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Quick Spec Template

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Ready-to-use template for 1-3 day features that need requirements and tasks but can skip the design phase.

Template Usage

Copy the template below and fill in the bracketed sections. Delete any sections that don't apply to your specific feature.

[Feature Name] - Quick Spec

Spec Type: Quick Spec
Estimated Effort: [X hours/days]
Priority: [High/Medium/Low]
Assignee: [Developer name]
Created: [YYYY-MM-DD]
Status: [Draft/Review/Approved/In Progress/Complete]

Overview

What: [One sentence describing what this feature does]
Why: [Brief justification - business value or user need]
Success Metric: [How you'll know this succeeded]

Requirements

User Story

As a [user type]
I want [capability]
So that [benefit/value]

Acceptance Criteria

  • [ ] [Specific, testable criterion that defines success]
  • [ ] [Another criterion - focus on the happy path]
  • [ ] [Edge case or error handling requirement]
  • [ ] [Performance/quality requirement if applicable]

Constraints

  • Technical: [Any technical limitations or requirements]
  • Business: [Any business rules or constraints]
  • Timeline: [Any deadline constraints]

Implementation Plan

Prerequisites

  • [ ] [Any setup or dependencies needed before starting]
  • [ ] [Access permissions or environment setup]

Core Tasks

  1. [Task Name] - [Brief description]
  2. Estimate: [X hours]

  3. Details: [Specific implementation notes]

  4. [Task Name] - [Brief description]

  5. Estimate: [X hours]

  6. Details: [Specific implementation notes]

  7. [Task Name] - [Brief description]

  8. Estimate: [X hours]
  9. Details: [Specific implementation notes]

Testing Tasks

  • [ ] Unit Tests: [What needs unit test coverage]
  • [ ] Integration Tests: [What needs integration testing]
  • [ ] Manual Testing: [What needs manual verification]

Documentation Tasks

  • [ ] Code Comments: [Areas needing documentation]
  • [ ] README Updates: [What documentation needs updating]
  • [ ] API Docs: [If API changes are involved]

Technical Notes

Files to Modify

  • [file/path] - [What changes are needed]
  • [file/path] - [What changes are needed]

Dependencies

  • Internal: [Other components this depends on]
  • External: [Third-party services or libraries]

Risks & Mitigation

  • Risk: [Potential issue]
    Mitigation: [How to address it]

Definition of Done

  • [ ] All acceptance criteria are met
  • [ ] Code is reviewed and approved
  • [ ] Tests are written and passing
  • [ ] Documentation is updated
  • [ ] Feature is deployed to staging
  • [ ] Manual testing is complete
  • [ ] Stakeholder approval received

Rollback Plan

If something goes wrong: 1. [Step to revert changes] 2. [Step to restore previous state] 3. [How to communicate the rollback]

Example: User Profile Picture Upload

User Profile Picture Upload - Quick Spec

Spec Type: Quick Spec
Estimated Effort: 2 days
Priority: Medium
Assignee: Sarah Chen
Created: 2024-01-15
Status: Approved

Overview

What: Allow users to upload and display profile pictures in their account settings
Why: Users want to personalize their profiles and be more recognizable to teammates
Success Metric: 50% of active users upload a profile picture within 30 days

Requirements

User Story

As a registered user
I want to upload a profile picture
So that my profile is more personalized and I'm recognizable to teammates

Acceptance Criteria

  • [ ] User can click "Upload Photo" button in profile settings
  • [ ] System accepts JPG, PNG, and GIF files up to 5MB
  • [ ] Image is automatically resized to 200x200px
  • [ ] Profile picture displays in navigation bar and profile page
  • [ ] User can remove their profile picture and return to default avatar
  • [ ] Error messages show for invalid file types or sizes

Constraints

  • Technical: Must integrate with existing S3 bucket for file storage
  • Business: Images must be family-friendly (manual moderation for now)
  • Timeline: Needed for Q1 user engagement goals

Implementation Plan

Prerequisites

  • [ ] Confirm S3 bucket permissions for profile-images folder
  • [ ] Install image processing library (sharp.js)

Core Tasks

  1. Frontend Upload Component - Add file upload UI to profile settings
  2. Estimate: 6 hours

  3. Details: File input, preview, progress indicator, error handling

  4. Backend Upload Endpoint - Handle file upload and processing

  5. Estimate: 8 hours

  6. Details: Validate file, resize image, upload to S3, update user record

  7. Profile Display Updates - Show profile pictures throughout app

  8. Estimate: 4 hours
  9. Details: Update navbar component, profile page, user cards

Testing Tasks

  • [ ] Unit Tests: File validation, image processing functions
  • [ ] Integration Tests: Upload endpoint, S3 integration
  • [ ] Manual Testing: Upload flow, different file types, error cases

Documentation Tasks

  • [ ] Code Comments: Image processing and S3 upload functions
  • [ ] API Docs: Document new upload endpoint

Technical Notes

Files to Modify

  • components/ProfileSettings.jsx - Add upload UI
  • api/users/upload-avatar.js - New upload endpoint
  • components/Navbar.jsx - Display profile picture
  • components/UserCard.jsx - Display profile picture

Dependencies

  • Internal: User authentication, S3 service wrapper
  • External: sharp.js for image processing

Risks & Mitigation

  • Risk: Large file uploads could impact performance
    Mitigation: Client-side file size validation, server-side limits

Definition of Done

  • [ ] All acceptance criteria are met
  • [ ] Code is reviewed and approved
  • [ ] Tests are written and passing
  • [ ] API documentation is updated
  • [ ] Feature is deployed to staging
  • [ ] Manual testing with different file types complete
  • [ ] Product owner approval received

Rollback Plan

If something goes wrong: 1. Disable upload endpoint via feature flag 2. Revert frontend changes to hide upload UI 3. Notify users via in-app message about temporary unavailability

Template Variations

API Endpoint Quick Spec

# [Endpoint Name] API - Quick Spec

## Requirements
**Endpoint:** [Method] /api/[path]
**Purpose:** [What this endpoint does]
**Authentication:** [Required auth level]

### Request Format
```json
{
  "field": "value"
}

Response Format

{
  "result": "success"
}

Error Responses

  • 400 - [Bad request scenario]
  • 401 - [Unauthorized scenario]
  • 500 - [Server error scenario]

Implementation Tasks

  1. Route Handler - [X hours]
  2. Validation - [X hours]
  3. Database Operations - [X hours]
  4. Tests - [X hours] 
    ### Bug Fix Quick Spec
```markdown
# Bug Fix: [Issue Description] - Quick Spec

## Problem
**Issue:** [What's broken]
**Impact:** [Who/what is affected]
**Root Cause:** [Why it's happening]

## Solution
**Fix:** [How to resolve it]
**Files:** [What files need changes]
**Risk:** [Potential side effects]

## Implementation
1. **[Fix step]** - [X hours]
2. **[Test step]** - [X hours]
3. **[Verification step]** - [X hours]

## Verification
- [ ] [How to test the fix]
- [ ] [How to ensure no regression]

Related Content

Prerequisites

Other Templates

Examples

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