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Pre-Launch Checklist

Don’t skip this. The best time to find a problem is before users do.

Complete every section before deploying to real users. Skipping even one item is how production incidents happen.

1. Agent Quality

Agent Quality Checks

  • Agent has one clear, specific job — not “be helpful with everything”
  • Instructions include: what to do, what tone to use, what to refuse
  • Instructions include explicit rules for edge cases you’ve identified
  • Agent doesn’t hallucinate answers when tools return no results
  • Agent asks a useful clarifying question when the request is vague
  • Response format matches the deployment channel (markdown for web, Telegram format for Telegram)
  • Responses are under 200 words for simple questions

2. Tools & Integrations

Tool & Integration Checks

  • Every connected tool has a clear reason for being connected
  • Read-only tools are used where write access isn’t needed
  • High-risk write tools (payments, email sends) require explicit confirmation in instructions
  • All integration credentials are stored as environment variables — not hardcoded
  • OAuth tokens are connected and not expired
  • Each tool was tested in the Playground at least once with real data
  • Tool failure responses are tested — agent should gracefully explain failures

3. Memory

Memory Checks

  • The agent remembers context across at least 3 messages in a test conversation
  • Sensitive data (payment cards, one-time codes) is not stored in persistent memory
  • Memory keys have descriptive names, not generic ones ("user_name", not "name")
  • Session IDs are stable and user-scoped (for API channel)
  • Memory TTLs are set appropriately for the use case

4. Deployment

Deployment Checks

  • Agent deployed to one channel and tested end-to-end
  • Webhook is live and verified (for Telegram and Slack)
  • API key is set in environment — not exposed in client code
  • Rate limits are configured: runs/user/hour and runs/day
  • A rollback plan exists: know which deployment to revert to
  • Staging environment tested before production deploy

5. Observability

Observability Checks

  • A test run trace is visible in the Runs tab
  • The trace shows: user input, context loaded, tools called, response
  • Error runs show useful failure information — not just “Error”
  • At least one alert is configured (high error rate, slow latency)
  • You know how to use HiveMind Debug to diagnose a bad run

6. Security

Security Checks

  • No secrets in HiveLang source files or version control
  • API channel requires authentication — public endpoint is not exposed
  • Agent refuses requests that are clearly outside its scope
  • Agent does not expose other users’ data
  • High-risk actions (refunds, account changes) require explicit user confirmation
  • You have tested a prompt injection attempt — agent should not follow malicious instructions

Post-launch monitoring

1

Watch the first 50 runs

Open the Runs tab and review each run manually for the first 50 real user interactions. Fix anything that looks wrong immediately.
2

Check error rate daily for week 1

A healthy error rate is under 5%. If you see spikes, open the traces immediately — don’t wait.
3

Review user confusion patterns

Look for repeated clarifying questions from users — this signals a gap in your instructions. Fix it the same day.
4

Set a weekly review cadence

Every week, spend 15 minutes reviewing runs and looking for improvement opportunities. The best agents are iterated, not launched and forgotten.

Common pre-launch mistakes

Next reads

Deployment Guide

Observability

Connect Channels & Tools