AI_template/.claude/status-update-checklist.md

Status Update Checklist

Instructions for keeping project documentation synchronized when status changes. AI agents and developers should follow this checklist to prevent drift between files.

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When to Use This Checklist

Trigger	Scope
Phase transition (e.g., Phase 0 → Phase 1)	Full checklist — all files
Milestone completed within a phase	Sections 1–3 only
Architecture decision locked	RECOMMENDATIONS.md + new ADR in docs/adr/

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Phase Transition Checklist

Run every item when the project moves to a new phase.

1. RULES.md

• Update section 6.2: change Current phase: Phase N to the new phase

2. README.md

• Update "Current Status" block (phase badge and status line)
• Update footer status line at the bottom of the file

3. DOCS.md

• Update footer: **Last Updated:** Phase N (Description)

4. RECOMMENDATIONS.md

• Update Current phase field in section 1
• Add entry to section 6 (Change Log)

5. docs/phases-plan.md

• Update **Phase:** and **Status:** in the header
• Mark completed phase tasks as done

6. Architecture docs (if phase affects them)

• docs/frontend/architecture.md — lock decisions after Phase 1
• docs/backend/architecture.md — lock decisions after Phase 1
• Archive docs/frontend/FRONTEND_ARCHITECTURE_PLAN.md after Phase 1

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Milestone Update Checklist

Run when a significant milestone is completed within the current phase.

1. RECOMMENDATIONS.md

• Add entry to section 6 (Change Log)
• Update section 5 (Open Questions) — remove resolved items

2. README.md

• Update "Current Status" block if progress indicators changed

3. docs/phases-plan.md

• Mark completed tasks

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Verification

After updating, run these commands to check consistency:

# All files should show the SAME phase number
grep -rn "Phase [0-4]" RULES.md README.md DOCS.md RECOMMENDATIONS.md docs/phases-plan.md

# Check for stale status markers
grep -rn "Status.*Draft\|Status.*WIP\|Status.*Complete" docs/ RECOMMENDATIONS.md

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Principles

• Atomic — all status changes in one commit
• Concrete — update actual sections listed above, not vague references
• Verifiable — run the grep commands to confirm consistency
• Single source of truth — RULES.md section 6.2 is the canonical phase indicator