Solve Workflow

Eight-Stage Problem-Solving Workflow

An eight-stage PDCA flow. Stages 1, 3, 4, 5 are read-only. Stage 2's analysis methodology lives in analysis-core (including the temporary-change gate). Default is manual mode; say "自动模式" or "自动分析" to run the full flow automatically. On completion, enter stage 7; if stage 8 concludes the goal is not met, loop back to "分析问题" / "探索方案" / "审查方案" for another cycle. Output templates: each stage's output format is in reference.md.

Invocation Conventions

• Trigger words (per description): 明确问题, 分析问题, 探索方案, 审查方案, 制定计划, 执行计划, 检查验证, 复盘改进 (alias 回顾总结); 继续分析, 深入分析, 修改方案, 完善方案, 优化方案, 更新计划, 修订计划, 修改计划; 自动模式, 自动分析, 自动解决; ai-proxy 模式, AI 代理模式, 切换 ai-proxy
• Command form: /solve-workflow xxx, /solve xxx, where xxx is the follow-up content
• Default behavior: when xxx contains none of the above triggers, default to stage 1 (clarify the problem), treating xxx as the problem description to analyze
• Matching rule: a trigger word appearing anywhere in xxx counts as a match — exact phrasing is not required
• Not applicable: single-step edits (e.g. renaming one variable) or when the user only wants a quick suggestion rather than the full flow — skip this workflow and handle directly

Strong dependencies (frontmatter dependencies; the prerequisite skill check below must pass at startup, or the flow aborts):

• staged-review-flow (stage 4 review orchestration; depends on solution-review and code-design-review)
• hybrid-debug / runtime-evidence-debug / browser-debug-toolkit (debug skills delegated to via analysis-core; stage 2 + stage 7)
• analysis-core (single source of truth for stage 2's methodology: temporary-change gate / instrumentation debug with runtime-evidence-debug as default entry / analysis step skeleton / analysis gate output block / debug-verify loop)
• learn-and-improve (stage 8 retrospective and knowledge sediment)
• workflow-mode-lifecycle (manual/auto mode lifecycle), clarifying-question-discipline (hard clarifying-question discipline and investigation-first), known-issue-research (stage 2 research routing / known-issue quick search / industry-wide evaluation)
• test-suite-ensure (stage 6 test completion: generate and run tests when test infrastructure exists; scaffold with user confirmation when it doesn't)
• test-first-discipline (stage 6: failing-test-first for behavior changes; distinct from test-suite-ensure)
• design-approval-gate (before stage 6: no production impl without approval; named auto/hotfix escapes)
• delivery-discipline (stage 8: optional commit + open/update PR/MR before closeout; not every run delivers)
• feature-branch-closeout (stage 8: post-verify branch menu; merge delegates to merge-discipline when used)
• decision-fog-discipline (before explore solutions: graduate fog / decision tickets first)
• git-worktree-discipline (before stage 6: worktree gate + optional isolated workspace)
• domain-language-discipline (clarify/analyze: project glossary / CONTEXT.md when domain terms matter)
• node-version-discipline (Node-version alignment before running tests in stage 7)
• figma-pixel-implement / figma-pixel-verify (Figma export-faithful implement + measured verify; required installed; invoke only when Figma UI work is in scope)

Related skills (informational, not a strong dependency): perf-optimize-workflow (dedicated performance optimization paradigm), jira-fix-workflow (end-to-end Jira fix flow that embeds this workflow)

Prerequisite Skill Check

Run this check at startup, before entering stage 1, against every strong dependency declared in frontmatter dependencies.

1. Scan available skills (check <available_items> or use the skill tool)
2. All present → continue
3. Any missing → print the missing-dependency notice (format in reference.md § Prerequisite Skill Check — Missing Notice) and abort immediately

No-downgrade principle: a missing strong dependency aborts the flow — never fall back to a simplified review. This keeps solve-workflow's review depth consistent across every environment.

Triggers and Modes

Mode detection: overlay triggers (「ai-proxy 模式」「AI 代理模式」「切换 ai-proxy」 / "ai-proxy mode" / "switch to ai-proxy") request overlay per workflow-mode-lifecycle — if both an auto trigger and an overlay trigger appear, overlay+freeze wins over naked auto. Else a trigger containing "自动" (auto) selects auto mode; otherwise manual. Mid-run: "切换自动模式" / "切换手动模式" / "切换 ai-proxy". 👤 Manual pauses at every stage exit for confirmation; 🤖 Auto proceeds throughout, pausing only when stage 4's review loop exceeds 3 rounds; overlay occupies those exits per ai-proxy-discipline after thin freeze.

Mode Lifecycle

The core rules (auto always reverts to manual / explicit re-entry only / implicit continuation never re-activates it / batch scenarios) live in the strong dependency workflow-mode-lifecycle (guaranteed available by the prerequisite check) and are not repeated here. solve-workflow-specific: "full flow completes" means stage 8 finishes normally (including looping back into a new PDCA cycle at stage 3/4, which defaults to manual). Failure abort, user-initiated stop, and termination after a review-cap pause all count as interruption and revert to manual.

⚡ Quick Reference (read before executing; update alongside any stage change)

This table is a gate overview; the per-stage body is authoritative for rule details.

General Principles

⚠️ Clarifying Questions

⚠️ Follow clarifying-question-discipline (one question per turn; multi-round until clear; clarify first, do not rush to answer). When domain vocabulary is in play, also follow domain-language-discipline (glossary / CONTEXT.md).

Path Selection

Choose a path by task complexity, and declare it when confirming the problem in stage 1:

If scope grows mid-execution, upgrade the path: lean → incremental, incremental → full. In manual mode, upgrading requires user confirmation.

On the lean path, stage 3 (explore solutions) may output just 1 solution + a risk note, and stage 5 (make a plan) may fold into the solution description. Stage 7 (verify) and stage 8 (retrospective) are never skipped.

Unattended proxy exits

When this-run contract or task card records Stage-exit policy: ai-proxy (auto carrier; queue child is sufficient but not required), each manual stop point above becomes a proxy checkpoint per ai-proxy-discipline. Thin freeze (verbal trigger ≠ occupancy) lives there. At the pre-execution approval point the proxy's bounded pre-authorization replaces the bare auto escape of design-approval-gate; merge, irreversible, and protected-branch decisions stay human-only (park + ticket on hit). Any other policy value or none → behavior identical to today.

Stop-point forecast: if this run starts with a frozen contract (queue child with problem + frozen decisions, or independent thin freeze already written), open with a forecast before analysis — every manual exit × covered-by-frozen-decisions vs will-form-a-new-ticket. If overlay is requested mid-run, after thin freeze output a forecast of remaining exits, then continue the current stage (do not restart from analysis).

Stage 1: Clarify the Problem

⚠️ Edit/Write are forbidden in this stage. Only output your understanding of the problem — do not modify any file.

Principle: clarify the problem before technical analysis; this stage only aligns on the problem, it does not touch implementation logic.

Domain routing: if the problem is performance-domain (slow / jank / resource growth), suggest entering perf-optimize-workflow — its evidence-gated paradigm fits the domain; its analysis output can flow back into this workflow for fix execution. Note: its campaigns create per-project artifacts (benchmark log + harness, and seeded code-insight/code-optimizer skills); the optimize-verify loop additionally requires an environment loop runner — analysis stages always run. Informational reference, not a dependency.

[🤖 Auto] Skip this stage and go straight to stage 2, treating the user's input as an already-confirmed problem description.

[👤 Manual] This stage must complete and be confirmed by the user before entering stage 2.

1. Restate the problem — describe the user's problem in your own words
2. Extract key elements — goal, constraints, background, expected outcome
3. List open questions — points that need confirmation; if asking the user, ask exactly ONE most critical question at a time (see "General Principles" hard discipline), then ask the next only after getting an answer
4. Scope breakdown (if applicable) — when the problem spans multiple independent subsystems (e.g. "chat + file storage + billing"), help break it down first: independent modules, dependencies, suggested order — then analyze the first sub-problem. This step still belongs to stage 1: no proactive code exploration; content the user already referenced may be read, and the breakdown is based mainly on the user's description.
5. Wait for user confirmation

Tool restrictions: Read/Grep/SemanticSearch are forbidden, except:

• The user's message contains @file-path (optionally with line numbers, e.g. @SKILL.md:83-89)
• The user pasted a code snippet
• The user explicitly named a "function/class + containing file" combination

When an exception applies: read only the file and lines the user directly referenced — do not expand to other files. Use the read result only to understand the problem — no technical-analysis conclusions may appear in this stage's output.

Output Format

Output format is in reference.md § Stage 1 — Clarify the Problem.

⛔ [Manual mode — stage 1 exit] Stop immediately after this output and wait for the user to explicitly confirm the understanding is correct before entering stage 2. 🤖 [Auto mode] Skip stage 1 and start directly from stage 2.

Red Flags

• Using Read/Grep to explore code before stage 1 completes, when the user has referenced nothing
• Skipping stage 1 because "the user was already clear enough"
• Exploring code before stage 1 completes under the guise of "clarify while analyzing"
• Exploring code before stage 1 completes under the guise of "look at the code first, then confirm"
• Mixing technical-analysis conclusions (root-cause judgment, fix suggestions) into stage 1's "restatement" or "open questions"
• Dumping multiple open questions on the user at once in stage 1 (violates the "Clarifying Questions" hard discipline) — ask exactly one most critical question at a time, then the next after an answer

Any of the above violates the stage's contract. [👤 Manual] Stage 1 must complete and be confirmed before entering stage 2. [🤖 Auto] Skipping stage 1 is not subject to this restriction.

Stage 2: Analyze the Problem

Single source of truth for the methodology: analysis-core. This stage leaves no implementation changes behind — fixes belong to stage 6.

Delegate to analysis-core

Load the strong dependency analysis-core and run its §§1–3. This workflow's mapping (number + name):

• {next-stage} = stage 3 "Explore Solutions"
• {root-cause step} = step 5 "Root cause"; {impact-assessment step} = step 7 "Impact"; {upstream-eval step} = step 6 "Upstream dependency fix evaluation"

Output format per analysis-core and known-issue-research/reference.md; the output MUST close with the analysis gate output block (analysis-core §5) — missing block blocks stage 3. If any temporary change was made, its list + rollback verification rides in the block's temporary-changes line.

Stage 3: Explore Solutions

Principle: based on stage 2's analysis, offer 2–5 solutions; strip non-essential features and over-engineering (YAGNI). If the path is still foggy, follow decision-fog-discipline before the solution table.

Architecture-boundary precheck (decision order): when a candidate solution crosses process or layer boundaries, answer the precheck before short-term costs (change size / reuse / single-repo) are weighed — (1) runtime initialization location: which process/layer initializes the called capability; (2) boundary legality: would a cross-layer import pull the callee's dependency tree into the caller's bundle graph (bundler static pre-scanning defeats dynamic require/import as a workaround); (3) ownership classification: system vs data/product capability vs the calling layer's positioning. The boundary verdict surfaces with the comparison table and gates auto-mode selection. Methodology: code-design-review Layer A dependency-direction dimension. Single-layer solutions do not trigger this precheck.

[🤖 Auto mode] Solution selection

Generate 2–5 solutions automatically; the AI recommends and selects the best one (priority: more thorough fix > best-practice alignment > code-quality improvement > smallest change), then proceeds directly to stage 4.

[👤 Manual mode] Solution selection

Output the solution comparison table and wait for the user to choose before entering stage 4.

Output Format

1. Opening: solution list (number + name for each)
2. Middle: each solution expanded in detail (see "Each solution includes" below)
3. Closing: solution comparison table (appears exactly once, right at the decision point)

Each solution includes

• Core idea (1–2 sentences)
• Files/modules to change
• Implementation difficulty, potential risks, applicable scenarios

Tool restrictions: Edit/Write are forbidden; Read is allowed to inspect code details

⛔ [Manual mode — stage 3 exit] Stop immediately after the comparison table and wait for the user to pick a solution number before entering stage 4. 🤖 [Auto mode] Auto-select the best solution and proceed directly to stage 4.

Red Flags

• Producing only 1 solution and skipping the comparison because "the direction is already clear"
• [👤 Manual] Advancing to review before the user has chosen a solution

Stage 4: Review the Solution

Load staged-review-flow and run its full review contract. This workflow's mapping: {next-stage} = stage 5 "Make a Plan"; {artifact-sink} = the stage 4 review report (format in reference.md); {extra-dimensions} = none; {batch-overcap-behavior} = N/A. Tool restrictions: Edit/Write forbidden; Read allowed to inspect code details.

Stage 5: Make a Plan

Principle: a detailed, executable modification plan — output plan text only, do not execute any code change.

1. Target solution recap — the core idea of the reviewed, confirmed solution
2. File change list — file path, location, and specific change description
3. Change order — execution order accounting for dependencies

Output Format

Output format is in reference.md § Stage 5 — Make a Plan.

Tool restrictions: Edit/Write/Bash are forbidden; Read is allowed to confirm details

⛔ [Manual mode — stage 5 exit] Stop immediately after the plan and wait for the user to confirm it before entering stage 6. 🤖 [Auto mode] Auto-confirm and proceed directly to stage 6.

Update the plan (sub-stage)

When the user says "更新计划" / "修订计划" / "修改计划" (update/revise/modify the plan), run this stage again, additionally noting the change comparison and reason for change.

Stage 6: Execute the Plan

Principle: execute strictly per the plan, confirm on completion. Before production edits, follow design-approval-gate (manual: user pass; auto/lean: named escape + 留痕). Before the first non-trivial write (docs or code), load git-worktree-discipline (worktree gate + optional isolation).

Figma pixel fidelity: When the task includes a Figma URL/node or pixel-restore / design-faithful UI intent, load figma-pixel-implement and follow it (export-faithful assets + design-spec table). Do not restate its methodology here.

Execution flow

1. Modify files in the plan's order
2. State what was completed after each change
3. If stage 5's plan used checkbox format (- [ ] / - [x]), flip the corresponding [ ] to [x] immediately after finishing each item — do not batch the updates until the end
4. Output an execution report once everything is done
5. Auto-advance to stage 7: when execution goes smoothly with no blockers, enter stage 7 immediately after the report; if a problem or decision arises, confirm with the user first

Execution report

• List of modified files, key changes
• Suggested test steps
• Any deviation from the plan (with reason, if applicable)
• Verification checklist (for stage 7 to use)

Test-first then test-suite ensure (before the execution report)

For behavior-changing work, follow test-first-discipline (failing test observed before production code). Separately, for changes touching business logic that lack test coverage, load and call test-suite-ensure with mode=advisory, scoped to this change's logic files. If the user declines scaffolding, note it in the execution report as a non-blocking reminder. test-suite-ensure does not satisfy test-first.

Tool permissions: ✅ Edit/Write/Bash allowed; use TodoWrite to track progress

Stage 7: Verify (Check)

Principle: output only the verification results — improvement suggestions belong to stage 8.

1. Goal achievement — whether stage 1's expected outcome was met
2. Comparison with the plan — compare against stage 5's plan
3. Verification and tests — may cite stage 6's execution report; run tests if anything test-related applies
4. Side-effect verification — check whether the change introduced new problems or unexpected behavior changes elsewhere (functional side effects), and any unexpected performance/security/maintainability impact (non-functional side effects)
5. Logic and process review — check for gaps or omissions
6. Debug-verify loop — if stage 2 used a debug skill to locate the root cause, verify the fix with that same skill per analysis-core §4 (not tests alone)
7. Figma pixel verify — when this run implemented from Figma or the user/plan requires alignment checking, load figma-pixel-verify and follow it for measured pass/fail (do not restate its methodology here)

Running tests

If stage 5's plan or stage 6's execution report involves testing (unit tests, integration tests, manual verification steps):

For Node / JavaScript / TypeScript projects, invoke node-version-discipline to align the Node version before running tests.

Verification execution follows runtime-verification-discipline (strong dependency): the AI executes verification itself in an environment, and hands a step to the user only at a classified true hard boundary, with the reason stated.

• AI can execute: run the test command via Bash (e.g. npm test, pytest, go test) and fold the result into the verification conclusion
• Otherwise: classify the blocker per runtime-verification-discipline; only a true hard boundary becomes a user step, stated with its reason.

Verification-report honesty

Follow staged-review-flow's verification-report honesty rule and completion-evidence-discipline (fresh current-turn evidence before pass claims) to label each result.

Output Format

Output format is in reference.md § Stage 7 — Verification Results.

Tool restrictions: Edit/Write forbidden; ✅ Bash allowed to run test commands

⛔ [Stage 7 exit] Stop immediately after the verification results and wait for the user to confirm before entering stage 8 (or decide, based on the conclusion, whether another fix cycle is needed).

Stage 8: Retrospective (Act)

After verify: optional code delivery → branch closeout → retrospective. Load delivery-discipline when this run may need commit + PR/MR (not every run — that skill's need-delivery gate may skip). Then load feature-branch-closeout for the menu (PR / merge / keep / continue; merge loads merge-discipline). Then load learn-and-improve for retrospective and knowledge sediment. Do not write rule/skill files by default; only proceed to "make a plan → execute the plan" when the user explicitly requests writing or a new cycle.

Optional delivery (delivery-discipline)

Load delivery-discipline and follow it. Pass {pr-body-extra} / {commit-context} when useful. If the gate skips delivery, continue to closeout (user may still choose open PR via the menu, which re-enters delivery-discipline).

Branch closeout (feature-branch-closeout)

Load feature-branch-closeout for the closeout menu. Choosing keep/continue does not trigger merge discipline.

Delegate to learn-and-improve (retrospective)

Load learn-and-improve and run its framework; the full methodology lives in that skill.

solve-workflow-specific orchestration

• Next step when the goal isn't met: if learn-and-improve's improvement loop concludes the goal wasn't achieved, decide whether to loop back to "分析问题" / "探索方案" / "审查方案" for another PDCA cycle.
• Wrap-up and optional summary doc: after the improvement suggestions, proactively ask "是否需要生成总结文档？" (want a summary doc?). If yes, generate one (path chosen by the user or suggested by the AI) covering: problem restatement, solution choice, execution result, open items and improvements.

Output Format

Output format is in reference.md § Stage 8 — Improvement Suggestions.

After the output, proactively ask: "是否需要生成总结文档？" / "Do you want a summary document?"

Pre-merge coverage reminder (conditional, non-gating)

⚠️ solve-workflow does not own protected-branch merge as a mandatory stage step — merge only happens if closeout selects merge (via merge-discipline). Optional commit/PR is owned by delivery-discipline. The coverage reminder is advisory, not a mandatory gate — it does not run a script, does not block the flow, and is not a capability-discovery table entry. Full trigger conditions and reminder text are in reference.md § Stage 8 — Pre-Merge Coverage Reminder (Non-Gating).

Boundary with mandatory gates: solve-workflow only suggests "run this before merging" — it never runs the coverage script or judges pass/fail on its own. The mandatory coverage gate belongs to merge-discipline Part C when merge is selected (also used by jira-fix-workflow / the opsx-* family).

Tool restrictions: Edit/Write forbidden except when executing delivery-discipline / closeout git operations the user confirmed; do not write rule/skill files unless the user explicitly asks to "write to rules" / "create a skill" / "update docs", or a new cycle begins.

Common Mistakes