Guides

Write An RCA Report

Produce a final explanation that cites trace evidence, replay policy, fixture provenance, diffs, metrics, effects, and validity labels.

An isplay RCA report should be short enough to read and specific enough to reproduce. It should separate observed facts from replay-backed claims.

Required Sections

SectionContent
Executive findingOne bounded conclusion and confidence/validity caveat.
ScopeProject ID, run ID, branch/replay/experiment IDs, adapter/runtime.
Observed baselineWhat happened in the captured run.
Tested hypothesesBranches or experiment arms and their interventions.
Replay policyModel, tool, drift, max steps, temperature.
EvidenceFirst divergence, diffs, metrics, fixture use, effects.
ValidityLabels, comparability, low-N limitations.
Next actionsFurther experiments, instrumentation gaps, or remediation.

Template

Finding:
  <bounded conclusion>

Scope:
  Project: <projectId>
  Base run: <runId>
  Branch/replay/experiment: <ids>
  Adapter/runtime: <name and version if known>

Observed baseline:
  <facts from captured events and context inventory>

Hypothesis tested:
  <intervention and target>

Policy:
  model=<policy>, tool=<policy>, drift=<policy>, maxSteps=<n>

Evidence:
  First divergence: <event/step>
  Diffs: <summary>
  Metrics: <summary>
  Fixtures: <fixture IDs, provenance, dependency>
  Effects: <ranked effect and status>

Validity:
  Labels: <labels>
  Comparability: <value>
  Caveats: <low-N, fixture, nondeterminism, unsupported areas>

Next actions:
  <specific follow-up>

Wording Rules

UseAvoid
"observed in the base run""caused" for base trace only
"under recorded replay""would always"
"sensitive to analyst fixture"hiding fixture dependence
"inconclusive with one trial"statistical certainty from one run
"non-comparable"forcing a conclusion from drift

Final Check

Before sending the report, confirm it includes:

  • IDs.
  • Policy.
  • Fixture provenance.
  • First divergence.
  • Metrics.
  • Effects.
  • Validity labels.
  • Concrete next action.

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