5.4 — Informing, Maintaining, and Updating Configurations

CCAO-F Domain 5 · Task 5.4

What You Need to Know

Keeping a configuration right has three duties: inform, maintain and update.

Three Ways a Good Setup Decays

1. Knowledge goes stale — an uploaded file is a snapshot; nothing announces that its source was superseded
2. Instructions go out of date — they apply to every chat whether or not the world they describe still exists
3. Scope creeps — a Project that works attracts neighbouring work; each addition dilutes instructions written for the original job

All three look fine from inside the Project, so maintenance has to be scheduled.

Remove, Do Not Accumulate

When a document is superseded, remove the old version. Do not add the new one alongside it. A working Project needs exactly one answer to which version is current. After swapping a document, also read the instructions for rules written against the old wording.

Informing Is a Human Step

The only documented notification is the email when a project is first shared. None is documented for later edits to knowledge or instructions. Telling collaborators what changed and when is a human step, always. The date matters as much as the change.

The Maintenance Habit

1. A named owner — “Someone should keep this current” means nobody does
2. A review point tied to a real recurring event (quarterly figures, policy refresh, start of the season)
3. Removal treated as an active step of the review

Key Concept: The distractor that keeps both versions feels thorough. The keyed answer removes the superseded version, sweeps the instructions, and tells the people who use the Project.

Exam Traps

• Uploading the revised document while keeping the superseded version (sometimes with a note saying which is current)
• Adding an instruction telling Claude to prefer the newer document
• Assuming the system will tell colleagues the configuration changed