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decision (entity)

Generated from solutions/ontological/lib/model/entities/decision/schema.ts.

Schema version: 1.

A Decision (also called ADR — Architecture Decision Record) captures a project-level design choice: the context that prompted it, the options weighed, and the resolution. Decisions are the durable record of why this and not that; their continued relevance is checked when downstream work bumps against them.

A Decision is not:

  • A Standard. A Standard prescribes a rule on specific paths. A Decision records the reasoning behind a choice; Standards are one possible output of a Decision.
  • A Principle. A Principle is a broad value; a Decision is a scoped resolution. Decisions often cite Principles in their rationale.
FieldTypeRequiredDescription
typestringyesDispatch tag for the validator framework.
schema_versionstringNumeric string version of the per-type schema this instance conforms to. Compare numerically when ordering versions. Independent of any product version. The value 0 is a documented sentinel meaning ‘pre-SDLC-managed’ — audit treats it as intentional, not stale. Optional in frontmatter: never in any per-type required set (audit flags a MISSING stamp as drift, not the validator).
idstringyesImmutable identifier in canonical D-NNNN shape per D-0002-entity-identifier-shape: ‘D-’ + 4 zero-padded chars [0-9A-Z] (Decisions use incrementing numbering). Never renamed once assigned.
statusstringLifecycle stage. open/* states are active; closed/* are terminal. Decisions move from open/proposed → open/accepted; closed/superseded means a newer Decision replaces this one; closed/deprecated means the decision no longer applies.
titlestringyesHuman-readable headline. Frontmatter is canonical; the body opens with # <title> for readability.
createdstringyesISO date the entity was first authored.
last_reviewedstringISO date the entity was last reviewed. Optional: never in any per-type required set.
relatedarrayCross-references. Entries are wikilinks — typically to other entities by id (slug optional per D-0002-entity-identifier-shape), but may also reference non-entity planning docs by their wikilink slug (e.g. roadmap).
tagsarrayFree-form labels. Required at the common level, defaulting to []. Per-type schemas may add a contains constraint (e.g. Principle requires exactly one principle/<category> tag).
need_human_reviewbooleanReview-tracking flag.
supersedesstringWikilink to the Decision this one replaces, if any. Slug is optional per D-0002-entity-identifier-shape.
superseded_bystringWikilink to the Decision that replaces this one, if any. Required when status is closed/superseded. Slug is optional per D-0002-entity-identifier-shape.
deprecation_notestringShort note on why the decision was deprecated. Required when status is deprecated.
  • open/proposed
  • open/accepted
  • closed/superseded
  • closed/deprecated