hierarchical-approval 2.6.0 → 2.7.0

package/CHANGELOG.md

@@ -7,6 +7,40 @@ adheres to [Semantic Versioning](https://semver.org/spec/v2.0.0.html).
 
 _Nothing yet._
 
+## [2.7.0] - 2026-09-04
+
+### Added — `explainChain()`
+
+- **Explains why a chain resolves the way it does.** `previewApprovalChain()`
+  answers *what* the chain will be; nothing answered *why*, so "why does this
+  purchase order have a CFO level?" meant reading the template and
+  re-evaluating its conditions by hand — the most common support question about
+  an approval engine, and the one it was worst at answering.
+
+  ```ts
+  await engine.explainChain('purchase-order', data, 'buyer-1');
+  // levels:  [{ level: 3, name: 'CFO', source: 'condition', addedByRule: 0, … }]
+  // skipped: [{ level: 2, name: 'Finance', skippedByRule: 1 }]
+  // rules:   [{ index: 0, matched: true, addsLevels: [3], skipsLevels: [] }, …]
+  ```
+
+- **Every rule is reported, matched or not**, along with what it *would* add or
+  skip — which is how you find the rule that was supposed to fire and didn't,
+  not just the ones that did.
+
+- **Failures are described rather than thrown.** A level whose approvers cannot
+  be resolved is still listed, carrying `resolutionError`; a rule that throws —
+  an unregistered operator, a malformed group — is reported against that rule
+  and the rest of the explanation still returns. A diagnostic is least useful at
+  exactly the moment a broken rule would make it throw.
+
+- Reads nothing and writes nothing, so it is safe to expose to a support UI.
+  Sub-workflow levels are marked with their child template and skip approver
+  resolution, since nobody approves them directly.
+
+  New exports: `ChainExplanation`, `ExplainedLevel`, `ExplainedSkip`,
+  `ExplainedRule`.
+
 ## [2.6.0] - 2026-09-04
 
 ### Added — escalation ladders

package/README.md

@@ -468,6 +468,37 @@ The sweep is **not atomic**: it reports per-instance failures rather than rollin
 back. A partial transfer is the useful outcome — the approvals that can move
 should move, and the ones that cannot are named so a human can look at them.
 
+### Why does this chain look like this?
+
+`previewApprovalChain()` answers *what* the chain will be. `explainChain()`
+answers *why* — the question behind "why does this purchase order have a CFO
+level?":
+
+```ts
+const explanation = await engine.explainChain('purchase-order', data, 'buyer-1');
+// {
+//   templateName: 'purchase-order',
+//   levels: [
+//     { level: 1, name: 'Manager', source: 'template', resolvedApprovers: ['mgr-1'], … },
+//     { level: 3, name: 'CFO', source: 'condition', addedByRule: 0, resolvedApprovers: ['cfo'], … },
+//   ],
+//   skipped: [{ level: 2, name: 'Finance', skippedByRule: 1 }],
+//   rules: [
+//     { index: 0, matched: true,  addsLevels: [3], skipsLevels: [] },
+//     { index: 1, matched: true,  addsLevels: [], skipsLevels: [2] },
+//   ],
+// }
+```
+
+Every rule is reported, matched or not, along with what it *would* do — which is
+usually how you find the rule that was supposed to fire and didn't. A level
+whose approvers cannot be resolved is still listed, with `resolutionError`
+naming the reason; a rule that throws is reported against that rule rather than
+failing the whole explanation, since the explanation is least useful at exactly
+the moment a broken rule would make it throw.
+
+Reads nothing and writes nothing, so it is safe to expose to a support UI.
+
 ### Escalation ladders
 
 A single `escalation` fires once, so a request that stalls past its second

package/dist/{ApprovalEngine-BWrblNQ0.d.cts → ApprovalEngine-BH9GvzMI.d.cts}

@@ -299,6 +299,52 @@ interface PreviewResult {
     /** Indices (0-based) of conditions that fired for this data. */
     conditionsApplied: number[];
 }
+/** Where one level in an explained chain came from. */
+interface ExplainedLevel {
+    level: number;
+    name: string;
+    mode: ApprovalMode;
+    /** `'template'` for a statically declared level, `'condition'` for one a rule added. */
+    source: 'template' | 'condition';
+    /** Index of the condition rule that added it, when `source` is `'condition'`. */
+    addedByRule?: number;
+    resolvedApprovers: string[];
+    /** Why approver resolution failed, when it did. The level is still listed. */
+    resolutionError?: string;
+    /** Set when this level hands off to a child approval. */
+    subWorkflowTemplate?: string;
+}
+/** A level the template declares that will not run, and the rule that removed it. */
+interface ExplainedSkip {
+    level: number;
+    name: string;
+    /** Index of the condition rule whose `skipLevels` removed it. */
+    skippedByRule: number;
+}
+/** How one condition rule evaluated against the data. */
+interface ExplainedRule {
+    index: number;
+    matched: boolean;
+    /** Levels this rule would add. Present whether or not it matched. */
+    addsLevels: number[];
+    /** Levels this rule would skip. Present whether or not it matched. */
+    skipsLevels: number[];
+    /** Why the rule could not be evaluated, e.g. an unregistered operator. */
+    error?: string;
+}
+/**
+ * A full account of why a chain looks the way it does.
+ *
+ * `previewApprovalChain()` answers *what* the chain will be; this answers *why*,
+ * which is the question a support engineer actually has when a purchase order
+ * arrives with a level nobody expected.
+ */
+interface ChainExplanation {
+    templateName: string;
+    levels: ExplainedLevel[];
+    skipped: ExplainedSkip[];
+    rules: ExplainedRule[];
+}
 interface BulkResult {
     succeeded: ApprovalInstance[];
     failed: Array<{
@@ -677,6 +723,28 @@ declare class ApprovalEngine {
     /** Preview the resolved approval chain for a template and document data, without creating an instance. */
     previewApprovalChain(templateName: string, data: Record<string, unknown>, submittedBy: string): Promise<PreviewResult>;
     /** Check whether a user is eligible to approve a specific instance. Never throws. */
+    /**
+     * Explain why a chain resolves the way it does for a given document.
+     *
+     * `previewApprovalChain()` answers *what* the chain will be. This answers
+     * *why*: which rule added a level, which rule removed one, which rules were
+     * evaluated and did not match, and where each level's approvers came from —
+     * the question behind "why does this purchase order have a CFO level?", which
+     * previously meant reading the template and re-evaluating the conditions by
+     * hand.
+     *
+     * A rule that throws — an operator nobody registered, a malformed group — is
+     * reported against that rule rather than failing the whole explanation. The
+     * explanation is a diagnostic tool, and it is least useful at exactly the
+     * moment a broken rule makes it throw.
+     *
+     * Reads nothing and writes nothing; safe to expose to a support UI.
+     *
+     * @param templateName - Template to explain.
+     * @param data - Document data the conditions are evaluated against.
+     * @param submittedBy - Submitter, used for approver resolution.
+     */
+    explainChain(templateName: string, data: Record<string, unknown>, submittedBy: string): Promise<ChainExplanation>;
     canApprove(instanceId: string, userId: string): Promise<CanApproveResult>;
     /** Emergency bypass — completes the instance as 'approved', skipping remaining levels. Requires template.allowOverride = true. */
     override(instanceId: string, raw: OverrideOptions, auditCtx?: AuditContext): Promise<ApprovalInstance>;
@@ -964,4 +1032,4 @@ declare class ApprovalEngine {
     private runExternalAudit;
 }
 
-export { type AddCommentOptions as A, type BulkResult as B, type CanApproveResult as C, type DelegateOptions as D, type EscalateOptions as E, toComparableNumber as F, validateConditionExpression as G, type HealthResult as H, type IdGeneratorFn as I, weekendCalendar as J, type OrgProvider as O, type PreviewChainLevel as P, type ReassignOptions as R, type SubmitOptions as S, TEMPLATE_BUNDLE_VERSION as T, type UpdateDataOptions as U, type ValidationResult as V, type WeekendCalendarOptions as W, ApprovalEngine as a, type ApprovalEngineOptions as b, type ApprovalStatistics as c, type ApproveOptions as d, type ApproverResolverFn as e, type ApproverWorkload as f, type BusinessCalendar as g, type BusinessHoursCalendarOptions as h, type CancelOptions as i, type ConditionOperatorFn as j, type CycleTimeStats as k, type IdempotencyKeyFn as l, type ImportResult as m, type OutOfOfficeProvider as n, type OverrideOptions as o, type PreviewResult as p, type ProvideInfoOptions as q, type PurgeResult as r, type RejectOptions as s, type RequestInfoOptions as t, type ResubmitOptions as u, type RetryPolicy as v, type TemplateBundle as w, type TransferResult as x, businessHoursCalendar as y, defaultIdGenerator as z };
+export { type AddCommentOptions as A, type BulkResult as B, type CanApproveResult as C, type DelegateOptions as D, type EscalateOptions as E, type TemplateBundle as F, type TransferResult as G, type HealthResult as H, type IdGeneratorFn as I, businessHoursCalendar as J, defaultIdGenerator as K, toComparableNumber as L, validateConditionExpression as M, weekendCalendar as N, type OrgProvider as O, type PreviewChainLevel as P, type ReassignOptions as R, type SubmitOptions as S, TEMPLATE_BUNDLE_VERSION as T, type UpdateDataOptions as U, type ValidationResult as V, type WeekendCalendarOptions as W, ApprovalEngine as a, type ApprovalEngineOptions as b, type ApprovalStatistics as c, type ApproveOptions as d, type ApproverResolverFn as e, type ApproverWorkload as f, type BusinessCalendar as g, type BusinessHoursCalendarOptions as h, type CancelOptions as i, type ChainExplanation as j, type ConditionOperatorFn as k, type CycleTimeStats as l, type ExplainedLevel as m, type ExplainedRule as n, type ExplainedSkip as o, type IdempotencyKeyFn as p, type ImportResult as q, type OutOfOfficeProvider as r, type OverrideOptions as s, type PreviewResult as t, type ProvideInfoOptions as u, type PurgeResult as v, type RejectOptions as w, type RequestInfoOptions as x, type ResubmitOptions as y, type RetryPolicy as z };

package/dist/{ApprovalEngine-D4DdSx-M.d.ts → ApprovalEngine-DkQcLaeT.d.ts}

@@ -299,6 +299,52 @@ interface PreviewResult {
     /** Indices (0-based) of conditions that fired for this data. */
     conditionsApplied: number[];
 }
+/** Where one level in an explained chain came from. */
+interface ExplainedLevel {
+    level: number;
+    name: string;
+    mode: ApprovalMode;
+    /** `'template'` for a statically declared level, `'condition'` for one a rule added. */
+    source: 'template' | 'condition';
+    /** Index of the condition rule that added it, when `source` is `'condition'`. */
+    addedByRule?: number;
+    resolvedApprovers: string[];
+    /** Why approver resolution failed, when it did. The level is still listed. */
+    resolutionError?: string;
+    /** Set when this level hands off to a child approval. */
+    subWorkflowTemplate?: string;
+}
+/** A level the template declares that will not run, and the rule that removed it. */
+interface ExplainedSkip {
+    level: number;
+    name: string;
+    /** Index of the condition rule whose `skipLevels` removed it. */
+    skippedByRule: number;
+}
+/** How one condition rule evaluated against the data. */
+interface ExplainedRule {
+    index: number;
+    matched: boolean;
+    /** Levels this rule would add. Present whether or not it matched. */
+    addsLevels: number[];
+    /** Levels this rule would skip. Present whether or not it matched. */
+    skipsLevels: number[];
+    /** Why the rule could not be evaluated, e.g. an unregistered operator. */
+    error?: string;
+}
+/**
+ * A full account of why a chain looks the way it does.
+ *
+ * `previewApprovalChain()` answers *what* the chain will be; this answers *why*,
+ * which is the question a support engineer actually has when a purchase order
+ * arrives with a level nobody expected.
+ */
+interface ChainExplanation {
+    templateName: string;
+    levels: ExplainedLevel[];
+    skipped: ExplainedSkip[];
+    rules: ExplainedRule[];
+}
 interface BulkResult {
     succeeded: ApprovalInstance[];
     failed: Array<{
@@ -677,6 +723,28 @@ declare class ApprovalEngine {
     /** Preview the resolved approval chain for a template and document data, without creating an instance. */
     previewApprovalChain(templateName: string, data: Record<string, unknown>, submittedBy: string): Promise<PreviewResult>;
     /** Check whether a user is eligible to approve a specific instance. Never throws. */
+    /**
+     * Explain why a chain resolves the way it does for a given document.
+     *
+     * `previewApprovalChain()` answers *what* the chain will be. This answers
+     * *why*: which rule added a level, which rule removed one, which rules were
+     * evaluated and did not match, and where each level's approvers came from —
+     * the question behind "why does this purchase order have a CFO level?", which
+     * previously meant reading the template and re-evaluating the conditions by
+     * hand.
+     *
+     * A rule that throws — an operator nobody registered, a malformed group — is
+     * reported against that rule rather than failing the whole explanation. The
+     * explanation is a diagnostic tool, and it is least useful at exactly the
+     * moment a broken rule makes it throw.
+     *
+     * Reads nothing and writes nothing; safe to expose to a support UI.
+     *
+     * @param templateName - Template to explain.
+     * @param data - Document data the conditions are evaluated against.
+     * @param submittedBy - Submitter, used for approver resolution.
+     */
+    explainChain(templateName: string, data: Record<string, unknown>, submittedBy: string): Promise<ChainExplanation>;
     canApprove(instanceId: string, userId: string): Promise<CanApproveResult>;
     /** Emergency bypass — completes the instance as 'approved', skipping remaining levels. Requires template.allowOverride = true. */
     override(instanceId: string, raw: OverrideOptions, auditCtx?: AuditContext): Promise<ApprovalInstance>;
@@ -964,4 +1032,4 @@ declare class ApprovalEngine {
     private runExternalAudit;
 }
 
-export { type AddCommentOptions as A, type BulkResult as B, type CanApproveResult as C, type DelegateOptions as D, type EscalateOptions as E, toComparableNumber as F, validateConditionExpression as G, type HealthResult as H, type IdGeneratorFn as I, weekendCalendar as J, type OrgProvider as O, type PreviewChainLevel as P, type ReassignOptions as R, type SubmitOptions as S, TEMPLATE_BUNDLE_VERSION as T, type UpdateDataOptions as U, type ValidationResult as V, type WeekendCalendarOptions as W, ApprovalEngine as a, type ApprovalEngineOptions as b, type ApprovalStatistics as c, type ApproveOptions as d, type ApproverResolverFn as e, type ApproverWorkload as f, type BusinessCalendar as g, type BusinessHoursCalendarOptions as h, type CancelOptions as i, type ConditionOperatorFn as j, type CycleTimeStats as k, type IdempotencyKeyFn as l, type ImportResult as m, type OutOfOfficeProvider as n, type OverrideOptions as o, type PreviewResult as p, type ProvideInfoOptions as q, type PurgeResult as r, type RejectOptions as s, type RequestInfoOptions as t, type ResubmitOptions as u, type RetryPolicy as v, type TemplateBundle as w, type TransferResult as x, businessHoursCalendar as y, defaultIdGenerator as z };
+export { type AddCommentOptions as A, type BulkResult as B, type CanApproveResult as C, type DelegateOptions as D, type EscalateOptions as E, type TemplateBundle as F, type TransferResult as G, type HealthResult as H, type IdGeneratorFn as I, businessHoursCalendar as J, defaultIdGenerator as K, toComparableNumber as L, validateConditionExpression as M, weekendCalendar as N, type OrgProvider as O, type PreviewChainLevel as P, type ReassignOptions as R, type SubmitOptions as S, TEMPLATE_BUNDLE_VERSION as T, type UpdateDataOptions as U, type ValidationResult as V, type WeekendCalendarOptions as W, ApprovalEngine as a, type ApprovalEngineOptions as b, type ApprovalStatistics as c, type ApproveOptions as d, type ApproverResolverFn as e, type ApproverWorkload as f, type BusinessCalendar as g, type BusinessHoursCalendarOptions as h, type CancelOptions as i, type ChainExplanation as j, type ConditionOperatorFn as k, type CycleTimeStats as l, type ExplainedLevel as m, type ExplainedRule as n, type ExplainedSkip as o, type IdempotencyKeyFn as p, type ImportResult as q, type OutOfOfficeProvider as r, type OverrideOptions as s, type PreviewResult as t, type ProvideInfoOptions as u, type PurgeResult as v, type RejectOptions as w, type RequestInfoOptions as x, type ResubmitOptions as y, type RetryPolicy as z };

package/dist/index.cjs

@@ -2693,6 +2693,98 @@ var ApprovalEngine = class _ApprovalEngine {
     return { levels, conditionsApplied };
   }
   /** Check whether a user is eligible to approve a specific instance. Never throws. */
+  /**
+   * Explain why a chain resolves the way it does for a given document.
+   *
+   * `previewApprovalChain()` answers *what* the chain will be. This answers
+   * *why*: which rule added a level, which rule removed one, which rules were
+   * evaluated and did not match, and where each level's approvers came from —
+   * the question behind "why does this purchase order have a CFO level?", which
+   * previously meant reading the template and re-evaluating the conditions by
+   * hand.
+   *
+   * A rule that throws — an operator nobody registered, a malformed group — is
+   * reported against that rule rather than failing the whole explanation. The
+   * explanation is a diagnostic tool, and it is least useful at exactly the
+   * moment a broken rule makes it throw.
+   *
+   * Reads nothing and writes nothing; safe to expose to a support UI.
+   *
+   * @param templateName - Template to explain.
+   * @param data - Document data the conditions are evaluated against.
+   * @param submittedBy - Submitter, used for approver resolution.
+   */
+  async explainChain(templateName, data, submittedBy) {
+    const template = await this.registry.get(templateName);
+    const conditions = template.conditions ?? [];
+    const rules = [];
+    const addedBy = /* @__PURE__ */ new Map();
+    const skippedBy = /* @__PURE__ */ new Map();
+    conditions.forEach((rule, index) => {
+      const addsLevels = (rule.addLevels ?? []).map((l) => l.level);
+      const skipsLevels = rule.skipLevels ?? [];
+      try {
+        const outcome = evaluateConditions([rule], data);
+        const matched = outcome.addLevels.length > 0 || outcome.skipLevels.size > 0;
+        rules.push({ index, matched, addsLevels, skipsLevels });
+        if (matched) {
+          for (const l of outcome.addLevels) if (!addedBy.has(l.level)) addedBy.set(l.level, index);
+          for (const l of outcome.skipLevels) if (!skippedBy.has(l)) skippedBy.set(l, index);
+        }
+      } catch (err) {
+        rules.push({
+          index,
+          matched: false,
+          addsLevels,
+          skipsLevels,
+          error: err.message
+        });
+      }
+    });
+    let mutations;
+    try {
+      mutations = evaluateConditions(conditions, data);
+    } catch {
+      mutations = { addLevels: [], skipLevels: /* @__PURE__ */ new Set() };
+    }
+    const active = [...template.levels, ...mutations.addLevels].filter((l) => !mutations.skipLevels.has(l.level)).sort((a, b) => a.level - b.level);
+    const levels = [];
+    for (const cfg of active) {
+      const fromCondition = addedBy.has(cfg.level);
+      const base = {
+        level: cfg.level,
+        name: cfg.name,
+        mode: cfg.mode,
+        source: fromCondition ? "condition" : "template",
+        ...fromCondition ? { addedByRule: addedBy.get(cfg.level) } : {},
+        resolvedApprovers: [],
+        ...cfg.subWorkflow ? { subWorkflowTemplate: cfg.subWorkflow.templateName } : {}
+      };
+      if (cfg.subWorkflow) {
+        levels.push(base);
+        continue;
+      }
+      try {
+        base.resolvedApprovers = await this.resolver.resolveApprovers(
+          cfg.approvers,
+          submittedBy,
+          data,
+          this.opts.orgProvider,
+          this.opts.outOfOfficeProvider,
+          this.clock.now()
+        );
+      } catch (err) {
+        base.resolutionError = err.message;
+      }
+      levels.push(base);
+    }
+    const skipped = template.levels.filter((l) => mutations.skipLevels.has(l.level)).map((l) => ({
+      level: l.level,
+      name: l.name,
+      skippedByRule: skippedBy.get(l.level) ?? -1
+    })).sort((a, b) => a.level - b.level);
+    return { templateName: template.name, levels, skipped, rules };
+  }
   async canApprove(instanceId, userId) {
     let instance;
     try {