End conditions and pre-conditions

Script gates make workflows react to project state instead of trusting the model to declare success.

End condition

An end condition runs after a prompt step completes.

endCondition:
  script: npm test
  returns: "0"
  compareSource: exitCode
  timeout: 60000
  maxRetries: 2
  retryPrompt: |
    Validation failed.
    stdout:
    {stdout}

    stderr:
    {stderr}

The pass and failure directions are independent actions. onFail: retry re-prompts after a failed validation, while onPass: retry re-prompts when a passing validation means the step should keep working. Pass retries use passRetryPrompt, then the default pass-retry prompt from settings, and finally the step's own prompt when no template is configured. They reuse the same maxRetries budget as failure retries and the same session by default.

When a pass-retry budget is exhausted while validation still passes, the step succeeds and the workflow advances. If a re-evaluation inside the pass-retry loop fails, the normal onFail action handles that result.

For example, this keeps asking for a regression test until the test actually fails, then advances to the next step:

steps:
  - prompt: Write a regression test for issue #123. Do not fix the bug.
    endCondition:
      script: npm test
      returns: "true"
      onPass: retry
      onFail: continue
      maxRetries: 3
      passRetryPrompt: |
        npm test still passes, so the new test does not reproduce the bug.
        Strengthen the test until it fails for the right reason.

This onPass: retry plus onFail: continue combination is the regression-test recipe: keep working while the condition passes, and advance once it fails.

Important fields

Field	Meaning
script	Command or script path to execute
returns	Expected value
compareSource	Compare against stdout, stderr, exitCode, or auto
maxRetries	Shared retry limit across pass and failure retries
retryPrompt	Template sent after validation failure
passRetryPrompt	Template sent after validation passes with onPass: retry
resumeSessionOnRetry	Whether retries stay in the same conversation
onPass	continue, retry, or stopWorkflow
onFail	continue, retry, or stopWorkflow

Pre-condition

A pre-condition runs before a prompt step and decides whether to continue, skip the prompt, or stop the workflow.

preCondition:
  script: npm run lint
  compareSource: exitCode
  returns: "0"
  onFail: stopWorkflow

Placeholder variables

Retry templates can use:

• {stdout}
• {stderr}
• {exitCode}
• {actual}
• {expected}
• {compareSource}