diff --git a/CHANGELOG.md b/CHANGELOG.md
index 6cf5d719..a108d818 100644
--- a/CHANGELOG.md
+++ b/CHANGELOG.md
@@ -48,6 +48,8 @@ Releases up to 2.63.0 are listed in
   check-harness rules ([#2082])
 - The git template drops its submodule, numbered-document and base64 rules
   and the .vscode allowlist ([#2093])
+- The backend-quality template is retired; its general rules move to the HTTP
+  template ([#2102])
 
 ### Added
 
@@ -206,6 +208,7 @@ Releases up to 2.63.0 are listed in
 [#2099]: https://github.com/solid-ai-dev/solid-ai-templates/pull/2099
 [#2100]: https://github.com/solid-ai-dev/solid-ai-templates/pull/2100
 [#2101]: https://github.com/solid-ai-dev/solid-ai-templates/pull/2101
+[#2102]: https://github.com/solid-ai-dev/solid-ai-templates/pull/2102
 
 ## [2.90.0] - 2026-09-12
 
diff --git a/docs/architecture/05-building-block-view.md b/docs/architecture/05-building-block-view.md
index 8a1d0553..47097af0 100644
--- a/docs/architecture/05-building-block-view.md
+++ b/docs/architecture/05-building-block-view.md
@@ -62,13 +62,13 @@ The core tier, as the manifest states it today:
 - `templates/core/review.md`
 - `templates/core/oop.md`
 
-Measured: 11 `[DEPENDS ON]` tokens across 7 templates name one of these
-files, and 7 manifest entries name a core id in `depends_on`. Declaring one
+Measured: 9 `[DEPENDS ON]` tokens across 6 templates name one of these
+files, and 6 manifest entries name a core id in `depends_on`. Declaring one
 is redundant rather than forbidden — the seeding reaches the file either
 way, and the directive documents a dependency a reader would otherwise
-infer. Reached by the seeding alone: `base-review`. A chain assembled by
-walking the directives does not reach that set and reports nothing about it,
-because nothing declares what is absent.
+infer. Reached by the seeding alone: `base-review`, `base-oop`. A chain
+assembled by walking the directives does not reach that set and reports
+nothing about it, because nothing declares what is absent.
 <!-- /generated:spec-core-tier -->
 
 Every top-level list of entries except `core` and `fork_core` is a section
diff --git a/docs/migrating-to-v3.md b/docs/migrating-to-v3.md
index 0d140300..62181381 100644
--- a/docs/migrating-to-v3.md
+++ b/docs/migrating-to-v3.md
@@ -62,6 +62,9 @@ receives nothing (ADR-051).
 | Kubernetes: namespaces, two replicas per service, probes, PodDisruptionBudget, ConfigMap secrets | `base-containers` | removed; resources as code and the readiness gate remain, orchestrator-neutral |
 | Exact names: plural snake_case tables, `is_` booleans, `<table>_id` keys, alphabetical junctions, `ix_` and `ux_` indexes | `base-data-modeling` | one convention per store, recorded in the context file; relational rules say so |
 | Per-target product choices: managed CAs, `step-ca`, F5 and MetalLB, Route 53 and Consul, Harbor and Athens, Vault topologies | `base-deployment` | removed; each section keeps its ID and the rules that hold on any target |
+| `backend-quality`: the handler, service and repository layering and its pattern catalogue | `backend-quality` | removed with the template; declare a stack's own architecture in a fork |
+| `backend-quality`: process lifecycle, admin processes, outbound timeouts, auth before logic, rate limits | `backend-quality` | `backend-http` |
+| `backend-quality`: N+1, async I/O, API deprecation, circuit breaker, outbox | `backend-quality` | already in `backend-database`, `backend-concurrency`, `backend-api`, `backend-errors`, `backend-messaging` |
 | The numbered-document check after concurrent merges, the first-CI-run rule for a check on its own change | `base-git` | this repository's playbook; the `check-heading-numbers` hook still ships |
 | The submodule update after a pin bump, the base64 bundle mask, the `.vscode` allowlist | `base-git` | removed; a neutral editor-settings rule remains |
 | Factory classmethods; `*-overlay.png` naming | `base-oop`, `base-measurement` | neutral rules remain |
diff --git a/templates/backend/http.md b/templates/backend/http.md
index 7810ea0c..b9735177 100644
--- a/templates/backend/http.md
+++ b/templates/backend/http.md
@@ -9,10 +9,29 @@
 - Use a well-known default in development, and the port the platform
   assigns in production
 
+## Process lifecycle
+- Start fast — keep initialisation short (MUST)
+- Shut down gracefully on `SIGTERM`: finish in-flight work, release
+  resources, then exit (MUST)
+- Force-exit when a graceful shutdown passes its deadline
+- Recover cleanly when a process is killed without warning (`SIGKILL`,
+  power loss) (MUST)
+- Keep no state in the process; use external stores, so any instance can
+  be replaced
+
+## Admin processes
+- Run one-off tasks (migrations, data fixes, REPL sessions) with the
+  application's code, config and dependencies (MUST)
+- Commit admin scripts to the repository; never run them as ad-hoc shell
+  commands (MUST)
+- Prefer idempotent scripts — safe to re-run
+- Never run an admin task against production without a tested rollback plan
+
 ## Handler design
 - Handlers are thin: decode request → call service → encode response
 - No business logic in handlers — delegate to a service layer
 - Validate all incoming request data before processing
+- Set a timeout on every outbound call (HTTP clients, database queries)
 
 ## URI design
 - Path segments MUST be lowercase with hyphens as word separators —
@@ -105,3 +124,5 @@
   authorisation
 - Internal API endpoints SHOULD require authentication at minimum
 - Write endpoints MUST NOT be accessible without a valid authenticated identity
+- Apply authentication and authorisation before any business logic runs
+- Rate-limit public endpoints — never expose an unbounded write operation
diff --git a/templates/backend/quality.md b/templates/backend/quality.md
deleted file mode 100644
index b9901f96..00000000
--- a/templates/backend/quality.md
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,77 +0,0 @@
-# Backend — Quality Attributes
-[ID: backend-quality]
-[DEPENDS ON: templates/core/quality.md, templates/core/oop.md]
-[DEPENDS ON: templates/security/security.md, templates/infra/containers.md]
-
-## Layered architecture
-- Enforce a strict handler → service → repository separation
-- No database access in handlers — always go through the service layer
-- No HTTP concerns in the service layer — services are framework-agnostic
-- Domain logic lives in the service layer, not in models or schemas
-
-## Design patterns
-
-Prefer these patterns for backend concerns:
-
-- **Repository** — abstract all data access behind a repository interface;
-  the service layer never constructs queries directly
-- **Service layer** — encapsulate business logic in service objects that
-  hold their injected collaborators and no request state; one service per
-  domain aggregate
-- **Unit of Work** — coordinate multiple repository operations in a single
-  transaction; commit or roll back as one atomic unit
-- **Factory / Factory Method** — centralise object construction, especially
-  for domain objects with complex invariants
-- **Strategy** — swap algorithms or business rules (pricing, validation,
-  export format) at runtime without modifying the caller
-- **Observer / Event** — decouple producers from consumers for domain events
-  (user registered, order placed); use an internal event bus or message queue
-- **Circuit Breaker** — wrap all outbound calls to external services;
-  fail fast and recover gracefully rather than cascading timeouts
-- **Outbox** — when publishing an event must be atomic with a DB write,
-  write to an outbox table in the same transaction and relay asynchronously
-- **CQRS** — separate read models from write models when query and command
-  requirements diverge significantly; do not apply by default
-
-## Disposability
-
-- Processes MUST start fast — minimize initialization time
-- Processes MUST shut down gracefully on `SIGTERM` — finish
-  in-flight work, release resources, then exit
-- Set a shutdown timeout — if graceful shutdown exceeds the
-  deadline, force-exit
-- Design for crash safety — the system MUST recover cleanly if
-  a process is killed without warning (`SIGKILL`, power loss)
-- Do not store state in-process — use external stores (database,
-  cache, queue) so processes are disposable and replaceable
-
-## Admin processes
-
-- One-off tasks (migrations, data fixes, REPL sessions) MUST run
-  in the same environment as the application — same code, same
-  config, same dependencies
-- Admin scripts MUST be committed to the repository — not run
-  from ad-hoc shell commands
-- Prefer idempotent scripts — safe to re-run without side effects
-- Never run admin tasks directly against production without a
-  tested rollback plan
-
-## Security
-[EXTEND: security-input]
-
-- Rate-limit public endpoints — never expose unbounded write operations
-- Apply authentication and authorisation before any business logic
-  executes
-
-## Performance
-- Prefer async I/O for network-bound operations
-- Cache only when there is a measured need — document cache invalidation
-  strategy
-- Avoid N+1 queries — use eager loading or batch fetching
-- Set timeouts on all outbound calls (HTTP clients, DB queries)
-
-## API stability
-- Never remove or rename a field in a response without a deprecation period
-- Increment the API version (`/v2/`) for breaking changes — keep the old version
-  alive
-- Document deprecated endpoints; set a removal date before retiring them
diff --git a/templates/manifest.yaml b/templates/manifest.yaml
index 6691cdd4..70c022f9 100644
--- a/templates/manifest.yaml
+++ b/templates/manifest.yaml
@@ -170,10 +170,6 @@ backend:
     file: templates/backend/monitoring.md
     description: Key metrics, thresholds, alerts, dashboards, incidents
     depends_on: [backend-observability]
-  - id: backend-quality
-    file: templates/backend/quality.md
-    description: Layered architecture, security, performance, API stability
-    depends_on: [base-quality, base-oop, base-security, base-containers]
 stacks:
   - id: stack-fixture
     file: templates/fixture/stack.md
diff --git a/tests/baselines/template-quality.txt b/tests/baselines/template-quality.txt
index 6679eeec..3acae237 100644
--- a/tests/baselines/template-quality.txt
+++ b/tests/baselines/template-quality.txt
@@ -11,13 +11,12 @@ templates/backend/edge.md 89.7
 templates/backend/errors.md 91.7
 templates/backend/features.md 92.2
 templates/backend/grpc.md 96.1
-templates/backend/http.md 96.4
+templates/backend/http.md 97.8
 templates/backend/jobs.md 97.2
 templates/backend/messaging.md 96.8
 templates/backend/microservices.md 93.5
 templates/backend/monitoring.md 98.5
 templates/backend/observability.md 96.6
-templates/backend/quality.md 98.3
 templates/backend/webhooks.md 86.9
 templates/core/agents.md 100.0
 templates/core/config.md 99.3