| name | dev-framework |
| description | 9-stage dev workflow with auto project-type detection and phase-aware overlays. Routes through discover→scaffold→plan→execute→verify→review→ship→deploy→learn with gates appropriate to UI/AI/backend/quant/CLI/library/mobile projects. Use when starting a new project, beginning a major feature, or asked to "follow the full pipeline", "use the dev framework", "ship properly", "run the full chain", or "do this the right way". |
Dev Framework
A complete 9-stage development pipeline that adapts to the project type. Forces the gates that catch real failures (runtime verification, security review, design review, deploy verification) and resists speed-directive erosion.
When to use
- Starting a new project or major feature
- Before any non-trivial multi-step work
- When asked: "follow the full pipeline", "use the dev framework", "ship properly", "do this the right way", "run the full chain"
How it works — 3 steps
Step 1 — Scan the project. Run the platform-appropriate scanner:
# Windows (this machine default)
powershell -File C:/Users/skf_s/.claude/skills/dev-framework/scripts/scan-project.ps1
bash ~/.claude/skills/dev-framework/scripts/scan-project.sh
Output is JSON with: types (with confidence scores), phase, sensitivity flags, artifacts present, branch, has_pr_open.
Step 2 — Load matching overlay(s). Based on types, read the corresponding files from overlays/:
| Detected type | Overlay file |
|---|
ui | overlays/ui.md |
ai-agent | overlays/ai-agent.md |
backend | overlays/backend.md |
quant | overlays/quant.md |
cli | overlays/cli.md |
library | overlays/library.md |
mobile | overlays/mobile.md |
Multi-type allowed: a Next.js app with FastAPI backend loads ui + backend. Union of gates fires.
Step 3 — Walk the chain. Read PIPELINE.md for the full 9-stage definitions, then proceed from the detected phase.
Critical gates (BLOCKING — strict profile)
These BLOCK phase progression if missing. Speed directives DO NOT bypass.
- VERIFY: runtime evidence required — drive the affected flow end-to-end and capture output (
/qa for UI, real commands for CLIs/APIs, /smoke-test after deploys)
- REVIEW:
/self-review → /review → /codex on diff. /cso if sensitive. /design-review if UI.
- SHIP:
/ship-check clean, CHANGELOG entry, version bumped (libraries)
- DEPLOY:
/land-and-deploy + /canary clean
Full rules in ENFORCEMENT.md.
Anti-erosion (CRITICAL)
The v1.7.7 hippo release skipped /review and /ship-check under speed pressure — Keith caught it twice. The chain is only as strong as its weakest "/fast" moment. Speed directives (/fast, /full-power, /ship, "just do it") accelerate execution WITHIN a gate. They never skip a gate.
When entering a phase, list required gates and confirm output before proceeding.
Failure recovery
If a gate fails: framing pass (<diagnosis>) → fix at root → re-run failed gate → proceed. See ENFORCEMENT.md § Failure recovery loops for per-gate patterns.
Per-Stage Invocation Contract (used by /dev-framework-rl)
When this skill is invoked by the experiential-RL orchestrator (/dev-framework-rl), it operates in a different mode: one stage per call, with machine-readable JSON sidecars so the orchestrator can run critics between stages and tally trajectory data.
Invocation modes
- Normal —
/dev-framework with no stage argument: Claude walks all 9 stages interactively, as documented above. No manifests written. Existing behaviour, unchanged.
- Per-stage —
/dev-framework <stage> with <episode-id> in the orchestrator's context: run only the named stage; emit trajectories/<episode-id>/<stage>.manifest.json at completion.
Valid stages: brainstorm, discover, scaffold, plan, execute, verify, review, ship, deploy, learn.
Stage-plan emission
At the end of the discover stage (per-stage mode only), also emit:
trajectories/<episode-id>/stage-plan.json
Contains the ordered list of stages that will actually run for the detected project_type. (Library projects may skip verify runtime evidence; CLI may skip deploy; etc.) The orchestrator iterates THIS list, not the hardcoded 9.
Stage-manifest emission
At the end of each stage (per-stage mode):
trajectories/<episode-id>/<stage>.manifest.json — status, summary, artifacts, optional cost + skill prompt hash.
Schemas (orchestrator validates against these)
~/.claude/dev-framework/schemas/stage-manifest.schema.json
~/.claude/dev-framework/schemas/stage-plan.schema.json
Both are JSON Schema 2020-12. Sidecars that fail validation cause the stage to be recorded as critic_status=error and escalated to a human. Validator: python ~/.claude/dev-framework/scripts/validate_manifest.py {manifest|plan} <path>.
Backward compatibility
The contract is opt-in. If <episode-id> is not in the invocation context, this entire contract is no-ops and the skill behaves exactly as documented in the rest of SKILL.md. /dev-framework-rl is the only caller that triggers per-stage mode.
Sub-commands and helpers
/dev-framework status — compact current-position readout
powershell -File C:/Users/skf_s/.claude/skills/dev-framework/scripts/status.ps1
Prints: phase, detected types, sensitivity flags, branch, artifact completeness, next gate.
phase-capture — auto-fire hippo capture on phase transitions
Runs the scanner, compares phase against last-recorded for this project, fires hippo capture if changed. Designed to run on Stop hook. See settings.json hook setup below.
powershell -File C:/Users/skf_s/.claude/skills/dev-framework/scripts/phase-capture.ps1
State persisted at ~/.claude/dev-framework-state.txt (one project per line).
Telemetry — log which gates caught real issues
Log a gate outcome:
powershell -File C:/Users/skf_s/.claude/skills/dev-framework/scripts/log-gate.ps1 `
-Project "C:/Users/skf_s/hippo" `
-Gate "/cso" `
-Phase "REVIEW" `
-Outcome "caught" `
-Notes "found XSS in markdown render"
Outcomes: passed | caught (gate earned its keep) | failed (blocked progression) | skipped
Report aggregated insights:
powershell -File C:/Users/skf_s/.claude/skills/dev-framework/scripts/telemetry-report.ps1 -Days 30
# Optional: -Project <substring> to filter
Surfaces:
- Gate-outcome totals (which gates run, which catch)
- Recent gates that caught real issues
- Recent gates that were skipped
- Per-project insights ("you've never used
/cso but caught 3 auth bugs at review" pattern)
Settings.json hook setup (optional, manual — see below)
To auto-fire phase-capture on every Stop event, add the hook config shown by:
Get-Content C:/Users/skf_s/.claude/skills/dev-framework/HOOK-SETUP.md
Files in this skill
SKILL.md — this entry point
PIPELINE.md — full 9-stage definitions with entry/exit criteria and hippo hooks
OVERLAYS.md — project-type detection table and routing
ENFORCEMENT.md — anti-erosion rules, critical gates, failure recovery loops, stakes/reversibility routers
CHECKLIST.md — 1-page human-readable reference card
HOOK-SETUP.md — proposed settings.json hook for phase-capture (manual install)
scripts/scan-project.ps1 — Windows project scanner (deps-based, no false-positive text matching)
scripts/scan-project.sh — Bash project scanner
scripts/artifact-check.ps1 — Documentation artifact verifier
scripts/status.ps1 — Compact one-liner status (used by /dev-framework status)
scripts/phase-capture.ps1 — Auto hippo capture on phase transitions (hook target)
scripts/log-gate.ps1 — Append-only telemetry log
scripts/telemetry-report.ps1 — Aggregate telemetry insights
overlays/{ui,ai-agent,backend,quant,cli,library,mobile}.md — per-type gate overlays
logs/telemetry.jsonl — append-only gate-outcome log (created on first log-gate call)
Quick chain reference
1. DISCOVER /office-hours | /search-first | /brainstorming | /plan-ceo-review
2. SCAFFOLD /project-scaffold + /design-consultation (UI)
3. PLAN /writing-plans → /plan-eng-review + /plan-design-review (UI) → /codex (plan)
4. EXECUTE /full-power | TDD/EDD | framing pass on fix-it sub-tasks
5. VERIFY /verify | /qa | /smoke-test | /run ← RUNTIME EVIDENCE REQUIRED
6. REVIEW /self-review → /review → /codex (diff) → /cso (sensitive) → /design-review (UI)
7. SHIP /ship-check → /sinking-ship → /commit or /ship → /publish-repo (library)
8. DEPLOY /land-and-deploy → /canary → Lighthouse (frontend)
9. LEARN /document-release → /retro → hippo outcome --good + hippo capture
One rule above all
Speed directives do not skip gates. If you're tempted to skip VERIFY, REVIEW, or DEPLOY under deadline pressure — that IS the failure mode the framework exists to prevent.