update-starter

name	update-starter
description	Pull the latest framework updates from the arc-starter repo while preserving all of the user's context work. Trigger when the user asks to update arc-starter, pull the latest, upgrade the starter kit, or uses "/update-starter".
metadata	{"short-description":"Safe update of framework files, preserving user context"}

update-starter

Update this arc-starter repo to the latest version from origin/main. Preserve all user-authored context. Overwrite only framework files.

The contract

NEVER touch these paths. They are user work:

• context/**
• daily/**
• wiki/**
• imports/**
• Any file not in the framework allowlist below.

OVERWRITE these (safe, no founder customization expected):

• .claude/commands/**
• .claude/agents/**
• .claude/settings.json
• .claude/skills/**
• .codex/agents/**
• .codex/skills/**
• .codex/hooks.json
• extensions/active/**
• scripts/**
• hooks/**
• guides/**
• arc_starter/**
• setup.sh
• setup.ps1
• .gitattributes
• pyproject.toml
• uv.lock
• CHANGELOG.md

MERGE CAREFULLY (founder agents may have added preferences):

• AGENTS.md
• CLAUDE.md
• README.md

For MERGE CAREFULLY paths: read local + git show origin/main:<path>, preserve sections present only locally (founder additions), add sections present only upstream (new framework content), and STOP + ask if the same section differs in ways that look like founder customization vs minor upstream rewording. Full protocol in guides/update-prompt.md on origin/main.

When unsure, ASK. Don't guess.

Steps

1. Protect local work. git stash push -u -m "arc-update-$(date +%s)" Report the stash ref.

2. Fetch. git fetch origin main

3. Read CHANGELOG diff. Compare local CHANGELOG.md to origin/main:CHANGELOG.md. Summarise in 3-6 bullets of plain English.

4. Apply framework updates, path by path.

   For each path in the OVERWRITE list, run: git checkout origin/main -- <path> Skip paths that don't exist on origin/main.

   For each path in the MERGE CAREFULLY list:

   • Read local + git show origin/main:<path>
   • If identical, skip.
   • If only upstream changed, git checkout origin/main -- <path>.
   • If local has founder additions, merge: preserve local-only sections, add upstream-only sections, STOP + ask if the same section differs in non-trivial ways.
   • Report what was preserved and what was added from upstream.

5. Report.

   • What was updated (list files changed)
   • What was preserved (point at context/, daily/, wiki/, imports/)
   • Whether anything was stashed and how to recover
   • One suggested next move

6. Do not commit. Leave the tree for the user to review.

Guardrails

• Pre-flight. Run git status. Dirty framework files split into:
  • Dirty OVERWRITE paths → unexpected. STOP, list, ask: keep / overwrite / move-to-backup.
  • Dirty MERGE CAREFULLY paths (AGENTS.md, CLAUDE.md, README.md) → expected. Continue; merge protocol at step 4 handles them.
  • Dirty files outside the allowlist → user-owned, leave alone.
• If fetch fails, STOP. Report exactly what went wrong.
• If CHANGELOG diff is empty: "already on latest."
• NEVER git reset --hard, git clean -fd, or git push.
• NEVER touch non-allowlist paths.

Trigger examples

• "update arc-starter"
• "pull the latest starter"
• "upgrade my arc-starter"
• "/update-starter"