Flow Completer

Flow Completer

Mark tasks and phases complete after verifying all work is done. This skill enforces completion gates to ensure nothing is forgotten before moving forward.

When to Use This Skill

Activate when the user wants to finish work:

• "Finish this task"
• "Mark task complete"
• "Done with this task"
• "Complete the task"
• "Finish this phase"
• "Mark phase complete"
• "Done with this phase"
• "Close the task"
• "Close the phase"

Completion Philosophy

Flow's Core Principle: Verify before closing. Every completion requires verification that all work is done, tested, and documented.

Key Gates:

• Task Completion Gate: All iterations ✅ COMPLETE (or ❌ CANCELLED/🔮 DEFERRED)
• Phase Completion Gate: All tasks ✅ COMPLETE (or ❌ CANCELLED)
• Documentation Gate: All changes documented, notes updated

Completion Pattern: Verify → Update Status → Advance Pointer → Report

Task Completion Workflow

Step 1: Read Task File

Before marking task complete, read the task file to understand current state:

READ: .flow/phase-N/task-M.md

Extract:

• Task name and status
• All iterations (if task has iterations)
• All action items (if standalone task)
• Current work status

Step 2: Verify Task Completion

Verification Checklist:

IF task has iterations:
    FOR EACH iteration:
        IF status = ⏳ PENDING or 🚧 IN PROGRESS:
            ❌ FAIL: "Iteration N: [Name] is not complete"
        IF status = ❌ CANCELLED or 🔮 DEFERRED:
            ✅ PASS (acceptable, not blocking)
        IF status = ✅ COMPLETE:
            ✅ PASS
    IF ALL iterations are ✅/❌/🔮:
        ✅ PASS task verification

ELSE IF standalone task:
    IF any action items unchecked `- [ ]`:
        ❌ FAIL: "X action items incomplete"
    IF all action items checked `- [x]`:
        ✅ PASS task verification

Additional Checks:

• Implementation notes updated (if task had implementation)
• Files modified documented
• No unresolved blockers mentioned
• Verification section filled out

Step 3: Mark Task Complete

If verification passes:

1. Update task file:

   # Task N: Name
   
   **Status**: ✅ COMPLETE (2025-MM-DD)
   

2. Update DASHBOARD.md:

   • Find task in "Progress Overview"
   • Change marker: ⏳ Task N: Name → ✅ Task N: Name
   • Update phase completion percentage
   • Advance "Current Work" pointer to next pending task

3. Report to user:

   ✅ Task N: [Name] marked complete!
   
   Completed:
   - [X] iterations complete (or Y cancelled/deferred)
   - All action items verified
   - Documentation updated
   
   Next: [Next task or phase status]
   

Step 4: Handle Incomplete Work

If verification fails:

1. Report incomplete items:

   ❌ Cannot mark task complete. Incomplete work found:
   
   Iterations:
   - ⏳ Iteration 2: [Name] - Status: PENDING
   - 🚧 Iteration 3: [Name] - Status: IN PROGRESS
   
   OR
   
   Action Items:
   - [ ] 3 unchecked action items
   
   Complete these first, then use `/flow-task-complete` again.
   

2. Suggest actions:

   • If iterations pending: "Use /flow-next-iteration to continue work"
   • If action items unchecked: "Complete remaining action items"
   • If user wants to defer: "Use /flow-iteration-add to mark iteration 🔮 DEFERRED"

Phase Completion Workflow

Step 1: List All Tasks in Phase

READ: .flow/phase-N/ directory

Extract:

• All task files in phase directory
• Count total tasks
• Determine status of each task

Step 2: Verify Phase Completion

Verification Checklist:

FOR EACH task in phase:
    IF task status = ⏳ PENDING or 🚧 IN PROGRESS:
        ❌ FAIL: "Task N: [Name] is not complete"
    IF task status = ❌ CANCELLED:
        ✅ PASS (acceptable, not blocking)
    IF task status = ✅ COMPLETE:
        ✅ PASS

IF ALL tasks are ✅/❌:
    ✅ PASS phase verification

Additional Checks:

• Phase goals achieved (check DASHBOARD.md phase description)
• All deliverables complete
• No pending work in any task

Step 3: Mark Phase Complete

If verification passes:

1. Update DASHBOARD.md:

   • Find phase in "Progress Overview"
   • Change header: ### Phase N: Name → ### Phase N: Name ✅
   • Update phase status line
   • Advance "Current Work" to next phase

2. Report to user:

   ✅ Phase N: [Name] marked complete!
   
   Completed:
   - [X] tasks complete (Y cancelled)
   - All phase goals achieved
   
   Next Phase: Phase [N+1]: [Name]
   OR
   Project complete! 🎉
   

Step 4: Handle Incomplete Work

If verification fails:

1. Report incomplete tasks:

   ❌ Cannot mark phase complete. Incomplete tasks found:
   
   Tasks:
   - ⏳ Task 2: [Name] - Status: PENDING
   - 🚧 Task 3: [Name] - Status: IN PROGRESS
   
   Complete these first, or cancel if scope changed.
   

2. Suggest actions:

   • "Use /flow-task-start to continue Task N"
   • "Use /flow-task-complete to finish Task N"
   • If scope changed: "Consider marking Task N as ❌ CANCELLED"

Completion Slash Commands

/flow-task-complete

Use when: All iterations/action items done for current task

Prerequisites:

• All iterations ✅ COMPLETE (or ❌/🔮)
• All action items checked off (if standalone)
• Documentation updated

Effect:

• Marks task ✅ COMPLETE with date
• Updates DASHBOARD.md progress
• Advances current work pointer

/flow-phase-complete

Use when: All tasks done in current phase

Prerequisites:

• All tasks ✅ COMPLETE (or ❌ CANCELLED)
• Phase goals achieved

Effect:

• Marks phase ✅ COMPLETE
• Updates DASHBOARD.md
• Advances to next phase or project end

Edge Cases

Cancelled or Deferred Work

Cancelled Iterations (❌):

• Not blocking for task completion
• Document why cancelled in iteration notes
• Examples: Scope changed, not needed, replaced by better approach

Deferred Iterations (🔮):

• Not blocking for task completion
• Document why deferred (V2, future version)
• Examples: Nice-to-have, optimization, future enhancement

Cancelled Tasks (❌):

• Not blocking for phase completion
• Document why cancelled in task notes
• Examples: Duplicate work, scope change, no longer needed

Partial Completion

Scenario: Task has 5 iterations, 3 complete, 2 deferred

✅ Iteration 1: Basic Implementation - COMPLETE
✅ Iteration 2: Core Features - COMPLETE
✅ Iteration 3: Testing - COMPLETE
🔮 Iteration 4: Advanced Features - DEFERRED (V2)
🔮 Iteration 5: Optimizations - DEFERRED (V2)

Action: Task can be marked complete! Deferred work doesn't block.

Report:

✅ Task can be marked complete!

Completed: 3/5 iterations
Deferred to V2: 2 iterations (documented)

This is valid - deferred work doesn't block completion.

Blocked Work

Scenario: Task has iteration marked ❌ BLOCKED

✅ Iteration 1: Setup - COMPLETE
❌ Iteration 2: Implementation - BLOCKED (external dependency unavailable)
⏳ Iteration 3: Testing - PENDING

Action: Cannot mark task complete - blocked iteration needs resolution

Report:

❌ Cannot mark task complete. Found blocked work:

Iteration 2: Implementation - ❌ BLOCKED
Blocker: External dependency unavailable

Resolution options:
1. Unblock iteration and complete it
2. Mark iteration ❌ CANCELLED if no longer needed
3. Mark iteration 🔮 DEFERRED if can be done later

Completion Verification Patterns

Pattern 1: Task with All Iterations Complete

✅ Iteration 1: Skeleton - COMPLETE (2025-10-15)
✅ Iteration 2: Veins - COMPLETE (2025-10-18)
✅ Iteration 3: Flesh - COMPLETE (2025-10-22)

Verification: ✅ PASS - All iterations complete

Action: Mark task complete

Pattern 2: Task with Mixed Status

✅ Iteration 1: Basic Feature - COMPLETE (2025-10-15)
❌ Iteration 2: Advanced Feature - CANCELLED (scope change)
🔮 Iteration 3: Optimization - DEFERRED (V2)

Verification: ✅ PASS - No pending/in-progress iterations

Action: Mark task complete (cancelled and deferred are acceptable)

Pattern 3: Standalone Task

Action Items:
- [x] Create component
- [x] Add tests
- [x] Update documentation
- [x] Deploy to staging

Verification: ✅ PASS - All action items checked

Action: Mark task complete

Pattern 4: Phase with All Tasks Done

### Phase 2: Core Features
- ✅ Task 1: User Authentication - COMPLETE
- ✅ Task 2: API Endpoints - COMPLETE
- ❌ Task 3: Admin Dashboard - CANCELLED (out of V1 scope)
- ✅ Task 4: Error Handling - COMPLETE

Verification: ✅ PASS - No pending/in-progress tasks

Action: Mark phase complete

Best Practices

DO:

• ✅ Verify ALL iterations/tasks before marking complete
• ✅ Check documentation is updated
• ✅ Update both task file AND DASHBOARD.md
• ✅ Advance current work pointer after completion
• ✅ Report summary of what was completed

DON'T:

• ❌ Skip verification checks
• ❌ Mark incomplete work as complete
• ❌ Forget to update DASHBOARD.md
• ❌ Leave current work pointer on completed item
• ❌ Ignore blocked or pending iterations

Examples

Example 1: Completing Task with All Iterations Done

User: "Mark this task complete"

AI Process:
1. Read task file (task-2.md)
2. Find 3 iterations, all marked ✅ COMPLETE
3. Verify documentation updated
4. All checks pass

AI Response:
"✅ Task 2: API Integration marked complete!

Verification Results:
✅ All 3 iterations complete:
  - Iteration 1: Basic Setup (2025-10-15)
  - Iteration 2: Error Handling (2025-10-18)
  - Iteration 3: Testing (2025-10-22)
✅ Implementation notes updated
✅ 12 files modified documented
✅ Tests passing

Updated DASHBOARD.md - Phase 2 now 50% complete (2/4 tasks done)

Next: Task 3: Database Integration (⏳ PENDING)"

Example 2: Cannot Complete - Found Incomplete Work

User: "Finish this task"

AI Process:
1. Read task file (task-3.md)
2. Find 4 iterations: 2 complete, 1 in progress, 1 pending
3. Verification FAILS

AI Response:
"❌ Cannot mark task complete. Found incomplete work:

Iterations Status:
✅ Iteration 1: Schema Design - COMPLETE
✅ Iteration 2: Migrations - COMPLETE
🚧 Iteration 3: Data Access Layer - IN PROGRESS (60% done)
⏳ Iteration 4: Testing - PENDING

Complete Iteration 3 and 4 first, then use `/flow-task-complete`.

Current action items for Iteration 3:
- [x] Create User repository
- [x] Create Post repository
- [ ] Create Comment repository (← CURRENT)
- [ ] Add transaction support
- [ ] Add error handling"

Example 3: Completing Phase

User: "Mark Phase 2 complete"

AI Process:
1. List all tasks in phase-2/ directory
2. Find 5 tasks: 4 complete, 1 cancelled
3. Verify phase goals achieved
4. All checks pass

AI Response:
"✅ Phase 2: Core Features marked complete!

Verification Results:
✅ All tasks done:
  - Task 1: User Auth - COMPLETE
  - Task 2: API Endpoints - COMPLETE
  - Task 3: Data Layer - COMPLETE
  - Task 4: Error Handling - COMPLETE
  - Task 5: Admin Panel - CANCELLED (scope change, documented)
✅ Phase goals achieved:
  - User authentication working
  - API fully functional
  - Data persistence implemented
  - Error handling in place

Phase 2 Duration: 3 weeks (Oct 1 - Oct 22)

Updated DASHBOARD.md - Project now 66% complete (2/3 phases done)

Next Phase: Phase 3: Testing & Polish (⏳ PENDING)"

Example 4: Completing Task with Deferred Work

User: "Complete this task"

AI Process:
1. Read task file (task-4.md)
2. Find 5 iterations: 3 complete, 2 deferred to V2
3. Verification PASSES (deferred is acceptable)

AI Response:
"✅ Task 4: Performance Optimization can be marked complete!

Verification Results:
✅ Core iterations complete (3/5):
  - Iteration 1: Identify Bottlenecks - COMPLETE
  - Iteration 2: Database Indexing - COMPLETE
  - Iteration 3: Caching Layer - COMPLETE
🔮 Deferred to V2 (2/5):
  - Iteration 4: Advanced Caching - DEFERRED (nice-to-have)
  - Iteration 5: Load Balancing - DEFERRED (premature optimization)

This is valid! Deferred work doesn't block task completion.

Updated task status to ✅ COMPLETE (2025-10-22)
Phase 3 now 75% complete (3/4 tasks done)

Next: Task 5: Documentation (⏳ PENDING)"

Interaction with Other Flow Skills

Build Stage (flow-builder Skill):

• /flow-implement-complete - Marks iteration complete
• That feeds into this skill's task completion checks

Complete Stage (This Skill):

• /flow-task-complete - Mark task done ← YOU ARE HERE
• /flow-phase-complete - Mark phase done ← YOU ARE HERE

Navigate Stage (flow-navigator Skill):

• /flow-status - Check what's left before completing
• /flow-next - See next work after completing

References

• Task Completion Pattern: DEVELOPMENT_FRAMEWORK.md lines 1837-1871
• Status Markers: DEVELOPMENT_FRAMEWORK.md lines 1872-1968
• Phase Management: DEVELOPMENT_FRAMEWORK.md lines 170-237

Completion Gate Checklist

Before Completing Task

[ ] All iterations ✅ COMPLETE (or ❌/🔮)
[ ] OR all action items checked (standalone task)
[ ] Implementation notes updated
[ ] Files modified documented
[ ] No unresolved blockers
[ ] Verification section complete

If ALL checked → Use /flow-task-complete

If ANY unchecked → Complete remaining work first

Before Completing Phase

[ ] All tasks ✅ COMPLETE (or ❌ CANCELLED)
[ ] Phase goals achieved
[ ] All deliverables done
[ ] No pending work in phase

If ALL checked → Use /flow-phase-complete

If ANY unchecked → Complete remaining tasks first