| name | work-item-sequencing |
| description | Numbering convention for ordering GUS work items within an epic. Numeric prefixes in Subject__c express sequencing (do X before Y) and parallelism. Use when planning an epic, when the user states a dependency between work items, or when asked what's unblocked/ready in an epic. |
Work Item Sequencing
Numbering convention for order + parallelism among work items in one epic. Number = prefix in Subject__c, space-delimited. Per-epic scope; cross-epic deps go in WI body prose, not numbers.
Companion to gus-cli (CLI mechanics: query, create, update, statuses, IDs).
Convention
Prefix Subject__c with a dotted number + single space:
1 Set up the runtime service
2 Migrate the parser to the runtime
1.1 Add config schema
1.2 Add config loader
- Sequential (
1, 2, 3): in order. 2 waits on 1; 3 waits on 2.
- Parallel (
1.1, 1.2): same-parent siblings, no waiting on each other.
- Group gating: next number at a level waits for all work under prior numbers.
2 waits on 1 + every 1.x/1.x.y.
- Arbitrary depth (
1.1.1, …): same recursive rule.
The rule
WI ready when every WI sorting before it (at shallower-or-equal ancestor level) is done. Siblings parallel; sibling-group gates next number at parent level.
1.2 ready once 1.1 + descendants done. 2 ready once everything under 1 done.
Done
Done = Status__c is Closed or Completed.
Fixed is not done — usually means PR not merged yet. Non-terminal statuses (Fixed, Ready for Review, QA In Progress) never satisfy a prerequisite. See gus-cli ## Status__c values.
When to number
Optional.
- Use: epic-level planning, or when user states a dependency.
- Skip: standalone work; don't renumber an epic of accumulated independent items.
Unnumbered = no deps, nothing depends on it. Always ready; never gates, never gated. Don't infer order from date/position — no number means independent.
Assigning (planning)
- Lay out work items.
- Must-precede → sequential top-level (
1, 2).
- Parallel under a step → same parent, distinct suffix (
1.1, 1.2).
- Independent → leave unnumbered.
- Prefix
Subject__c with number + space. Create via gus-cli.
Dense from 1 per group preferred; gaps harmless (sort is by value).
Reading ("what's ready/unblocked in this epic?")
- Query epic WIs incl
Status__c. Query without open-only filter — done prerequisites are Closed, which open-only excludes (see gus-cli "What's unfinished in this epic").
- Parse leading dotted number from each
Subject__c. None → unnumbered.
- Readiness: unnumbered → ready; numbered → ready iff all prior-sorting ancestors done.
- Report 3 groups: Ready now (unblocked numbered + all unnumbered), Blocked (name blocking number), Done (optional).
Sort by integer segments (1.2 before 1.10, not lexical). Unnumbered sort last.
Edge cases
- Malformed (
1., 1..2, 1.x): treat unnumbered + flag — likely typo'd dependency.
- Duplicate (two
1.2): allowed = parallel siblings. Don't flag.
- Orphan child (
1.1, no 1): rule still holds; don't require parent to exist.
- Non-sequence number (
W-12345 backport, version 2.40 release): only leading N/N.N… + space counts. Ambiguous → ask.
