| name | review-spec |
| description | Use after implementing tasks or mid-feature to verify code matches design docs and ensure they are in sync.
Detects spec deviations, missing implementations, doc inconsistencies, and outdated docs in design and implementation documentation.
|
Implementation Review
Conventions
Overview
Systematically compare implemented code against a feature's design.md, implementation.md, and tasks.md in /docs/wip/[feature]/. Works both mid-implementation (reviewing completed tasks only) and post-implementation (full feature review).
Findings go in both directions — code that deviates from spec AND spec that is wrong or outdated given the code.
Required Outputs
Before declaring the review complete, verify all outputs are delivered:
Indexing is owned by this skill — callers (e.g., /kk:implement) do NOT duplicate it.
Review Modes
Standard Mode (/kk:review-spec)
Reviews spec conformance in the main conversation context. Single-pass review using the workflow below.
Isolated Mode (/kk:review-spec:isolated)
Delegates detection to an independent spec-reviewer sub-agent that did not write the code, then annotates its findings with type-specific author context. Low-relevance types (MISSING_IMPL, DOC_INCON, OUTDATED_DOC, AMBIGUOUS) get brief annotations; high-relevance types (SPEC_DEV, EXTRA_IMPL) get detailed annotations with spec update suggestions.
- Cost: Higher (sub-agent + annotation)
- Isolation: True — reviewer has zero authorship bias or session context
- Degradation: If sub-agent fails, suggests standard mode fallback
- Best for: When extra rigor is worth the cost (post-implementation, pre-merge)
See review-isolated.md for the isolated workflow.
Finding Types
Each finding is classified by type (what kind of mismatch) and severity (how urgent).
| Type | Code | Description | Example |
|---|
| Missing Implementation | MISSING_IMPL | Spec describes something that was not implemented | Design says "rate limiting on /api/auth" but no rate limiter exists |
| Extra Implementation | EXTRA_IMPL | Code implements something not in the spec | A caching layer was added that design docs don't mention |
| Spec Deviation | SPEC_DEV | Code implements the feature but differently than specified | Design says "bcrypt cost 12" but code uses cost 10 |
| Doc Inconsistency | DOC_INCON | Documentation contradicts itself or is internally inconsistent | design.md says JWT tokens, implementation.md says session cookies |
| Outdated Doc | OUTDATED_DOC | Code is correct but docs haven't been updated to reflect reality | Endpoint was renamed during implementation but docs still reference old name |
| Ambiguous Spec | AMBIGUOUS | Spec is unclear enough that multiple interpretations are valid | "Support pagination" without specifying cursor vs offset |
IaC Profile Semantics
When profile detection identifies an Infrastructure-as-Code profile (e.g., Kubernetes, Terraform), the declarative artifacts ARE the implementation — there is no separate runtime code to trace. Apply these adjusted type-mappings:
- A design-specified resource whose manifest is absent →
MISSING_IMPL (absence in declarative systems is a gap, not a pending item or inconsistency)
- A field value in a manifest that disagrees with the design →
SPEC_DEV
- A manifest resource the design does not mention →
EXTRA_IMPL
DOC_INCON and OUTDATED_DOC apply unchanged — their semantics are doc-vs-doc or code-vs-doc, which declarative IaC does not alter.
For each active IaC profile that populates a review-spec/ slot, load ${TOOLBOX_PLUGIN_ROOT}/profiles/<name>/review-spec/index.md for domain-specific verification patterns.
Severity Levels
Same P0–P3 scale as /kk:review-code, adapted for spec conformance:
| Level | Name | Description | Action |
|---|
| P0 | Critical | Missing core functionality, security spec violated, data model mismatch | Must fix before merge |
| P1 | High | Significant behavioral deviation from spec, missing error handling that spec requires | Should fix before merge |
| P2 | Medium | Minor deviation, doc inconsistency, partial implementation of a spec requirement | Fix or create follow-up |
| P3 | Low | Naming mismatch, doc typo, cosmetic deviation from spec | Optional |
Confidence Levels
Each finding gets a confidence score (1–10) with mandatory reasoning explaining what was checked, what evidence supports the finding, and what uncertainty remains.
| Score | Meaning |
|---|
| 9–10 | Certain — direct, unambiguous contradiction between spec and code |
| 7–8 | Strong — clear evidence but minor room for interpretation |
| 5–6 | Moderate — likely issue but spec is somewhat vague or code has plausible alternative reading |
| 3–4 | Uncertain — possible issue, needs human judgment |
| 1–2 | Speculative — gut feeling, very ambiguous spec or indirect evidence |
Workflow
Mandatory order — spec before code. The flow below is strictly sequential. Do not read implementation code, run grep against the codebase, or form spec-deviation findings until you have loaded the feature's design/implementation docs AND completed profile detection and loaded all resolved review-spec/ profile content. The only early contact with the implementation is a feature-directory listing (filenames only) — enough to drive profile detection, not enough to pattern-match deviations.
See review-process.md for the detailed step-by-step process.
Phases:
- Load feature documents — read
tasks.md, design.md, implementation.md (the spec, not the subject matter)
- Capy search: Search
kk:arch-decisions for design rationale that may explain intentional spec deviations. Search kk:review-findings for known patterns from prior reviews.
- Detect active profiles and load
review-spec/ content from matching profiles
- Determine review scope (mid-implementation vs post-implementation)
- Per-task verification against spec — only now read implementation code (apply IaC type-mapping when an IaC profile is active)
- Cross-cutting concern check
- Self-check and confidence assessment
- Present findings
- Index confirmed deviations — index user-confirmed intentional
SPEC_DEV/EXTRA_IMPL as kk:arch-decisions
Invocation
Use the /kk:review-spec [feature-name] command, or invoke naturally when a user asks to verify implementation against docs.
For isolated mode with an independent sub-agent:
/kk:review-spec:isolated [feature-name]
