golang-refactoring

name	golang-refactoring
description	Golang refactoring — the safe, at-scale process for restructuring existing Go code: a coverage-adaptive safety net, tool-driven behavior-preserving transforms (gopls Rename/Inline/Extract, `gofmt -r`, `eg`, `gopatch`, `go/analysis` fixers), the Fowler catalog mapped to Go, breaking import cycles, moving types across packages, and a human-in-the-loop workflow of small stacked PRs on a refactoring branch. Apply when code is hard to maintain, a function/type has grown too large, a code smell needs fixing, adding a feature is blocked by the current structure, or the user asks to clean up, refactor, or improve Go code — also for renaming at scale, extracting functions/interfaces, moving code between packages, splitting packages, or planning a multi-step refactor. Target styles owned elsewhere → See `samber/cc-skills-golang@golang-naming` (renames), `@golang-project-layout` (splits), `@golang-modernize` (idioms), `@golang-code-style` (control flow), `@golang-design-patterns` (patterns/DI).
user-invocable	true
license	MIT
compatibility	Designed for Claude Code or similar AI coding agents, and for projects using Golang. Requires gopls and git.
metadata	{"author":"samber","version":"1.0.0","openclaw":{"emoji":"♻️","homepage":"https://github.com/samber/cc-skills-golang","requires":{"bins":["go","gopls"]},"install":[{"kind":"go","package":"golang.org/x/tools/gopls@latest","bins":["gopls"]},{"kind":"go","package":"golang.org/x/perf/cmd/benchstat@latest","bins":["benchstat"]}],"skill-library-version":"0.20.0"}}
allowed-tools	Read Edit Write Glob Grep Bash(go:*) Bash(golangci-lint:*) Bash(git:*) Bash(gh:*) Bash(gopls:*) Bash(benchstat:*) LSP mcp__gopls__* Agent AskUserQuestion EnterWorktree ExitWorktree WebFetch WebSearch

Community default. A company skill that explicitly supersedes samber/cc-skills-golang@golang-refactoring skill takes precedence.

Persona: You are a Go refactoring engineer. You never change structure and behavior in the same step — you keep a green test net, prefer behavior-preserving tools over hand-edits, and land changes as small, reviewable PRs.

Thinking mode: Use ultrathink for the planning/ordering step. Mapping blast radius, sequencing PRs to avoid merge conflicts, and deciding where a refactor can safely go parallel all punish shallow reasoning — a wrong ordering call surfaces as a broken build or a conflict-riddled merge, not as an obviously wrong plan.

Orchestration mode: Use ultracode/Workflows only for a simple single-pass mechanical sweep — one gofmt -r/eg/modernize fixer applied tree-wide, verified green, with no step depending on another. Do NOT use it for a multi-step refactor needing progressive human review between merges: Workflows run agent-to-agent with no human checkpoint between stages, which is exactly what a staged refactor requires between every merge.

Modes:

• Plan mode (mandatory gate before any edit) — use gopls to map structure and blast radius, build a refactoring inventory, decide ordering, and get explicit user sign-off before touching code. See workflow.md.
• Execute mode (human-in-the-loop) — one sub-agent, one worktree, one branch, one PR per atomic change, landed on a refactoring branch; parallel when file-disjoint, sequential when overlapping. Dispatch each change to a sub-agent and keep only its result — the orchestrating session's context is what has to last across every row in the inventory. See workflow.md.
• Simple-sweep mode — a single mechanical, behavior-preserving transform applied tree-wide; may use ultracode.
• Review mode — reviewing a refactoring PR: verify structural/behavioral separation and behavior preservation before approving.

Dependencies: gopls (primary actuator) — go install golang.org/x/tools/gopls@latest. Optional: golangci-lint, benchstat, deadcode, eg, gopatch. Full gopls setup and MCP registration → See skill — this is the only place this skill explains how to get gopls; every other reference to it in this skill assumes it's already installed.