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This is the canonical workflow for creating a new entry and ensuring it passes all validation checks before publication.

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Overview

The entry validation workflow ensures that newly created entries have:
  • Complete and accurate metadata
  • Valid download tree structure
  • Proper token and lookup references
  • No critical audit failures

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Workflow Steps

1

Launch the Dex dashboard

Start the interactive Dex dashboard:
dex
The dashboard provides access to all entry management commands.
2

Run Init and complete all steps

From the dashboard, select Init or run directly:
dex init
Complete all wizard steps:
  • Enter entry slug and metadata
  • Configure catalog linking (if needed)
  • Import recording index
  • Download and process source materials
  • Set tags and categorization
Ensure all required fields are populated during the Init wizard. Missing metadata will cause validation failures downstream.
3

Run Entry Audit for the new entry

Validate the newly created entry from the dashboard by selecting Entry Audit or run:
dex entry audit --slug <slug>
This performs:
  • Runtime validation of entry structure
  • Download tree integrity checks
  • Token and lookup reference validation
  • Metadata completeness verification
4

Check for inventory mismatches (if needed)

If the audit reports inventory issues, run the inventory-only check:
dex entry audit --slug <slug> --inventory-only
This focuses specifically on:
  • Download tree coverage
  • Asset mapping completeness
  • Protected asset linkage

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Stop Conditions

Halt the workflow if any of these conditions occur:
  • Any FAIL status in runtime audit output
  • Critical issues in the download tree structure
  • Unresolved token or lookup mismatches
  • Missing required metadata fields
Do not proceed to catalog curation or publication until all stop conditions are resolved.

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Verification Commands

After completing the workflow, verify the entry is ready: 
# Full audit with detailed output
dex entry audit --slug <slug>

# Check inventory coverage only
dex entry audit --slug <slug> --inventory-only

# Audit all entries (for batch validation)
dex entry audit --all

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Next Steps

Once entry validation passes:

Catalog Curation

Add the validated entry to catalog manifests

Release Process

Prepare for test and production publication

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Troubleshooting

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Entry audit runtime/token failure

Symptom: FAIL <slug> in dex entry audit output, invalid token or missing recording index refs. Fix:
  1. Open the Update wizard for the slug: 
    dex update
  2. Correct lookup tokens and recording index references
  3. Re-run the audit: 
    dex entry audit --slug <slug>

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Missing download tree coverage

Symptom: Inventory audit shows missing or incomplete download assets. Fix:
  1. Verify source URL is accessible
  2. Re-run Init wizard with Ctrl+I to re-import recording index
  3. Check protected assets configuration
  4. Re-run inventory audit

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