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Delivery Harness Framework / DHF Lifecycle Flow

DHF Lifecycle Flow from intake to handoff.

Use this Flow Map after the beginner guide. It shows how delivery-harness-framework selects a governance profile and routes requirements, implementation, verification evidence, review, release, and conditional recovery or handoff.

Lifecycle Flow

Flow Map

Recover / Env / Checkpoint are conditional nodes. Only governed work with a matching escalation signal runs harness_recover.py, harness_env_probe.py, or harness_checkpoint.py; light does not require those helpers.

flowchart TD
  Start(["User request enters DHF"])
  ProfileDecision{"Does the selected profile require governed recovery?"}
  Recover["Governed matching signal only
harness_recover.py"]
  Env["Governed matching signal only
harness_env_probe.py"]
  Clear{"Are goal, scope,
and acceptance clear?"}
  Req["Requirements
planner / req-to-dev
CONTEXT / ADR"]
  ReqValidate["Validate requirements artifact
harness_requirements.py"]
  Specialist{"Does this request need
specialist judgment?"}
  Product["Product judgment
plan CEO review / office hours"]
  Plan["Planning
vertical slice / AFK / HITL"]
  Prototype["Prototype learning / deep module review"]
  Security["Security or privacy boundary
CSO / security reviewer"]
  Multi{"Multiple agents?"}
  Team["Validate agent team
durable brief when needed"]
  Dev["Implementation
TDD / ATDD / scoped workers"]
  Verify["Verification evidence
command, exit_code,
key_output, timestamp"]
  EvidenceReport["Evidence report
harness_report.py"]
  Visible{"User-visible or
browser-related?"}
  Browser["Browser QA
QA or QA-only"]
  Ready{"Ready to deliver?"}
  Review["QA / security / review
gstack-qa / gstack-cso / gstack-review"]
  Ship["Ship / deploy / canary
gstack-ship / land-and-deploy"]
  Docs["Docs release
document-release / doc-updater"]
  Handoff["Governed matching signal only
harness_checkpoint.py append"]
  Done(["DHF output
route, evidence, next safe task"])
  Danger["Blocked
credentials, authority, destructive risk, or leakage"]

  Start --> ProfileDecision
  ProfileDecision -- "governed matching signal" --> Recover --> Env --> Clear
  ProfileDecision -- "light/standard skip Recover / Env" --> Clear
  Clear -- "No" --> Req --> ReqValidate --> Specialist
  Clear -- "Yes" --> Specialist
  Specialist -- "Product" --> Product --> Multi
  Specialist -- "Engineering or design" --> Plan --> Prototype --> Multi
  Specialist -- "Security" --> Security --> Multi
  Specialist -- "No specialist" --> Multi
  Multi -- "Yes" --> Team --> Dev
  Multi -- "No" --> Dev
  Dev --> Verify --> EvidenceReport --> Visible
  Visible -- "Yes" --> Browser --> Ready
  Visible -- "No" --> Ready
  Ready -- "Review" --> Review --> Handoff
  Ready -- "Ship or deploy" --> Ship --> Docs --> Handoff
  Ready -- "Handoff only" --> Handoff
  Handoff --> Done
  Env -. "Unavailable or missing" .-> Danger
  Security -. "High risk" .-> Danger
  Ship -. "No authority" .-> Danger
  Danger --> Handoff

  classDef runtime fill:#e9f7f5,stroke:#0f9b8e,color:#17241f;
  classDef decision fill:#f0eaff,stroke:#8a4fff,color:#17241f;
  classDef build fill:#fbf0dc,stroke:#b26a00,color:#17241f;
  classDef verify fill:#eaf6f0,stroke:#12805c,color:#17241f;
  classDef ship fill:#faeaf1,stroke:#d13574,color:#17241f;

  class Recover,Env,ReqValidate,Team,EvidenceReport,Handoff runtime;
  class ProfileDecision,Clear,Specialist,Multi,Visible,Ready decision;
  class Req,Plan,Prototype,Dev build;
  class Verify,Review,Docs,Browser verify;
  class Ship ship;
Stage and skill routing

Route each request to one lifecycle owner.

This summary comes from the canonical Lifecycle Stage Map. The dedicated Skill Routing Diagram remains the detailed visual view.

Research and requirements

Unknown state routes through durable-source recovery; unclear goals, scope, acceptance, or domain language route to requirements.

Planning and development

Architecture and multi-step work produce a plan and vertical slices before bounded implementation begins.

Validation and review

Implemented work produces fresh evidence, then receives QA, security, and diff review appropriate to its risks.

Ship and handoff

Only requested release actions enter ship; resumable state is appended when a governed handoff signal requires it.
Runtime helper summary

Helpers execute bounded lifecycle duties.

Recover and inspect

harness_recover.py restores position; harness_env_probe.py reports observable runtime state.

Validate and report

Requirements, evidence, team plans, and final environment checks use deterministic validators and fresh receipts.

Checkpoint conditionally

harness_checkpoint.py appends durable state only for a matching handoff or governed escalation signal.

Keep authority separate

A helper can recover facts or record evidence; helper availability never grants permission to mutate or deploy.
How to read it

Use the map as a delivery gate, not a poster.

1. Recover when escalated

Run full recovery only for a matching governed signal; otherwise read the narrowest task sources.

2. Lock scope

If acceptance is unclear, route to requirements before planning.
3. Build in slicesDevelopment starts only after the lifecycle stage and owner are clear.
4. Prove; hand off when escalatedVerification is required for artifact claims; checkpoint handoff remains signal-conditional.
Next

Continue the English path

Context EngineeringSee how lifecycle state becomes permission and evidence. GovernanceSee what must be true before a tool call can run. BeginnerReview the plain-English DHF model. Skill Routing MapSee which skill or helper owns each stage. Written SpecRead the routing contract and evidence rules. English IndexReturn to the public guide entry.