Operating System
The Claude Code MVP Operating System
A reusable prompt library, workflow system, security checklist, payment checklist, and client handoff framework for shipping production MVPs.
Harshil Tomar
Founder, DreamLaunch
July 15, 2026
FIELD GUIDE / MVP EDITION
The Claude Code
MVP Operating
System
A reusable prompt library, workflow system, security checklist, payment checklist, and client handoff framework for shipping production MVPs.
50+prompts12workflows5release gates
01 / MVP SYSTEM
The operating model
Claude Code works best as a system, not a chatbot.
- Context first.
- Workflow second.
- Gates third.
02 / MVP SYSTEM
The setup files that make prompts reusable
Every project needs the same context shape.
| File | Purpose |
|---|---|
| PROJECT_BRIEF.md | Product truth |
| BUILD_RULES.md | Implementation rules |
| SECURITY_RULES.md | Safety baseline |
| PAYMENTS.md | Money logic |
| HANDOFF.md | Client ownership |
03 / MVP SYSTEM
The 12 workflows
The build system from idea to handoff.
04 / MVP SYSTEM
The release gates
The second half is where production quality shows up.
05 / MVP SYSTEM
Prompt library map
Use prompts by job, not by vibe.
06 / MVP SYSTEM
Planning prompts
Turn vague ideas into buildable scope.
| Prompt | Use |
|---|---|
| Project intake | Read the product brief below. Return: target user, job-to-be-done, core promise, non-goals, riskiest assumptions, and the smallest MVP that can validate the promise in 14 days. |
| PRD generator | Turn this idea into a one-page PRD with user stories, acceptance criteria, launch scope, v2 backlog, analytics events, and open questions. Flag anything ambiguous before implementation. |
| Scope reducer | Reduce this feature list to a launchable MVP. Separate must-have, should-have, later, and never. Explain what user risk each must-have reduces. |
| Ticket splitter | Convert this PRD into implementation tickets sized for one focused coding session each. Include dependencies, files likely touched, and verification steps. |
| Architecture review | Given this app idea and current stack, propose the simplest architecture. Include frontend, backend, database, auth, file storage, payments, background jobs, and monitoring. |
| Repo orientation | Inspect this repository and explain how it works: folders, major flows, data model, environment variables, build commands, test commands, and risky areas. |
| Rules file draft | Create project rules for this repo: coding style, file organization, dependency rules, security rules, testing expectations, and what not to touch without approval. |
| Feature implementation | Implement this feature exactly as specified. Before editing, list the files you expect to touch. After editing, summarize changes and run the relevant verification commands. |
| UI build | Build this screen to match the described layout. Prioritize hierarchy, empty states, loading states, mobile responsiveness, and accessible labels. Avoid generic placeholder copy. |
| UI critique | Review this screen for conversion, clarity, visual hierarchy, accessibility, and mobile behavior. Return prioritized fixes only. |
07 / MVP SYSTEM
Build prompts
Implement without losing control.
| Prompt | Use |
|---|---|
| API contract | Design the API contract for this feature. Include endpoints, request/response shape, validation, auth requirements, error states, and test cases. |
| Database schema | Design the minimal database schema for this feature. Include tables, columns, indexes, constraints, ownership model, migration plan, and rollback plan. |
| RLS policy review | Review these database policies for isolation failures. Explain who can read, write, update, and delete each resource. Provide safer policy changes if needed. |
| Auth flow | Implement auth for this app. Include signup, login, logout, session persistence, protected routes, redirect behavior, and tests for unauthorized access. |
| Payment setup | Implement subscription payments. Include checkout, customer portal, webhook handling, entitlement sync, failed payment behavior, and local webhook testing steps. |
| Webhook audit | Audit webhook handling for idempotency, signature verification, retries, duplicate events, race conditions, and entitlement mismatch. |
| Security review | Review this diff as a security reviewer. Focus on secrets, auth bypass, injection, SSRF, XSS, CSRF, insecure direct object references, logging, and rate limits. |
| Secrets audit | Find any hardcoded secrets, tokens, credentials, private URLs, or unsafe environment assumptions. Provide exact fixes and prevention rules. |
| Performance pass | Review the app for slow queries, unnecessary renders, expensive network calls, unoptimized images, and cold-start issues. Return the highest ROI fixes. |
| Test plan | Create a test plan for this feature with unit tests, integration tests, manual QA, mobile checks, edge cases, and regression risks. |
| Bug reproduction | Given this bug report, produce a minimal reproduction path, likely root causes, logs to inspect, and a safe fix plan. |
| Debug loop | Diagnose this failing command or stack trace. Do not guess. Identify the first failing assumption, verify it, then propose the smallest fix. |
| Refactor safely | Refactor this code without changing behavior. First identify current behavior and tests. Then make small changes and list verification commands. |
| Dependency review | Evaluate whether we should add this dependency. Compare bundle/runtime impact, maintenance risk, security risk, and whether native code is simpler. |
08 / MVP SYSTEM
Product and monetization prompts
Release, analytics, paywalls, and handoff.
| Prompt | Use |
|---|---|
| Release checklist | Create a release checklist for this app including env vars, migrations, payment test, auth test, mobile responsive pass, analytics, monitoring, rollback, and owner signoff. |
| Rollback plan | Create a rollback plan for this release. Include database rollback, feature flag fallback, payment safety, cache invalidation, and user communication if needed. |
| Monitoring setup | Define monitoring for this MVP: uptime, error tracking, payment failures, auth failures, latency, background jobs, and key business events. |
| Analytics events | Design analytics events for this product. Include event name, trigger, properties, user identity, funnel stage, and decisions each event supports. |
| Onboarding flow | Design first-run onboarding that gets a user to value quickly. Include steps, skipped fields, activation event, empty state, and paywall timing. |
| Paywall critique | Review this paywall for clarity, price anchoring, trust, trial explanation, cancellation expectation, and mobile layout. |
| Email flow | Write transactional and lifecycle emails for signup, trial start, failed payment, cancellation, and reactivation. Keep them concise and product-specific. |
| Admin panel | Design the minimal admin panel for support. Include user lookup, subscription status, logs, manual entitlement actions, and audit trail. |
| Client handoff | Create a handoff doc for a non-technical client: what was built, how to use it, accounts, recurring costs, admin actions, known limits, and support process. |
| Loom script | Write a 7-minute handoff walkthrough script covering product demo, admin actions, payment flow, common issues, and where to find docs. |
| Runbook | Create an incident runbook for login issues, payment failures, database errors, deploy failure, and third-party outage. |
09 / MVP SYSTEM
Review and recovery prompts
Review, debug, polish, and stabilize.
| Prompt | Use |
|---|---|
| Code review | Review this pull request. Focus on correctness, simplicity, hidden regressions, security, tests, and maintainability. Return blocking issues first. |
| Copy pass | Rewrite the product copy for clarity. Use plain language, remove hype, make buttons action-oriented, and preserve the user's intent. |
| Empty states | Create useful empty states for this feature. Each state should explain what happened, why it matters, and what the user can do next. |
| Loading/error states | Add loading, empty, error, retry, and permission-denied states to this flow. Keep behavior predictable on slow networks. |
| Mobile QA | Review this UI for mobile issues: tap targets, overflow, keyboard behavior, safe areas, viewport height, and long text. |
| Accessibility pass | Review this feature for keyboard navigation, focus states, labels, contrast, semantic structure, and screen reader behavior. |
| Migration safety | Review this migration for data loss, lock risk, backwards compatibility, rollback, and production timing. |
| Background jobs | Design background job processing for this workflow. Include queue, retries, idempotency, dead-letter handling, and admin visibility. |
| File uploads | Implement file uploads safely. Include size/type validation, storage path rules, access control, virus-risk assumptions, and deletion behavior. |
| Search feature | Design search for this MVP. Include indexed fields, ranking, empty states, typo tolerance expectations, and performance constraints. |
| Notifications | Design notification logic. Include triggers, frequency caps, unsubscribe controls, templates, and failure handling. |
| Compliance light check | Review this app for common compliance risks: privacy policy, data deletion, consent, payment terms, emails, and user-generated content. |
| Cost review | Estimate monthly infrastructure cost for 100, 1K, 10K, and 100K users. Identify the first cost bottleneck and how to avoid it. |
| V2 planning | Based on user feedback and analytics, propose the next 5 features. Rank by activation, retention, revenue, and implementation effort. |
| Final polish | Do a final pre-demo polish pass. Find copy issues, broken states, visual inconsistencies, console errors, slow paths, and confusing flows. |
| Build summary | Summarize today's work for a client update: what shipped, what changed, risks, blockers, next steps, and what needs client review. |
| Handoff QA | Pretend you are the client receiving this app. What would confuse you? What docs are missing? What admin actions need clearer instructions? |
10 / MVP SYSTEM
Security checklist
The security pass every MVP needs.
- No secrets in code, screenshots, commits, logs, or client docs.
- Every private route verifies the current user server-side.
- Every database query is scoped to the account, workspace, or owner.
- Row-level policies or equivalent access rules are reviewed for read/write/update/delete.
- Webhook signatures are verified before processing.
- Webhook handlers are idempotent and safe against duplicate delivery.
- Inputs are validated at the server boundary, not only in the UI.
- Uploads validate type, size, path, and access permissions.
- Error messages do not reveal secrets, stack traces, or private records.
- Rate limits exist on auth, AI generation, contact forms, and expensive endpoints.
- Admin actions are logged and require explicit authorization.
- Production environment variables are documented without exposing values.
11 / MVP SYSTEM
Payment checklist
Payments fail in the edge cases.
- Checkout creates or reuses the correct customer.
- Subscription status syncs from webhooks, not only frontend redirects.
- Entitlement logic is centralized and easy to audit.
- Failed payment, canceled, past-due, trialing, and active states are handled.
- Webhook events are signature-verified and idempotent.
- Customer portal is available for cancellation and billing updates.
- Test mode covers successful payment, failed card, cancellation, renewal, and refund.
- Pricing IDs are environment-specific and not hardcoded in UI logic.
- Receipts, tax settings, and legal links are not forgotten.
- Manual entitlement override has an audit trail or clear owner.
12 / MVP SYSTEM
Release checklist
Require evidence before production.
- Build passes.
- Tests documented.
- Migrations reviewed.
- Auth verified.
- Payments tested.
- Monitoring live.
- Rollback documented.
13 / MVP SYSTEM
Client handoff
Remove dependency on the builder.
- What was built.
- How to use it.
- Accounts and costs.
- Runbook.
- Known limits.
- Next steps.
14 / MVP SYSTEM
The weekly rhythm
Use the same cadence on every MVP.
| Day | Action |
|---|---|
| Day 1 | Brief, PRD, architecture, tickets |
| Day 2-3 | Core UI, schema, auth, primary workflow |
| Day 4 | Payments, integrations, analytics, admin |
| Day 5 | QA, security, mobile, performance, release |
| Handoff | Docs, Loom, support runbook |
Our Work
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