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Definition of Done

SDLC Gate: Before merge / release
Version: 1.1 | Updated: 2026-07-16

Purpose

A change is done only when it is correct, safe, observable, reversible, and evidenced — not when the agent stopped typing.

Rule

Unchecked items block merge. Production release may impose a stricter subset (see Deployment checklist).

Checklist

Correctness

  • Every acceptance criterion has a verifying test or explicit manual protocol
  • Edge/failure cases from the story are handled
  • Diff matches the approved plan (or an approved plan revision exists)
  • No known Sev-1/Sev-2 defects open on this change

Quality

  • Automated tests required by the plan are green
  • Types / linters clean for touched packages
  • No secrets, prod dumps, or credentials in the diff
  • Dead code and debug probes removed

Security and data

  • AuthZ checked on new/changed endpoints and tools
  • User input reaching models is treated as untrusted data
  • PII / secrets not logged
  • Migrations are expand/contract safe or have an approved break window

Operability

  • Rollback tested or rehearsed for the release class
  • Metrics / traces / logs sufficient to detect the failure modes in the plan
  • Runbook or PR notes cover blast radius and abort criteria
  • Feature flag / canary plan present when risk warrants it

Knowledge

  • Docs / OpenAPI / ADRs updated when contracts change
  • Changelog entry present for user-visible or ops-visible changes
  • AI prompts/skills/agents touched are versioned with the change

Human gates

  • Required reviews complete (code + security/architecture when triggered)
  • Approver recorded for high-risk or AI-planned work

Exit artifact

Done: YES | NO
PR: <id>
Plan conformance: YES | DELTA <link>
Tests: <link or CI run>
Rollback: <link or steps>
Approver: <name>  Date: <ISO date>

Anti-patterns

Anti-pattern Why it fails
“Tests will come in a follow-up” Follow-ups evaporate; DoD is the gate
Done because the demo worked once Demo ≠ regression protection
Agent said LGTM Agents do not approve their own work
Docs TBD Contract changes without docs are incomplete
Version: AIES v1.0.0✏️ Edit this page on GitHub
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