bigeasyfreeman/ldd-enforcement

LDD Enforcement (Lint-Driven Development)

Overview

LDD ensures code is structurally sound before testing begins. Run linters, formatters, and type-checkers FIRST. Fix all violations. Only then proceed to TDD.

LDD is the formatting and syntax gate. TDD is the success criteria gate. Both are mandatory, both are sequential, both block.

When to Use

• Auto-trigger: Phase 4 entry, before any TDD cycle
• Re-trigger: After TDD REFACTOR step (verify refactoring didn't break lint)
• Manual: Any time code quality needs structural verification

Core Protocol

1. Run all configured linters          → collect violations
2. Run all configured formatters       → collect formatting issues
3. Run all configured type-checkers    → collect type errors
4. Any violations?
   YES → Fix all violations → Go to step 1
   NO  → Proceed to TDD

This is a hard gate. Lint violations block test execution. A task cannot enter TDD until LDD is clean.

Per-Language Defaults

| Language | Linters | Formatters | Type Checkers | |----------|---------|------------|--------------| | Python | ruff | black | mypy | | JavaScript | eslint | prettier | — | | TypeScript | eslint | prettier | tsc | | Rust | clippy | rustfmt | (compiler) | | Go | golangci-lint | gofmt | (compiler) |

What LDD Covers

| Category | Examples | Why It Matters | |----------|---------|---------------| | Code style | Indentation, line length, naming conventions | Consistency reduces cognitive load | | Type safety | Missing type annotations, type mismatches | Catches bugs before runtime | | Import hygiene | Unused imports, circular imports, ordering | Reduces dependency surface | | Dead code | Unreachable code, unused variables/functions | Reduces maintenance burden | | Naming conventions | snake_case vs camelCase consistency | Pattern recognition speed | | File structure | Module organization, init.py completeness | Navigability |

BPE Compliance

LDD checks outcomes (does the code pass lint?) not process (did the agent format before writing?).

Remove when: Models produce lint-clean code >95% of the time. At that point, this gate becomes a no-op validation — keep it running but it won't block.

Configuration

adlc:
  ldd:
    linters:
      - ruff
      - mypy
    formatters:
      - black
    type_checkers: []  # covered by mypy for Python
    block_on_violation: true
    auto_fix: true     # attempt auto-fix before reporting violations

Common Rationalizations

| Excuse | Rebuttal | |--------|---------| | "Linting slows down iteration" | A 2-second lint check prevents 20-minute debugging sessions | | "The code works, formatting doesn't matter" | Unformatted code increases review time and hides bugs | | "Type annotations are overkill for this" | Types are documentation that the compiler verifies | | "I'll clean it up later" | Later never comes. Lint debt compounds. |

Verification

• [ ] All configured linters pass with zero violations
• [ ] All configured formatters produce no changes (code is already formatted)
• [ ] All type checkers pass with zero errors
• [ ] LDD ran BEFORE TDD (not after)
• [ ] LDD re-ran AFTER TDD REFACTOR step