refactoring

name	refactoring
description	Use when the user asks to "refactor", restructure, clean up, simplify, deduplicate, extract, or reorganize code. Enforces the Martin Fowler discipline defined in src/.coding_rules.md and .cursor/08-testing-and-deployment.mdc.

OntoBricks refactoring

"Refactor" = the Martin Fowler definition. The canonical guides are src/.coding_rules.md (long-form) and .cursor/08-testing-and-deployment.mdc §Working Style for Refactoring (the 5-step procedure). Read those first; this skill only sequences the work.

Procedure

For every refactor request, follow the 5 steps from .cursor/08:

1. Summarize the relevant module/function (1–3 sentences).
2. List code smells, mapping each to a named refactoring (Fowler catalog).
3. Propose an ordered plan (2–5 steps).
4. Apply in small, reviewable chunks — one route, one method, one file at a time.
5. After each chunk: name the refactorings applied, explain the structural improvement, list remaining smells.

Run uv run pytest -q between chunks for non-trivial sequences. Behavior must stay identical — see src/.coding_rules.md §1.1.

Smell → refactoring quick lookup

The full table lives in .cursor/05-code-style-and-structure §Code Smells and src/.coding_rules.md §2. The few I reach for most often:

Smell	Refactoring
Long route handler	Extract Method into the matching back/objects/ class
Legacy service.py	Move Function + delete service.py once empty
Repeated try/except → JSON envelope	Extract Function or rely on the global handler
Long parameter list / data clump	Introduce Parameter Object (Pydantic / @dataclass)
Magic strings/codes	Replace Magic Number with Symbolic Constant in constants.py
God service	Extract Class by domain + Move Function
Module-level functions sharing state	Convert to a class (one public class per file, PascalCase)

Don't

• Don't bundle behavioural changes with a refactor — separate commits.
• Don't rename a public class/method without a backward-compat wrapper in __init__.py (.cursor/07 §__init__.py Conventions).
• Don't skip the changelog (changelog skill).