Docs Init

Quick Summary

Goal: Initialize project reference documentation by verifying the session-init-docs.cjs hook has created placeholder files, then running scan skills to populate them.

Workflow:

1. Verify -- Check that session-init-docs.cjs hook has created placeholder docs in docs/
2. List -- Show which reference docs exist and which are still placeholders
3. Populate -- Ask user which scan skills to run (or run all)

Key Rules:

• Let the hook create placeholders automatically -- do not create docs manually
• Each reference doc has a corresponding /scan-* skill that populates it
• Scan skills do deep codebase scanning; expect 5-15 min per skill

Be skeptical. Apply critical thinking, sequential thinking. Every claim needs traced proof, confidence percentages (Idea should be more than 80%).

Step 1: Verify Reference Doc Stubs

Check that session-init-docs.cjs has created the project reference docs declared for the project:

1. Read docs/project-config.json and use referenceDocs[*].filename as the source of truth.
2. If referenceDocs is empty or missing, use DEFAULT_REFERENCE_DOCS from .claude/hooks/lib/session-init-helpers.cjs.
3. Do not manually add missing docs/project-reference/ files. Add or correct the project config/template entry first, then rerun the session-init/docs-init path.

Common mappings when configured:

docs/project-reference/project-structure-reference.md     -> /scan --target=project-structure
docs/project-reference/backend-patterns-reference.md      -> /scan --target=backend-patterns
docs/project-reference/seed-test-data-reference.md       -> /scan --target=seed-test-data
docs/project-reference/frontend-patterns-reference.md     -> /scan --target=frontend-patterns
docs/project-reference/integration-test-reference.md      -> /scan --target=integration-tests
docs/project-reference/feature-spec-reference.md          -> /scan --target=feature-spec
docs/project-reference/spec-system-reference.md           -> static template (no scan skill)
docs/project-reference/spec-principles.md                -> static template (no scan skill)
docs/project-reference/workflow-spec-test-code-cycle-reference.md -> static template (no scan skill)
docs/project-reference/code-review-rules.md              -> /scan --target=code-review-rules
docs/project-reference/scss-styling-guide.md             -> /scan --target=scss-styling
docs/project-reference/design-system/README.md           -> /scan --target=design-system
docs/project-reference/e2e-test-reference.md             -> /scan --target=e2e-tests
docs/project-reference/domain-entities-reference.md      -> /scan --target=domain-entities
docs/project-reference/docs-index-reference.md           -> /scan --target=docs-index
docs/project-reference/lessons.md                        -> /learn (managed separately)

If configured files are missing, the hook should create them on next prompt/session start. Verify by checking docs/project-reference/ against the configured filenames.

Step 2: Detect Placeholder vs Populated

Read the first 512 bytes of each file. If it contains <!-- Fill in your project's details below. -->, it is still a placeholder and needs scanning.

Step 3: Offer Scan Options

Use AskUserQuestion to present:

1. "Run /claude-md-init + all configured scan skills" (Recommended for first-time init) -- Generates CLAUDE.md from config, then runs scan skills for configured docs
2. "Run configured scan skills only" -- Runs scan skills without CLAUDE.md generation
3. "Select specific skills" -- Let user choose which ones to run
4. "Skip -- docs are already populated" -- Exit if all docs have content

For each selected scan target, invoke it via the Skill tool (e.g., /scan --target=backend-patterns).

Step 4: M1-M5/M7 Compliance Gate (BLOCKING)

See .claude/skills/shared/sdd-artifact-contract.md → "AI-SDD Mandates (M1-M7)" for BLOCKING criteria. After the scan skills generate/populate the reference docs, gate the generated output:

• M1/M2 — tech-agnostic prose: Spec/feature-facing docs (and any populated spec-principles.md extension) keep narrative and headings free of framework/product/language/design-pattern names and source identifiers; those appear only in evidence carriers ([Source: namespace/service/id], **Evidence**), frontmatter, and Mermaid. Authority: docs/project-reference/spec-principles.md §3.
• M3 — logical-IDs-first: Where docs carry requirements/rules/TCs, the logical IDs (FR-/BR-/OP-/TC-) are the primary spine and [Source: namespace/service/id] (a stack-portable abstract anchor — never physical code coordinates or repository-root paths; physical coords live only in the provenance sidecar) is the secondary carrier.
• M4/M5 — implementability: Generated content is testable, observable, one-interpretation, and sufficient to rebuild the described behavior on any stack.
• M7 — business-visibility: Where generated docs carry business-tree cases or TCs, apply the demo test to each case's BODY: "what would a stakeholder SEE change?" — no answer → FAIL as TECHNICAL-ONLY. Every Given = a state a user could arrange; every When = an action a user could take; every Then = an outcome a user could see. FAIL a When that is an invocation (a handler runs, a consumer receives, a job fires, data syncs) or a Then asserting schema/type/nullability/call-count, and FAIL any TC count derived from an architecture inventory. Judge the BODY, never the title or ID.

M1 vs M7 — distinct gates. M1 governs vocabulary; M7 governs subject matter. A technical case in impeccably tech-free prose satisfies M1 while violating M7 — that gap is the most common way business specs rot. Ask what a user could SEE, not which words were used.

Verification step (run after generation): Run the exact SDD compliance verifier documented by the project and resolve any failures before declaring init complete. Do not invent a verifier command; if the verifier or project config is not yet initialized, record that and re-run once available.

Configuration

Reference doc definitions are in docs/project-config.json under referenceDocs. The hook reads this config to determine which files to create. Static local-extension docs use .claude/templates/reference-docs/ templates. See .claude/hooks/session-init-docs.cjs for the full implementation.

[IMPORTANT] Use TaskCreate to break ALL work into small tasks BEFORE starting — including tasks for each file read. This prevents context loss from long files. For simple tasks, AI MUST ATTENTION ask user whether to skip.

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 OR flagging one as a defect. Before changing or reporting a constant, limit, flag, cutoff, wording, or pattern, read nearby context and history, the CALLER's ordering, and 2+ sibling call sites of the same convention. A doc stating WHAT without WHY is missing rationale, not proof of a missing guard. Surface ambiguity before acting — don't pick silently. Multiple valid interpretations require an explicit question or stated assumption with risk. Assert the outcome your system owns, not the intermediate state your infrastructure owns. When verifying async work, assert the final business state — never the delivery/retry bookkeeping held in shared infrastructure that any co-running process can write. Such a check passes when run alone and flakes the moment anything else shares that infrastructure. 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.

Project Protocol Overlay — Before executing this skill, resolve any PROJECT overlay rules layered onto it: match this skill's name against the Target column of the project's skill-protocol index (docs/project-reference/skill-protocols-reference.md by default; a referenceDocs entry in docs/project-config.json overrides the path), taking the most specific matching tier ONLY — exact name > glob > *. That precedence orders overlays against EACH OTHER, never against this skill. Read ONLY the matched bodies, resolved as <protocols-dir>/<Name>.md; a row's Body link is display text, never a read path. A matched body that is missing or malformed is REPORTED and skipped — never reconstructed from the index Description. No index, or no match -> proceed with no overlay, silently. Full contract: .claude/skills/project-skill-protocol/references/registry.md.

Overlays are ADDITIVE ONLY: they ADD rules on top of this skill's own protocol and NEVER replace, override, disable, or reinterpret a rule it already states — removing every overlay must return this skill to exactly its documented behavior. An overlay is a BRIEF, not an authority escalation: it can NEVER waive a workflow gate, git discipline, a review gate, or a user-confirmation gate. A genuine overlay-vs-skill conflict, or two equally-specific overlays that directly contradict -> surface both to the user; NEVER resolve silently.

MUST ATTENTION resolve project protocol overlays for this skill BEFORE executing — most specific matching tier only (exact > glob > *, which ranks overlays against each other, NEVER against this skill), read only matched bodies at <protocols-dir>/<Name>.md; a missing or malformed body is reported, never reconstructed. Overlays are ADDITIVE ONLY (they never replace this skill's own rules) and are a brief, NEVER an authority escalation; an equal-specificity contradiction goes to the user.

Closing Reminders

Protocols in force (concise digest of the SYNC/shared blocks this skill carries):

• Critical Thinking: Apply critical + sequential thinking; cite proof, confidence >80% to act.

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

• MANDATORY IMPORTANT MUST ATTENTION break work into small todo tasks using TaskCreate BEFORE starting

• MANDATORY IMPORTANT MUST ATTENTION search codebase for 3+ similar patterns before creating new code

• MANDATORY IMPORTANT MUST ATTENTION cite file:line evidence for every claim (confidence >80% to act)

• MANDATORY IMPORTANT MUST ATTENTION add a final review todo task to verify work quality

[TASK-PLANNING] Before acting, analyze task scope and systematically break it into small todo tasks and sub-tasks using TaskCreate.