Quality Gate — Test + Verify + Ship Safe

TL;DR

• Use before any deployment or completion claim
• Gates: tests pass, no secrets, frontend safety, evidence logged
• Reads: handoff/exec.json — Writes: handoff/quality.json
• Modes: OFF | WARNING (default) | SOFT | FULL
• Vibecoding score: 0..100 (Phase 2)

Three checkpoints, one skill: Pre-deploy testing, evidence verification, frontend safety.

The Iron Laws

1. NO DEPLOY without passing test:gate.
2. NO CLAIMS without fresh verification output.
3. NO FRAGILE FRONTEND — safety tests are mandatory.

---

Phase 0: Infrastructure Setup

Goal: Identify the framework and install the correct testing dependencies.

1. Detect Stack: Check package.json for framework (React, Vue, Astro, etc.) and wrangler.json(c).
2. Install Deps: npm install -D vitest jsdom acorn
3. Configure: Create vitest.config.ts or vite.config.ts with environment: 'jsdom'.
4. Wire Scripts:

   {
     "scripts": {
       "test:gate": "vitest run --reporter=verbose"
     }
   }
   

---

Phase 1: The 4 Core Test Layers

Do not combine these files. They form the "Quality Gate."

Layer 1: Frontend Safety (test/frontend-safety.test.ts)

Prevents white screens, template corruption, and syntax errors.

test('app.js does not contain catastrophic corruption', () => {
    const code = fs.readFileSync('public/static/app.js', 'utf-8');
    expect(code).not.toMatch(/=\s*'[^']*\$\{t\(/); // Bug #1
    expect(code).not.toMatch(/<\s+[a-zA-Z]/); // Bug #2
});

Layer 2: API Routes (test/api-routes.test.ts)

Ensures backend endpoints respond correctly.

Layer 3: Business Logic (test/business-logic.test.ts)

Tests pure functions, validations, and transformations.

Layer 4: i18n Synchronization (test/i18n-sync.test.ts)

Guarantees all language files have identical key counts.

---

Phase 2: Execution (The Gates)

Gate 1: Pre-Deploy Testing

ALWAYS run npm run test:gate before deploying. 0 failures required.

Protocol

1. Check for skip override (explicit user words only):

   • ✅ "skip tests", "skip testing", "deploy without testing"
   • ❌ "deploy", "quick deploy", "just push it" (= tests required)

2. Run test gate:

   npm run test:gate
   

3. Parse results: total files, total tests, failures, duration

4. Gate decision:

   • 0 failures → proceed to deploy
   • Any failures → STOP. Fix first. Do NOT deploy.

Anti-Patterns

DON'T	DO
Deploy then test	Test then deploy
"Tests passed earlier"	Run fresh test:gate NOW
Skip for "small changes"	Every change gets tested
Run test + deploy parallel	Sequential: test → gate → deploy

Gate 2: Evidence Before Claims

ALWAYS run the proving command before saying "fixed" or "done."

The Gate Function

1. IDENTIFY → What command proves this claim?
2. RUN → Execute the FULL command (fresh)
3. READ → Full output, check exit code
4. VERIFY → Does output confirm the claim?
5. ONLY THEN → Make the claim

Common Failures

Claim	Requires	Not Sufficient
Tests pass	Test output: 0 failures	"Should pass", previous run
Build succeeds	Build: exit 0	Linter passing
Bug fixed	Test symptom: passes	Code changed, assumed fixed
Requirements met	Line-by-line checklist	Tests passing

Red Flags — STOP

• Using "should", "probably", "seems to"
• Expressing satisfaction before verification
• Trusting agent success reports
• ANY wording implying success without running verification

Gate 3: Frontend Integrity

Automated via Layer 1 above.

When

Setting up or enhancing test suites for projects with frontend JavaScript/TypeScript.

The 7 Layers

Layer	What it checks	Priority
1. Syntax Validation	JS parses without errors (via acorn)	CRITICAL
2. Function Integrity	Named functions exist and are callable	Required
3. Template Safety	HTML templates have matching tags	Required
4. Asset References	Referenced files actually exist	Required
5. Corruption Patterns	Known bad patterns (empty functions, truncation)	Required
6. Import/Export	Module references resolve	Recommended
7. CSS Validation	CSS files parse correctly	Recommended

Setup

npm install -D vitest acorn

Layer 1: Syntax Check (Most Critical)

import { parse } from 'acorn';
import { readFileSync } from 'fs';

test('app.js has valid syntax', () => {
  const code = readFileSync('public/static/app.js', 'utf-8');
  expect(() => parse(code, { ecmaVersion: 2022, sourceType: 'script' })).not.toThrow();
});

This single test would have prevented the March 2026 white-screen incident.

---

Gate 4: Update Working Memory

After ALL gates pass, update .cm/CONTINUITY.md:

• Current Phase: Set to verified or ready-to-deploy
• Just Completed: Add ✅ Quality gate passed: [test count] tests, 0 failures

After ANY gate fails, FIRST run Memory Integrity Check:

1. List active learnings/decisions for the failing module
2. Ask: "Did AI follow a learning/decision that caused this failure?"
3. If YES → HEAL memory (invalidate/correct/scope-reduce) BEFORE recording new learning
4. Record meta-learning in .cm/meta-learnings.json if memory was the cause

Then update .cm/CONTINUITY.md:

• Active Blockers: Add the failing gate details
• Mistakes & Learnings: Record what failed with scope tag:
  • What Failed: [test/gate that failed]
  • How to Prevent: [fix pattern]
  • Scope: module:{failing-module} or global if systemic
  • Memory-caused: [yes/no — was existing memory the root cause?]

Token savings: Next session instantly knows if last run passed or failed without re-running the test suite just to check status.

---

Integration

Skill	Relationship
cm-safe-deploy	Quality gate is the primary blocker for the deploy pipeline
cm-identity-guard	Verify identity before using quality gate to ship
cm-tdd	TDD creates the logic for Layer 3
cm-safe-i18n	Leverages Layer 4 for parity checks
cm-safe-deploy	PRE-REQUISITE for production: Security scan (Snyk + Aikido) PASS must be in deployment evidence. No production deploy without security clearance.

Evidence Requirements for Production Deploy

Evidence	Command	Required
Test suite passes	npm run test:gate	✅ Always
Build succeeds	npm run build	✅ Always
Security scan passes	snyk test && aikido-api-client scan-release ...	✅ For production / public releases
i18n parity	Included in test:gate	✅ If multilingual

Vibecoding Index (Phase 2)

After all gates pass, compute a 0–100 score for the change:

cm quality score --mode WARNING

Components (each weighted): intent 30%, ownership 25%, context 20%, tests 15%, review 10%. Inputs are derived automatically from .cm/handoff/{plan,exec,review,quality}.json when present, or can be overridden with --intent <0..1>, --ownership <0..1>, etc.

Modes:

• OFF — silent (LITE projects)
• WARNING — print + advise (default; STANDARD projects)
• SOFT — warn loudly under 60 (PROFESSIONAL projects)
• FULL — exit 1 under 70 (ENTERPRISE projects, blocks deploy)

The default mode follows the project tier from cm tier classify.

Karpathy Discipline — Loop Until Verified

The gate is where "goal-driven execution" actually closes the loop:

• No claim without evidence. "Tests pass" → paste the run. "Build green" → paste the hash. "Feature works" → paste the screenshot or HTTP response.
• Loop independently while verifiable. If the success criterion is concrete (test green, status 200, screenshot diff < threshold), keep iterating without asking. If criterion is vague, stop and ask — don't burn cycles on guesses.
• Verify don't trust. A subagent's summary says what it intended, not what it did. Re-run the gate yourself.

Gate principle: weak criteria fail here, not in production. Reject "make it work" handoffs back to planning.

The Bottom Line

Test before deploy. Scan before release. Evidence before claims. Safety before shipping. Non-negotiable.