name: workflow-state-patterns description: Hook-based state machine patterns for multi-phase workflows. Use when designing sequential workflows with quality gates. allowed-tools: ["Read", "Write", "Grep", "Glob"]

Workflow State Patterns

Multi-phase workflows need phase enforcement, session continuity, and quality gates. This pattern uses file-based state + hooks.

Quick Start

1. Define phases: analyze → plan → execute → verify
2. Create state files on phase completion: .workflow-phase-done
3. Add PreToolUse hooks to check required state files
4. Add PostToolUse hooks to create state files

Core Concept

Phase 1 → [POST HOOK] → .analysis-done
Phase 2 → [POST HOOK] → .plan-approved
Phase 3 → [PRE HOOK checks] → [POST HOOK] → .execution-done
Phase 4 → PASS: cleanup all / FAIL: preserve for retry

State Files

Hook Template (Claude Code 1.0.40+)

{
  "hooks": {
    "PreToolUse": [{
      "matcher": "Task",
      "hooks": [{
        "type": "command",
        "command": "python3 scripts/workflow-gate.py",
        "timeout": 5
      }]
    }]
  }
}

Gate script checks tool_input.subagent_type and state files.

Best Practices

1. Prefix state files - .refactor-*, .migration-*
2. gitignore state files - Don't commit workflow state
3. Clean up on success - Remove all state files on completion
4. Preserve on failure - Keep state for retry capability

References

• Complete Workflow Example - Full 4-phase implementation
• Hook Details - Detailed hook configurations