# γ Close-Out — #287

**Cycle:** #287 — γ creates the cycle branch — α and β only check out `cycle/{N}`
**Branch:** `cycle/287` (γ pre-provisioned per AC 12 self-application; merged into main at `a5d0f21`)
**Author:** γ (`gamma@cdd.cnos`)
**Issue:** [#287](https://github.com/usurobor/cnos/issues/287)
**Release:** 3.62.0 (release commit `25da053`; tag `3.62.0` created locally, push deferred to δ — HTTP 403 same env constraint as 3.61.0)
**PRA:** [`docs/gamma/cdd/3.62.0/POST-RELEASE-ASSESSMENT.md`](../../../../docs/gamma/cdd/3.62.0/POST-RELEASE-ASSESSMENT.md) (committed at `56f0c0c` alongside the §6.1 immediate skill patches and §6.2 CHANGELOG row revision)

This file is γ's close-out per `gamma/SKILL.md` §2.10 + `CDD.md` §1.4 Phase 5 step 16 + `CDD.md` §Tracking canonical filename `gamma-closeout.md`. **Voice: γ-decision/triage** (γ owns disposition; α + β close-outs were factual-observation-only). Per `CDD.md` §1.4 large-file authoring rule, written section by section to disk.

---

## 1. Cycle summary

**What shipped (3.62.0):** the γ-creates-the-cycle-branch + canonical `cycle/{N}` naming + α/β-never-create-branches contract across 5 spec files (`CDD.md` + `alpha/SKILL.md` + `beta/SKILL.md` + `gamma/SKILL.md` + `operator/SKILL.md`). Markdown-only diff (~+275 lines net, threaded across 7+ sites in `CDD.md` for "γ creates the branch" + 6+ sites for "α and β never create branches" + 35 occurrences of `origin/cycle/{N}` polling target across role skills, with consistent phrasing verified by grep).

**Friction class eliminated:** branch-glob discovery friction. Pre-#287, γ + β had to glob-match `'origin/claude/*'` to discover α's harness-encoded branch (e.g. `claude/alpha-tier-3-skills-IZOsO` for #230 — no issue number, scope-words + random suffix). The glob silently failed when scope-words replaced issue numbers (#274 / #283 R1 F1 derivation chain). β received separate harness-given β-side branches with α-style "develop and commit" instructions, refused, and had to cherry-pick its review verdict onto α's cycle branch (#283 R1 F1 fix). Post-#287, polling targets `origin/cycle/{N}` directly with no glob; dispatch prompts name the branch in a `Branch:` line; α/β refuse harness pre-provisioned per-role branches as the implementation/review surface. **L7 diff** at the cycle level — eliminates the friction class for all future cycles.

**Self-application by execution (AC 12):** γ created `origin/cycle/287` from `origin/main` *before* α was dispatched (per AC 1 + the new γ Phase 1 step 3a). The dispatch prompts γ wrote for α and β both included the new `Branch: cycle/287` line (per AC 4). α `git switch`ed onto `cycle/287` from harness branch `claude/alpha-cdd-skill-1aZnw` and never created a branch (per AC 2 + AC 10). β `git switch`ed from `claude/cnos-skill-module-x9jTE` and committed all 6 verdict + closeout passes on `cycle/287` (per AC 3 + AC 11). γ refused the harness pre-provisioned per-role γ branch (`claude/cycle-287-gamma-skill-crMFf`) and committed `gamma-clarification.md` directly to `cycle/287` per `CDD.md` §Tracking auth-precondition rule (the very rule this cycle's contract enforces). The cycle implementing the new contract is the integration test for it; β's R3 search-space closure declared 12/12 ACs met by execution.

**Cycle structure (3 review rounds):**

| Round | Author | Commits | Verdict / content |
|-------|--------|---------|-------------------|
| α R1 | α | `9503aee` / `89b8575` / `11d5879` (post identity-correction) | spec change + self-coherence (Gap, Skills, ACs §1–§12, Peer enumeration, Pre-review gate, Review-readiness signal) |
| β R1 | β | `8d2adb4` / `f89bf9f` / `74c3a6d` (post-rebase) | RC, 4 findings (F1 D-contract scope drift, F2 C-contract status truth, F3 C-contract identity-truth/mechanical, F4 A-judgment §4.1 row 2 polish) |
| γ R1.5 | γ | `c91cf87` (post-rebase, pre-rewrite `4f33687`) | γ-clarification: F1+F2 collapse on fresh `origin/main` fetch (mechanical environment fact transfer; not reasoning forwarding) |
| β R2 | β | `d9f1596` (post-rebase) | RC, F1+F2 **withdrawn** after re-fetch verification, F3 stands, F4 polish |
| α R2 | α | `de32200` (F4 polish) + `32a384f` (R1+R2 fix-round narrative) | F1+F2 ACK-withdrawn; F3 fixed via β R2 path (a) retroactive re-author + `--force-with-lease`; F4 polish landed |
| β R3 | β | `f64bf44` | **APPROVED**; search-space closed |
| merge | β | `a5d0f21` | `git merge --no-ff cycle/287` into main; `Closes #287` auto-closes the issue |
| post-merge close-outs | α + β | `a69266e` / `649259c` / `3b29fda` / `2fd7899` / `9c64607` (α 5-section close-out) + `66be7d5` / `80c8fe8` / `4e3daeb` (β 3-pass close-out) + `25da053` (β release commit moving cycle dir to `.cdd/releases/3.62.0/287/`) | α + β voice: factual observations only; γ disposes |
| PRA + skill patches + CHANGELOG revision | γ | `56f0c0c` | this PRA + α §2.6 row 11 (identity check) + β §1 review-base re-fetch rule + CHANGELOG row level annotation revision (`L7 (diff: L7; cycle cap: L6)` → `L6 (diff: L7; cycle cap: L6)`) + γ-axis revision (B+ → A-) |

**Round-count caveat:** the §9.1 review-rounds-> 2 trigger fires on the strict-rounds reading (3 > 2). The R3 round count is *attributable to β-side process* (the F1+F2 false-positives β had to commit-then-withdraw at R2), not to α's diff. R2 was procedurally necessary (β must commit a withdrawal verdict before approving) but did not add work to α's queue beyond what R1 already requested for F3+F4. Without the β-side stale-fetch artifact findings, the cycle would have closed at R2 with F3+F4 fix-round → R3 approval, at the §9.1 threshold but not exceeding it.

**3.62.0 release artifacts (β authored):** VERSION 3.61.1 → 3.62.0 (cn.json + 3 cn.package.json files synchronized; `stamp-versions.sh` PASSED); CHANGELOG TSC row added (γ revised the level annotation + γ-axis after β's release commit); `RELEASE.md` authored at repo root with Outcome / Why it matters / Changed / Added / Fixed / Removed / Validation / Known Issues sections per `release/SKILL.md` §2.5; cycle dir moved `.cdd/unreleased/287/` → `.cdd/releases/3.62.0/287/` per `release/SKILL.md` §2.5a (5 artifacts: `self-coherence.md`, `beta-review.md`, `gamma-clarification.md`, `alpha-closeout.md`, `beta-closeout.md`; this `gamma-closeout.md` lands as the 6th).

## 2. Close-out triage table

Findings from α close-out (O1–O6), β close-out (§3 O1–O6), γ-clarification, and β review verdicts (R1 F1–F4) — all triaged with explicit dispositions per `gamma/SKILL.md` §2.7 CAP four-state (immediate MCA / project MCI / agent MCI / drop). Silence is not a disposition.

| # | Source | Type | Disposition | Artifact / commit |
|---|--------|------|-------------|-------------------|
| **R1 F1** (β) | β R1 → R2 withdrawal | D-contract → withdrawn | **No action — withdrawn at R2.** β-side stale-fetch artifact, not a real diff finding; collapsed when β re-fetched `origin/main` after γ-clarification. Root cause addressed by §6.1 immediate MCA below (β review-base re-fetch rule). | `gamma-clarification.md` (`c91cf87`) + `beta-review.md` R2 (`d9f1596`) |
| **R1 F2** (β) | β R1 → R2 withdrawal | C-contract → withdrawn | **No action — withdrawn at R2.** Same root cause as F1; α's claim that "70ff2b1 is origin/main" was correct against current origin state. β's local `origin/main` ref was stale. | same as F1 |
| **R1 F3** (β) | β R1 → α R2 fix-round | C-contract (identity-truth) / mechanical → fixed | **Closed in cycle.** α retroactive re-author + `--force-with-lease` per β R2 path (a). All 5 α commits now signed `alpha@cdd.cnos`. Root cause addressed by §6.1 immediate MCA below (α §2.6 row 11 identity check). | α R2 fix-round (`32a384f`) + force-push reseting cycle/287 chain |
| **R1 F4** (β) | β R1 → α R2 fix-round | A-judgment polish → fixed | **Closed in cycle.** §4.1 row 2 Purpose column gained the parenthetical naming γ as Branch creator. β R3 found α's wording acceptable. | α R2 (`de32200`) |
| **α O1** | α close-out | mechanical/contract | **Subsumed by R1 F3 disposition** + α §2.6 row 11 patch (§6.1). | this triage + `56f0c0c` |
| **α O2** | α close-out | tooling / skill | **Subsumed by β O1 + R1 F1+F2 root cause** + β §1 review-base re-fetch rule patch (§6.1). | this triage + `56f0c0c` |
| **α O3** | α close-out | issue-quality / process | **Project MCI, deferred.** Issue #287's ## Work-shape referenced rolled-back commit `eb48e17` (γ's prior session, not in repo store); α reconstructed spec text from issue body + 3.61.0 PRA + #283 cycle artifacts. Reconstruction succeeded (12/12 ACs verified at R3). The gap (`issue/SKILL.md` permits referencing rolled-back commits without ensuring fallback content) is real but not a §9.1 trigger; minor MCI. **Disposition:** fold into a future `issue/SKILL.md` patch as a §1.4 status-truth rule expansion ("rolled-back commits must not be the sole source of normative content; fall back to AC text + linked artifacts"); not blocking; can be a small-change cycle. | deferred — see §6 below |
| **α O4** | α close-out | one-off | **Drop.** α-local Monitor short-SHA bug (α set `prev_head="32a384f"` short-SHA from `git push` output; the loop's `git rev-parse origin/cycle/287` returned full 40-char SHA; comparison was always-true on first iteration). The `CDD.md` §Tracking reference snippets are correct (use `git rev-parse` consistently for both `prev` and `cur`); the bug was α-side hand-typed deviation from the canonical snippet. No spec change needed. Pattern is α-operator practice; not a recurring class. | (no patch) |
| **α O5** | α close-out | positive observation | **No action — positive.** AC 12 self-application worked end-to-end on first execution. The contrast against #283 R1 F1 (β verdict had to be cherry-picked from harness β-side branch onto α's cycle branch) is direct: that friction is structurally absent here because the contract enforces single-named-target authorship from intake. | (no action; documented in §1 Cycle summary above + PRA §1) |
| **α O6** | α close-out | positive observation | **No action — positive.** β R3 found 0 new findings beyond F1+F2 (withdrawn) and F3+F4 (fixed). Diff content was clean from R1 onwards. α's authoring discipline (peer enumeration across role-skill + lifecycle-skill + intra-doc, intra-doc grep, cross-reference check) caught all in-diff issues before review. | (no action; documented in PRA §3 What went right) |
| **β O1** | β close-out | tooling / skill | **Immediate MCA, landed in PRA commit `56f0c0c`.** β's `Monitor` polling watches `origin/cycle/{N}` only and never re-fetches `origin/main`; review-diff base computation reads stale `origin/main`. Patch: `beta/SKILL.md` §1 gains a new role rule mandating synchronous `git fetch --verbose origin main` before computing the review-diff base for each review pass, with explicit *Derives from #287 R1 F1+F2* note. Closes the §9.1 review-rounds-> 2 trigger root cause. | `56f0c0c` (`beta/SKILL.md` lines 82–84) |
| **β O2** | β close-out | mechanical / skill | **Immediate MCA, landed in PRA commit `56f0c0c`.** `alpha/SKILL.md` §2.6 pre-review gate (10 rows) had no identity-truth row; α's session-start `git config user.email` drift survived all 10 rows. Patch: `alpha/SKILL.md` §2.6 row 11 added — verifies `git log -1 --format='%ae' HEAD` matches `alpha@cdd.{project}` per `CDD.md` §1.4 α step 2; documents path (a) and (b) repair procedures; *Derives from #287 R1 F3*. Closes the §9.1 loaded-skill-miss trigger. | `56f0c0c` (`alpha/SKILL.md` lines 251–252) |
| **β O3** | β close-out | observation | **No action — accepted.** σ's `70ff2b1` mid-cycle main commit (incremental write discipline for α self-coherence and β review) is operator-authority and integrated cleanly into this cycle (α adopted prospectively from R1 fix-round forward; β split R1 into 3 passes). The rule's content is reasonable and aligned with `CDD.md` §1.4 large-file authoring rule. β's observation that the rule duplicates a canonical surface into role-skill surfaces (drift risk if either evolves independently) is noted; if drift surfaces in a future cycle, γ files a consolidation patch as MCA at that time. Not actionable now. | (no action) |
| **β O4** | β close-out | skill (subset of β O2) | **Subsumed by β O2 disposition.** Same surface (`alpha/SKILL.md` §2.6 pre-review-gate row set); β O2 names α's identity drift, β O4 names the symmetric absence of the check. Single immediate MCA covers both. | `56f0c0c` (same as β O2) |
| **β O5** | β close-out | skill / pattern | **Project MCI, deferred.** Force-push as contract-finding repair pattern is undocumented at the role-skill level. α derived the procedure from `release/SKILL.md` §3.6 (`--force-with-lease` for amend-after-CI-failure within the release commit) + general `git rebase --exec` knowledge. The procedure ran cleanly. Worth documenting at the `alpha/SKILL.md` §2.7 (request review) or `release/SKILL.md` §3.6 expansion level. **Disposition:** small skill addition for a future cycle; not blocking; β O5's factual observation is the input. Not folded into this PRA's immediate MCA because (a) the patch is a non-trivial expansion of `alpha/SKILL.md` §2.7 and (b) it warrants its own AC mapping (when does force-push apply? what about non-α force-push? what about contract-vs-non-contract findings?). | deferred — see §6 below |
| **β O6** | β close-out | judgment / process | **Drop with reason.** β raises the question: does §9.1 review-rounds-> 2 trigger fire on raw round count or on rounds-with-real-findings? γ disposition: the trigger as written is correct as a *behavioral signal* (round count is independent of cause and surfaces both real-finding and artifact-finding extension). The root-cause analysis in §4b of the PRA names β-side polling-discipline gap as the actual recurring friction; refining the trigger to filter artifact-rounds would mask the signal. The trigger should fire when β raises false-positive findings; the disposition (this triage; the immediate MCA; the cycle-iteration entry) is what differentiates artifact-induced rounds from α-induced rounds. Drop the suggestion to refine the trigger; revisit only if the pattern recurs across multiple cycles with the same root cause and the trigger's signal becomes noise rather than a useful flag. | (no patch) |
| **γ self-obs** | γ this cycle | positive observation | **No action — positive.** γ refused harness per-role γ branch and committed `gamma-clarification.md` directly to `cycle/287` per `CDD.md` §Tracking auth precondition rule. γ's intervention was timely (filed during β R1 P2→P3 boundary, before R1 verdict locked in F1+F2 as merge blockers), properly mechanical-environment-shaped (transferred `git rev-parse` output as artifact facts), and resolved F1+F2 cleanly. No γ-side process drift this cycle (no issue-body edits mid-cycle, no scope-expansion attempts). | (no action; documented in PRA §1 + §4a) |

**Net:** 4 review findings (2 withdrawn, 2 fixed in cycle); 2 immediate MCA skill patches landed in PRA commit `56f0c0c` (closing both fired §9.1 triggers); 2 project MCIs deferred (issue-body-rolled-back-commit-reference rule; force-push as contract-finding repair pattern); 4 explicit no-action / drop decisions (positive observations + judgment drop on §9.1 refinement). Zero "noted" without disposition.

**Step 13a accounting:** Both immediate MCA skill patches landed in the same commit as the PRA (`56f0c0c`) per `gamma/SKILL.md` §2.7 + `post-release/SKILL.md` Step 5 ("the patch must land in the same commit as the assessment, synced across all affected surfaces"). Both patches are one-line skill changes within `src/packages/cnos.cdd/skills/cdd/`; no canonical `CDD.md` patch is required (the rules sit at the role-skill level — they refine α and β's per-role discipline rather than amending the cross-role contract). No package-visible loader entrypoint is affected. No human-facing pointer surface (READMEs, navigation docs) needs updating because the rules are internal to role authoring discipline, not surfaced to users.

## 3. §9.1 trigger assessment

Per `CDD.md` §9.1, four cycle-iteration triggers exist. Assessment for #287:

| Trigger | Threshold | Actual | Fired? | Disposition |
|---------|-----------|--------|--------|-------------|
| Review rounds > 2 | 2 | 3 | **yes** | root-caused to β-side polling-source-vs-truth-source mismatch (β polls `origin/cycle/{N}` only, never re-fetches `origin/main` for review-base computation); R2 was procedurally necessary to commit F1+F2 withdrawal after γ-clarification surfaced the mechanical fact. **Patch landed in `56f0c0c`** — `beta/SKILL.md` §1 gains a synchronous `git fetch --verbose origin main` rule before computing the review-diff base for each review pass. Closes the trigger root cause. |
| Mechanical ratio > 20% (with ≥ 10 findings) | 20% | 0% (0/4) | no | total findings = 4, below the ≥ 10 floor anyway; no §4 action required. |
| Avoidable tooling/environmental failure | — | — | **no** (debatable) | β-side stale-fetch is a *polling-design choice* (β polls cycle branch by spec, not main) plus a *review-time discipline gap* (no synchronous main re-fetch before computing diff base); the underlying fetch transport itself worked correctly. γ classifies under "loaded-skill miss" + "review rounds > 2" rather than "tooling failure" — the spec did not require fetch to be re-run in the right place; transport was not the failure surface. (Distinct from 3.61.0's avoidable-tooling-failure trigger, which was `git fetch --quiet` masking transport flake on the polled cycle branch — same root *family*, different surface.) |
| Loaded skill failed to prevent a finding | — | yes (R1 F3) | **yes** | `alpha/SKILL.md` §2.6 pre-review gate's 10 rows had no identity-truth check; α's session-start `git config user.email` drift survived all 10 rows; β's R1 contract-integrity check at review time was the first surface to catch F3. **Patch landed in `56f0c0c`** — `alpha/SKILL.md` §2.6 row 11 added: verifies `git log -1 --format='%ae' HEAD` matches `alpha@cdd.{project}`, with explicit path (a) and (b) repair procedures. Closes the trigger root cause. |

**Two triggers fired, two patches landed. No trigger response is silent or deferred to next-cycle.**

## 4. Cycle iteration entry

Per `CDD.md` §9.1, when any trigger fires the PRA must include a `## Cycle Iteration` section. **Present in the PRA at [`docs/gamma/cdd/3.62.0/POST-RELEASE-ASSESSMENT.md`](../../../../docs/gamma/cdd/3.62.0/POST-RELEASE-ASSESSMENT.md) §4b.** Summary:

- **Triggers fired:** review rounds > 2; loaded skill failed to prevent a finding.
- **Friction log:** R1 F1+F2 false-positives extended the round count by one (β re-fetched after γ-clarification at R2 and withdrew); α identity drift survived the pre-review gate (β R1 F3 caught at review time); force-push as contract-finding repair was undocumented at the role-skill level (α derived from `release/SKILL.md` §3.6 + `git rebase --exec` knowledge; ran cleanly).
- **Root causes:** β-side polling-source-vs-truth-source mismatch (review-base channel not paired with cycle-branch polling channel); `alpha/SKILL.md` §2.6 has no identity-truth executable check.
- **Skill impact:** both root causes are skill / spec gaps, not agent execution failures. β executed the loaded β skill correctly; the skill did not require synchronous main re-fetch. α executed the loaded α skill correctly; the skill did not require an identity-truth pre-review row.
- **MCA:** both patches landed in PRA commit `56f0c0c` (immediate, not deferred). Force-push contract-finding-repair documentation deferred to next cycle (β O5 names it; small skill addition).
- **Cycle level:** **L6** (cycle cap; diff is L7). The L7 diff eliminates the branch-glob discovery friction class for all future cycles. Cycle execution is L6: L5 cleanly cleared (no diff-level mechanical errors); L6 cleanly cleared on the diff itself (no cross-surface diff drift); L6 missed on the review-process surface (review rounds > 2 due to β-side polling-discipline gap producing artifact-finding rounds). Per the lowest-cleanly-cleared rule used in 3.61.0 PRA, cycle level = L6 — the artifact integrity itself cleared L6; the friction reached review only via the polling-discipline gap, not via artifact drift. Distinct from 3.61.0's L5 cap, which was caused by *both* lifecycle-skill cross-surface drift in the diff *and* β-side `Monitor` tooling failure (two L6 triggers fired against the diff itself).

## 5. Skill gap candidate dispositions

| Candidate | Source | Patch shape | Disposition |
|-----------|--------|-------------|-------------|
| `alpha/SKILL.md` §2.6 row 11 — identity-truth pre-review check | β R1 F3 + α O1 + β O2 + β O4 | one-line gate row addition with path (a)/(b) repair procedure + #287 derivation note | **landed (immediate MCA, `56f0c0c`).** |
| `beta/SKILL.md` §1 — synchronous review-base re-fetch rule | β R1 F1+F2 root cause + α O2 + β O1 | one new role rule paragraph mandating `git fetch --verbose origin main` synchronously before computing review-diff base for each review pass + #287 derivation note + ❌/✅ example pair | **landed (immediate MCA, `56f0c0c`).** |
| `release/SKILL.md` §3.6 or `alpha/SKILL.md` §2.7 — force-push as contract-finding repair pattern | β O5 | small skill addition documenting the procedure α used in this cycle (path (a) retroactive re-author per β R2) at the role-skill level; would name when force-push applies (contract findings vs. CI failures vs. release-commit amendments), what α-only vs. α-redoes-with-β-repushed-too procedure looks like, what `--force-with-lease` semantics protect | **deferred to next cycle (project MCI).** Not blocking; β O5 is the factual observation. Not folded into this PRA's immediate MCA because the patch is a non-trivial expansion (multiple cases to enumerate, AC mapping warranted). Likely fits a small-change cycle or rolls into the next substantial cycle's incidental skill-polish work. |
| `issue/SKILL.md` — rule against rolled-back-commit references in issue body | α O3 | small rule addition: "rolled-back commits must not be the sole source of normative content; fall back to AC text + linked artifacts" | **deferred to next cycle (project MCI).** Not blocking; α reconstruction succeeded for this cycle. Could be a small-change cycle or fold into a §1.4 status-truth rule expansion in a future `issue/SKILL.md` patch. |
| `CDD.md` §9.1 — refine review-rounds trigger to distinguish artifact-finding rounds from real-finding rounds | β O6 | refine trigger condition or add a sub-trigger | **drop with reason.** The trigger as written is correct as a behavioral signal independent of cause. Refining to filter artifact-rounds would mask the signal that β-side polling-discipline gaps produce. The dispositional triage (this gamma-closeout + the immediate MCA) differentiates artifact-induced rounds from α-induced rounds. Revisit only if the pattern recurs across multiple cycles with the same root cause and the trigger's signal becomes noise rather than a useful flag. |
| `cdd/SKILL.md` loader — validate git config at role-load time | β O4 (peripheral) | runtime check at role-skill load time | **drop.** Crosses runtime boundaries the canonical doc currently keeps outside skill scope. The β O2 + α §2.6 row 11 patch covers the practical case (α-side authoring-time enforcement); a loader check would be redundant and would couple skill loading to runtime config. Not pursued. |

## 6. Deferred outputs

Per `CDD.md` §10.2, deferred outputs must be committed concretely (issue / owner / first AC / freeze state). For #287:

| Item | Owner | Branch | First AC | MCI freeze? |
|------|-------|--------|----------|-------------|
| **`cn dispatch` infrastructure cycle** (precondition for #286) | TBD — file as new issue at next dispatch | TBD (γ pre-creates `cycle/{N}` per the contract this cycle just shipped) | A programmatic γ-side dispatch surface exists that creates the cycle branch from `origin/main`, files an issue body from a structured template, and spawns α + β sessions with the canonical prompt format (including the new `Branch: cycle/{N}` line per AC 4 of #287). | Yes — counts as the next substantial MCA out of the stale-set / freeze-MCI rule. |
| **#286 — Encapsulate α and β behind γ** | TBD — depends on `cn dispatch` shipping | TBD | per #286 issue body: γ runs the cycle autonomously without operator intervention except at gate boundaries (merge, tag push, branch deletion — δ's gates per `operator/SKILL.md` §3.1) | Yes — sits behind `cn dispatch` precondition. |
| **Force-push as contract-finding repair pattern** (β O5) | TBD — small skill addition | TBD (small-change path or fold into next substantial cycle's incidental polish) | `alpha/SKILL.md` §2.7 (or `release/SKILL.md` §3.6) gains a paragraph naming when force-push applies (contract findings vs. CI failures vs. release-commit amendments), with `--force-with-lease` semantics + a worked example | Optional — not freeze-blocking. |
| **`issue/SKILL.md` rule against rolled-back-commit references** (α O3) | TBD — small skill addition | TBD (small-change path) | `issue/SKILL.md` §1.4 status-truth or §3.5 issue-quality rule: rolled-back commits must not be the sole source of normative content; fall back to AC text + linked artifacts | Optional — not freeze-blocking. |
| **3.61.x design issues triage** (γ next-cycle work) | γ at next dispatch | n/a (lag-table triage, not a substantive cycle) | per `CDD.md` §3.4 stale-backlog re-evaluation: triage #292 / #293 / #294 / #295 / #296 (filed during 3.61.x but not promoted to active lag table); promote / drop / consolidate per the §3.4 procedure | n/a |

**MCI freeze status:** continues. 9 growing-lag items in the §2 lag table of the PRA (unchanged from 3.61.0 — #287 closed but no new design surfaces opened net). New design work remains frozen until at least one stale item ships. **`cn dispatch` infrastructure cycle qualifies as the next substantive MCA** out of the stale set; γ's next dispatch should file it.

## 7. Hub memory evidence

Per `CDD.md` §10.1 + `post-release/SKILL.md` Step 7, hub memory writes are part of immediate outputs (daily reflection + adhoc thread update before cycle closure). **In this session: hub-write authority is not available** (Claude Code on the web; γ does not have direct hub-repo write access; hub memory writes are run by the operator session that loads the hub skill).

**Recorded for operator handoff:**

- **Hub commit / SHA:** *unavailable in this γ session* — γ does not have hub-write authority in the current environment. The PRA records this explicitly per `post-release/SKILL.md` ## Pre-publish gate `§8 Hub memory: ... or explicit note why none applies` rule.
- **Daily reflection content** (operator to write to hub when next session has access): cycle summary per §1 of this file; cycle level L6 (diff: L7); two §9.1 triggers fired (review rounds > 2 + loaded-skill miss); both closed via immediate MCA in PRA commit `56f0c0c`; CHANGELOG row revised (level annotation + γ-axis); next-MCA recommendation = file `cn dispatch` infrastructure cycle as #286 precondition.
- **Adhoc thread update content** (operator to write to hub): the CDD self-modification thread (covering #268, #274, #278, #283, #287 — successive coordination-protocol cycles) advances with this release. Branch creation moved from α-encoded to γ-canonical; polling collapsed from glob-based discovery to single named-target. Next cycle (`cn dispatch` infrastructure or stale-set alternative) continues the same thread; #286 forks a sub-thread (encapsulation + harness CLI) once its precondition is ready.
- **Operator action requested:** when the next operator session runs hub memory writes, project the daily-reflection content above into the hub adhoc thread for 2026-04-30 and update the CDD self-modification adhoc thread with this release's content. The PRA + this gamma-closeout are the canonical sources; hub writes are projections.

## 8. Next MCA

**Next MCA recommendation:** **file `cn dispatch` infrastructure cycle as the next substantive MCA out of the stale set.** Owner: TBD at next γ dispatch. First AC: per §6 deferred outputs above ("a programmatic γ-side dispatch surface exists that creates the cycle branch from `origin/main`, files an issue body from a structured template, and spawns α + β sessions with the canonical prompt format including the new `Branch: cycle/{N}` line per AC 4 of #287"). MCI frozen until shipped. Rationale: #286 (the natural next-MCA in the original derivation chain #283 → #287 → #286) has a hard precondition on `cn dispatch`; without it, #286 cannot be implemented end-to-end. γ recommends shipping the precondition first.

**Alternatives considered** (γ does not recommend, but operator may override at next dispatch):

- (b) Skip #286's precondition by folding γ-as-coordinator into operator/δ skill set as a manual procedure (operator continues to paste prompts, but the prompts now name `cycle/{N}` per #287, removing the branch-discovery friction even without programmatic dispatch). Defer #286 indefinitely. **γ does not recommend (b)** — #286's value proposition is autonomy, which a manual procedure does not deliver.
- (c) Pick a different stale-set MCA before #286 (e.g. #273 rebase-collision integrity guard — directly addresses the same polling-source-vs-truth-source friction family that produced this cycle's R1 false positives). Defer #286 until its precondition is ready.

**Alternative (c) is also reasonable** if the operator prefers a roughly-equal-leverage stale-set MCA that does not require new infrastructure. #273 is in the lag table at "growing" status and has been there since pre-3.60.x; shipping it would materially address the polling-source-vs-truth-source friction family that this cycle's β-side stale-fetch gap belongs to. γ ranks (a) > (c) > (b) but defers final selection to the operator at next dispatch per `CDD.md` §3.4 + §3.5.

**Next MCA committed concretely:** `cn dispatch` infrastructure cycle (or #273 if operator prefers (c)) as the immediate next-cycle dispatch target. The cycle's first AC is named above (or per #273 issue body); branch will be `cycle/{N}` (γ pre-creates per the contract this cycle just shipped); MCI frozen; rationale stated.

---

## Closure preconditions check

Per `gamma/SKILL.md` §2.10, the cycle closes only when all of the following are true:

1. ✅ `.cdd/releases/3.62.0/287/alpha-closeout.md` exists on main (β release commit `25da053` moved it from `.cdd/unreleased/287/`; α had committed it pre-release at `9c64607`).
2. ✅ `.cdd/releases/3.62.0/287/beta-closeout.md` exists on main (committed pre-release; β release commit moved it; release-evidence pass committed at `4e3daeb`).
3. ✅ γ has written the post-release assessment per `post-release/SKILL.md` ([`docs/gamma/cdd/3.62.0/POST-RELEASE-ASSESSMENT.md`](../../../../docs/gamma/cdd/3.62.0/POST-RELEASE-ASSESSMENT.md), `56f0c0c`).
4. ✅ Every fired §9.1 trigger has a `Cycle Iteration` entry with root cause and disposition (PRA §4b: review rounds > 2 + loaded-skill miss; both with root causes + dispositions = patch landed for both).
5. ✅ Recurring findings were assessed for skill / spec patching (§5 above; 2 immediate MCAs landed, 2 project MCIs deferred with concrete owners + first ACs, 2 explicit drops with reasons).
6. ✅ Immediate outputs were either landed or explicitly ruled out (PRA commit `56f0c0c`: 2 skill patches + CHANGELOG revision).
7. ✅ Deferred outputs have issue / owner / first AC (§6 above + PRA §7).
8. ✅ Next MCA is named (§8 above: `cn dispatch` infrastructure cycle, with #273 as alternative; `cn dispatch` recommended).
9. ⚠️ Hub memory updated — **deferred to operator session** (γ does not have hub-write authority in this Claude Code on the web environment; PRA §8 + this file §7 record the deferral explicitly with content for operator projection).
10. ⚠️ Merged remote branches cleaned up — **deferred to δ** (alongside the tag push deferral; same HTTP 403 env constraint as 3.61.0). δ's branch sweep (`origin/cycle/287` + harness pre-provisioned `claude/cycle-287-*` + any other merged `claude/*` branches) per `operator/SKILL.md` §3.1 + the canonical sweep `git branch -r --merged origin/main | grep -v main | grep -v HEAD | sed 's/origin\///' | xargs -I{} git push origin --delete {}`.

**γ does not have authority to push the 3.62.0 tag or delete remote branches in this environment.** Both actions are δ gates per `operator/SKILL.md` §3.1; β created the tag locally and recorded the deferral in `beta-closeout.md` Pass 3 §"Tag" + §"Branches to clean".

**Net: 8/10 closure preconditions complete; 2 deferred to δ + operator session for actions outside γ's environment authority.**

---

## Closure declaration

Per `gamma/SKILL.md` §2.10 + `CDD.md` §1.4 Phase 5 step 16: γ's last commit for the cycle declares closure. δ's subsequent disconnect tag (`operator/SKILL.md` §3.4) is the git-observable proof of full disconnection.

**Cycle #287 closed. Next: `cn dispatch` infrastructure cycle (γ recommendation; file at next dispatch), with #286 stacked behind. Alternative: #273 (rebase-collision integrity guard) if operator prefers a stale-set MCA without new infrastructure.**

— γ (`gamma@cdd.cnos`) at 2026-04-30 ~01:15 UTC. PRA + immediate MCA skill patches + CHANGELOG revision committed at `56f0c0c`. This file is γ's last cycle artifact. δ-deferred actions (tag push + branch sweep) are outside γ's environment authority and are recorded for operator action.
