Scenario: Scale Starter → Standard → Strict

When to use #

You want to start light (no role vocabulary, ~60-second setup) and ratchet up discipline as the project grows. aidokit ships three tiers — Starter, Standard, Strict — and aidokit migrate walks you between them without rewriting your project.

At a glance #

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  "themeVariables": {
    "fontFamily": "ui-sans-serif, system-ui, -apple-system, Segoe UI, sans-serif",
    "fontSize": "14px",
    "primaryColor": "#eff6ff",
    "primaryTextColor": "#0f172a",
    "primaryBorderColor": "#2563eb",
    "lineColor": "#475569",
    "secondaryColor": "#f1f5f9",
    "tertiaryColor": "#ffffff",
    "clusterBkg": "#f8fafc",
    "clusterBorder": "#cbd5e1"
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}}%%
flowchart LR
  classDef actor    fill:#ede9fe,stroke:#6d28d9,color:#1e1b4b,stroke-width:1.2px;
  classDef cli      fill:#dbeafe,stroke:#1d4ed8,color:#0c1f4a,stroke-width:1.4px;
  classDef adapter  fill:#cffafe,stroke:#0e7490,color:#083344;
  classDef pack     fill:#dcfce7,stroke:#15803d,color:#052e16;
  classDef core     fill:#fef9c3,stroke:#a16207,color:#422006;
  classDef artifact fill:#f1f5f9,stroke:#475569,color:#0f172a;
  classDef stop     fill:#fee2e2,stroke:#b91c1c,color:#7f1d1d,stroke-dasharray:4 3;
  classDef ok       fill:#ecfdf5,stroke:#047857,color:#064e3b;
  classDef external fill:#fff7ed,stroke:#c2410c,color:#431407;
  starter["Starter"]:::artifact
  m1["aidokit migrate starter-to-standard"]:::cli
  standard["Standard"]:::artifact
  m2["aidokit migrate standard-to-strict"]:::cli
  strict["Strict (audit-ready)"]:::ok
  starter --> m1 --> standard --> m2 --> strict

Step-by-step #

1. Start at Starter #

npx aidokit init --tier starter --adapter <claude-code|codex|copilot> --stack node-ts --yes

Pre-v1.0: replace npx aidokit with node /path/to/aidokit/packages/cli/dist/bin/aidokit.js.

60-second setup, no role vocabulary.

Expected: the picked adapter's engine directory with just enough skills to drive a simple loop.

2. Recognise when to graduate #

Signs you've outgrown Starter:

You want named roles (Researcher / Architect / Planner / Builder / Tester-Reviewer / Maintainer).
You want hard stops between Intake and Implement.
The team is bigger than 2 people.

3. Migrate to Standard #

aidokit migrate starter-to-standard

If the migrate command isn't available in your version, run aidokit doctor --upgrade and follow the printed manual steps.

Expected: roles and hard stops appear; existing artifacts are preserved.

4. Recognise when to go Strict #

Signs:

Compliance review pressure.
Capability auditability needed.
Signed-output expected.

5. Migrate to Strict #

aidokit migrate standard-to-strict

Expected: capability declarations get enforced; signed packages required; conformance verified in CI.

6. Verify #

aidokit doctor

Expected: the new tier shows in the manifest with green status.

Common mistakes #

Starting at Strict on a hobby project — too much overhead. Start light.
Skipping aidokit doctor after migration — silent drift between manifest and adapter templates.
Editing .aido/adapter.md by hand — always go through aidokit migrate / aidokit sync.