Verification

Verification Before Completion

The Iron Law

NO COMPLETION CLAIMS WITHOUT FRESH VERIFICATION EVIDENCE

If you haven't run the verification command in this message, you cannot claim it passes.

The Gate Function

BEFORE claiming any status or expressing satisfaction:

1. IDENTIFY: What command proves this claim?
2. RUN: Execute the FULL command (fresh, complete)
3. READ: Full output, check exit code, count failures
4. VERIFY: Does output confirm the claim?
   - If NO: State actual status with evidence
   - If YES: State claim WITH evidence
5. ONLY THEN: Make the claim

Skip any step = lying, not verifying

What Each Claim Requires

Claim	Requires	Not Sufficient
"Tests pass"	Test command output: 0 failures	Previous run, "should pass"
"Linter clean"	Linter output: 0 errors	Partial check, extrapolation
"Build succeeds"	Build command: exit 0	Linter passing, "looks good"
"Bug fixed"	Test original symptom: passes	Code changed, assumed fixed
"Regression test works"	Red-green cycle verified	Test passes once
"Requirements met"	Line-by-line checklist	Tests passing
"E2E coverage"	npx playwright test output: 0 failures	"Playwright not installed", unit tests only

E2E Gate (when invoked from /start)

If this verification was triggered by the /start pipeline, you MUST verify that Playwright E2E tests exist and pass:

npx playwright test

If this command fails because Playwright is not installed or no E2E tests exist, verification FAILS. Go back to Step 5 of /start and do the work. Do not rationalize skipping E2E.

Test Proportionality Check

Before claiming completion, assess whether tests are proportional to the code you shipped.

For each piece of production code, identify its test:

Production code you wrote	Required test (AT MINIMUM)
API route handler (GET/POST/PUT/DELETE)	Integration test or E2E that calls the route, checks status + body
UI component with interactions (>50 lines)	E2E that clicks/types/drags and verifies outcomes
Bug fix (any)	Regression test that reproduces the original symptom
Navigation change (sidebar, mobile nav, routes)	E2E that clicks nav item and verifies destination
Extracted helper/utility	Unit test — BUT the feature using it also needs its own test
State management / data flow change	Test through the UI or API that triggers the flow

Proportionality failures (verification MUST fail if any apply):

• 200+ lines of UI code shipped with 0 component/E2E tests covering interactions
• API routes shipped with only input-validation helper tests (route handler itself untested)
• Bug fix shipped without a regression test reproducing the original symptom
• Navigation added/changed without an E2E test clicking the nav and verifying the destination
• "All N tests pass" where N hasn't increased despite new production code

The check: Look at git diff --stat for the work being verified. For every production file changed, point to the test that covers it. If you can't → verification FAILS.

When proportionality fails, route back explicitly:

What's missing	Go to	Then
Integration test for API route	/start Step 4 — write it with /tdd (red→green)	Re-run /verification from the top
E2E test for UI/nav/workflow	/start Step 5 — write it with /e2e-playwright	Re-run /verification from the top
Regression test for bug fix	/start Step 4 — write it with /tdd (red→green)	Re-run /verification from the top

After ANY loop-back: Re-run the FULL gate function (identify → run → read → verify). Do not skip re-verification. Do not assume the new test fixed everything — run ALL tests and re-check ALL proportionality. Partial re-checks prove nothing.

Patterns

Tests:

✅ [Run test command] [See: 34/34 pass] "All tests pass"
❌ "Should pass now" / "Looks correct"

Regression tests (TDD Red-Green):

✅ Write → Run (pass) → Revert fix → Run (MUST FAIL) → Restore → Run (pass)
❌ "I've written a regression test" (without red-green verification)

Build:

✅ [Run build] [See: exit 0] "Build passes"
❌ "Linter passed" (linter doesn't check compilation)

Requirements:

✅ Re-read plan → Create checklist → Verify each → Report gaps or completion
❌ "Tests pass, phase complete"

Red Flags — STOP

• Using "should", "probably", "seems to"
• Expressing satisfaction before verification ("Great!", "Perfect!", "Done!")
• About to commit/push/PR without verification
• Trusting agent success reports without independent verification
• ANY wording implying success without having run verification

Rationalization Prevention

Excuse	Reality
"Should work now"	RUN the verification
"I'm confident"	Confidence ≠ evidence
"Just this once"	No exceptions
"Linter passed"	Linter ≠ tests ≠ build
"Agent said success"	Verify independently
"Partial check is enough"	Partial proves nothing

The Bottom Line

Run the command. Read the output. THEN claim the result.

This is non-negotiable.