veritas-kanban/docs/V5-RC-EVIDENCE-PACKET.md

v5 Release Evidence Packets

Historical v5 evidence. Current release evidence is in v6 Release Candidate Evidence Packet.

v5.2.5 Release Evidence Packet

This section records the desktop existing-data upgrade fix, migration runbook, release validation, signed artifacts, and Homebrew publication for v5.2.5.

Release scope

Field	Value
Release version	5.2.5
Release issue	https://github.com/BradGroux/veritas-kanban/issues/914
Desktop setup issue	https://github.com/BradGroux/veritas-kanban/issues/901
Desktop setup PR	https://github.com/BradGroux/veritas-kanban/pull/902
Migration docs issue	https://github.com/BradGroux/veritas-kanban/issues/899
Migration docs PR	https://github.com/BradGroux/veritas-kanban/pull/900
Dependency audit issue	https://github.com/BradGroux/veritas-kanban/issues/903
Dependency audit PR	https://github.com/BradGroux/veritas-kanban/pull/908
Release PR	https://github.com/BradGroux/veritas-kanban/pull/922
Release commit	55e621d14756799ee9b2d1ab4467013186776ae9
Annotated tag	v5.2.5; object c1390f24ad892a2149118645965d7ab3f7691f17
GitHub release	https://github.com/BradGroux/veritas-kanban/releases/tag/v5.2.5
Desktop Release run	https://github.com/BradGroux/veritas-kanban/actions/runs/30019865167
Homebrew cask PR	https://github.com/BradGroux/homebrew-tap/pull/33; merge d05cb0ad567eb1df239a2e99d8095398a8d46c37
Release state	Published, signed/notarized, independently verified, and available through Homebrew
Release branch	release/v5.2.5-914
Evidence date	2026-07-23

Upgrade contract

• A populated desktop database is never treated as a fresh board. Setup offers Use Existing Data, displays representative counts, and secures the database without replacing board rows or imported owner metadata.
• Startup, setup, password, recovery, loading, and login surfaces remain draggable while interactive controls remain clickable.
• Operators whose records already exist in the desktop SQLite workspace do not rerun file migration and do not choose backup recovery.
• Legacy file-backed data migrates into a fresh staging database with the desktop app stopped. The authoritative desktop database is installed only after every writer closes.
• Governed export-bundle import is an explicit Maintenance operation with destructive replacement confirmation. The onboarding Restore Backup card remains picker/preflight only in v5.2.5.

Pre-publication gates

Gate	Result	Evidence
pnpm check:pnpm-settings	PASS	Node 26.5.0, pnpm 11.1.1, and the repository package-manager contract agree
pnpm audit --prod --audit-level=high	PASS	Zero high or critical advisories; one low and one moderate advisory remain documented below
pnpm lint and pnpm lint:budget	PASS	Zero errors; 595 warnings remain within the 600-warning budget
pnpm qa:mantine	PASS	Mantine migration and bundle-size budgets passed
pnpm typecheck and pnpm build	PASS	Shared, server, web, CLI, MCP, and desktop workspaces passed
pnpm test:unit	PASS	All workspace suites passed
Focused existing-data and auth regression suites	PASS	Web 12/12; server 42/42; desktop 61/61
pnpm desktop:check:electron-artifacts	PASS	Main and preload output preserved Electron runtime imports and rejected installer-shim patterns
pnpm smoke:cli-mcp	PARTIAL	Build and version checks passed; live read/write smoke skipped because no test API key was set
pnpm test:e2e	PASS	36/36 across Chromium, mobile Chromium, and mobile WebKit using an isolated temporary data store
pnpm desktop:smoke:mac:local	PASS	ARM64 unpacked app and isolated production staging passed
pnpm desktop:package:mac:unsigned	PASS	v5.2.5 ARM64 DMG, ZIP, blockmaps, update metadata, and app bundle produced
pnpm validate:release -- --version 5.2.5	PASS	Versions, scripts, docs, and local build artifacts passed
Isolated populated SQLite packaged upgrade	PASS	Unsigned app selected Use Existing Data, showed 2/3/1/1/1 counts, and preserved every count plus migrated owner and task-owner metadata through password setup
Packaged drag-region and control contract	PASS	Electron reported drag for the setup surface and no-drag for controls; Agent Ready remained clickable and selected
Independent standards and specification review	PASS	Two separate reviewers found the publication-proof and MCP-version gaps; both were corrected before commit
Repository Copilot review	PASS	Reviewed all 19 changed files on PR #922; its two documentation consistency findings were corrected before merge

The residual production advisories are body-parser low-severity GHSA-v422-hmwv-36x6 and @hono/node-server moderate-severity GHSA-frvp-7c67-39w9. The latter applies to Windows static-file serving in a transitive MCP dependency; the Veritas MCP package uses stdio and the supported desktop target is macOS. Neither advisory crosses the release gate's high/critical threshold. Both remain visible rather than being hidden behind an unsafe major-version override.

Direct Claude CLI review was unavailable because Claude Code had no authenticated session and GitHub Copilot CLI returned no quota. The repository Copilot reviewer supplied the available external review gate on PR #922.

Publication evidence

The annotated tag peels to release commit 55e621d14756799ee9b2d1ab4467013186776ae9. Desktop Release run #30019865167 completed successfully in 10m38s and published all seven expected assets. Independent downloads matched both the release-attached checksum files and the GitHub asset digests:

Artifact	Bytes	SHA-256
Veritas-Kanban-5.2.5-mac-arm64.dmg	268,133,388	056d448ad20adf03fe0a32ac0dc12bf3e4b384c1b7a6c8419edffc803322f688
Veritas-Kanban-5.2.5-mac-arm64.dmg.blockmap	279,312	88ee282ac0980231c92097d00ac69c19423df889bf1a865bbb11803d401d75bf
Veritas-Kanban-5.2.5-mac-arm64.dmg.sha256	101	59892a48108017cf8d3c7217f908e0f4638e00e86ce457e0f876ef82f488dbe2
Veritas-Kanban-5.2.5-mac-arm64.zip	271,243,007	3f1816de7ae46d5e0541209f8acd65ffa32a47bd5caeedd9546358557e66fced
Veritas-Kanban-5.2.5-mac-arm64.zip.blockmap	279,514	ecf30e86035a9b2e531f8632401bf28033019c82215b17cb32ee321dd44f456f
Veritas-Kanban-5.2.5-mac-arm64.zip.sha256	101	7399226b582c5e776d8ab5096dd94a20453309b053f8395bb2d9288ff1bbfb93
latest-mac.yml	530	1a88552cc0887e03acd25db3d6af30bb764b05892a4a0d8fc2ba94acec73b94e

latest-mac.yml reports version 5.2.5, names the published ZIP and DMG, and matches their byte sizes and SHA-512 values. The extracted ZIP app and DMG both pass strict code-signing verification, Gatekeeper acceptance as Notarized Developer ID, and stapled-ticket validation. The app is signed by Developer ID Application: Digital Meld, Inc. (RLBHD62MPW) with hardened runtime.

The downloaded signed app launched under an isolated profile and returned version 5.2.5 from /api/health. The setup path rendered, Agent Ready remained clickable, and dragging the non-control setup header physically moved the window. It then quit cleanly through the native app menu.

Homebrew issue #32 and PR #33 publish the ZIP checksum above. The registered tap passed brew style --cask, brew audit --cask --strict --online, brew install --cask --dry-run, and brew livecheck. A stopped-app laptop upgrade from 5.2.4 to 5.2.5 preserved a host-specific empty board with PRAGMA quick_check returning ok and matching 0/0/0/0/0 task, Squad Chat, telemetry, workflow-definition, and workflow-run counts. The pre-upgrade snapshot is retained under the desktop workspace's backups/pre-upgrade-20260723-103736 directory. After launch, port 3001 was owned by the packaged application and bundled Resources/server/dist/index.js, and /api/health returned 5.2.5.

Source merge, GitHub release publication, signed runtime verification, Homebrew availability, and a host-specific data check are separate gates; none substitutes for another.

v5.2.2 Release Evidence Packet

This section records the July 2026 UI-audit remediation and v5.2.2 release state. It supplements the retained v5.0.0 evidence below. Evidence is limited to public issue, pull request, workflow, and sanitized command results.

Executive Summary

v5.2.2 fixes the Electron packaging defect that made the signed v5.2.1 macOS application recursively launch the npm installer shim instead of opening a window. It also completes the six web findings from the Apple-design audit: keyboard board movement, compact Settings and navigation, reachable mobile Board Chat, responsive Scoring Profiles, preference-aware overlays, and compositor-safe dashboard motion.

The source release is published from 4b84eccd1bf827c842e93a82afd0240e6855b3df. After the team accepted the updated Apple agreement, Desktop Release attempt 4 signed, notarized, stapled, and published the macOS artifacts. Independent downloads matched GitHub digests and attached sidecars. The signed ZIP app launched with an isolated profile, reported version 5.2.2, completed a current version update check, reopened cleanly, and quit without remaining processes. The Homebrew cask update passed its registered-tap gates and merged in #23.

Field	Value
Release version	5.2.2
Git tag	Annotated v5.2.2; object 81ce4928e457c91a16a20827ddac1a94fb8f4170
Release commit	4b84eccd1bf827c842e93a82afd0240e6855b3df
GitHub release	https://github.com/BradGroux/veritas-kanban/releases/tag/v5.2.2
Desktop Release run	https://github.com/BradGroux/veritas-kanban/actions/runs/29213420721
Release state	Published, signed/notarized, independently verified, and available through Homebrew
Evidence date	2026-07-12
Toolchain	macOS 26.5.1; Node 26.5.0; pnpm 11.1.1; Playwright Chromium and WebKit; Docker legacy build

Issue And Pull Request Traceability

Issue	Priority	Outcome	Pull request	State
#809	Critical	Externalize Electron runtime APIs, reject emitted installer shims, and restore a single native window	#817	Acceptance complete
#810	High	Make compact Settings navigation visible and stack dense controls	#820	Closed
#811	High	Prevent mobile navigation collisions and restore Board Chat	#821	Closed
#812	High	Restore keyboard movement, ordering, announcements, rollback, and focus	#818	Closed
#813	Medium	Add a deliberate compact Scoring Profiles master-detail flow	#826	Closed
#814	Medium	Remove layout-driven dashboard animation and honor reduced motion	#822	Closed
#815	Medium	Honor transparency/contrast preferences and dismiss stale tooltips	#819	Closed
#816	Tracker	Apple-design audit coverage and final native follow-up	#817-#822, #826	Acceptance complete
#828	Release QA	Repair stale release E2E selectors without changing product behavior	#829	Closed
#830	Release docs	Preserve this evidence and the v5.2.2 freshness sweep	this PR	Acceptance complete

PR #824 additionally stabilized storage mutation ordering and asynchronous startup/teardown behavior discovered while exercising the release candidate. PR #827 aligned all workspace versions at 5.2.2 and published the release source. Tracker #796 remains open for a non-sensitive external follow-up; its private advisory context is intentionally not reproduced here.

Electron Root Cause And Remediation

The desktop Vite/Rolldown build bundled the npm electron package shim into desktop/out/main/index.js. At runtime, code expecting Electron APIs received the shim's executable-path export and recursively spawned install.js, so the development build and signed v5.2.1 application never rendered a window.

PR #817 keeps electron and electron/* imports external in main and preload output, adds artifact assertions for forbidden shim markers and required API bindings, and adds packaged-launch coverage. Development, unsigned, and downloaded signed v5.2.2 builds each launched one native application window with no installer recursion. Signed runtime acceptance covered setup, server/renderer readiness, Keychain status, keyboard focus, native menus, window chrome, current-version update check, clean quit, reopen, and a second clean quit with no remaining process or listening port.

Interface Outcomes

• Keyboard users can move tasks within and across columns, including empty columns, with accurate instructions/announcements and predictable focus.
• Settings, mobile navigation, Board Chat, and Scoring Profiles remain usable at 320-430 px without hidden actions or page-level horizontal overflow.
• Overlay materials become solid and more strongly bounded for reduced transparency or increased contrast; opening Task Detail dismisses its trigger tooltip.
• Dashboard transitions name explicit properties and avoid animated layout dimensions. Reduced-motion state changes are immediate.
• Focus states, accessible names, touch-sized primary actions, light/dark themes, and responsive layouts were covered by focused tests and runtime QA.

Verification Matrix

Gate	Result	Environment and evidence
pnpm install --frozen-lockfile	PASS	Local clean dependency verification with pnpm 11.1.1
pnpm test:unit	PASS	Desktop 57; server 2107 passed and 2 skipped; web 405
pnpm lint	PASS	0 errors and 597 warnings, within the 600-warning budget
pnpm lint:budget	PASS	Warning budget enforced
pnpm typecheck	PASS	All workspaces after shared build
pnpm build	PASS	Shared, server, web, CLI, MCP, and desktop outputs
pnpm qa:mantine	PASS	Mantine adoption and bundle budgets
pnpm test:e2e	PASS	34/34 across Chromium, mobile Chromium, and mobile WebKit after #829
pnpm audit	PASS	No known production vulnerabilities
pnpm smoke:cli-mcp	PARTIAL	CLI/MCP build and metadata passed; live write skipped because no test API key was supplied
pnpm desktop:package:mac:unsigned	PASS	ARM64 DMG and ZIP mounted/expanded as 5.2.2; main bundle imports Electron and has no installer-shim marker
pnpm validate:release -- --version 5.2.2	PASS	Version, package, build output, script, and required-doc validation
pnpm validate:release -- --version 5.2.2 --docker-build	PASS	Production image veritas-kanban:validate-5.2.2 built with the Docker legacy builder
pnpm validate:release -- --version 5.2.2 --github	PASS	Local/origin tag and the published GitHub release verified
Pull request CI	PASS	Required build, unit, lint/typecheck, and security checks passed for all merged changes
Cross-model review	NOT RUN	Explicitly waived by the release operator for this workstream

Compatibility, Security, And Rollback

• v5.2.2 requires no schema migration from v5.2.1. Workspace package versions remain aligned, and existing v5 data contracts are unchanged.
• macOS 14+ on Apple Silicon remains the signed desktop target. Linux and Windows packages remain unsigned preview artifacts.
• File-backed writes retain serialized mutation, rollback, recovery, stable activity ordering, and retention behavior covered by the server suite.
• pnpm audit and GitHub security checks found no known production dependency vulnerabilities. Evidence contains no credentials or private advisory text.
• Because the v5.2.1 desktop bundle cannot launch reliably, users must replace it directly with the signed v5.2.2 app once published. Rollback remains app reinstall plus restoration of a pre-change backup when schema compatibility requires it.

macOS Artifact And Distribution Inventory

Asset	Size	SHA-256	Verification
Veritas-Kanban-5.2.2-mac-arm64.dmg	266,283,327 bytes	358acaa501827fca7e59d67a98b261b07fa9d5e01e3acae9755e8f7c010b86eb	GitHub digest, sidecar, stapler, Gatekeeper, mounted bundle 5.2.2
Veritas-Kanban-5.2.2-mac-arm64.zip	269,456,458 bytes	3f85d864a78251c8e1bb94f9914dcab0ce9795cf5a45f64fffdf33337cfb3d4a	GitHub digest, sidecar, extracted signature, stapler, Gatekeeper, signed launch
Veritas-Kanban-5.2.2-mac-arm64.dmg.blockmap	276,119 bytes	c145880aef635f2d6f5153a484db9aa901040abb552545d5890abf391be19085	GitHub digest and independent hash
Veritas-Kanban-5.2.2-mac-arm64.zip.blockmap	284,294 bytes	f33dd971199454962d32d3b7bf737b5b19bb828302433e1d41e77847aef8443f	GitHub digest and independent hash
latest-mac.yml	530 bytes	d2dc95378935835d2ceaa2ff4d298edf41adf2bb73a58b1b4a83eac72c7ab641	Points to the 5.2.2 ZIP and DMG with matching sizes and SHA-512 values

The app signature identifies Developer ID Application: Digital Meld, Inc. (RLBHD62MPW), includes hardened runtime and a timestamp, and satisfies its designated requirement. Stapler and Gatekeeper accept both the DMG and the extracted ZIP app as Notarized Developer ID.

The signed app launched directly from the downloaded ZIP using an isolated profile and ports. /api/health returned 5.2.2; setup showed server, renderer, Keychain, and SQLite readiness; keyboard focus and native menus were operable; the updater reported 5.2.2 as current; quit, reopen, and quit completed cleanly. With VoiceOver active, keyboard navigation moved through the AX hierarchy to the correctly named Copy Diagnostics control; VoiceOver was then disabled and the isolated app quit with no remaining process or port.

Homebrew tap PR https://github.com/BradGroux/homebrew-tap/pull/23 merged at 292f340a894ea86079abba9b54cf71f1034ae06c. Registered token bradgroux/tap/veritas-kanban passed style, strict online audit, dry-run install, and livecheck (5.2.2 ==> 5.2.2).

Documentation Freshness And Known Limits

The v5.2.2 sweep inspected README.md, CHANGELOG.md, AGENTS.md, docs/FEATURES.md, release notes, compatibility/rollback policy, install/admin guide, GA checklist, desktop release guide, visual tour, this evidence packet, and documentation-freshness SOP. User-visible release behavior was already updated by the implementation and release PRs. The freshness SOP still matches the workflow and required no behavioral edit.

Open follow-ups:

• #796: retain the non-sensitive external follow-up without exposing private advisory content.

Release Decision

v5.2.2 passes the required source, web, server, CLI, MCP, desktop, signing, notarization, artifact, signed-runtime, update, and Homebrew gates. The macOS distribution is approved for installation. The annotated tag peels to release commit 4b84eccd1bf827c842e93a82afd0240e6855b3df; converting the tag object did not change source contents or published assets.

v5.0.0 Retained Release Evidence

Retained evidence for the published v5.0.0 release and the v5 follow-up issues:

• #644 completed release evidence packet
• #646 full-load and mobile/PWA evidence
• #649 signed update and rollback evidence

Do not paste secrets, tokens, private keys, raw chat/task content, or unredacted local private paths into this packet.

Candidate Identity

Field	Value
Candidate label	v5.0.0 stable
Release version	5.0.0
Git tag	v5.0.0
Commit SHA	3380acff8a196833aa06a4ff499a74e789d9cbba
GitHub release URL	https://github.com/BradGroux/veritas-kanban/releases/tag/v5.0.0
Desktop Release run	https://github.com/BradGroux/veritas-kanban/actions/runs/27084849504
Desktop Artifacts run	Not used for final signed assets; Desktop Release run produced and uploaded the signed/notarized artifacts.
CI run	https://github.com/BradGroux/veritas-kanban/actions/runs/27205274105
Evidence owner	Brad Groux
Review date	2026-06-09

Version checks:

• package.json version: 5.0.0
• shared/package.json version: 5.0.0
• server/package.json version: 5.0.0
• web/package.json version: 5.0.0
• cli/package.json version: 5.0.0
• mcp/package.json version: 5.0.0
• desktop/package.json version: 5.0.0
• GET /api/health.version: 5.0.0 from an isolated local server health check
• vk --version: 5.0.0
• MCP package/version output: package version 5.0.0; stdio server starts from mcp/dist/index.js

Release Validation

Gate	Result	Evidence
pnpm install --frozen-lockfile	PASS	GitHub runs 27084849504 and 27205274105
pnpm typecheck	PASS	Local command on 2026-06-09
pnpm lint:budget	PASS	Local command on 2026-06-09, 0 errors, 598 warnings, budget 600
pnpm test:unit	PASS	Local command on 2026-06-09, desktop 57 tests, server 1885 tests, web 326 tests
pnpm build	PASS	Desktop Release run 27084849504 and local release validation build outputs
pnpm validate:release	PASS	Local command on 2026-06-09
pnpm validate:release -- --github	PASS	pnpm validate:release -- --github --repo BradGroux/veritas-kanban on 2026-06-09
pnpm smoke:cli-mcp	Covered	CLI version and MCP stdio startup checked; full smoke remains part of reusable candidate checklist
pnpm desktop:package:mac:unsigned	Covered	Signed Desktop Release run 27084849504 supersedes unsigned packaging for GA
pnpm test:load	PASS	Scheduled QA full-profile run 27205274105

Local verification commands retained for this packet:

pnpm exec playwright test e2e/health.spec.ts e2e/prompt-registry.spec.ts e2e/mantine-qa-gate.spec.ts --project=chromium
pnpm exec playwright test e2e/mobile-responsive.spec.ts e2e/pwa-offline.spec.ts --project=mobile-chromium --project=mobile-webkit
pnpm typecheck
pnpm lint:budget
pnpm test:unit
pnpm validate:release -- --github --repo BradGroux/veritas-kanban

macOS Artifact Inventory

Stable v5.0.0 macOS artifacts were produced by Desktop Release run 27084849504 and published under the v5.0.0 release.

Asset	URL	SHA-256	Notes
signed DMG	https://github.com/BradGroux/veritas-kanban/releases/download/v5.0.0/Veritas-Kanban-5.0.0-mac-arm64.dmg	f3d0c3a70b66c27c27db527b2cdeb8ac86f174630c951a429eeb59b4080bf0ae	Downloaded and checksum-matched locally on 2026-06-09.
signed ZIP	https://github.com/BradGroux/veritas-kanban/releases/download/v5.0.0/Veritas-Kanban-5.0.0-mac-arm64.zip	bfd1e57fc99b4468f9fd97418c2aa57b51a1e3087966539c60a75c848c595cb1	Downloaded and checksum-matched locally on 2026-06-09.
DMG blockmap	https://github.com/BradGroux/veritas-kanban/releases/download/v5.0.0/Veritas-Kanban-5.0.0-mac-arm64.dmg.blockmap	0d10746c0703e1ac1409b9a370ed2bd8195dc25fc8f9e1384f909140f5e00a0e	Release asset digest.
ZIP blockmap	https://github.com/BradGroux/veritas-kanban/releases/download/v5.0.0/Veritas-Kanban-5.0.0-mac-arm64.zip.blockmap	2eb8b8a93cca84f1579736ce06bf5107edd688c9d941ce83ba3876982ec52d09	Release asset digest.
stable update metadata	https://github.com/BradGroux/veritas-kanban/releases/download/v5.0.0/latest-mac.yml	535cd6da5e95dff8dcf869fa2b236a2b1ddcc4dff118f325b41265cb96f14db1	Points to Veritas-Kanban-5.0.0-mac-arm64.zip as update path.
source archive	https://github.com/BradGroux/veritas-kanban/archive/refs/tags/v5.0.0.zip	GitHub generated	Tag source archive.
changelog entry	CHANGELOG.md -> ## [5.0.0]	n/a	Verified by pnpm validate:release.

Notarization and Gatekeeper:

• codesign --verify --deep --strict --verbose=2 passed for the unpacked release ZIP app.
• codesign -dv --verbose=4 showed Developer ID Application: Digital Meld, Inc. (RLBHD62MPW), TeamIdentifier RLBHD62MPW, hardened runtime flag, timestamp 2026-06-07 01:27:02.
• xcrun stapler validate passed for the unpacked app.
• spctl --assess --type execute --verbose=4 accepted the unpacked app with source Notarized Developer ID.
• xcrun stapler validate passed for the DMG.
• spctl --assess --type open --context context:primary-signature --verbose=4 accepted the DMG with source Notarized Developer ID.
• Clean Mac install screenshot or recording: not captured in this packet.
• First-run profile/workspace data path verified by desktop path unit tests and package metadata; manual signed GUI launch was attempted with an isolated temp profile but did not expose /api/health before timeout in this environment.

Signed Update And Rollback Drill

This section satisfies the retained evidence target for #649 while recording the limitation that no prior signed v4 baseline asset exists for a true native updater from v4.3.2 to v5.0.0.

Step	Result	Evidence
Install signed baseline build	PARTIAL	v5.0.0 signed ZIP and DMG downloaded, checksum-matched, notarization/Gatekeeper passed. A true v4 signed baseline install is blocked because v4.3.2 has no attached release assets.
Launch and verify local server health	PARTIAL	Built server health returned version 5.0.0 from isolated data dir. Signed GUI launch through LaunchServices was attempted with isolated HOME, profile, workspace, and ports; the app process started but did not expose health before timeout and wrote no stdout/stderr.
Publish or expose higher RC update	NOT RUN	No higher signed candidate exists after v5.0.0.
Check for update from native menu	NOT RUN	Requires a lower signed baseline plus higher signed candidate.
Download update	NOT RUN	Requires a lower signed baseline plus higher signed candidate.
Install update	NOT RUN	Requires a lower signed baseline plus higher signed candidate.
Verify updated app/server/web versions	COVERED	All workspace package versions 5.0.0; release validator confirms aligned release docs/assets; /api/health.version returned 5.0.0 from isolated server.
Reinstall previous signed DMG	BLOCKED	No previous signed DMG asset is attached to the v4.3.2 release.
Verify rollback behavior	DOCUMENTED	docs/V5-COMPATIBILITY-AND-RELEASE-POLICY.md and docs/V5-UPGRADE-INSTALL-ADMIN-GUIDE.md document reinstall plus backup restore as the supported rollback path.
Restore backup if schema is incompatible	COVERED	Server unit suite includes backup/recovery coverage; API reference and admin guide document migration recovery and restore-backup endpoints.
Record admin recovery notes	COMPLETE	See rollback notes below and the admin guide.

Rollback notes:

For v5.0.0 GA, updater metadata points to v5.0.0 arm64 ZIP/DMG artifacts.
If a signed macOS build must be rolled back, reinstall the previous signed app
artifact when one exists, then restore the pre-migration backup if the older app
cannot open a newer SQLite schema. The v4.3.2 release does not have attached
signed assets, so a native v4-to-v5 updater drill cannot be completed from
published release assets. Future v5 patch candidates should run the native
update drill from v5.0.0 to the patch candidate before publication.

Migration, Backup, And Restore

Gate	Result	Evidence
v4 file-backed backup preserved	COVERED	docs/V5-UPGRADE-INSTALL-ADMIN-GUIDE.md requires dry-run and backup preservation before accepting migration.
SQLite migration dry-run	COVERED	API reference documents /api/v1/sqlite/migration/dry-run; release validator confirms migration docs are present.
SQLite migration run	COVERED	API reference documents /api/v1/sqlite/migration/run; release validator confirms migration docs are present.
Migration journal/report preserved	COVERED	API reference and compatibility policy require migration journal/report retention.
Board/task/search/workflow/chat verified	PASS	Local Playwright mobile/desktop smoke and workspace unit tests passed on 2026-06-09.
Backup/export created	COVERED	Server unit suite covers integrity backup behavior; API reference documents SQLite backup export.
Restore/import verified	COVERED	Server unit suite covers recovery behavior; API reference documents restore-backup and import verification endpoints.
Older app refuses newer SQLite schema	DOCUMENTED	Compatibility policy defines SQLITE_UNSUPPORTED_SCHEMA behavior and directs admins to compatible app or pre-migration backup restore.

Accepted migration risks:

v5.0.0 does not promise destructive down migrations after SQLite migration.
Rollback is app reinstall plus backup restore when schema compatibility blocks
the older app. Preserve the pre-migration file-backed backup and migration
journal before accepting the migration.

Load, Remote, Mobile, And PWA Evidence

This section satisfies the evidence target for #646 with Scheduled QA run 27205274105 and retained k6 artifact 7507319688.

Full load profile:

Field	Value
Target origin	http://127.0.0.1:3001 in GitHub Actions Scheduled QA
Seed profile	V5_SEED_TASKS=120, V5_SEED_CHATS=12, V5_HTTP_VUS=20, V5_WS_VUS=30, V5_DURATION=45s, V5_WS_HOLD_MS=40000
k6 command	Scheduled QA load_profile=full, scripts smoke read-load write-load mixed-load ws-stress v5-remote-mix
k6 output artifact	https://github.com/BradGroux/veritas-kanban/actions/runs/27205274105/artifacts/7507319688
HTTP p95	Max p95 across HTTP scripts: 23.454 ms (v5-remote-mix)
HTTP error rate	Max HTTP failure/custom error rate: 0.247% (mixed-load, below 1% threshold)
WebSocket error rate	0% (ws-stress; v5-remote-mix WebSocket connect checks also passed 30/30)
Known scale ceiling	v5.0.0 supports heavy solo/local or small-team trusted-host use. Larger hosted or SaaS-style deployments need higher seed counts and longer soak windows.

Remote/mobile smoke:

Client	Device/OS	Browser version	Result	Evidence
Safari-class browser	Playwright iPhone 13	WebKit from local Playwright install	PASS	pnpm exec playwright test e2e/mobile-responsive.spec.ts e2e/pwa-offline.spec.ts --project=mobile-webkit
Chrome-class browser	Playwright Pixel 5	Chromium from local Playwright install	PASS	pnpm exec playwright test e2e/mobile-responsive.spec.ts e2e/pwa-offline.spec.ts --project=mobile-chromium
Installed PWA	Browser PWA install metadata and service worker	Chromium and WebKit	PASS	e2e/pwa-offline.spec.ts verifies manifest, static service worker, and offline shell warning.

PWA stale-client checks:

• Static shell can load from cache: service worker static-shell test.
• API data is not cached for offline replay: service worker excludes api/.
• Offline writes are not queued: offline shell warns that task data and changes require the trusted server.
• Stale client refresh blocks or refreshes before write: compatibility policy documents stale-client refresh behavior; mobile/PWA smoke exercises remote-safe shell behavior.
• Same-origin /api, /ws, manifest, service worker, and static assets verified: PWA spec verifies manifest/service worker; k6 full profile run 27205274105 covers /api and /ws.

Known limits to include in release notes:

Mobile/PWA v5.0.0 is responsive web plus installable static shell. It is not a
native offline app and does not queue writes offline. Remote access remains a
trusted-host scenario. Larger hosted deployments need additional load evidence
with higher seed counts and longer soak windows.

Security And Diagnostics

Gate	Result	Evidence
Security audit reviewed	COVERED	docs/security.md and v5 release docs retained by release validator.
Debug bundle redaction negative fixtures	COVERED	Workspace unit suite passed on 2026-06-09.
Scoped API token smoke	COVERED	Workspace unit suite passed on 2026-06-09.
Password-session boundary smoke	COVERED	Playwright mobile/login smoke passed locally on 2026-06-09.
WebSocket auth/reconnect smoke	PASS	Scheduled QA full k6 run 27205274105.
Support bundle contains no private data	COVERED	Workspace unit suite passed on 2026-06-09.

Security release notes:

No secrets or private app data are retained in this packet. Release evidence
uses GitHub run URLs, release asset digests, sanitized local command summaries,
and temp-profile checks only.

Visual Documentation And Media

The checked-in dummy-data docs media lives in v5 Visual Tour.

Surface	Docs asset	Candidate proof
Desktop board	docs/assets/v5/v5-board-overview.png	Visual tour retained; local desktop QA route smoke passed.
Board/workflow/audit GIF	docs/assets/v5/v5-board-to-workflow.gif	Visual tour retained.
Task work view	docs/assets/v5/v5-task-work-view.png	Visual tour retained; local mobile task-detail smoke passed.
Maintenance Center	docs/assets/v5/v5-maintenance-center.png	Visual tour retained.
Mobile/PWA board	docs/assets/v5/v5-mobile-pwa-board.png	Visual tour retained; mobile Chromium/WebKit smoke passed.
Mobile/PWA navigation GIF	docs/assets/v5/v5-mobile-pwa-flow.gif	Visual tour retained; mobile navigation smoke passed.

Visual docs notes:

The retained docs media is dummy-data documentation media. Local Playwright
smoke, not screenshots, is the release evidence for current mobile/desktop
rendering in this packet.

Final Decision

Question	Answer
Are all critical/high v5 release blockers closed?	Yes; #649 update-drill limits are documented because no prior signed baseline asset exists.
Are all deferred items linked as post-GA issues?	Yes; update drill limitations are recorded in #649 evidence.
Are user-visible limits documented in release notes?	Yes; release notes and upgrade guide document PWA/offline and rollback limits.
Is this candidate approved for publication?	Already published as v5.0.0; retained evidence is being backfilled for release hygiene.

Decision notes:

v5.0.0 is already published. This packet backfills durable release evidence and
records two important limits: native updater drill cannot be completed without a
prior signed baseline asset, and larger hosted deployments need additional load
evidence beyond the v5.0.0 full Scheduled QA profile.