| name | managing-kinds |
| description | Registers and organizes custom artifact kinds in DNA. Use when the built-in template kinds do not cover a domain concept, or when setting up a new project with custom truth categories. |
Managing Kinds
Kinds categorize truth artifacts. The intent template provides 11 kinds, the agentic template provides 5. You can register additional kinds for domain-specific needs.
Listing registered kinds
dna kind list
Registering a new kind
dna kind add <slug> "<description>"
The slug must be:
- 2-64 characters
- Lowercase letters, numbers, and hyphens only
- Not a reserved word (all, any, artifact, config, kind, kinds, none, search, system)
The description should follow the pattern of built-in kinds: state what this kind captures in one sentence, then give an example with Ex:.
dna kind add runbook \
"Operational procedure for a specific failure mode. Ex: 'Database failover: promote read replica, update DNS, verify replication'"
When to create a new kind
Create a new kind when:
- Multiple artifacts share a category that does not fit existing kinds
- The category represents a distinct type of truth (not just a label value)
- You would search for this category specifically with
--kind
Do NOT create a new kind when:
- A label would suffice (
--label type=runbook on an existing kind)
- The category is a subcategory of an existing kind (use labels instead)
- Only one or two artifacts would use it
Kind naming
Use a singular noun that describes what the artifact IS:
runbook (not runbooks or operational-procedures)sla (not service-level-agreements)decision (not architectural-decisions)
MCP integration
When kinds are registered, the MCP server automatically generates tools for each kind:
dna_<kind>_search -- semantic search within this kinddna_<kind>_add -- store a new artifact of this kinddna_<kind>_list -- list all artifacts of this kind
Hyphens in slugs become underscores in tool names.
