Docs Manager

Documentation Manager Workflow

Execute a structured 6-phase workflow for managing documentation. Supports two documentation formats (MkDocs sites and standalone markdown files) and three action types (generate, update, change summary).

CRITICAL: Complete ALL applicable phases. Some phases are conditional. After completing each phase, immediately proceed to the next phase without waiting for user prompts.

Phase Overview

Execute these phases in order, completing ALL of them:

1. Interactive Discovery — Determine documentation type, format, and scope through user interaction
2. Project Detection & Setup — Detect project context, conditionally scaffold MkDocs
3. Codebase Analysis — Deep codebase exploration using the deep-analysis skill
4. Documentation Planning — Translate analysis findings into a concrete plan for user approval
5. Documentation Generation — Launch docs-writer agents to generate content
6. Integration & Finalization — Write files, validate, present results

Phase 1: Interactive Discovery

Goal: Determine through user interaction what documentation to create and in what format.

Step 1 — Infer intent from $ARGUMENTS

Parse the user's input to pre-fill selections:

• Keywords like "README", "CONTRIBUTING", "ARCHITECTURE" → infer basic-markdown
• Keywords like "mkdocs", "docs site", "documentation site" → infer mkdocs
• Keywords like "changelog", "release notes", "what changed" → infer change-summary

If the intent is clear, present a summary for quick confirmation before proceeding (skip to Step 4). If ambiguous, proceed to Step 2.

Step 2 — Q1: Documentation type

If the documentation type is ambiguous or needs confirmation, use AskUserQuestion:

What type of documentation would you like to create?
1. "MkDocs documentation site" — Full docs site with mkdocs.yml, Material theme
2. "Basic markdown files" — Standalone files like README.md, CONTRIBUTING.md, ARCHITECTURE.md
3. "Change summary" — Changelog, release notes, commit message

Store as DOC_TYPE = mkdocs | basic-markdown | change-summary.

Step 3 — Conditional follow-up questions

If DOC_TYPE = mkdocs:

Q2: AskUserQuestion — Existing project or new setup?

• "Existing MkDocs project" → MKDOCS_MODE = existing
• "New MkDocs setup" → MKDOCS_MODE = new

Q3 (if existing): AskUserQuestion — What to do?

• "Generate new pages"
• "Update existing pages"
• "Both — generate and update" Store as ACTION.

Q3 (if new): AskUserQuestion — Scope?

• "Full documentation"
• "Getting started only (minimal init)"
• "Custom pages" Store as MKDOCS_SCOPE. If custom, use AskUserQuestion for desired pages (free text).

If DOC_TYPE = basic-markdown:

Q2: AskUserQuestion (multiSelect) — Which files?

• "README.md"
• "CONTRIBUTING.md"
• "ARCHITECTURE.md"
• "API documentation" Store as MARKDOWN_FILES. If "Other" is selected, use AskUserQuestion for custom file paths/descriptions.

If DOC_TYPE = change-summary:

Q2: AskUserQuestion — What range?

• "Since last tag"
• "Between two refs"
• "Recent changes" Follow up for specific range details (tag name, ref pair, etc.).

Step 4 — Confirm selections

Present a summary of all selections and use AskUserQuestion:

• "Proceed"
• "Change selections"

If the user wants to change, loop back to the relevant question.

Immediately proceed to Phase 2.

Phase 2: Project Detection & Setup

Goal: Detect project context automatically, conditionally scaffold MkDocs.

Step 1 — Detect project metadata (all paths)

• Check manifests: package.json, pyproject.toml, Cargo.toml, go.mod, pom.xml
• Run git remote get-url origin 2>/dev/null
• Note primary language and framework

Step 2 — Check existing documentation (all paths)

• Glob for docs/**/*.md, README.md, CONTRIBUTING.md, ARCHITECTURE.md
• For MkDocs: check for mkdocs.yml/mkdocs.yaml, read if found

Step 3 — MkDocs Initialization (only if DOC_TYPE = mkdocs AND MKDOCS_MODE = new)

1. Load ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/skills/docs-manager/references/mkdocs-config-template.md
2. Fill template with detected metadata (ask via AskUserQuestion if incomplete)
3. Generate mkdocs.yml, create docs/index.md and docs/getting-started.md
4. Present scaffold for confirmation before writing

If MKDOCS_SCOPE = minimal (getting started only): write the scaffold files and skip to Phase 6.

Step 4 — Set action-specific context (for update/change-summary)

For update modes, determine the approach:

• git-diff — Update docs affected by recent code changes (default if user mentions "recent changes" or a branch/tag)
• full-scan — Compare all source code against all docs for gap analysis (default if user says "full update" or "sync all")
• targeted — Update specific pages or sections (default if user specifies file paths or page names)

For change-summary, run git log and git diff --stat for the determined range.

Immediately proceed to Phase 3.

Phase 3: Codebase Analysis

Goal: Deep codebase exploration using the deep-analysis skill.

Skip conditions:

• Skip for change-summary (uses git-based analysis instead — see below)
• Skip for MkDocs minimal init-only (MKDOCS_SCOPE = minimal)

Step 1 — Build documentation-focused analysis context

Construct a specific context string based on Phase 1 selections:

Step 2 — Run deep-analysis (or teams-deep-analysis)

Check if $ARGUMENTS contains the --teams flag:

• If --teams: Read ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/skills/teams-deep-analysis/SKILL.md and follow its workflow
• Otherwise: Read ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/skills/deep-analysis/SKILL.md and follow its workflow

Pass the documentation-focused analysis context from Step 1.

Deep-analysis handles all agent orchestration (code-explorers + codebase-synthesizer). Since docs-manager is the calling skill, deep-analysis returns control without standalone summary.

Step 3 — Supplemental analysis for update with git-diff mode

After deep-analysis, additionally:

1. Run git diff --name-only [base-ref] for changed files
2. Use Grep to search existing docs for references to changed files/functions
3. Cross-reference with synthesis findings

For change-summary path (instead of deep-analysis)

1. Run git log --oneline [range] and git diff --stat [range]
2. Launch 1 code-explorer agent using Task tool with subagent_type: "claude-alchemy-tools:code-explorer" to analyze the changed files:

   Analysis context: Change summary for [range]
   Focus area: These files changed in the specified range:
   [list from git diff --stat]
   
   For each significant change, identify:
   - What was added, modified, or removed
   - Impact on public APIs and user-facing behavior
   - Whether any changes are breaking
   Return a structured report of your findings.
   

Immediately proceed to Phase 4.

Phase 4: Documentation Planning

Goal: Translate analysis findings into a concrete documentation plan.

Step 1 — Produce plan based on doc type

MkDocs:

• Pages to create (with docs/ paths)
• Pages to update (with specific sections)
• Proposed mkdocs.yml nav updates
• Page dependency ordering (independent pages first, then pages that cross-reference them)

Basic Markdown:

• Files to create/update (with target paths)
• Proposed structure/outline for each file
• Content scope per file

Change Summary:

• Output formats to generate (Format 1: Changelog, Format 2: Commit message, Format 3: MkDocs page — only if MkDocs site exists)
• Range confirmation
• Scope of changes

Step 2 — User approval

Use AskUserQuestion:

• "Approve the plan as-is"
• "Modify the plan" (describe changes)
• "Reduce scope" (select specific items only)

Immediately proceed to Phase 5.

Phase 5: Documentation Generation

Goal: Generate content using docs-writer agents.

Step 1 — Load templates

• If DOC_TYPE = change-summary: Read ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/skills/docs-manager/references/change-summary-templates.md
• If DOC_TYPE = basic-markdown: Read ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/skills/docs-manager/references/markdown-file-templates.md

Step 2 — Group by dependency

• Independent pages/files — Can be written without referencing other new content (API reference, standalone guides, individual markdown files)
• Dependent pages/files — Reference or summarize content from other pages (index pages, overview pages, README that links to CONTRIBUTING)

Step 3 — Launch docs-writer agents

Launch agents using Task tool with subagent_type: "claude-alchemy-tools:docs-writer" and model: "opus".

Launch independent pages/files in parallel, then sequential for dependent ones (include generated content from independent pages in the prompt context).

MkDocs prompt template:

Documentation task: [page type — API reference / architecture / how-to / change summary]
Target file: [docs/path/to/page.md]
Output format: MkDocs
Project: [project name] at [project root]

MkDocs site context:
- Theme: Material for MkDocs
- Extensions available: admonitions, code highlighting, tabbed content, Mermaid diagrams
- Existing pages: [list of current doc pages]

Exploration findings:
[Relevant findings from Phase 3 for this page]

Existing page content (if updating):
[Current content of the page, or "New page — no existing content"]

Generate the complete page content in MkDocs-flavored Markdown.

Basic Markdown prompt template:

Documentation task: [file type — README / CONTRIBUTING / ARCHITECTURE / API docs]
Target file: [path/to/file.md]
Output format: Basic Markdown
Project: [project name] at [project root]

File type guidance:
[Relevant structural template from markdown-file-templates.md]

Exploration findings:
[Relevant findings from Phase 3 for this file]

Existing file content (if updating):
[Current content, or "New file — no existing content"]

Generate the complete file content in standard GitHub-flavored Markdown.
Do NOT use MkDocs-specific extensions (admonitions, tabbed content, code block titles).

Step 4 — Review generated content

• Verify structure, check for unfilled placeholders
• Validate cross-references between pages/files use correct relative paths

Immediately proceed to Phase 6.

Phase 6: Integration & Finalization

Goal: Write files, validate, present results.

Step 1 — Write files

MkDocs:

• Write pages under docs/
• Update mkdocs.yml nav — read current config, add new pages in logical positions, preserve existing structure

Basic Markdown:

• Write files to their target paths (project root or specified directories)
• For updates, use the Edit tool to modify existing files

Change Summary:

• Present outputs inline for review
• Write files as applicable (e.g., append to CHANGELOG.md)

Step 2 — Validate

MkDocs:

• Verify all files referenced in nav exist on disk using Glob
• Check for broken cross-references between pages using Grep
• If mkdocs CLI is available, run mkdocs build --strict 2>&1 to check for warnings (non-blocking)

Basic Markdown:

• Validate internal cross-references between files (e.g., README links to CONTRIBUTING)
• Check that referenced paths exist

Step 3 — Present results

Summarize what was done:

• Files created (with paths)
• Files updated (with description of changes)
• Navigation changes (if MkDocs)
• Any validation warnings

For change-summary, present generated outputs directly inline.

Step 4 — Next steps

Use AskUserQuestion with relevant options:

MkDocs:

• "Preview the site" (if mkdocs serve is available)
• "Commit the changes"
• "Generate additional pages"
• "Done — no further action"

Basic Markdown:

• "Commit the changes"
• "Generate additional files"
• "Review a specific file"
• "Done — no further action"

Error Handling

If any phase fails:

1. Explain what went wrong
2. Ask the user how to proceed:
   • Retry the phase
   • Skip to next phase (with partial results)
   • Abort the workflow

Non-Git Projects

If the project is not a git repository:

• Skip git remote detection in Phase 2 (omit repo_url and repo_name from mkdocs.yml)
• The update action with git-diff mode is unavailable — fall back to full-scan or targeted mode
• The change-summary action is unavailable — inform the user and suggest alternatives

Basic Markdown on Non-Git Projects

• CONTRIBUTING.md is still viable — use project conventions instead of git workflow sections
• Skip branch naming and PR process sections; focus on code style, testing, and setup

Phase Failure

• Explain the error clearly
• Offer retry/skip/abort options via AskUserQuestion

Agent Coordination

• Phase 3: Exploration and synthesis handled by the deep-analysis skill (or teams-deep-analysis with --teams). Deep-analysis orchestrates its own code-explorer and codebase-synthesizer agents.
• Phase 5: docs-writer agents launched with model: "opus" for high-quality content generation. Parallel for independent files, sequential for dependent files.

Additional Resources

• For MkDocs configuration template, see references/mkdocs-config-template.md
• For change summary formats, see references/change-summary-templates.md
• For standalone markdown file templates, see references/markdown-file-templates.md