refactor

Yes, you can safely untangle coupling and reduce code duplication by making incremental improvements and verifying the test suite after each change. This approach preserves observable behavior and keeps public contracts intact while restructuring modules.

Yes, you need a green test baseline before cleaning up existing code to ensure behavior preservation. The test suite is re-checked after each incremental modification to catch regressions and verify that observable outputs remain unchanged during maintenance work.

The best way to restructure modules in an already-tested codebase is through incremental changes verified by a green test suite. You must update navigation documentation when files move or are renamed to ensure architecture docs do not drift from the actual code structure.

You should not use refactoring when your codebase lacks a green test baseline, as behavior preservation cannot be verified without tests. Additionally, if your goal is to alter observable outputs or change public contracts, this behavior-preserving cleanup approach is not appropriate.

Yes, refactoring updates architecture docs when files are moved, renamed, or removed during module restructuring. This keeps navigation documentation accurate and prevents code maps from drifting away from the actual internal structure of the codebase.