diff --git a/clients/web/src/test/core/mcp/listSalvage.test.ts b/clients/web/src/test/core/mcp/listSalvage.test.ts
index a117403b..f547eee0 100644
--- a/clients/web/src/test/core/mcp/listSalvage.test.ts
+++ b/clients/web/src/test/core/mcp/listSalvage.test.ts
@@ -132,6 +132,20 @@ describe("ModernResultEnvelopeSchema", () => {
     ).toBe(true);
   });
 
+  it("requires ttlMs to be a non-negative integer, as the codec does", () => {
+    // A looser `z.number()` would accept `-1` / `0.5`, so a response with a bad
+    // envelope AND one bad entry would salvage and hide the envelope violation.
+    for (const ttlMs of [-1, 0.5]) {
+      expect(
+        ModernResultEnvelopeSchema.safeParse({
+          resultType: "complete",
+          ttlMs,
+          cacheScope: "public",
+        }).success,
+      ).toBe(false);
+    }
+  });
+
   it("rejects a modern result missing the envelope the codec would enforce", () => {
     // The raw-wire salvage path goes around that codec, so a response missing
     // its cache hints AND carrying a bad entry must not salvage.
diff --git a/clients/web/src/test/integration/mcp/listSalvage-era.test.ts b/clients/web/src/test/integration/mcp/listSalvage-era.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..723b47da
--- /dev/null
+++ b/clients/web/src/test/integration/mcp/listSalvage-era.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,214 @@
+import { describe, it, expect, afterEach } from "vitest";
+import {
+  createServer,
+  type IncomingMessage,
+  type Server,
+  type ServerResponse,
+} from "node:http";
+import { InspectorClient } from "@inspector/core/mcp/inspectorClient.js";
+import { createTransportNode } from "@inspector/core/mcp/node/transport.js";
+import { eraToVersionNegotiation } from "@inspector/core/mcp/types.js";
+import { ToolSchema } from "@modelcontextprotocol/core";
+import { toolItemSchemaForEra } from "@inspector/core/mcp/listSalvage.js";
+
+/**
+ * The era item contract the salvage fallback validates tools against (#1909).
+ *
+ * `toolItemSchemaForEra` replicates two rules that live in the SDK's internal
+ * per-era wire schemas, which are not exported. That is a real cost, and these
+ * tests are what makes it safe to pay: each one asserts the STRICT path's
+ * observed behavior on a real connection, so if a future SDK closes or widens a
+ * divergence, the test fails and the replicated rule gets revisited instead of
+ * silently rotting.
+ *
+ * The failure being prevented: the fallback keeping an entry the strict path
+ * refused, which the user would then see — and could call — on a connection
+ * whose era says it isn't valid.
+ */
+
+const ARRAY_OUTPUT_TOOL = {
+  name: "array_output",
+  inputSchema: { type: "object" },
+  outputSchema: { type: "array" },
+};
+
+const EXECUTION_TOOL = {
+  name: "with_execution",
+  inputSchema: { type: "object" },
+  execution: { taskSupport: "optional" },
+};
+
+function startToolsServer(
+  tools: unknown[],
+  modern: boolean,
+): Promise<{ url: string; stop: () => Promise<void> }> {
+  const handler = async (req: IncomingMessage, res: ServerResponse) => {
+    const chunks: Buffer[] = [];
+    for await (const chunk of req) chunks.push(chunk as Buffer);
+    const raw = Buffer.concat(chunks).toString();
+    if (raw.length === 0) {
+      res.writeHead(405).end();
+      return;
+    }
+    const body = JSON.parse(raw) as { id?: unknown; method: string };
+    if (body.id === undefined) {
+      res.writeHead(202).end();
+      return;
+    }
+    const envelope = modern
+      ? { resultType: "complete", ttlMs: 0, cacheScope: "public" }
+      : {};
+    const send = (result: object) => {
+      res.writeHead(200, { "Content-Type": "application/json" });
+      res.end(
+        JSON.stringify({
+          jsonrpc: "2.0",
+          id: body.id,
+          result: { ...envelope, ...result },
+        }),
+      );
+    };
+    if (body.method === "initialize") {
+      send({
+        protocolVersion: modern ? "2026-07-28" : "2025-06-18",
+        capabilities: { tools: {} },
+        serverInfo: { name: "era-contract-server", version: "1.0.0" },
+      });
+      return;
+    }
+    if (body.method === "server/discover") {
+      send({
+        supportedVersions: ["2026-07-28"],
+        capabilities: { tools: {} },
+        serverInfo: { name: "era-contract-server", version: "1.0.0" },
+      });
+      return;
+    }
+    if (body.method === "tools/list") {
+      send({ tools });
+      return;
+    }
+    send({});
+  };
+
+  const server: Server = createServer((req, res) => {
+    void handler(req, res);
+  });
+  return new Promise((resolve) => {
+    server.listen(0, "127.0.0.1", () => {
+      const address = server.address();
+      /* v8 ignore next -- listen() on a fresh server always yields an AddressInfo */
+      const port = typeof address === "object" && address ? address.port : 0;
+      resolve({
+        url: `http://127.0.0.1:${port}/mcp`,
+        stop: () =>
+          new Promise((done) => {
+            server.close(() => done());
+          }),
+      });
+    });
+  });
+}
+
+describe("salvage era item contract (#1909)", () => {
+  let client: InspectorClient | null = null;
+  let stop: (() => Promise<void>) | null = null;
+
+  afterEach(async () => {
+    try {
+      await client?.disconnect();
+    } catch {
+      // Teardown only.
+    }
+    client = null;
+    await stop?.();
+    stop = null;
+  });
+
+  async function connect(url: string, era: "legacy" | "modern") {
+    client = new InspectorClient(
+      { type: "streamable-http", url },
+      {
+        environment: { transport: createTransportNode },
+        versionNegotiation: eraToVersionNegotiation(era),
+      },
+    );
+    await client.connect();
+    return client;
+  }
+
+  it("legacy: the era rule is what rejects a non-object outputSchema (pins it)", async () => {
+    // The rule lives in the SDK's high-level aggregate (the era codec), not in
+    // the neutral schema the single-page call uses — which is precisely the
+    // divergence `toolItemSchemaForEra` exists to close.
+    //
+    // This tool is the page's ONLY problem, so the observable outcome is
+    // entirely the SDK's rule talking: the strict aggregate refuses the page,
+    // the fallback runs, and our contract agrees the tool is not era-valid. If
+    // a future SDK accepts it, the aggregate succeeds instead and this fails —
+    // which is the signal to revisit the replicated rule.
+    const server = await startToolsServer([ARRAY_OUTPUT_TOOL], false);
+    stop = server.stop;
+    const connected = await connect(server.url, "legacy");
+
+    const { tools } = await connected.listAllTools();
+    expect(tools).toEqual([]);
+    expect(
+      connected.getMalformedListItems().map((entry) => entry.label),
+    ).toEqual(["array_output"]);
+  });
+
+  it("modern: the era rule accepts a tool but strips execution (pins it)", async () => {
+    // The mirror image: here the strict aggregate SUCCEEDS, so no salvage runs
+    // and what comes back is the SDK's own normalization. If it ever stops
+    // stripping, `execution` reappears here and this fails.
+    const server = await startToolsServer([EXECUTION_TOOL], true);
+    stop = server.stop;
+    const connected = await connect(server.url, "modern");
+
+    const { tools } = await connected.listAllTools();
+    expect(tools).toHaveLength(1);
+    expect(tools[0]).not.toHaveProperty("execution");
+    expect(connected.getMalformedListItems()).toEqual([]);
+  });
+
+  it("the neutral ToolSchema is looser than both, which is why the contract exists", () => {
+    expect(ToolSchema.safeParse(ARRAY_OUTPUT_TOOL).success).toBe(true);
+    const neutral = ToolSchema.safeParse(EXECUTION_TOOL);
+    expect(neutral.success).toBe(true);
+    expect(neutral.success && neutral.data).toHaveProperty("execution");
+  });
+
+  it("the era contract matches the strict path on both divergences", () => {
+    // Legacy: rejected, exactly as the strict parse above rejected it.
+    expect(
+      toolItemSchemaForEra(false).safeParse(ARRAY_OUTPUT_TOOL).success,
+    ).toBe(false);
+    // Modern: accepted, with `execution` stripped, exactly as above.
+    const modern = toolItemSchemaForEra(true).safeParse(EXECUTION_TOOL);
+    expect(modern.success).toBe(true);
+    expect(modern.success && modern.data).not.toHaveProperty("execution");
+  });
+
+  it("keeps only era-valid tools when salvaging beside a malformed one", async () => {
+    // The end-to-end shape of the defect: a malformed entry trips the
+    // fallback, and the array-output tool must NOT ride along on the strength
+    // of the neutral schema accepting it.
+    const server = await startToolsServer(
+      [
+        { name: "ok_tool", inputSchema: { type: "object" } },
+        ARRAY_OUTPUT_TOOL,
+        { name: "broken", inputSchema: "not-a-schema" },
+      ],
+      false,
+    );
+    stop = server.stop;
+    const connected = await connect(server.url, "legacy");
+
+    const { tools } = await connected.listAllTools();
+    expect(tools.map((tool) => tool.name)).toEqual(["ok_tool"]);
+    expect(
+      connected.getMalformedListItems().map((entry) => entry.label),
+    ).toEqual(["array_output", "broken"]);
+  });
+});
diff --git a/core/mcp/inspectorClient.ts b/core/mcp/inspectorClient.ts
index 90a6c37d..94a1abd2 100644
--- a/core/mcp/inspectorClient.ts
+++ b/core/mcp/inspectorClient.ts
@@ -161,8 +161,8 @@ import {
   ListPromptsResultSchema,
   // Per-primitive item schemas — the salvage fallback validates a list's
   // entries one at a time with these when the whole-result parse rejects
-  // (#1909, see `listAllSalvaging`).
-  ToolSchema,
+  // (#1909, see `listAllSalvaging`). Tools go through `toolItemSchemaForEra`
+  // instead, since the neutral schema is looser than the negotiated era's.
   ResourceSchema,
   ResourceTemplateSchema,
   PromptSchema,
@@ -174,6 +174,7 @@ import { validateToolOutput } from "./toolOutputValidation.js";
 import {
   ModernResultEnvelopeSchema,
   isSalvageableRejection,
+  toolItemSchemaForEra,
   nextCursorOf,
   lenientListPageSchema,
   rawItemsOf,
@@ -3190,7 +3191,9 @@ export class InspectorClient extends InspectorClientEventTarget {
       method: "tools/list",
       itemsKey: "tools",
       resultSchema: ListToolsResultSchema,
-      itemSchema: ToolSchema,
+      // Era-aware: the neutral `ToolSchema` is more permissive than the
+      // negotiated era's wire schema — see `toolItemSchemaForEra`.
+      itemSchema: toolItemSchemaForEra(this.isModernEra()),
       metadata: options?.metadata,
       finalize: (salvaged) => this.excludeInvalidXMcpHeaderTools(salvaged),
       aggregate: async () => [
@@ -3656,7 +3659,7 @@ export class InspectorClient extends InspectorClientEventTarget {
       const { valid, malformed } = salvageListItems({
         method: "tools/list",
         items,
-        schema: ToolSchema,
+        schema: toolItemSchemaForEra(this.isModernEra()),
       });
       if (rejectedResponseId !== undefined && malformed.length > 0) {
         this.dispatchTypedEvent("responseRejected", {
diff --git a/core/mcp/listSalvage.ts b/core/mcp/listSalvage.ts
index 37aeebbe..7c5ab1e4 100644
--- a/core/mcp/listSalvage.ts
+++ b/core/mcp/listSalvage.ts
@@ -25,6 +25,8 @@
 
 import { z } from "zod/v4";
 import { SdkError, SdkErrorCode } from "@modelcontextprotocol/client";
+import { ToolSchema } from "@modelcontextprotocol/core";
+import type { Tool } from "@modelcontextprotocol/client";
 
 /**
  * One entry the Inspector dropped from a list result because it failed the
@@ -140,7 +142,10 @@ export function nextCursorOf(page: unknown): string | undefined {
  */
 export const ModernResultEnvelopeSchema = z.looseObject({
   resultType: z.literal("complete"),
-  ttlMs: z.number(),
+  // A non-negative INTEGER, matching the codec: `ttlMs: -1` or `0.5` is an
+  // envelope violation the strict path rejects, and accepting it here on the
+  // strength of an unrelated bad entry would hide it.
+  ttlMs: z.int().min(0),
   cacheScope: z.enum(["public", "private"]),
 });
 
@@ -261,3 +266,40 @@ export function summarizeMalformed(malformed: MalformedListItem[]): string {
     malformed.length === 1 ? "entry" : "entries"
   } — ${where}: ${first.reason}${rest}`;
 }
+
+/**
+ * The item contract for `tools/list` on a given era.
+ *
+ * The public `ToolSchema` is era-NEUTRAL, and the negotiated era's wire schema
+ * is stricter in ways the SDK does not export. Validating candidates against
+ * the neutral schema alone would let the fallback keep an entry the strict path
+ * refused — an entry the user would then see, and could call, on a connection
+ * whose era says it isn't valid. The two known divergences (verified against
+ * SDK 2.0.0 by `listSalvage-era.test.ts`, which fails if either changes):
+ *
+ * - **legacy (2025)** requires `outputSchema.type === "object"`; the neutral
+ *   schema accepts any object, so a tool with `outputSchema: { type: "array" }`
+ *   would survive salvage while the strict parse rejects the whole page.
+ * - **modern (2026)** deletes `execution`, and the strict path STRIPS it. Left
+ *   in place, a salvaged tool would carry a field the era doesn't have, and the
+ *   UI would render capability the connection can't honor.
+ *
+ * Replicating rules that live in the SDK's internals is a real cost, taken
+ * deliberately: the alternative is a fallback that is quietly more permissive
+ * than the path it stands in for. The tests pin each rule to observed SDK
+ * behavior, so a divergence that closes (or widens) fails loudly rather than
+ * rotting.
+ */
+export function toolItemSchemaForEra(isModern: boolean): z.ZodType<Tool> {
+  if (isModern) {
+    // `execution` is not part of the 2026 wire shape; drop it as the codec does.
+    return ToolSchema.transform((tool) => {
+      if (tool.execution === undefined) return tool;
+      const { execution: _execution, ...rest } = tool;
+      return rest;
+    });
+  }
+  return ToolSchema.extend({
+    outputSchema: z.looseObject({ type: z.literal("object") }).optional(),
+  });
+}