msd-core/docs/how-to/run-phases-autonomously.md

How to run phases autonomously

Run all remaining phases — or a bounded range of them — unattended, so GSD moves through discuss → plan → execute for each phase without you driving every step.

For background on what the phase loop is doing during an autonomous run, see The phase loop.

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Prerequisites

• An active project with .planning/ROADMAP.md and .planning/STATE.md
• All phases you want to run must be in a state that autonomous mode can drive (pending or in-progress; not already complete)
• Any design decisions you care about should already be in PROJECT.md or captured via a prior /gsd-discuss-phase — autonomous mode can surface grey areas interactively only when you use --interactive

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Run all remaining phases

/gsd-autonomous

GSD reads ROADMAP.md, discovers every incomplete phase in numeric order, and runs discuss → plan → execute on each one. After all phases complete it automatically runs the milestone lifecycle: audit → complete → cleanup.

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Run a specific range of phases

Use --from and --to to bound the run. Both flags accept decimal phase numbers (e.g. 3.1).

/gsd-autonomous --from 3          # phases 3, 4, 5 … (skip already-done phases 1 and 2)
/gsd-autonomous --to 5            # phases up to and including 5
/gsd-autonomous --from 3 --to 5   # exactly phases 3, 4, and 5

When --to is reached the lifecycle step is skipped, because not all milestone phases are done. The completion banner tells you how to resume:

Resume with: /gsd-autonomous --from 6

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Run with interactive discuss

By default, autonomous mode answers discuss questions automatically using smart discuss (batch table proposals). If you want to answer design questions yourself while keeping plan and execute out of the main context:

/gsd-autonomous --interactive

In interactive mode:

• /gsd-discuss-phase runs inline and waits for your answers
• Planning and execution are dispatched as background agents so you can discuss the next phase while the current one builds
• The main context stays lean — only discuss conversations accumulate

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What safety gates still apply

Autonomous mode does not bypass GSD's quality pipeline. Each phase still:

• Runs the plan-checker before execution
• Reads VERIFICATION.md after execution and routes on the result
• Pauses and asks you what to do when verification status is human_needed or gaps_found
• Stops and presents options (fix and retry, skip phase, or stop) if any step fails

The only difference from manual execution is that passed verification advances automatically — you are not prompted between phases unless a decision is required.

The package legitimacy gate also remains active. If a plan includes a checkpoint:human-verify task for a suspicious package, the executor will stop and surface the checkpoint. Autonomous mode will not silently install flagged packages.

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When not to use autonomous mode

Do not use /gsd-autonomous when:

• Phases have unsettled design decisions. If you have not run /gsd-discuss-phase and your PROJECT.md does not capture your preferences, smart discuss will make autonomous choices you may not agree with. Run discuss interactively first, or use --interactive.

• You need fine-grained control over a single phase. For one phase, /gsd-execute-phase N gives you step-by-step output and lets you react before continuing. Autonomous mode is designed for bulk unattended runs.

• The phase has novel or high-risk work. Autonomous mode skips pauses unless it hits a blocker. On a phase where you expect surprises, stay in the loop with manual execution.

• You are mid-phase with partial execution. Autonomous mode picks up incomplete phases but it does not resume a partially-executed wave. Use /gsd-execute-phase N to finish a phase that is already in progress.

If a run stops partway through, see Debug a failed execution for how to diagnose what went wrong.

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Checking progress during a run

Autonomous mode prints a progress banner before each phase:

 GSD ► AUTONOMOUS ▸ Phase 3/7: Auth Middleware [████░░░░] 28%

If you need to check where the run stands mid-session, open another terminal and run:

/gsd-progress

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Resuming after a stop

If autonomous mode stops — whether you chose "Stop autonomous mode" from the blocker prompt, or the session was interrupted — resume from where it left off:

/gsd-autonomous --from 4     # replace 4 with the first incomplete phase number

GSD skips already-complete phases automatically, so it is safe to re-run from an earlier phase number if you are not sure where the run stopped.

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Related

• Execute a phase
• Debug a failed execution
• Commands
• Docs index