From request to task · chapter 7 of 17
YAML contracts and living worklists
A stable contract preserves objectives and boundaries. A living worklist tracks dependencies, status and evidence while Codex carries out a large job.
7.1 · plain explanation
How do we prevent requirements from being forgotten or tasks being marked complete without a test?
A stable contract preserves objectives and boundaries. A living worklist tracks dependencies, status and evidence while Codex carries out a large job.
Important: Official documentation describes AGENTS.md as persistent project instructions. The YAML contract, list and validator are a project method built around the agent, not built-in magic in Codex.
7.2 · building blocks
Three concepts to keep separate
Contract
Objectives, boundaries and acceptance are not silently rewritten to make the work look complete.
Worklist
Tasks have a stable ID, priority, dependencies, status and recorded evidence.
Validator
A script rejects done status when a required test or receipt is missing.
7.3 · method
A practical workflow
- 1Validate the contract and list.
- 2Choose the highest-priority unblocked task.
- 3Run the checks named in done_when.
- 4Record evidence and allow done only when the validator approves.
7.4 · concrete example
A large website task
A large website task
How do we prevent requirements from being forgotten or tasks being marked complete without a test?
The contract says Norwegian and English must have the same 17 chapters and production must be recoverable.
The worklist lets Codex build, test and check off one dependent part at a time, while the validator checks page counts, links and browser results.
7.5 · try it yourself
Exercise
Create work-contract.yaml with goal, boundaries and acceptance. Then create three work_items with depends_on, done_when and an empty evidence list.
7.6 · checklist
Before you continue
- Is the contract separate from working status?
- Does every task have a stable ID?
- Are dependencies explicit?
- Can the validator stop a false done status?
7.7 · sources
Sources
Reviewed 23 September 2026. Official sources support product-specific claims; the practical contract, memory and verification patterns are Finnandre project methods.