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Spike or prototype

The output is an answer, not code. The code stays on a spike branch and never merges.

Use when

  • A decision needs facts that only a quick build can give (for example "Can library X do Y?").

Do not use when

Flow

  1. Run the shaper. Write the question, the time box, and what counts as an answer (G1).
  2. Create a branch with the spike/ prefix.
  3. Start the investigator in a fresh session. It builds the smallest code that answers the question. It can skip tests.
  4. Stop at the time box, also if the answer is not complete.
  5. Write the findings report: the answer, the evidence, the limits, and a recommendation.
  6. A human reads the report and decides the next step (G4).

CAUTION: K16 blocks a PR from a spike/ branch to the main branch or the integration branch. To keep spike code, rebuild it with a profile that has a Build stage and gate G3.

The hook trusts the spike/ prefix, so the investigator can write code on that branch (D25). K16 is the control that stops this code from merging. Make the K16 job a required status check on the main branch and on the integration branch. See K16 and the spike branch.

WARNING: Do not merge a spike branch into a different branch, for example a feature branch. K16 reads only the head branch name, so it does not see spike commits on that branch (D33). The reviewer at gate G4 must find them.

Exit criteria

  • The report answers the question, or says why it cannot.

Evidence

Dossier IDs: E10, D4.