Architecture Audit

Architecture Audit

Comprehensive project consistency review across code, documentation, diagrams, and configuration

Overview

Systematic audit process to ensure all project artifacts stay synchronized. Catches version drift, terminology inconsistencies, outdated diagrams, broken references, and code-to-docs mismatches.

⚠️ IMPORTANT: This skill audits the user's project code, NOT the Alex cognitive architecture in .github/. Ignore .github/ folder contents when performing audits - focus on the actual source code, documentation, and configuration in the project root and subdirectories.

Triggers

• "audit", "comprehensive review", "fact-check"
• "consistency check", "project health"
• "pre-release audit", "documentation review"
• Before major releases or after significant refactoring

Audit Checklist

1. Version Consistency

# Find version references in common locations
# EXCLUDE: .github/** (Alex cognitive architecture - not project code)
$patterns = @(
    'package.json',           # "version": "x.y.z"
    'src/**/config*.json',    # Version in config files (not .github)
    '*.md',                   # Root documentation only
    'docs/**/*.md',           # Project docs (not .github)
    'src/**/constants.ts',    # Hardcoded versions
    'CHANGELOG.md'            # Version headers
)

# Grep for version patterns
Get-ChildItem -Recurse -Include $patterns |
    Select-String -Pattern 'v?\d+\.\d+\.\d+' |
    Group-Object -Property Line

Check: All version references match the canonical version (usually package.json)

2. Terminology Consistency

Build a deprecated terms list for your project:

# Search for deprecated terms (exclude .github/)
$deprecated = @('OLD_TERM_1', 'OLD_TERM_2')
foreach ($term in $deprecated) {
    Get-ChildItem -Recurse -Include "*.md","*.ts","*.json" -Exclude ".github" |
        Where-Object { $_.FullName -notmatch '\\.github' } |
        Select-String -Pattern $term
}

3. Fact Inventory

Maintain a facts file or section with current counts:

## Current Facts (Update on Audit)
- Skills: 46 folders
- Commands: 16 total
- Tools: 11 MCP tools
- Agents: 5 custom agents
- Instructions: 19 files
- Prompts: 7 files

Check: All documentation referencing these counts matches actual values

4. Diagram Validation

For each diagram (Mermaid/ASCII):

• Node labels match current terminology
• Counts in labels are accurate
• Flow directions reflect actual data flow
• Subgroup names are current
• No references to deprecated concepts

# Find all diagrams in project (exclude .github/)
Get-ChildItem -Recurse -Include "*.md" |
    Where-Object { $_.FullName -notmatch '\\.github' } |
    Select-String -Pattern '```mermaid|```ascii|┌|╔' |
    Group-Object -Property Path

5. Cross-Reference Validation

• Internal links resolve ([text](path) → file exists)
• Anchor links work (#section-name → heading exists)
• Image references valid
• Import/require statements resolve

# Find markdown links in project (exclude .github/)
Get-ChildItem -Recurse -Include "*.md" |
    Where-Object { $_.FullName -notmatch '\\.github' } |
    Select-String -Pattern '\[.*?\]\((?!http)[^)]+\)' |
    ForEach-Object {
        # Extract path and verify existence
    }

6. Code-to-Docs Sync

7. Configuration Alignment

• TypeScript constants match documentation
• JSON schemas match actual structure
• Environment variables documented
• Feature flags documented

Audit Report Template

# Architecture Audit Report
**Date:** YYYY-MM-DD
**Version Audited:** x.y.z
**Auditor:** [name/AI]

## Summary
| Category | Status | Issues Found |
|----------|--------|--------------|
| Version Consistency | ✅/⚠️/❌ | N |
| Terminology | ✅/⚠️/❌ | N |
| Fact Accuracy | ✅/⚠️/❌ | N |
| Diagrams | ✅/⚠️/❌ | N |
| Cross-References | ✅/⚠️/❌ | N |
| Code-Docs Sync | ✅/⚠️/❌ | N |

## Issues Found
### [Category]
- **File:** path/to/file
- **Line:** N
- **Issue:** Description
- **Fix:** Suggested correction

## Actions Taken
- [ ] Issue 1 fixed
- [ ] Issue 2 fixed

Automation Opportunities

Pre-commit Hook

# .husky/pre-commit or similar
npm run audit:quick  # Fast checks only

CI Pipeline

# GitHub Actions
- name: Architecture Audit
  run: npm run audit:full
  if: github.event_name == 'pull_request'

Scheduled Audit

# Weekly full audit
on:
  schedule:
    - cron: '0 9 * * 1'  # Monday 9am

Anti-Patterns

❌ Skipping audits before release — Drift accumulates silently

❌ Manual-only audits — Automate what you can

❌ Fixing without documenting — Record the pattern for next time

❌ Ignoring "cosmetic" issues — They signal deeper drift

❌ Auditing only changed files — Drift affects unchanged files too

Best Practices

✅ Run full audit before major releases

✅ Add new deprecated terms as you migrate

✅ Update fact inventory after structural changes

✅ Document audit findings for patterns

✅ Automate repetitive checks

✅ Time-box manual review (don't boil the ocean)

Integration with Other Skills

• release-preflight → Trigger audit before release
• architecture-health → Synapse-specific validation
• code-review → Audit as part of PR review
• refactoring-patterns → Audit after major refactoring

Synapses

• [release-preflight/SKILL.md] (High, Enables, Forward) - "Pre-release audit trigger"
• [architecture-health/SKILL.md] (High, Complements, Bidirectional) - "Health + consistency"
• [code-review/SKILL.md] (Medium, Extends, Forward) - "Broader than code"
• [refactoring-patterns/SKILL.md] (Medium, Triggers, Backward) - "Post-refactor audit"
• [self-actualization.instructions.md] (Medium, Complements, Bidirectional) - "Architecture introspection"