🧪Lesson 06AI Engineer Loopcraft Workshop 2026

Let cleanup propose one follow-up

Let the checker propose one maintenance event, then prove it stops when the repo or queue is not safe to touch.

The cleanup command may inspect a short list of maintenance facts and create at most one issue event. If the repo is dirty, the checker is running, or a matching follow-up already exists, it prints the reason and exits without editing product files.

Your next move

You already have

A local queue, stop reasons, claim receipts, and proof that dry-runs can avoid product edits.
A need for boring maintenance without turning cleanup into an unbounded agent.

Add now

Pass 1: dry-run one allowed maintenance event and print the exact event it would write.
Pass 2: apply one event only after every stop check passes.
A second run that refuses the duplicate follow-up and records the stop message.

Stop before

Scanning broadly or proposing more than one maintenance event.
Applying when jj status is dirty, the checker is running, the follow-up already exists, or any event needs approval/input.
Editing product files as part of cleanup.

Tiny two-pass cleanup shape

pass: dry-run
candidate: stale receipt link
wouldWrite: MAINT-001 update receipt link
writtenEvents: []

pass: apply
stopChecks: clean repo, checker idle, no duplicate, no approval/input blockers
writtenEvents: [MAINT-001]
duplicateCheck: refused — matching follow-up already exists

Starter prompt

Add a cleanup command that can propose at most one maintenance issue event. Keep it as two passes: first dry-run one allowed maintenance event and print the exact event it would write; then allow apply to write one event only after every stop check passes. Refuse to apply when jj status is dirty, the checker process is running, the queue already has a matching follow-up, an event needs approval, or an event needs more input. Save a receipt with inspected files, proposed event id, written event id if any, duplicate check result, and the exact printed stop message.

Build checklist

0/4 done

Define allowed maintenance

Name the few facts the cleanup command may turn into events, such as stale receipt, missing link, outdated status, duplicate follow-up, or incomplete event. Everything else is out of scope.

Pass 1: dry-run one event

Dry-run prints exactly one maintenance event it would write and leaves writtenEvents empty.

Pass 2: guarded apply

Apply writes one event only when jj status is clean, the checker is idle, no matching follow-up exists, no event waits for approval, and no event asks for more input.

Prove duplicate protection

Run the command again and show the second run refuses to recreate the same follow-up with an exact stop message.

Proof to save

Save proof that the cleanup command can propose one event, write at most one event, and refuse unsafe runs.

A dry-run cleanup command prints the issue event it would write without changing files.
Apply mode can write one fully formed maintenance event when every stop check passes.
Dirty repo, duplicate follow-up, running checker process, approval-required work, and input-required work stop the command visibly.
A receipt records what it saw, what it proposed, and why it stopped.

mode: dry-run or apply
inputsSeen: files/events inspected
proposedEvents: event ids or summaries
writtenEvents: event ids, if any
stopMessages: exact messages printed when the command refused to run
duplicateCheck: result of second run
nextAction: approve, fix input, or leave it alone

Done when

Dry-run prints one proposed event, apply writes at most one event, and a second run refuses the duplicate with a saved receipt.

Why it matters

Risk reduced: cleanup cannot touch the repo freely or create duplicate work.
Temptation avoided: turning cleanup into a catch-all agent.
Do not automate yet: broad file edits, unbounded scanning, or automatic product changes.

Try this 🔨

Read one printed stop message and say what you would do next: approve, fix the input, or leave it alone.

Exploration prompts

Use these when you want to ask an agent for a narrower pass instead of handing it the whole lesson.

Find boring maintenance

Scan the repo for maintenance facts the cleanup command may notice: stale receipt, missing link, outdated status, duplicate follow-up, or incomplete event. Return candidates only; do not edit.

Define boundaries

Write the allowed maintenance types and exact stop messages for the cleanup command. Include dirty repo, running checker process, duplicate follow-up, approval-required work, and missing input.

Dry-run one event

Take one maintenance candidate and show the exact event the cleanup command would write in dry-run mode. Explain why apply should or should not be allowed.