setup

name	setup
description	Use when the user asks to "verify Flask project setup", "check Flask structure", "is my Flask app set up correctly", "validate Flask project", or needs to confirm that a Flask project follows recommended patterns and has correct file structure.

Flask Project Setup Verification

Verify that a Flask project is correctly structured and follows recommended patterns.

Project Structure Check

Inspect the project root for these expected elements:

Item	Purpose	Required?
app.py or wsgi.py	Application entry point with factory function	Yes
requirements.txt or pyproject.toml	Python dependencies	Yes
models.py or models/	SQLAlchemy models	If using DB
routes/ or blueprints/	Blueprint modules	Recommended
templates/	Jinja2 HTML templates	If rendering HTML
static/	CSS, JS, images	If serving static files
instance/	Instance-specific config and SQLite DB	Common
.env or config.py	Configuration	Recommended

Verification Steps

1. Check Application Factory

Read the main app file and verify it uses the application factory pattern:

# Expected pattern
def create_app():
    app = Flask(__name__)
    app.config.from_object(...)
    # Initialize extensions
    db.init_app(app)
    login_manager.init_app(app)
    # Register blueprints
    app.register_blueprint(auth_bp)
    return app

If the app uses a global app = Flask(__name__) instead, flag it — the factory pattern is strongly recommended for testability and multiple instances.

2. Check Dependencies

Read requirements.txt or pyproject.toml and verify core Flask packages:

Package	Purpose
Flask	Core framework
Flask-SQLAlchemy	Database ORM integration
Flask-Login	Session-based authentication
Flask-WTF	Form handling and CSRF (optional)
Flask-Migrate	Database migrations via Alembic (recommended)
python-dotenv	Environment variable loading (recommended)
gunicorn	Production WSGI server (recommended)

3. Check Blueprint Registration

Verify that routes are organized into blueprints and registered in the factory:

# In routes/auth.py
auth_bp = Blueprint('auth', __name__)

# In app.py create_app()
app.register_blueprint(auth_bp)

4. Check Configuration

Verify that sensitive values use environment variables, not hardcoded strings:

# Good
app.config['SECRET_KEY'] = os.environ.get('SECRET_KEY')

# Bad — hardcoded secret
app.config['SECRET_KEY'] = 'my-secret-key'

5. Common Setup Issues

Issue	Symptom	Fix
No app factory	Tests fail, circular imports	Wrap in create_app() function
Hardcoded SECRET_KEY	Security risk	Use os.environ.get('SECRET_KEY')
Missing __init__.py in routes/	Import errors	Add empty __init__.py
No .gitignore for instance/	Database committed to git	Add instance/ to .gitignore
No Flask-Migrate	Schema changes drop data	Add Alembic migrations

What This Skill Does NOT Cover

• Creating a new Flask project from scratch (see app-patterns skill)
• Database model design (see sqlalchemy-dev plugin)
• Deployment configuration (belongs in project template)