Codex Conductor

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name: codex-orchestrator description: Methodical end-to-end software delivery orchestrator for Codex CLI with dual project modes (greenfield for new builds, brownfield for existing systems) and dual execution modes (autonomous and gated). Use when users want full lifecycle delivery with strict stage gates, progress tracking, per-step manual/automated testing, continuous docs updates, change-impact management, and a reusable AGENTS.md workflow for any coding agent.

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Codex Orchestrator

Coordinate Codex as a disciplined delivery system, not a one-shot generator.

Core Modes

Select both:

project_mode

- greenfield: build from scratch - brownfield: onboard and modernize an existing system

execution_mode

- autonomous: proceed automatically when gates pass - gated: pause at every gate for user approval

Governing Principle: Spec-Driven Development

No code without a spec. This is non-negotiable.

Before any implementation, a written spec must exist with:

What is being built

Why it's needed

Acceptance criteria (testable)

Constraints and out-of-scope

The coding agent MUST NOT:

Guess at requirements

Make assumptions about behavior

Add unrequested features

Invent abstractions not in spec

If spec is unclear → STOP and ask. Never guess.

See references/spec-driven-development.md for full spec templates and enforcement rules.

Non-Negotiable Sequence

1. Intake + planning questionnaire 2. Spec creation + approval (specs written BEFORE any code) 3. Docs scaffold + AGENTS.md contract 4. Mode-specific pre-architecture work 5. Architecture + ADR baseline (references specs) 6. Build by vertical slices (each task references spec) 7. Verification against spec acceptance criteria 8. Security/quality gates 9. Release readiness + handover

Never skip gates silently. Never implement without a spec.

Required Resources

Read these references before running:

references/spec-driven-development.md (MANDATORY FIRST - governs all work)

references/planning-questionnaire.md

references/modes.md

references/gate-checklists.md

references/testing-matrix.md

references/manual-test-templates.md

references/codex-runbook.md

references/gate-prompts.md

scripts/agent_exec.py

references/research-playbook.md (if research_mode=true)

Scaffolding

Initialize project artifacts:

python scripts/init_project_docs.py --root  --mode 

This creates/updates:

AGENTS.md (project workflow contract)

docs/*.md planning/architecture/test/progress/change docs

brownfield docs (when mode is brownfield)

.orchestrator/status.json (machine-readable state)

.orchestrator/context.json (project/execution/research mode context)

Planning Rules

Before anything else, ask the user which coding agent to use (codex | claude | opencode | pi) and fallback agent. Then ask all required questions from references/planning-questionnaire.md.

Minimum required answers:

mission

top user journeys

v1 scope

hosting target

stack preference (or explicit request for recommendation)

project_mode

execution_mode

definition of done

acceptance tests

If research_mode=true, produce docs/research-notes.md and architecture recommendation before G2.

Mode-Specific Requirements

Greenfield

Must complete before G2:

requirements + DoD clarity

architecture baseline

ADR-0001 with alternatives

CI/test baseline plan

Brownfield

Must complete before G2 (and authored by coding agent, not orchestrator):

as-is architecture and system inventory

dependency map and risk register

characterization-test baseline

migration strategy + rollback approach

compatibility boundaries documented

Gate Engine

Use gates G0 through G7 defined in references/gate-checklists.md.

Update gate state via script:

python scripts/gate_status.py set --root  --gate G3 --state PASS --note "slice-1 verified"

Validate status schema:

python scripts/gate_status.py validate --root 

Allowed states: PENDING | IN_PROGRESS | PASS | FAIL | BLOCKED. By default, gate preconditions are enforced (sequence + mode-aware docs checks).

Validation Rules

Use references/testing-matrix.md.

Mandatory checks per progression:

lint/type/build

unit/integration/e2e (as applicable)

API contract sanity (if API exists)

security baseline

docs sync verification

Also execute manual test scripts from references/manual-test-templates.md.

Documentation Rules

For each meaningful step:

update docs/tasks.md

update docs/progress.md

append docs/change-log.md

update docs/traceability.md

record test evidence in docs/test-results.md

For user-requested changes, run:

python scripts/change_impact.py --root  --request ""

Then complete all TODOs it emits in impacted docs.

Codex Execution Pattern

Use PTY/background for long runs. Follow command patterns in references/codex-runbook.md.

Critical rule: each run executes ONE task, not a whole project in one prompt. For G4, maintain docs/g4-task-plan.md checklist and process tasks one by one.

Generate gate-specific prompts with:

python scripts/generate_gate_prompt.py --gate  --agent  --project-mode  --execution-mode  --research-mode  --task "" --spec-ref ""

update_docs_step.py is now a fallback utility for recovery/manual bookkeeping only. Primary expectation: the coding agent updates docs directly during each task.

Required loop:

1. verify spec exists for the task (no spec = no implementation) 2. launch selected coding agent with spec-driven prompt template 3. coding agent updates docs immediately after task completion (including handoff checklist) 4. coding agent wakes OpenClaw with task summary + where verification steps are documented 5. OpenClaw agent runs verification itself: - CLI checks in terminal tools - Browser/manual checks in browser tools (for web flows) 6. verify output matches spec acceptance criteria 7. if validations fail, OpenClaw sends exact failures back to coding agent and re-runs fix cycle 8. write final gate status only after validations pass (or mark FAIL/BLOCKED)

Enforcement:

run_gate.py requires --spec-ref for G3/G4 tasks (implementation gates).

run_gate.py requires coding agent + fallback agent context.

Each task requires validation evidence (--validate-cmd and/or --ui-review-note).

Tasks flagged with --requires-browser-check must include --ui-review-note.

status=PASS requires at least one --validate-cmd.

status=PASS is blocked when --agent-dry-run is used.

For G4, PASS is blocked until docs/g4-task-plan.md has no unchecked tasks.

Validation output is recorded in docs/validation-log.md.

Coding agent must update docs after every task, including docs/agent-handoff.md.

In brownfield mode, G1/G2 fail if onboarding docs are not updated by the coding agent.

Coding agent prompts MUST include spec preamble from references/spec-driven-development.md.

Any implementation without spec reference = automatic FAIL.

In autonomous mode, failed validations trigger automatic fix retries (default: 2) with failure details passed back to coding agent.

Optional strict mode: --auto-block-on-retry-exhaust auto-classifies gate as BLOCKED when retries are exhausted.

Progress Visibility

Generate a quick status board:

python scripts/progress_dashboard.py --root 

This summarizes current gate, completion %, blockers, and recent activity.

Run a single-task gate step with one command:

python scripts/run_gate.py --root  --gate G2 --agent codex --fallback-agent claude --project-mode brownfield --execution-mode gated --research-mode true --task "architecture baseline refined for API routing" --status IN_PROGRESS --validate-cmd "npm run -s typecheck" --ui-review-note "N/A for architecture-only task"

Mark PASS only after all gate-level checklist items are complete:

python scripts/run_gate.py --root  --gate G2 --agent codex --task "architecture gate complete" --status PASS --validate-cmd "npm run -s typecheck"

For web/UI tasks, require browser verification by OpenClaw agent:

python scripts/run_gate.py ... --requires-browser-check --ui-review-note "Verified login + CRUD manually in browser via OpenClaw browser tools"

Package distributable skill artifact:

python scripts/package_skill.py --skill-dir . --out dist

End-State Deliverables

At completion provide:

docs/progress.md at 100%

final gate summary from .orchestrator/status.json

test result summary + unresolved risks

deployment + rollback notes

next-iteration backlog

If blockers remain, mark as PARTIAL_COMPLETE with explicit blockers and owners.