Journey Templates

Journey: Publish-as-template (optional)

Turn the deployed app into a public, forkable template. This stage is only for apps the user explicitly wants to share — most journeys end at deploy (or submit in hackathon mode).

When to use

• Dispatched by journey when current_stage: templates.
• Directly via /butterbase-skills:journey-templates.
• The row is optional in the checklist; skip silently if the user declines.

Inputs

• A deployed, working app (post-journey-deploy).
• docs/butterbase/02-plan.md — to know what features the app uses (agents, MCP servers, OAuth providers, function env vars).
• docs/butterbase/04-build-log.md — to confirm deploy smoke passed.

Preflight

• 00-state.md must have current_stage: templates or later AND deploy ticked.
• The @butterbase/cli must be installed locally (butterbase --version works). If not, invoke journey-preflight to fix.
• The repo must be bound: .butterbase/config.json exists with the right currentApp. If not, run butterbase repo init <app_id>.

Procedure

0. Refresh docs. Call butterbase_docs with topic: "templates" (and topic: "repo" if the cache doesn't already cover snapshot push). Skip if 03b-docs-cache.md is fresh.

1. Confirm intent. Ask:

   "Publish '<app_name>' as a public template? Public + listed makes it appear in the gallery; public + unlisted is forkable by anyone with the app_id but hidden from search. Or skip. (listed / unlisted / skip)"

   Default: skip (especially in hackathon mode unless the user explicitly chose to publish their submission).

2. On skip: mark the row - [x] templates (skipped — not publishing) in 00-state.md. Write docs/butterbase/06-template.md with one line: Skipped on <date>. Return to orchestrator.

3. On listed / unlisted: delegate to butterbase-skills:templates. The wrapped skill walks the user through: a. Author / review README.md. This is the most important step — clone replay does not carry OAuth secrets, agent records, MCP server registrations, function secrets, or user data. The README must explain every manual step a cloner will need. The templates skill has the full checklist; do not let it write a short README and move on. b. Bundle agent specs. If the app has agents, ensure agents/<name>.json exist (export with butterbase agents get <name> if missing) and are tracked. c. Inspect drift. butterbase repo status. Walk the modified / untracked / deleted lists with the user. This is the chance to catch a stray secret file or an unwanted directory before it ends up in the snapshot. d. Dry-run. butterbase repo push --dry-run. Confirm the final upload manifest matches what repo status showed. e. Push. butterbase repo push -m "publish v1". Capture the snapshot id. f. Flip visibility. butterbase visibility public --listed (or --unlisted). g. Self-clone test. butterbase clone <app_id> /tmp/clone-test-<ts> into a scratch directory — this also exercises the cloner-side repo pull that butterbase clone runs internally. The wrapped skill walks the README from a cold cloner's perspective and reports any gap. Loop back to (a) if gaps exist.

4. Write artifact. docs/butterbase/06-template.md:

   markdownCopy code
   ---
   published_at: <ISO>
   app_id: <id>
   visibility: public
   listed: <true|false>
   snapshot_id: <id>
   selfclone_test: <pass | gaps fixed in round N>
   ---
   
   # Template publication
   
   - Visibility: public (<listed | unlisted>)
   - Latest snapshot: <id>
   - README covers: env vars, OAuth, agent re-import, MCP servers, seed data, first-run smoke
   - Self-clone test directory: /tmp/clone-test-<ts>
   - Gallery URL: https://butterbase.ai/templates/<app_id>  (or wherever discovery lives)
   

5. Update state. Tick - [x] templates in 00-state.md.

6. Return to orchestrator (or end the journey, since this is the last optional stage).

Anti-patterns

• ❌ Pushing the repo after flipping visibility. Order matters: snapshot first, public second. Otherwise the gallery briefly advertises an empty template.
• ❌ Skipping the README. The clone preflight tells the cloner which env vars exist but not what they're for or what manual setup remains. A bare-bones README publishes a broken-on-clone experience.
• ❌ Skipping the self-clone test. The author always knows too much; only a cold walk-through catches missing instructions.
• ❌ Forgetting agent specs. The agents DB table doesn't replay. Without agents/*.json in the repo, cloners can see your agent code paths but cannot recreate the agents themselves.
• ❌ Publishing in hackathon mode by default. Hackathon submissions are usually private; only publish if the user explicitly asks.
• ❌ Pushing files containing secrets. Always dry-run first and scan the file list.