# Documentation Improvements & Gap Analysis

**Status**: Proposal
**Created**: 2026-02-08
**Scope**: User-facing docs, API docs, code docs, tutorials, architecture, configuration reference

---

## Executive Summary

Prism has **substantial but incomplete documentation** totaling ~5,850 lines across 33 markdown files. The framework documentation is well-structured with good examples for basic-to-intermediate use cases. However, there are **critical gaps** in migration guides (completely missing), API documentation (59% coverage), troubleshooting (absent), and advanced topic coverage.

**Overall Documentation Score: 6.3/10**

---

## Completeness by Section

```
Getting Started:          ██████████ 100%
CLI Reference:            ████████░░  80%
User Guides:              ████████░░  80%
Architecture:             ███████░░░  70%
Tutorials:                ████░░░░░░  40%
API Reference:            ██░░░░░░░░  20%
Migration/Upgrade:        ░░░░░░░░░░   0%  ← CRITICAL
Troubleshooting:          ░░░░░░░░░░   0%  ← CRITICAL
Best Practices:           ██░░░░░░░░  20%
Deployment Options:       ██░░░░░░░░  20%
```

---

## Critical Gaps (Phase 1 — Address First)

### 1. Migration & Upgrade Guides — MISSING

**Current state**: Zero documentation for upgrading between versions.

**Impact**: Users upgrading Prism have no guidance on breaking changes. Example: Authentik removal in v0.15.1 has no migration path documented.

**Needed**: `docs/guides/migration.md` (~300-400 lines) covering:
- Version-to-version upgrade steps
- Breaking change checklist per version
- Rollback procedures
- Deprecation timeline

### 2. Error Troubleshooting Guide — MISSING

**Current state**: Only one installation error covered in README troubleshooting section.

**Impact**: Users stuck on errors have nowhere to look.

**Needed**: `docs/guides/troubleshooting.md` (~300-500 lines) covering:
- Common errors with solutions (ImportError, GenerationError, migration conflicts, frontend type errors)
- Debug mode instructions
- FAQ section

### 3. API Documentation — 59% Coverage

**Current state**: Spec models well-documented; generator classes minimally documented.

**Examples of missing docs**:

| Class | Current | Needed |
|-------|---------|--------|
| `ModelsGenerator` | 1-line docstring | Usage guide, context requirements, output description |
| `SchemasGenerator` | 1-line docstring | Same |
| `TemplateRenderer` | Missing | Custom template examples, context variable reference |
| `ManifestManager` | Unclear public API | Stability guarantees, public interface |
| All 15 frontend generators | Varies (0-30 lines) | Consistent documentation pattern |

**Recommendation**: Add 2-5 line docstrings to every generator class, and create `/docs/reference/api/` pages auto-generated from mkdocstrings.

---

## High Priority Gaps (Phase 2)

### 4. Production Deployment — Only Hetzner Covered

Only one cloud provider documented (`docs/guides/hetzner-deployment.md`, 325+ lines). Missing:
- AWS deployment guide
- Docker Compose production guide (non-Terraform)
- Pre-deployment security checklist
- Environment variable management
- Monitoring and logging setup

### 5. Advanced Relationships — Minimal Coverage

Basic M2M and one-to-many documented. Missing:
- Circular dependencies handling
- Polymorphic relationships
- Self-referential models
- Temporal relationship patterns

### 6. Template Documentation — Critically Underdocumented

255+ Jinja2 templates exist with no documentation of:
- Available context variables per template category
- Template structure conventions
- How to customize templates
- How to create custom generators

**Needed**: `docs/guides/custom-templates.md` (~350-450 lines)

---

## Medium Priority Gaps (Phase 3)

### 7. Tutorial Expansion

Currently 2 complete tutorials (CRM project, MCP integration). Missing tutorials for:
- REST API deep-dive (request/response examples, pagination, filtering)
- GraphQL mutations guide
- Authentication workflows (JWT, API key, RBAC)
- Relationship modeling (complex example like e-commerce)
- Custom hooks and middleware

### 8. Architecture Decision Records (ADRs)

No ADRs exist. Recommended initial set:
- ADR-001: Spec as Code (Python/Pydantic) vs Configuration (YAML/JSON)
- ADR-002: Base + Extension Pattern for safe regeneration
- ADR-003: Multi-interface approach (REST + GraphQL + MCP)
- ADR-004: Async-first design choice

Location: `docs/architecture/adrs/`

### 9. Best Practices Guide

No consolidated best practices document exists. Needed topics:
- Data modeling patterns
- Performance optimization (N+1 prevention, indexing, caching)
- Security hardening
- Testing patterns for generated code
- Code organization conventions

### 10. Security Best Practices

Auth system exists but no security hardening guide covering:
- CORS configuration guidance
- Environment variable security
- Rate limiting setup
- Input validation patterns

---

## Documentation Infrastructure Improvements

| Feature | Status | Impact |
|---------|--------|--------|
| Broken link checking | Not configured | Could have stale links |
| Multi-version docs | Not visible | Users can't see v0.x vs newer docs |
| Auto-generated API reference | mkdocstrings configured but unused | API docs drift from code |
| Mermaid diagrams | Supported but underutilized | Text-only architecture descriptions |
| Analytics | Not configured | Can't see which docs users read |

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## Strengths (Keep Doing)

- Clear, consistent writing style throughout
- Good getting-started flow (installation → quickstart → first project)
- Comprehensive CLI reference with examples
- Architecture documentation with generator pipeline explanation
- Active maintenance with recent updates

---

## Quick Wins (High Impact, Low Effort)

1. Create `docs/guides/troubleshooting.md` skeleton with top 5 common errors (10 hours)
2. Add docstrings to 10 generator classes (8 hours)
3. Create `docs/guides/migration.md` skeleton with breaking changes list (5 hours)
4. Link auto-generated API reference in mkdocs.yml navigation (2 hours)
5. Add error context and migration notes to CHANGELOG entries (3 hours)

**Total quick wins**: ~30 hours for significant improvement

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## Implementation Effort Summary

| Phase | Scope | Effort |
|-------|-------|--------|
| Phase 1 (Critical) | Migration guide, troubleshooting, API docs | ~150 hours (3-4 weeks) |
| Phase 2 (Important) | Deployment guides, ADRs, template docs | ~145 hours (3-4 weeks) |
| Phase 3 (Enhancement) | Tutorials, best practices, visual diagrams | ~200 hours (5 weeks) |
| **Total** | | **~440 hours (~11 weeks)** |

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**Analysis Date**: 2026-02-08
