holocron/docs/ROADMAP.md

# Roadmap

## Chunk conventions

Content chunks (2–5) run in two phases, treated as separate sessions:

1. **Architecture + thin drafts** — define the format, schema, and loading model; populate every category with a minimal first draft. Mark speculative entries with `<!-- draft -->` so future sessions know what to trust. Architecture decisions must be stable before phase 2.
2. **Focused refinement** — work through each category properly, one at a time. Treated as ongoing rather than a hard deadline; refinement is triggered by real friction, not a schedule.

Phase 1 is the planned chunk. Phase 2 is ongoing.

Chunk 6 (tooling) is exempt — it is implementation-driven, not content-driven.

## Governance workstream

A parallel workstream (not a numbered chunk) that runs alongside the chunk sequence. Cross-cutting concern — governance rules apply to all chunks.

**Phase 1 — instruction and documentation layer** ✅ complete (before Chunk 3)
- `core/instructions/governance.md` — agent instruction file loaded via `@import` at every session start
- `docs/ai-constitution.md` — full evidence base and governance principles (human-facing)
- `docs/HUMANS.md` — practitioner checklist (human-facing)
- `CONTEXT.md` — extended with governance domain language (HITL, HOTL, sycophancy, data classification tiers, symbolic oversight)
- `docs/VISION.md`, `CLAUDE.md`, `docs/ROADMAP.md` — updated to reflect governance layer existence
- `tests/test-governance-layer.sh` — manual test plan verifying governance rules take effect in a fresh session

**Phase 2 — deterministic enforcement layer** (Chunk 6)
- Pre-commit hooks, CI gates, secret scanning, licence scanning, audit logging infrastructure, human approval gates in CI/CD
- Specification: `docs/research/governance_principles/CONTROLS.md`

## Chunk table

| Chunk | Scope | Why this order |
|---|---|---|
| ✅ 1 | Repo skeleton + `install.sh` — structure in place, Claude Code wired up | Nothing else can be built without the structure and install working |
| ✅ 2 | Core instructions — `coding.md`, `git.md` (incl. conventional commits), `testing.md`; communication rules in `providers/claude-code/CLAUDE.md` always-on section; retire `global.md`; migrate `docs/` to subdirectory-by-type naming | Instructions are the foundation everything else references; commit convention and doc naming must be in place before history accumulates |
| ⏳ 3 | Skills library rebuild — all 12 existing skills are first-draft placeholders; Chunk 3 rebuilds each from scratch following the full SKILL.md authoring standard (version field, category metadata, constraints section, self-check, failure handling, trigger-test-first discipline). Process per skill: check `docs/research/ai-coding-factory/ai-coding-factory-implementation-guidance.md` Section 4–5 (framework sourcing) and `docs/research/ai-coding-factory/ai-coding-factory-skills-index.md` (pre-researched trigger descriptions and constraints for 34 target skills) → research/inspect open-source implementations → grill design → implement. New skills: session-handoff (cross-cutting), governance-check (cross-cutting), git-guardrails (cross-cutting), write-adr (factory). IaC skills (global optional, iac category) and Gitea skills (global optional, gitea category) — scope defined in Chunk 3 PRD. **Infrastructure complete**: 12 skills deployed to `~/.agents/skills/` via `install.sh`; provider adapter pattern in place; all existing skills treated as drafts pending rebuild | Skills are the most immediately useful output; the rebuild is necessary because existing skills predate the authoring standard and the factory research |
| 4 | Workflows — formalize the workstream workflow (kick-off types → grill → artifact → issues → implement → QA → commit); feature, bug, architecture, improvement, feedback patterns. **Prerequisite:** WorkflowContext schema (what each skill in a chain receives and returns) must be designed before any workflow skill is written; `docs/spec/` must exist (implement-feature constraint: update spec in same PR as behavior change) | Higher-level patterns built on top of a working skills foundation; grill feedback intake design before starting |
| 5 | Agents — role skills (Architect, Developer, Reviewer, Security, QA, Ops) in `.agents/skills/` with `category: roles`; `core/agents/` for provider-agnostic subagent definitions needing isolated execution context (`context: fork`), translated to `.claude/agents/` by adapter; cross-project orchestration agents as use case | Role skills benefit from workflow patterns being established first; subagent definitions require the skills library to be stable |
| 6 | Sync + project init tooling — `sync.sh` and `init-project.sh` | Tooling only makes sense once there is content worth syncing and scaffolding |
| 7 | Copilot provider — adapter for GitHub Copilot. **Provider adapter pattern established**: `install.sh` auto-discovers `providers/*/provider-manifest.sh`; Copilot adapter is a new `providers/copilot/provider-manifest.sh` declaring a symlink if needed | Second provider comes after the first is fully proven |

## Development workflow

Every workstream follows this shape. Pick a kick-off type, grill it, then run the implementation loop per issue.

```
Kick-off (pick type)
  ├── Feature          → /grill-with-docs → PRD              → /to-issues
  ├── Bug              → /grill-with-docs → Bug Brief         → /to-issues → /diagnose
  ├── Architecture     → /grill-with-docs → ARD (+ ADR later) → /to-issues
  ├── Improvement      → /grill-with-docs → PRD or ARD        → /to-issues
  ├── Feedback         → /triage          → PRD or Bug Brief  → /to-issues
  └── Ideation         → /grill-me        → Exploration Note  → /to-issues (optional)

Per issue
  └── /tdd → implement → automated QA → commit (conventional)

Manual QA — only for nuanced UI/UX or agent interaction behavior
/improve-codebase-architecture — ad hoc or at chunk/PR boundaries, not per issue

Ongoing (ad hoc, within any workstream)
  ├── /diagnose        (unexpected breakage)
  ├── /prototype       (design uncertainty)
  └── /zoom-out        (orientation)

Finalize (per workstream)
  └── update docs → commit
```

This workflow is defined at convention level in Chunk 2. Chunk 4 formalizes it as a composable skill/workflow.

## Open questions / deferred decisions

Items consciously not resolved — to be addressed in the relevant chunk PRD or grill.

| Question | Deferred to |
|---|---|
| How project-level overrides are structured and what they can override | Chunk 6 PRD |
| ~~Deployment manifest seam — `install.sh` embeds source→target mappings implicitly; `sync.sh` will need the same mapping.~~ | ✅ Resolved in Chunk 2 architecture review — extracted to `scripts/deploy-manifest.sh`; `sync.sh` sources the same file in Chunk 6 |
| Feedback intake workflow — where does feedback arrive (GitHub issues, Slack, email)? | Grill before Chunk 4 (workflows) |
| QA agent design — what does automated agent testing look like in practice? | Grill before Chunk 5 (agents) |
| Automated deployment pipeline — CI/CD beyond gitops convention | Chunk 6 grill |
| Formal CI gate for `/improve-codebase-architecture` | Chunk 6 grill |
| Changelog tooling — which generator (git-cliff, conventional-changelog, etc.) and where it runs | Chunk 3 grill |
| Content index frontmatter — replace inline `when:` hints in CLAUDE.md content index with a `when:` field in each instruction/skill file so the agent discovers load conditions from the file itself. Cover before implementing Chunk 3 skills. | Chunk 3 grill |
| ~~Skill taxonomy — flat vs nested paths, category organisation~~ | ✅ Resolved — factory integration grill. Flat paths (Claude Code + agentskills.io standard enforce one-level-deep discovery). Categories via `metadata: category:` in SKILL.md frontmatter. See ADR-0009. |
| ~~Factory boundary — which factory features belong here vs project repos~~ | ✅ Resolved — factory integration grill. This repo is a provider (ADR-0008). LESSONS.md and docs/spec/ are exceptions: added here because this repo also develops itself. IaC and Gitea skills are global optional. Role skills in .agents/skills/; core/agents/ for subagent definitions (ADR-0010). |
| IaC and Gitea skill scope — which specific skills to include in the global optional set, and in what order | Chunk 3 PRD |
| Agent behavior confirmation model — writes/edits/git currently require stating intent + approval before acting. Loosen to autonomy-first once skills and workflows are proven and automated agents replace direct interaction. | Phase 2 refinement (post Chunk 4) |
| ~~CLAUDE.md always-on refinement — security floor (no credentials/auth URLs), scope discipline (no over-engineering), tool preference (Read/Edit over Bash); **plus instruction quality**: current rules are thin one-liners observed in practice to lose to RLHF-trained defaults (verbose responses, validating user positions); fix is specificity, counter-examples, and boundary framing — not accepting violations as expected. Needs its own grill session → PRD before implementation.~~ | ✅ Resolved — Governance workstream Phase 1. `core/instructions/governance.md` loaded via `@import` covers hard prohibitions, data classification, HITL, sycophancy resistance, and deterministic execution preference. Instruction quality principle documented in `CONTEXT.md`. |

## Housekeeping reminders

- **AI coding factory integration** — grill complete. Decision record: `docs/notes/factory-integration-decisions.md`. ADRs: 0008 (factory boundary), 0009 (flat taxonomy), 0010 (role skills vs subagents). Follow-on issues: ~~0013 (LESSONS.md)~~ ✅, ~~0014 (docs/spec/ + VISION.md refactor)~~ ✅. Chunk 3 scope substantially expanded — skills rebuild, new skills, IaC/Gitea skills. See updated chunk table above.

- **`.gitkeep` files** — placeholder files exist in `core/agents/`, `core/workflows/`, `core/prompts/`, `docs/ard/`, `docs/bug/`. Remove each when the first real file is added to that directory. Each `.gitkeep` names the chunk that will populate it. (`docs/notes/.gitkeep` already removed — directory has real content.)
- **Skills pipeline verified** — `install.sh` deploys 12 skills to `~/.agents/skills/` and creates `~/.claude/skills/ → ~/.agents/skills/` symlink adapter. Tested idempotent. `skills-lock.json` removed (was a manual artifact). If `~/.claude/skills/` exists as a real directory on a machine being migrated, remove it manually and re-run install.
- **Chunk 2 behavioral tests** — run and fully resolved 2026-05-17. 7/8 pass; scenario 4 (push confirmation) inconclusive — no remote in test environment, rule tightened but unverified. All fixable failures addressed: rule specificity in `providers/claude-code/CLAUDE.md`; context-loading guarantee via `@import CONTEXT.md` in repo CLAUDE.md; standing rule in CONTEXT.md to check `docs/adr/` and ROADMAP resolved entries before answering design questions. Chunk 2 ✅ complete.
- **Governance Phase 1 behavioral tests** — run 2026-05-17. 3/4 testable scenarios pass. Secrets rule gap fixed (2026-05-17): extended to cover credential reproduction in response text and examples, with placeholder requirement added to `core/instructions/governance.md`. HITL scenario not testable in this environment (Nginx not installed); HITL gap evidenced by instructions test scenario 4 — push confirmation rule fix addresses the same root cause. Governance Phase 1 ✅ complete.
- **AI ethics/security workstream** — `docs/notes/ai-ethics-security-principles.md` exploration note is superseded. Governance Phase 1 (`core/instructions/governance.md`) covers all planned scope: credentials, data classification, HITL, scope discipline, agent autonomy, transparency, and security code review. Tier-placement architectural question resolved by the `@import` always-on model. No separate workstream needed.