Skill: TraceMem Decision Envelopes

Purpose

This skill teaches how to correctly manage the lifecycle of a Decision Envelope. The Decision Envelope is the mandatory boundary for all governed operations in TraceMem.

Use `decision_record` Instead?

If you only need to document or record a decision (e.g., architecture choice, dependency selection, tradeoff) and do NOT need data product operations (reads, writes, policy evaluations, or approvals), use decision_record instead of the full envelope workflow. It handles everything in one call. See the decision-recording skill.

When to Use

Every time you intend to perform a task that requires reading private data or affecting system state.
At the very beginning of a new task or workflow.
When an existing decision has been closed and you need to perform follow-up actions (start a new decision).

When NOT to Use

When you only need to document/record a decision without data operations -- use decision_record instead.
Do not nest decisions (e.g., do not open a decision if you are already inside one, unless explicitly starting a sub-task that requires independent audit).
Do not open a decision for purely computational tasks (e.g., formatting text) that require no external data or side effects.

Core Rules

⚠️ CRITICAL: ALL Operations MUST Be Within a Decision Envelope: You CANNOT perform ANY of these operations without an active decision_id:
- ❌ decision_read - requires decision_id
- ❌ decision_write - requires decision_id
- ❌ decision_evaluate - requires decision_id
- ❌ decision_request_approval - requires decision_id
- ✅ products_list and product_get - do NOT require decision_id (discovery tools)
One Decision, One Lifecycle: A decision must be explicitly created (open), operated upon, and then explicitly closed (commit or abort).
Mandatory Intents: You must provide a structured intent string (e.g., customer.onboarding.verification) that describes why this decision exists.
Mandatory Automation Mode: You must certify the automation_mode (only these values: propose, approve, override, autonomous).
Close Required: A decision left open is a "zombie" decision. You must ensure decision_close is called in finally blocks or error handlers.

Common Workflow Patterns

Pattern 1: Read-Only Workflow

Purpose: Retrieve customer information for support

1. decision_create
   - intent: "customer.lookup.support"
   - automation_mode: "autonomous"
   → Returns: decision_id

2. product_get (optional but recommended)
   - product: "customers_v1"
   → Returns: schema and allowed_purposes

3. decision_read (REQUIRES decision_id from step 1)
   - decision_id: <from step 1>
   - product: "customers_v1"
   - purpose: "support_context"
   - query: {"customer_id": "1001"}
   → Returns: customer records

4. decision_close (REQUIRED)
   - decision_id: <from step 1>
   - action: "commit"

❌ WRONG: Calling decision_read without step 1 will FAIL

Pattern 2: Insert Workflow

Purpose: Create a new customer order

1. decision_create
   - intent: "order.create.customer"
   - automation_mode: "autonomous"
   → Returns: decision_id

2. product_get
   - product: "orders_v1"
   → Returns: schema with required fields

3. decision_write (REQUIRES decision_id from step 1)
   - decision_id: <from step 1>
   - product: "orders_v1"
   - purpose: "order_creation"
   - operation: "insert"  ← INSERT creates NEW records
   - mutation: {
       "records": [{
         "customer_id": 1001,
         "total_amount": 99.99,
         "status": "pending"
       }]
     }
   → Returns: created order

4. decision_close (REQUIRED)
   - decision_id: <from step 1>
   - action: "commit"

❌ WRONG: Calling decision_write without step 1 will FAIL

Pattern 3: Update Workflow

Purpose: Update order status

1. decision_create
   - intent: "order.status.update"
   - automation_mode: "approve"
   → Returns: decision_id

2. decision_read (read current state)
   - decision_id: <from step 1>
   - product: "orders_v1"
   - purpose: "order_update"
   - query: {"order_id": "12345"}
   → Returns: current order data

3. decision_evaluate (check if update allowed)
   - decision_id: <from step 1>
   - policy_id: "order_status_change_v1"
   - inputs: {"current_status": "pending", "new_status": "shipped"}
   → Returns: allowed/denied

4. decision_write (REQUIRES decision_id from step 1)
   - decision_id: <from step 1>
   - product: "orders_v1"
   - purpose: "order_update"
   - operation: "update"  ← UPDATE modifies EXISTING records
   - keys: {"order_id": "12345"}  ← NEW: Explicit key specification
   - mutation: {
       "fields": {
         "status": "shipped"    ← What to change
       }
     }

5. decision_close (REQUIRED)
   - decision_id: <from step 1>
   - action: "commit"

❌ WRONG: Any operation without decision_id will FAIL

Pattern 4: Delete Workflow

Purpose: Delete expired draft order

1. decision_create
   - intent: "order.draft.cleanup"
   - automation_mode: "autonomous"
   → Returns: decision_id

2. decision_read (verify before delete)
   - decision_id: <from step 1>
   - product: "orders_v1"
   - purpose: "data_cleanup"
   - query: {"order_id": "67890", "status": "draft"}

3. decision_write (REQUIRES decision_id from step 1)
   - decision_id: <from step 1>
   - product: "orders_v1"
   - purpose: "data_cleanup"
   - operation: "delete"  ← DELETE removes records
   - keys: {"order_id": "67890"}  ← NEW: Explicit key specification

4. decision_close (REQUIRED)
   - decision_id: <from step 1>
   - action: "commit"

Pattern 5: Approval Workflow

Purpose: Request approval for large discount

1. decision_create
   - intent: "discount.exception.request"
   - automation_mode: "approve"
   → Returns: decision_id

2. decision_evaluate
   - decision_id: <from step 1>
   - policy_id: "discount_cap_v1"
   - inputs: {"discount": 0.30, "customer_tier": "standard"}
   → Returns: requires_approval

3. decision_request_approval (REQUIRES decision_id from step 1)
   - decision_id: <from step 1>
   - title: "30% Discount Request"
   - message: "Customer requesting exception"
   → Returns: approval_id

4. [Wait for approval - poll decision_get]

5. decision_close (REQUIRED)
   - decision_id: <from step 1>
   - action: "commit" or "abort" (based on approval result)

Correct Usage Pattern

Create the Envelope: Call decision_create with:
- intent: A dot-separated string (e.g., financial.report.generate).
- automation_mode: One of propose, approve, override, autonomous.
- actor: Your agent identity.
Result: You receive a decision_id.
Operate within the Envelope: Perform all decision_read, decision_evaluate, and decision_write calls using the decision_id.
Close the Envelope:
- If successful: Call decision_close with action: "commit".
- If error/aborted: Call decision_close with action: "rollback" (or abort if strictly tracking abandonment).
Note: Writes are only permanently applied when the decision is committed (depending on system configuration, but logically, the decision is not "done" until committed).

Common Mistakes

Attempting operations without decision envelope: Calling decision_read, decision_write, decision_evaluate, or decision_request_approval without first calling decision_create will FAIL. The decision envelope is MANDATORY for ALL these operations.
Forgetting to close: Leaving decisions open forever consumes resources and confuses auditors.
Vague Intents: Using generic intents like task.do or agent.act. Use specific, domain-relevant intents (user.password.reset, invoice.payment.process).
Wrong Automation Mode: Claiming autonomous when the task requires human oversight, or propose when you intend to execute immediately. Remember: only propose, approve, override, or autonomous are valid.

Alternative: One-Shot Decision Recording

For decisions that do not require data product operations (reads, writes, evaluations, approvals), use decision_record instead of the full envelope workflow. This is ideal for recording architecture decisions, dependency choices, schema changes, and other engineering decisions.

Tool: decision_record
Parameters:
  - title: "Use goroutines with worker pool pattern"
  - category: "architecture"
  - context: "The pipeline needs concurrent processing..."
  - decision: "Implement bounded worker pool using channels..."
  - rationale: "Worker pools provide backpressure naturally..."
  - alternatives_considered: [{option: "...", rejected_because: "..."}]
  - tags: ["go", "concurrency"]
Returns: Committed decision with trace and snapshot

When to use decision_record vs full envelope:

decision_record: Pure architectural/design decisions, no data operations needed
Full envelope (decision_create → operations → decision_close): Decisions involving data reads, writes, policy evaluations, or approval workflows

You can also search past decisions with decision_search before recording new ones to find precedent or decisions to supersede.

Safety Notes

Audited Lifecycle: The timestamps of open and close are recorded. Long-running open decisions may trigger alerts.
Fail Closed: If your process crashes, the decision remains open (and potentially locks resources). Always wrap your workflow in a try/finally block to ensure decision_close is attempted.

decision-envelope