---
name: salon-mvp-roadmap
overview: High-level roadmap to bring the existing Salon Django/React codebase to a reliable MVP aligned with Phase 1 goals in AGENTS.md, plus a review of current architecture and major risks.
todos:
  - id: backend-providers-readiness
    content: "Harden backend providers: implement at least one real SMS/WhatsApp provider and clarify Moyasar capture/refund behavior for MVP."
    status: pending
  - id: async-and-observability
    content: Decide on async task infrastructure and observability basics for OTP, notifications, and payments, and document the choice.
    status: pending
  - id: frontend-structure-and-routing
    content: Refactor frontend into routed pages with separated components/hooks for search, auth, booking, and payments.
    status: pending
  - id: auth-and-booking-flows
    content: Implement phone-first auth and end-to-end booking flows on the frontend using existing backend APIs.
    status: pending
  - id: payments-and-notifications-ux
    content: Integrate payment initiation and booking lifecycle notifications into user-facing flows, including success/error handling.
    status: pending
  - id: tests-for-critical-flows
    content: Expand backend and frontend tests to cover auth, booking, payment, and notification critical paths for MVP reliability.
    status: pending
isProject: false
---

# Salon MVP Roadmap And Architecture Review

## Purpose / Big Picture

This plan reviews the current Salon codebase (Django backend, React/Vite frontend), highlights architectural and design risks, and lays out a pragmatic roadmap to reach an MVP that aligns with **Phase 1: Core MVP Reliability** in `AGENTS.md`: phone-first auth with OTP, robust booking integrity, Moyasar payments, booking lifecycle notifications, localization foundations, and tests for critical flows.
The roadmap assumes a KSA-focused first launch (phone auth and Riyadh timezone defaults) with a clean path to expand later.

## Current State Summary

### Backend (Django, DRF)

- **Project**: `salon_api` in `[backend/salon_api](backend/salon_api)`
  - `settings.py` configures `AUTH_USER_MODEL = "accounts.User"`, DRF + SimpleJWT, KSA locale defaults, and custom settings for OTP, notifications, and payments.
  - URLs route to app-level APIs at `/api/auth/`, `/api/salons/`, `/api/bookings/`, `/api/payments/`.
- **Auth & Accounts** (`[backend/apps/accounts](backend/apps/accounts)`)
  - Custom `User` model with phone-first capabilities (`phone_number`, `is_phone_verified`, `preferred_language`, `role`).
  - Phone normalization services tuned for KSA numbers (`[backend/apps/accounts/services/phone.py](backend/apps/accounts/services/phone.py)`).
  - OTP domain + service layer with rate limits, cooldowns, expiry, and hashed codes (`[backend/apps/accounts/services/otp.py](backend/apps/accounts/services/otp.py)`).
  - Phone-first auth endpoints that issue JWT tokens on successful OTP verification, plus basic email/password registration.
  - Social login endpoint is a placeholder that always returns 501.
- **Salons & Catalog** (`[backend/apps/salons](backend/apps/salons)`)
  - Models for `Salon`, `Service`, `StaffProfile`, `StaffAvailability`, `Review`, `SalonPhoto`.
  - Read-only APIs for salon search, services, staff, and reviews.
- **Bookings** (`[backend/apps/bookings](backend/apps/bookings)`)
  - `Booking` model ties together salon, service, staff, customer, time window, price, and status.
  - `validate_booking_request` in `[backend/apps/bookings/services.py](backend/apps/bookings/services.py)` enforces staff membership, duration matching, availability windows, and overlap prevention for pending/confirmed bookings.
  - `BookingViewSet` in `[backend/apps/bookings/views.py](backend/apps/bookings/views.py)` applies role-based access and hooks into notifications on create and relevant status changes.
- **Payments (Moyasar)** (`[backend/apps/payments](backend/apps/payments)`)
  - `Payment` model tracks provider, status (fine-grained transitions), amount, idempotency key, external ID, payload, and timestamps.
  - `MoyasarGateway` in `[backend/apps/payments/services/gateway.py](backend/apps/payments/services/gateway.py)` can create payments via HTTP but has `capture_payment`/`refund_payment` as TODOs.
  - `create_payment_for_booking` in `[backend/apps/payments/services/payments.py](backend/apps/payments/services/payments.py)` enforces provider choice (Moyasar only), idempotency, and maps webhook events into internal statuses.
  - Webhook view in `[backend/apps/payments/views.py](backend/apps/payments/views.py)` authenticates via shared secret and applies provider events idempotently.
- **Notifications** (`[backend/apps/notifications](backend/apps/notifications)`)
  - `Notification` model records booking-related notifications and enforces uniqueness per booking/recipient/event/channel.
  - Services in `[backend/apps/notifications/services.py](backend/apps/notifications/services.py)` reuse OTP providers to send SMS/WhatsApp messages for booking created/confirmed/cancelled events, with localization via `preferred_language`.
  - Booking views call `notify_booking_lifecycle` / `notify_on_status_change` to trigger notifications for customers and staff.
- **Testing**
  - Solid tests around:
    - Phone normalization, OTP rate limiting, and phone auth flows (`[backend/apps/accounts/tests](backend/apps/accounts/tests)`).
    - Booking integrity and overlap rules (`[backend/apps/bookings/tests](backend/apps/bookings/tests)`).
    - Payment idempotency and Moyasar webhook handling (`[backend/apps/payments/tests](backend/apps/payments/tests)`).
    - Booking notifications on create/status change (`[backend/apps/notifications/tests](backend/apps/notifications/tests)`).
  - `docs/risks.md` explicitly tracks several known gaps around auth, booking, payments, data/UX, and ops.

### Frontend (React, Vite)

- **Structure**
  - Vite React app at `[frontend](frontend)` with entry in `[frontend/src/main.jsx](frontend/src/main.jsx)` and single top-level component in `[frontend/src/App.jsx](frontend/src/App.jsx)`.
  - No `react-router` or multi-page routing; the entire experience is one composed screen.
- **Current Features**
  - **Salon search**
    - Text search field calling `/salons/?q=<query>` via a small API client in `[frontend/src/api/client.js](frontend/src/api/client.js)`.
    - Renders responsive list of salons with rating, city, and phone.
  - **Localization/i18n**
    - `react-i18next` setup in `[frontend/src/i18n/index.js](frontend/src/i18n/index.js)` with `en` and `ar-sa` translations.
    - Locale preference stored in `localStorage`; applies `lang` and `dir` on the document.
  - **Payments beta**
    - A form in `App.jsx` that sends payment creation requests to `/api/payments/` using the Moyasar-style payload, with configurable `booking_id`, source type, token, and callback URL.
    - Optionally includes a Bearer token from a manually-entered access token field.
    - On success, can redirect to `redirect_url` and shows the raw JSON response.
- **State & Tests**
  - All state is local to `App.jsx` via `useState`/`useEffect`; there is no centralized state management or domain hooks yet.
  - A single test file `[frontend/src/App.test.jsx](frontend/src/App.test.jsx)` covers hero copy and locale/RTL behavior, but not search or payments.

## Glaring Design And Architectural Issues

### Backend Risks

- **Incomplete provider implementations for production-critical flows**
  - Twilio/Unifonic providers in `[backend/apps/accounts/services/otp.py](backend/apps/accounts/services/otp.py)` are stubs with `NotImplementedError` for send methods, yet they are the backbone for both OTP and booking notifications.
  - `MoyasarGateway` lacks `capture_payment` and `refund_payment` implementations, limiting payment lifecycle coverage.
  - **Risk**: Code reads “production ready” at the API level, but the underlying integrations are not, which could cause outages if deployed naively.
- **Tight coupling between OTP and notifications**
  - Notification services import the OTP provider mapping and default `NOTIFICATION_PROVIDER` to `OTP_PROVIDER`, binding booking notifications to auth configuration.
  - **Risk**: Changing OTP providers or adding a second channel for marketing/ops notifications will be harder and could have unintended side effects.
- **Synchronous IO-heavy work in request/response path**
  - OTP sends, booking notifications, and payment gateway calls all occur synchronously inside view methods (`perform_create`, `create`, etc.).
  - **Risk**: Slow or flaky providers will degrade API latency and user experience; retries and backoff are hard to implement without background jobs.
- **Cross-app domain coupling without a clear orchestration layer**
  - `apps.bookings` depends on salons and notifications; notifications depend on accounts (OTP providers) and bookings; payments depend on bookings.
  - **Risk**: As you add more lifecycle rules (e.g., auto-confirm booking on payment, send reminders, handle refunds), the spaghetti of cross-imports will grow unless you introduce clearer service boundaries.
- **Auth model vs login patterns**
  - `User.USERNAME_FIELD` is email, while phone-based JWT issuance happens via custom endpoints.
  - **Risk**: This split can confuse clients and admin tooling and may complicate future flows like social login or SSO unless you standardize on an identifier strategy.
- **Docs drift around ExecPlans**
  - `AGENTS.md` references `docs/execplans/payments-moyasar.md` as the active plan, while `PLANS.md` names `docs/execplans/booking-notifications.md`.
  - **Risk**: Contributors may follow different “active” plans, causing architectural inconsistency.

### Frontend Risks

- **Monolithic `App` component with no routing**
  - `App.jsx` mixes hero/search, salon listing, payments, and locale controls.
  - There is no `react-router` or notion of separate flows (auth, booking, profile, payments).
  - **Risk**: Extending to full MVP flows (auth, booking, history, management) will quickly become unmanageable without a routing/page system and domain separation.
- **Domain logic embedded in UI components**
  - API payload construction, validation rules (e.g. for source types), and error handling are implemented directly in `App.jsx` rather than reusable hooks or service modules.
  - **Risk**: Code reuse, testing, and evolution (e.g., adding booking pages or admin consoles) will be painful.
- **Minimal test coverage for critical flows**
  - Only i18n and hero copy are tested; search behavior, API integration, and payments are untested.
  - **Risk**: Regressions in search, booking, and payments UX will slip through as MVP grows.
- **Styling & layout fragility**
  - `frontend/src/styles.css` uses `::root` instead of `:root`, which likely breaks intended global CSS variables or base styles.
  - Global CSS is tightly bound to the monolithic `App` layout.
  - **Risk**: Visual regressions and layout churn when introducing additional pages or components.
- **Ad hoc auth token handling**
  - The “access token” is a free-form text field that gets persisted as `auth_token` in `localStorage` and injected into payment requests.
  - **Risk**: This is a placeholder pattern that does not scale to full auth (refresh tokens, logout, token rotation) and will need to be replaced.

### Cross-Cutting Risks

- **Lack of async/background processing**
  - No Celery/RQ or similar job queue; all side effects are synchronous.
  - **Risk**: Scaling SMS/WhatsApp notifications, email, and payment webhook fan-out will be difficult.
- **Observability and admin tooling gaps**
  - Errors for payments and notifications are recorded in model metadata but not clearly surfaced in logs, dashboards, or admin views.
  - **Risk**: Operational debugging during MVP rollout will be slower and more error-prone.
- **Internationalization strategy vs future markets**
  - Phone normalization and defaults are tailored to KSA, which is correct for MVP, but `docs/risks.md` already notes the need to broaden later.
  - **Risk**: Without clear boundaries between KSA-specific logic and generic logic, future expansion may require invasive changes.

## MVP Roadmap (Aligned To Phase 1)

This roadmap assumes “MVP” is equivalent to **Phase 1: Core MVP Reliability** in `AGENTS.md`, with a thin but robust frontend on top.

### Phase 0 – Architecture & Production Readiness Hardening

- **Finalize critical provider implementations**
  - Implement at least one real SMS/WhatsApp provider (Twilio or Unifonic) end-to-end, behind the existing provider abstraction in `[backend/apps/accounts/services/otp.py](backend/apps/accounts/services/otp.py)`, and wire it into `[backend/apps/notifications/services.py](backend/apps/notifications/services.py)`.
  - Implement or deliberately fence off `capture_payment` and `refund_payment` in `[backend/apps/payments/services/gateway.py](backend/apps/payments/services/gateway.py)` so that the MVP either fully supports or explicitly does not support partial captures/refunds.
- **Clarify and document boundaries**
  - Add a short architecture section in `README`/docs describing how `accounts`, `salons`, `bookings`, `payments`, and `notifications` interact, and what each service is responsible for.
  - Resolve the ExecPlan drift by making `AGENTS.md` and `PLANS.md` agree on the current active plan.
- **Introduce minimal async infrastructure (optional but recommended)**
  - Decide whether MVP will ship with a task queue (e.g., Celery with Redis) or keep everything synchronous for the initial launch.
  - If yes, introduce a thin task layer for OTP sends and booking notifications while preserving current APIs; if not, at least add clear timeouts/logging to external calls.
- **Frontend scaffolding for growth**
  - Introduce `react-router` and refactor `App.jsx` into route-based pages (e.g., `HomePage`, `BookPage`, `PaymentPage`, `ProfilePage`), with shared layout and navigation.
  - Extract salon search, payment form, and locale controls into dedicated components and hooks.

### Phase 1 – Core MVP Features (Backend + Frontend)

- **Phone-first auth UX**
  - Backend: reuse existing phone auth endpoints; ensure error messages and rate-limit responses are predictable and localized.
  - Frontend:
    - Build OTP-based login/registration screens that drive `/api/auth/phone/request/` and `/api/auth/phone/verify/`.
    - Introduce an auth context (or similar) to store access/refresh tokens, current user profile, and handle logout.
    - Defer social login beyond MVP, but keep API surface ready for it.
- **Booking search and creation**
  - Backend is largely ready (booking validation and role-based access); review booking serializers in `[backend/apps/bookings/serializers.py](backend/apps/bookings/serializers.py)` to ensure they expose all fields needed for frontend booking forms.
  - Frontend:
    - Build a **booking flow**: pick a salon → choose service → select staff (optional) → select date/time slot (based on availability endpoints) → confirm booking.
    - Add a “My bookings” page showing upcoming and past bookings, tied into the existing `/api/bookings/` endpoints.
- **Payments via Moyasar**
  - Backend: confirm `create_payment_for_booking` contracts (inputs/outputs) are stable and documented.
  - Frontend:
    - Evolve the payments beta UI into a **post-booking payment step** that starts from a selected booking and guides the user into Moyasar’s hosted flow, then shows a status page.
    - Handle callback/return from Moyasar (even if via manual redirect URL in MVP) and surface payment success/failure to the user.
- **Booking lifecycle notifications**
  - Backend already sends notifications on booking create and status changes; align messaging templates with product UX and ensure localization strings exist.
  - Frontend: surface notification results implicitly via booking status changes and explicit messages on the booking details page.
- **Localization foundations**
  - Backend: ensure `UserLocaleMiddleware` and translation strings cover all user-visible errors in auth, bookings, payments, and notifications.
  - Frontend: expand `en/ar-sa` translations to cover auth, booking, and payment flows; verify RTL layouts on the new screens.
- **Tests for critical flows**
  - Backend: extend tests where needed to cover new booking/payment edge cases (e.g., tying booking status to payment status if/when introduced).
  - Frontend: add Vitest tests for:
    - Phone auth screen flows (request/verify success + errors).
    - Booking flow (form validation, happy path, displaying server-side errors).
    - Payment initiation from an existing booking.

### Phase 2 – Manager Ops Lite (Post-MVP, partially covered now)

- **Salon and staff management UI**
  - Use existing salon and staff models to build basic management pages for salon owners/managers (create/update services, staff, availability).
- **Calendar views and rescheduling**
  - Provide calendar views for staff/managers to view daily/weekly bookings and reschedule or cancel within defined rules.
- **Reviews and ratings**
  - Implement review submission and rating recalculation on the backend, with corresponding frontend components.
- **Reporting basics**
  - Lightweight reports for managers (upcoming bookings, simple revenue summaries based on payment status) using existing payments data.

### Phase 3 – Scale & Compliance (Later)

- **Audit logging** for admin actions and booking/payment state changes.
- **PDPL/GDPR retention policies** and data export tooling.
- **Observability**: structured logging, metrics, and basic dashboards for auth failures, OTP send failures, payment errors, and notification outcomes.

## Architecture Overview Diagram

A simplified view of the target MVP data flow:

```mermaid
flowchart LR
  user["User (web/mobile)"] --> frontend["ReactFrontend"]
  frontend --> api["DjangoAPI"]

  api --> accounts["AccountsApp"]
  api --> salons["SalonsApp"]
  api --> bookings["BookingsApp"]
  api --> payments["PaymentsApp"]
  api --> notifications["NotificationsApp"]

  accounts --> otpProviders["OtpProviders"]
  notifications --> otpProviders
  payments --> moyasar["MoyasarGateway"]

  bookings --> notifications
  bookings --> payments
  salons --> bookings
```



This diagram clarifies current coupling and highlights where future refactors (e.g., a dedicated messaging service or payment orchestrator) could sit.

## Validation And Acceptance For This Plan

- The roadmap is accepted when:
  - It clearly maps current backend and frontend capabilities to the Phase 1 MVP goals in `AGENTS.md`.
  - It identifies the highest-risk design/architecture issues that could impede MVP reliability or future evolution.
  - It provides a phased, concrete sequence of work packages that can be implemented via ExecPlans (e.g., booking notifications, Moyasar payments, phone auth UX).
- Each major feature area (auth, bookings, payments, notifications, localization, tests) should have or adopt an ExecPlan under `docs/execplans/` in line with `PLANS.md` before implementation begins.