# Start here: Author

Define components, quantities and evidence policies before freezing a candidate.

Source: https://help.smartfact.ai/manuals/kitproof/author

Review edition: 25 October 2026

Roles: author

As Author, prepare the configuration that turns an order line into expected contents for each individual kit. Begin with approved component identities, aliases, quantities, alternatives and evidence requirements.

## Build requirements deliberately

Open Configuration and create or select the intended draft. Maintain components and their exact aliases, families, options, rules, tables and source mappings. A component barcode must identify one component. Serialised policies cannot allow manual quantities.

Quantities are per kit. An order line for two units produces two kits with the same individual requirements, rather than one kit with twice the quantity. Check this distinction when preparing source mappings and examples.

Save the configuration as a new revision. An unsaved proposal or editor value is not active. A changed draft or stale context must be reloaded and compared before another save.

## Supply independent expectations

Write examples from the intended business requirements, including exact component choices, aliases, quantities and policy flags. Mark the exact example version reviewed through the separate action when appropriate. Saving or running verification does not do that review automatically.

Freeze a candidate from the intended revision and run verification. Inspect differences and coverage, including alternatives, omitted slots, rule matches, missing fields and lookup failures. Do not edit expectations merely to agree with unexplained output.

Hand the candidate and proof to a Reviewer for activation. Author authority alone cannot make it live. Read [configuration authoring](/manuals/kitproof/configure-requirements) and [proof and activation](/manuals/kitproof/proof-and-activation). The configuration describes expected contents; verified station evidence is a separate result.