docs: add evaluator rag prototype (#1824)

docs/ECC-2.0-GA-ROADMAP.md

@@ -54,6 +54,11 @@ As of 2026-05-12:
   dry-run without `--force`, local marketplace discovery, temp-home local
   install, enabled plugin listing, and clean uninstall for `ecc@ecc`
   `2.0.0-rc.1`.
+- `docs/architecture/evaluator-rag-prototype.md` and
+  `examples/evaluator-rag-prototype/` define the first read-only
+  self-improving harness prototype: scenario spec, trace, report, candidate
+  playbook, verifier result, accepted maintainer-salvage candidate, and
+  rejected blind-translation candidate.
 - The npm package surface now excludes Python bytecode/cache artifacts through
   package `files` negation rules and a publish-surface regression test.
 - `docs/legacy-artifact-inventory.md` records that no `_legacy-documents-*`
@@ -194,7 +199,7 @@ is not complete unless the evidence column exists and has been freshly verified.
 | AgentShield enterprise iteration | Policy gates, SARIF, packs, provenance, corpus, HTML reports, exception lifecycle audit | PRs #53, #55-#62 landed with test evidence | Needs PDF/export decision or next enterprise signal |
 | ECC Tools next-level app | Billing audit, PR checks, deep analyzer, sync backlog | PRs #26-#39 landed with test evidence | Needs capacity-backed Linear rollout / broader evaluator corpus |
 | GitGuardian/Dependabot/CodeRabbit-style checks | Non-blocking taxonomy and deterministic follow-up checks | ECC-Tools risk taxonomy check plus follow-up signals landed, including Skill Quality, Deep Analyzer Evidence, Analyzer Corpus Evidence, RAG/Evaluator Evidence, and PR Review/Salvage Evidence | Partially complete |
-| Harness-agnostic learning system | Audit, adapter matrix, observability, traces, promotion loop | Audit/adapters/observability gates exist | Needs evaluation/RAG prototype |
+| Harness-agnostic learning system | Audit, adapter matrix, observability, traces, promotion loop | Audit/adapters/observability gates plus `docs/architecture/evaluator-rag-prototype.md` and `examples/evaluator-rag-prototype/` define the first read-only scenario, trace, report, playbook, and verifier result | Needs broader evaluator corpus |
 | Linear roadmap is detailed | Linear project status plus repo mirror | Repo mirror exists; issue creation was retried on 2026-05-12 and remains blocked by the workspace free issue limit | Needs recurring status updates after each merge batch |
 | Flow separation and progress tracking | Flow lanes with owner artifacts and update cadence | This roadmap defines lanes below | Active |
 | Realtime Linear sync | Project updates while issue limit is blocked; issues later | ECC-Tools #39 implements opt-in Linear API sync for deferred follow-up backlog items | Needs workspace capacity/config rollout |
@@ -213,7 +218,7 @@ back to the repo evidence and merge commits.
 | Queue hygiene and salvage | GitHub PR/issue state, salvage ledger | Append ledger entries for any future stale closures | Every cleanup batch |
 | Release and publication | rc.1 release docs, publication readiness doc | Naming matrix and plugin submission/contact checklist | Before any tag |
 | Harness OS core | Audit, adapter matrix, observability docs, `ecc2/` | HUD/session-control acceptance spec | Weekly until GA |
-| Evaluation and RAG | Reference-set validation, harness audit, traces | Read-only evaluator/RAG prototype design | Before deep analyzer expansion |
+| Evaluation and RAG | Reference-set validation, harness audit, traces | Read-only evaluator/RAG prototype plus fixture contract | Expand to CI, billing, harness-config, and AgentShield scenarios |
 | AgentShield enterprise | AgentShield PR evidence and roadmap notes | PDF-export decision or next enterprise signal | After value decision |
 | ECC Tools app | ECC-Tools PR evidence, billing audit, risk taxonomy | Capacity-backed Linear rollout or broader evaluator/RAG corpus slice | Next implementation batch |
 | Linear progress | Linear project status updates and this mirror | Status update with queue/evidence/missing gates | Every significant merge batch |
@@ -407,5 +412,6 @@ Acceptance:
    executive report, corpus benchmark output, and exception lifecycle audit.
 2. Enable/configure the merged Linear backlog sync path after workspace issue
    capacity clears or the Linear workspace is upgraded.
-3. Expand the evaluator/RAG corpus with real cleanup-batch cases as future
+3. Expand the evaluator/RAG corpus beyond the first stale-salvage prototype to
-   maintainer-owned examples land.
+   CI failure diagnosis, harness-config drift, billing readiness, and
+   AgentShield policy exception scenarios.

docs/ECC-2.0-REFERENCE-ARCHITECTURE.md

@@ -136,6 +136,13 @@ Repo work:
 - `agentshield`: feed prompt-injection and config-risk findings into regression
   suites.
 
+Current prototype:
+
+- `docs/architecture/evaluator-rag-prototype.md` defines the read-only
+  evaluator/RAG artifact contract.
+- `examples/evaluator-rag-prototype/` records the first scenario spec, trace,
+  report, candidate playbook, and verifier result for stale-PR salvage.
+
 Verification:
 
 - read-only prototype that emits a trace, report, candidate playbook, and

docs/architecture/evaluator-rag-prototype.md

@@ -0,0 +1,122 @@
+# Evaluator RAG Prototype
+
+ECC 2.0 needs a self-improving harness loop that can learn from real work
+without blindly mutating a user's Claude, Codex, OpenCode, dmux, Zed, or
+terminal setup. This prototype defines the smallest read-only artifact set for
+that loop.
+
+The fixture set lives in
+[`examples/evaluator-rag-prototype/`](../../examples/evaluator-rag-prototype/).
+It uses the May 2026 stale-PR cleanup and salvage lane as the first concrete
+scenario because that lane has real inputs, real accepted work, and real
+rejected work.
+
+## Reference Pressure
+
+- Meta-Harness: treat the harness itself as an experiment with scenario specs,
+  verifier results, and promoted playbooks.
+- Autocontext: store traces, reports, artifacts, and reusable improvements
+  before changing installed agent assets.
+- Claude HUD: expose context, tools, todos, agent activity, checks, and risk so
+  an evaluator can judge a run after the fact.
+- Hermes Agent: keep skills, memories, scheduler-like follow-ups, and terminal
+  gateway behavior explicit instead of hiding local commands.
+- dmux, Orca, Superset, and Ghast: preserve worktree/session state so parallel
+  agent work can be compared, resumed, or closed cleanly.
+- ECC Tools: route evaluator findings into PR comments, check runs, and Linear
+  backlog items without flooding GitHub.
+
+## Artifact Contract
+
+Every evaluator/RAG run is read-only until a verifier promotes a playbook.
+
+| Artifact | Purpose | Fixture |
+| --- | --- | --- |
+| Scenario spec | Declares the objective, allowed evidence, forbidden actions, and pass/fail gates. | `scenario.json` |
+| Trace | Captures observation, retrieval, proposal, verification, and promotion events. | `trace.json` |
+| Report | Summarizes scores, evidence coverage, risks, and recommended next action. | `report.json` |
+| Candidate playbook | Describes the maintainer-owned workflow that could be reused later. | `candidate-playbook.md` |
+| Verifier result | Accepts or rejects candidates with concrete reasons and rollback notes. | `verifier-result.json` |
+
+The prototype deliberately separates retrieval from action. A run can retrieve
+closed PR diffs, Linear status, CI history, and local docs, but it cannot close,
+merge, publish, tag, or rewrite configs as part of the evaluator pass.
+
+## Phase Model
+
+1. Observe the current queue, dirty worktrees, branch state, open PRs/issues,
+   discussions, CI state, and release gates.
+2. Retrieve relevant reference evidence: stale-salvage ledger rows, prior
+   maintainer PRs, current docs, analyzer findings, CI failures, and harness
+   adapter rules.
+3. Propose one or more playbooks with source attribution and expected
+   validation gates.
+4. Verify each playbook against explicit acceptance and rejection rules.
+5. Promote only the candidate that improves the scenario without widening blast
+   radius.
+6. Record rollback guidance and unresolved manual-review tails.
+
+## First Scenario
+
+The first scenario is `stale-pr-salvage-maintainer-branch`.
+
+It models the rule Affaan set during the May 2026 cleanup: stale closure is
+queue hygiene, not loss of useful work. Useful closed PR work should be ported
+into maintainer-owned PRs with attribution/backlinks, while generated churn,
+bulk localization, and ambiguous translator work stay out of blind
+cherry-picks.
+
+The verifier accepts a maintainer salvage branch that:
+
+- credits source PRs;
+- avoids raw private context and personal paths;
+- does not import stale bulk localization without translator review;
+- records a durable ledger update;
+- runs the same validation gates as a normal code, docs, or catalog change;
+- leaves release publication actions approval-gated.
+
+The verifier rejects a blind cherry-pick proposal that:
+
+- imports stale translation/doc churn wholesale;
+- skips the current catalog/install architecture;
+- lacks attribution;
+- lacks tests or ledger updates;
+- mutates release or plugin publication state.
+
+## ECC Tools Mapping
+
+ECC Tools already flags missing RAG/evaluator evidence for retrieval,
+embedding, ranking, and evaluator changes. This prototype gives those checks a
+target shape:
+
+- `scenario.json` maps to analyzer corpus inputs.
+- `trace.json` maps to golden traces and run telemetry.
+- `report.json` maps to PR comment summaries and Linear backlog summaries.
+- `candidate-playbook.md` maps to the suggested follow-up PR body.
+- `verifier-result.json` maps to pass/fail check-run evidence.
+
+Future ECC Tools work should consume these artifacts as fixture shape before it
+adds hosted retrieval or model-backed judging. The local prototype is enough to
+prove the contract before any paid API or vector store is introduced.
+
+## Promotion Rules
+
+A candidate can be promoted only when:
+
+- the verifier result is `accepted`;
+- at least one rejected candidate proves the verifier can say no;
+- every source PR or reference artifact has attribution;
+- the proposed action is maintainer-owned and reversible;
+- validation commands are named;
+- unresolved translator, release, billing, or publication items remain blocked
+  until separately approved.
+
+## Next Expansion
+
+The next evaluator/RAG corpus should add:
+
+- a CI-failure diagnosis scenario with captured logs and a known fix;
+- a harness-config quality scenario covering MCP/plugin/hook drift;
+- a billing-readiness scenario that separates verified Marketplace claims from
+  launch-copy assumptions;
+- an AgentShield policy exception scenario with SARIF and report evidence.

examples/evaluator-rag-prototype/candidate-playbook.md

@@ -0,0 +1,41 @@
+# Candidate Playbook: Maintainer-Owned Stale Salvage
+
+Candidate id: `maintainer-salvage-branch`
+
+## Use When
+
+- A stale or conflicted PR was closed to keep the public queue usable.
+- The closed diff contains a useful focused idea, skill, command, doc, test, or
+  bug fix.
+- The contributor may not have time or interest to rebase.
+
+## Steps
+
+1. Record the source PR, author, useful concept, and closure reason in
+   `docs/stale-pr-salvage-ledger.md`.
+2. Re-read the closed PR diff against current `main`.
+3. Decide whether the patch can be cherry-picked safely. Prefer reimplementation
+   when current architecture has moved.
+4. Create a maintainer-owned branch with one focused salvage unit.
+5. Preserve attribution in the PR body and, when useful, in the commit body.
+6. Update the catalog, docs, tests, or release evidence required by the touched
+   surface.
+7. Run the same validation gates a normal change would require.
+8. After merge, update the ledger from pending/salvage-branch to landed,
+   already-present, superseded, skipped, or translator/manual review.
+
+## Reject Conditions
+
+- The patch is bulk generated churn.
+- The patch is stale localization that needs translator/manual review.
+- The patch imports personal paths, secrets, local settings, or private operator context.
+- The patch bypasses current install, catalog, plugin, or release architecture.
+- The branch would mix unrelated salvage units into one PR.
+
+## Minimum Validation
+
+- Targeted test for the touched surface.
+- `git diff --check`.
+- Markdown lint when docs are touched.
+- Catalog/install validation when skills, agents, commands, or plugin surfaces
+  are touched.

examples/evaluator-rag-prototype/report.json

@@ -0,0 +1,35 @@
+{
+  "schema_version": "ecc.evaluator-rag.report.v1",
+  "scenario_id": "stale-pr-salvage-maintainer-branch",
+  "run_id": "2026-05-12-cleanup-salvage-prototype",
+  "result": "prototype_passed",
+  "read_only": true,
+  "scores": {
+    "source_attribution": 1,
+    "blast_radius_control": 1,
+    "manual_review_respected": 1,
+    "validation_specificity": 0.8,
+    "publication_safety": 1
+  },
+  "findings": [
+    {
+      "id": "salvage-policy-usable",
+      "severity": "info",
+      "summary": "The stale-salvage ledger and maintainer PR examples provide enough evidence to promote a reusable maintainer-owned salvage playbook."
+    },
+    {
+      "id": "translation-tail-blocked",
+      "severity": "warning",
+      "summary": "Localization tails remain useful but must stay translator/manual-review only."
+    },
+    {
+      "id": "release-actions-blocked",
+      "severity": "warning",
+      "summary": "Release, npm, plugin, billing, and announcement actions remain outside this evaluator run and require separate approval."
+    }
+  ],
+  "recommended_next_action": {
+    "candidate_id": "maintainer-salvage-branch",
+    "action": "Use the promoted playbook for future stale cleanup batches and add additional evaluator/RAG scenarios for CI failure diagnosis, harness-config drift, billing readiness, and AgentShield policy exceptions."
+  }
+}

examples/evaluator-rag-prototype/scenario.json

@@ -0,0 +1,56 @@
+{
+  "schema_version": "ecc.evaluator-rag.scenario.v1",
+  "scenario_id": "stale-pr-salvage-maintainer-branch",
+  "title": "Recover useful stale PR work through maintainer-owned branches",
+  "mode": "read_only_prototype",
+  "objective": "Given a closed stale PR batch, identify useful work, reject unsafe bulk imports, and promote only a maintainer-owned salvage playbook with attribution and validation.",
+  "sources": [
+    {
+      "kind": "repo_doc",
+      "path": "docs/stale-pr-salvage-ledger.md",
+      "purpose": "Durable source-to-disposition mapping for stale PR cleanup"
+    },
+    {
+      "kind": "repo_doc",
+      "path": "docs/legacy-artifact-inventory.md",
+      "purpose": "Import guardrails for legacy and private-context material"
+    },
+    {
+      "kind": "roadmap",
+      "path": "docs/ECC-2.0-GA-ROADMAP.md",
+      "purpose": "Operating rule and current execution lane"
+    },
+    {
+      "kind": "github_pr",
+      "url": "https://github.com/affaan-m/everything-claude-code/pull/1815",
+      "purpose": "Example maintainer-owned stale salvage PR with attribution"
+    },
+    {
+      "kind": "github_pr",
+      "url": "https://github.com/affaan-m/everything-claude-code/pull/1818",
+      "purpose": "Example gap pass classifying already-present and skipped stale work"
+    }
+  ],
+  "retrieval_questions": [
+    "Which closed PRs contain useful work that is not already present?",
+    "Which files or concepts are unsafe to cherry-pick without manual review?",
+    "Which current docs, skills, commands, or tests are the correct integration points?",
+    "Which validation gates are required before the salvage work can merge?"
+  ],
+  "forbidden_actions": [
+    "closing, reopening, or commenting on PRs",
+    "merging PRs",
+    "creating release tags",
+    "publishing packages or plugins",
+    "copying private paths, secrets, or raw personal context",
+    "blindly cherry-picking bulk localization"
+  ],
+  "acceptance_gates": [
+    "source attribution is preserved",
+    "salvage ledger or equivalent tracker is updated",
+    "translation/manual-review tails remain blocked",
+    "candidate action is reversible and maintainer-owned",
+    "validation commands are named",
+    "at least one unsafe candidate is rejected"
+  ]
+}

examples/evaluator-rag-prototype/trace.json

@@ -0,0 +1,46 @@
+{
+  "schema_version": "ecc.evaluator-rag.trace.v1",
+  "scenario_id": "stale-pr-salvage-maintainer-branch",
+  "run_id": "2026-05-12-cleanup-salvage-prototype",
+  "read_only": true,
+  "events": [
+    {
+      "phase": "observation",
+      "summary": "Public PR, issue, and discussion queues are clear; release publication remains approval-gated; stale-salvage ledger has landed, skipped, superseded, and manual-review states.",
+      "evidence": [
+        "docs/ECC-2.0-GA-ROADMAP.md",
+        "docs/stale-pr-salvage-ledger.md"
+      ]
+    },
+    {
+      "phase": "retrieval",
+      "summary": "Retrieved stale PR source mappings, existing maintainer salvage examples, legacy import rules, and manual-review localization tails.",
+      "evidence": [
+        "docs/stale-pr-salvage-ledger.md",
+        "docs/legacy-artifact-inventory.md",
+        "https://github.com/affaan-m/everything-claude-code/pull/1815",
+        "https://github.com/affaan-m/everything-claude-code/pull/1818"
+      ]
+    },
+    {
+      "phase": "proposal",
+      "summary": "Generated two candidate playbooks: maintainer-owned salvage branch with attribution, and blind cherry-pick of stale translations.",
+      "candidate_ids": [
+        "maintainer-salvage-branch",
+        "blind-cherry-pick-translations"
+      ]
+    },
+    {
+      "phase": "verification",
+      "summary": "Accepted the maintainer-owned salvage branch and rejected blind translation cherry-picking because it violates manual-review and attribution gates.",
+      "evidence": [
+        "examples/evaluator-rag-prototype/verifier-result.json"
+      ]
+    },
+    {
+      "phase": "promotion",
+      "summary": "Promoted only the maintainer-owned salvage branch playbook as a reusable process. No repository, GitHub, release, billing, or plugin publication action is performed by this prototype.",
+      "promoted_candidate_id": "maintainer-salvage-branch"
+    }
+  ]
+}

examples/evaluator-rag-prototype/verifier-result.json

@@ -0,0 +1,35 @@
+{
+  "schema_version": "ecc.evaluator-rag.verifier.v1",
+  "scenario_id": "stale-pr-salvage-maintainer-branch",
+  "run_id": "2026-05-12-cleanup-salvage-prototype",
+  "read_only": true,
+  "candidates": [
+    {
+      "candidate_id": "maintainer-salvage-branch",
+      "decision": "accepted",
+      "score": 0.94,
+      "reasons": [
+        "preserves source PR attribution",
+        "keeps work on a fresh maintainer-owned branch",
+        "updates the salvage ledger",
+        "names validation gates",
+        "does not perform release or publication actions"
+      ],
+      "rollback": "Close the maintainer PR or revert its merge commit; source PR state remains unchanged."
+    },
+    {
+      "candidate_id": "blind-cherry-pick-translations",
+      "decision": "rejected",
+      "score": 0.21,
+      "reasons": [
+        "bulk localization requires translator/manual review",
+        "does not preserve enough source attribution",
+        "could import stale generated docs",
+        "does not name validation gates",
+        "risks bypassing current catalog and install architecture"
+      ],
+      "rollback": "Do not create this branch; keep the localization tail in translator/manual-review state."
+    }
+  ],
+  "promoted_candidate_id": "maintainer-salvage-branch"
+}

tests/docs/evaluator-rag-prototype.test.js

@@ -0,0 +1,142 @@
+'use strict';
+
+const assert = require('assert');
+const fs = require('fs');
+const path = require('path');
+
+const repoRoot = path.resolve(__dirname, '..', '..');
+const fixtureRoot = path.join(repoRoot, 'examples', 'evaluator-rag-prototype');
+
+let passed = 0;
+let failed = 0;
+
+function test(name, fn) {
+  try {
+    fn();
+    console.log(`  ✓ ${name}`);
+    passed++;
+  } catch (error) {
+    console.log(`  ✗ ${name}`);
+    console.log(`    Error: ${error.message}`);
+    failed++;
+  }
+}
+
+function read(relativePath) {
+  return fs.readFileSync(path.join(repoRoot, relativePath), 'utf8');
+}
+
+function readJson(fileName) {
+  return JSON.parse(fs.readFileSync(path.join(fixtureRoot, fileName), 'utf8'));
+}
+
+console.log('\n=== Testing evaluator RAG prototype ===\n');
+
+test('architecture doc records the artifact contract and reference pressure', () => {
+  const source = read('docs/architecture/evaluator-rag-prototype.md');
+
+  for (const required of [
+    'Scenario spec',
+    'Trace',
+    'Report',
+    'Candidate playbook',
+    'Verifier result',
+    'Meta-Harness',
+    'Autocontext',
+    'Claude HUD',
+    'Hermes Agent',
+    'dmux, Orca, Superset, and Ghast',
+    'ECC Tools'
+  ]) {
+    assert.ok(source.includes(required), `Missing doc requirement: ${required}`);
+  }
+});
+
+test('fixtures use one scenario id and declare read-only behavior', () => {
+  const scenario = readJson('scenario.json');
+  const trace = readJson('trace.json');
+  const report = readJson('report.json');
+  const verifier = readJson('verifier-result.json');
+
+  assert.strictEqual(scenario.schema_version, 'ecc.evaluator-rag.scenario.v1');
+  assert.strictEqual(trace.schema_version, 'ecc.evaluator-rag.trace.v1');
+  assert.strictEqual(report.schema_version, 'ecc.evaluator-rag.report.v1');
+  assert.strictEqual(verifier.schema_version, 'ecc.evaluator-rag.verifier.v1');
+
+  for (const artifact of [trace, report, verifier]) {
+    assert.strictEqual(artifact.scenario_id, scenario.scenario_id);
+    assert.strictEqual(artifact.read_only, true);
+  }
+});
+
+test('trace covers the full self-improving harness loop', () => {
+  const trace = readJson('trace.json');
+  const phases = trace.events.map(event => event.phase);
+
+  for (const phase of ['observation', 'retrieval', 'proposal', 'verification', 'promotion']) {
+    assert.ok(phases.includes(phase), `Missing trace phase ${phase}`);
+  }
+
+  assert.ok(trace.events.some(event => event.promoted_candidate_id === 'maintainer-salvage-branch'));
+});
+
+test('scenario blocks unsafe write actions and release actions', () => {
+  const scenario = readJson('scenario.json');
+  const forbidden = scenario.forbidden_actions.join('\n');
+
+  for (const blocked of [
+    'closing, reopening, or commenting on PRs',
+    'merging PRs',
+    'creating release tags',
+    'publishing packages or plugins',
+    'copying private paths, secrets, or raw personal context',
+    'blindly cherry-picking bulk localization'
+  ]) {
+    assert.ok(forbidden.includes(blocked), `Missing forbidden action: ${blocked}`);
+  }
+});
+
+test('verifier accepts maintainer salvage and rejects blind translation imports', () => {
+  const verifier = readJson('verifier-result.json');
+  const accepted = verifier.candidates.find(candidate => candidate.candidate_id === 'maintainer-salvage-branch');
+  const rejected = verifier.candidates.find(candidate => candidate.candidate_id === 'blind-cherry-pick-translations');
+
+  assert.ok(accepted, 'Missing accepted maintainer salvage candidate');
+  assert.ok(rejected, 'Missing rejected blind cherry-pick candidate');
+  assert.strictEqual(accepted.decision, 'accepted');
+  assert.strictEqual(rejected.decision, 'rejected');
+  assert.strictEqual(verifier.promoted_candidate_id, accepted.candidate_id);
+  assert.ok(accepted.score > rejected.score);
+  assert.ok(rejected.reasons.join('\n').includes('translator/manual review'));
+});
+
+test('candidate playbook preserves stale-salvage operating rules', () => {
+  const playbook = read('examples/evaluator-rag-prototype/candidate-playbook.md');
+
+  for (const required of [
+    'docs/stale-pr-salvage-ledger.md',
+    'source PR',
+    'maintainer-owned branch',
+    'Preserve attribution',
+    'translator/manual review',
+    'private operator context',
+    'git diff --check'
+  ]) {
+    assert.ok(playbook.includes(required), `Missing playbook rule: ${required}`);
+  }
+});
+
+test('roadmap points to the evaluator RAG prototype and keeps broader corpus work open', () => {
+  const roadmap = read('docs/ECC-2.0-GA-ROADMAP.md');
+
+  assert.ok(roadmap.includes('docs/architecture/evaluator-rag-prototype.md'));
+  assert.ok(roadmap.includes('examples/evaluator-rag-prototype/'));
+  assert.ok(roadmap.includes('Needs broader evaluator corpus'));
+});
+
+if (failed > 0) {
+  console.log(`\nFailed: ${failed}`);
+  process.exit(1);
+}
+
+console.log(`\nPassed: ${passed}`);