":{"tree":"0123456789abcdef0123456789abcdef01234567","manifest":"0581b699d9d05517e69b21f5cedbeb2eee8aba2b205280b561be731594d7feef"}}}
+{"workspace":"mvii1sxt979f67","commit":"0123456789abcdef0123456789abcdef01234567","modules":["modules/m"],"installed":[],"refused":[],"base":"abcdef0123456789abcdef0123456789abcdef01","merge":"0123456789abcdef0123456789abcdef01234567","changed":["modules/m/package.json"],"programs":[],"trees":{"modules/m":{"tree":"0123456789abcdef0123456789abcdef01234567","manifest":"0581b699d9d05517e69b21f5cedbeb2eee8aba2b205280b561be731594d7feef"}}}