Clarify

User Input

$ARGUMENTS

Outline

$ARGUMENTS (if any) narrows scope: a category (security, data, performance, azure) or a specific term. Empty = scan the whole spec.

Run before /speckit:plan. If user is doing an exploratory spike and wants to skip, proceed but warn rework risk increases.

1. Load context. Read specs/feature.json → <feature_directory>. Read <feature_directory>/spec.md and constitution.md. Stop if spec.md missing (run /speckit:specify).

2. Scan for ambiguity across these dimensions; mark each Clear / Partial / Missing (keep map internal): functional scope, success criteria, out-of-scope, user roles; domain & data model (entities, attributes, relationships, identity, lifecycle, scale); interaction & UX (critical journeys, error/empty/loading states, accessibility, localization); non-functional (perf, scalability, reliability/availability, observability, security/privacy, compliance); integration & dependencies (external services, failure modes, data formats, versioning); edge cases & failure handling (negative flows, throttling, conflict resolution); constraints & tradeoffs (tech, hosting, rejected alternatives); terminology (glossary, deprecated synonyms); completion signals (testable acceptance criteria, measurable DoD); placeholders (TODO, [NEEDS CLARIFICATION: …], vague adjectives like "robust"/"fast"/"intuitive" with no metric); Azure / cloud: target services + regions, identity model + RBAC, networking (private endpoints, VNet, egress), secret handling (Key Vault vs. inline), data residency / retention / backup, environments (dev/staging/prod), rollback expectations.

3. Build a prioritized question queue (internal — never reveal future questions). Max 5 questions per session, ordered by Impact × Uncertainty. Each must be answerable as a 2–5 option multiple choice (mutually exclusive options) or a short answer capped at ≤5 words. Skip questions that are stylistic, already answered, or better deferred to /speckit:plan (note as "Deferred"). Constitution non-negotiables outrank everything; never ask the user to dilute them — clarify how the spec will satisfy them.

4. Ask one question at a time. For each: pick the most defensible option based on best practice, risk reduction, and constitution alignment.

   • Multiple-choice format:

     **Recommended:** Option <X> — <1–2 sentence reason>
     
     | Option | Description |
     |--------|-------------|
     | A | … |
     | B | … |
     | … | … |
     | Short | Provide a different short answer (≤5 words) |
     
     Reply with the option letter, "yes" / "recommended" to accept, or your own short answer.
     

   • Short-answer format:

     **Suggested:** <answer> — <brief reason>
     
     Format: ≤5 words. Reply "yes" / "suggested" to accept, or your own answer.
     

   • Treat "yes" / "recommended" / "suggested" as accepting the proposal. Validate each answer maps to an option or fits the ≤5-word constraint; one disambiguation pass allowed (doesn't consume a slot). Stop early on "done" / "stop" / "proceed", when remaining queued questions become unnecessary, or after 5 accepted answers.

5. Integrate each accepted answer into spec.md immediately (atomic overwrite after each). Ensure a ## Clarifications section exists (insert just after the overview if missing); ensure a ### Session YYYY-MM-DD subheading for today; append - Q: <question> → A: <final answer> under that session. Apply the answer to the most appropriate section: functional ambiguity → Functional Requirements; role/actor → User Scenarios; data shape → Data Model (add fields/types/relationships, preserve order); non-functional → Success Criteria as a measurable target (replace vague adjectives with metrics); edge case → Edge Cases / Error Handling; terminology → normalize across the spec, adding (formerly "X") once if old term must remain referenced; Azure-specific → add a concrete value (service, SKU, region, identity, RBAC role, Key Vault reference, etc.) where the ambiguity lived. Replace invalid statements rather than duplicating; leave no contradictions. Resolve any matching [NEEDS CLARIFICATION: …] marker by removing it once integrated. Preserve unrelated sections, heading hierarchy, and formatting.

6. Validate after each write and at the end: one bullet per accepted answer in the session, no duplicates; ≤5 accepted questions total; no vague placeholder remains for an answered question; no contradictory earlier statement remains; only new headings introduced are ## Clarifications and ### Session YYYY-MM-DD; canonical terms used consistently across touched sections.

7. Report: path to updated spec.md; questions asked / accepted; sections touched; coverage summary per dimension — Resolved, Deferred (better in /speckit:plan), Clear (already sufficient), Outstanding (still ambiguous but low impact); recommended next command: /speckit:plan, or rerun /speckit:clarify if high-impact ambiguity remains.

Guidelines

• Never ask more than 5 questions per session; retries on the same question don't count.
• If no meaningful ambiguity exists, say so and recommend proceeding to /speckit:plan.
• Don't ask speculative tech-stack questions unless the gap blocks functional clarity.
• Don't reveal upcoming questions in advance.
• Constitution non-negotiables can't be relaxed by clarification — only enforced.