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Push Notification Specification

Required engineering push_notification_spec
Agent Prompt Snippet
Confirm a push notification spec exists defining payload formats, delivery channels, and APNs and FCM configuration for reliable message delivery.

Purpose

A push notification specification defines payload formats, delivery channels, and platform-specific APNs and FCM configuration for reliable message delivery.

This is a Required document — every project of this type should have one. Without it, the team risks misalignment, rework, or undetected issues that compound over time.

What Makes It Good vs Bad

A strong version of this document:

  • Provides enough detail that a new team member can understand the system
  • Includes diagrams or structured descriptions of components and data flows
  • Documents decisions and trade-offs, not just final choices
  • Stays current — updated when the system changes meaningfully
  • Clearly separates what exists today from what is planned

Warning signs of a weak version:

  • So high-level it could describe any project
  • Outdated diagrams that no longer match the running system
  • Missing rationale — documents what but never why
  • No clear ownership or update cadence
  • Mixes aspirational design with actual implementation

Common Mistakes

  • Writing documentation after the fact that doesn’t reflect actual decisions made
  • Over-documenting trivial details while under-documenting critical design choices
  • Not versioning the document alongside the code it describes
  • Assuming readers have the same context the author had when writing

How to Use This Document

Write for the audience of a new team member joining six months from now. Lead with the why behind decisions — the what is usually visible in code, but context and trade-offs are not. Use diagrams for system topology and data flows. Keep the document close to the code it describes (same repo, linked from README).

For AI agents: Use this document as primary context when modifying the system. Before proposing changes, verify your understanding against the architecture and design documents. Cite specific sections when explaining why a change is compatible with existing design decisions.

Starter Template

SpecBase includes a ready-to-use template for this document: kb/templates/mobile_app/push_notification_spec.md.tmpl. Use the SpecBase CLI or MCP integration to generate it pre-filled for your project.

# Generate stubs via CLI
specbase init <archetype> --features <features> --dir ./docs
  • Documenting Software Architectures: Views and Beyond by Paul Clements et al. — The standard reference for how to document software architecture effectively.
  • Designing Data-Intensive Applications by Martin Kleppmann — Essential reading for understanding distributed systems, data models, and trade-offs.
  • A Philosophy of Software Design by John Ousterhout — Concise guide to managing complexity in software through better module design.

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