Reconcile Systems That Disagree

Design a repair loop you can preview before it runs and measure after.

See the situation

Start with the situation below. Next, we will work through an example together before you try the activity.

Samir · Workflow operator

The case

A pending change, computed and not applied

Reconcile within a stated managed boundary. Investigate protected human changes instead of flattening them.

Add: A small number, all newly qualified
Remove: A small number, all newly disqualified
Force out: Far larger than either, and unexplained
Blocked: A handful, each with a stated gate
Unchanged: The overwhelming majority, as expected

Your task

Classify each row in the reconciliation preview. Check which writes are safe before saving.

Need a little guidance?

You’re done when: The systems converge without overwriting a human-owned or restricted state.

Reconciliation should restore an agreed state, not flatten every disagreement.

Need a reminder? Reopen the worked example

Watch one example first

Desired version V2 matched the remote system. V3 then adds a new eligible record. A new difference is expected until V3 is processed; it does not prove V2 failed.

Why this follows from the evidence

Reconciliation compares a named desired version with observed state inside a managed boundary. Protect human-owned changes and distinguish new work from repeated failure.

GTM Lab

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Case evidence

A pending change, computed and not applied

Add: A small number, all newly qualified
Remove: A small number, all newly disqualified
Force out: Far larger than either, and unexplained
Blocked: A handful, each with a stated gate
Unchanged: The overwhelming majority, as expected

The diff above was computed and nothing was written. Read it before you decide anything: one of those five numbers is wrong in a way that matters.

Inspect the dry-run diff before a cycle can write

This sample compares CRM eligibility with sequencing membership. One force-out is a deliberate manual hold. Exclude it from automatic reconciliation, then recalculate the categories.

Protect the human-owned hold on R-204.The CRM eligibility rule does not erase this documented manual decision.

Recomputed diff: 2 add · 1 remove · 3 force-out · 1 blocked · 3 unchanged

Rows in the dry-run diff

Drag a card into a bucket, or tap a card and then tap a bucket.

Write gate: 3 force-out records remain. Keep the entire cycle on hold and inspect the reset behavior before authorizing writes.

Batch decision

Restoring this case draft…

Optional: compare the original decision choices

The case workbench above records completion. These choices are optional review and do not create the activity receipt on their own.

Work the case · 0 of 4 sections drafted

Dry-run the repair before you trust it

Compare these alternatives one section at a time. Check a choice to see its consequence; the draft summary below keeps the proposed changes together.

Step 1 of 4

The loop finds a difference. When is repairing it the wrong move?

Never. If the two sides differ, the desired state wins.Always queue the difference for a person to approve before repairing.Repair differences the system caused or is responsible for. Surface a deliberate human change inside a managed audience rather than flattening it.

This is a proposed draft until the chapter check runs. Selecting a choice alone does not complete the chapter.

3c · Proposed

System handoff draft

System handoff draft · current draftCompare the original state with the proposed change. This preview does not change live records.

System handoff draft · current draft
Item	Before	Proposed	Why
The loop finds a difference. When is repairing it the wrong move?	No saved change in this exercise draft	Not drafted yet	Choose a proposal to see what it would add to the draft.
What must the pending-change line show?	No saved change in this exercise draft	Not drafted yet	Choose a proposal to see what it would add to the draft.
You have read the dry run. The force-out count is far larger than add or remove. What do you do?	No saved change in this exercise draft	Not drafted yet	Choose a proposal to see what it would add to the draft.
How do you know the loop is converging?	No saved change in this exercise draft	Not drafted yet	Choose a proposal to see what it would add to the draft.

The loop finds a difference. When is repairing it the wrong move?: BeforeNo saved change in this exercise draft; ProposedNot drafted yet; WhyChoose a proposal to see what it would add to the draft.
What must the pending-change line show?: BeforeNo saved change in this exercise draft; ProposedNot drafted yet; WhyChoose a proposal to see what it would add to the draft.
You have read the dry run. The force-out count is far larger than add or remove. What do you do?: BeforeNo saved change in this exercise draft; ProposedNot drafted yet; WhyChoose a proposal to see what it would add to the draft.
How do you know the loop is converging?: BeforeNo saved change in this exercise draft; ProposedNot drafted yet; WhyChoose a proposal to see what it would add to the draft.

A choice appears here as a proposal, not as evidence that a live system changed.

Your place saves as you go.

Chapter 5 of 80 complete