template-engine-copier-3darch/instructions/03-validation-checklist.md

Validation Checklist (Template Engine Repository)

Use this checklist before considering Copier/Jinja template work complete.

A. Copier configuration

• .copier/copier.yaml exists and is valid YAML.
• _template_suffix is set to .jinja.
• _answers_file is explicitly configured.
• _exclude blocks repo-internal operational files (.copier, .scripts, env/lock files as needed).
• Questionnaire is loaded via !include .copier/questionnaire/*.yml.

B. Input schema and answers

• copier-answers.example.yaml reflects real expected shape.
• Required keys used in templates are documented in the example answers.
• {{ _copier_conf.answers_file }}.jinja renders _copier_answers|to_nice_yaml.

C. Wrapper runtime surface

• Root Taskfile.yml includes copier module Taskfile.
• .scripts/copier/Taskfile.yml has an operator-friendly bootstrap-one task.
• API wrapper (api/bootstrap-one.sh) creates and enters a sibling tmp-<template-folder> copy before sourcing libs and rendering.
• API wrapper returns to the live template repo after the temp-copy render completes.
• ENV variable prefix is explicitly confirmed/proposed and consistently applied across wrapper libs.
• Lib layer parses CLI args for:
• Lib layer parses CLI args for both forms: --arg value and --arg=value.
  • --copier-target-dir
  • --copier-force-copy
  • --copier-params-file

D. Answers merge behavior

• copier-answers-new.yml is created if missing.
• Existing target answers are imported when present.
• Params file is merged into working answers file.
• Render uses --data-file pointing to merged answers file.
• Local bootstrap render runs from the sanitized temp copy, not directly from the live Git-backed template folder.
• Temp copy removes .git, .devbox, and .venv before copier copy to avoid Copier/Git interference.
• If Copier config lives under .copier/copier.yaml, temp-copy bootstrap copies it to root copier.yaml before rendering.
• No Git tags are created merely to suppress Copier local render warnings.

E. Templating behavior

• Conditional folder names render correctly (e.g. {{ 'dev' if ... }}).
• All optional resources are path-wrapped with Jinja conditions (folder and/or file names), not only guarded in file bodies.
• Conditional Jinja blocks in files match folder-level conditions.
• Safe/normalized names are provided by context-hook or resolver variables (e.g. flat.project_safe), not repeated inline filter chains.
• Template paths and file bodies do not duplicate complex expressions like lower | replace(...) | trim for identifiers used in more than one place.
• Any generated temporary filenames (e.g. .tmp-gitlab-ci.yml) are renamed correctly post-render.

F. Extensions (if used)

• All custom extensions are registered in _jinja_extensions.
• Resolver helpers are deterministic and side-effect free.
• Context hook logic is idempotent on repeated runs.
• Context hook exposes stable safe variables for reusable identifiers before templates consume them.
• [INDEX] expansion creates concrete instance directories and removes placeholder template dir.

G. End-to-end runs

• Fresh render into empty target directory succeeds.
• Re-render into existing target with prior answers succeeds.
• --copier-force-copy true path works.
• Default/non-force path works.

H. Documentation quality

• README explains local setup and one canonical bootstrap command.
• Skill/instructions mention architecture and anti-patterns.
• Examples use realistic paths and argument names.

Exit criteria

You are done when all checklist sections pass and rendering is reproducible in both fresh and update scenarios.