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Safe Deploy Pipeline v2
Overview
A deploy without gates is a deploy with hope. Hope is not a strategy.
Core principle: Every project needs a multi-gate deploy pipeline. Code passes through syntax → tests → i18n → build → verify → deploy, with hard stops at each gate. No gate skipping. No "it'll be fine."
CAUTION
March 2026 Incident: 572 backend tests passed green while app.js had catastrophic syntax errors → white screen in production. This pipeline exists because test:gate alone was NOT enough.
The Iron Law
NO DEPLOY WITHOUT PASSING ALL GATES.
GATES ARE SEQUENTIAL. EACH MUST PASS BEFORE THE NEXT RUNS.
SYNTAX CHECK IS GATE 1. IF IT FAILS, NOTHING ELSE RUNS.When to Use
ALWAYS when:
- Setting up a new project's deployment infrastructure
- A project has no test gate before deploy
- Project deploys directly from
git push - After a production incident caused by untested code
- Adding CI/CD to an existing project
The 7-Gate Pipeline
digraph pipeline {
rankdir=LR;
gate0 [label="Gate 0\nSecret\nHygiene", shape=box, style=filled, fillcolor="#ffc0cb"];
gate1 [label="Gate 1\nSyntax", shape=box, style=filled, fillcolor="#ffcccc"];
gate2 [label="Gate 2\nTest\nSuite", shape=box, style=filled, fillcolor="#ffe0cc"];
gate3 [label="Gate 3\ni18n\nParity", shape=box, style=filled, fillcolor="#e0ccff"];
gate4 [label="Gate 4\nBuild", shape=box, style=filled, fillcolor="#ffffcc"];
gate5 [label="Gate 5\nDist\nVerify", shape=box, style=filled, fillcolor="#ccffcc"];
gate6 [label="Gate 6\nDeploy +\nSmoke", shape=box, style=filled, fillcolor="#cce5ff"];
fail [label="STOP\nFix first", shape=box, style=filled, fillcolor="#ff9999"];
gate0 -> gate1 [label="pass"];
gate0 -> fail [label="fail"];
gate1 -> gate2 [label="pass"];
gate1 -> fail [label="fail"];
gate2 -> gate3 [label="pass"];
gate2 -> fail [label="fail"];
gate3 -> gate4 [label="pass"];
gate3 -> fail [label="fail"];
gate4 -> gate5 [label="pass"];
gate4 -> fail [label="fail"];
gate5 -> gate6 [label="pass"];
gate5 -> fail [label="fail"];
}Gate 0: Secret Hygiene (FASTEST FAIL — < 0.5 seconds)
CAUTION
March 2026 Security Incident: SUPABASE_SERVICE_KEY was accidentally committed to wrangler.jsonc. This exposed a service-role key that bypasses Row Level Security in git history. Gate 0 prevents this from ever reaching the remote.
The Rule: Where Each Variable Lives
| Variable Type | Correct Location | WRONG Location |
|---|---|---|
| Supabase URL (public) | wrangler.jsonc vars section | ❌ Hardcoded in code |
SUPABASE_SERVICE_KEY | Cloudflare Secret (wrangler secret put) | ❌ wrangler.jsonc |
SUPABASE_ANON_KEY | Cloudflare Secret | ❌ wrangler.jsonc |
| DB connection strings | Cloudflare Secret | ❌ Anywhere in repo |
| Local dev secrets | .dev.vars (gitignored) | ❌ wrangler.jsonc |
| Build config (non-secret) | wrangler.jsonc | — |
Secret Hygiene Check:
node -e "
const src = require('fs').readFileSync('wrangler.jsonc', 'utf-8');
const dangerous = ['SERVICE_KEY', 'ANON_KEY', 'DB_PASSWORD', 'SECRET_KEY', 'PRIVATE_KEY'];
const found = dangerous.filter(k => src.includes(k));
if (found.length > 0) {
console.error('❌ DANGEROUS: Found potential secrets in wrangler.jsonc:', found);
console.error(' Fix: wrangler secret put KEY_NAME (then remove from wrangler.jsonc)');
process.exit(1);
}
console.log('✅ Gate 0 passed: no sensitive keys in wrangler.jsonc');
"Setup .dev.vars for local development:
# .dev.vars — local only, NEVER committed
SUPABASE_URL=https://YOUR_PROJECT.supabase.co
SUPABASE_SERVICE_KEY=YOUR_SERVICE_KEY
# Add to .gitignore:
echo ".dev.vars" >> .gitignore
# Commit the template:
cp .dev.vars .dev.vars.example # Remove values first
git add .dev.vars.exampleIf secrets were already committed:
# Remove from git history (URGENT — do before pushing)
git filter-repo --path wrangler.jsonc --invert-paths # Nuclear option
# OR just remove the value from wrangler.jsonc and add as secret:
wrangler secret put SUPABASE_SERVICE_KEY
# Then rotate the key immediately in Supabase dashboardGate 1: Syntax Validation (FAST FAIL)
IMPORTANT
This gate runs in < 1 second and catches the EXACT class of errors that caused the March 2026 incident. Run it BEFORE the test suite (which takes 10-30s).
| Stack | Command | What it checks |
|---|---|---|
| Vanilla JS | node -c path/to/app.js | JavaScript parse errors |
| TypeScript | npx tsc --noEmit | Type errors + syntax |
| Python | python -m py_compile app.py | Python syntax |
| Go | go vet ./... | Go static analysis |
For frontend monoliths without TypeScript:
# Ultra-fast syntax check — fails in < 1s if broken
node -c public/static/app.jsWhy separate from Gate 2?
node -ctakes < 1 second. Test suite takes 10-30 seconds.- If syntax is broken, 100% of tests will fail anyway — but with confusing error messages.
- A fast syntax check gives you the EXACT line number of the error instantly.
REQUIRED SUB-SKILL: Use cm-quality-gate for parser-based validation inside the test suite (Layer 1).
Gate 2: Test Suite
The test suite MUST include:
| Test Category | What it validates | Priority |
|---|---|---|
| Frontend safety | JS syntax, function integrity, corruption patterns | CRITICAL |
| Backend API | Routes return correct data | Required |
| Business logic | Calculations, rules, validation | Required |
| i18n sync | Translation key parity, orphaned keys | Required for multi-lang |
| Integration | End-to-end workflows | Recommended |
Setup the test:gate script:
{
"scripts": {
"test:gate": "vitest run --reporter=verbose"
}
}Gate decision:
IF 0 failures → proceed to Gate 3
IF any failures → STOP. Fix before continuing.REQUIRED SUB-SKILL: Use cm-quality-gate for enforcement discipline.
Gate 3: i18n Parity Check (for multi-language projects)
NOTE
Skip this gate if the project does not have i18n. For projects with i18n, this gate catches what test suites can miss: key drift between languages that causes blank strings in production.
# All language files must have identical key counts
node -e "
const fs = require('fs');
const path = require('path');
const I18N_DIR = 'public/static/i18n';
const langs = ['vi','en','th','ph'];
const results = {};
let allMatch = true;
for (const lang of langs) {
const filePath = path.join(I18N_DIR, lang + '.json');
const data = JSON.parse(fs.readFileSync(filePath, 'utf-8'));
const flatKeys = JSON.stringify(data).split('\":').length - 1;
results[lang] = flatKeys;
console.log(lang + ': ' + flatKeys + ' keys');
}
const counts = Object.values(results);
if (new Set(counts).size !== 1) {
console.error('❌ KEY PARITY FAILURE! Counts differ across languages.');
console.error(JSON.stringify(results));
process.exit(1);
} else {
console.log('✅ Key parity: all languages have ' + counts[0] + ' keys');
}
// Check for null/empty values
let nullCount = 0;
for (const lang of langs) {
const data = JSON.parse(fs.readFileSync(path.join(I18N_DIR, lang + '.json'), 'utf-8'));
const check = (obj, prefix) => {
for (const [k, v] of Object.entries(obj)) {
if (k === '_meta') continue;
if (typeof v === 'object' && v !== null) { check(v, prefix + '.' + k); continue; }
if (v === null || v === undefined || v === '') {
console.error(' ⚠ ' + lang + '.' + prefix + '.' + k + ' is null/empty');
nullCount++;
}
}
};
check(data, lang);
}
if (nullCount > 0) {
console.error('❌ Found ' + nullCount + ' null/empty translation values!');
process.exit(1);
}
console.log('✅ No null/empty values');
"What this catches:
- Keys added to
vi.jsonbut forgotten inen.json→ blank strings for English users - Null values from bad translation scripts →
t()returns key name instead of translation - Key count drift between languages → inconsistent UX
Gate 4: Build Verification
Production build must succeed without errors.
npm run buildWhat this catches that tests don't:
- Import resolution failures
- Tree-shaking errors
- Missing environment variables
- Asset compilation failures
- Bundle size explosions
Optional: Bundle size guard:
{
"scripts": {
"build:verify": "npm run build && node -e \"const s=require('fs').statSync('dist/_worker.js').size; if(s>2e6) {console.error('Bundle too large: '+s); process.exit(1)}\""
}
}Gate 5: Dist Asset Verification (NEW)
IMPORTANT
The build can "succeed" but produce an incomplete dist/ directory. This gate catches missing critical assets.
# Verify critical files exist in dist/
node -e "
const fs = require('fs');
const required = [
'dist/_worker.js',
'dist/static/app.js',
'dist/static/style.css',
'dist/static/i18n/vi.json',
'dist/static/i18n/en.json',
'dist/static/i18n/th.json',
'dist/static/i18n/ph.json',
];
const missing = required.filter(f => !fs.existsSync(f));
if (missing.length > 0) {
console.error('❌ Missing files in dist/:');
missing.forEach(f => console.error(' ' + f));
process.exit(1);
}
console.log('✅ All ' + required.length + ' critical files present in dist/');
"Adapt required array to your project. At minimum, verify:
- Worker/server entry point exists
- Frontend JS/CSS files exist
- Translation files are copied
- Critical images/assets are present
Gate 6: Deploy + Post-Deploy Smoke Test
Only after Gates 1-5 pass.
Deploy command varies by platform:
| Platform | Command |
|---|---|
| Cloudflare Pages | npx wrangler pages deploy dist/ |
| Vercel | npx vercel --prod |
| Netlify | npx netlify deploy --prod |
Post-deploy verification:
# Smoke test the deployed URL — must return 200
STATUS=$(curl -s -o /dev/null -w "%{http_code}" https://your-app.pages.dev)
if [ "$STATUS" != "200" ]; then
echo "❌ POST-DEPLOY SMOKE TEST FAILED! Status: $STATUS"
echo "⚠ Consider immediate rollback."
exit 1
fi
echo "✅ Smoke test passed (HTTP $STATUS)"Composing the Deploy Script
package.json (Recommended)
{
"scripts": {
"predeploy:syntax": "node -c public/static/app.js",
"predeploy:i18n": "node scripts/check-i18n-parity.js",
"predeploy:dist": "node scripts/verify-dist.js",
"deploy": "npm run predeploy:syntax && npm run test:gate && npm run predeploy:i18n && npm run build && npm run predeploy:dist && YOUR_DEPLOY_COMMAND"
}
}Key insight: Chain gates with &&. If any gate fails, the chain stops immediately.
Rollback Protocol
When a deployment causes issues:
| Severity | Action | Command |
|---|---|---|
| White screen (syntax) | Revert last commit, redeploy | git revert HEAD && npm run deploy |
| Broken translations | Revert JSON files, redeploy | git checkout HEAD~1 -- public/static/i18n/*.json && npm run deploy |
| API error | Revert server code, redeploy | git revert HEAD && npm run deploy |
| Partial breakage | Cherry-pick fix, deploy | Fix → test → deploy |
Cloudflare Pages specific:
# Rollback to previous deployment
wrangler pages deployments list --project-name prms
wrangler pages deployment rollback <deployment-id> --project-name prmsSetting Up for a New Project
Step 1: Create test infrastructure
npm install -D vitest acornStep 2: Create package.json scripts
{
"scripts": {
"test:gate": "vitest run --reporter=verbose",
"build": "YOUR_BUILD_COMMAND",
"deploy": "node -c public/static/app.js && npm run test:gate && npm run build && YOUR_DEPLOY_COMMAND"
}
}Step 3: Add frontend safety tests
REQUIRED SUB-SKILL: Follow cm-quality-gate to create test file with all layers.
Step 4: Create deploy workflow
Create .agents/workflows/deploy.md.
Red Flags — STOP
- ❌ Deploying without running test:gate
- ❌ Skipping syntax check ("tests will catch it")
- ❌ Skipping build step ("tests passed so it'll build")
- ❌ Running tests and deploy in parallel
- ❌ "Tests passed last time" (run them NOW)
- ❌ "Only changed one file" (test everything)
- ❌ No frontend safety tests for JS projects
- ❌ No dist/ verification after build
- ❌ No post-deploy smoke test
- ❌ No i18n parity check for multi-language apps
Rationalization Table
| Excuse | Reality |
|---|---|
| "Tests passed earlier" | Code changed since then. Run fresh. |
| "Build always works" | Until it doesn't. 30 seconds to verify. |
| "It's a one-line change" | One line broke 600 lines of app.js. Test it. |
| "CI will catch it" | CI runs AFTER push. Catch BEFORE push. |
| "Just a hotfix" | Hotfixes need MORE testing, not less. |
| "Syntax check is redundant" | node -c takes 0.5s and prevented the March 2026 disaster. |
| "i18n parity is overkill" | Missing keys → blank strings in production. |
| "dist/ is always complete" | Build tools can silently skip assets. Check. |
Integration with Other Skills
| Skill | When |
|---|---|
cm-quality-gate | Setting up Gate 2 frontend tests and Test Gate |
cm-safe-i18n | Adding i18n-specific gates |
cm-terminal | Monitoring gate commands |
The Bottom Line
6 gates. Sequential. Each must pass. No exceptions.
Syntax → Tests → i18n → Build → Dist Verify → Deploy + Smoke.
This is non-negotiable.