trellis-meta

name

trellis-meta

description

Meta-skill for understanding and customizing Mindfold Trellis — the all-in-one AI workflow system for 11 AI coding platforms (Claude Code, Cursor, OpenCode, iFlow, Codex, Kilo, Kiro, Gemini CLI, Antigravity, Qoder, CodeBuddy). Documents the original Trellis system design including architecture, commands, hooks, multi-agent pipelines, monorepo support, and task lifecycle hooks. Use when understanding Trellis architecture, customizing workflows, adding commands or agents, troubleshooting issues, or adapting Trellis to specific projects. Modifications should be recorded in a project-local trellis-local skill, not here.

Trellis Meta-Skill

Version Compatibility

Item	Value
Trellis CLI Version	0.4.0-beta.8
Skill Last Updated	2026-03-24
Min Claude Code Version	1.0.0+
Min Node.js Version	>=18.17.0

⚠️ Version Mismatch Warning: If your Trellis CLI version differs from above, some features may not work as documented. Run trellis --version to check.

---

Platform Compatibility

Feature Support Matrix

Feature	Claude Code	iFlow	Cursor	OpenCode	Codex	Kilo	Kiro	Gemini CLI	Antigravity	Qoder	CodeBuddy
Core Systems
Workspace system	✅ Full	✅ Full	✅ Full	✅ Full	✅ Full	✅ Full	✅ Full	✅ Full	✅ Full	✅ Full	✅ Full
Task system	✅ Full	✅ Full	✅ Full	✅ Full	✅ Full	✅ Full	✅ Full	✅ Full	✅ Full	✅ Full	✅ Full
Spec system	✅ Full	✅ Full	✅ Full	✅ Full	✅ Full	✅ Full	✅ Full	✅ Full	✅ Full	✅ Full	✅ Full
Commands/Skills	✅ Full	✅ Full	✅ Full	✅ Full	✅ Skills	✅ Full	✅ Skills	✅ TOML	✅ Workflows	✅ Skills	✅ Full
Agent definitions	✅ Full	✅ Full	⚠️ Manual	✅ Full	✅ TOML	⚠️ Manual	⚠️ Manual	⚠️ Manual	⚠️ Manual	⚠️ Manual	⚠️ Manual
Shared agent skills	—	—	—	—	✅ Full	—	—	—	—	—	—
Hook-Dependent Features
SessionStart hook	✅ Full	✅ Full	❌ None	❌ None	⚠️ Optional	❌ None	❌ None	❌ None	❌ None	❌ None	❌ None
PreToolUse hook	✅ Full	✅ Full	❌ None	❌ None	❌ None	❌ None	❌ None	❌ None	❌ None	❌ None	❌ None
SubagentStop hook	✅ Full	✅ Full	❌ None	❌ None	❌ None	❌ None	❌ None	❌ None	❌ None	❌ None	❌ None
Auto context injection	✅ Full	✅ Full	❌ Manual	❌ Manual	❌ Manual	❌ Manual	❌ Manual	❌ Manual	❌ Manual	❌ Manual	❌ Manual
Ralph Loop	✅ Full	✅ Full	❌ None	❌ None	❌ None	❌ None	❌ None	❌ None	❌ None	❌ None	❌ None
Multi-Agent/Session
Multi-Agent (current dir)	✅ Full	✅ Full	⚠️ Limited	⚠️ Limited	⚠️ Limited	⚠️ Limited	⚠️ Limited	⚠️ Limited	⚠️ Limited	⚠️ Limited	⚠️ Limited
Multi-Session (worktrees)	✅ Full	✅ Full	❌ None	❌ None	❌ None	❌ None	❌ None	❌ None	❌ None	❌ None	❌ None

Legend

• ✅ Full: Feature works as documented
• ⚠️ Limited/Manual: Works but requires manual steps
• ❌ None/Manual: Not supported or requires manual workaround

Platform Categories

Full Hook Support (Claude Code, iFlow)

All features work as documented. Hooks provide automatic context injection and quality enforcement. iFlow shares the same Python hook system as Claude Code.

Partial Hook Support (Codex)

• Works: Workspace, tasks, specs, skills (.codex/skills/ + .agents/skills/ shared layer), TOML agent definitions (.codex/agents/), optional SessionStart hook
• Doesn't work: PreToolUse, SubagentStop, Ralph Loop, Multi-Session
• Note: SessionStart hook requires codex_hooks = true in ~/.codex/config.toml

Commands Only (Cursor, OpenCode, Kilo, Kiro, Gemini CLI, Antigravity, Qoder, CodeBuddy)

• Works: Workspace, tasks, specs, commands/skills (platform-specific format)
• Doesn't work: Hooks, auto-injection, Ralph Loop, Multi-Session
• Workaround: Manually read spec files at session start; no automatic quality gates
• Note: Each platform uses its own command format (Kiro/Qoder use Skills, Gemini uses TOML, Antigravity uses Workflows, CodeBuddy uses nested Markdown commands)

Designing for Portability

When customizing Trellis, consider platform compatibility:

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                 PORTABLE (All 11 Platforms)                  │
│  - .trellis/workspace/    - .trellis/tasks/                 │
│  - .trellis/spec/         - Platform commands/skills        │
│  - File-based configs     - JSONL context files             │
│  - config.yaml            - Monorepo packages support       │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
                              │
┌─────────────────────────────▼───────────────────────────────┐
│         SHARED AGENT SKILLS (agentskills.io standard)       │
│  - .agents/skills/          (Codex + universal agent CLIs)  │
└─────────────────────────────┬───────────────────────────────┘
                              │
┌─────────────────────────────▼───────────────────────────────┐
│              HOOK-CAPABLE (Claude Code + iFlow)              │
│  - .claude/hooks/ or .iflow/hooks/                          │
│  - settings.json hook configuration                         │
│  - Auto context injection   - SubagentStop control          │
│  - Ralph Loop               - Multi-Session worktrees       │
│  - Task lifecycle hooks     - Dynamic spec discovery        │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

---

Purpose

This is the meta-skill for Trellis - it documents the original, unmodified Trellis system. When customizing Trellis for a specific project, record changes in a project-local skill (trellis-local), keeping this meta-skill as the authoritative reference for vanilla Trellis.

Skill Hierarchy

~/.claude/skills/
└── trellis-meta/              # THIS SKILL - Original Trellis documentation
                               # ⚠️ DO NOT MODIFY for project-specific changes

project/.claude/skills/
└── trellis-local/             # Project-specific customizations
                               # ✅ Record all modifications here

Why this separation?

• User may have multiple projects with different Trellis customizations
• Each project's trellis-local skill tracks ITS OWN modifications
• The meta-skill remains clean as the reference for original Trellis
• Enables easy upgrades: compare meta-skill with new Trellis version

---

Self-Iteration Protocol

When modifying Trellis for a project, follow this protocol:

1. Check for Existing Project Skill

# Look for project-local skill
ls -la .claude/skills/trellis-local/

2. Create Project Skill if Missing

If no trellis-local exists, create it:

mkdir -p .claude/skills/trellis-local

Then create .claude/skills/trellis-local/SKILL.md:

---
name: trellis-local
description: |
  Project-specific Trellis customizations for [PROJECT_NAME].
  This skill documents modifications made to the vanilla Trellis system
  in this project. Inherits from trellis-meta for base documentation.
---

# Trellis Local - [PROJECT_NAME]

## Base Version

Trellis version: X.X.X (from package.json or trellis --version)
Date initialized: YYYY-MM-DD

## Customizations

### Commands Added

(none yet)

### Agents Modified

(none yet)

### Hooks Changed

(none yet)

### Specs Customized

(none yet)

### Workflow Changes

(none yet)

---

## Changelog

### YYYY-MM-DD

- Initial setup

3. Record Every Modification

When making ANY change to Trellis, update trellis-local/SKILL.md:

Example: Adding a new command

### Commands Added

#### /trellis:my-command

- **File**: `.claude/commands/trellis/my-command.md`
- **Purpose**: [what it does]
- **Added**: 2026-01-31
- **Why**: [reason for adding]

Example: Modifying a hook

### Hooks Changed

#### inject-subagent-context.py

- **Change**: Added support for `my-agent` type
- **Lines modified**: 45-67
- **Date**: 2026-01-31
- **Why**: [reason]

4. Never Modify Meta-Skill for Project Changes

The trellis-meta skill should ONLY be updated when:

• Trellis releases a new version
• Fixing documentation errors in the original
• Adding missing documentation for original features

---

Architecture Overview

Trellis transforms AI assistants into structured development partners through enforced context injection.

System Layers

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                        USER INTERACTION                              │
│  /trellis:start  /trellis:brainstorm  /trellis:parallel             │
│  /trellis:finish-work  /trellis:before-dev  /trellis:check          │
└─────────────────────────────────┬───────────────────────────────────┘
                                  │
┌─────────────────────────────────▼───────────────────────────────────┐
│                         SKILLS LAYER                                 │
│  .claude/commands/trellis/*.md   (17 slash commands)                │
│  .claude/agents/*.md             (6 sub-agent definitions)          │
│  .agents/skills/*/SKILL.md       (shared agent skills layer)        │
└─────────────────────────────────┬───────────────────────────────────┘
                                  │
┌─────────────────────────────────▼───────────────────────────────────┐
│                          HOOKS LAYER                                 │
│  SessionStart      → session-start.py (workflow + context + status) │
│  PreToolUse:Agent  → inject-subagent-context.py (spec injection)    │
│  SubagentStop      → ralph-loop.py (quality enforcement)            │
│  Task Lifecycle    → config.yaml hooks (after_create/start/finish/  │
│                      archive → e.g. Linear sync)                    │
└─────────────────────────────────┬───────────────────────────────────┘
                                  │
┌─────────────────────────────────▼───────────────────────────────────┐
│                       PERSISTENCE LAYER                              │
│  .trellis/workspace/  (journals, session history)                   │
│  .trellis/tasks/      (task tracking, context files, subtasks)      │
│  .trellis/spec/       (coding guidelines, monorepo per-package)     │
│  .trellis/config.yaml (packages, hooks, update.skip, spec_scope)   │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

Key Design Principles

Principle	Description
Specs Injected, Not Remembered	Hooks enforce specs - agents always receive context
Read Before Write	Understand guidelines before writing code
Layered Context	Only relevant specs load (via JSONL files)
Human Commits	AI never commits - human validates first
Pure Dispatcher	Dispatch agent only orchestrates

---

Core Components

1. Workspace System

Track development progress across sessions with per-developer isolation.

.trellis/workspace/
├── index.md                    # Global overview
└── {developer}/                # Per-developer
    ├── index.md                # Personal index (@@@auto markers)
    └── journal-N.md            # Session journals (max 2000 lines)

Key files: .trellis/.developer (identity), journals (session history)

2. Task System

Track work items with phase-based execution, parent-child subtasks, and lifecycle hooks.

.trellis/tasks/{MM-DD-slug}/
├── task.json           # Metadata, phases, branch, subtasks
├── prd.md              # Requirements
├── info.md             # Technical design (optional)
├── implement.jsonl     # Context for implement agent
├── check.jsonl         # Context for check agent
├── debug.jsonl         # Context for debug agent
├── research.jsonl      # Context for research agent (optional)
└── cr.jsonl            # Context for code review (optional)

3. Spec System

Maintain coding standards that get injected to agents. Supports both single-repo and monorepo layouts.

# Single repo
.trellis/spec/
├── frontend/           # Frontend guidelines
├── backend/            # Backend guidelines
└── guides/             # Thinking guides

# Monorepo (per-package)
.trellis/spec/
├── <package-name>/     # Per-package specs
│   ├── backend/
│   ├── frontend/
│   └── unit-test/
└── guides/             # Shared thinking guides

4. Hooks System

Automatically inject context and enforce quality.

Claude Code / iFlow Hooks (settings.json):

Hook	When	Purpose
SessionStart	startup, clear, compact events	Inject workflow, guidelines, task status
PreToolUse:Agent	Before sub-agent launch	Inject specs via JSONL
PreToolUse:Task	Before Task tool (legacy)	Same as Agent (CC renamed Task→Agent)
SubagentStop:check	Check agent stops	Enforce verification (Ralph Loop)

Task Lifecycle Hooks (config.yaml):

Event	When	Purpose
after_create	Task created	e.g. create Linear issue
after_start	Task started	e.g. update Linear status
after_finish	Task finished	e.g. mark Linear complete
after_archive	Task archived	e.g. close Linear issue

5. Agent System

Specialized agents for different phases.

Agent	Purpose	Restriction
dispatch	Orchestrate pipeline	Pure dispatcher
plan	Evaluate requirements	Can reject unclear reqs
research	Find code patterns	Read-only
implement	Write code	No git commit
check	Review and self-fix	Ralph Loop controlled
debug	Fix issues	Precise fixes only

6. Multi-Agent Pipeline

Run parallel isolated sessions via Git worktrees.

plan.py → start.py → Dispatch → implement → check → create-pr

---

Customization Guide

Adding a Command

1. Create .claude/commands/trellis/my-command.md
2. Update trellis-local skill with the change

Adding an Agent

1. Create .claude/agents/my-agent.md with YAML frontmatter
2. Update inject-subagent-context.py to handle new agent type
3. Create my-agent.jsonl in task directories
4. Update trellis-local skill

Modifying Hooks

1. Edit the hook script in .claude/hooks/
2. Document the change in trellis-local skill
3. Note which lines were modified and why

Extending Specs

1. Create new category in .trellis/spec/my-category/
2. Add index.md and guideline files
3. Reference in JSONL context files
4. Update trellis-local skill

Changing Task Workflow

1. Modify next_action array in task.json
2. Update dispatch or hook scripts as needed
3. Document in trellis-local skill

---

Resources

Reference documents are organized by platform compatibility:

references/
├── core/              # All Platforms (Claude Code, Cursor, etc.)
├── claude-code/       # Claude Code Only
├── how-to-modify/     # Modification Guides
└── meta/              # Documentation & Templates

core/ - All Platforms

Document	Content
overview.md	Core systems introduction
files.md	All .trellis/ files with purposes
workspace.md	Workspace system, journals, developer identity
tasks.md	Task system, subtasks, lifecycle hooks, JSONL
specs.md	Spec system, monorepo layout, guidelines
scripts.md	Platform-independent scripts
config.md	config.yaml full reference

claude-code/ - Claude Code Only

Document	Content
overview.md	Claude Code features introduction
hooks.md	Hook system, context injection
agents.md	Agent types, invocation, Task tool
ralph-loop.md	Quality enforcement mechanism
multi-session.md	Parallel worktree sessions
worktree-config.md	worktree.yaml configuration
scripts.md	Claude Code only scripts

how-to-modify/ - Modification Guides

Document	Scenario
overview.md	Quick reference for all modifications
add-command.md	Adding slash commands
add-agent.md	Adding new agent types
add-spec.md	Adding spec categories
add-phase.md	Adding workflow phases
modify-hook.md	Modifying hook behavior
change-verify.md	Changing verify commands

meta/ - Documentation

Document	Content
platform-compatibility.md	Detailed platform support matrix
self-iteration-guide.md	How to document customizations
trellis-local-template.md	Template for project-local skill

---

Quick Reference

Key Scripts

Script	Purpose
get_context.py	Get session context (text/JSON)
task.py	Task management (16 subcommands)
add_session.py	Record session
create_bootstrap.py	First-time spec bootstrap
multi_agent/start.py	Start parallel agent
multi_agent/status.py	Monitor agent status
multi_agent/create_pr.py	Create PR from worktree

Key Paths

Path	Purpose
.trellis/.developer	Developer identity
.trellis/.current-task	Active task pointer
.trellis/workflow.md	Main workflow docs
.trellis/config.yaml	Project config (packages, hooks)
.trellis/worktree.yaml	Multi-session config
.claude/settings.json	Hook configuration
.agents/skills/	Shared agent skills (agentskills.io)

---

Upgrade Protocol

When upgrading Trellis to a new version:

1. Compare new meta-skill with current
2. Review changes in new version
3. Check trellis-local for conflicts
4. Merge carefully, preserving customizations
5. Update trellis-local with migration notes

## Changelog

### 2026-02-01 - Upgraded to Trellis X.Y.Z

- Merged new hook behavior from meta-skill
- Kept custom agent `my-agent`
- Updated check.jsonl template