# Knowledge Sync

> Sync vault knowledge patterns to skills. Scans Second Brain for strong signals, proposes skill updates. Use when user says knowledge sync, sync skills, update skills from vault, or promote patterns.

- Skill: `maroffo/knowledge-sync` (Agent Skill)
- Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add maroffo/knowledge-sync`
- Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/maroffo/knowledge-sync/raw
- Safety review: pending
- Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex
- Category: Coding & Dev Tools
- Author: maroffo (https://skillmd.com/u/maroffo)
- Updated: 2026-09-10
- Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/maroffo/knowledge-sync

---


# ABOUTME: Vault-to-skills sync, promotes recurring patterns from Second Brain to skill files
# ABOUTME: Scan/filter/group/propose/approve/apply cycle with signal strength tracking

# Knowledge Sync

Promotes recurring patterns from vault Second Brain notes into skill files. The APPLY step runs on human approval only, never autonomously. The scan-and-propose phase MAY run on a schedule (see Scheduled Mode).

## Signal Strength

| Signal | Criteria | Action |
|--------|----------|--------|
| weak | 1 project or 1 source | Track, don't propose |
| strong | 3+ projects OR 2+ independent sources | Propose to human |
| applied | Already synced to skill | Skip |

## Annotation Schema

Second Brain notes use a `## Skill Candidates` table:

```markdown
## Skill Candidates
<!-- Updated by learning-docs during retrospectives -->

| Pattern | Target Skill | Seen In | First Seen | Signal |
|---------|-------------|---------|------------|--------|
| Go error wrapping with %w | golang | feed-brain, bbp | 2026-01-15 | weak |
| Token bucket rate limiting | cloud-infrastructure | feed-brain, nur, clawdbot | 2026-01-10 | strong |
```

Table-based: easy to append via CLI, readable in Obsidian, parseable by Claude.

## Process

1. **SCAN**: `obsidian search query="## Skill Candidates" path="Second Brain" matches`
2. **FILTER**: only `strong` signals; skip rows where signal = `applied` or pattern already exists in target skill
3. **GROUP**: candidates by target skill with vault source citations
4. **PROPOSE**: draft exact text to add to each skill file (show diff-style)
5. **APPROVE**: human gate (always RED in decision framework)
6. **APPLY**: edit skill file + add backlink + update signal

## Apply Step Details

After human approval for each candidate:

1. Edit target skill file with the proposed addition
2. Add source backlink as HTML comment: `<!-- vault: [[Second Brain - Development#Pattern Name]] -->`
3. Update the Skill Candidates table: change signal from `strong` to `applied`

```bash
# Example: update signal in vault
obsidian read file="Second Brain - Development"
# Find the row, replace "strong" with "applied" in the table
obsidian append file="Second Brain - Development" content="..."
```

## Presentation Format

```markdown
## Knowledge Sync Report

### Candidates Found: N strong, M weak (skipped)

#### golang (2 candidates)

**1. Go error wrapping with %w**
- Source: [[Second Brain - Development#Go Error Handling]]
- Seen in: feed-brain, bbp
- Proposed addition to `skills/golang/SKILL.md`:
  ```
  [exact text to add]
  ```
- [ ] Approve  [ ] Skip  [ ] Modify

#### cloud-infrastructure (1 candidate)
...
```

## Scheduled Mode (propose-only)

The scan half of this skill may run unattended; the APPLY gate never does. A scheduled run executes SCAN → FILTER → GROUP → PROPOSE, writes the report to `quality_reports/knowledge_sync/report-YYYY-MM-DD.md` in the forge repo, and STOPS. Max reviews the report later and triggers APPLY interactively.

Runner: a user crontab entry (1st of the month, 09:23 local). **The human installs it manually**: persisting a headless autonomous run is a user-authorized action, Claude only documents the line (`crontab -l` to inspect, `crontab -r` or edit to remove). Replace `<forge-repo>` and `<claude-bin>` with your paths (`which claude`), and `mkdir -p ~/.claude/logs` first (cron fails silently on a missing redirect target):

```
23 9 1 * * cd <forge-repo> && <claude-bin> -p "Run the knowledge-sync skill in Scheduled Mode: SCAN, FILTER, GROUP, PROPOSE only. Write the report to quality_reports/knowledge_sync/report-$(date +\%Y-\%m-\%d).md. Do NOT apply any skill changes." >> ~/.claude/logs/knowledge-sync-cron.log 2>&1
```

Caveats:

- cron does not catch up on runs missed while the machine sleeps: if the report is missing after the 1st, kick the same prompt manually.
- The headless run depends on the settings.json allowlist covering the `obsidian` CLI; a permission denial shows up in the log file, not on screen.
- The report lands on whatever branch is currently checked out in the forge repo. Reports are tracked in git (review history), not gitignored.
- CronCreate (in-session scheduler) is NOT suitable here: its jobs are session-only and expire within 7 days.

## Quality Notes

- Take your time scanning every Skill Candidates table thoroughly
- Read the target skill file before proposing additions (avoid duplicates)
- Quality of proposals matters more than quantity
- Do not skip validation steps

## Rules

- **Never auto-apply.** Always present proposals and wait for approval.
- **One skill at a time.** Don't batch across skills without per-skill approval.
- **Preserve existing content.** Additions only, never modify existing skill text.
- **Backlinks are mandatory.** Every applied pattern traces back to its vault source.
- **Cadence:** monthly or after major project milestones. Not after every session.