Checkpoints Should Mark Decisions, Not Just Progress

Progress checkpoints say how far the workflow got, while decision checkpoints say what became true, and only the second kind supports safe resumption.

Sixty percent complete tells a resuming workflow almost nothing. What it needs to know is which commitments were made, because those are the things it must not make twice.

Decision-anchored checkpointing

• Checkpoint after each irreversible effect, not each loop iteration.
• Record the decision and its evidence, not just a step counter.
• Resume logic branches on commitments made, never on percent done.

Use the blackboard schema, audit schema, and architecture guide to anchor recovery on decisions instead of distance covered.