# Instar v0.12.24 — Mandatory Messaging Gate in Setup Wizard

## What Changed

Fixed a critical setup wizard bug where skipping Bitwarden/secret management caused the wizard to also skip messaging setup entirely. The wizard would declare "All done!" without ever asking the user to configure Telegram or WhatsApp.

**Root cause:** The wizard agent interpreted "skip Bitwarden" as "skip everything downstream," including messaging. There was also an escape hatch in the completion section that allowed declaring setup complete without messaging.

**Fixes:**
1. Added explicit "CRITICAL GATE" language to Phase 3 stating that no previous skip cascades to messaging
2. Added pre-completion checklist (Step 5d) that programmatically checks for messaging config before allowing "All done!"
3. Changed the "no messaging configured" fallback from a graceful completion to a "GO BACK to Phase 3" instruction
4. Added 5 regression tests for the mandatory messaging gate

## What to Tell Your User

- **Setup reliability**: "The setup wizard will now always walk you through messaging setup, even if you skip other optional steps like Bitwarden. Messaging is the whole point — it won't let you finish without it."

## Summary of New Capabilities

| Capability | How to Use |
|-----------|-----------|
| Mandatory messaging gate | Automatic — wizard enforces messaging setup before completion |
| Pre-completion checklist | Automatic — verifies messaging config exists before "All done!" |
