diff --git a/CONTRIBUTING.md b/CONTRIBUTING.md
index 4befd7b4a2..818da2d9ae 100644
--- a/CONTRIBUTING.md
+++ b/CONTRIBUTING.md
@@ -26,9 +26,9 @@ We use a vouch system. This exists because AI makes it trivial to generate plaus
 2. Describe what you want to change and why.
 3. Write in your own words. AI-generated vouch requests will be denied.
 4. A maintainer will comment `/vouch` if approved.
-5. Once vouched, you can submit pull requests.
+5. **Get vouched before opening a PR.** Once vouched, you can submit pull requests.
 
-**If you are not vouched, any pull request you open will be automatically closed.** Org members and collaborators with push access bypass this check.
+**If you are not vouched, any pull request you open will be automatically closed.** Closing loses the discussion thread and the PR must be manually reopened — it cannot be converted to a draft or held. Org members and collaborators with push access bypass this check.
 
 ### Finding Work
 
@@ -509,10 +509,14 @@ chore(deps): bump tokio to 1.40
 All human contributions must include a `Signed-off-by` line in each commit message. This certifies you have the right to submit the work under the project license. See the [Developer Certificate of Origin](https://developercertificate.org/). Dependabot-authored dependency update PRs are allowlisted because the bot cannot sign commits.
 
 ```bash
-git commit -s -m "feat(sandbox): add new capability"
+git commit --signoff --message "feat(sandbox): add new capability"
 ```
 
-DCO sign-off is separate from cryptographic commit signing. CI requires signing for org members so that copy-pr-bot can mirror your PR automatically; see [CI.md](CI.md#commit-signing) for setup.
+DCO sign-off (`--signoff`) and cryptographic commit signing are separate requirements with separate failure modes. The `--signoff` flag adds the `Signed-off-by` trailer checked by the DCO Assistant bot — a missing or mismatched trailer will fail the DCO check regardless of whether the commit is GPG-signed. Cryptographic signing is required for org members only, so that copy-pr-bot can mirror your PR to run CI; see [CI.md](CI.md#commit-signing) for setup.
+
+### PR testing checklist
+
+Only mark a checklist item as complete after you have actually run and verified it — not as a plan for what you intend to test. Unchecked boxes at submission are fine; they signal what still needs verification before merge.
 
 ## CI
 
diff --git a/architecture/build.md b/architecture/build.md
index 5c5751772a..1a1e1ce7f9 100644
--- a/architecture/build.md
+++ b/architecture/build.md
@@ -58,6 +58,17 @@ HTTP/TLS support behind explicit build features, so default system-Z3 builds do
 not reintroduce bundled Mozilla roots. Release builds that need bundled Z3
 continue to opt in with `bundled-z3`.
 
+A feature opt-in adds a capability; removing a feature to disable something is a
+build mode, not the absence of a feature flag. Document it as such rather than
+creating a mirror feature just to name the absence. When a feature is meant to
+exclude a dependency, verify the crate is physically absent from the dependency
+graph — not just disabled at the call site. Use `cargo tree -e features -p
+<crate>` to confirm the excluded crate does not appear through a transitive path.
+A common source of leaks is crates that enable `rustls-tls` or similar features
+by default in their own `[features]` table. Verify the exclusion holds in CI with
+a `mise` task that builds without the feature and checks `cargo tree` output; a
+compile-time guard alone does not catch a transitive re-introduction.
+
 ## Linux Runtime Environments
 
 OpenShell uses different Linux libc environments for different host artifacts.