coolify/.cursor/rules/backlog-guildlines.md

=== BACKLOG.MD GUIDELINES START ===

Instructions for the usage of Backlog.md CLI Tool

What is Backlog.md?

Backlog.md is the complete project management system for this codebase. It provides everything needed to manage tasks, track progress, and collaborate on development - all through a powerful CLI that operates on markdown files.

Core Capabilities

✅ Task Management: Create, edit, assign, prioritize, and track tasks with full metadata ✅ Acceptance Criteria: Granular control with add/remove/check/uncheck by index ✅ Board Visualization: Terminal-based Kanban board (backlog board) and web UI (backlog browser) ✅ Git Integration: Automatic tracking of task states across branches ✅ Dependencies: Task relationships and subtask hierarchies ✅ Documentation & Decisions: Structured docs and architectural decision records ✅ Export & Reporting: Generate markdown reports and board snapshots ✅ AI-Optimized: --plain flag provides clean text output for AI processing

Why This Matters to You (AI Agent)

1. Comprehensive system - Full project management capabilities through CLI
2. The CLI is the interface - All operations go through backlog commands
3. Unified interaction model - You can use CLI for both reading (backlog task 1 --plain) and writing (backlog task edit 1)
4. Metadata stays synchronized - The CLI handles all the complex relationships

Key Understanding

• Tasks live in backlog/tasks/ as task-<id> - <title>.md files
• You interact via CLI only: backlog task create, backlog task edit, etc.
• Use --plain flag for AI-friendly output when viewing/listing
• Never bypass the CLI - It handles Git, metadata, file naming, and relationships

---

⚠️ CRITICAL: NEVER EDIT TASK FILES DIRECTLY

ALL task operations MUST use the Backlog.md CLI commands

• ✅ DO: Use backlog task edit and other CLI commands
• ✅ DO: Use backlog task create to create new tasks
• ✅ DO: Use backlog task edit <id> --check-ac <index> to mark acceptance criteria
• ❌ DON'T: Edit markdown files directly
• ❌ DON'T: Manually change checkboxes in files
• ❌ DON'T: Add or modify text in task files without using CLI

Why? Direct file editing breaks metadata synchronization, Git tracking, and task relationships.

---

1. Source of Truth & File Structure

📖 UNDERSTANDING (What you'll see when reading)

• Markdown task files live under backlog/tasks/ (drafts under backlog/drafts/)
• Files are named: task-<id> - <title>.md (e.g., task-42 - Add GraphQL resolver.md)
• Project documentation is in backlog/docs/
• Project decisions are in backlog/decisions/

🔧 ACTING (How to change things)

• All task operations MUST use the Backlog.md CLI tool
• This ensures metadata is correctly updated and the project stays in sync
• Always use --plain flag when listing or viewing tasks for AI-friendly text output

---

2. Common Mistakes to Avoid

❌ WRONG: Direct File Editing

# DON'T DO THIS:
1. Open backlog/tasks/task-7 - Feature.md in editor
2. Change "- [ ]" to "- [x]" manually
3. Add notes directly to the file
4. Save the file

✅ CORRECT: Using CLI Commands

# DO THIS INSTEAD:
backlog task edit 7 --check-ac 1  # Mark AC #1 as complete
backlog task edit 7 --notes "Implementation complete"  # Add notes
backlog task edit 7 -s "In Progress" -a @agent-k  # Multiple commands: change status and assign the task

---

3. Understanding Task Format (Read-Only Reference)

⚠️ FORMAT REFERENCE ONLY - The following sections show what you'll SEE in task files. Never edit these directly! Use CLI commands to make changes.

Task Structure You'll See

---
id: task-42
title: Add GraphQL resolver
status: To Do
assignee: [@sara]
labels: [backend, api]
---

## Description
Brief explanation of the task purpose.

## Acceptance Criteria
<!-- AC:BEGIN -->
- [ ] #1 First criterion
- [x] #2 Second criterion (completed)
- [ ] #3 Third criterion
<!-- AC:END -->

## Implementation Plan
1. Research approach
2. Implement solution

## Implementation Notes
Summary of what was done.

How to Modify Each Section

What You Want to Change	CLI Command to Use
Title	backlog task edit 42 -t "New Title"
Status	backlog task edit 42 -s "In Progress"
Assignee	backlog task edit 42 -a @sara
Labels	backlog task edit 42 -l backend,api
Description	backlog task edit 42 -d "New description"
Add AC	backlog task edit 42 --ac "New criterion"
Check AC #1	backlog task edit 42 --check-ac 1
Uncheck AC #2	backlog task edit 42 --uncheck-ac 2
Remove AC #3	backlog task edit 42 --remove-ac 3
Add Plan	backlog task edit 42 --plan "1. Step one\n2. Step two"
Add Notes	backlog task edit 42 --notes "What I did"

---

4. Defining Tasks

Creating New Tasks

Always use CLI to create tasks:

backlog task create "Task title" -d "Description" --ac "First criterion" --ac "Second criterion"

Title (one liner)

Use a clear brief title that summarizes the task.

Description (The "why")

Provide a concise summary of the task purpose and its goal. Explains the context without implementation details.

Acceptance Criteria (The "what")

Understanding the Format:

• Acceptance criteria appear as numbered checkboxes in the markdown files
• Format: - [ ] #1 Criterion text (unchecked) or - [x] #1 Criterion text (checked)

Managing Acceptance Criteria via CLI:

⚠️ IMPORTANT: How AC Commands Work

• Adding criteria (--ac) accepts multiple flags: --ac "First" --ac "Second" ✅
• Checking/unchecking/removing accept multiple flags too: --check-ac 1 --check-ac 2 ✅
• Mixed operations work in a single command: --check-ac 1 --uncheck-ac 2 --remove-ac 3 ✅

# Add new criteria (MULTIPLE values allowed)
backlog task edit 42 --ac "User can login" --ac "Session persists"

# Check specific criteria by index (MULTIPLE values supported)
backlog task edit 42 --check-ac 1 --check-ac 2 --check-ac 3  # Check multiple ACs
# Or check them individually if you prefer:
backlog task edit 42 --check-ac 1    # Mark #1 as complete
backlog task edit 42 --check-ac 2    # Mark #2 as complete

# Mixed operations in single command
backlog task edit 42 --check-ac 1 --uncheck-ac 2 --remove-ac 3

# ❌ STILL WRONG - These formats don't work:
# backlog task edit 42 --check-ac 1,2,3  # No comma-separated values
# backlog task edit 42 --check-ac 1-3    # No ranges
# backlog task edit 42 --check 1         # Wrong flag name

# Multiple operations of same type
backlog task edit 42 --uncheck-ac 1 --uncheck-ac 2  # Uncheck multiple ACs
backlog task edit 42 --remove-ac 2 --remove-ac 4    # Remove multiple ACs (processed high-to-low)

Key Principles for Good ACs:

• Outcome-Oriented: Focus on the result, not the method
• Testable/Verifiable: Each criterion should be objectively testable
• Clear and Concise: Unambiguous language
• Complete: Collectively cover the task scope
• User-Focused: Frame from end-user or system behavior perspective

Good Examples:

• "User can successfully log in with valid credentials"
• "System processes 1000 requests per second without errors"

Bad Example (Implementation Step):

• "Add a new function handleLogin() in auth.ts"

Task Breakdown Strategy

1. Identify foundational components first
2. Create tasks in dependency order (foundations before features)
3. Ensure each task delivers value independently
4. Avoid creating tasks that block each other

Task Requirements

• Tasks must be atomic and testable or verifiable
• Each task should represent a single unit of work for one PR
• Never reference future tasks (only tasks with id < current task id)
• Ensure tasks are independent and don't depend on future work

---

5. Implementing Tasks

Implementation Plan (The "how") (only after starting work)

backlog task edit 42 -s "In Progress" -a @{myself}
backlog task edit 42 --plan "1. Research patterns\n2. Implement\n3. Test"

Implementation Notes (Imagine you need to copy paste this into a PR description)

backlog task edit 42 --notes "Implemented using pattern X, modified files Y and Z"

IMPORTANT: Do NOT include an Implementation Plan when creating a task. The plan is added only after you start implementation.

• Creation phase: provide Title, Description, Acceptance Criteria, and optionally labels/priority/assignee.
• When you begin work, switch to edit and add the plan: backlog task edit <id> --plan "...".
• Add Implementation Notes only after completing the work: backlog task edit <id> --notes "...".

Phase discipline: What goes where

• Creation: Title, Description, Acceptance Criteria, labels/priority/assignee.
• Implementation: Implementation Plan (after moving to In Progress).
• Wrap-up: Implementation Notes, AC and Definition of Done checks.

IMPORTANT: Only implement what's in the Acceptance Criteria. If you need to do more, either:

1. Update the AC first: backlog task edit 42 --ac "New requirement"
2. Or create a new task: backlog task create "Additional feature"

---

6. Typical Workflow

# 1. Identify work
backlog task list -s "To Do" --plain

# 2. Read task details
backlog task 42 --plain

# 3. Start work: assign yourself & change status
backlog task edit 42 -a @myself -s "In Progress"

# 4. Add implementation plan
backlog task edit 42 --plan "1. Analyze\n2. Refactor\n3. Test"

# 5. Work on the task (write code, test, etc.)

# 6. Mark acceptance criteria as complete (supports multiple in one command)
backlog task edit 42 --check-ac 1 --check-ac 2 --check-ac 3  # Check all at once
# Or check them individually if preferred:
# backlog task edit 42 --check-ac 1
# backlog task edit 42 --check-ac 2
# backlog task edit 42 --check-ac 3

# 7. Add implementation notes
backlog task edit 42 --notes "Refactored using strategy pattern, updated tests"

# 8. Mark task as done
backlog task edit 42 -s Done

---

7. Definition of Done (DoD)

A task is Done only when ALL of the following are complete:

✅ Via CLI Commands:

1. All acceptance criteria checked: Use backlog task edit <id> --check-ac <index> for each
2. Implementation notes added: Use backlog task edit <id> --notes "..."
3. Status set to Done: Use backlog task edit <id> -s Done

✅ Via Code/Testing:

4. Tests pass: Run test suite and linting
5. Documentation updated: Update relevant docs if needed
6. Code reviewed: Self-review your changes
7. No regressions: Performance, security checks pass

⚠️ NEVER mark a task as Done without completing ALL items above

---

8. Quick Reference: DO vs DON'T

Viewing Tasks

Task	✅ DO	❌ DON'T
View task	backlog task 42 --plain	Open and read .md file directly
List tasks	backlog task list --plain	Browse backlog/tasks folder
Check status	backlog task 42 --plain	Look at file content

Modifying Tasks

Task	✅ DO	❌ DON'T
Check AC	backlog task edit 42 --check-ac 1	Change - [ ] to - [x] in file
Add notes	backlog task edit 42 --notes "..."	Type notes into .md file
Change status	backlog task edit 42 -s Done	Edit status in frontmatter
Add AC	backlog task edit 42 --ac "New"	Add - [ ] New to file

---

9. Complete CLI Command Reference

Task Creation

Action	Command
Create task	backlog task create "Title"
With description	backlog task create "Title" -d "Description"
With AC	backlog task create "Title" --ac "Criterion 1" --ac "Criterion 2"
With all options	backlog task create "Title" -d "Desc" -a @sara -s "To Do" -l auth --priority high
Create draft	backlog task create "Title" --draft
Create subtask	backlog task create "Title" -p 42

Task Modification

Action	Command
Edit title	backlog task edit 42 -t "New Title"
Edit description	backlog task edit 42 -d "New description"
Change status	backlog task edit 42 -s "In Progress"
Assign	backlog task edit 42 -a @sara
Add labels	backlog task edit 42 -l backend,api
Set priority	backlog task edit 42 --priority high

Acceptance Criteria Management

Action	Command
Add AC	backlog task edit 42 --ac "New criterion" --ac "Another"
Remove AC #2	backlog task edit 42 --remove-ac 2
Remove multiple ACs	backlog task edit 42 --remove-ac 2 --remove-ac 4
Check AC #1	backlog task edit 42 --check-ac 1
Check multiple ACs	backlog task edit 42 --check-ac 1 --check-ac 3
Uncheck AC #3	backlog task edit 42 --uncheck-ac 3
Mixed operations	backlog task edit 42 --check-ac 1 --uncheck-ac 2 --remove-ac 3 --ac "New"

Task Content

Action	Command
Add plan	backlog task edit 42 --plan "1. Step one\n2. Step two"
Add notes	backlog task edit 42 --notes "Implementation details"
Add dependencies	backlog task edit 42 --dep task-1 --dep task-2

Task Operations

Action	Command
View task	backlog task 42 --plain
List tasks	backlog task list --plain
Filter by status	backlog task list -s "In Progress" --plain
Filter by assignee	backlog task list -a @sara --plain
Archive task	backlog task archive 42
Demote to draft	backlog task demote 42

---

10. Troubleshooting

If You Accidentally Edited a File Directly

1. DON'T PANIC - But don't save or commit
2. Revert the changes
3. Make changes properly via CLI
4. If already saved, the metadata might be out of sync - use backlog task edit to fix

Common Issues

Problem	Solution
"Task not found"	Check task ID with backlog task list --plain
AC won't check	Use correct index: backlog task 42 --plain to see AC numbers
Changes not saving	Ensure you're using CLI, not editing files
Metadata out of sync	Re-edit via CLI to fix: backlog task edit 42 -s <current-status>

---

Remember: The Golden Rule

🎯 If you want to change ANYTHING in a task, use the backlog task edit command. 📖 Only READ task files directly, never WRITE to them.

Full help available: backlog --help

=== BACKLOG.MD GUIDELINES END ===