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Documentation Index

Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://doc.getrationale.app/llms.txt

Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

Once you approve an audit, Rationale can generate a .docx handoff document that packages the audit results into a clean Word file. Engineers receive a structured spec — requirements, gaps, dev specs, edge cases, and accessibility checks — without having to read through the raw audit UI.

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The approval gate

The Dev Handoff tab is locked until you approve the audit on the Summary tab. This gate exists so engineers always receive a handoff that a PM has reviewed, not an unreviewed machine output.
1

Review the audit results

Work through the Summary, Requirements, Gaps & Edge Cases, and Decisions & Notes tabs. Confirm that open gaps are understood and the version is ready for engineering.
2

Approve the audit

On the Summary tab, click Approve for Dev. Approving locks the requirement list for this version and immediately unlocks the Dev Handoff tab.
3

Navigate to Dev Handoff

Click the Dev Handoff tab. The tab is now accessible and shows the cleared requirements and covered edge cases.
4

Export the handoff document

Click Create handoff doc. A dialog opens showing all the sections available from this audit. Toggle sections on or off, then click Download .docx to generate and save the file.

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Selecting sections

The export dialog shows every section that has content in this audit. Sections with no generated content are shown as unavailable and can’t be selected.

Project summary

Status, requirement counts, and the top blockers. Always available once an audit has run.

Logic Manifest

Every PRD requirement with its clearance status and any issue notes. Available when requirements were extracted.

Clearance gaps

Open gaps blocking the build, each with severity, the relevant PRD quote, and a suggested fix. Available when gaps were found.

Dev Specs

Architecture, data flow, states to handle, API contracts, and open questions derived from the audit. Available when the audit produced dev spec content.

Edge cases

The edge-case checklist surfaced from the audit, flagged as covered or open. Available when edge cases were found.

Accessibility

WCAG-grounded accessibility checks for the screens reviewed. Available when the audit flagged accessibility items.
The dialog defaults to every available section selected. Deselect sections you don’t want to include before downloading. The download button shows the count of selected sections.

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What engineers receive

The downloaded file is a standard .docx named {project}-{version}-handoff.docx. It opens in Microsoft Word, Google Docs, Notion (via import), or any other tool that reads Word documents. The document contains:
  • A title block with the project name, version, generation date, and overall build status
  • A status callout showing how many requirements are cleared versus how many blockers are open
  • Each selected section rendered as properly formatted Word headings, paragraphs, and bullet lists — no raw Markdown tokens
Share the .docx directly with your engineering team, or import it into Notion as a spec page. Because it uses real Word heading styles, Notion’s importer maps them to headings correctly.

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Handoff for PRD-to-design projects

Projects created with the PRD to Design gateway have their own handoff flow. Instead of the five-tab audit layout, these projects show a Design Brief tab, a Gaps & Edge Cases tab, and a Dev Handoff tab. The Dev Handoff tab in a PRD-to-design project is available without an approval gate, since the brief itself is the deliverable rather than an audit of existing screens.
Exporting a handoff document does not mark the version as complete in Rationale. If you update the designs or PRD after exporting, run a new audit and export again so engineers have the most current spec.