How Scanners Combine Into a Single DriftScore

A single Vibgrate scan runs many scanners, and their results combine into one DriftScore from 0 to 100. This article explains how the individual scanners roll up into that number and how to move between the headline score and the detailed findings. It is for anyone who wants to understand what the score actually represents.

What the DriftScore is

The DriftScore is a 0-100 metric that summarizes your project's upgrade drift — how far it has slipped from a healthy, current, low-risk state. A higher-risk project drifts further. The score is the headline output of a scan; the scanners are the inputs that produce it.

How the scanners contribute

Each scanner examines a different dimension of your project and contributes signal to the overall picture:

• Dependency Risk, Dependency Graph, and Breaking Change Exposure capture supply-chain and upgrade risk.
• Tooling Inventory, Build & Deploy, and Platform Matrix capture your stack and delivery surface.
• TypeScript Modernity, Architecture Layers, Code Quality, and File Hotspots capture structural and configuration posture.
• Security Posture, Security Scanners, OWASP Category Mapping, and Service Dependencies capture security and external risk.

Together they produce a balanced view, so the DriftScore reflects more than just outdated dependencies. A single dimension cannot dominate the number unfairly, and improving any dimension moves the score in the right direction.

Why one number helps

A single score is what makes drift trackable. It gives teams a target, lets leaders compare projects, and turns "are we getting better?" into a measurable trend. The number never replaces the findings — it points you toward them. You drill from the score into the per-scanner detail to decide what to fix first.

How to use it

Run a scan and read the score and the findings beneath it:

vg

To turn the score into a quality gate, set a drift budget so the scan fails when drift exceeds your threshold:

vg scan --drift-budget 60

To track the score over time across your team, push results to Vibgrate Cloud:

vg scan --push

Triage tips

• Use the score for trend and comparison; use the findings for action.
• Set a drift budget you can hold today, then ratchet it down over time.
• When the score moves, read which scanner's findings changed to understand why.

Related

See the DriftScore explainer for risk levels, Drift Baselines for delta gating, and the Extended Scanners Overview for the full scanner set. Each scanner has its own deep-dive article.