Add -count=1 to the canonical Go make test example (closes #44)

The canonical Go `test` target in `REPO_POLICIES.md` omitted `-count=1`, so
Go replayed cached successful results and the target could exit 0 having
executed no test. Every repo that copied it inherited the false green.

Both invocations get the flag; the rerun needs it so a failure is
reproduced rather than replayed.

Dockerfile

@@ -12,17 +12,4 @@ COPY package.json yarn.lock ./
 RUN script/bootstrap
 
 COPY . .
-
-# CHECK_EPOCH is a per-invocation nonce supplied by script/cibuild and
-# script/docker. Without it an unchanged tree serves this layer from
-# cache and the build reports a green it never ran. ARG is stage-scoped,
-# so it must be redeclared in every stage that runs checks. The guard
-# makes a bare `docker build .` fail loudly instead of silently reusing
-# the empty (and therefore stable) cache key. Expand the value into the
-# command so the cache miss does not depend on BuildKit's handling of an
-# unreferenced ARG. Both the guard and the check RUN reference the value,
-# so both are value-keyed: there are two independent invalidation points
-# here, not one. Keep both.
-ARG CHECK_EPOCH
-RUN [ -n "$CHECK_EPOCH" ] || exit 1
-RUN echo "check epoch: ${CHECK_EPOCH}" && make check
+RUN make check

README.md

@@ -123,13 +123,9 @@ alpine. We provide:
 - `script/check` — run all checks: `test`, `lint`, `fmt-check` (our own
   extension)
 - `script/docker` — build the Docker image, tagged via `script/projectname`
-  (byte-identical across repos); passes the same `CHECK_EPOCH` nonce as
-  `script/cibuild`
-- `script/cibuild` — cd to the repo root, assign `epoch="$(date +%s%N)$$"`, then
-  `docker build --build-arg CHECK_EPOCH="$epoch" .` (what CI runs; the image
-  build runs `script/check`, and the per-invocation `CHECK_EPOCH` nonce is what
-  stops Docker serving that check from cache on an unchanged tree — a bare
-  `docker build .` fails closed on purpose)
+  (byte-identical across repos)
+- `script/cibuild` — cd to the repo root and `docker build .` (what CI runs; the
+  image build runs `script/check`)
 - `script/precommit` — run by the git pre-commit hook (our own extension); calls
   `script/check`
 - `script/install-precommit` — installs the git pre-commit hook (our own

TODO.md

@@ -21,15 +21,9 @@ fmt-check, and commit.
 
 # Completed Steps
 
-- 2026-08-09: Fixed the false green in the canonical CI gate: `script/cibuild`
-  and `script/docker` now pass a per-invocation `CHECK_EPOCH` nonce, and the
-  `Dockerfile` (plus the Go multistage template in REPO_POLICIES.md, in both its
-  lint and builder stages) declares `ARG CHECK_EPOCH` with a guard that makes a
-  bare `docker build .` fail closed. Corrected the org-canonical text that
-  asserted a successful build implies all checks pass, across every document
-  carrying it: `REPO_POLICIES.md`, both repo checklists (which still told agents
-  to write the pre-fix `script/cibuild` and ended on an acceptance item the
-  guard makes unsatisfiable), and the Go styleguide.
+- 2026-08-10: Added `-count=1` to both `go test` invocations in the canonical Go
+  `make test` example in `REPO_POLICIES.md`, so the target cannot report a
+  cached pass it did not earn.
 - 2026-08-07: Set the canonical `.golangci.yml` to the org-standard v2-schema
   config already deployed byte-identical across the org's Go repos (settings
   under `linters.settings` so thresholds like lll/funlen/cyclop/dupl actually

prompts/CODE_STYLEGUIDE_GO.md

@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 ---
 title: Code Styleguide — Go
-last_modified: 2026-08-09
+last_modified: 2026-03-18
 ---
 
 1.  Try to hard wrap long lines at 77 characters or less.
@@ -101,16 +101,9 @@ last_modified: 2026-08-09
     `golangci-lint`.
 
 1.  Write a `Dockerfile` for every repo, even if it only runs the tests and
-    linting. `script/cibuild` and `script/docker` should always make sure that
-    the code is in an able-to-be-compiled state, linted, and any tests run, and
-    the build should fail if linting doesn't pass. That guarantee holds only
-    because those scripts pass a per-invocation `CHECK_EPOCH` build arg that
-    busts the check layers out of the Docker cache; without it an unchanged tree
-    serves those layers from cache and the build reports a green it never ran. A
-    bare `docker build .` fails closed by design, on the `[ -n "$CHECK_EPOCH" ]`
-    guard — always go through `script/cibuild` or `script/docker`. See
-    [Repository Policies](https://git.eeqj.de/sneak/prompts/raw/branch/main/prompts/REPO_POLICIES.md)
-    for the canonical form.
+    linting. `docker build .` should always make sure that the code is in an
+    able-to-be-compiled state, linted, and any tests run. The Docker build
+    should fail if linting doesn't pass.
 
 1.  Every repo must have a `Makefile`. See
     [Repository Policies](https://git.eeqj.de/sneak/prompts/raw/branch/main/prompts/REPO_POLICIES.md)

prompts/EXISTING_REPO_CHECKLIST.md

@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 ---
 title: Existing Repo Checklist
-last_modified: 2026-08-09
+last_modified: 2026-07-06
 ---
 
 Use this checklist when beginning work in a repo that may not yet conform to our
@@ -29,15 +29,10 @@ with your task.
       if missing
 - [ ] `.editorconfig` exists — fetch from
       `https://git.eeqj.de/sneak/prompts/raw/branch/main/.editorconfig`
-- [ ] `Dockerfile` and `.dockerignore` exist (fetch `.dockerignore` from
-      `https://git.eeqj.de/sneak/prompts/raw/branch/main/.dockerignore`);
-      Dockerfile runs `make check` as a build step, and every stage containing a
-      check-running `RUN` declares `ARG CHECK_EPOCH` with the
-      `RUN [ -n "$CHECK_EPOCH" ] || exit 1` guard immediately below it — see the
-      `CHECK_EPOCH` rule in `REPO_POLICIES.md`. Without them the check layer is
-      served from cache on an unchanged tree and the build reports a green it
-      never ran.
-- [ ] Gitea Actions workflow in `.gitea/workflows/` runs `script/cibuild` on
+- [ ] `Dockerfile` and `.dockerignore` exist; Dockerfile runs `make check` as a
+      build step — fetch `.dockerignore` from
+      `https://git.eeqj.de/sneak/prompts/raw/branch/main/.dockerignore`
+- [ ] Gitea Actions workflow in `.gitea/workflows/` runs `docker build .` on
       push — reference
       `https://git.eeqj.de/sneak/prompts/raw/branch/main/.gitea/workflows/check.yml`
 - [ ] Language-specific config:
@@ -109,6 +104,5 @@ with your task.
 # Final
 
 - [ ] `make check` passes
-- [ ] `script/cibuild` succeeds (a bare `docker build .` fails closed by design,
-      on the `CHECK_EPOCH` guard)
+- [ ] `docker build` succeeds
 - [ ] Commit and merge fixes before starting your actual task

prompts/NEW_REPO_CHECKLIST.md

@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 ---
 title: New Repo Checklist
-last_modified: 2026-08-09
+last_modified: 2026-07-06
 ---
 
 Use this checklist when creating a new repository from scratch. Follow the steps
@@ -52,12 +52,7 @@ Template files can be fetched from:
       `https://git.eeqj.de/sneak/prompts/raw/branch/main/prompts/REPO_POLICIES.md`
 - [ ] `Dockerfile` and `.dockerignore` — fetch `.dockerignore` from
       `https://git.eeqj.de/sneak/prompts/raw/branch/main/.dockerignore`
-    - All Dockerfiles must run `make check` as a build step, and every stage
-      containing a check-running `RUN` must declare `ARG CHECK_EPOCH` with the
-      `RUN [ -n "$CHECK_EPOCH" ] || exit 1` guard immediately below it — see the
-      `CHECK_EPOCH` rule in `REPO_POLICIES.md`. Without them the check layer is
-      served from cache on an unchanged tree and the build reports a green it
-      never ran.
+    - All Dockerfiles must run `make check` as a build step
     - Server: also builds and runs the application
     - Non-server: brings up dev environment and runs `make check`
     - Image pinned by sha256 hash with version/date comment
@@ -95,14 +90,8 @@ are thin shims calling them. Model scripts:
 - [ ] `script/projectname` — outputs the project name (used by `script/docker`
       for the image tag)
 - [ ] `script/docker` / `make docker` — builds Docker image, tagged via
-      `script/projectname` (byte-identical across repos); assigns
-      `epoch="$(date +%s%N)$$"` on its own line and passes
-      `--build-arg CHECK_EPOCH="$epoch"`
-- [ ] `script/cibuild` — cd to repo root, assign `epoch="$(date +%s%N)$$"` on
-      its own line, then run `docker build --build-arg CHECK_EPOCH="$epoch" .`
-      (what CI runs). The build arg is mandatory: see the `CHECK_EPOCH` rule in
-      `REPO_POLICIES.md` for why each element is load-bearing. A bare
-      `docker build .` fails closed by design.
+      `script/projectname` (byte-identical across repos)
+- [ ] `script/cibuild` — cd to repo root, `docker build .` (what CI runs)
 - [ ] `script/precommit` — called by the pre-commit hook; runs `script/check`
 - [ ] `script/install-precommit` — installs the pre-commit hook that runs
       `script/precommit`

prompts/REPO_POLICIES.md

@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 ---
 title: Repository Policies
-last_modified: 2026-08-09
+last_modified: 2026-08-10
 ---
 
 This document covers repository structure, tooling, and workflow standards. Code
@@ -60,19 +60,17 @@ style conventions are in separate documents:
   prerequisite since nvm requires bash. yarn is then pinned via
   `corepack prepare yarn@<version> --activate`. Never install "latest" or "lts";
   always exact versions. `script/cibuild` runs the CI build: it changes to the
-  repo root and runs `docker build --build-arg CHECK_EPOCH="$epoch" .`, where
-  `epoch` is a per-invocation nonce (see the `CHECK_EPOCH` rule below); the
-  Gitea workflow calls it. Four further scripts are our own extensions to the
-  standard: `script/check` runs `script/test`, `script/lint`, and
-  `script/fmt-check`; `script/precommit` is what the git pre-commit hook runs,
-  and it calls `script/check`; `script/install-precommit` installs the git
-  pre-commit hook (the `make hooks` target shims to it); and
-  `script/projectname` (literally that filename) simply outputs the project's
-  name. Scripts that need the name call `script/projectname` — e.g.
-  `script/docker` assembles its image tag from it — so those scripts stay
-  byte-identical across all repos. Repo-type-specific pre-commit extras (e.g.
-  `go mod tidy` verification in Go repos) belong in `script/precommit`, not in
-  the hook itself. Model scripts are at
+  repo root and runs `docker build .`; the Gitea workflow calls it. Four further
+  scripts are our own extensions to the standard: `script/check` runs
+  `script/test`, `script/lint`, and `script/fmt-check`; `script/precommit` is
+  what the git pre-commit hook runs, and it calls `script/check`;
+  `script/install-precommit` installs the git pre-commit hook (the `make hooks`
+  target shims to it); and `script/projectname` (literally that filename) simply
+  outputs the project's name. Scripts that need the name call
+  `script/projectname` — e.g. `script/docker` assembles its image tag from it —
+  so those scripts stay byte-identical across all repos. Repo-type-specific
+  pre-commit extras (e.g. `go mod tidy` verification in Go repos) belong in
+  `script/precommit`, not in the hook itself. Model scripts are at
   `https://git.eeqj.de/sneak/prompts/raw/branch/main/script/<name>`. The README
   must document the provided scripts in an **Entrypoints** section (see the
   README requirements below).
@@ -92,70 +90,14 @@ style conventions are in separate documents:
   reading the Makefile.
 
 - Every repo should have a `Dockerfile`. All Dockerfiles must run `make check`
-  as a build step so the build fails if the branch is not green — which requires
-  `ARG CHECK_EPOCH` and its guard in every stage containing a check-running
-  `RUN`, per the `CHECK_EPOCH` rule below. Without them a Dockerfile satisfies
-  this criterion while its check layers are served from cache, so the build
-  cannot fail on a branch that is not green. For non-server repos, the
-  Dockerfile should bring up a development environment and run `make check`. For
-  server repos, `make check` should run as an early build stage before the final
-  image is assembled. Dockerfiles install development prerequisites by running
-  `script/bootstrap` rather than duplicating installs inline; COPY `script/` and
-  the dependency manifests (`package.json` + `yarn.lock`, `go.mod` + `go.sum`,
-  etc.) before running it so the bootstrap layer stays cached until dependencies
-  change.
-
-- **Every check-running `RUN` must be cache-busted with `CHECK_EPOCH`.** Docker
-  invalidates a `COPY` layer only when the copied content changes, so on an
-  unchanged tree the `RUN make check` layer is served from cache, the suite
-  never runs, and the build still exits 0. A sub-second `docker build` reporting
-  success is a cache hit, not a result. The canonical form, in **every** stage
-  containing a check-running `RUN`:
-
-    ```dockerfile
-    ARG CHECK_EPOCH
-    RUN [ -n "$CHECK_EPOCH" ] || exit 1
-    RUN echo "check epoch: ${CHECK_EPOCH}" && make check
-    ```
-
-    and in both `script/cibuild` and `script/docker`:
-
-    ```sh
-    epoch="$(date +%s%N)$$"
-    docker build --build-arg CHECK_EPOCH="$epoch" .
-    ```
-
-    All four elements are load-bearing; none is optional, and each guards a
-    failure mode that otherwise fails green:
-    - `ARG` is stage-scoped, so a single declaration leaves the other check
-      stages frozen while the fix reviews as complete. Declare it in every stage
-      that runs checks, immediately above the first such `RUN`.
-    - Expand the value into the command. This makes the cache miss contractual
-      rather than dependent on BuildKit's handling of an unreferenced `ARG`, and
-      it puts the epoch in the build log. The guard is itself value-keyed, for
-      the same reason: it references `$CHECK_EPOCH`, so BuildKit renders the
-      epoch into that layer's description (rendered as
-      `RUN [ -n "<epoch>" ] || exit 1`) and re-runs it whenever the value
-      changes. Each stage therefore has two independent invalidation points, and
-      the guard always precedes the check `RUN`. Keep both: the expansion is
-      defence in depth, and it is what makes the epoch visible in the build
-      output.
-    - The `[ -n ... ]` guard is required: an unset `ARG` is empty, and empty is
-      a stable cache key, so without it a bare `docker build .` still produces
-      the false green. Failed steps are never cached, so the guard fails on
-      every such invocation, loudly. A bare `docker build .` failing is by
-      design.
-    - Assign `epoch=` on its own line, never inline in the `--build-arg`
-      argument: a failing command substitution inside an argument does not trip
-      `set -e`, so the inline form silently degrades to an empty constant. The
-      `$$` suffix is required because busybox `date` drops `%N` and exits 0, so
-      on an alpine host the epoch would degrade to second granularity and
-      concurrent invocations would collide.
-
-    This invalidates the check layers and everything after them while leaving
-    `go mod download`, `script/bootstrap`, and the pinned toolchain install
-    cached, so it does not push against the five-minute Docker build ceiling.
-    Blanket `--no-cache` also works but is wasteful and can blow that ceiling.
+  as a build step so the build fails if the branch is not green. For non-server
+  repos, the Dockerfile should bring up a development environment and run
+  `make check`. For server repos, `make check` should run as an early build
+  stage before the final image is assembled. Dockerfiles install development
+  prerequisites by running `script/bootstrap` rather than duplicating installs
+  inline; COPY `script/` and the dependency manifests (`package.json` +
+  `yarn.lock`, `go.mod` + `go.sum`, etc.) before running it so the bootstrap
+  layer stays cached until dependencies change.
 
 - **Dockerfiles must use a separate lint stage for fail-fast feedback.** Go
   repos use a multistage build where linting runs in an independent stage based
@@ -177,9 +119,7 @@ style conventions are in separate documents:
     COPY go.mod go.sum ./
     RUN go mod download
     COPY . .
-    ARG CHECK_EPOCH
-    RUN [ -n "$CHECK_EPOCH" ] || exit 1
-    RUN echo "check epoch: ${CHECK_EPOCH}" && make fmt-check
+    RUN make fmt-check
     RUN make lint
 
     # Build stage
@@ -193,9 +133,7 @@ style conventions are in separate documents:
     COPY go.mod go.sum ./
     RUN go mod download
     COPY . .
-    ARG CHECK_EPOCH
-    RUN [ -n "$CHECK_EPOCH" ] || exit 1
-    RUN echo "check epoch: ${CHECK_EPOCH}" && make test
+    RUN make test
 
     ARG VERSION=dev
     RUN CGO_ENABLED=0 go build -trimpath \
@@ -216,16 +154,6 @@ style conventions are in separate documents:
       a stage dependency. BuildKit runs stages in parallel by default; without
       this line, the build stage would not wait for lint to finish and a lint
       failure might not fail the overall build.
-    - **Re-prove that ordering on a warm cache after adopting `CHECK_EPOCH`.**
-      The cache-bust turns this no-op `COPY` into a content-cache hit, so an
-      ordering guarantee established on a cold cache does not automatically
-      carry over; it has to be re-checked warm. This was re-proved in another
-      repo in the org that uses the same file-dependency trick (there with a
-      marker file in place of `go.sum`), and the ordering held. It has **not**
-      been verified in this repo, which is single-stage and has no lint stage to
-      order against. Any repo relying on a file-dependency trick for stage
-      ordering should re-check it warm after adopting the bust rather than
-      assuming this result transfers.
     - If the project uses `//go:embed` directives that reference build artifacts
       (e.g. a web frontend compiled in a separate stage), the lint stage must
       create placeholder files so the embed directives resolve. Example:
@@ -237,28 +165,11 @@ style conventions are in separate documents:
     - The build stage runs `make test` after compilation setup. Tests run in the
       build stage, not the lint stage, because they may require compiled
       artifacts or heavier dependencies.
-    - `ARG CHECK_EPOCH` appears in **both** stages, because `ARG` is
-      stage-scoped: declaring it only in the lint stage leaves `make test`
-      frozen at the last cached result. In each stage the guard sits immediately
-      below the `ARG` so a bare `docker build .` fails instead of reusing the
-      empty cache key, and the value is expanded into the first check `RUN` so
-      the cache miss does not rely on BuildKit's unreferenced-`ARG` handling.
-      Both of those lines reference `$CHECK_EPOCH`, so both are value-keyed:
-      each stage is invalidated at two independent points. The later `RUN`s in
-      the same stage need no expansion of their own: they are already
-      invalidated by their busted parent layer.
 
 - Every repo should have a Gitea Actions workflow (`.gitea/workflows/`) that
-  runs `script/cibuild` (which runs
-  `docker build --build-arg CHECK_EPOCH="$epoch" .`) on push. The Dockerfile
-  runs `make check`, so a successful build implies all checks pass — but that
-  implication holds **only** because of the `CHECK_EPOCH` cache-bust described
-  above. Without it, an unchanged tree serves the check layer from cache and the
-  build reports a green it never earned. A bare `docker build .` fails closed by
-  design, on the `[ -n "$CHECK_EPOCH" ]` guard; always go through
-  `script/cibuild` or `script/docker`. Never accept a `script/cibuild` pass as
-  evidence without confirming it ran: a sub-second wall time, or `CACHED` on the
-  check layer, means nothing was executed.
+  runs `script/cibuild` (which runs `docker build .`) on push. Since the
+  Dockerfile already runs `make check`, a successful build implies all checks
+  pass.
 
 - Use platform-standard formatters: `black` for Python, `prettier` for
   JS/CSS/Markdown/HTML, `go fmt` for Go. Always use default configuration with
@@ -298,11 +209,16 @@ style conventions are in separate documents:
 
     ```makefile
     test:
-    	@go test -timeout 30s -race -cover ./... || \
+    	@go test -count=1 -timeout 30s -race -cover ./... || \
     		{ echo "--- Rerunning with -v for details ---"; \
-    		  go test -timeout 30s -race -v ./...; exit 1; }
+    		  go test -count=1 -timeout 30s -race -v ./...; exit 1; }
     ```
 
+    `-count=1` is required on both invocations: it defeats Go's test _result_
+    cache, so the target cannot report a pass it did not earn, and the rerun
+    reproduces a failure instead of replaying it. It leaves the build cache
+    alone, so it costs the runtime of the suite and no recompilation.
+
     Python example:
 
     ```makefile

script/cibuild

@@ -1,20 +1,13 @@
 #!/bin/sh
-# script/cibuild: run the CI build. The Dockerfile runs script/check, but
-# that only proves anything because CHECK_EPOCH is a fresh nonce on every
-# invocation: without it Docker serves the check layer from cache on an
-# unchanged tree and the build exits 0 without running the suite.
+# script/cibuild: run the CI build. The Dockerfile runs script/check, so
+# a successful build implies all checks pass.
 set -eu
 
 ROOT="$(cd "$(dirname "$0")/.." && pwd -P)"
 
 main() {
     cd "$ROOT"
-    # Assign on its own line: a failing command substitution inside an
-    # argument does not trip `set -e`, which would silently degrade the
-    # nonce to an empty constant. `$$` is required because busybox `date`
-    # drops %N without erroring.
-    epoch="$(date +%s%N)$$"
-    docker build --build-arg CHECK_EPOCH="$epoch" .
+    docker build .
 }
 
 main "$@"

script/docker

@@ -1,9 +1,6 @@
 #!/bin/sh
 # script/docker: build the Docker image tagged with the project name.
-# Identical in all repos; the tag comes from script/projectname. The
-# Dockerfile's checks only actually run because CHECK_EPOCH is a fresh
-# nonce on every invocation; without it a warm cache turns this into a
-# green that proves nothing.
+# Identical in all repos; the tag comes from script/projectname.
 set -eu
 
 SCRIPT_DIR="$(cd "$(dirname "$0")" && pwd -P)"
@@ -11,13 +8,7 @@ ROOT="$(cd "$SCRIPT_DIR/.." && pwd -P)"
 
 main() {
     cd "$ROOT"
-    # Assign on its own line: a failing command substitution inside an
-    # argument does not trip `set -e`, which would silently degrade the
-    # nonce to an empty constant. `$$` is required because busybox `date`
-    # drops %N without erroring.
-    epoch="$(date +%s%N)$$"
-    docker build --build-arg CHECK_EPOCH="$epoch" \
-        -t "$("$SCRIPT_DIR/projectname")" .
+    docker build -t "$("$SCRIPT_DIR/projectname")" .
 }
 
 main "$@"