Codex interview framework
Run every normal-mode start, triage, research, requirements, design, and tasks phase through references/algorithm.md and references/domain-modeling.md.
Completion criterion
Delegate only after all of these conditions hold for one identity tuple:
phase, interviewId, discoveryRevision, and contextDigest match in state and in the delegation packet.- The selected skill manifest has status
complete or partial_warned.
- The phase interview has status
complete or skipped after explicit final approval.
phase_gate.py check-delegation succeeds.
Quick mode uses the same identity tuple. It requires a current complete or partial_warned manifest plus an interview receipt with status bypassed_quick and quickAuthorization.source: "--quick". Quick mode bypasses interview questions only. Discovery, contract load, parent delegation provenance, artifact-agent reload, and check-agent-write still apply.
Hard boundaries
- Ask only critical user decisions that can change phase scope, externally visible behavior, acceptance, architecture, sequencing, or material risk.
- Inspect code, configuration, state, prior artifacts, and selected skill contracts for facts. Do not ask the user for discoverable facts or setup and administration choices.
- Ask the whole currently unblocked critical frontier. Split a frontier only when Codex's native user-input tool limit requires another batch. The current limit is three questions per call.
- Put the recommended option first and state its tradeoff. Offer only viable alternatives.
- Persist each partial answer before asking the next frontier.
- Treat control-only replies such as
apply the changes, continue, proceed, and go ahead as no answer to an active interview question.
- Treat bare
skip during an active question as an instruction to finish the remaining interview with stated defaults and assumptions. Present the final approval gate before delegation.
- Delegate in the same turn after the user explicitly chooses
approve and delegate.
- During artifact review, treat
apply the changes as a revision request. Delegate the revision and remain at the artifact approval gate.
- Apply domain-language modeling during the grill. Challenge conflicting or vague terms, use concrete boundary scenarios, and record resolved domain terms without creating an ADR.
Preload boundary
Load selected skill bodies and required current-work references as contracts. During preload, collect constraints, vocabulary, checks, and conflicts. Start no task action prescribed by a loaded domain skill until the phase interview is approved and the delegation gate passes.
If this core skill, its algorithm reference, or its domain-modeling reference cannot be read and hashed, record phaseSkillLoad.status: "core_failed", report the failure, and stop. Record domain-skill load failures in warnings and failures, use partial_warned, and continue. Turn unresolved material conflicts between loaded contracts into first-layer interview decisions.
1---2name: interview-framework-codex3description: Internal Ralph Specum contract for Codex phase interviews, skill manifests, approval, and delegation gates. Phase coordinators load this skill directly; users do not invoke it as a workflow phase.4---5
6# Codex interview framework
7
8Run every normal-mode `start`, `triage`, `research`, `requirements`, `design`, and `tasks` phase through `references/algorithm.md` and `references/domain-modeling.md`.
9
10## Completion criterion
11
12Delegate only after all of these conditions hold for one identity tuple:
13
14- `phase`, `interviewId`, `discoveryRevision`, and `contextDigest` match in state and in the delegation packet.
15- The selected skill manifest has status `complete` or `partial_warned`.
16- The phase interview has status `complete` or `skipped` after explicit final approval.
17- `phase_gate.py check-delegation` succeeds.
18
19Quick mode uses the same identity tuple. It requires a current `complete` or `partial_warned` manifest plus an interview receipt with status `bypassed_quick` and `quickAuthorization.source: "--quick"`. Quick mode bypasses interview questions only. Discovery, contract load, parent delegation provenance, artifact-agent reload, and `check-agent-write` still apply.
20
21## Hard boundaries
22
23- Ask only critical user decisions that can change phase scope, externally visible behavior, acceptance, architecture, sequencing, or material risk.
24- Inspect code, configuration, state, prior artifacts, and selected skill contracts for facts. Do not ask the user for discoverable facts or setup and administration choices.
25- Ask the whole currently unblocked critical frontier. Split a frontier only when Codex's native user-input tool limit requires another batch. The current limit is three questions per call.
26- Put the recommended option first and state its tradeoff. Offer only viable alternatives.
27- Persist each partial answer before asking the next frontier.
28- Treat control-only replies such as `apply the changes`, `continue`, `proceed`, and `go ahead` as no answer to an active interview question.
29- Treat bare `skip` during an active question as an instruction to finish the remaining interview with stated defaults and assumptions. Present the final approval gate before delegation.
30- Delegate in the same turn after the user explicitly chooses `approve and delegate`.
31- During artifact review, treat `apply the changes` as a revision request. Delegate the revision and remain at the artifact approval gate.
32- Apply domain-language modeling during the grill. Challenge conflicting or vague terms, use concrete boundary scenarios, and record resolved domain terms without creating an ADR.
33
34## Preload boundary
35
36Load selected skill bodies and required current-work references as contracts. During preload, collect constraints, vocabulary, checks, and conflicts. Start no task action prescribed by a loaded domain skill until the phase interview is approved and the delegation gate passes.
37
38If this core skill, its algorithm reference, or its domain-modeling reference cannot be read and hashed, record `phaseSkillLoad.status: "core_failed"`, report the failure, and stop. Record domain-skill load failures in `warnings` and `failures`, use `partial_warned`, and continue. Turn unresolved material conflicts between loaded contracts into first-layer interview decisions.
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