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Gold Standards by tomevault-io — Agent Skill

Name: Gold Standards
Author: tomevault-io

Gold Standards

Mandatory best practices and gold standards for Kailash SDK development including absolute imports, parameter passing, error handling, testing policies (Real infrastructure recommended in Tiers 2-3), workflow design, custom node development, security, documentation, and test creation. Use when asking about 'best practices', 'standards', 'gold standards', 'mandatory rules', 'required patterns', 'absolute imports', 'Real infrastructure recommended', 'testing policy', 'error handling standards', 'security best practices', 'documentation standards', or 'workflow design standards'. Use when this capability is needed.

tomevault-io Updated Sep 17, 2026

File contents

Kailash Gold Standards - Mandatory Best Practices

These are required patterns that prevent bugs, ensure consistency, and maintain code quality.

Sub-File Index

Code Organization

gold-absolute-imports - ALWAYS absolute, NEVER relative
- from kailash.workflow.builder import WorkflowBuilder (not from ..workflow import builder)
gold-parameter-passing - 4-parameter connections + dict result access
- workflow.add_connection(source_id, source_param, target_id, target_param)
- results["node_id"]["result"] (not results["node_id"].result)

Testing

gold-mocking-policy - Real infrastructure in Tiers 2-3
- Mocking ONLY in Tier 1 unit tests; Tiers 2-3 use real databases, APIs, infrastructure
gold-testing - 3-tier strategy, deterministic tests, resource cleanup
gold-test-creation - TDD, one assertion focus, AAA pattern

Error Handling

gold-error-handling - Explicit handling, no silent swallowing, actionable messages, cleanup in finally

Workflow & Node Design

gold-workflow-design - Always .build() before execute, string-based node API, single responsibility
gold-custom-nodes - Extend BaseNode, validate inputs, consistent output format

Security & Documentation

gold-security - No hardcoded secrets, env vars for credentials, input validation, injection prevention
gold-documentation - Document all public APIs, include examples, explain WHY not just WHAT

Quick Reference

All workflow patterns follow the canonical 4-parameter pattern from /01-core-sdk.

Standard	Correct	Wrong
Imports	`from kailash.workflow.builder import WorkflowBuilder`	`from ..workflow.builder import WorkflowBuilder`
Connections	`workflow.add_connection("n1", "result", "n2", "input_data")`	`workflow.add_connection("n1", "n2")`
Execution	`runtime.execute(workflow.build())`	`runtime.execute(workflow)`
Results	`results["node_id"]["result"]`	`results["node_id"].result`
Secrets	`os.environ["API_KEY"]`	`api_key = "sk-..."`
Testing	Real DB in Tier 2-3	`Mock(spec=DataFlow)` in Tier 2-3
Errors	`except WorkflowExecutionError as e: logger.error(...)`	`except: pass`
Development	Write test first, then implement	Implement first, add tests later

Before Every Commit

All imports absolute
All connections use 4 parameters
.build() called before execute
No hardcoded secrets
Error handling present
Tests written (TDD)
No mocking in Tier 2-3 tests
Documentation updated

Related Skills

16-validation-patterns - Validation tools
31-error-troubleshooting - Error patterns
12-testing-strategies - Testing strategies
01-core-sdk - Core patterns

Support

gold-standards-validator - Automated compliance checking
pattern-expert - Pattern validation
testing-specialist - Testing compliance

Converted and distributed by TomeVault — claim your Tome and manage your conversions.

---name: gold-standardsdescription: Mandatory best practices and gold standards for Kailash SDK development including absolute imports, parameter passing, error handling, testing policies (Real infrastructure recommended in Tiers 2-3), workflow design, custom node development, security, documentation, and test creation. Use when asking about 'best practices', 'standards', 'gold standards', 'mandatory rules', 'required patterns', 'absolute imports', 'Real infrastructure recommended', 'testing policy', 'error handling standards', 'security best practices', 'documentation standards', or 'workflow design standards'. Use when this capability is needed.---# Kailash Gold Standards - Mandatory Best PracticesThese are **required** patterns that prevent bugs, ensure consistency, and maintain code quality.## Sub-File Index### Code Organization- **[gold-absolute-imports](gold-absolute-imports.md)** - ALWAYS absolute, NEVER relative - `from kailash.workflow.builder import WorkflowBuilder` (not `from ..workflow import builder`)- **[gold-parameter-passing](gold-parameter-passing.md)** - 4-parameter connections + dict result access - `workflow.add_connection(source_id, source_param, target_id, target_param)` - `results["node_id"]["result"]` (not `results["node_id"].result`)### Testing- **[gold-mocking-policy](gold-mocking-policy.md)** - Real infrastructure in Tiers 2-3 - Mocking ONLY in Tier 1 unit tests; Tiers 2-3 use real databases, APIs, infrastructure- **[gold-testing](gold-testing.md)** - 3-tier strategy, deterministic tests, resource cleanup- **[gold-test-creation](gold-test-creation.md)** - TDD, one assertion focus, AAA pattern### Error Handling- **[gold-error-handling](gold-error-handling.md)** - Explicit handling, no silent swallowing, actionable messages, cleanup in `finally`### Workflow & Node Design- **[gold-workflow-design](gold-workflow-design.md)** - Always `.build()` before execute, string-based node API, single responsibility- **[gold-custom-nodes](gold-custom-nodes.md)** - Extend BaseNode, validate inputs, consistent output format### Security & Documentation- **[gold-security](gold-security.md)** - No hardcoded secrets, env vars for credentials, input validation, injection prevention- **[gold-documentation](gold-documentation.md)** - Document all public APIs, include examples, explain WHY not just WHAT## Quick ReferenceAll workflow patterns follow the **canonical 4-parameter pattern** from `/01-core-sdk`.| Standard | Correct | Wrong || ----------- | ------------------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------ || Imports | `from kailash.workflow.builder import WorkflowBuilder` | `from ..workflow.builder import WorkflowBuilder` || Connections | `workflow.add_connection("n1", "result", "n2", "input_data")` | `workflow.add_connection("n1", "n2")` || Execution | `runtime.execute(workflow.build())` | `runtime.execute(workflow)` || Results | `results["node_id"]["result"]` | `results["node_id"].result` || Secrets | `os.environ["API_KEY"]` | `api_key = "sk-..."` || Testing | Real DB in Tier 2-3 | `Mock(spec=DataFlow)` in Tier 2-3 || Errors | `except WorkflowExecutionError as e: logger.error(...)` | `except: pass` || Development | Write test first, then implement | Implement first, add tests later |## Before Every Commit- All imports absolute- All connections use 4 parameters- `.build()` called before execute- No hardcoded secrets- Error handling present- Tests written (TDD)- No mocking in Tier 2-3 tests- Documentation updated## Related Skills- **[16-validation-patterns](../16-validation-patterns/SKILL.md)** - Validation tools- **[31-error-troubleshooting](../31-error-troubleshooting/SKILL.md)** - Error patterns- **[12-testing-strategies](../12-testing-strategies/SKILL.md)** - Testing strategies- **[01-core-sdk](../01-core-sdk/SKILL.md)** - Core patterns## Support- `gold-standards-validator` - Automated compliance checking- `pattern-expert` - Pattern validation- `testing-specialist` - Testing compliance---> Converted and distributed by [TomeVault](https://tomevault.io/claim/integrum-global) — claim your Tome and manage your conversions.

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