Loop 025
The fresh-clone loop
A disposable-environment workflow that follows the README from scratch, fixes every hidden setup assumption, and restarts until onboarding works cleanly.
Ready-to-use prompt
Copy the loop
Clone the repository into a clean, empty environment with nothing preinstalled, then follow the README exactly as written to get the project running. Every time a step fails, is missing, or quietly assumes something the README never states, record the gap, fix the setup or documentation to remove that assumption, discard the environment, and start again from a fresh clone. Do not carry dependencies, configuration, credentials, or manual fixes from one attempt into the next. Keep a short log of each gap and how you closed it so it does not return. Stop when a brand-new environment goes from clone to running app in one uninterrupted pass using only the documented steps and no outside fix. Finish with the gaps closed and the exact commands a new contributor now runs from scratch.
Verify / stop
A clean environment reaches a running app using only the README.
The final from-scratch run is uninterrupted and needs no unstated step, preinstalled tool, configuration, or manual repair.
Context and guidance When to use it, steps, safety notes, and related loops
Use this when
Use this to test whether a repository's onboarding instructions really work for a new contributor or a clean CI-style environment.
How to run it
- Create a disposable environment with no project dependencies or configuration carried over from another checkout.
- Fresh-clone the repository and follow only the README, recording every missing step, hidden assumption, and failure.
- Fix the smallest setup or documentation gap, discard the environment completely, and begin again.
- Repeat until one clean run reaches the running app without intervention, then report the final command sequence and every gap closed.
Why it works
Destroying the environment after each repair prevents local state from hiding the next problem. The final uninterrupted run is direct evidence that the README, not the operator's memory, is sufficient.
Implementation note
Use an isolated disposable environment and review the repository before executing it. Never copy personal credentials into the test environment or run untrusted setup scripts on a production host.