Added browser captures, scorecard, recommendations, and follow-up spec candidates for the UI signal-to-noise browser audit.
7.8 KiB
Platform-wide UI Signal-to-Noise Browser Audit
Executive Summary
Verification level: repo-verified for branch/routes/files; browser-verified for captured screenshots; derived from existing implementation for scoring and recommendations.
- Audit date: 2026-06-09 (work started 2026-06-08 and completed 2026-06-09)
- Branch: platform-dev
- HEAD:
564da050feat: implement operation run actionability system (#439) - Pages discovered: 100 repo-verified UI routes
- Pages browser-audited: 19
- Screenshots created/available in audit directory: 43
- Pages blocked/inaccessible in browser pass: 4
- Overall platform UI maturity score: 3.6/5 across reachable browser-scored pages
Top 10 productization gaps:
- P1 Evidence Snapshot detail not reachable in smoke browser context (Evidence Snapshot View)
- P1 System panel not browser-auditable with available fixtures (System dashboard and operations)
- P1 Baseline Profile view is too technical by default (Baseline Profile View)
- P2 Backup Set view mixes usability with lifecycle/technical metadata (Backup Set View)
- P2 Zero and no-attention metrics repeat already-clear outcomes (Environment Dashboard and Operations Hub)
- P2 Navigation and notification chrome overwhelms first viewport (Most admin/customer captured pages)
- P2 Provider Connections list lacks a dominant readiness decision (Provider Connections List)
- P2 Diagnostics page needs stronger operator guidance first (Environment Diagnostics)
- P2 Customer Review Workspace is good but too dense (Customer Review Workspace)
- P2 Operation detail is strong but still shows metadata too early (OperationRun View)
Top 10 pages to refactor first:
- Baseline Profile View
- Backup Set View
- OperationRun View
- Customer Review Workspace
- Provider Connections List/View
- Environment Diagnostics
- Required Permissions
- Evidence Snapshot View
- Operations Hub
- Environment Dashboard
Recommended next specs: Spec A, Spec B, Spec C, Spec D, Spec E from spec-candidates.md.
Method
- Discovery method: repo-verified route inventory from Laravel route:list JSON/text plus Filament panel provider/resource/page inspection.
- Browser method: browser-verified local app pass through repo-provided smoke-login route where available; system panel attempted directly and redirected to login.
- Scoring method: derived from browser screenshots, DOM summaries, visible heading/action/status density, and the requested 0-5 criteria.
- Screenshot method: browser viewport screenshots saved under artifacts/screenshots. Existing screenshots already present in the audit directory were retained and counted as available audit artifacts.
- Limitations: Postgres entered crash recovery once after an fsync I/O error during a sessions update; recovery completed. Evidence Snapshot, Required Permissions, and System pages were blocked by auth/fixture reachability.
Surface Inventory Summary
| Panel | Pages discovered | Browser audited | Blocked | Avg score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| admin | 79 | 13 | 2 | 3.7 |
| customer | 7 | 4 | 0 | 4.1 |
| system | 14 | 2 | 2 | 0.0 |
Score Distribution
| Score | Meaning | Count |
|---|---|---|
| 5 | enterprise-ready | 0 |
| 4 | minor polish | 11 |
| 3 | usable but noisy/unclear | 4 |
| 2 | productization gap | 0 |
| 1 | confusing/admin-tool-like | 0 |
| 0 | broken/not assessable | 4 |
Highest Risk Pages
| Page | Surface | Score | Severity | Why |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Evidence Snapshot View | evidence_surface | 0 | P1 | Redirected to login in available smoke context. |
| Required Permissions | configuration_surface | 0 | P1 | Redirected to login in available smoke context. |
| System Dashboard/Ops | system_surface | 0 | P1 | No system browser fixture available; redirected to system login. |
| Baseline Profile View | decision_surface | 2.8 | P1 | Technical/metadata vocabulary dominates the default view. |
| Provider Connections List | configuration_surface | 3.0 | P2 | Readiness must be inferred from technical table columns. |
Best Existing Pages / Patterns
| Page | Why it works | Pattern to reuse |
|---|---|---|
| Baseline Compare | Clear primary question, status, reason, impact, and linked evidence. | Decision-first compare summary. |
| Restore Create Wizard | Strong step sequence and safety framing. | Process flow with safety decision. |
| Restore Run View | Excellent primary operator question. | Restore result/proof split. |
| Review Pack / Stored Report | Customer/auditor language is comparatively calm. | Output readiness and limitations framing. |
Global UI Bloat Patterns
| Pattern | Frequency | Example | Impact | Rule |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Repeated lifecycle/status language | 10+ | Operations, Backup, Restore, Customer Review | Dilutes primary decision | One status + reason + impact block per first viewport |
| Zero metric card spam | 3+ | Environment Dashboard, Operations Hub, Restore Run | Healthy/no-action pages still feel busy | Suppress zero metrics when summary says no action |
| Technical metadata in main content | 5+ | Backup Set, Baseline Profile, OperationRun | Operators parse internals before decision | Move IDs/timing/normalization/provider details to sidebar/details |
| Shell chrome density | most captured pages | Admin and customer surfaces | Page question is delayed | Reduce notification replay and customer shell density |
| Evidence/diagnostic access ambiguity | 3 blocked/partial | Evidence Snapshot, Required Permissions, System Panel | Audit cannot verify critical surfaces | Document browser fixtures and access paths |
Customer-Safety Findings
Verification level: browser-verified for Customer Review Workspace, Environment Review, Review Pack, Stored Report; blocked for Evidence Snapshot. Customer surfaces are mostly safe but dense. Evidence detail reachability must be resolved before customer/auditor evidence readiness can be fully verified.
Operator Decision Findings
Verification level: browser-verified. Operations, Restore, and Baseline Compare show strong decision-first work. Backup Set and Baseline Profile still expose too much lifecycle/metadata in the main flow.
Evidence / Audit Findings
Verification level: browser-verified plus blocked. Audit Log route was discovered but not captured in the bounded browser pass. Evidence Snapshot detail redirected to login. Review Pack and Stored Report are stronger evidence/output surfaces.
Diagnostics Findings
Verification level: browser-verified for Environment Diagnostics; blocked for Required Permissions/System. Diagnostics need a consistent first block: what failed, likely cause, next check, related operation/evidence.
System Panel Findings
Verification level: browser-verified blocked. /system and /system/ops/runs redirected to /system/login; no system smoke-auth route was found.
Prioritized Refactor Candidates
| Priority | Page/Area | Reason | Suggested scope |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Baseline Profile View | Highest technical density among reachable pages. | Decision summary + metadata demotion. |
| 2 | Backup Set View | Restore-critical trust surface. | Usability + item inventory first. |
| 3 | OperationRun View | Strong page that can become target pattern. | Metadata/timing details separation. |
| 4 | Customer Review Workspace | Customer-safe but dense. | Calm first viewport and action hierarchy. |
| 5 | Provider Connections | Readiness should not be inferred. | Provider readiness summary. |
| 6 | Diagnostics/Permissions/System | Access and guidance gaps. | Diagnostic contract + browser fixture. |
Recommended Global UI Rules
See recommendations.md.
Recommended Follow-up Specs
See spec-candidates.md.
Appendix
- Page inventory: page-inventory.csv
- Scorecard: page-scorecard.csv
- Screenshots: artifacts/screenshots/
- Findings: findings.md
- Raw routes: artifacts/raw/routes.txt and artifacts/raw/routes.json
- Browser notes: artifacts/raw/browser-notes.md