# ADR-012: Lazar Nikolov Pattern Conformance

**Status:** Accepted
**Date:** 2026-05-05
**Supersedes:** none — extends ADR-006 (vertical-feature-packages) and ADR-008 (per-feature DI containers)
**Spec:** `docs/superpowers/specs/2026-05-05-lazar-pattern-conformance-design.md`
**Plan:** `docs/superpowers/plans/2026-05-05-plan-8-lazar-conformance.md`
**Refactor log:** `docs/superpowers/refactor-logs/2026-05-05-lazar-pattern-conformance.md`

## Context

The vertical-feature monorepo refactor (ADRs 001-010) and the TDD
foundation (ADR-011) established Clean Architecture per feature, but
the per-layer code shape diverged from the canonical reference
implementation by Lazar Nikolov
([nikolovlazar/nextjs-clean-architecture](https://github.com/nikolovlazar/nextjs-clean-architecture)).

Specifically, before this ADR:

- Use cases called `<feature>Container.get()` inside their bodies
  (locator pattern), making them hard to test in isolation.
- Controllers were multi-method classes (`articles.controller.ts` with
  `getBySlug`, `create`, `list` methods on one symbol).
- Entities lived flat at `entities/<x>.ts`; errors at `entities/errors.ts`.
- Mock implementations used a `mock-` prefix (`mock-articles.repository.ts`),
  separating them visually from the real impl.
- Real Payload-backed implementations used a `payload-` prefix
  (`payload-articles.repository.ts`).
- Repository/service interface filenames used a `-` separator
  (`articles-repository.interface.ts`) instead of the canonical dot
  (`articles.repository.interface.ts`).
- Tests rebound the DI container in `beforeEach` rather than constructing
  mocks and injecting directly.

## Decision

Bring every feature into structural conformance with Lazar's reference
pattern, with four intentional divergences (§Adaptations below).

### What we adopted

1. **Factory-function use cases and controllers** — every use case and
   every controller is a factory: `(deps) => async (input) => result`.
   Each file exports `export type I*UseCase = ReturnType<typeof xUseCase>`
   (or the analogous `I*Controller`) so consumers can depend on the type
   without depending on the impl.

2. **Entity layout** — `entities/models/<x>.ts` (Zod schema + type)
   and `entities/errors/<domain>.ts` (domain-grouped error classes) +
   `entities/errors/common.ts` (`InputParseError`).

3. **Naming** — dot-separated qualifiers throughout:
   - Real repo impl: `<noun>.repository.ts` (no `payload-` prefix)
   - Mock repo impl: `<noun>.repository.mock.ts` (suffix, not prefix)
   - Repo interface: `<noun>.repository.interface.ts`
   - Service variants follow the same pattern.

4. **One controller per use case** — no multi-method controllers.
   Each verb-noun pair has its own file: `sign-in.controller.ts`,
   `get-articles.controller.ts`, `delete-media.controller.ts`.

5. **InversifyJS `.toDynamicValue()` for factory bindings:**
   ```typescript
   bind<ISignInUseCase>(AUTH_SYMBOLS.ISignInUseCase).toDynamicValue((ctx) =>
     signInUseCase(
       ctx.container.get<IUsersRepository>(AUTH_SYMBOLS.IUsersRepository),
       ctx.container.get<IAuthenticationService>(AUTH_SYMBOLS.IAuthenticationService),
     ),
   );
   ```

6. **Direct injection in tests** — construct mocks and pass them into the
   factory; no container rebinding for unit/use-case/controller tests:
   ```typescript
   const users = new MockUsersRepository();
   const auth = new MockAuthenticationService(users);
   const useCase = signInUseCase(users, auth);
   ```

7. **Real Payload-backed `UsersRepository` and `AuthenticationService`
   for `auth`** — previously only mocks existed. Some methods on
   `AuthenticationService` (session create/validate/invalidate) are
   deferred behind `NotImplementedError` until the cookie-strategy
   decision is finalized; see refactor log §7.

8. **`media` is now a complete Clean Architecture feature** — entities,
   application, infrastructure, interface-adapters, DI, integrations/api,
   factories, contract, feature test. Previously it was just a Payload
   collection.

### Intentional divergences from the reference (kept from prior ADRs)

| Aspect | Reference | Ours | Reason |
|---|---|---|---|
| DI library | `@evyweb/ioctopus` | `inversify` | Already integrated; equivalent expressive power via `.toDynamicValue()`. |
| DI scope | One global `ApplicationContainer` | One per feature (`authContainer`, `blogContainer`, …) | Vertical-feature isolation (ADR-008). |
| Test placement | `tests/unit/...` mirror | Colocated `*.test.{ts,tsx}` | Established by ADR-011 / Plan 7; clearer per-file ownership. |
| Instrumentation | Sentry/observability service wrapping | Not adopted | Out of scope; revisit when observability becomes a requirement. |

`InputParseError` is also duplicated per feature (~6 lines × 5
features) instead of sharing a global class — feature independence
beats DRY for a class this small.

## Consequences

### Positive

- **Trivially testable use cases & controllers.** Factory functions
  take deps as arguments — tests inject mocks directly, no container
  involvement, no shared mutable state across tests.
- **One reason to change per controller file.** Single-responsibility
  per file makes diffs and code review cleaner.
- **Type aliases (`I*UseCase`/`I*Controller`) decouple consumers.**
  The tRPC router and any other caller depends on the type, not the
  factory impl.
- **Naming consistency** with widely-shared community pattern, lowering
  ramp-up cost for engineers familiar with the reference.
- **Real auth + media** complete the architectural symmetry — every
  feature now demonstrates the full layer stack.

### Negative

- **More files.** Per-use-case controllers added ~6 controller files
  across `blog` and `marketing-pages`; `media` added ~30 files from
  scratch.
- **DI bindings are more verbose.** `.toDynamicValue()` blocks are
  longer than `.to()` for class bindings. Acceptable in exchange for
  factory-function purity.
- **Two AuthenticationService methods remain `NotImplementedError`**
  pending session-cookie strategy. Documented in refactor log §7;
  unblocks development that doesn't depend on session lifecycle.
- **Doc churn.** All references to old paths/patterns across guides,
  per-feature AGENTS, and the spec required updating in this follow-up
  pass.

## Alternatives considered

- **Adopt `@evyweb/ioctopus`** — rejected. Already on inversify; switching
  DI libraries is high-risk for low gain.
- **Move tests to `tests/unit/` mirror layout** — rejected. Colocation
  is established (ADR-011); `*.test.ts` next to source is unambiguous
  per-file ownership.
- **Move to a single global container** — rejected. Per-feature
  containers (ADR-008) are load-bearing for vertical-feature isolation.
- **Keep multi-method controllers** — rejected. The single-responsibility
  controller-per-use-case pattern wins on readability and testability.
- **Skip real `AuthenticationService`** — rejected for `UsersRepository`
  (keep mock only) — partial real impl with documented `NotImplementedError`
  for session methods is the better trade because it unblocks the
  `auth` integration without forcing a premature cookie-strategy choice.

## Acceptance verification (Task 10, 2026-05-05)

- All 325 tests passing (was 244 pre-Plan-8; +81 net, +33%).
- `pnpm typecheck`, `pnpm lint`, `pnpm turbo boundaries` clean.
- No `entities/<x>.ts` files at root level.
- No `mock-*.ts` files in feature packages.
- No `payload-*.ts` files anywhere.
- Every use case has `export type I*UseCase = ReturnType<typeof ...>`.
- Every controller has `export type I*Controller = ReturnType<typeof ...>`.

See refactor log for full file-by-file inventory.

## References

- Spec: `docs/superpowers/specs/2026-05-05-lazar-pattern-conformance-design.md`
- Plan: `docs/superpowers/plans/2026-05-05-plan-8-lazar-conformance.md`
- Refactor log: `docs/superpowers/refactor-logs/2026-05-05-lazar-pattern-conformance.md`
- Reference repo: https://github.com/nikolovlazar/nextjs-clean-architecture
- Prior ADRs: ADR-006 (vertical-feature-packages), ADR-008 (per-feature DI containers), ADR-011 (TDD foundation)

## Update — 2026-05-06

Plan 9 (ADR-013) further unifies the input/output schema story:
schemas now live in the use-case file (a refinement of §What we
adopted #1's "factory-function use cases"); controllers gain a
co-located `function presenter` (extending §What we adopted #4's
"one-controller-per-use-case"); domain error → `TRPCError`
translation runs through a per-feature middleware factory (a new
concern not in this ADR). See `docs/decisions/adr-013-input-output-unification.md`.
