| name | analyzing-test-effectiveness |
| description | Use to audit test quality with SRE scrutiny - identifies weak tests, missing cases, and creates task docs for improvements |
<codex_compat>
This skill was ported from Claude Code. In Codex:
- "Skill tool" means read the skill's
SKILL.md from disk.
- "TodoWrite" means create and maintain a checklist section in your response.
- "Task()" means
spawn_agent (dispatch in parallel when needed).
- Claude-specific hooks and slash commands are not available; skip those steps.
</codex_compat>
<skill_overview>
High coverage is not the goal. Tests must catch real failures and justify their maintenance cost.
</skill_overview>
<rigidity_level>
MEDIUM FREEDOM - Follow the audit flow strictly, but adapt the exact categories and examples to the codebase.
</rigidity_level>
<quick_reference>
- Inventory the tests
- Classify them as strong, weak, or misleading
- Identify missing edge cases
- Create or update a task directory for test-quality improvements
</quick_reference>
<when_to_use>
- Coverage looks good but bugs still escape
- A test suite feels noisy or low-signal
- You want a quality-improvement backlog for tests
</when_to_use>
<the_process>
1. Audit the suite
Look for:
- tautological tests
- mock-heavy tests that prove little
- weak assertions
- missing edge cases
2. Explain each finding
For every weak area, say what real bug it would or would not catch.
3. Turn findings into tracked work
Create or update a task directory that captures:
- which tests to remove
- which tests to strengthen
- which missing scenarios to add
4. Refine before execution
Use sre-task-refinement to harden the improvement plan before implementation.
</the_process>
