spec-index

name	spec-index
version	4.0.0
description	[General] Use when you need to (re)generate a DERIVED navigation index, cross-capability ERD, or reimplementation guide assembled FROM the canonical Feature Specs under docs/specs/**. Never extracts a separate A-E engineering tree.

[BLOCKING] Execute skill steps in declared order. NEVER skip, reorder, or merge steps without explicit user approval. [BLOCKING] Before each step or sub-skill call, update task tracking: set in_progress when step starts, set completed when step ends. [BLOCKING] Every completed/skipped step MUST include brief evidence or explicit skip reason. [BLOCKING] If Task tools are unavailable, create and maintain an equivalent step-by-step plan tracker with the same status transitions.

Quick Summary

Portability: docs/specs/ is the fixed Feature Spec root.

Goal: Generate, on demand, a regenerable single-writer navigation layer (catalog + cross-capability ERD + rebuild guide) assembled FROM the canonical tech-free 8-section Feature Specs under docs/specs/{Bucket}/ — so a bucket can be browsed or replatformed without ever forking a second, hand-maintained source of truth. The Feature Specs are the source of truth; this skill only assembles regenerable aids over them.

Summary:

• This skill is a DERIVED-aid assembler only: it reads §1 Overview, §5 Domain Model Mermaid, and §8 TCs from existing Feature Specs to build INDEX.md (default), an optional cross-capability {Bucket}.erd.md, and an optional {Bucket}.reimplementation-guide.md — it NEVER authors business content.
• Hard prohibition is the load-bearing rule: never emit the retired A-E engineering tree, M## dirs, 00-module-registry.md, 01-domain-erd.md, 06-reimplementation-guide.md, or docs/specs/README.md/PRIORITY-INDEX.md. Use the {Bucket}.* filenames instead.
• Step 0 Scope Gate via AskUserQuestion (bucket + mode + artifacts) is BLOCKING and runs before any read; if the target bucket has no README.*.md specs, STOP and route to /spec — never fabricate a spec to index.
• Every generated file carries the > DERIVED — regenerate via /spec-index; do NOT hand-edit banner, links each row/entity back to its source spec, and keeps INDEX/ERD prose tech-free — only the reimplementation guide may name a target stack.

Renamed: repurposes the former /spec-discovery skill (v4.0.0 derived-aid rewrite) — /spec-discovery no longer resolves as a slash command; use /spec-index.

[SCOPE] This skill assembles a DERIVED index / ERD / reimplementation guide over the canonical Feature Specs. It MUST NOT emit a per-module A-E engineering bundle (A-domain-model, B-business-rules, C-api-contracts, D-events, E-user-journeys), M## directories, 00-module-registry.md, 01-domain-erd.md, or 06-reimplementation-guide.md — those are not part of the spec model; their content lives in the Feature Spec (thin-index-only contract: output is DERIVED — never emit A-E bundle files). Authority: docs/project-reference/spec-system-reference.md.

Inputs: the canonical 8-section Feature Specs (§1 Overview, §5 Domain Model Mermaid, §8 TCs). Code is the technical source of truth — read it ONLY to resolve cross-spec ERD relationships or a reimplementation build order, never to populate a parallel spec layer.

Modes:

Mode	Trigger	Input	Output
index	default — refresh derived aids	Feature Specs in the target bucket(s)	INDEX.md catalog (+ optional ERD / reimplementation guide), all DERIVED
audit	explicit request — staleness check	Feature Spec mtimes/git vs derived-artifact age	Stale-list report (which derived aids lag their source specs)

Workflow: /scout (locate specs) → /spec-index (assemble derived aids) → /review-changes → /watzup

Key Rules:

• [BLOCKING] Output is DERIVED and regenerable — every generated file carries a > DERIVED — regenerate via /spec-index; do NOT hand-edit banner. It is NEVER a second source of truth.
• [BLOCKING] MUST NOT emit M## dirs, A-E files, 00-module-registry.md, 01-domain-erd.md, 06-reimplementation-guide.md, docs/specs/README.md, or docs/specs/PRIORITY-INDEX.md (all retired). See Hard Prohibitions.
• §1-7 of a Feature Spec are tech-free; the derived INDEX/ERD inherit that. The reimplementation guide is the sole artifact allowed to name a target stack (it is a rebuild guide — spec-principles.md §3 exception).
• Every catalog row / ERD entity links back to the source Feature Spec; mark [UNVERIFIED] rather than guessing.
• Read docs/project-reference/spec-principles.md §3 (tech-agnostic + banned-token list) before writing any prose.

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App Bucket Mapping

Derived aids are organized by App Bucket (matches the single-home spec tree). Resolve service→bucket assignments from the canonical table in docs/project-reference/spec-system-reference.md → App Bucket Mapping — do not inline project-specific bucket names in this skill.

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Step 0 — Scope Gate (MANDATORY FIRST)

Before reading anything, use AskUserQuestion. Confirm:

Dimension	Question	Auto-Default
Bucket ★	Which App Bucket(s) — one bucket, several, or all of docs/specs/?	— must confirm
Mode ★	index (regenerate derived aids) OR audit (report which derived aids are stale vs their source specs)?	index
Artifacts	Which derived aids: bucket INDEX.md / cross-capability ERD / reimplementation guide?	INDEX.md only
Stack note	(reimplementation guide only) Name a target rebuild stack, or keep stack-neutral build order?	Stack-neutral

[BLOCKING] If the target bucket has no Feature Specs matching docs/specs/{Bucket}/README.*.md, STOP and route the user to /spec — there is nothing to derive from. NEVER fabricate a spec to index.

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Step 1 — Read the Source Feature Specs

1. Glob docs/specs/{Bucket}/README.*.md → enumerate the canonical specs.
2. For each spec, read and extract ONLY:
   • Capability name + file link
   • Summary — first sentence of ## 1. Overview
   • Feature code + TC count + status mix from ## 8. Test Specifications
   • Entities + relationships from the ## 5. Domain Model ```mermaid block (for ERD assembly)
3. Do NOT re-derive business rules, API contracts, or events into new files — those live in the Feature Spec (§1-7) and in code. You are indexing, not extracting.

Scale note: For a bucket with many specs, you MAY spawn parallel reader sub-agents (one per spec) that each return the extracted fields above. This is an optimization, not a gate — there is no per-module A-E extraction to parallelize anymore.

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Step 2 — Assemble the Derived Aids

2a. Bucket INDEX.md (default)

Regenerate docs/specs/{Bucket}/INDEX.md as a feature catalog:

> **DERIVED — regenerate via `/spec-index`; do NOT hand-edit.** Source of truth: the Feature Specs in `docs/specs/{Bucket}/README.*.md`.

# {Bucket} — Feature Index

| Capability                 | Summary             | Feature Code | TCs | Status         |
| -------------------------- | ------------------- | ------------ | --- | -------------- |
| [{Name}](README.{Name}.md) | {one-line overview} | {FC}         | {n} | {Active/Draft} |

/spec owns the canonical Feature Specs only. /spec-index owns this derived INDEX.md and regenerates it deterministically from the specs, so there is one writer for the derived navigation file.

2b. Cross-Capability ERD (on request)

Assemble one Mermaid erDiagram from every spec's §5 block in the bucket:

• Merge entities; dedupe by name; keep cross-capability relationships.
• Resolve a relationship only present implicitly in code by reading the code — but the ERD stays tech-free (entity + relationship names only, no class/table identifiers in prose).
• Write to docs/specs/{Bucket}/{Bucket}.erd.md with the DERIVED banner. Do NOT name it 01-domain-erd.md (retired).

2c. Reimplementation Guide (on explicit request only)

A build-order narrative: capability dependency order, integration touchpoints, suggested rebuild sequence.

• This is the only derived artifact permitted to name a target stack (rebuild-guide exception, spec-principles.md §3).
• Write to docs/specs/{Bucket}/{Bucket}.reimplementation-guide.md with the DERIVED banner. Do NOT name it 06-reimplementation-guide.md (retired).

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Step 3 — Stamp & Write

• Every generated file opens with the > DERIVED — regenerate via /spec-index; do NOT hand-edit banner + a regenerate date.
• Write each file immediately after assembling it; do NOT accumulate large outputs in context.

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Step 4 — Verify (self-check before completing)

• No retired artifacts emitted — grep your own output paths: zero M[0-9], zero A-domain-model/B-business-rules/C-api-contracts/D-events/E-user-journeys, zero 00-module-registry/01-domain-erd/06-reimplementation-guide, zero docs/specs/README.md/PRIORITY-INDEX.md.
• Every catalog row links to an existing Feature Spec (no dangling links).
• DERIVED banner present on each generated file.
• §1-7-derived prose is tech-free (INDEX/ERD); only the reimplementation guide may name a stack.
• No canonical claims — the derived files never assert they are the source of truth.

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Hard Prohibitions (R1 mitigation — NON-NEGOTIABLE)

This skill produces only the DERIVED index / ERD / reimplementation guide. Emitting an A-E engineering tree would create a second source of truth competing with the Feature Spec. Therefore this skill MUST NEVER create:

Forbidden output	Why
M## directories (e.g., M01/, M02/)	Retired per-module partition
A-domain-model.md / B-business-rules.md / C-api-contracts.md / D-events.md / E-user-journeys.md	Retired A-E engineering bundle — content lives in the Feature Spec
00-module-registry.md	Retired registry — bucket INDEX.md is the catalog
01-domain-erd.md	Retired per-system ERD name — use {Bucket}.erd.md
06-reimplementation-guide.md	Retired per-system name — use {Bucket}.reimplementation-guide.md
docs/specs/README.md, docs/specs/PRIORITY-INDEX.md	Retired QA dashboards — Section 8 is the canonical TC registry
docs/business-features/**	Not a spec home — all specs live under docs/specs/

If a user explicitly asks for an A-E bundle, explain it is retired and offer the derived index/ERD instead. The thin-index-only contract applies — output is DERIVED, never an A-E bundle.

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Selective Artifact Mode

User goal	Generate
"Refresh the bucket index"	INDEX.md only
"I need the data model across the app"	Cross-capability ERD ({Bucket}.erd.md)
"Produce a rebuild guide"	Reimplementation guide (stack-neutral unless named)
"Full navigation set"	INDEX.md + ERD + reimplementation guide

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Next Steps

[BLOCKING] After completing, use AskUserQuestion — DO NOT skip:

• "/docs-update (Recommended)" — sync the Feature Specs + Section 8 if any source content was found stale during indexing
• "/watzup" — wrap up if index generation is the final step
• "Skip, continue manually" — user decides

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Related Skills

Skill	Relationship	When to Call
/spec	Source owner — authors the canonical 8-section Feature Spec and flags when derived refresh may be required	Before spec-index — the specs must exist to index
/spec [mode=tests]	Source owner — owns Section 8 TCs that this skill counts in the catalog	When TCs change and the index TC counts must refresh
/docs-update	Orchestrator — may call spec-index to refresh derived aids after a doc sync	After code/spec changes need a full doc sync
/review-changes	Trigger — detects spec changes and surfaces stale derived aids	After spec changes; it will suggest regenerating the index

What Is Spec Discovery? (v4.0.0)

A derived-index generator over the single-home spec tree. The canonical knowledge is the tech-free 8-section Feature Spec; this skill assembles regenerable navigation aids (catalog, cross-capability ERD, rebuild guide) so readers can browse a bucket or plan a replatform without a second hand-maintained layer. It does NOT reverse-engineer code into a parallel spec bundle — that role was retired with the A-E tree.

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Cross-Service Check — Microservices/event-driven: MANDATORY before concluding investigation, plan, spec, or feature doc. Missing downstream consumer = silent regression.

Boundary	Grep terms
Event producers	Publish, Dispatch, Send, emit, EventBus, outbox, IntegrationEvent
Event consumers	Consumer, EventHandler, Subscribe, @EventListener, inbox
Sagas/orchestration	Saga, ProcessManager, Choreography, Workflow, Orchestrator
Sync service calls	HTTP/gRPC calls to/from other services
Shared contracts	OpenAPI spec, proto, shared DTO — flag breaking changes
Data ownership	Other service reads/writes same table/collection → Shared-DB anti-pattern

Per touchpoint: owner service · message name · consumers · risk (NONE / ADDITIVE / BREAKING).

BLOCKED until: Producers scanned · Consumers scanned · Sagas checked · Contracts reviewed · Breaking-change risk flagged

AI Mistake Prevention — Failure modes to avoid on every task:

Re-read files after context changes. Context compaction, resume, or long-running work can make memory stale; verify current files before acting. Verify generated content against source evidence. AI hallucinates APIs, names, claims, and document facts. Check the relevant source before documenting or referencing. Check downstream references before deleting or renaming. Removing an artifact can stale docs, generated mirrors, configs, and callers; map references first. Trace the full impact chain after edits. Changing a definition can miss derived outputs and consumers. Follow the affected chain before declaring done. Verify ALL affected outputs, not just the first. One green check is not all green checks; validate every output surface the change can affect. Assume existing values are intentional — ask WHY before changing. Before changing a constant, limit, flag, wording, or pattern, read nearby context and history. Surface ambiguity before acting — don't pick silently. Multiple valid interpretations require an explicit question or stated assumption with risk. Keep shared guidance role-relevant. Universal guidance must help every receiving skill or agent; code-specific obligations belong only in code-specific protocols.

Critical Thinking Mindset — Apply critical thinking, sequential thinking. Every claim needs traced proof, confidence >80% to act. Anti-hallucination: Never present guess as fact — cite sources for every claim, admit uncertainty freely, self-check output for errors, cross-reference independently, stay skeptical of own confidence — certainty without evidence root of all hallucination.

MUST ATTENTION apply critical + sequential thinking — every claim needs appropriate traced evidence (file:line for repo/code claims; source URL or artifact section for research, product, content, and docs claims); confidence >80% to act, <60% DO NOT recommend. Anti-hallucination: never present guess as fact, admit uncertainty freely, cross-reference independently, stay skeptical of own confidence.

MUST ATTENTION apply AI mistake prevention — verify generated content against evidence, trace downstream references before deleting or renaming, verify all affected outputs, re-read files after context loss, and surface ambiguity before acting.

Prompt-Enhance Closing Anchors

IMPORTANT MUST ATTENTION follow declared step order for this skill; NEVER skip, reorder, or merge steps without explicit user approval IMPORTANT MUST ATTENTION for every step/sub-skill call: set in_progress before execution, set completed after execution IMPORTANT MUST ATTENTION every skipped step MUST include explicit reason; every completed step MUST include concise evidence IMPORTANT MUST ATTENTION if Task tools unavailable, maintain an equivalent step-by-step plan tracker with synchronized statuses

Closing Reminders

• IMPORTANT MUST ATTENTION Goal: Give readers a regenerable, single-writer navigation layer (catalog + cross-capability ERD + rebuild guide) assembled FROM the canonical Feature Specs — so a bucket can be browsed or replatformed without ever forking a second, hand-maintained source of truth

Protocols in force (concise digest of the SYNC/shared blocks this skill carries — MUST ATTENTION each canonical body above):

• Cross-Service Check: scan producers/consumers/sagas/contracts; flag breaking-change risk.

• AI Mistake Prevention: verify generated content against evidence, trace downstream references, verify all affected outputs, re-read after context loss, surface ambiguity.

• Critical Thinking: NEVER present a guess as fact; traced proof, confidence >80% to act.

• IMPORTANT MUST ATTENTION [BLOCKING] Output is DERIVED — never emit M##/A-E/00-module-registry/01-domain-erd/06-reimplementation-guide/QA-dashboard files (see Hard Prohibitions); use {Bucket}.* filenames instead — why: an A-E bundle becomes a second source of truth competing with the Feature Spec

• IMPORTANT MUST ATTENTION [BLOCKING] The Feature Spec (docs/specs/{Bucket}/README.{Feature}.md) is the source of truth — this skill assembles, never authors, business content — why: a derived aid that asserts canonical authority corrupts the single-writer contract

• IMPORTANT MUST ATTENTION [BLOCKING] Confirm bucket + mode + artifacts via AskUserQuestion BEFORE Step 1 — NEVER auto-start; if the bucket has no README.*.md specs, STOP and route to /spec instead of fabricating a spec to index

• IMPORTANT MUST ATTENTION [BLOCKING] Context compaction/session resume → TaskList FIRST; resume existing tasks, never re-run a completed generation pass — why: summaries describe intent, not filesystem state

• IMPORTANT MUST ATTENTION [BLOCKING] Stamp the DERIVED banner + regenerate date on every generated file; write after each artifact, never accumulate large outputs in context

• IMPORTANT MUST ATTENTION [REQUIRED] INDEX/ERD prose tech-agnostic (read spec-principles.md §3 banned-token list FIRST); only a reimplementation guide may name a target stack (rebuild-guide exception)

• IMPORTANT MUST ATTENTION [REQUIRED] Every catalog row / ERD entity links to an existing Feature Spec — grep the source path to confirm it resolves; mark [UNVERIFIED] rather than guessing — why: dangling links silently rot the navigation layer

• IMPORTANT MUST ATTENTION Read code ONLY to resolve a cross-spec ERD relationship or a reimplementation build order — never to populate a parallel spec layer — why: code is the technical source of truth, not a spec substitute

Anti-Rationalization:

Evasion	Rebuttal
"User wants full detail — regenerate the A-E bundle"	A-E is not part of the spec model. Offer the derived index/ERD; the detail already lives in the Feature Spec + code.
"I'll write the ERD as 01-domain-erd.md"	Wrong filename. Use {Bucket}.erd.md with the DERIVED banner.
"The index can be the source of truth, it's complete"	NEVER — it is derived/regenerable. §1-7 + §8 of the Feature Spec are canonical.
"No specs in this bucket, I'll extract from code"	STOP. Route to /spec. This skill indexes existing specs; it does not author new ones.
"Scope is obvious, skip Step 0 AskUserQuestion"	BLOCKING — NEVER auto-start. Bucket, mode, and artifact set MUST be confirmed first.
"I'll just trust the spec link, no need to verify"	Grep the source path. A dangling link makes the derived navigation layer worse than none.
"TC count looks about right, skip re-reading §8"	NEVER guess counts. Re-read ## 8. Test Specifications; mark [UNVERIFIED] if unresolved.

[TASK-PLANNING] MUST ATTENTION analyze task scope and break into small todo tasks/sub-tasks via TaskCreate before acting.

[IMPORTANT] Break into many small todo tasks systematically before starting — this is critical.

IMPORTANT MUST ATTENTION Output is DERIVED + regenerable — never a second source of truth; the Feature Spec is canonical. IMPORTANT MUST ATTENTION Confirm bucket + mode + artifacts via AskUserQuestion BEFORE any read; no specs → STOP, route to /spec. IMPORTANT MUST ATTENTION Cite file:line for every extracted field; mark [UNVERIFIED] rather than guessing; never emit retired A-E/M##/QA-dashboard files.

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