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epic: branch-governance - Enforce branch lifecycle rules and AI guardrails #897

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epic: branch-governance - Enforce branch lifecycle rules and AI guardrails#897
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ashleyshaw
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area:automationarea:buildsarea:documentationpriority:importanttype:epic
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v1.3

Description

@ashleyshaw
ashleyshaw
opened on Jun 8, 2026

title: "Branch Governance Hardening Epic"
description: "Epic proposal for enforcing branch lifecycle rules, GitHub rulesets, and AI branch-selection guardrails."
file_type: "documentation"
version: "1.0.0"
last_updated: "2026-06-03"
created_date: "2026-06-03"
authors: ["LightSpeed Team"]
maintainer: "LightSpeed Team"
license: "GPL-3.0"
tags: ["epic", "branching", "governance", "rulesets"]
domain: "governance"
stability: "experimental"
status: "draft"

Branch Governance Hardening Epic

Problem

The repo already documents branch naming, merge discipline, and deletion
expectations. That guidance does not stop an AI or a human from reusing a work
branch, skipping the intended branch type, or continuing a new batch on an old
branch. The policy needs to be enforced where the repo can actually check it.

Goal

Convert branch policy from prose into enforceable controls:

  • GitHub rulesets and branch protections
  • workflow checks that validate branch state
  • AI branch-selection guardrails that require explicit intent
  • tests and rollout controls that keep the policy from drifting

Non-goals

  • redesigning the branching model from scratch
  • removing develop from the delivery flow
  • changing the team's preferred merge strategy

Acceptance Criteria

  • branch protection and ruleset coverage is defined for the protected branches
  • the workflow layer blocks invalid branch names and reused batch branches
  • AI-facing instructions require explicit branch choice and current-state checks
  • tests prove the rules fire before a bad branch can be used
  • the rollout plan explains how to extend the guardrails to later batches

Child Issues

  1. GitHub rulesets and branch protection
  2. Workflow branch validation and reuse prevention
  3. AI branch-selection guardrails
  4. Validation tests and rollout controls

Definition of Ready (DoR)

  • Epic vision and scope clearly defined
  • Success criteria and measurable outcomes documented
  • High-level tasks/stories identified
  • Dependencies and risks mapped
  • Timeline and resource estimates provided
  • Stakeholder alignment confirmed

Definition of Done (DoD)

  • All child issues/stories completed
  • Epic acceptance criteria met
  • Epic documentation and summary updated
  • Release notes and announcement prepared
  • Post-launch monitoring and support plan in place
  • Retrospective completed (if applicable)

Activity

  1. ashleyshaw
    added
    migrate:priority:importantMust-do high priority
    migrate:status:needs-planningAwaiting planning / scoping
    migrate:type:epicLarge multi-scope initiative
    migrate:area:documentationDocs & guides
    migrate:area:automationAutomation workflows and agents
    on Jun 8, 2026

  2. linear-code commented on Jun 8, 2026

    @linear-code
    linear-codeBot
    on Jun 8, 2026 – with Linear Code

    LS-961

    LS-1097

  3. github-actions commented on Jun 8, 2026

    @github-actions
    github-actionsBot
    on Jun 8, 2026 – with GitHub Actions
    Contributor

    ✅ Template check passed after update. Thanks for fixing the issue body.

  4. github-actions
    closed this as not plannedon Jun 8, 2026
  5. ashleyshaw
    added a commit that references this issue on Jun 8, 2026

    ops(governance): harden branch naming, merge-target and reuse enforce…

    3711d82

  6. ashleyshaw commented on Jun 8, 2026

    @ashleyshaw
    ashleyshaw
    on Jun 8, 2026
    MemberAuthor

    Project archive sync: the Branch Governance Hardening project pack is now archived at .github/projects/archived/branch-governance-hardening-2026-06-08.

    The archived issue register is the canonical mapping for this chain and has been updated to reflect closed status across #897-#901.

  7. ashleyshaw
    added 2 commits that reference this issue on Jun 9, 2026

    ops(governance): harden branch naming, merge-target and reuse enforce…

    a6ee7bb

    ops(governance): harden branch naming, merge-target and reuse enforce…

    2498e7b
  8. ashleyshaw
    added 2 commits that reference this issue on Jun 18, 2026

    ops(governance): harden branch naming, merge-target and reuse enforce…

    7938e90

    ops: branch governance hardening — rulesets, validation enhancements,…

    835d72e

  9. ashleyshaw commented on Jun 18, 2026

    @ashleyshaw
    ashleyshaw
    on Jun 18, 2026 – with Claude
    MemberAuthor

    PR #915 (ops/branch-governance-hardening) has been merged to develop (squash commit 835d72e). That PR delivered the branch governance hardening work tracked by this issue, including GitHub Ruleset JSON files, --base flag and reuse detection in validate-branch-name.js, 35-test Jest suite, and updated AGENTS.md/CLAUDE.md governance sections.

    Generated by Claude Code

  10. 7 remaining items

  11. ashleyshaw
    modified the milestones: , v1.3 on Jul 22, 2026
  12. ashleyshaw
    removed
    migrate:status:needs-more-infoMissing details to proceed
    on Aug 9, 2026
  13. lightspeed-project-automation
    added the
    Task
    issue type on Sep 7, 2026
  14. linear-code
    added
    priority:important
    area:automation
    area:documentation
    type:epic
    on Sep 8, 2026

  15. github-actions commented on Sep 8, 2026

    @github-actions
    github-actionsBot
    on Sep 8, 2026 – with GitHub Actions
    Contributor

    ⚠️ Bare Labels Detected

    This issue has labels that are not in the canonical taxonomy:

    • migrate:type:epic

    Valid Canonical Labels

    Please use labels with a prefix from the canonical taxonomy:

    • Type: type:bug, type:feature, type:task, type:documentation, etc.
    • Status: status:needs-triage, status:in-progress, status:done, etc.
    • Priority: priority:critical, priority:high, priority:normal, priority:low
    • Area: area:ci, area:docs, area:labels, area:security, etc.
    • Meta: meta:needs-changelog, meta:duplicate, meta:blocked, etc.

    For the complete list, see .github/labels.yml.

  16. ashleyshaw
    added
    area:builds
    on Sep 8, 2026
  17. ashleyshaw
    changed the title [-][Epic] Branch Governance Hardening[/-] [+]epic: branch-governance - Enforce branch lifecycle rules and AI guardrails[/+] on Sep 8, 2026
  18. ashleyshaw
    removed
    migrate:area:automationAutomation workflows and agents
    migrate:area:documentationDocs & guides
    migrate:priority:importantMust-do high priority
    migrate:type:epicLarge multi-scope initiative
    on Sep 9, 2026
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