Initial commit: Backend API Phase 1a complete
- FastAPI backend with JWT auth - PostgreSQL database schema - Trees and Sessions CRUD APIs - Export functionality (Markdown, Text, HTML) - Docker setup for local development - Alembic migrations
This commit is contained in:
Michael Chihlas
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05-QUESTIONS-AND-ACTION-ITEMS.md
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05-QUESTIONS-AND-ACTION-ITEMS.md
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# Questions & Action Items
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## Questions for Michael
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### Timeline & Resources
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**1. Timeline Pressure**
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- Do you need something usable in 2 weeks, or can we take 4-6 weeks to build something more polished?
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- What's driving the timeline? (Personal productivity? Team need? Demonstration?)
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> 50% personal and 50% I see a need in the market
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**2. Your Involvement**
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- Can you commit ~2 hours per week for feedback/testing during development?
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- Or do you need this to be more hands-off until it's ready?
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- Preferred communication: Slack/email/scheduled calls?
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> I can commit likely more than 2 hours a week. I'm willing to spend most of my evenings working on this if needed.
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**3. Hosting Budget**
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- Start with free tier on Render/Railway (with limitations)?
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- Willing to spend $10-20/month for better performance/storage?
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- Company paying or personal expense?
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> I'm definitely willing to spend $20/month
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**4. Team Size**
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- How many engineers would be using this in the first 3 months?
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- 1-3 people? (affects database/hosting decisions)
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- 5-10 people?
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- 10+ people?
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- Are they all at the same skill level as you, or mix of junior/senior?
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> In the first 3 months, I could see maybe 3 people other than myself at maximum. Depending upon how quickly a working model is out, it could potentially be more based upon adoption rate and how easy it is to build out the trees.
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**5. Branding**
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- Personal project with your name on it? ("ChihlasTree" or similar)
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- MSP company tool? (Company branding)
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- Intentionally generic for broader appeal? (TroubleTree, DiagPath, etc.)
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> This started as a personal project idea, however, making money from this idea is the goal. So generic may not be bad.
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---
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## Action Items for Michael
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### High Priority (Before Development Starts)
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**1. Document Your Top 5 Troubleshooting Scenarios**
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For each scenario, I need:
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- Issue name/category
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- First thing you check
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- What the possible outcomes are
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- What you do for each outcome
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- How you know when you've solved it
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- Common pitfalls or edge cases
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**Example Template:**
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```
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Issue: FSLogix Profile Not Loading
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Category: Citrix/Virtual Desktop
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Step 1: Can user log into server?
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├─ YES → Step 2: Check FSLogix service
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└─ NO → Different tree (AD/Licensing issue)
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Step 2: Is FSLogix service running?
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├─ RUNNING → Step 3: Check frxtray.exe in task manager
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├─ STOPPED → Step 4: Start service, check event log
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└─ STUCK → Step 5: Kill and restart, check file locks
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Step 3: Does user have profile VHD in share?
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├─ YES → Step 6: Check permissions on VHD
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└─ NO → Step 7: Check FSLogix registry settings
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... (continue until resolution)
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Common Pitfalls:
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- VHD file locked by another server
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- Profile path in registry has typo
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- Antivirus blocking VHD access
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Resolution Indicators:
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- User can log in successfully
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- Profile loads within 30 seconds
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- No FSLogix errors in Event Viewer
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```
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> For the above section, please see a document called TS-EXAMPLES.md in this project folder.
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**Your Top 5 to Document:**
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1. [ ] Citrix VDA Not Registering
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2. [ ] FSLogix Profile Issues
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3. [ ] Active Directory Replication Failure
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4. [ ] SonicWall VPN Tunnel Down
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5. [ ] User Unable to Access File Share (permissions vs. connectivity)
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**2. Export Format Sample**
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Create a sample ticket note from a recent ticket that shows:
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- How you currently document troubleshooting steps
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> Typically this is done with bullet points with short concise sentences. At times there will be screenshots and if I think a specific command that is run is important, I will put that in too.
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- The level of detail your ticketing system needs
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> As detailed as possible without being bloated
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- Any specific formatting requirements
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> Nothing specific, I'm open to what works best
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- Whether you include timestamps, commands run, etc.
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> Timestamps are sometimes included, commands are also included unless it becomes an entire script in which case that is added as an attachment.
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This will help me design exports that match your existing workflow.
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**3. Team Feedback (Optional but Valuable)**
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If possible, ask 1-2 colleagues:
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- "If there was a tool that guided you through troubleshooting and automatically wrote your ticket notes, what would make it actually useful vs. just another tool to learn?"
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- What's their biggest pain point in documenting work?
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- Do they follow consistent troubleshooting paths, or is it different every time?
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---
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### Medium Priority (Can Be Done During Development)
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**4. Documentation Link Collection**
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Start collecting useful documentation links you reference frequently:
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- Microsoft Learn articles
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- Citrix documentation
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- Internal wiki pages
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- YouTube tutorials
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- Blog posts that have saved you
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We'll integrate these into the trees as we build them.
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**5. Client Context Template**
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For 1-2 of your main clients (like City of Warner Robins), document:
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- Domain controller names
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- Key server hostnames
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- Network information (subnets, VPN gateway)
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- Common issues specific to that client
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- Primary contacts
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This will help us design the client context feature properly.
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**6. Script Inventory**
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List your PowerShell scripts/tools that you'd eventually want to integrate:
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- ChihlasChecker scripts
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- Service restart scripts
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- Common diagnostic commands
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- Any automation you do repeatedly
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We won't integrate these in MVP, but good to know what exists for Phase 4.
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---
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### Low Priority (Nice to Have)
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**7. Naming Ideas**
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Brainstorm some names for the tool:
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- Should it have "Chihlas" in the name? (personal branding)
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- Should it sound MSP-specific or generic?
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- Should it be playful or professional?
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Some ideas to react to:
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- TroubleTree
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- DecisionPath
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- FlowDoc
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- DiagnosticFlow
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- PathFinder
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- TicketFlow
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- ChihlasTree
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- MSP Navigator
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**8. Long-term Vision**
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Think about:
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- Would you want to eventually sell this to other MSPs?
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- Keep it as internal tool for your company?
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- Open-source it to build reputation?
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- Use it as consulting/training material?
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> I would like to profit off this to other MSPs, internal IT teams, and I can see applications for this in many other markets outside of IT. This could end up being used in call centers, or telemarketing even. This could also be used on a consulting basis for other MSPs and private clients.
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This affects architectural decisions (multi-tenancy, white-labeling, etc.)
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---
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## Decision Log
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*This section will be updated as we make key decisions*
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| Date | Decision | Rationale |
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|------|----------|-----------|
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| TBD | Tech stack: React + FastAPI + PostgreSQL | Michael learning Python, modern stack, flexible |
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| TBD | Hosting: [To be decided] | Based on budget and team size |
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| TBD | Name: [To be decided] | Based on branding goals |
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| TBD | Timeline: [To be decided] | Based on urgency and availability |
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---
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## Next Steps
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### Immediate (This Week)
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1. [ ] Michael answers the 5 key questions above
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2. [ ] Michael documents 2-3 troubleshooting scenarios in detail
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3. [ ] Michael provides sample export format
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4. [ ] Decision on timeline and hosting budget
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5. [ ] Confirm tech stack choices
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### Week 1 (When Development Starts)
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1. [ ] Set up development environment
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2. [ ] Create project repository (GitHub)
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3. [ ] Initial database schema
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4. [ ] Basic authentication working
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5. [ ] First tree manually created in database
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### Week 2
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1. [ ] Basic tree navigation UI functional
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2. [ ] Michael tests with real scenario
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3. [ ] Iterate based on feedback
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4. [ ] Add export functionality
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5. [ ] Create 2-3 more trees
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### Week 3
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1. [ ] Polish UI based on usage
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2. [ ] Fix critical bugs
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3. [ ] Deploy to production (staging environment)
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4. [ ] Michael uses on real tickets
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5. [ ] Collect usage data and feedback
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---
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## Open Questions & Parking Lot
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*Questions that arise during development but don't need immediate answers*
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### Technical Questions
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- Should we support tree branching (go to Tree B from Tree A)?
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- How deep should tree history go? (unlimited or limited?)
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- Should users be able to fork/duplicate trees?
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- Real-time collaboration on trees? (Google Docs style)
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### Product Questions
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- Gamification? (badges for completing troubleshooting, streaks?)
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- AI suggestions based on past sessions?
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- Integration with time tracking tools?
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- Mobile app vs. responsive web?
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### Business Questions
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- Pricing model if commercialized?
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- Target market research needed?
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- Patent/trademark considerations?
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- Partnership opportunities with PSA vendors?
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---
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## Meeting Notes Template
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*For regular check-ins during development*
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### Meeting [Date]
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**Attendees:**
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**Agenda:**
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1. Review progress since last meeting
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2. Demo new features
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3. Gather feedback
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4. Discuss blockers
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5. Plan next sprint
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**Progress:**
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- [ ] Item 1
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- [ ] Item 2
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**Feedback:**
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-
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**Blockers:**
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-
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**Next Sprint Goals:**
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1.
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2.
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3.
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**Action Items:**
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- [ ] Michael: [task]
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- [ ] Development: [task]
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**Next Meeting:** [Date/Time]
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---
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## Resources & References
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### Documentation
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- React: https://react.dev/
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- FastAPI: https://fastapi.tiangolo.com/
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- PostgreSQL: https://www.postgresql.org/docs/
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- Tailwind CSS: https://tailwindcss.com/docs
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### Design Inspiration
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- Linear (project management): https://linear.app/
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- Notion (documentation): https://notion.so/
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- Flowchart tools: Lucidchart, Miro, Whimsical
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### Similar Tools (Competitors/Inspiration)
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- ServiceNow Knowledge Base
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- IT Glue
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- Atlassian Confluence Decision Trees
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- Custom runbook platforms
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### Learning Resources
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- "Don't Make Me Think" (UX book)
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- "The Mom Test" (customer development)
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- MSP Reddit communities
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- Spiceworks forums
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---
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## Contact & Communication
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**Primary Communication Channel:** [To be decided]
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- Slack?
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- Email?
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- Discord?
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- GitHub Issues?
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**Preferred Meeting Schedule:** [To be decided]
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- Weekly check-ins?
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- Bi-weekly reviews?
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- Ad-hoc as needed?
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**Response Time Expectations:**
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- Urgent issues (blocking development): [X hours]
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- Feature feedback: [X days]
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- General questions: [X days]
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---
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## Version History
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| Version | Date | Changes | Author |
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|---------|------|---------|--------|
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| 0.1 | 2026-01-22 | Initial draft | Claude |
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| | | | |
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