Approvals

Skill: TraceMem Approvals and Human-in-the-Loop

Purpose

This skill teaches how to handle scenarios where an action requires human approval. This is a core feature of TraceMem's governance model.

When to Use

• When decision_evaluate returns outcome: "requires_exception".
• When your automation mode is approve (meaning you expect to wait for approval).
• When you detect a high-risk situation and voluntarily want to ask for confirmation.

When NOT to Use

• Do not ask for approval if the policy denys the action outright (you cannot bypass a deny).
• Do not ask for approval for trivial read-only tasks that don't need it.

Core Rules

• Request and Wait: Approval is an asynchronous process. You request it, then you poll (wait) for the result.
• Do Not Proceed Unapproved: If you receive a rejected status, you must abort the operation. Proceeding is a violation.
• Provide Rationale: When requesting approval, explain why the exception is needed. This helps the human decider.

Correct Usage Pattern

1. Request Approval: Call decision_request_approval with:

   • decision_id: Current decision.
   • title: Short summary (e.g., "High Value Refund").
   • message: Detailed explanation ("Refund of $500 exceeds $100 auto-limit").
   • require_rationale: true (usually good practice).
   • expires_in_seconds: e.g., 3600 (1 hour).

   Result: You get an approval_id and status requested.

2. Poll for Concluson: Loop and call decision_get periodically (e.g., every 5-10 seconds). Check status field.

   • If open or needs_approval: Continue waiting.
   • If approved: Break loop and proceed.
   • If rejected: Break loop and handle rejection (abort/rollback).

3. Proceed: Once approved, you can retry the operation (e.g., the write) that was previously blocked or required the exception. The policy check should now pass (or you can proceed if the approval was the gate).

Common Mistakes

• Busy Waiting: Polling too fast (e.g., every 10ms) will hit rate limits. Use reasonable sleep (5-10s).
• Ignoring Rejection: Treating rejected as a "soft" error and trying again immediately.
• Timeout Handling: Waiting forever. Set a max wait time (e.g., 5 minutes) and abort if no human responds.

Safety Notes

• Notification Channels: The human is notified via configured channels (Slack, Email). You don't need to send the email yourself; TraceMem handles the routing.
• Context: The approver sees the Context and Reads you performed. Ensure you added enough context before requesting approval so they have the full picture.

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