Pre-production code review

Phase 1: Pin the healthy point

SHA

branch

tag

main

HEAD~5

main

1. Confirm it resolves:

   git rev-parse <healthy-point>

   .
2. Write the diff command once and reuse it everywhere:

   git diff <healthy-point>...HEAD

   . Three dots, so git compares against the merge-base.
3. Confirm the diff is non-empty. A bad ref or empty diff should fail here, not mid-review.

Phase 2: Read the diff and its context

1. Run the captured diff command for the full changeset.
2. For every changed file, read enough surrounding code to understand the original contract and what changed.
3. Check related code for auth, data models, API contracts, config, migrations, shared utilities, error handling, and logging.
4. If something is unclear, inspect the codebase before asking a question. Ask only when the code cannot answer it.

Phase 3: Classify the risks

Phase 4: Adversarial Interview

• One question at a time; wait for a response before continuing.
• Include your recommended answer with each question.
• Resolve dependencies in order.
• Check the codebase before asking. Only raise questions the code cannot answer.
• Stop when no implicit assumptions remain.

Phase 5: Decide whether it ships (Go / No-Go)

• ✅ SHIP. Every risk is safe 🟢, or every finding has a confirmed fix in this branch.
• ❌ DO NOT SHIP. List every blocking action. Include the file path, line number, and relevant snippet for each item.